Fahrerflucht / hit and run - Ryan Dallas Cook the victim

Fahrerflucht ist etwas, dass leider Gottes jeden Tag ueberall auf der Welt geschieht. Wir nehmen es zur Kenntnis, sind geschockt, vergessen es aber meist schnell wieder, weil wir nicht direkt betroffen sind.
Bitte lest die unten angehaengten Artikel und ihr versteht, warum ich so sauer bin! Warum passiert so etwas?
2005 starb der Sohn meiner Kollegin Janet auf diese tragische Weise. Mit Hilfe seines Arbeitgebers konnte der Unfallverursacher das Land verlassen und wurde erst vor einigen Wochen in seiner Heimat verhaftet. Heute nun ist der Tag, an dem er in die USA zurueckgebracht wird und er seinen Prozess erhalten wird..
Ryan Dallas Cooks Eltern klagen die Hyunday Motor America an, dem Moerder ihres Sohnes die Flucht ermoeglicht zu haben.

Hit and run is something that happens all around the world every single day. We hear about it, we are shocked, but we also forget real quick because it does not touch us directly.2005 the son of my coworker Janet died this tragic death. With the help of his company the accused left the country. A few weeks ago they caught him in his country. He will be arriving today and the court proceedings start on Monday.Ryan Dallas Cooks parents have filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Hyundai Motor America, alleging that company officials helped Lee leave the country before he could be questioned by police.Please read the articles attached so you will understand why I am so pissed! How could this happen?

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1/30/2009 Orange County, CA

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Press Releases/Media Advisories Printer Friendly « Back Orange County District Attorney Press Release Tony Rackauckas, District Attorney 401 Civic Center Drive West Santa Ana, CA 92701 For Immediate Release Case # 07CF1356 January 29, 2009 Contacts: Susan Kang Schroeder Public Affairs Counsel Office: 714-347-8408 Cell: 714-292-2718 Farrah Emami Spokesperson Office: 714-347-8405 Cell: 714-323-4486 SOUTH KOREAN FUGITIVE TO BE EXTRADITED AND ARRAIGNED FOR KILLING 23-YEAR-OLD MOTORCYCLIST IN 2005 ALCOHOL RELATED FREEWAY CRASH SANTA ANA – A fugitive charged with killing a motorcyclist in a 2005 freeway crash while under the influence of alcohol will be extradited to Orange County tomorrow after being arrested in South Korea. Youn Bum Lee, 42, formerly of Irvine, is charged with one felony count of vehicular manslaughter by unlawful act with gross negligence while intoxicated, one felony count of gross vehicular manslaughter, one felony count of driving under the influence causing bodily injury, and one felony count of hit and run causing death. He faces a maximum sentence of 15 years in state prison if convicted on all counts. Lee was arrested on a $1 million warrant. Lee is being extradited from Seoul, South Korea and is expected to arrive at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) tomorrow, Friday, Jan. 30, 2009, at 3:15 p.m. on Delta Airlines flight #7879. He will be escorted by the United States Marshals Service. Lee is scheduled to be arraigned Monday, Feb. 2, 2009, at 8:30 a.m. in Department C-55 or C-57, Central Justice Center, Santa Ana. At approximately 8:00 p.m. on Oct. 18, 2005, Lee is accused of attending a company sponsored dinner at Seoul Oak Korean BBQ Restaurant in Garden Grove with six other co-workers from Hyundai Motor America. The group consumed 14 bottles of soju, a distilled Korean rice wine, before going to a nearby karaoke bar, 25 SI, on Garden Grove Boulevard. Lee is accused of consuming more alcoholic drinks at the karaoke bar before getting into his black company issued Hyundai sport utility vehicle at approximately 12:05 a.m. on Oct. 19, 2005. While under the influence of alcohol, Lee is accused of driving with his headlights off on from State Route 22 onto State Route 55 heading southbound. The defendant is accused of veering into the carpool lane and crashing into the center median due to intoxication. Lee’s car rolled backwards and came to a stop in the carpool lane south of Dyer Road in Santa Ana. Victim Ryan Dallas Cook, 23, Fountain Valley, was riding his motorcycle in the carpool lane on his way home. Cook was unable to stop in time to avoid crashing into Lee’s black, unlit car. The victim, a student at Golden West College in Huntington Beach, was ejected from his motorcycle and thrown onto the freeway, where he was run over by several other vehicles. Cook was pronounced dead at the scene as a result of multiple traumatic injuries due to blunt force vehicle trauma. Lee is accused of fleeing the scene at a high rate of speed. Later that morning, on Oct. 19, 2005, Lee is accused of arriving at work at Hyundai Motor America in Fountain Valley. He is accused of parking his car front-in in the parking lot, but returning five minutes later to move his car and back into the parking space. He is accused of attempting to hide the evidence from the crash, including a shattered back windshield and blood, hair, and other human tissue from the victim. That morning, Lee is accused of consulting with a co-worker, whom he had been drinking with the night before, as well as with general counsel at Hyundai Motor America. The co-worker and a supervisor drove Lee to LAX that afternoon. At 12:30 a.m. on Oct. 20, 2005, just 24 hours after Cook was killed, Lee is accused of boarding a flight on Korean Air to Seoul, South Korea, leaving his wife and young child behind. The case was investigated by the California Highway Patrol, and was filed by the Orange County District Attorney’s (OCDA) Office in April 2007. In September 2008, the OCDA submitted a request for extradition. Lee was arrested on the fugitive warrant in Seoul, South Korea, on Dec. 2, 2008, by South Korean authorities. Deputy District Attorney Susan Price of the Homicide Unit is prosecuting this case. ###

