Prayers needed for one of Katey's classmates...

[samanthajane13]

Hamburg police search for hit-and-run driver who killed Hilbert student
By Maki Becker - News Staff Reporter
Updated: 10/18/08 10:17 PM

A Hilbert College student walking back to campus with friends after working at a haunted house at the Erie County fairgrounds was struck and killed by a hit-and-run driver early Saturday morning.

Hamburg police searched all day Saturday for whoever was behind the wheel of the vehicle that killed Meghan Sorbera, 19, of Burlington Flats, outside Cooperstown.

Hilbert College officials confirmed that Sorbera was a sophomore at the college and that she was majoring in forensic science. She was on the cross country team last school year.

"We're just shocked and we're grieving," Hilbert College President Cynthia Zane said. "We're praying for her and her family and for her friends who are just devastated by this loss."

Investigators said Sorbera had just started walking up South Park Avenue with two friends -- a man and a woman who are also Hilbert students -- when the accident occurred. The three were headed back to campus, about two miles north of the fairgrounds.

All three students had been working at the "Scare at the Fair," which let out at midnight.

The students were with traffic on South Park, just south of the Pegasus Restaurant, when an SUV struck the 19-year-old woman at 1:35 a.m. The speed limit there is 45 mph, and the area is adequately though not brightly lit, police said. The woman was wearing dark clothing.

Witnesses said the young woman flew at least 30 feet, landing in the front yard of Ramona Arida's home.

"I heard a bang … a thump," Arida said. "Something got hit."

The SUV slowed down for a moment, but then kept going, witnesses told police.

Arida, who had been in bed, figured someone had driven into her mailbox again. She had seen more than her share of accidents in front of her house.

But when she came downstairs to see what was going on, she quickly realized that this was no ordinary accident.

"I saw two people on the ground," she said. She could see that they were hovered over a third person.

"Is everything OK?" Arida yelled to them.

A young man answered: "No! My girlfriend just got hit by a car!"

Arida asked if she could call 911 for them. The student said they were already on the line with an emergency dispatcher, but asked for her street address.

Arida grabbed a tan comforter and ran outside. She covered the young woman on the ground.

"She was unconscious and shaking," Arida said.

An ambulance and the police came quickly.

Sorbera was still breathing and had a pulse, but police said it was obvious that she had suffered a severe head injury. She was rushed to Erie County Medical Center.

As more investigators arrived at the scene, more students began gathering at the scene, Arida said.

The young people came in and out of her house, distraught over their friend.

"Oh, God," she cried out. "I just feel so bad for this girl. ... Those poor parents. My heart just breaks for them. I'm just devastated."

Sorbera's parents were notified about the accident at about 2 a.m. and they drove to Buffalo.

Despite the doctors' best efforts, the student was beyond saving. She was pronounced dead at 7:18 a.m.

The parents met Saturday afternoon with their daughter's roommates at a Hilbert-owned house where they lived.

In the meantime, Hamburg police said they were determined to catch the driver.

They have some important clues to help them.

Investigators found a black piece of plastic that holds the passenger side fog light on the ground. They also found a headlight cover and a yellow marker light, also from the right side.

Capt. Daniel Shea said it's likely the car in question is either a 2002 or 2003 Ford Explorer or Mercury Mountaineer.

Investigators believe it's a high-end model, either Eddie Bauer or XLT, with amenities like leather seats.

"It's possibly maroon," Shea said, but witnesses had a hard time determining the color because of the dark.

Authorities also believe that the windshield may be damaged.

Hamburg police are asking the driver of the car to turn himself or herself in.

They are also asking anyone who knows about an SUV that has damage to the front passenger side and possibly the windshield to contact police.

"Somebody knows," Shea said, whether it be a spouse or parent or sibling."

Anyone with information is asked to call Hamburg Police at 649-5111 ext. O or contact Det. Scott Kashino at ext. 2672.

"We are aggressively investigating this," Shea said.

mbecker@buffnews.com


http://www.buffalonews.com/258/story/467034.html?imw=Y

Meghan was a year ahead of Katey, and in the same department. Although we didn't know her, we mourn her loss.

My prayers go out to Meghan's family, friends, classmates and instructors.

RIP-Meghan
No more pain...just peace.

[SaraSidle]

Oh my Samantha how awful. poor katie. the family has my prayers!:rose:

[samanthajane13]

Meghan was volunteering at the haunted house held for the children in the community, and was on her way home when she was hit.

[One2Snoop]

Hugs :rose: and thoughts and prayers go out to the family. :rose::rose:

[samanthajane13]

I'll pass the messages on to Katey, and she'll relay them to her fellow students and her instructors.

Thanks so much for caring!

[susie31023]

Hugs :rose: and thoughts and prayers go out to the family. :rose::rose:


Samantha my prayers and love go to Katey and this family. What a horrible tragedy..:rose::rose::rose:

We also had a tragedy this past week. One of our retired bank presidents was hit by a elementary/daycare bus one morning last week and killed. Another daycare bus driver right behind the bus that hit the man grabbed all the little ones off the back of the bus and took them right to the counselors, we're talking five and six year olds. The counselor instead of trying to find out what they saw tried to tell them it was a deer, my SIL who is with the Sheriffs dept. said one little girl all the way in the back of the group stood up and told the counselor "I wish it had been a deer we hit instead of that man"....My daughter and granddaughter[5 y/o] missed seeing this by mere seconds...So please pray for this man's family and these sweet little ones who had to see this horrible accident...:rose::rose:

[samanthajane13]

"We also had a tragedy this past week. One of our retired bank presidents was hit by a elementary/daycare bus one morning last week and killed. Another daycare bus driver right behind the bus that hit the man grabbed all the little ones off the back of the bus and took them right to the counselors, we're talking five and six year olds. The counselor instead of trying to find out what they saw tried to tell them it was a deer, my SIL who is with the Sheriffs dept. said one little girl all the way in the back of the group stood up and told the counselor "I wish it had been a deer we hit instead of that man"....My daughter and granddaughter[5 y/o] missed seeing this by mere seconds...So please pray for this man's family and these sweet little ones who had to see this horrible accident..."

Yes-of course they will all be in my prayers.

I hope that he didn't see it coming and that he didn't suffer. That would give a small measure of peace to his family and friends.

My God-do they think that little kids are blind and stupid? Children are MUCH more perceptive than most adults give them credit for.

And they LIED to them????

What is this teaching those poor kids???

At least the got the kids to a counselor-even if the counselor was an IDIOT, it was a step in the right direction!!! There was a time when there weren't any grief counselors for kids, and they suffered horribly from things that happened around them.

