Two years after the Border Patrol vehicle she was driving struck and killed Gunflint Trail resident Ken Petersen as he attempted to clear a downed tree from the road, Maranda Weber pled guilty to a misdemeanor charge of failure to drive with due care. She appeared at the Cook County courthouse Wednesday, November 18, 2009.
Dismissal of a misdemeanor charge of careless driving was granted by Judge Kenneth Sandvik.
Before sentencing, two victim impact statements were given: one by friend Susan Scherer, who was with Petersen the night of the accident October 31, 2007, and Dr. Petersen’s life partner, Dr. Rob Burgess.
“I won’t forget the sounds as the car crashed into Ken and the tree,” Scherer said. “I won’t forget the many feelings and thoughts that went through my mind at that moment.” Scherer said she felt desperate, hopeless, horrified. “I wanted so much to believe he would be okay.” It seemed like hours before the ambulance got there, she said.
Scherer said she thinks about the “what ifs” – what if she had pushed Ken out of the way? What if she had been able to shine a flashlight to warn the driver? She has never regretted stopping to help Ken get the tree off the road, though, she said.
“It was like a nightmare,” Scherer said, “but in a bad dream you can change the ending. I couldn’t rewrite this one.”
Scherer wanted to move beyond the accident, however. She quoted Desmond Tutu: “We’re stuck if we can’t forgive.” To dehumanize someone is to dehumanize oneself, she said. Forgiveness is a humanizing act.
“[Ken] was a most generous, forgiving
man,” Scherer said. She appealed to Maranda Weber, entreating her to become a part of her community. After the accident, some community members took offense when the Border Patrol failed to attend the funeral or express condolences. Many were angry over
what appeared to be protection from consequences that would have been more immediate for people not employed by an agency like the Border Patrol. In the end, Scherer said to Weber, “I wish you well.”
Rob Burgess gave the second victim impact statement. “In the moment in which Ken was killed,” Burgess said, “many lives were changed.”
Burgess said he would like to see changes that would prevent similar incidents from occurring. “I speak not to make it any harder on Ms. Weber,” Burgess said, “but to encourage you to include in her sentencing some prevention related tasks…Doing that may help to make all of our Border Patrol agents safer drivers.”
Burgess questioned Weber’s actions, not Petersen’s, the night of the accident. “Ken knew and loved the people from this community, and he knew from driving that road for years that he could trust people that night not only to slow down…but also to stop and help.…Who didn’t slow down and stop?…As this scene became more clear over the next 12.5 seconds, who didn’t touch their brakes on that Halloween night, as the wind blew in strong gusts, on a part of the road where she’d earlier helped to clear a downed tree, where Ken was now using his loud chainsaw? 12.5 seconds. That’s a long time to not respond. And, in fact, who didn’t even have her seatbelt on?
“…A Border Patrol agent with specialized training, whose job it is to drive that road and who’s supposed to be helping to protect all of us.” Burgess cited a Border Patrol document that lists motor vehicle operation in its list of training courses.
Burgess suggested to the judge that he talk with Weber about the possibility that an undiagnosed medical condition such as a seizure disorder caused her inattention. He asked the judge to consider requiring Weber to research factors that could help Border Patrol and other drivers improve their driving on the Gunflint Trail.
“One of my biggest hurts,” Burgess said, “comes from the fact that the Border Patrol took no initiative to acknowledge the loss, a death that involved one of their own people. The Border Patrol should have commented or sent someone to one of the three services that we had….Almost a year after the accident, I did receive a nice personal note from Maranda, saying that she was sorry for my loss. Thathelped me, and I ask you to consider that in your sentencing. Thank you again, so much, for that, Maranda.
“Finally, there is a big community relations problem. There appears to be this divide between the Border Patrol and the general public. …Community members and Border Patrol agents have been acting like adversaries, when we should be working together.” Burgess quoted from the Border Patrol standards of conduct: “In fulfilling its mission, Customs and Border Protection and its employees must sustain the trust and confidence of the public they serve.”
“I honor Ken by continuing to live in the way that he taught me: trying to be a better person rather than a bitter person.” To Weber, he said, “I knew Ken, and I know that he would forgive you.”
After Burgess finished, County Attorney Tim Scannell said, “Obviously this has been a challenging case for the state.” His office acted on the information they had on the case, he said. None of the evidence suggested this was an intentional act and it would not have stood up to a careless driving charge. He said he believes this was the right result. “It was a terrible accident,” he said.
Judge Sandvik had the final word. He said listening to the victim impact statements was the right thing to do. “I take listening to the statements very seriously,” he said. They were important for him, for the victims, for Weber, and for the community.
“County Attorney Scannell did a good job on this case,” the judge continued. For many reasons, this was an “incredibly difficult case” for a public prosecutor to try, he said. Scannell had to hear many different opinions from people wherever he went. “He is to be commended,” he said.
“By any measure, this is a tragedy,” Judge Sandvik said. To Maranda, he said, “You’re facing a life sentence…. This is something you’ll have to deal with the rest of your life.”
Judge Sandvik said he believes the concerns regarding the Border Patrol’s handling of the matter were justified. Local law enforcement officers are much more accepting of their role as community members, he said. “TheBorder Patrol can learn to treat their community … as though they are part of that community.”
Weber received a fine of $200 plus related fees and surcharges.
The day after the hearing, Weber’s attorney, Paul Rogosheske of Thuet, Pugh, Rogosheske & Atkins of South St. Paul, said in a phone interview that the Border Patrol will begin an internal investigation now that the criminal case is over. He likened the petty misdemeanor conviction to a speeding ticket. “It’s not intentional,” he said. “Thisjust says an accident happened and she was going too fast for conditions.”
The only person who can legally file a civil lawsuit in this case would be Petersen’s brother, but Rogosheske said he does not think that will happen. In a civil lawsuit, he said, a jury determines the percentage that it believes each party was at fault and would be likely to consider Petersen at fault for working on the road without proper safety gear, warning signs, and signal lights.
Rogosheske said Weber herself retained him to represent her, but he would not say who paid for his services.
Leave a Reply