Mitch Has Wood

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I am here to talk about a mistake that was made when I was 20 years old. Liz Huber and I had an on and off relationship for over a year prior to this incident. Miss Huber happened to be at a party in Franklin that I also attended. Through flirting I realized that Miss Huber might accompany me back to my parent’s house that night.

I want to be clear, the notion that I might become intimate with someone outweighed my desire to become intoxicated that night. I knew I would be responsible for getting us to my parent’s house and abstained from drinking alcoholic beverages.

Miss Huber and I left the party later that night and I took a road home that I shouldn’t have. It was winter and had snowed recently. Many people in my village have crashed their vehicles on this road in the winter time. Creek road had several inches of snow on it that night.

As I drove my dad’s four wheel drive Chevy truck on the Creek road Miss Huber asked if the roads were bad. I had already initiated the four wheel drive system when we started down the road. In response to Miss Huber’s inquiry I replied the vehicle had four wheel drive and could go anywhere. I then decided to show off by swerving the wheel slightly left to right.

This action initiated a series of events in which the truck became out of control and struck a tree on the side of the road. Miss Huber who was not wearing a seatbelt struck the windshield with her head. We were not traveling at a high rate of speed which is evident by the fact that I was able to drive the truck the remaining two miles to my parent’s house after the accident.

When we got to the house Miss Huber was able to clean the cut on her forehead which had been bleeding. I insisted that we use another vehicle to go to the hospital so that she could be attended to. She insisted that she was fine and did not need to go to the hospital. She had been drinking and this is another reason why I believe the drinking age should be lowered to 18 or 16 in the United States. This way young people aren’t fearful of seeking medical attention should they become injured while drinking. Knowing that Miss Huber could receive a criminal record by taking her to the hospital I decided to listen to her decision.

Both Miss Huber and I saw the snow covered road and made mistakes. I overestimated my skill at driving in bad conditions and the ability of the machine I was utilizing to handle terrain such as a dirt road covered in snow and possibly ice. Miss Huber decided not to wear a seatbelt.

We have had elected officials that have committed vehicular homicide in the United States. I don’t think a mistake I made in college should preclude me from seeking the Presidency. I hope this statement proves how devoted I am to being transparent about decisions I have made in the past and moving into the future.

I want to express remorse for what happened that night on Creek road. I think about this accident often and how much worse it could have been. I’ve lost track and touch with Miss Huber but would like to offer something to her as a sign of my remorse. I would like to donate the photography series “Wildlife of the Rhine” to Miss Huber. She is free to use these photographs as she pleases and any offers of money I receive for them will be cleared through Miss Huber. She will receive all proceeds from this collection of photographs if she accepts this offer.

Furthermore there is the subject of fairness in presenting a story from the past. If Miss Huber would like to draft a statement similar to this of her version of what happened that night I would be willing to post it on the same webpage as this statement. This will allow for equal exposure of both sides of the events surrounding the night of our automobile accident. I want to apologize to Miss Huber for this accident. I was older and she entrusted me to get us to our location safely. I broke this trust and that will forever stay with me.