[susie31023]

"We also had a tragedy this past week. One of our retired bank presidents was hit by a elementary/daycare bus one morning last week and killed. Another daycare bus driver right behind the bus that hit the man grabbed all the little ones off the back of the bus and took them right to the counselors, we're talking five and six year olds. The counselor instead of trying to find out what they saw tried to tell them it was a deer, my SIL who is with the Sheriffs dept. said one little girl all the way in the back of the group stood up and told the counselor "I wish it had been a deer we hit instead of that man"....My daughter and granddaughter[5 y/o] missed seeing this by mere seconds...So please pray for this man's family and these sweet little ones who had to see this horrible accident..."

Yes-of course they will all be in my prayers.

I hope that he didn't see it coming and that he didn't suffer. That would give a small measure of peace to his family and friends.

My God-do they think that little kids are blind and stupid? Children are MUCH more perceptive than most adults give them credit for.

And they LIED to them????

What is this teaching those poor kids???

At least the got the kids to a counselor-even if the counselor was an IDIOT, it was a step in the right direction!!! There was a time when there weren't any grief counselors for kids, and they suffered horribly from things that happened around them.
I agree Samantha, these children are not stupid and my SIL was very angry by how they were treating them. They should have asked what they saw first so then they could have handled it the right way..I guess the idiot counselor was trying to convince them they saw an animal instead of a man, but she was and is an idiot for saying what she did. I pray these little ones can manage the horro of what they did see. It was an accident because the sun had blinded the bus driver and he was on a bike so he basically blended into the road, it is just so very sad. My DD and GD had just passed that area of the road within seconds so my GD was saved from seeing it. She is so very tender hearted I really don't think she could have coped with seeing it. Sorry to hijack your thread but it reminded me of this tragedy. Much love to you and Katey~Suz

[samanthajane13]

"Sorry to hijack your thread but it reminded me of this tragedy. Much love to you and Katey~Suz"

No problem, Suz!

Those people are deserving of our prayers, too!:rose:

[samanthajane13]

Hunt continues for driver of SUV in fatal hit-and-run
By Maki Becker and Dan Herbeck NEWS STAFF REPORTERS
Updated: 10/19/08 7:19 AM

Hamburg police are continuing their search for a hit-and-run driver who killed a Hilbert College student who was walking home with friends after working at a haunted house at the Erie County fairgrounds.

The driver left the scene on South Park Avenue early Saturday morning after the sport utility vehicle struck Meghan Sorbera, 19, hurling her through the air and causing fatal head injuries.

Sorbera and two other students were walking to their house near the Hilbert campus after spending the night working as performers at the “Scare at the Fair” haunted house.

Police are working to solve the crime with eyewitness accounts and several pieces of the SUV that broke off during the 1:35 a. m. incident.

“We’ve got to catch who did this,” said Police Capt. Daniel Shea, “and we will.”

College officials said Sorbera was a sophomore from Burlington Flats, outside Cooperstown, who was studying to become a forensic investigator. She was a former member of the cross country team.

“The students who knew her are devastated,” said James P. Sturm, vice president for student life at Hilbert. “Meghan and her friends were very close. Halloween was her favorite time of the year. She loved making costumes and loved working as one of the monsters at the haunted house.”

“We’re just shocked and we’re grieving,” added the college president, Cynthia Zane. “We’re praying for her and her family and for her friends.”

Sorbera was struck on a stretch of South Park that has no sidewalks, which, according to college officials, creates a dangerous situation for students who often walk along the busy road to stores, restaurants and nearby workplaces.

Investigators said Sorbera had just started walking along South Park with two friends when the SUV hit her. The three were returning to campus, about two miles north of the fairgrounds.

The students were walking with traffic on South Park, just south of the Pegasus Restaurant, when the SUV struck Sorbera. The speed limit there is 45 mph, and the area is adequately though not brightly lit, police said. Sorbera was wearing dark clothing.

Witnesses said the young woman flew at least 30 feet, landing in the front yard of Ramona Arida’s home.

“I heard a bang — a thump,” Arida said. “Something got hit.”

The SUV slowed down for a moment, but then kept going, witnesses told police.

Arida, who had been in bed, assumed someone had driven into her mailbox again. She said she has seen more than her share of accidents in front of her house.

But when she came downstairs to see what was going on, she quickly realized that this was no ordinary accident.

“I saw two people on the ground,” she said. She could see that they were hovering over a third person.

“Is everything OK?” Arida yelled to them.

A young man answered: “No! My girlfriend just got hit by a car!”

Arida asked if she could call 911 for them. The student said they were already on the line with an emergency dispatcher, but asked for her street address.

Arida grabbed a comforter and ran outside. She covered the young woman on the ground.

“She was unconscious and shaking,” Arida said.

An ambulance and the police came quickly.

Sorbera was still breathing and had a pulse, but police said it was obvious that she had suffered a severe head injury. She was rushed to Erie County Medical Center.

As more investigators arrived at the scene, more students began gathering there, Arida said.

The young people came in and out of her house, distraught over their friend.

“Oh, God,” she cried out. “I just feel so bad for this girl. . . . Those poor parents. My heart just breaks for them. I’m just devastated.”

Sorbera’s parents, Peter and Susan Sorbera, were notified about the accident at about 2

a. m., and they immediately drove to Buffalo. Their daughter was pronounced dead at 7:18 a. m.

The parents met Saturday afternoon with their daughter’s roommates at a Hilbert-owned house where they lived.

Jim Hughes and Chris Harter, two of the operators of the haunted house at the fairgrounds, said those who worked with Sorbera were extremely upset to hear of her death. They said she genuinely enjoyed her job, which often required her to dress up as a scary clown or hillbilly.

“She was a nice kid. Everybody liked her,” Harter said. “They need to catch the person who did this.”

mbecker@buffnews.com


http://www.buffalonews.com/cityregion/story/467602.html?imw=Y

[susie31023]

Samantha it just is unbelieveable to me how someone could do this and just drive away. I hope they catch the SOB and charge them with first degree murder. Which in my opinion it was, especially considering they just took off after they hit her.~Suz

[Notknowingall]

My thoughts and prayers to each familiy. And hoping they catch these %$#%# soon.

[samanthajane13]

I wanted to thank everyone. I'm going to print this thread up, and send it into school with Katey to share with the students and staff.

Since Hilbert is a catholic college, I'm sure there's going to be some kind of memorial service, and I'm sure they'll appreciate the fact that many people from the forum are praying for Meghan right along with them.

