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Teen accused in traffic death to be tried as an adult
01:00 AM EDT on Thursday, July 17, 2008
By Edward Fitzpatrick
Journal Staff Writer
PROVIDENCE ? A 17-year-old West Warwick boy will be prosecuted as an
adult on charges that he left a house party, sped down Route 2 in
Warwick with beer and Southern Comfort in the car, and slammed into a
station wagon driven by a mother of two, killing her instantly,
prosecutors said this week.
Graeme V. Kapko faces charges of driving to endanger with death
resulting, a felony; transportation of alcohol by a minor and
possession of alcohol by a minor. He has pleaded not guilty to the
charges.
Luisa Avila, 46, of West Warwick, was heading home from her job at the
Amtrol manufacturing company at about 11:15 p.m. on March 20 when her
1990 Toyota Camry was broadsided by a 2004 Volkswagen Jetta driven by
Kapko, prosecutors said. The police estimate Kapko was going about 85
mph in a 45-mph zone, and there were no skid marks indicating he hit
the brakes before impact, prosecutors said. Avila?s car was pushed
about 100 feet.
The attorney general?s office petitioned to have the teen waived out
of Family Court and into an adult court, and Family Court Chief Judge
Jeremiah S. Jeremiah Jr. granted that request on Friday.
?What ends with the tragic death of a woman working hard for her
family evolved from another careless night of youthful drinking and
the thought that they are invincible,? Attorney General Patrick C.
Lynch said in an interview. ?Sadly here, one person wasn?t invincible:
the woman going home from second shift. With that careless disregard
for human life, it?s more than appropriate that he be charged as an
adult.?
Also, Lynch said, ?It feeds into this unfortunate trend we have seen
of house parties resulting in serious injury or death, and need-ing to
send a message in those cases.?
Before the crash, Kapko had attended a house party along with about a
dozen other teens, and some of the other teens have told authorities
that Kapko drank beer at the party, prosecutors said. There were two
30-packs of beer at the party, prosecutors said.
The police say Denise Daudelin, 57, hosted the party at her home on
Spencer Street in West Warwick, and Daudelin has been charged with
violating the social-host law, a misdemeanor.
Lynch cited another factor in seeking to prosecute Kapko as an adult:
There is now less time to rehabilitate people through the juvenile
justice system. For years, Family Court retained jurisdiction over
wayward or delinquent youths until they turned 21, but last year the
General Assembly acted on a proposal by Governor Carcieri and lowered
that cutoff to age 19.
?You cannot disregard the fact that the change in the law takes away
two years? time in the juvenile justice system,? Lynch said. ?For the
loss of life, for such callous disregard and youthful indiscretion, an
appropriate sentence could never be imposed by his 19th birthday.?
Kapko?s lawyer, William J. Murphy, said, ?My client is a 17-year-old
individual who has no prior offenses. The case is a tragedy all the
way around. There is no evidence that alcohol played a part in this
accident.?
Murphy, who is speaker of the state House of Representatives, said,
?My client is very remorseful for the accident, and he is a good kid
from a good home. He is very saddened by the tragedy that occurred.?
Last year, Kapko was listed in The Journal as an 11th-grade honors
student at West Warwick High School.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant Attorney General Jay
Sullivan and Special Assistant Attorney General Timothy Healy.
Prosecutors said Kapko left the house party at about 10:30 p.m. on
March 20, and drove with another teen to the Wendy?s restaurant at
Rhode Island Mall in Warwick. After eating, the teens drove south on
Route 2, and Kapko?s car slammed into Avila?s car as she attempted to
turn onto Quaker Way, near the Kent County Court House, prosecutors
said.
About a dozen full Keystone beers and one empty beer can were found in
the car, along with a bottle of Southern Comfort, prosecutors said.
Kapko was not given a Breathalyzer test, and he has not been charged
with driving while intoxicated, prosecutors said.
Kapko was arraigned on Friday at the Warwick police station and
released on personal recognizance.
