When is enough...enough?
“JUSTICE FOR KAYLA”
As a 5th generation "Yunker" I have a passionate love for Manayunk (which by the way is a Lenipi Indian word meaning "Where we gather to drink" or "watering hole"). The Lenipi Indians didn't get into vehicles, after having too much to drink at "the watering hole"...ending their nights in death.
NeuvoManayunk has no resemblance to the Manayunk I grew up in and love. These days my memories of Manayunk are far better than the reality of Main Street. I owned a business in the 80's at Main St. and Levering where I designed many of the business images for the Renaissance of Manayunk. At the first Manayunk Arts Festival I won "Best of Show" for my Main Street, Manayunk watercolor.
In 1981 I painted the mural on the wall at the Green Lane Bridge that proclaims to people "Our way of living together in Manayunk is a strong but delicate fabric. Let us not tear it asunder. For no one knows, once it is destroyed, if its protective warmth will ever be found again".
The deaths of Kayla Peter and Jena McClelland are the end result of NeuvoManayunk, Philadelphia's chick Main Street! Do the bartenders of NeuvoManayunk ever say to party patrons "enough is enough". Do they ever refuse to serve. Is there a point at which, legally, they are obligated to not serve? The words of the painted mural have faded, perhaps our moral obligation has as well.
Susanna Goihman, according to her lawyer, Brian McGonigle "Would not knowingly hit a child..." No kidding Brian, after reportedly consuming five martinis on an empty stomach, and who knows how many at dinner, with her restaurant owner friend, it’s surpassing Susanna Goihman could find her car, let alone drive it!
The employees, owners and staff of the bars and restaurants Susanna Goihman patronized on June 19th need to do the right thing. Jena McClelland, dead on Christmas Eve 2001, in an auto accident, after being served and consuming excessive amounts of alcohol. Where was she served? Main Street, Manayunk. Kayla Peter, killed on Father's Day 2005, by a driver who was served and consumed a substantial amount of alcohol. Where? Main Street, Manayunk. "The Drinking Hole."
The delicate fabric has begun to tear with the deaths of Jena and Kayla.
The deaths of Kayla Peter and Jena McClelland are the end result of NeuvoManayunk, Philadelphia's chick Main Street! Do the bartenders of NeuvoManayunk ever say to party patrons "enough is enough". Do they ever refuse to serve. Is there a point at which, legally, they are obligated to not serve? The words of the painted mural have faded, perhaps our moral obligation has as well.
Susanna Goihman, according to her lawyer, Brian McGonigle "Would not knowingly hit a child..." No kidding Brian, after reportedly consuming five martinis on an empty stomach, and who knows how many at dinner, with her restaurant owner friend, it’s surpassing Susanna Goihman could find her car, let alone drive it!
The employees, owners and staff of the bars and restaurants Susanna Goihman patronized on June 19th need to do the right thing. Jena McClelland, dead on Christmas Eve 2001, in an auto accident, after being served and consuming excessive amounts of alcohol. Where was she served? Main Street, Manayunk. Kayla Peter, killed on Father's Day 2005, by a driver who was served and consumed a substantial amount of alcohol. Where? Main Street, Manayunk. "The Drinking Hole."
The delicate fabric has begun to tear with the deaths of Jena and Kayla.
You might find this of interest from way back in 1996. I wondered during the 28 days of "Honk For Kayla" why Mr. Nutter, though I sent him an e-mail inviting him to do so, never came to the corner of Queen & Henry. I can't wait to find out who the restaurant owner was who went to dinner that night with Susanna Goihman. I wonder if it was anyone mentioned in this article from the past? Hummmmm
18 comments:
BREAKING NEWS
PECO BREATHING A SIGH OF RELIEF
Just thought I'd let ya'all know that I just drove by and that every light in the house is on at the Goihman house. Not sure about that candle though...........
Hey Greyparrott wasn't life good when Grace Kelly was the TRUE PHILLY GIRL! How sad life has become. Susanna might BRING DOWN all of Main Street, Manayunk. I wonder who she knows to have been given such power?
Taken from Philadelphia Bicycle News
Hit and Run may not be the perfect crime but if you have something to hide its light sentence and difficulty in prosecution makes it a viable alternative to vehicular homicide.
And she sure did have something to hide didn't she?
Things are heating up in NeuvoManayunk! I would like to know who owns the white Merceded that was at Queen & Henry on the night of July 11th. Did anyone get a pic?
I had intended to respond to Qwerty but an remark I would have would be redundant to Gina's.
Gina, that's the finest post I've seen on here yet.
Thanks for taking the time to write it!
Mare, the man driving that Mercedes was not Brian McGonigle who we saw on t.v.. He was a tan-faced, longish grey-hair man. Sorta hip looking for what his age appeared to be.
People who drive drunk are so low I don't have enough foul words for them.