[samanthajane13]

Hamburg police now looking for blue SUV in death of Hilbert student
By Gene Warner
Updated: 10/21/08 11:00 AM

Hamburg detectives, vowing to find the driver of a hit-and-run vehicle that struck and fatally injured a Hilbert College student over the weekend, now believe the SUV being sought is blue, possibly a medium blue.

Detectives interviewed a driver who saw the accident that claimed the life of Meghan Sorbera, 19, a sophomore at Hilbert College.

Capt. A. Daniel Shea, chief of detectives, said police believe the hit-and-run vehicle was a 2002 or 2003 Ford Explorer or Mercury Mountaineer, probably a high-end model, either Eddie Bauer or XLT.

Witnesses walking with Sorbera when she was struck told police they thought the vehicle might have been maroon, but police now are citing the other driver's belief that the vehicle may have been blue.

Sorbera, of Burlington Flats, near Cooperstown, had just started walking up South Park Avenue, near the Erie County fairgrounds, with two friends and fellow Hilbert students, when she was struck at about 1:35 a.m. Saturday. She was taken to Erie County Medical Center, where she died about six hours later.

"We anticipate that we will discover who was operating that vehicle," Shea said today. "If it has to be done with some fine forensic legwork, that's what we will do. But one way or the other, we will find that person."

Investigators have several pieces of physical evidence from the hit-and-run vehicle, including a black piece of plastic that holds the passenger-side fog light. They also found a headlight cover and a yellow marker light that wraps around the headlight.

While they continue trying to find the vehicle, police also are appealing either to the driver or someone who knows the driver's identity to come forward.

"We would have thought that a person with any sense of decency would have come forward by now," Shea said. "But it's not too late."

Anyone with any information is asked to call Town of Hamburg police at 648-5111.

Shea wouldn't discuss the possible charges that the driver could be facing.

gwarner@buffnews.com


http://www.buffalonews.com/258/story/469814.html

[samanthajane13]

Meghan Sorbera, victim of hit-run driver
March 24, 1989 — Oct. 18, 2008

Meghan Sorbera, of Burlington Flats, died early Saturday in Erie County Medical Center after being struck by a hit-and run driver on South Park Avenue in the Town of Hamburg. She was 19.

Born in Middletown, Miss Sorbera was a 2007 graduate of Edmeston High School, where she excelled in cross country and track-and-field.

She attended Hilbert College in the Town of Hamburg, where she was studying forensic science.

Survivors include her mother and father, Susan and Peter Sorbera, and two brothers, Tanner and Peter.

A graveside service will be at 11 a. m. Friday in Hartwick Cemetery.


http://www.buffalonews.com/obituaries/story/470542.html

[samanthajane13]

Hamburg police arrest attorney in fatal hit-and-run
By Gene Warner
News Staff Reporter

An attorney from Orchard Park is accused of driving the hit-and-run vehicle that struck and killed a 19-year-old Hilbert College student over the weekend.

John P. Duffy, 41, was arrested early this morning and charged with leaving the scene of a fatal accident, a felony.

Town of Hamburg police also accused Duffy of trying to repair the damage to his SUV and hiding the broken headlight from his vehicle.

Meghan Sorbera, a sophomore from Burlington Flats, near Cooperstown, was fatally injured on South Park Avenue at about 1:35 a.m. Saturday.

The big break in the case came when detectives canvassed the area near the accident and found that an SUV matching the description of the hit-and-run vehicle had gone through the drive-thru window of a late-night restaurant just minutes before the accident.

That vehicle was captured on the restaurant's surveillance camera, and detectives traced the vehicle to Duffy, an attorney with offices in the village of Hamburg.

Suspicions were further raised when a neighborhood canvass revealed that Duffy had attempted to repair the vehicle at his residence, police said.

Detectives obtained a search warrant, and the search of the residence revealed a broken headlight buried deep in a leaf receptacle and glass fragments from the garage floor, they said.

Duffy's vehicle was impounded and taken to the Erie County Central Police Services Lab. It is expected to yield DNA evidence confirming that Duffy's car struck the victim, police said.

When confronted with some of the evidence, Duffy made a confession regarding the accident, according to police.

"When he finally confessed, he appeared remorseful," Town of Hamburg Lt. Kevin Trask said at a late-morning news conference.

The two sides in the case gave different versions of when Duffy knew he had struck someone and whether he was trying to get away with it.

Duffy didn't realize he had hit someone with his vehicle until a "couple of days later," his attorney, Daniel J. Chiacchia, said after Duffy's arraignment.

At the time of the accident, Duffy thought he had struck a trash can, because he looked behind him and saw some papers flying in the air, his attorney said.

Both Chiacchia and police have said Duffy was drinking that night, but no one could say how much and when.

"That really wasn't why this happened," Chiacchia said. "It was more driver inattention than anything."

Chiacchia also said his client remains "extremely remorseful" about what happened.

"He feels horrible for the family," he said. "This is everybody's worst nightmare. All you people out there pointing fingers, this could happen to any of us."

Chiacchia also pointed out that Duffy was driving around in the same vehicle the next day, suggesting that he wasn't trying to hide anything.

"He indicated in his statement that he thought he struck something, but he didn't realize it was an individual until later," Detective Scott Kashino said.

But police and the Erie County district attorney's office believe that Duffy knew, at least by Sunday morning when he talked with his mother, that his vehicle may have been involved in the fatal accident on South Park.

"He had ample opportunity to turn himself in, and he didn't until we closed in on him," Kashino said.

Lt. Trask agreed.

"He was attempting to destroy evidence, tamper with evidence," Trask said. "That shows me he was probably trying to get away with this."

Duffy is charged with leaving the scene of the accident. Town of Hamburg detectives are conferring with the Erie County district attorney's office on other possible charges.

During today's arraignment, Town Justice Walter Rooth released Duffy on his own recognizance, but ordered that his driver's license be suspended, his passport be taken and he be prohibited from leaving the area.

Lynette M. Reda, chief of the district attorney's Vehicular Crimes Bureau, had asked for $25,000 bail, pointing out that Duffy had driven to Pennsylvania in the vehicle some time before he was arrested and that some evidence had been destroyed.

Town of Hamburg police had said they were confident they would find the driver, whether through an exhaustive investigation or through the person surrendering.

"DNA and all the new advances in technology are fantastic, but there's no replacement for good old-fashioned police work," Kashino said.

gwarner@buffnews.com

http://www.buffalonews.com/home/story/470825.html

[samanthajane13]

Father of 3 turns himself in for hit and run
Updated: Oct 22, 2008 04:43 PM

HAMBURG, N.Y. (WIVB) - A hit and run crash, a young college student left dead, and now a man has turned himself in. He's a lawyer who now faces charges of leaving the scene of the accident.

