{"id":33380,"date":"2013-03-22T15:26:47","date_gmt":"2013-03-22T22:26:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/198.57.196.122\/~gdatwofo\/theavtimes\/?p=33380"},"modified":"2013-03-22T15:50:01","modified_gmt":"2013-03-22T22:50:01","slug":"officers-activists-join-mourning-family-in-message-against-drunk-driving","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/theavtimes.com\/2013\/03\/22\/officers-activists-join-mourning-family-in-message-against-drunk-driving\/","title":{"rendered":"Officers, activists join mourning family in message against drunk driving"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"The<\/a>
The family of 22-year-old Destiny Tennison joined officials at a press conference Friday to warn the community about the dangers of drinking and driving.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

LANCASTER \u2013 A family who lost a loved one in a DUI crash last month joined law enforcement officials and community activists Friday morning to send a clear message to the community against drunk driving.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy daughter was a very beautiful woman\u2026 All we have left now is a box with her ashes,\u201d said Rosa Tennison<\/strong> through tears. \u201cMy grandchildren will never feel the safety of their mother\u2019s arms around them.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Destiny<\/a>
Destiny was a passenger in a vehicle that crashed on Feb. 25 at a Lancaster intersection.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cIf there\u2019s anything you can get from this, it\u2019s don\u2019t get in the car with someone who\u2019s been drinking,\u201d Rosa Tennison continued.<\/p>\n

The group gathered at the corner of Avenue I and 15th Street East in Lancaster, the spot where 22-year-old Destiny Tennison<\/strong> was killed on Feb. 25 as the result of a DUI crash. Andres Rubidoux<\/strong>, the father of Destiny\u2019s two young children, had been giving Destiny a late-night ride to Walmart, Rosa Tennison said.<\/p>\n

The couple was traveling eastbound on Avenue I, approaching 15th street east, when Rubidoux traveled off the roadway and then overcorrected and lost control of the car, sheriff\u2019s officials said.<\/p>\n

The vehicle skidded through the intersection and crashed into a traffic signal pole. Destiny died at the scene of the collision, and Rubidoux was transported to the hospital where he was placed in intensive care.<\/p>\n

\"Destiny's<\/a>
Destiny’s uncle, Juan Garcia, holds a picture collage of Destiny and her two young children.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Toxicology reports put Rubidoux\u2019s blood alcohol level substantially above the legal limit, officials said. Rubidoux was arrested after his release from the hospital and charged with gross vehicle manslaughter while intoxicated, and other alcohol-related charges. The charges have now been upgraded to include murder, according to court records. Rubidoux is currently in jail on $1 million bail.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a terrible tragedy that a mother was taken away from her young children, and it\u2019s a tragedy that didn\u2019t have to happen,\u201d said deputy Jon White<\/strong> of the Lancaster Sheriff\u2019s Station’s Traffic Bureau. \u201cI think it\u2019s important to show our support for the family and the community and to make it known that these are the types of violations that we aggressively pursue.\u201d<\/p>\n

This past year alone, there were 103 DUI traffic collisions, which resulted in 55 injuries and two deaths in the city of Lancaster, White said.<\/p>\n

Local law enforcement is taking a zero tolerance stance against drunk driving, said Lancaster Sheriff\u2019s Station Captain Pat Nelson<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you are caught driving, either under the influence of alcohol or drugs, you will be arrested, you will be prosecuted,\u201d said Nelson. \u201cThis is a preventable tragedy, and folks need to stop and think before they get behind the wheel of a car. There are plenty of alternatives.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe actually need the residents to help us in the fight to make the roads safer for everyone,\u201d said California Highway Patrol Lieutenant Rob Lunn<\/strong>. \u201cPart of that responsibility is you call 9-1-1. Quite often we end up making arrests as a result of that 9-1-1 call when somebody suspects that a driver is DUI.\u201d<\/p>\n

In the CHP\u2019s jurisdiction within the Antelope Valley, there were 144 DUI collisions that resulted in 97 injuries and four lives lost in 2012, Lunn said.<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t get in a car with someone you think has been drinking,\u201d Lunn said. \u201cIf you are sober, what you can do is offer to drive, or you can take a taxi or get another ride. Whatever you do, don\u2019t get in that car.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>
The group closed the press conference with a prayer for safety.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Community activist Dr.<\/strong> Miguel Coronado<\/strong>, who organized the press conference, said he\u2019s hoping the message will sink in with residents so tragedies like Destiny Tennison\u2019s can be avoided in the future.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen something like this occurs, it hurts everybody and sends a ripple effect of negativity that we need to stop,\u201d Coronado said. \u201cHopefully by bringing this awareness to the community, we can do something to stop this madness that\u2019s happening in our streets.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDestiny was a blessing in our community, a blessing to this family,\u201d said local NAACP President V. Jesse Smith<\/strong>, in closing the event with prayer. \u201cWhatever we do at this point, give us the strength and the courage to do it to save lives, to send a message to people that drinking and driving is simply wrong.\u201d<\/p>\n

The family of Destiny Tennison will be organizing future fundraisers aimed at creating a scholarship in her name, Rosa Tennison said.<\/p>\n

Editor\u2019s Note<\/span>: We will be updating this story with information on how to donate to the family of Destiny Tennison.<\/em><\/p>\n

Related articles:<\/p>\n

Driver charged in DUI crash that killed passenger<\/a><\/p>\n

Passenger killed in suspected DUI crash<\/a><\/p>\n

–<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

LANCASTER \u2013 A family who lost a loved one in a DUI crash last month joined law enforcement officials and community activists Friday morning to send a clear message to the community against drunk driving. \u201cMy daughter was a very beautiful woman\u2026 All we have left now is a box with her ashes,\u201d said Rosa […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/theavtimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33380"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/theavtimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/theavtimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theavtimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theavtimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=33380"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/theavtimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33380\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/theavtimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=33380"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theavtimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=33380"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theavtimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=33380"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}