What you all have done on behalf of Kayla Peter--and all victims--here on your blog and in your protests gives me hope. In the face of such bad people as Goihman appears to be, it's heartening to know there are also some really good people out there like you.
Thank you for your comments on my blog piece, Donna: Hit-and-Run-and-Hide
Be assured, I'm not done yet, and neither are a Lot of others who want to do Something, Anything to make a positive contribution to this horrendous tragedy.
Thank you Sally. I too believe in Lynn Abraham and believe she will have justice served. I find it very curious as to why the bar employees on Main Street "seem" to not be co-operating in the death of Kayla. Any thoughts?
TO EVERYONE...sorry to have to go through "WORD VERIFICATION" process. There were too many BLOG advertisements (they are sent out electronically...a person has to sit down and do the verification). I figure the extra step is worth it if you are truly interested in "JUSTICE FOR KAYLA".
Dear qwerty4321,
This post is from a classmate and dear friend of Kayla's from the kaylapeter.com site. I don't need an opinion survey to know what Philadelphian's Think. Opinion is not what drives me, or anyone else in seeking "JUSTICE FOR KAYLA". What drives me and the "US" are the 70 pages of comments who paint a living portrait of Kayla through their thoughts and words.
"At the moment tears are streaming down my face, because I used to go to you when I needed to tell someone something personal. I used to call you my diary. You knew so many things about me that not many people know. You hugged me when I cried over losing a boyfriend, you hugged me when we where in the fountain, you hugged me in the rain, you hugged me at LOVE park. That's what I'll always remember. Your lovely hugs. I'll remember everything I promise. I wish you where here I have so much to talk to you about. It took me about an hour and a half but I read all 67 pages of this website. I feel like c*** knowing you aren't going to junior prom. I remember joking with you and marianne about you coming with us to prom and you said you would stand outside and wave at us through the huge glass windows, and we all laughed. I'll remember you forever. When I get old I'll tell my children about all the crazy stuff we did, and ill warn them about drinking and driving and i'll tach them to look both was when they cross the street. I'll time them it was your time t leave, and i'll explian that God has a plan. I'll tell them when I go to heaven I'll see your beautiful soul again. Kayla it's almost bed time. So, close your pretty hazel eyes and have a wonderful dream. I miss you terribly. I love you so much. Watch over everyone. Good night hun i love you!!!! I can' stop thinkig about you"
FOOD FOR THOUGHT published in the Scotts Dale Times...June 2005
In Phoenix, Bishop Thomas O'Brien leaves a drunken jaywalker to die on the pavement after hitting him while driving home.
A homeless man bleeds to death overnight while implanted in the windshield of a Texas woman's car.
In New York, a fire department captain drives away after hitting and killing his victim.
"Drivers run for two reasons: they're scared or they have something to hide," says Glendale Police Detective Bill Wohlenhaus.
Wohlenhaus would know. Last September, he used Wal-Mart surveillance videos and paint chips to net the driver involved in a fatal hit-and-run.
"If they're younger, they're scared. If they're older, they've got something to hide; they're drunk or they've got a warrant or they have a reputation to protect," Wohlenhaus adds.
Detective Wohlenhaus estimates approximately 20 percent of the accidents he investigates are hit-and-runs, including both auto-pedestrian and auto-to-auto accidents. Like Bishop O'Brien, those who run to protect their reputations often bring worse consequences upon themselves. In many car-pedestrian accidents, the driver is not at fault, but driving away changes a no-fault accident into a criminal felony.
http://www.scottsdaletimes.com/june05-feature1.shtml
Gina I applaud you and I am thankful Kayla has you. Here is my view, "plain and simple": according to Brian McGonigle
"Susan (mind you he didn't even get Susanna's name right) would never KNOWINGLY hit a child and leave her there." SO WHAT CAUSED HER TO BE IN A STATE OF NOT KNOWING? Perhaps those vodka martinis that she began consuming at 7:30 (God knows how many?????) impeded her "STATE OF KNOWING."
Randi D. said...
Donna,
Read the following excerpt from a recent article from NBC news:
"Goihman's friend, who is a waitress at Kildare's restaurant, said she saw Goihman drink three vodka cocktails on June 19 -- one at Kildare's and two more at Thomas' Restaurant and Bar. However, the owner of Kildare's said that video cameras picked up no sign of Goihman that night
The witness told detectives that she and Goihman spoke to an attorney the following day. The attorney told them that if they were questioned, the witness must stay quiet."
What a COINCIDENCE that my neighbor, who I told you Goihman has been seen visiting, works at Kildare's and I was told that approximately 2-3 days after the hit and run, one of the girls living in that house was away and the house became uncharacteristically quiet.
Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm
Thu Aug 25, 12:45:18 PM 2005
Randi I hope you don't mind...I copied this comment into this section...it seemed more appropriate here.