41-year-old John Duffy is usually in court representing clients but Wednesday morning the Hamburg attorney was the one in need of a lawyer, after being charged with leaving the scene of a fatal.

Defense attorney Dan Chiacchia said, "John Duffy is very remorseful about what happened. He feels horrible for this family."

Duffy now stands accused of driving the hit-and-run vehicle that struck and killed 19-year-old Meghan Sorbera over the weekend.

The married father of three allegedly knew he struck something, but not a person. "He thought he hit a trash can. He looked back and saw papers flying in the air," said Chiacchia.

Detectives find that hard to believe. For the past four days, detectives worked round the clock trying to crack the case with little evidence to go on. Their big break came on Monday.

That is when detectives learned that an SUV matching the description of the hit and run vehicle was captured on a nearby restaurant's surveillance camera, minutes before the accident.

It was later traced to the lawyer.

Kevin Trask Town of Hamburg Police said, "When he was confronted with evidence, he finally broke down and admitted his involvement in the accident."

Detectives said Duffy told them he had been drinking.

They also believe he had been trying to destroy evidence. Lt. Trask continued, "Went to his residence with search warrant and secured broken head lamps and a garbage can. Attempted to hide things were in a leaf bag."

"This is everybody's worst nightmare and all you people pointing fingers. This can happen to anyone," said Chiacchia.

News 4's Lorey Schultz asked, "Do you think he would have turned himself in if police weren't on to him?"

"Probably not," said Det. Scott Kashino.

Chiacchia added, "Maybe he didn't turn self in right away, but he had three kids to think about. It's a difficult thing until you walked these shoes. Difficult to pass judgment."

Story by Lorey Schultz, WIVB

http://www.wivb.com/Global/story.asp?S=9222126

[samanthajane13]

Attorney pleads not guilty
Updated: Oct 22, 2008 01:10 PM

HAMBURG, N.Y. (WIVB) - Police in the Southtowns say they caught the driver in a deadly hit and run accident from last weekend.

A local attorney pled not guilty to leaving the scene of a fatal accident which occurred last weekend.

Wednesday morning, attorney John Duffy surrendered to Hamburg Police after police secured a search warrant. Police believe he is the hit and run driver who struck and killed 19-year-old Meghan Sorbera, a Hilbert College sophomore.

She was walking along South Park early Saturday morning after working at the Erie County Fairgrounds Haunted House when she was struck.

Duffy allegedly claims he didn't know he had hit anyone. His attorney says he thought he might have struck a garbage can. The big break came for police a few days later when on a hunch they stopped at a fast food restaurant and saw a vehicle matching the description on a surveillance tape.

"Why didn't he turn himself in right away?," asked News 4's Lorey Schultz.

Dan Chiacchia, Duffy's attorney said, "Part of it is and he gave his statement to the police, is that he didn't realize he had hit someone until a couple days later. And, I just want to tell everyone that John Duffy is very remorseful about what happened. He feels horrible for this family."

Detective Scott Kashino with Hamburg Police said, "The break that really opened it up was we had a vehicle pull through the drive-thru which matched the description of the vehicle that we had picked up from the witnesses as well as the car parts left on the scene. The color was correct and the make and model were correct."

Duffy was released on his own recognizance despite concerns from a prosecutor that he is a flight risk. Apparently he fled the area for few days after the crash and is also accused of trying to destroy evidence.

We'll have much more on the story on News 4 at 5 and 6, and WIVB.com.

Story by Lorey Schultz, WIVB.

http://www.wivb.com/Global/story.asp?S=9220667

[susie31023]

[QUOTE=samanthajane13;9133586]Attorney pleads not guilty
Updated: Oct 22, 2008 01:10 PM

HAMBURG, N.Y. (WIVB) - Police in the Southtowns say they caught the driver in a deadly hit and run accident from last weekend.

A local attorney pled not guilty to leaving the scene of a fatal accident which occurred last weekend.

Wednesday morning, attorney John Duffy surrendered to Hamburg Police after police secured a search warrant. Police believe he is the hit and run driver who struck and killed 19-year-old Meghan Sorbera, a Hilbert College sophomore.

She was walking along South Park early Saturday morning after working at the Erie County Fairgrounds Haunted House when she was struck.

Duffy allegedly claims he didn't know he had hit anyone. His attorney says he thought he might have struck a garbage can. The big break came for police a few days later when on a hunch they stopped at a fast food restaurant and saw a vehicle matching the description on a surveillance tape.

"Why didn't he turn himself in right away?," asked News 4's Lorey Schultz.

Dan Chiacchia, Duffy's attorney said, "Part of it is and he gave his statement to the police, is that he didn't realize he had hit someone until a couple days later. And, I just want to tell everyone that John Duffy is very remorseful about what happened. He feels horrible for this family."

Detective Scott Kashino with Hamburg Police said, "The break that really opened it up was we had a vehicle pull through the drive-thru which matched the description of the vehicle that we had picked up from the witnesses as well as the car parts left on the scene. The color was correct and the make and model were correct."

Duffy was released on his own recognizance despite concerns from a prosecutor that he is a flight risk. Apparently he fled the area for few days after the crash and is also accused of trying to destroy evidence.

We'll have much more on the story on News 4 at 5 and 6, and WIVB.com.

Story by Lorey Schultz, WIVB.

http://www.wivb.com/Global/story.asp?S=9220667[/
QUOTE]

:flamemad: How dare they let this creep out after what he did. That is just unbelieveable to let him out especially after he ran and never looked back. What makes them think he just wont take off again? I am so angry right now. I don't care who he is he sure as heck did't act remorseful before they caught him now did he?:flamemad:

[samanthajane13]

Orchard Park lawyer was drinking before fatal hit-and-run
Charged with felony in death of Hilbert College student
By Gene Warner
NEWS STAFF REPORTER

The Orchard Park lawyer who has been charged in Saturday’s hit-and-run death of a 19-year-old Hilbert College student was drinking before the incident.

Both the police and his attorneys agree to that.

Whether John P. Duffy, 41, was driving while intoxicated, at least for now, is not being charged.

That doesn’t mean, if the allegations are true, he will be treated lightly.

Duffy could face up to seven years in prison if convicted.

This heavy punishment is possible because another lawyer, from Amherst, served less than a year behind bars for striking and killing a 68-year-old car mechanic in 1999.

Under the law at that time, drunken drivers could leave the scene of an accident, turn themselves in when they sobered up and avoid a more serious felony charge. Amherst police had suspected former local lawyer Drew V. Tidwell had been drunk at the time but could never prove it. He was sentenced to one year in jail and served eight months.

