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AIBU?

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To actually feel sorry for the woman driving the car in the Wimbledon car accident

994 replies

bagpuss90 · 06/07/2024 16:44

I’m sure I’ll be flamed here . I totally sympathise with the bereaved parents- I can’t stress that enough. I can understand them wanting justice . As we know the driver of the car suffered an epileptic seizure at the wheel - she had no history of epilepsy. I don’t see what she could have done differently. She has to live with what she did although it wasn’t her fault. AIBU to feel quite sorry for her ?

OP posts:
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Rosscameasdoody · 07/07/2024 23:54

Maelil01 · 07/07/2024 23:46

Complete rubbish and snide and nasty too.

Green eyed monster combined with lynch mob mentality. It’s not pretty and there’s a lot of it in evidence on this thread. I find the animosity towards SUV drivers particularly hypocritical - l live opposite a school and at drop off and pick up times that’s all we see.

Maelil01 · 07/07/2024 23:46

Sirine1708 · 06/07/2024 17:11

I think it's a very convenient diagnosis - human brain is so complex, they can't prove she didn't have a seizure. Never heard of a person diagnosed with epilepsy at 40 though - I believe if you have it, it starts at the childhood.

This driver lives in a detached house in Wimbledon (worth millions in that area) and her car was not the cheapest one so apparently she could afford good lawyer and suitable diagnosis.

Edited

Complete rubbish and snide and nasty too.

ThePerkyDuck · 07/07/2024 23:30

Emilyontmoor · 07/07/2024 23:11

Responding to why they did not interview the teachers who witnessed what happened. Of course they should have done but even when it might have produced useful evidence they didn’t in the case I was involved with. In the end lack of evidence rightly or wrongly sank the court case. In this case the evidence they would have not been able to prove a case there was no autoism is much stronger so reasonable speculation based on evidence not “pure”

I meant you are speculating about the situation with the police like the lack of resources or evidence, etc. We don’t know why they didn’t interview the witnesses. We just know that based on the article the teachers were expressing concerns.

Sirine1708 · 07/07/2024 23:30

Rosscameasdoody · 07/07/2024 23:07

Wasn’t a brick wall, it was a fence.

The school had a brick wall either, airbags on the photos were inflated iirc.

Sirine1708 · 07/07/2024 23:27

Emilyontmoor · 07/07/2024 22:49

No it was the Mail, but no more reliable and possibly more receptive to a word in the ear from a PR company…. www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12279035/amp/Driver-ploughed-Wimbledon-suffered-seizure-bit-tongue-sources-say.html

Everyone was citing the Sun, and I heard that things are often leaked there on purpose.

Rosscameasdoody · 07/07/2024 23:13

Sirine1708 · 07/07/2024 22:26

Where did you read about her biting through her tongue? I've looked through a number of articles yesterday and none mention it.

I think you’ve quoted the wrong post. I didn’t mention biting her tongue. That said, having worked with a couple of people who had epilepsy l know from first hand experience that this is quite a common occurrence during a seizure, so if it’s true then it possibly speaks to the fact that the seizure was genuine.

Emilyontmoor · 07/07/2024 23:11

ThePerkyDuck · 07/07/2024 23:04

This is a speculation.

Responding to why they did not interview the teachers who witnessed what happened. Of course they should have done but even when it might have produced useful evidence they didn’t in the case I was involved with. In the end lack of evidence rightly or wrongly sank the court case. In this case the evidence they would have not been able to prove a case there was no autoism is much stronger so reasonable speculation based on evidence not “pure”

WitchyBits · 07/07/2024 23:08

fedupdontknowwheretoputmyself · 06/07/2024 16:59

I lived on a road where a driver had a seizure out of the blue. They crashed through a fence, but there were no people around so no injuries. You don't have to be a person with epilepsy to have a seizure, sometimes it can just happen. I don't think the driver will be having a fun time knowing the accident killed two children. I don't think you'd get over that. Someone can't be prosecuted because they took ill though. People have heart attacks and strokes whilst driving as well.

