Disease could keep truck driver out of jail
Wednesday, June 21, 2006
By John Tunison
The Grand Rapids Press
ALLEGAN -- A truck driver's debilitating multiple sclerosis could prevent him from serving any jail time for causing a fiery crash that killed a 22-year-old Saugatuck woman, a judge said.
David Gale -- described as disoriented and essentially bedridden -- was found incompetent to be sentenced Tuesday.
Allegan County prosecutors said the ruling, based on a psychologist's opinion from the state's Center for Forensic Psychiatry, could end a case that began two years ago when Gale's tractor-trailer slammed into an Allegan County sheriff deputy's cruiser and a car the deputy pulled over for speeding.
Emily Van Dyke's father, James, this morning said he was upset the prosecution of Gale took so long, robbing the family of emotional relief that a sentencing might provide.
"He'll get what he deserves in the long run, but there still will not be any closure until he is sentenced for the crime he committed," he said.
VanDyke said it is difficult to understand how Gale could be competent to plead no contest, but not for sentencing.
Assistant Prosecutor Margaret Bakker acknowledged the family was unhappy with the resolution.
"It's been a horrific case for them," she said.
The case dragged on because of difficulties obtaining medical records and because of legal complications in his home state of Ohio and a parole violation in Wisconsin.
Emily Van Dyke, an Alma College graduate ready to start teaching at a North Carolina elementary school, died in the June 23, 2004, crash on Int. 196 near Saugatuck. Gale admitted falling asleep at the wheel.
Gale, 44, who suffers from progressive multiple sclerosis that made him prone to sudden bouts of fatigue and blackouts, pleaded no contest in January to vehicular manslaughter. The Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles later determined he lied about his condition and should not have received a commercial driver's license.
Gale came down with pneumonia in the Allegan County Jail while awaiting sentencing in February and was hospitalized in a coma.
He never sufficiently recovered forsentencing, a hearing that requires the same level of competency as someone going to trial. He now is at a Kalamazoo medical center.
Allegan County Circuit Judge George Corsiglia released Gale on a personal recognizance bond Tuesday so he could be transferred to a medical facility near his home in Ada, Ohio. The release removes any county liability for his long-term care. His Medicare coverage is to lapse July 8.
"I have absolutely no evidence to lead me to conclude that he is going to recover," Corsiglia said. "Everything this court has personally observed is that he has deteriorated progressively from the first time I saw him to the last time."
If Gale shows signs of recovery, state law allows for him to be sentenced up to one year after his plea.
Psychologist Dr. Jeffrey Wendt recently examined Gale and, in a June 9 report, described him as having an early condition of possible dementia and the onset of encephalopathy, a brain disease that causes an altered mental state.
Wendt wrote that Gale suffers from progressive memory loss, lethargy, loss of consciousness and confusion that impair his ability to understand others.
Gale's attorney, Mike McEwen, said Gale is bedridden and required a feeding tube at one point. He has only rudimentary communication skills.
"When I last spoke with him, he had no recollection as to who I was," he said.
Send e-mail to the author: jtunison@grpress.com
©2006 Grand Rapids Press
© 2006 Michigan Live. All Rights Reserved.
http://www.mlive.com/news/grpress/index.ssf?/base/news-30/1150895712228540.xml&coll=6
By John Tunison
The Grand Rapids Press
ALLEGAN -- A truck driver's debilitating multiple sclerosis could prevent him from serving any jail time for causing a fiery crash that killed a 22-year-old Saugatuck woman, a judge said.
David Gale -- described as disoriented and essentially bedridden -- was found incompetent to be sentenced Tuesday.
Allegan County prosecutors said the ruling, based on a psychologist's opinion from the state's Center for Forensic Psychiatry, could end a case that began two years ago when Gale's tractor-trailer slammed into an Allegan County sheriff deputy's cruiser and a car the deputy pulled over for speeding.
Emily Van Dyke's father, James, this morning said he was upset the prosecution of Gale took so long, robbing the family of emotional relief that a sentencing might provide.
"He'll get what he deserves in the long run, but there still will not be any closure until he is sentenced for the crime he committed," he said.
VanDyke said it is difficult to understand how Gale could be competent to plead no contest, but not for sentencing.
Assistant Prosecutor Margaret Bakker acknowledged the family was unhappy with the resolution.
"It's been a horrific case for them," she said.
The case dragged on because of difficulties obtaining medical records and because of legal complications in his home state of Ohio and a parole violation in Wisconsin.
Emily Van Dyke, an Alma College graduate ready to start teaching at a North Carolina elementary school, died in the June 23, 2004, crash on Int. 196 near Saugatuck. Gale admitted falling asleep at the wheel.
Gale, 44, who suffers from progressive multiple sclerosis that made him prone to sudden bouts of fatigue and blackouts, pleaded no contest in January to vehicular manslaughter. The Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles later determined he lied about his condition and should not have received a commercial driver's license.
Gale came down with pneumonia in the Allegan County Jail while awaiting sentencing in February and was hospitalized in a coma.
He never sufficiently recovered forsentencing, a hearing that requires the same level of competency as someone going to trial. He now is at a Kalamazoo medical center.
Allegan County Circuit Judge George Corsiglia released Gale on a personal recognizance bond Tuesday so he could be transferred to a medical facility near his home in Ada, Ohio. The release removes any county liability for his long-term care. His Medicare coverage is to lapse July 8.
"I have absolutely no evidence to lead me to conclude that he is going to recover," Corsiglia said. "Everything this court has personally observed is that he has deteriorated progressively from the first time I saw him to the last time."
If Gale shows signs of recovery, state law allows for him to be sentenced up to one year after his plea.
Psychologist Dr. Jeffrey Wendt recently examined Gale and, in a June 9 report, described him as having an early condition of possible dementia and the onset of encephalopathy, a brain disease that causes an altered mental state.
Wendt wrote that Gale suffers from progressive memory loss, lethargy, loss of consciousness and confusion that impair his ability to understand others.
Gale's attorney, Mike McEwen, said Gale is bedridden and required a feeding tube at one point. He has only rudimentary communication skills.
"When I last spoke with him, he had no recollection as to who I was," he said.
Send e-mail to the author: jtunison@grpress.com
©2006 Grand Rapids Press
© 2006 Michigan Live. All Rights Reserved.
http://www.mlive.com/news/grpress/index.ssf?/base/news-30/1150895712228540.xml&coll=6
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