The outrage over his sentence prompted the State Legislature to close the “hit, run and hide” loophole in state law.

So when Town of Hamburg police arrested Duffy early Wednesday and accused him of leaving the scene of the fatal accident early Saturday on South Park Avenue, he was charged with a Class D felony. Upon conviction, that is punishable by up to 2-1/3 to 7 years in prison.

That charge of leaving the scene of a fatal accident is now just as serious as a vehicular manslaughter charge based on the person being intoxicated.

“Even if we were able to prove intoxication, we wouldn’t be able to charge anything more serious than the felony he’s charged with now,” Erie County District Attorney Frank J. Clark said of Duffy. “All we have to prove is that he knew or should have known that he struck someone.”

Duffy was released without bail Wednesday but stripped of his driver’s license and prohibited from leaving the area.

The accident, at about 1:35 a. m. Saturday, claimed the life of Meghan Sorbera, a Hilbert College sophomore from Burlington Flats, near Cooperstown.

She was walking on South Park Avenue with two friends after working at a haunted house at the Erie County Fairgrounds.

Witnesses told investigators that the vehicle that hit Sorbera slowed down but then kept going.

Hamburg police had just a few pieces of evidence to work with.

While witnesses were able to describe the vehicle — they said it was a high-end 2002 or 2003 Ford Explorer or Mercury Mountaineer — they had a hard time determining the color. No one got a look at the license plate.

But investigators found parts of the vehicle on the ground, including a black casing to the passenger side fog light, pieces of the headlight cover and a yellow marker light.

The detectives worked the case around the clock. Through the news media, they implored the driver to turn himself in. But they also knew that a forensic investigation could lead them to their driver as well.

The detectives began canvassing the area near the accident, collecting video from surveillance cameras at local businesses — like banks, the gas station and the Pegasus Restaurant just a few feet from the hit-and-run scene.

Then, Detective Scott Kashino had the idea of going to fast-food restaurants in the area, said Capt. A. Daniel Shea.

“What if he stopped to have something to eat because he’s out and about?” Kashino posed, Shea said.

That hunch proved to be the big break in the case the police were looking for.

Detectives found footage of an SUV that matched the description of the hit-and-run vehicle driving up to the drive-thru window of a fastfood restaurant just minutes before the accident.

“He could be seen leaving this fast-food place,” Shea said. “Minutes later, we see the lights of our [police] cars responding to the scene.”

In the meantime, detectives had also determined the color of the SUV. Initially, witnesses had said they thought it could be maroon. But then another witness was interviewed who said it was blue. Traces of paint found on Sorbera’s body also indicated that the vehicle was blue.

Detectives traced the vehicle from the fast-food restaurant to Duffy, a lawyer with offices in Hamburg.

Detectives obtained a search warrant, and the search of his residence revealed a broken headlight buried deep in a bag of leaves and some glass fragments on the garage floor, police said.

Duffy went to the police station Tuesday night. When confronted with the evidence, Duffy confessed, according to police.

“When he finally confessed, he appeared remorseful,” Town of Hamburg Lt. Kevin Trask said at a late-morning news conference.

The two sides in the case gave different versions of when Duffy knew he had struck someone and whether he was trying to get away with it.

Duffy didn’t realize he had hit someone with his vehicle until a “couple of days later,” his attorney, Daniel J. Chiacchia, said after Duffy’s arraignment.

At the time of the accident, Duffy thought he had struck a trash can, because he looked behind him and saw some papers flying in the air, his attorney said. “He indicated in his statement that he thought he struck something, but he didn’t realize it was an individual until later,” Kashino said.

Both Chiacchia and police have said Duffy was drinking that night, but no one could say how much and when. Police said Duffy had left a tavern before going to the fastfood restaurant.

“That really wasn’t why this happened,” Chiacchia said. “It was more driver inattention than anything.”

Chiacchia also said his client remains “extremely remorseful” about what happened.

“He feels horrible for the family,” he said. “This is everybody’s worst nightmare. All you people out there pointing fingers, this could happen to any of us.”

Chiacchia also pointed out that Duffy was driving around in the same vehicle the next day, suggesting that he wasn’t trying to hide anything.

But police and prosecutors believe that Duffy knew, at least by Sunday morning when he talked with his mother, that his vehicle may have been involved in the fatal accident on South Park.

“He had ample opportunity to turn himself in, and he didn’t until we closed in on him,” Kashino said. Trask agreed. “He was attempting to destroy evidence, tamper with evidence,” Trask said. “That shows me he was probably trying to get away with this.”

During Wednesday’s arraignment, Town Justice Walter Rooth released Duffy without bail but ordered that his driver’s license be suspended, his passport be taken and he be prohibited from leaving the area.

Lynette M. Reda, chief of the district attorney’s Vehicular Crimes Bureau, had asked for $25,000 bail, pointing out that Duffy had driven to Pennsylvania in the vehicle sometime before he was arrested and that some evidence had been destroyed.

News Staff Reporter Maki Becker contributed to this report.

gwarner@buffnews.com

[samanthajane13]

Updated: 10/28/08 10:48 AM
Hilbert mourns hit-and-run victim
By Jay Rey
News Staff Reporter

The students gathered around a young flowering pear tree, freshly planted next to a pond, in memory of one of their own.

The planting and memorial service were held Monday afternoon at Hilbert College for Meghan Sorbera, the 19-year-old Hilbert student who was killed during the early morning hours of Oct. 18 in a hit-and-run accident on South Park Avenue.

More than 250 people from the Hamburg college and local community showed up to pay their respects.

“We feel like we have extended family now,” said Sorbera’s father, Peter.

Sorbera and his wife, Susan, made the trip to Hamburg from their home in Burlington Flats, near Cooperstown, where funeral services for their daughter were held Friday.

After Monday’s memorial at Hilbert, the Sorberas talked to reporters about living through the tragedy of the previous 11 days.

“I hope no one has to experience this — ever, ever, ever,” Peter Sorbera said. “It’s a parent’s worst nightmare.”

Their daughter wasn’t even supposed to be in Hamburg the night she was struck and killed while walking back to campus with friends after working at a haunted house on the Erie County Fairgrounds.

“She was supposed to come home that weekend,” her mother said.

“But this is where she wanted to be,” her father said.

The Sorberas didn’t want to say a lot about the case against John P. Duffy, the 41-year-old lawyer from Orchard Park charged with leaving the scene of the fatal crash.

But they raved about the detective work by Hamburg police that led to Duffy’s arrest. They described themselves as relieved that someone has been charged and said they would become vocal advocates for stronger punishment for drivers in hit-and-run cases.

