Worthless dick bag Lucas A. Bates was so drunk on March 14, 2009, that he would have blown twice the legal limit ... but he was too busy causing carnage on the roadway.
Bates' blood-alcohol content was 0.174 when he sped down a two-lane highway in rural Clay County on his way to causing two head-on collisions, killing 60-year-old retired teacher Shirley Harless and injuring three other people. Bates, 30, is going to have a long time to think about the life he ended and the lives he forever changed.
The Star reported that he received a life sentence after pleading guilty to second-degree murder and two counts of second-degree assault and flight to avoid arrest. Bates reportedly apologized to the victims' families and blamed his addiction to drugs and alcohol for the wreck -- another way of avoiding taking responsibility for his actions.
"I'm not a monster, but a man who has made many mistakes," Bates said.This isn't a mistake or an accident, and Circuit Judge Shane Alexander called out Bates for using "a state roadway as a racetrack." Via the Star:
Shortly before the wrecks, Bates lost control of his car and drove into a ditch along U.S. 69 as a Missouri Highway Patrol trooper approached from the other direction. Bates steered around the trooper.Bates smashed into Harless' vehicle while passing several cars. He then slammed into another vehicle before leaving the road -- his car in flames. He was in critical condition after the crash. Like life, it's unfair.The trooper turned around and pursued. A dashboard video shown during Friday's hearing showed the trooper exceeded 120 mph but couldn't catch up with Bates.
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