REPORT: Rye Woman in DWI Arrest Upstate After Vehicle Runs Into House

Why do you post these things? It is SO MEAN.

I echo Katherine Doyle’s comment.

Please remove that shameful caption under Mrs Simmons’ photo. That was unnecessary and disgraceful. Our community is one of compassion, not cruelness.

Is this really what we consider newsworthy? This is exactly the type of destructive and mean- spirited gossiping we seek to teach our kids not to do. Take a low point in someone’s life and highlight it to her community? We should all hope Rye Patch is no longer around when we make a mistake. You should be both embarrassed and ashamed of this content and I hope that it will be removed as soon as possible.

Jay
When you posted defamatory comments about me on this site back in 2012, I didn’t know who ran MyRye. I was surprised to find out it was a fellow parent from the Rye schools: Jay Sears of [redacted] in Rye. As a member of our Rye community, a father of 2 sons and a husband, it is astonishing to me that you would post this. It is bad enough that you allow regular bloggers who often post misleading and inaccurate information, but this and some other recent posts are beyond shameful. Have you ever asked yourself, would I want this posted if this was my wife or my son or a close friend? Julie Killian

While I support your right to free speech, I am horrified by this post. Yes, as a community we need to teach our children about consequences for actions. What does this post accomplish other than an attempt to humiliate another person while they are down? Not just a person, a lovely, and graceful member of our community. As a community we are better than this. Your sanctimonious tone speaks volumes. I think the majority of this town will choose a different tone focused on empathy, compassion and respect to rally around one of their own to help.

Please remove this article, it adds no value to our community.

No, this public shaming is certainly not My Rye. I’m saddened that we have a Rye resident who hides behind an anonymous post to troll and shame another person, knowing full well that publishing this information will only inflict pain and suffering. In the name of kindness and decency, please remove this article.

Perhaps a little Rye publishing history here might help. But first, as a national publisher, I would have run both the police report and the local photo. As a local publisher, which I’ve also been, I might have omitted the local photo. But on the overall story substance Jay’s on solid traditional journalistic ground.

Remember, please, that Richard Archer ran resident aggravated arrest incidents like this in The Rye Chronicle for decades – frequently with photos – from official public sources. For those of you unfamiliar with The Rye Chronicle you can find the bound volumes in Rye Library’s reference room. Mr. Archer ran the paper without fear or favor and was locally beloved. Using his standard if I were to get booked for an aggravated arrest today (which multiple local politicos are apparently lighting candles for) I’m confident Jay will plaster me and my mistake front, center and sideways.

Which brings me finally to Mrs. Killian, below, whose own recent senate campaign against George Latimer rang so false and defamatory with voters they apparently couldn’t wait to vote in massive numbers for him and against her. If there is any local reporting on MyRye by me that you, Julie, feel is misleading or inaccurate, or defamatory, please by all means point it out and provide readers here your own version(s). Sunlight is, after all, the best disinfectant. And I believe your city hall administration needs it in great quantity.

Ted Carroll

I don’t know Ms. Simmons, Jay Sears or the ladies who posted comments here but their comments require a reply.

The simple fact is that Ms. Simmons could have killed someone.

Where is the compassion for those she put at risk when she chose to get behind the wheel when she was so drunk? If she hit a person instead of a house would you be saying how terrible it is to post this news? If she hit your child would you feel she was being treated unfairly? Is posting Mr. Sears’ home address elevating the tone of the conversation or lowering it below where you claim it should be?

Ms. Killian, in May you published an opinion piece in the Rye City Review regarding drug and alcohol use in Rye. You stated, in part, “DuPont’s positive prevention message urging parents to action was well-received by the audience. He highlighted that parents have tremendous influence on their children’s behavior.” What impact is there on children when you take the time to berate the publisher of Ms. Simmons actions and try to intimidate them by publishing their home address without even noting that what Ms. Simmons did was wrong?

Rather than saying this is mean spirited and the opposite of what we should be teaching our children I told my children what happened so they know the real world impacts of what happens if you drive drunk. I imagine the commenters have also told their children that in today’s internet age your mistakes are public and live on forever. That lesson is as true for the parent as it is for the child and your ire towards My Rye is ill placed.