They also are angry. “This gentleman took my daughter,” Peter Sorbera said.

But overwhelmed by the outpouring from Hilbert and the local community, the Sorberas tried Monday to focus the attention on their daughter, a sophomore at the college.

Described as a natural runner, she was on Hilbert’s cross country team last year, but two achy knees prompted her to take a break this year.

While she was on her high school cross country team, she would finish the race and then double back to run the course with her friend and teammate to encourage her.

She didn’t like the spotlight and always cheered for the underdog.

“That was Meghan,” her father said.

She had a close relationship with her mother, and the two were referred to as “partners in crime,” who would hold tight to shared secrets or take off for hours to go shopping.

She enjoyed holidays and dressing up, so Halloween was one of her favorite times of the year.

“She just loved to be different than everyone else, but everyone liked that about her,” said Daniel Dollinger, a senior at Hilbert who served as her residential adviser last year. “She was just a very nice girl, just an awesome person to be around.”

She also loved children. While in high school, she volunteered in a kindergarten class. Her teacher encouraged her to pursue teaching as a career, but she had other plans.

She picked Hilbert to study forensic science, even though her father wanted her to stay closer to home.

But the couple had noticed changes in their daughter since arriving at Hilbert and thought she was just starting to come into her own. She was more independent, more assertive.

“The best was yet to come with her. There’s no doubt,” her father said. “We’ll never see that, I guess. We’ll never know.”

jrey@buffnews.com

http://www.buffalonews.com/cityregion/story/476322.html

[samanthajane13]

Lawyer pleads guilty in fatal hit-and-run
by Matt Gryta
NEWS STAFF REPORTER

Local attorney John P. Duffy pleaded guilty today to a felony charge of leaving the scene of a fatal accident in the Oct. 18 hit-and-run death of Hilbert College sophomore Meghan Sorbera.

Duffy, 41, an Orchard Park resident with law offices in Hamburg, admitted to State Supreme Court Justice John L. Michalski that he drove off without stopping and failed to report the incident to police but he did not go into detail about the early morning incident.

Michalski told Duffy he could be sent to state prison for up to seven years. He also faces automatic disbarment because of his guilty plea to a felony charge.

Though he allowed Duffy to remain free without bail pending his Feb. 20 sentencing, Michalski pointedly told him "I am not making any commitment as to punishment or sentence."

Duffy, who came to court with his wife and another relative and a partner in his law firm, declined comment as he left court about 2:15 p.m. Duffy's lawyer Daniel J. Chiacchia said Duffy is "devastated" over the incident but drove off thinking only that he had struck a garbage can.

The plea agreement came after talks between Chiacchia, and Lynette M. Reda, chief of the Erie County District Attorney's Vehicular Crimes Bureau, Duffy agreed to waive grand jury action and plead guilty to the highest charge a grand jury could have lodged against him.

Sorbera, 19, a native of Burlington Flats near Cooperstown, was struck by Duffy's SUV about 1:35 a.m. Oct. 18. At the time, she was walking back to the campus on South Park Avenue with two friends after a night working at a haunted house at the Erie County Fairgrounds.

Duffy's SUV, which matched the description eyewitnesses gave Town of Hamburg detectives, had been captured on the surveillance camera of a late-night restaurant's drive-thru window when he stopped there minutes before the accident.

mgryta@buffnews.com

http://www.buffalonews.com/home/story/479007.html

[samanthajane13]

Hit-run driver pleads guilty in Hilbert student's death
John Duffy faces 2 1/3 to seven years in prison
By Matt Gryta
News Staff Reporter

Facing the end of his career as a lawyer, John Peter Duffy pleaded guilty Thursday to a felony charge of leaving the scene of a fatal accident in connection with the hit-and-run death of Hilbert College sophomore Meghan Sorbera.

Waiving grand jury action, Duffy, 41, of Pinyon Drive, Orchard Park, pleaded guilty to the highest count that could have been filed against him after a grand jury investigation of the Oct. 18 incident.

During the plea proceeding, State Supreme Court Justice John L. Michalski refused to give the lawyer a sentencing commitment, pointedly telling him, “I am not making any commitment as to punishment or sentence.”

Duffy could face 2 1/2 to seven years in prison. Sorbera, 19, a native of Burlington Flats near Cooperstown, was fatally struck by Duffy’s SUV in the 5700 block of South Park Avenue. She was returning to the nearby college campus with two friends after a night of working at a haunted house at the Erie County Fairgrounds at about 1:35 a. m.

It was the same stretch of South Park Avenue where John W. Condon, 86, a legendary Buffalo defense attorney, and his wife, Joan, 79, were killed Wednesday when their van was slammed by a speeding van that ran a red light at the intersection of South Park and Sowles Road.

Duffy was allowed to remain free on his own recognizance pending his Feb. 20 sentencing. Under state law, as an attorney, he faces automatic disbarment for the felony conviction. Duffy has a law office in the Village of Hamburg.

He declined to comment as he left the downtown Buffalo courtroom Thursday with his wife and an associate of his Hamburg law firm.

Meghan’s parents, Peter and Susan Sorbera, could not be reached to comment on the guilty plea Thursday afternoon.

The Sorberas were at Hilbert College in Hamburg for a memorial service and tree planting on Monday, where they described relief that someone had been charged in the case. They said they would advocate for tougher penalties against hit-and-run drivers.

“This gentleman took my daughter,” Peter Sorbera said.

Daniel J. Chiacchia, Duffy’s lawyer, said his client is “overwhelmed” emotionally by the tragedy and “shocked by the fact that this loss occurred.”

He insisted that Duffy initially thought he had struck a garbage can along the side of the road and did not learn of the fatal nature of the incident until about 36 hours later.

Before his arrest a week ago, Duffy “made some regrettable decisions,” Chiacchia said. He declined to comment further.

During the brief plea proceeding, Chiacchia told the judge he is overseeing an investigation of the incident in an effort to pin down any possible “mitigating factors” that could influence the sentence.

Lynette M. Reda, chief of the Erie County district attorney’s Vehicular Crimes Bureau, who would allow Duffy to plead guilty to only the highest charge he could have faced, agreed to allow him to remain free on his own recognizance.

Although he was believed to have been drinking at the time of the accident, Duffy wasn’t arrested until five days after the accident, so it was not known whether he was legally drunk when the accident occurred.

Duffy, therefore, was not charged with driving while intoxicated. However, state law now treats leaving the scene of a fatal accident with the same severity as being involved in a fatality while driving drunk.

Erie County District Attorney Frank J. Clark said the speed of Duffy’s plea was unusual but not unprecedented.

