Last week, it was announced that NASCAR Sprint Cup driver Tony Stewart will not be charged criminally in the death of fellow sprint car driver Kevin Ward Jr.
Second, I want to be clear, this was a tragic accident, and an ugly event. Nothing can bring Ward back. Moreover, no one is doubting that Kevin Ward Jr. was a great person. I bet he was. It also sounds like he had a promising sprint car racing career ahead of him. Unfortunately, we will never know.
Also, I can’t imagine how Tony Stewart must feel. This is a heavy burden to carry and it will probably affect him for the rest of his life. I also think a lot of people unfairly vilified Stewart before all of the facts came out, many of these people have never, ever watched a sprint race. I like many others would like to hear what Stewart has to say on the matter.
According to Ontario County district attorney, R. Michael Tantillo a toxicology report revealed that Ward was under the influence of marijuana at the time of the accident — “enough to impair judgment.”
Here's my question, why was a sprint car driver racing with marijuana in his blood stream? Makes me wonder if drivers need to be drug tested before they head out on the race track. Do we want drivers racing at over a 100 miles with drugs in their system? I don't think so.
This weekend, Ward’s aunt released a statement that was published on the USA Today’s website. You can read the whole statement right here.
Why was the toxicology report even an issue? Seems to me the wrong man was on trial. Tell me why Tony Stewart was not taken in for testing, why his car wasn't impounded. Tell me how a man the size of Kevin can make a sprint car turn to the right on impact. Tell me how a lap before (the incident) everything was fine, but the following lap was poor lighting. Tell me how a NASCAR star totally forgot what caution means.This statement also caught my eye.
Maybe he should get a different headset so he is able to hear on the radio that the car in caution is up high, so go low. Or was he low until he rounded the corner and saw Kevin Jr. standing up for himself?
To me, that's not the case. It's known to mellow a person. We understand that the report showed marijuana, but we as a family don't believe he was under the influence or impaired at the time due to the 10 hours prior to the race that he spent with the family.
What we do believe is that maybe people react to certain situations because of anger. I've seen it in NASCAR, sports functions and even on our own roads. And yes, these people have to pay for their actions. Well, I guess it depends on who you are.
And to end this, I've heard time and time again, "We just want Kevin's story out there." Here you go. Kevin Ward Jr. was an amazing person. His life was wrapped around family, friends and racing, which he started at age 4. Just a small-town boy having fun until the days turned into years, and it then became his passion and life. The trophies, plaques and pictures that fill his home, garage and workshop show his hard work and dedication to racing – his love for the sport.