My DH is a coach driver and one of his colleagues dropped dead at the wheel of his coach, pulling out of the work yard. He was on his way to collect a bus full of students to take them to France on a school holiday so it could have been much much worse if he had a bus full of kids. As it was it was just him that was affected ( and his family obviously). But he had no prior warning. Clean bill of health from what we knew of him and no concerns at all.

Rosscameasdoody · 07/07/2024 23:07

TheWayTheLightFalls · 07/07/2024 22:28

And, y’know, biting through one’s tongue and losing consciousness can also result from other things, eg driving a multi-tonne turbocharged vehicle through a brick wall.

Wasn’t a brick wall, it was a fence.

ThePerkyDuck · 07/07/2024 23:04

Emilyontmoor · 07/07/2024 22:54

It should but that doesn’t mean it is. The police have finite resources and once they established they could not build a case that would stand up in court to a defence of autoisam then it was rational not to pursue it even if lacking empathy and taking into account the PR implications.

This is a speculation.

pam290358 · 07/07/2024 23:04

Fellontheground · 07/07/2024 22:24

No, I do not feel sorry for a wealthy housewife who sped through the streets by the common in nothing more than a tank and then, it would appear, used every trick in the book to walk away scot free. I will reserve my sympathy for the bereaved and traumatised.

Everything you've just said is supposition without a shred of evidence to back it up. The fact that you’ve even mentioned the fact that’s she’s wealthy and you assumed she was speeding tells us all where you’re coming from. If, when the facts are made public, this woman does have solid evidence of a seizure l hope you are thoroughly ashamed of your judgemental attitude. And l sincerely hope that if you drive, the next time you get behind the wheel of a car you’ll bear in mind that there but for the grace of God go us all.

SavageTomato · 07/07/2024 22:58

I have great sympathy for the driver. She did nothing wrong, her body malfunctioned, that is all. A dear friend of mine was driving a particular vehicle years ago. A 5 year old boy ran out and was hit by the vehicle. He died. My friend was not blamed in any way, but he never drove that type of vehicle again.

Rosscameasdoody · 07/07/2024 22:55

UnpackingBooksFromBoxes · 07/07/2024 20:21

What has Anne Sacoolas got to do with anything? She was prosecuted and convicted.

lf you read the quote history you’ll see why the Sacoolas case was mentioned - it was in reply to a poster who was questioning the morality of the driver getting behind the wheel again, assuming they remain seizure free.

Emilyontmoor · 07/07/2024 22:54

ThePerkyDuck · 07/07/2024 22:41

They are still witnesses, as they run out as soon as they heard the crash. They’ve seen the state of the car, driver and all the children. Unlike for e.g you and me are random people that didn’t see anything and know nothing.

As this is a very serious accident, they expressed their concern that they were not interviewed, presumably every single detail should be examined thoroughly.

It should but that doesn’t mean it is. The police have finite resources and once they established they could not build a case that would stand up in court to a defence of autoisam then it was rational not to pursue it even if lacking empathy and taking into account the PR implications.

Emilyontmoor · 07/07/2024 22:49

TheWayTheLightFalls · 07/07/2024 22:27

It’s mentioned in The Sun.

/fin

No it was the Mail, but no more reliable and possibly more receptive to a word in the ear from a PR company…. www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12279035/amp/Driver-ploughed-Wimbledon-suffered-seizure-bit-tongue-sources-say.html

ThePerkyDuck · 07/07/2024 22:41

Catpuss66 · 07/07/2024 22:31

Actually they were witnesses after the fact they saw the devastation, they didn’t see the actual crash. I presume that’s why the one was not called as a witness.

They are still witnesses, as they run out as soon as they heard the crash. They’ve seen the state of the car, driver and all the children. Unlike for e.g you and me are random people that didn’t see anything and know nothing.

As this is a very serious accident, they expressed their concern that they were not interviewed, presumably every single detail should be examined thoroughly.

