By Morgan Ledet (’13) and Gregory Jacob III (’13)
Friday December 7, LSU Medical Center held the follow-up to the mock crash, with the mock trial, to show students the consequences of driving drunk. Travis Cummings, the lead actor, was portrayed as a high school student who drove intoxicated and under the influence of Soma.
During this process, Travis took the life of his best friend Brooke Bonura, who was also a high school student. The accident also involved two other high school students, Alexes Aiken and Jackson Ladner. Jackson, who wasn’t wearing his seat belt, lost the use of his legs and has permanent brain damage, while Alexes, on the other hand, wore her seat belt and only came out with minor injuries.
LSU Medical Center brought in many participants to show what actually happens at a trial. Dennis Woltering, an anchor at WWL-TV, participated by interviewing State Police Captain Carl Saizan and Trooper Melissa Matey, who are part of LSP Troop B, who explained what happened the exact day of the crash. Also part of the trial was the Honorable Rebecca Olivier of Jefferson Parish, and two lawyers – Douglas Hammel and David Bravo.
The lawyers, Douglas Hammel and David Bravo fought for their clients and tried to get the best for them. Travis was given fifteen years in prison with a five-year suspension. This means Travis would do ten years in prison and he would do five years of community service explaining the consequences of drunk driving.
“The process throughout the trial was very intriguing to me,” Travis said. “The time that the judge gave me, 15 years, was fair, but I do not think I would have ever been able to grasp that as a real life experience. Let’s continue to make good choices!”