How fast was starting Dallas Cowboy nose tackle Josh Brent going when he crashed his 2007 Mercedes-Benz S60, early Saturday morning (around 2:30 AM), that resulted in the death of his best friend and teammate, Jerry Brown? The speed limit on Highway 114 was merely 45 MPH, so why was Josh in such a hurry? How many drinks had he taken at Privae Dallas? Furthermore, had the two Cowboys been drinking elsewhere before arriving at Privae Dallas?
What kind of alcohol was consumed by Josh and Jerry? Were they wearing their seatbelts at the time of the accident, or was it only Josh wearing his seatbelt? That is, why did Jerry sustain the lions share of the injuries? This is one item I can’t figure out. How many times did the Mercedes tumble over? Twice? I can’t quite picture the accident in my mind. Mental waves of starts and fits; small flashes!
It doesn’t look as if Jerry was tossed from the vehicle. It was burning when Irving police arrived and Josh was alert enough to try to rescue his buddy from the fire beginning in the car. I’m a little surprised, that after the car flips over several times, Josh was not knocked unconscious. It must have been a lucky fluke he didn’t hit his head severely on the steering wheel or on the dash of the car (or elsewhere). Reconstructions of the accident (in my mind) are not quite as clear as I would prefer.
A USA Today piece (Cowboys’ Josh Brent arrested after crash kills teammate Jerry Brown, by Jon Saraceno and Mike Garafolo) has actual photos of the skid marks, which show deep-impression remnants of tire tracks, where the vehicle has veered off onto the grass from the 114 access road. The Mercedes traveled 864 feet before it came to a complete stop. It’s still fairly unclear, but the car somehow ended up back on the road, yet was upside down.
It’s a good thing no other cars were involved in the accident, but still? Why was Josh driving so crazy like this? Was he showing off to his buddy, Jerry Brown? Cops smelled alcohol on his breath, but how drunk was he? Was he nearly to a blackout state? Josh was sagacious enough to refuse a breathalyzer, but was forced to, since Jerry Brown died as a result of his recklessness. Josh was charged with intoxication manslaughter. Unfortunately, Josh has a prior from Illinois in 2009.
He could do jail time on this second DUI. Dallas judges are known for getting the maximum sentence for DUIs or drug-related charges. Well, maybe this is Irving, but still they may go for the jugular? Will the Cowboys suspend him or will they support him and try to get him off? This may not be such a good PR call, if they try and clear Josh. It may be better to let Josh do some jail time, to set an example for the NFL and parade of arrogant football players who can play by a different set of rules than the rest of us.
The difference this time around, is that the drinking and driving resulted in a death. Not so easy to brush away. The USA Today article also mentions there were blood stains left at the scene (as of Saturday afternoon), along with the violent skid marks and chunks of the vehicle, that are clear evidence of just how horrible this accident truly was! It will be hard to put a bandaid on this DUI, what with the Jovan Belcher incident happening only a week before. Yea I know, DUIs are like grains of sand for football players, but this one is murder, well, manslaughter! Let’s rewind the tape and watch the play again before we umpire a ruling that may be haphazardly!
Source: WFAA