“He knew the strength of the case we had and he told people he did not want to put his family or the victim’s family through long, drawn-out court proceedings,” Clark said.

With the judge refusing to give a sentencing commitment, Duffy may well have realized that an admission of guilt so soon after the crime “could give credence to his claims of remorse” and possibly influence the judge to impose a less-severe sentence than he had planned, Clark said.

Hamburg Capt. A. Daniel Shea, chief of detectives, and several other detectives who tracked down Duffy observed the plea Thursday but declined to comment afterward.

In canvassing the area around the crime scene, Town of Hamburg detectives learned that an SUV matching the description of the hit-and-run vehicle visited the drive-through window of a restaurant just minutes before the accident and was captured on the restaurant’s surveillance camera.

The detectives tracked the vehicle to Duffy and learned from his Orchard Park neighbors that Duffy had attempted to repair the vehicle at his home days after the fatal incident.

Witnesses told investigators that the vehicle that hit Sorbera had slowed down after the impact but then drove off.

Parts of Duffy’s SUV, including a black casing to the passenger side fog light, pieces of the headlight cover and a yellow marker light were found on the ground at the accident scene.

News Staff Reporter Jay Rey contributed to this report. mgryta@buffnews.com

http://www.buffalonews.com/home/story/479602.html

[samanthajane13]

Ex-attorney gets maximum sentence in fatal hit-run
By Matt Gryta
News Staff Reporter

Disbarred local attorney John P. Duffy today was ordered by State Supreme Court Justice John L. Michalski to spend the next two and a third to seven years in prison for what the judge called his "cowardly actions" in trying to cover up a fatal hit-and-run accident last October.

Duffy, 42, pleaded guilty last Oct. 30 to a leaving the scene of a fatal incident charge in the Oct. 18 hit-and-run death of Hilbert College sophomore Meghan Sorbera. He was given the maximum sentence during an emotional courtroom session.

Duffy was handcuffed and taken into custody after addresses by Sorbera's parents and brother and his own wife. He had been free pending sentencing.

Duffy's wife, Tracy, began crying as she told the judge her husband is "a good man and an excellent father" to their two sons and daughter.

In a somewhat rambling speech, which he partially read from prepared notes, Duffy turned in the courtroom to Sorbera's parents, Peter and Susan Sorbera of Burlington Flats, and told them he knew they "lost the most of all in this."

Sorbera, 19, was struck by Duffy's SUV about 1:35 a.m. last Oct. 18 as she was walking back to the Hilbert campus on South Park Avenue with her boyfriend and a girlfriend after all three had worked that night at a haunted house at the Erie County Fairgrounds.

Sorbera's parents have filed a civil suit against Duffy.

Duffy told the Sorberas he "did not know I hit your daughter" as he drove off. Duffy, who suffers from multiple sclerosis, claimed his subsequent coverup attempts were "not consistent" with his life's work.

He said he prays every day for a chance to overcome the "pain and suffering" he caused and said "the community deserved better from me." But he still asked for "forgiveness and mercy" from the judge, who agreed to the sentence during the plea talks last October.

Daniel J. Chiachia, Duffy's lawyer and former law firm associate, told the judge Duffy is "not the monster the media made him out to be." He said that while Duffy had five drinks during a Buffalo Sabres game in Buffalo and afterward at two bars, he was not legally drunk as he drove home to Orchard Park.

Chiachia admitted Duffy "acted irrationally and impulsively" in trying to get his SUV repaired outside of Buffalo after the incident. But the attorney said Duffy apparently hit Sorbera, who was wearing dark clothing, when he reached down to pick up something that fell to the floor of his vehicle.

Chiachia claimed a woman driving behind Duffy also said she never saw Sorbera be hit.

Prosecutor Lynette M. Reda told the judge Hamburg town police said Duffy initially denied involvement in the accident after they tracked him down several days later.

Chiachia told the judge his client's doctors feel prison will accelerate the worsening of his multiple sclerosis.

The victim's parents and older brother, Peter, pleaded with the judge for the maximum seven-year prison term.

The victim's father, a retired state corrections officer, and her mother said they stood by her hospital bed at Erie County Medical Center as she was declared dead about six hours after the accident and despite frantic hospital efforts to keep her alive.

Mrs. Sorbera said she had always considered her daughter her "best friend" and her "twin," saying they frequently "finished each other's sentences."

Peter Sorbera Jr., a Central New York high school math teacher, denounced Duffy as "a selfish coward."


http://www.buffalonews.com/home/story/627310.html?imw=Y

[samanthajane13]

Family's grief overwhelms court at hit-run sentencing
By Gene Warner and Matt Gryta
NEWS STAFF REPORTERS

Even the presiding judge admitted to battling with his own emotions so that he, too, wouldn’t break down in addressing the packed courtroom Thursday.

Grief and a palpable sadness overwhelmed the legal proceedings when State Supreme Court Justice John L. Michalski sentenced disbarred lawyer John P. Duffy, 41, to the maximum prison term in the hit-and-run accident that killed Meghan Sorbera last October.

Denouncing Duffy for his “cowardly actions,” Michalski ordered the former lawyer from Hamburg to serve 2x to 7 years in prison for the death of the 19-year-old Hilbert College student early on the morning of Oct. 18.

For an hour and a half, a hushed courtroom heard impassioned pleas from Sorbera’s brother, father and mother; from Duffy’s attorney; from Duffy’s wife; and even from Duffy himself.

Susan Sorbera, Meghan’s mother, recalled the awful moment when she and her husband, Peter, left Erie County Medical Center, just after their daughter died that morning.

But it was clear that Duffy’s family also has been devastated.

“I hesitate to say I’m sorry in this courtroom, because words cannot be enough,” said Duffy, battling his own emotions as he faced the family. “No words are ever going to erase what happened to the Sorbera family.”

The Sorberas made it clear that they don’t care about the dozens of letters sent to the court that portray Duffy as a good, caring and decent man.

Sorbera family members say they never can forgive Duffy, especially for trying to cover up his role in the fatality.

“The moment you left her on the side of the road, all the good you’d done [in life] drove off with you,” Meghan’s older brother, also Peter, told Duffy.

“It is my hope that it never leaves your mind, your thoughts or your dreams. It will never leave mine,” he added.

The lengthy proceeding also included a spirited plea from Duffy’s attorney, Daniel J. Chiacchia, contending that Duffy, who previously pleaded guilty to leaving the scene of a fatal accident, is not “the cold-blooded monster the media made him out to be.”