Respectfully, even if you used the commentary as education for your children or as an example of social deterrence (more on that in a moment) that was certainly not the purpose of Mr. Sears posting. Let’s not be naïve, his interest is far less selfless, read advertising revenue. His initial label under Mrs. Simmons photo being the perfect example of click bait. Perhaps even Mr. Sears understood his actions to be indefensible as he has since removed it.
The argument for public shaming as “education” or a criminal deterrent has a long history in the US- though you may not want to keep the company of those who most popularly used it. They were often the villains of our favorite books, and uniformly on the wrong side of history. The same books our teachers used to show us the destruction and harm caused by a society without empathy. Since Puritan times we have evolved and thankfully we have fewer instances of “scarlet letter” justice now, but clearly it is still popular in some small towns. Further, in a purely scientific sense there is no evidence that public shaming actually provides any public good. I agree with the conclusion of the April 13, 2013 article “The Problem With Public Shaming” from The Nation:
“Last year’s trendy rise of media-sponsored shaming is self-righteousness masquerading as social justice. In many cases the targets deserve to be exposed and more, but public shaming does not drive social progress. It might make us feel better, but let’s not delude ourselves into thinking we’ve made a positive difference.”
None of the previous commenters presented Mrs. Simmons as without fault. I question who gets to decide the penalty in our society? in Rye? Is it Mr. Sears? Does he get to unilaterally and publicly punish Mrs. Simmons, her family and children? I say no. We are better than this and using the guise of education or deterrence is truly a masquerade.

As the owner of Westchester County’s largest emergency towing and recovery business I can attest first hand that it’s hard to imagine the anxiety, pain and grief that arises in the aftermath of what our drivers see as the direct result of DWI’s. In several cases each year the injuries are so severe it’s almost unimaginable.

My personal ‘drug of choice’ in moderation is red wine but as an ACOA (Adult Child of Alcoholic) and a long time supporter of the Westchester Chapter NCADD (National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependency) I can tell you that Jay’s story here is sadly one of many that needs to be told publicly over and over again. Getting the message out about the awful dangers here is truly a public service. In the sixties we all stepped over the elephant in the room and would never say a word about drunk drivers. Today that’s all thankfully changed.

Years ago we would literally tow in three or four DWI related accidents on an average weekend and rarely did anyone get arrested. Today the accident numbers have dropped dramatically to maybe one per weekend and DWI arrests and impounded vehicles have quadrupled. Why? I attribute it mostly to the dedicated efforts of one mother by the name of Candy Lightner. In 1980 Candy lost her 13-year-old daughter Cari to a drunk driver. Candy Lightner soon thereafter founded Mother’s Against Drunk Driving (MADD).

Candy, educated and changed not only my way of thinking but she changed the entire country as a result of the loss of her child. Cari’s death and Candy’s reaction to it has prevented millions of potential accidents. The term “designated driver” became a household term as a result of MADD’s efforts. Many of us who don’t have an addiction issue head the warning thanks to Candy and her profound educational efforts. Those that have the disease sometimes have to learn the hard way and sometimes they pay with their life or by taking someone else’s before they get the message and sometimes sadly enough they never ever get the message.

Some here may not recall but in October of last year Jay posted an all to familiar DWI story. In that story a local college student Robby Schartner tragically lost his life as he was walking back to campus in Purchase NY. One of our drivers handled that accident as the vehicle was impounded for the White Plains Police. On MyRye there was not a single comment about Jay Sears publishing decisions in that tragedy, or that the driver was also Rye resident and native. I wonder why therefore we see all this public outrage and comments attacking Jay on this story but not the other one. If you’re lucky enough to live on Grace Church Street and are a friend of the current Deputy Mayor or if you happen to live above Kelly’s Bar it should not make any difference.

As far as Julie Killian’s comment, what is in fact actually “shameful” is that as a so-called ‘community leader’ and a “leading advocate against teenage drug abuse,” Mrs. Killian is apparently more concerned with protecting her friend’s image and standing here in the community instead of encouraging painful but potentially lifesaving conversations.