Jordan Alexander Barson. | Photo courtesy Mohave County Sheriff’s Office
Remember this fine fellow? Charged with taking out a group ride on U.S. 95 in Nevada, killing five, injuring four?
If Jordan Alexander Barson is a good boy — that means no more running over cyclists while crazed on meth, mister! — he can be paroled after serving just 10 years of the 40-year sentence he received on Wednesday.
So says defense attorney Damian Sheets, anyway. District Attorney Steven B. Wolfson claims Barson will have to do at least 16 years in the Graybar Hotel.
But Wolfson and Sheets agree that the Nevada Highway Patrol intercoursed the penguin on the blood draw; the DA described it as “less than perfect investigative work,” while the defense called it a violation of Barson’s rights.
The upshot was a deal that saw Barson cop to just two counts of DUI resulting in death.
Donna Trauger, whose husband, Tom, was among the dead, got right down to cases. She accused the stateys of “embarrassing negligence” and “victim-blaming,” and said that “justice was not served.”
The NHP had no comment. Hell, I’m nearly speechless myself. There was a retired cop on this ride — Michael Anderson, who did 22 years with the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department — and you’d think that if the system worked for anyone it would work for an ex-cop and his friends.
“We got it, Mike. This guy is gonna gonna do a century over this.”
Nope. Sixteen years. Unless he runs over a trusty with a laundry cart or something.
Tags: Jordan Alexander Barson
Mad Blog Media 
June 11, 2021 at 3:49 pm |
Why am I not the least bit surprised. If you ever want to kill someone and get off lightly, use your car.
June 11, 2021 at 3:52 pm |
And how do you fuck up a blood draw on someone who just killed five people???
June 11, 2021 at 4:06 pm |
The initial NYT story on the crash cites an NHP spokesman as saying “the driver had stayed at the scene of the crash and was cooperating with the investigation. Investigators do not believe that the driver was impaired by alcohol or drugs, and no charges have been filed as the investigation continues. …”
The story adds, “The speed limit on that portion of the highway is 75 m.p.h.”
One wonders about the impartiality of the early stages of the inquiry.
Then what? Someone in authority says, “Whaddaya you mean you haven’t gotten blood from this guy yet? Do so at once!” And the suspect declines, and they do it anyway, so illegal search and evidence possibly inadmissable, depending upon the judge?
June 11, 2021 at 4:45 pm |
Thanks for the follow up. Mind boggling. Khal said it.
June 11, 2021 at 5:00 pm |
It’s weird. I was thinking just the other day that I should revisit that story, and boom, the NYT does it for me. Frankly, I’m surprised it resolved so (relatively) quickly. It took years for Charles Pickett Jr. to get shipped off to the sneezer for killing five and injuring four in Kalamazoo. They were remembered during a recent group ride from a Battle Creek shop.
June 11, 2021 at 5:59 pm |
I was out in the back yard and the road is right behind us. Watched a guy drive in through the gate holding a drink in his left hand and a phone, and the steering wheel, in his right. Bad you say. Look around at the next stop light you’re waiting at. I see it all the time. They all think they are super beings and shit. I can multi-task they all claim. No, you can’t asshole; no one can.
June 11, 2021 at 7:08 pm |
Oh, yeah, majorly scary. I don’t drive nearly as much as I used to. But when I do, I’m always glancing around. The gaze into the lap is a dead giveaway that the motorist is texting at the very least. Could be tweeting or Facebooking. TikToking. Snapchatting. Who knows?
You see this a lot at stoplights. Light turns green, car just sits there.
Now, in ABQ, the three-second delay at the green can involve simple self-preservation, because another texter will blow through the red while staring into his lap. But usually the delay is just some eejit fiddling with his phone, and some less distracted motorist will finally lean on the horn, compliments will be exchanged, and you’ll get to sit through another light cycle.
The drift is another clue. Ten mph over the limit on Tramway and drifting onto the shoulder. Texting and/or hammered. Hey, the shoulder isn’t littered with glass for no reason, y’know. Gotta clear those dead soldiers out of the vehicle in case you get pulled over; then you can claim you had “just one” after work. That you are parked on a cyclist on the bike path suggests otherwise.