It’s Time to Move On

Amanda Arthur and her mother deserve credit for dropping the lawsuit they filed after the tragic accident in Newport Beach nearly two years ago that killed one teenager and left Amanda in a coma for 11 weeks.

Amanda, now 19, has made a remarkable, though still incomplete, comeback from her injuries. Her tenacity made her an inspiration in a community shocked by the accident. But lawsuits by her and her mother and by other victims of the May 1997 accident ended friendships and divided many in Newport Beach.

Amanda and nine other Newport Harbor High School students had been at a party. They appointed a designated driver who had not been drinking and piled into Donny Bridgman’s Chevrolet Blazer. On Irvine Avenue, the Blazer flipped over. Bridgman was killed. Others were injured. Lawsuits were filed against the driver, Jason Rausch, and the city. The accident and lawsuits sparked a rancorous debate over responsibility.

A judge who convicted Rausch of misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter after a nonjury trial imposed a sentence that appropriately included speaking to youngsters about the dangers of reckless driving.

Amanda’s lawyer says she could have won her lawsuit, which argued that the street on which the accident occurred was unsafe. However, there was also testimony that the Blazer’s occupants were not wearing seat belts and the vehicle was traveling over the posted speed limit.

Last week, Amanda said that “all the kids were at fault.” Her acceptance of responsibility is admirable. So was the decision of those parents who used the tragedy to speak to their children about underage drinking and the dangers of putting too much faith in a designated driver.