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Inspiration
& Information |
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Early Sunday
Morning, June 2, 2002, Jonathan Conder, 21, Joshua Rogal, 19, and Angela
Bailey, 18, were broadsided by a 20 year old
convicted intoxicated driver in
Mission Viejo, California. This was the driver's second offense for
driving under the influence.
This Is Their Story...
| Deputies say man who just got license back critically injured
two. Alcohol was found in the vehicle. June 3, 2002 By MONICA VALENCIA and BILL RAMS The Orange County Register A convicted drunken driver believed to be celebrating the return of his suspended license allegedly ran a red light while driving drunk again early Sunday and smashed his truck into a car, critically injuring two and landing himself and two others in local hospitals, officials said. Joshua Rogal, 18, and Jonathan Conder, 21, both of Mission Viejo, were listed in critical condition at Mission Hospital, said Orange County sheriff's Lt. Larry Abbott. A passenger in the car, Angela Bailey, 18, of Mission Viejo, was released after suffering a broken leg. In an ironic twist, the three were driving home after picking up Bailey, Conder's girlfriend, from Mission Hospital when the accident occurred. Mark Staffon, 20, of Mission Viejo slammed his 1990 full-size Chevrolet pick-up into Rogal's convertible 2001 Pontiac Sunbird at about 12:45 a.m. on Crown Valley Parkway at Medical Center Drive, about 200 yards from the hospital exit, Abbott said. The collision triggered a tragic memory for John, Jonathan's father. "When I was his age, I was hit by a drunk driver," said John while sitting in the waiting room near the intensive care unit. "It's the same story. (The drunken driver) ran a red light. My friend died and the guy got away." Staffon and a 17-year-old from Coto de Caza, whose name was not released, were sent to Western Medical Center in Santa Ana for minor to moderate injuries, Abbott said. Abbott said sheriff's deputies found two open alcoholic-beverage containers in Staffon's truck. Staffon and his passenger had spent at least part of Saturday night celebrating the fact that Staffon had gotten his license back after a previous drunken-driving conviction, Abbott said. Citing DMV records, sheriff's officials said Staffon's first drunken-driving violation occurred in November 1999. Records show he was convicted in December 1999 and got his license back Friday, officials said. Contacted at Western Medical Center in Santa Ana, Staffon's mother and grandmother declined to comment. In a brief phone interview from Mesa, Ariz., Staffon's uncle declined to comment on his nephew's driving record but described him as a full-time student and "a good kid." Still shaken by the crash, John spent the day at the hospital waiting for updates on his son's condition and phoning friends. "It's heartbreaking that he may or may not wake up," John said. "I'm asking anyone who doesn't know (his son, Rogal and Bailey) to pray for them, regardless of their concept of God. Because that's all we can do right now."
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