WILLIS, Texas – A Montogomery County mother shared a heartbreaking story with the community in an effort to highlight the dangers of teenage drunk driving as summer break begins.
On Wednesday, AAA and the Harris County Sherriff’s Office hosted a news conference about teenager safety for their ‘100 Deadliest Days of Summer’ campaign.
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During the event, Kelly and James Walker took to the podium to speak about her son who was tragically killed in a DUI-related vehicle incident back in 2022.
Kelly said their son, 16-year-old Garrett Spry, was hanging out with his sister Marissa and her friend on March 26, 2022.
At some point during the night, the teens stopped by the store to grab some liquor, went to a nearby park, and drank the alcohol.
At around 4 a.m., the teens were reportedly heading back home when they stopped to do donuts in the vehicle in an empty parking lot, according to Kelly.
“They found the perfect spot,” she said. “A gravel, rock lot with a power pole and dumpsters right in the middle.”
Kelly says that’s when things took a turn for the worse. “The vehicle’s tire caught the guy wire attached to the utility pole and flipped onto its side. The driver was unharmed. Marissa was taken to the hospital for observation. And Garrett died on impact.”
Kelly said that when she and her husband arrived at the scene, paramedics handed her Marissa and then asked if she had another child.
She told officials about Garrett and was then told a parent’s worst nightmare... Garrett didn’t make it.
That’s when she said she realized that her daughter was standing before her “covered in her brother’s blood.”
“Marissa had to sit there and wait, covered in her brother’s blood, with his lifeless body until the first responders arrived,” she said.
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Additionally, Garrett was also not wearing his seatbelt, which is another leading cause of deadly crashes.
“We pray that through our story, no other families will have to endure what we’ve been through,” Kelly said. “We don’t get to see Garrett graduate this year, nor will we see him go on to marry, and start a family of his own.”
Harris County deputies say that in 2023 alone, crashes involving teenage drivers caused 23 fatalities and 85 serious injuries in our area.
AAA corporate communications manager Doug Shupe said from 2013 to 2022, more than 7,000 people lost their lives in teen-related crashes during the summer.
Kelly wants to remind teenagers and parents of a few things: “Think before you get behind the wheel. Be smart. Drive safely. Buckle up. Good decisions change lives too.”
According to WeSaveLives.org, the 100 deadliest days of summer begin Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day weekend.
Throughout this time, teen drivers are reportedly about 25% more likely to be in a car crash. Experts say that this is especially alarming because even under normal circumstances, drivers under the age of 20 are three times more likely to crash than drivers in the general population.
On their website, experts listed some facts about teenage drivers:
- Teens between the ages of 16 and 19 have the highest crash rate of any age group.
- 60% of teen crashes today are caused by distracted driving.
- Surprisingly, the top distraction for teens is other passengers, accounting for 15% of teen driver crashes, compared to 12 % caused by texting or talking on a cell phone.
- During 2020 about 8 teens died each day and hundreds more were injured in motor vehicle crashes.
- 44% of motor vehicle crash deaths among teens ages 13–19 occurred between 9 pm and 6 am, and 50% occurred on Friday, Saturday, or Sunday in 2020.2
- Among teen drivers and passengers 16–19 years of age who were killed in car crashes in 2020, 56% were not wearing a seat belt at the time of the crash.