Chiacchia said that his client didn’t appear intoxicated to others that night, after having about four drinks over the previous six hours; that he suffers from multiple sclerosis; that the accident occurred when he reached down to pick up something that had fallen to the floor of his sport utility vehicle; that he didn’t know he had hit anyone; that his attempted cover-up occurred when he felt overwhelmed and panicked; and that he drove to Kinzua Dam in Warren County, Pa., with the thought of committing suicide three days later.

“The voice of his dead father talked him out of it,” Chiacchia said. “He backed away.”

The most gripping moments of Thursday’s courtroom appearance might have come from Meghan’s parents. They recounted the moments of that early morning, after hearing the news that is any parent’s worst nightmare — that their child is critically injured.

After racing here from their Burlington Flats home, near Cooperstown, the Sorberas kept a vigil in Erie County Medical Center while doctors tried to save their daughter.

“When I finally got to see my daughter, she was on a gurney, her face was swollen, and she was fighting for her life,” Peter Sorbera told the courtroom.

“But it wasn’t to be. I watched my daughter die in front of me, and I never got a chance to say goodbye.”

No one in the courtroom made a sound as Susan Sorbera recalled the sight of her daughter that will remain with her forever:

The young woman’s face swollen to three times its normal size. Her hair matted with blood, with blood streaming from her nostrils and the white sheet under her head turned crimson from the gash on the back of her head.

“Meghan’s body just lay motionless,” her mother said. “I thought, this can’t be; it just can’t be my daughter.

“I watched the monitor flat-line when her heart stopped, how they administered CPR to her. . . . Then I heard the doctor say, ‘It’s been too long; that’s enough.’ Time of death, 7:18 a. m. It was over, my baby was gone. I just sat there, holding her hand, staring at her, waiting for her to wake up.”

The sentencing began with prosecutor Lynette M. Reda telling Michalski that the video and audio recording of the statement Duffy gave Town of Hamburg police was in direct contrast to the remorse depicted in the letters sent to the judge on Duffy’s behalf.


Continued...

[samanthajane13]

Reda then gave way to the Sorberas, starting with Meghan’s father, who recalled that his wife and daughter were so alike that family members called them twins.

“I used to ask my wife, ‘What is it like to raise your twin?’ ” Peter Sorbera recalled, in one of the few light moments.

A former corrections officer who retired early partly to watch his daughter grow up, Sorbera talked about how Meghan almost came home that weekend, about all the tributes to her at her memorial service and about the family never getting to attend her wedding.

“She’s my life,” he said. “My life has been ripped apart now.”

So has the life of his 7-year-old son, Meghan’s younger brother.

“For the first time in his life, he hates somebody,” Peter Sorbera said. “He wants to do bodily harm to him.”

Meghan’s father concluded his remarks by addressing Michalski: “I am asking you, as a father and as a former corrections officer, to give him the maximum sentence.”

The younger Peter Sorbera then addressed the question of Duffy’s good character.

“What you did following the accident on Oct. 18 is how I measure your character,” he said. “Your actions were those of a selfish coward.”

Susan Sorbera stunned the courtroom when she recounted what appeared to be the last “message” from her daughter on the morning she was killed.

“At 1:35 a. m. on Oct. 18, I was jolted awake by the sound of Meghan’s voice,” Susan Sorbera recalled. “She said, ‘Momma, I am hurt. I need you, please come.’ ”

Thirteen minutes later, the Sorberas’ phone rang, with the awful news. As they raced to Buffalo, they got various reports about Meghan’s condition.

“Deep down inside, I knew it wasn’t going to be good. It’s a mother’s intuition, a twin’s instinct,” Susan Sorbera said.

Chiacchia then took the floor, to provide the public with some of the facts that hadn’t come out previously about his client.

Duffy wasn’t drunk that night, Chiacchia said, and a fast-food restaurant’s surveillance camera supports that assertion. Also, a woman driving behind Duffy didn’t see or hear anything to suggest that someone had been struck, the lawyer said, and that woman also didn’t stop after Meghan was struck.

Chiacchia had little defense for Duffy’s actions in trying to cover up the incident. Authorities have accused him of trying to get his vehicle repaired and tampering with evidence.

“He panics, judge,” Chiacchia said. “He’s overwhelmed by the thought that his actions caused the death of this young woman.”

Chiacchia then asked Michalski, “Should a man be judged by an act so inconsistent with the person he has been all his life?”

Tracey Duffy, the defendant’s wife, then said her family has been overwhelmed to hear all the negatives about her husband, whom she called a good man and an excellent father.

“My children and I can’t imagine a life without him,” she said.

Then Duffy, in an emotional, somewhat rambling speech, told the Sorberas that this proceeding wasn’t about him, but about their family, because “you’ve lost the most.”

He swore that he did not know he had struck anyone, but he called his actions after he knew “selfish,” “out of control,” “appalling” and a “disgrace.” And he said he refuses to use his multiple sclerosis as any kind of crutch or excuse.

Then he turned to Michalski and said, “I must ask your honor for forgiveness and mercy in deciding my fate.”

Michalski talked about the compassion some had urged for Duffy, a compassion that some letter writers have said they were not ready to bestow on him.

“The Sorbera family and this court are not there yet, either,” the judge said.

“Mr. Duffy, you must be punished for your actions that night and for your cowardly actions [afterward],” Michalski said before imposing the sentence.

Then Duffy was taken from the court in handcuffs, a final punctuation to what was, for everyone involved, a sad day.


http://www.buffalonews.com/home/story/628073.html

[Amy]

Sad situation all around, nobody wins.

I feel bad for his family, his wife who says she and the children can't imagine a life without him. I'm betting the Sorbera's couldn't imagine a life without their Meghan, either, but they have to.

And, for his attorney, it's too bad he didn't stop for the accident, and he could have had a breathilyzer test to prove that 5 drinks didn't render him intoxicated, otherwise, we just have what people describe. Some people who are legally intoxicated don't show evidence of falling down drunk.

[samanthajane13]

"And, for his attorney, it's too bad he didn't stop for the accident, and he could have had a breathilyzer test to prove that 5 drinks didn't render him intoxicated, otherwise, we just have what people describe. Some people who are legally intoxicated don't show evidence of falling down drunk."

And DUFFY is a lawyer, too!!! He SUPPOSEDLY knows the law!!!

He certainly knew enough to RUN LIKE A CHICKEN and ALTER HIS CAR!!!

That's tampering with evidence!!!!

He knew EXACTLY what he did-at least the next day...after he visited Mommy, etc.

NOT HIS FAULT...um....

Let me guess-someone held him down and FUNNELED the booze down his gullet???

Is THIS JUSTICE for Meghan and her family??

NO-it a JOKE!!!