I posted this on Phillyblog.com....
Hey Joely, there is nothing more ignorant than lack of knowledge or experience. "The scythe and pitchfork crowd"?? Four people, standing outside of Azafran does not a "Scythe and pitchfork crowd" make.
No one trusts in the DA's office and the Homicide Division in this case more than I do. So Joely, you sit on your couch and let the police do their work. I, along with the 200 who stood at Queen and Henry for those 28 days, prefer being seen, in public, keeping Kayla's name alive.
And as far as anyone being disappointed in the outcome of Susanna Goihman's arrest: One-year is as good as one-hundred if she is found guilty and labeled as such for the remainder of her life. I wish justice could make it the hundred...if not more. And since you know the 200 of us from Queen and Henry so very well, you must know this: After the trial, after the sentencing, while you are laying on your couch, we will be jumping around trying to change laws regarding hit-and-runs. We will continue to keep Kayla's name alive as long as we have life and one of us remembers how brilliantly she shined.
Hey Susanna...we hope you have enjoyed reading this BLOG. Today a woman was killed in Philadelphia on Lehigh Avenue. It could have been a hit and run...but it wasn't, the driver was intoxicated...but at least he had enough "KNOWINGNESS" to stop! I'll pray for him and hope his family stands by him. That was a terrible accident, for which that driver was responsible. You on the otherhand, if I have conceived you wrongly, I'll see you in HELL.
For a split second, on the day you were released from jail, I felt pain and sorrow for your mother.
As quick as the pain and sorrow came it went away.
A loving mother teaches her child right from wrong.
A loving mother gives her child the gift of dignity to do what is right and does everything in her power to assure that her child honors that dignity.
A loving mother stands by her child, proud of that dignity when truth is spoken...regardless of the consequences.
A child who is secure in a mother's love knows, even in the face of unspeakable acts, when the truth is spoken...a mother's love will be there.
I guess the difference between us is this: Even at 50, my mom would smack me silly beside the head and be the first one to turn me in. I love that I know this...
She loves me because I have become what she has taught me to be. Is what you are today, the woman your mother taught you to be?
Give it up Suzanna, drop the lawyers and let it all be over.
I remember when I would write Kayla Good night letters. I never thought I would write you one.
Gina Said, on August 25:
"If you still think otherwise, perhaps you should talk to one of the many who have lost a loved one as part of an unsolved crime, but who--either due to lack of sufficient support, interest, organization, or the "marginal" character of their lost loved one (e.g., homeless, mentally ill, runaway)--remain without justice for their loss."
Some of you know the story of my niece who was killed while assisting a motorist on the shoulder of 422.
We believe that she may have been a victim of what Gina has labeled "a person of marginal character". My white niece was married to a black man with a criminal record who she believed she could steer towards a good clean life. She seemed to be succeeding until her death when her reverted to his "old ways".
My niece was a clean living girl who wanted a good life obtained the right way - through hard work and building of family. The state police investigating her accident seemed to be "enthusiastic" about proving that this was a criminal act. That was until, coincidentally, they found that my niece's husband had an arrest record. Suddenly, it was like pulling teeth to have our calls returned or to get any information from them.
Was her life any less important or have less value because of the color of the skin of her husband or because of HIS past history?
We have a meeting with the Montgomery County DA and Assistant DA on Wednesday, to "pursuade " them to revisit this botched, and possibly racially motivated (or UNmotivated) investigation.
The only problem is........the killer's hearing for his summary charges(non-criminal charges) is scheduled 3 hours after our meeting with the DA. If he doesn't grant a continuance on this case until the decision can be made on the criminal charges, he'll damn well wish he had.
So there you have it. Someone who's family member seems to have been considered unworthy of justice, in our opinion, because of her husband's "marginal character", not even her own.
Peggy
Thank you. We can use all the prayers we can get. Please pray that we can get justice for Dayna now.
Randi
While it's frustrating to see an apparent lack of cooperation by Manayunk liquor providers, I think it's quite likely that they're afraid of being sued. This is a more powerful motivating factor than concern over Susanna Goihman's fate. If it's true that "Susanna might BRING DOWN all of Main Street, Manayunk," well, it's quite understandable that Manayunk businesses might not want to let that happen. It's a bit of a damned-if-you-do, damned-if-you-don't situation for them, because if they admit liability, they're civilly liable. And if they don't, they're helping a criminal get off.
I'll admit my bias here: I don't blame bars, liquor stores, breweries, or distilleries for the subsequent conduct of those who consume their products. Many people would agree with me; many would not.
I do think bar owner liability is a different issue from holding Susanna Goihman responsible for her actions.
The irony is that blaming others tends to let her off the hook in the moral sense.
As to the the degree of public support for a crackdown on Manayunk bars, who knows? The media always enjoy covering such issues because when there are stong feelings on both sides, readership increases.
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