Boy injured in DUI crash dies after being taken off life support
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Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly quoted a family member saying Jayce Randall had consumed a bottle of tequila.
TACOMA, Wash. -- A 9-year-old boy injured in a DUI crash died late Sunday after his family removed him from life support.
Nearly every member of Donovan Best's family came to Mary Bridge Children's Hospital on Sunday, hoping the boy could recover from his injuries. But doctors said tests showed no brain activity, and the family made the decision to turn off the breathing machine.
The third-grader was thrown from a car early Saturday on Highway 16 in Purdy, and state troopers say the boy's uncle was drunk and high on drugs when he lost control of the car and crashed.
Jayce L. Randall remains under suicide watch in a hospital room and will be booked into jail for investigation of vehicular homicide when he is released.
"Our family is suffering the consequence of his bad decision that night," said Karrie Lewandowski, Donovan's great aunt.
Randall had spent Saturday evening at a family barbecue and offered to drive Donovan and his younger sister to their grandparents' house. The kids' mother agreed, so they piled into the car.
"Jayce is not a bad kid. He's your average 26 year old," said Donovan's great uncle, Dale Lewandowski. "He went to a barbecue, had a few too many drinks. He has never had a police record. He has never had a DUI."
The force of the crash also ejected Randall, who suffered a broken pelvis. His 8-year-old niece climbed out of the wrecked car and flagged down help.
Relatives say Randall is devastated.
"You have a family here that is suffering two-fold. Our nephew who is on suicide watch, to our little nephew Donovan," Karrie Lewandowski said.
Investigators say Randall's blood-alcohol level was twice the legal limit and that he admitted to also smoking marijuana.
Troopers say Randall's niece told them she and her brother were yelling at their uncle to slow down before the crash.
The family says they don't believe Randall intended to put the children in danger.
"We'd like to send the message also that you cannot get behind the wheel of a car when you're drinking or smoking marijuana. You just can't," Dale Lewandowski said.
TACOMA, Wash. -- A 9-year-old boy injured in a DUI crash died late Sunday after his family removed him from life support.
Nearly every member of Donovan Best's family came to Mary Bridge Children's Hospital on Sunday, hoping the boy could recover from his injuries. But doctors said tests showed no brain activity, and the family made the decision to turn off the breathing machine.
The third-grader was thrown from a car early Saturday on Highway 16 in Purdy, and state troopers say the boy's uncle was drunk and high on drugs when he lost control of the car and crashed.
Jayce L. Randall remains under suicide watch in a hospital room and will be booked into jail for investigation of vehicular homicide when he is released.
"Our family is suffering the consequence of his bad decision that night," said Karrie Lewandowski, Donovan's great aunt.
Randall had spent Saturday evening at a family barbecue and offered to drive Donovan and his younger sister to their grandparents' house. The kids' mother agreed, so they piled into the car.
"Jayce is not a bad kid. He's your average 26 year old," said Donovan's great uncle, Dale Lewandowski. "He went to a barbecue, had a few too many drinks. He has never had a police record. He has never had a DUI."
The force of the crash also ejected Randall, who suffered a broken pelvis. His 8-year-old niece climbed out of the wrecked car and flagged down help.
Relatives say Randall is devastated.
"You have a family here that is suffering two-fold. Our nephew who is on suicide watch, to our little nephew Donovan," Karrie Lewandowski said.
Investigators say Randall's blood-alcohol level was twice the legal limit and that he admitted to also smoking marijuana.
Troopers say Randall's niece told them she and her brother were yelling at their uncle to slow down before the crash.
The family says they don't believe Randall intended to put the children in danger.
"We'd like to send the message also that you cannot get behind the wheel of a car when you're drinking or smoking marijuana. You just can't," Dale Lewandowski said.
This is so sad on so many levels.....
A REAL "HIGHER POWER" would work 100% of the time!
Why didn't the 12-Step religious AA/NA cult's "HIGHER POWER" save this little boy?
This young man may not have been a repeat offender, but he should still have to face the consequences of negligent homicide at least. He's lucky he only killed one child. Six years ago,  woman killed two other women and injured a third.  She'd had a DUI before and was driving on a suspended license. She got less than seventeen years. It turned out to be a very good thing I couldn't be at the trial. I would not have been able to contain myself.Â
@lunaclaraThis sickening "sentencing" happens every day. Â
http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20120514/news/705119523/?interstitial=1
Someday, just maybe, DUI be a REAL crime the FIRST tie around and they'll do REAL time and most importantly it will happen BEFORE THEY KILL PEOPLE!!!
I don't understand why families feel like they need to have alcohol when they get together. Â If the only way they can enjoy being around each other is if they're drinking, then maybe they should just not bother. Â Sounds more like a drunk fest than a family bbq. Â Rest in peace Donovan. Â My prayers for the little girl who now has to grow up without her brother. Â May the Lord bring her comfort and healing.
even the 8 year old could have driven better
This is so damned tragic. Â Mom lets them go in the car with a drunken 26 year old. Â A lot of fault here...and a lot of tragedy. Â I hope this family will find a way to heal.
