Madeline Rackley pleads guilty in Lady Bird Lake Crash death [VIDEO]
- 10 years ago
The woman behind the wheel of the car that crashed into Lady Bird Lake in Austin, Texas, last year pleaded guilty in the death of her friend, Ryan Whittington.
Madeline Rackley, 27, had been drinking with her friends Danielle Martinez and Ryan Whittington, at the Lustre Pearl, a bar on Rainey Street. At the time, the friends were all 25. They were intoxicated when they left and at around 1:45 a.m., Rackley drove her Honda Civic into Lady Bird Lake, under the I-35 bridge on the north side.
Two police officers who happened to be at the scene when the incident occurred caught the accident on their dash cam. The video shows the car speeding into the water, then the two officers, Ashley Edwards and Matt Judd, leaping into the water to help the victims.
Rackley and Martinez were able to escape through the windows of the car and the officers helped them to land. They then learned that Whittington was also in the vehicle, but they couldn't get to him before the car sank into the water.
Rackley pleaded guilty to charges of intoxicated manslaughter. During the trial Whittington's family requested that Rackley receive the lightest sentence possible. In November of last year, she was sentenced to 10 days in a Travis County jail and participation in a 10-year probation program, during which she will have to serve 200 hours of community service and get random blood alcohol tests.
Whittington's family also brought a civil suit against the Lustre Pearl for their role in the tragedy.
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Madeline Rackley, 27, had been drinking with her friends Danielle Martinez and Ryan Whittington, at the Lustre Pearl, a bar on Rainey Street. At the time, the friends were all 25. They were intoxicated when they left and at around 1:45 a.m., Rackley drove her Honda Civic into Lady Bird Lake, under the I-35 bridge on the north side.
Two police officers who happened to be at the scene when the incident occurred caught the accident on their dash cam. The video shows the car speeding into the water, then the two officers, Ashley Edwards and Matt Judd, leaping into the water to help the victims.
Rackley and Martinez were able to escape through the windows of the car and the officers helped them to land. They then learned that Whittington was also in the vehicle, but they couldn't get to him before the car sank into the water.
Rackley pleaded guilty to charges of intoxicated manslaughter. During the trial Whittington's family requested that Rackley receive the lightest sentence possible. In November of last year, she was sentenced to 10 days in a Travis County jail and participation in a 10-year probation program, during which she will have to serve 200 hours of community service and get random blood alcohol tests.
Whittington's family also brought a civil suit against the Lustre Pearl for their role in the tragedy.
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