01:00 AM EDT on Thursday, July 17, 2008
By Edward Fitzpatrick
Journal Staff Writer
PROVIDENCE ? A 17-year-old West Warwick boy will be prosecuted as an
adult on charges that he left a house party, sped down Route 2 in
Warwick with beer and Southern Comfort in the car, and slammed into a
station wagon driven by a mother of two, killing her instantly,
prosecutors said this week.
Graeme V. Kapko faces charges of driving to endanger with death
resulting, a felony; transportation of alcohol by a minor and
possession of alcohol by a minor. He has pleaded not guilty to the
charges.
Luisa Avila, 46, of West Warwick, was heading home from her job at the
Amtrol manufacturing company at about 11:15 p.m. on March 20 when her
1990 Toyota Camry was broadsided by a 2004 Volkswagen Jetta driven by
Kapko, prosecutors said. The police estimate Kapko was going about 85
mph in a 45-mph zone, and there were no skid marks indicating he hit
the brakes before impact, prosecutors said. Avila?s car was pushed
about 100 feet.
The attorney general?s office petitioned to have the teen waived out
of Family Court and into an adult court, and Family Court Chief Judge
Jeremiah S. Jeremiah Jr. granted that request on Friday.
?What ends with the tragic death of a woman working hard for her
family evolved from another careless night of youthful drinking and
the thought that they are invincible,? Attorney General Patrick C.
Lynch said in an interview. ?Sadly here, one person wasn?t invincible:
the woman going home from second shift. With that careless disregard
for human life, it?s more than appropriate that he be charged as an
adult.?
Also, Lynch said, ?It feeds into this unfortunate trend we have seen
of house parties resulting in serious injury or death, and need-ing to
send a message in those cases.?
Before the crash, Kapko had attended a house party along with about a
dozen other teens, and some of the other teens have told authorities
that Kapko drank beer at the party, prosecutors said. There were two
30-packs of beer at the party, prosecutors said.
The police say Denise Daudelin, 57, hosted the party at her home on
Spencer Street in West Warwick, and Daudelin has been charged with
violating the social-host law, a misdemeanor.
Lynch cited another factor in seeking to prosecute Kapko as an adult:
There is now less time to rehabilitate people through the juvenile
justice system. For years, Family Court retained jurisdiction over
wayward or delinquent youths until they turned 21, but last year the
General Assembly acted on a proposal by Governor Carcieri and lowered
that cutoff to age 19.
?You cannot disregard the fact that the change in the law takes away
two years? time in the juvenile justice system,? Lynch said. ?For the
loss of life, for such callous disregard and youthful indiscretion, an
appropriate sentence could never be imposed by his 19th birthday.?
Kapko?s lawyer, William J. Murphy, said, ?My client is a 17-year-old
individual who has no prior offenses. The case is a tragedy all the
way around. There is no evidence that alcohol played a part in this
accident.?
Murphy, who is speaker of the state House of Representatives, said,
?My client is very remorseful for the accident, and he is a good kid
from a good home. He is very saddened by the tragedy that occurred.?
Last year, Kapko was listed in The Journal as an 11th-grade honors
student at West Warwick High School.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant Attorney General Jay
Sullivan and Special Assistant Attorney General Timothy Healy.
Prosecutors said Kapko left the house party at about 10:30 p.m. on
March 20, and drove with another teen to the Wendy?s restaurant at
Rhode Island Mall in Warwick. After eating, the teens drove south on
Route 2, and Kapko?s car slammed into Avila?s car as she attempted to
turn onto Quaker Way, near the Kent County Court House, prosecutors
said.
About a dozen full Keystone beers and one empty beer can were found in
the car, along with a bottle of Southern Comfort, prosecutors said.
Kapko was not given a Breathalyzer test, and he has not been charged
with driving while intoxicated, prosecutors said.
Kapko was arraigned on Friday at the Warwick police station and
released on personal recognizance.