If a bar let's you get toasted and let's you drive drunk, they're responsible according to state law. So wouldn't his entire family be liable if they knew he was drunk and letting those kids in the car??
I would imagine that all family members have learned a very harsh lesson. If there was too much booze at the family BBQ, then someone was responsible. Many people perhaps. It is really too bad this child had to die due to someone not being accountable. It is too late to close the door, too late to make the decision to not have him drive.Â
Condolences to all concerned, even the driver. Who will live with this on his conscience forever.
And yet our government refuses to enact harsher punishments for DUII, we will however push to strip the civil rights from the law abiding. Take this piece of crap off suicide watch and give him the tools to take himself out. He deserves 0 sympathy he had been drinking and chose to drive the car putting everyone involved at risk . This should be Murder 2 at least. No one held a gun to his head and told him to drink, nor did they force him to drive the car. Life in prison should be the ONLY sentence handed down. Its time to start punishing DUII for what it is attempted murder, and make it a felony punishable by YEARS in prison. Â More people are killed daily by drunk drivers than by all the guns in this country. Yet which one are we trying to ban? Â The logic here escapes me.
The mother was probably  under the influence also.
 The family says they don't believe Randall intended to put the children in danger.Â
How stupid is that statement, he intended to put them in danger the minute he got behind the wheel and intended to drive them to grandmas house. So sad for the boy and the sister that now has to deal with the long term trauma of loosing her brother.
He was probably the least intoxicated/drugged up person at the party; hence the lack of judgment by all of the other adults in attendance.Â
Okay, this numb nut is at a "family BBQ" and no one there knows he drunk? Then to add insult to stupidity multiplied by total ignorance, they let the kids pile in the car? I suggest that every adult in the place should be charged! Lock up the whole crew!
Between the mom, uncle, other uncle, and aunt it sounds like the whole family would do the gene pool a favor by not breeding.
And people wonder why most of us hate DUII drivers.
I have ZERO tolerance for these folks and they all need to go to prison for their first offense. None of this pay a fine and do some community service crap. We need some real behavior modification.
Whoa. That's a lot to sink in. How could mom NOT know that the uncle was drunk? I mean, I know some people play it off better than others, but I just don't get it. My condolences to all involved, even the uncle who caused the crash.
@Jen She may have been more wasted than he was.  While I'm not finding that as a valid excuse it could be an explanation.
Poor little guy. So sad for him. Who can even stay upright after downing a bottle of Tequila?!???? I'm sorry for the whole family.
@fracas
That was not true. Your blood alcohol level would be far beyond twice the legal limit from drinking a bottle of tequila to yourself. Reaching .16 is not difficult.
He drank a "bottle" of Tequila and then the family thought it was OK not only for him to drive but to caravan children home.
Incredibly poor decisions by all involved adults and the children once again pay the price. Â Sad.
"Jayce is not a bad kid. He's your average 26 year old," "He went through a bottle of tequila, had a few too many drinks. He has never had a police record. He has never had a DUI."
That's because he never was caught. Now he has to deal with the consequences of his actions and the family's inaction to deal with Jayce's alcohol and drug abuse. I'm sure the mom didn't intend for her son to be hurt, but allowing a person who has been drinking to take off with kids in the car is a death sentence to someone.Â
So incredibly MADDening.Â
Yep, you can guarantee this wasn't the first time he drove drunk.
I the family is actually paying attention to and caring about the needs of the 8 yr old niece. Â She watched her brother essentially die right in front of her because of the actions of her uncle. Â She needs to be supported right now more than anyone in that family. Â Poor thing!
Poor baby. It's so sad when kids are killed so young. They couldn't prevent if they tried, they are helpless!
The drunk driver who killed this kid will get less time than a person who comitted a sex crime, and when he gets out he'll have a much better life than a registered sex offender who never hurt or killed anyone. No one is calling this man a murderer or demanding he be put in jail forever. The article is calm and almost sympathetic to the driver.
Take the idiot OFF suicide watch and let him have a rope. But first make him watch the funeral of this poor little guy who died. My condolences to the family.
What size bottle? The little airport size? 1/2 pint? a quart? Future family BBQs will be more of a wake.
Jayce is responsible, but so is the mother of these kids. Where is the father? Who knows...
Jayce was not the father of these kids. They are not his ultimate responsibility.
The as of yet unnamed mother gave her drunk and high brother the green light to take HER children after knowing full well that he was intoxicated.