Office of the District Attorney. Main Office: 401 Civic Center Drive, Santa Ana, California 92701 ©Copyright 2009 Office of the District Attorney. All Rights Reserved.

Artikel LA Times Online / 30. Januar 2009
Articel LA Times online / 01/30/2009

Former Hyundai executive extradited in 2005 hit-run death

Yuon Bum Lee fled to South Korea after the crash on the 55 Freeway that caused the death of motorcyclist Ryan Cook, authorities say. Lee could face 15 years in prison if convicted on all counts.

By My-Thuan Tran
8:16 PM PST, January 30, 2009

Ryan Dallas Cook was homeward bound on his motorcycle on an October night in 2005 when he clipped a stalled, darkened SUV that had rammed into a concrete barrier on the 55 Freeway, a collision that hurled him to the pavement, where he was hit by several passing cars and died.
Police said the driver of the SUV was a Hyundai executive who had allegedly spent a long night drinking before hitting the road.

Twenty-four hours later -- as Cook's parents and three sisters were just beginning to search for answers to the death of the 23-year old musician -- authorities said the SUV driver boarded a plane bound for his native South Korea and vanished.
For three years, officials in the United States and South Korea looked for him.
On Friday, Yuon Bum Lee, 41, was extradited to Orange County after being arrested by South Korea officials in Seoul in December. He arrived at Los Angeles International Airport escorted by the U.S. Marshals Service.

Lee, who is being held at the Orange County Jail in lieu of $1-million bail, faces charges of felony gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs with injury, and hit-and-run with injury or death, said Susan Kang Schroeder, a spokeswoman for the Orange County district attorney's office.
"It's been a long, laborious process over the last three years to get to where we should have been the day after Ryan was killed," said Carlton Cook, the victim's father. "It won't bring back our son, but at least it will finish off something that should have been started a long time ago."
Cook said the family will be in court Monday, when Lee is to be arraigned. If convicted on all counts, Lee faces a maximum of 15 years in state prison.
Lee, a former personnel administrator at Hyundai Motor America, had been drinking with six colleagues at the Garden Grove Korean BBQ restaurant in October 2005, according to authorities. Police said the group later moved to a nearby karaoke bar, where Lee continued to drink before getting into a black company-issued Hyundai SUV just before midnight.
He later crashed into a concrete barrier in the southbound lanes of the 55 just north of MacArthur Boulevard in Santa Ana as he was heading to his Irvine home. The car was reportedly stalled in the carpool lane with its headlights extinguished.
Cook was heading home after practicing with his band when he struck the rear of the SUV and was thrown from his motorcycle.
The next morning, authorities said, Lee showed up for work and later headed with colleagues to Los Angeles so he could meet with a criminal attorney. Lee later asked a colleague who was driving to drop him off at LAX, according to police statements. Instead, uncomfortable with Lee's request, the driver told authorities that he pulled into a parking lot of a hotel near the airport, where Lee jumped out and hailed a cab.
Lee bought an open-ended ticket to South Korea and boarded a plane. Nine hours later, a vice president of human resources for Hyundai at the firm's Fountain Valley headquarters reported the incident to the Fountain Valley Police Department. Lee was later fired from his job.
Cook's parents, who live in Huntington Beach, have filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Hyundai Motor America, alleging that company officials helped Lee leave the country before he could be questioned by police. The civil trial is set to begin in June, said Wylie A. Aitken, the Cooks' attorney.
Hyundai America did not return calls seeking comment on the case, but officials have previously said the company had been cooperative throughout the investigation and had helped authorities search for Lee.

Endspurt / final spurt

Es geht in den Endspurt. Dank meines fleissigen Mannes und der Unterstuetzung unserer Freunde werden wir kommenden Samstag mal wieder umziehen.
So sehen bereits teilweise die Schraenke in unserem Apartment aus:
It goes into the final. Owing to my hardworking husband and the assistance of our friends we are ready to move next saturday.
This is how the cabinets partially appear right now in our apartment.