Sirine1708 · 07/07/2024 22:40

TheWayTheLightFalls · 07/07/2024 22:27

It’s mentioned in The Sun.

/fin

Wonder who are the "sources".
https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/22983676/wimbledon-school-crash-driver-seizure/amp/

Catpuss66 · 07/07/2024 22:31

ThePerkyDuck · 07/07/2024 12:18

Based on the article the headteachers/teachers were also witnesses. So you are comparing a witnesses doubts with a random user on internet and say that they hold the same weight on the views of the investigation.

Actually they were witnesses after the fact they saw the devastation, they didn’t see the actual crash. I presume that’s why the one was not called as a witness.

TheWayTheLightFalls · 07/07/2024 22:28

And, y’know, biting through one’s tongue and losing consciousness can also result from other things, eg driving a multi-tonne turbocharged vehicle through a brick wall.

TheWayTheLightFalls · 07/07/2024 22:27

Sirine1708 · 07/07/2024 22:26

Where did you read about her biting through her tongue? I've looked through a number of articles yesterday and none mention it.

It’s mentioned in The Sun.

/fin

Sirine1708 · 07/07/2024 22:26

Rosscameasdoody · 07/07/2024 19:07

You’ve said this a few times now. If this woman genuinely lost consciousness because of a seizure, having never had one before, why are you apportioning blame when there is none ? It was an act of nature which tragically resulted in the deaths of two children. She didn’t intentionally kill them, it was an accident. So however much you want there to be, there is no ‘moral issue’ here. She may drive again after the required seizure free period, or she may not. Either way it’s her decision, and whatever she decides her morals will not be compromised, if she is blameless for what happened.

Where did you read about her biting through her tongue? I've looked through a number of articles yesterday and none mention it.

Fellontheground · 07/07/2024 22:24

No, I do not feel sorry for a wealthy housewife who sped through the streets by the common in nothing more than a tank and then, it would appear, used every trick in the book to walk away scot free. I will reserve my sympathy for the bereaved and traumatised.

Catpuss66 · 07/07/2024 22:20

TheWayTheLightFalls · 06/07/2024 18:53

This kind of answer really frustrates me, or perhaps that's a reflection of my inhabiting a world that sounds similar to the person in question.

I have an ADHD diagnosis. I got it by going to two doctors (which I paid for myself, bypassing the NHS) and explaining my symptoms. I got a diagnosis. Now, I was accurate in describing my symptoms and how they affect my life, but I'm not sure they'd have realised if I actually just reeled off "Top 10 adhd symptoms" off Google. It's not uncommon for people with money to spare to, for example, seek advantage for their children by finding a doctor to confirm that Bobby has slow processing and needs extra time in exams. There are plenty of situations in diagnostic medicine where there is a huge amount of input from patients because there's no evidence as such, there's nothing to see the way there would be if a bone was broken. That doesn't mean that the medical staff, police or whoever else are lying or covering for the person in question - it just means that reasonable doubt has been created.

I am sure the driver was in no fit state to walk home she bit through her tongue & was disorientated sure she was taken to hospital & given an electrocephrograph to see the brains electrical impulses from this they can see if she had or is having fits. Not sure any of this would be on her word only. Unfortunately there are not physical tests or blood test to check if you really have ADHD as you said, you could be lying who knows?

PollyPeachum · 07/07/2024 21:53

@Sirine1708 , Inquests are always open to the public and therefore journalists so there is no likelihood of closed doors hush up.

This attitude of some that this was a powerful vehicle which is expensive so somehow we must find a way to attack the driver who is wealthy is really quite horrible. Would the lynch mod of jealous correspondents be as vile had it been a delivery driver in an equally powerful van?
I repeat my earlier post that we wait for the inquest.

Catpuss66 · 07/07/2024 21:25

OneTC · 06/07/2024 18:02

She's fairly far down my list in terms of sympathy if I'm perfectly honest.

Says a lot about you to be honest, Lack of empathy.