Plenty of blame to go around on this one. And it's disgusting to think about this poor child who lost his life and his sister who will grow up without her brother all because of an irresponsible mother.Â
What I don't understand....if the great uncle knew that he had a bottle of tequila, why did he let the children get the car with him? This is something that could have been avoided 100%
The unfortunate thing now, is that he no longer has a nephew and that is his fault. He has to live with that the rest of his life. I don't condone this behavior, but my heart not only goes out to little Donovan and his family for the loss of this little boy, but to Jayce Randall as well.Â
@littlestoff We don't know that the great uncle was one of the family members at the party.  Just that he has evaluated the situation from the family's point of view.
"Jayce is not a bad kid. He's your average 26 year old..."
Yeah, you're right. He's not a bad kid. He's a bad, irresponsible ADULT who needs to grow a pair and quit trying for the easy way out by offing himself. He needs to face up to what he's done and EARN his family's forgiveness by being the best person he can possibly be.
@Mikey  His family all knew he was wasted at their family BBQ. Don't you guys read the articles? The family is to blame as much as he is.Â
"Jayce is not a bad kid. He's your average 26 year old," Â Nice try....
First of all, not a KID. Â Second of all, average 26 year olds do NOT get high and drive DRUNK...
Of course the waste of flesh always manages to be the one to live through it.
Poor poor little boy... Â So sorry it was him that paid for the fools selfishness. :'(
"He went through a bottle of tequila, had a few too many drinks"
I haven't "went through a bottle of tequila" since I was in the Marine Corps and the possibility of being able to drive afterward would have been a physical absurdity. Â At what point did it become " a few too many?!"
@Playanekes I bet you could barely hold your bladder after that much booze.
Unless he is an alcoholic, that amount of booze would / should leave you unable to walk, let alone drive. In the event he is an alcoholic though, that amount of booze might not even make you appear drunk - I've seen it before.
Wow, had this guy drank that much at a bar and then drove, the bar owners would be in deep s#*t, but since it was kids Mom, its ok? BS everyone that watched those kids get in the car should  be charged. Another great argument for I.Q.Test before letting people have children.
@squiggy2u Maybe this "kid" was the least intoxicated person at the BBQ. They should all be ashamed. Not a lot of brain cells at this family gathering.Â
How sad that this little boy should be deprived of his entire life due to the selfish arrogance and ineptitude of another member of his family who should have been doing everything in his power to protect his nephew.
Rest in Peace, Donovan.
@Mikey  The mother gave her intoxicated brother the OK to take her kids from their party. The truly inept family member here is the mother. Jayce is not the father and did not kidnap her kids...get it?Â
Didn't intend to put them in danger? Â I'm sorry when you get behind the wheel drunk and high you are putting them in danger by your own decision, hence intent. Â My heart goes out to this family. Â Not to add insult to injury, but surely the family must have known about Jayce's use of alcohol and marijuana. Â I would bet that this is not the first time he's been known to drive in this condition.
You knew this guy went through a BOTTLE of tequila and yet you allowed him to drive a vehicle with two kids in the car?? Really? I'm thinking he might have been one of the more sober ones if that was the decision being made at that point. Wow. Tragic. Makes me sick to my stomach. IF it was a family gathering, they all should have pulled out the air mattresses and passed out for the afternoon before anyone got behind the wheel of anything with an engine.
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@TheUglyTruth The REALLY ugly truth is that this killer will likely get a slap on the hand & a few months in jail (if THAT much). I'm so damned sick of the coddling of drunk drivers by an overly tolerant society!
@Roguejeff @TheUglyTruthÂ
Yeah, because living with being responsible for your nephew's death isn't bad enough. You people make me sick. Obviously this was a terrible decision. He's on suicide watch and has the rest of their family to answer to.Â
@Branðon Hill @Roguejeff @TheUglyTruth Brandon Hill....say that while you look at the dead little boy, lying in his coffin. Ever been to the funeral of a child? I have, and I wouldn't wish it on anyone who has even half a heart! Maybe you should attend THIS one, and perhaps then you'll grow a heart. It's bleeding hearts like you who take the criminal's side every time that make ME so sick I could puke!
@Roguejeff @TheUglyTruth While I agree, I think he is facing a lifetime of regret.  If he doesn't get help for drinking (IF he actually has a problem vs. a one time thing), he's only going to make his life worse.  If it had been a stranger that he murdered, he could go on living his life "normally" and could forget about the person he killed.  Because it was his nephew (and he seems to care about him), he will have to face that decision each and every day for the rest of his life.
Maybe he can turn his grief and pain around and help teach others why driving under the influence is a dangerous, illegal game to play and should be avoided lest the partakers suffer the ultimate cost - their life or the life of someone they care deeply about.
OK let me get this the family knew he was drunk and it was OK to pile the kids into a car and then for him to drive off. Wow! Not only will he have to deal with this but so will this family.
Seems like everyone is dumping this on the driver. The mother, as well as every other adult, who knew this was going on and did nothing to stop it, is responsible too.
@FireEyes Yes you are right, it would seem that people knew how he had to drink and still let him drive with the children, mom must be feeling a lot a guilt right now.Â