Das Wohnzimmer, das urspruenglich in einem recht dunklen gruen erstrahlte, wurde von uns (naja, mehr von Herbert) zweimal weiss uebergestrichen. Da sah es dann sehr hell und freundlich aus - aber auch irgendwie wie ein Krankenhaus. Somit entschieden wir, die Kaminseite muss etwas Farbe bekommen, damit der Kamin (ebenfalls in weiss gehalten) etwas absticht. Gesagt getan. Doch die anderen drei Waende wirkten immer noch zu kalt. Somit wurde eine erneute Farbwahl getroffen und mein Mann musste wieder auf die Leiter :) Jetzt allerdings gefaellt uns der Raum sehr gut und wir sind gespannt, wie es aussieht, wenn unsere Moebel drin stehen.
The livingroom in the new house was originaly painted dark green. We (more Herbert than me) painted the room twice with white paint. After that the room looked much brighter, but also almost like a hospital. So we decided that the fireplace side has to become a different color. Said - Done! But the other three walls still looked too coldly. After a renewed color choice Herbert had to go onto the ladder again :) However, the area looks very well and now we are excited to see how our furniture will appear in the room.

monatlicher Geburtstagskuchen / monthly birthday cake

Januar 2009: Auf der Geburtstagstorte ist der Fruehling eingezogen!
January 2009: the spring also appears now on the birthday cake!

Obamas Amtsvereidigung / Obamas Inauguration

Barack Obama wird heute als erster farbiger Prasident der US-Geschichte seinen Amtseid ablegen auf den Stufen des Capitols in Washington. Danach haelt er seine Antrittsrede und mit der "Inaugural Parade" geht es dann zu seinem neuen Wohnsitz, dem Weissen Haus.
Das ist das erste Mal, dass ich diesen ganzen Circus mitverfolge und ich muss sagen, die Euphorie ist schon ansteckend. Wollen wir hoffen, dass niemand enttauescht wird!
Today Barack Obama becomes the first African-American President of the US history. He will be sworn in at the Capitol in Washington where he also deliver his inaugural speech.
Later on he and his family move into their new Home, the White House.
I have to say that this is the first time I tracked the whole thing and the euphoria is infectious. I hope nobody will be disappointed at the end

Shy am Strand / Shy at the beach

Es ist toll zu sehen, wie Shy aufblueht und jeden Tag was Neues entdeckt.
Sonntag traf sie auf Preston, Mindy und Jacks 3 jaehrigen Sohn. Preston und Shiloh verstanden sich sehr gut, wobei man sagen musste, dass Shy erst etwas erstaunt ueber Prestons Aufmerksamkeit schien.
It is good to see who Shy finds everyday something new. Sunday she met the three year old from Mindy and Jack. Preston and Shiloh liked each other but at first Shy was very astonished of Prestons attention.

Dann ging es zum Strand!
Then we went to the beach!

Sie war richtig fasziniert:
She was fascinated:

Vor dem Wasser ist Shiloh noch zurueckgewichen. Das lag aber vermutlich an der Kaelte. Wir konnte auch nicht nachvollziehen, dass die Leute schon badeten. Aber wir hatten immerhin 28 Grad Celsius Lufttemperatur.
Shy backed off as she felt the cold water. Even though it was 85 Degrees we couldn't understand that people swam in the pacific.


Und dann fing Shiloh an zu buddeln. Und sie buddelte und buddelte....
And then Shiloh started digging, and digging and digging....

Maler Party / painting party

Fuer Samstag hatten wir eine "Maler Party" angesetzt. Wir erzaehlten unseren Freunden, dass wir versuchen wollen, die kompletten Kuechenschraenke weiss zu malen und viele sagten spontan, sie wuerden vorbeikommen und helfen.
Einen ganzen dicken Dank an Mindy (my american sister), Oli und Mel und Heike, die trotzdem sie sich nicht gut fuehlte, extra aus Pasadena gekommen ist.
Die urspruengliche Idee der "Maler Party" kam von Mindy. Sie meinte irgendwann, sie malt am besten mit dem Pinsel in der einen Hand und in der anderen eine Magarita. Gesagt getan. Ich besorgte somit alles fuer den Cocktail und wir schafften den BBQ zum Haus, damit auch der Essbereich des Magens nicht zu kurz kommen wuerde.
On Saturday we had our Painting Party. We wanted to paint all the kitchen cabinets white and our friends came over to help. A big THANK YOU to Mindy (my american sister), Oliver and Melanie and also Heike. She didn't feel good but she came to help.... Mindy had the original idea of making a painting party. The other day she told me that she is really good in painting if she has in one hand a paint brush and in the other hand a magarita. So I organized everything for the cocktail and we also brought our bbq to the house so that the other part of the stomach got something too.

Das Wohnzimmer war urspruenglich gruen. Nun galt es, auch die Innenseite der Haustuer von dieser Farbe zu "befreien".
The original colour of the livingroom was green. Now we had to release the entry door from the color.

Melanie beim Abseifen der Tueren (denn obwohl noch eine Putzkolonne das Haus betreten wird, trau ich den Haenden meiner Freundin mehr!!). Oliver hatte sichtlichen Spass dabei, die Kuechentueren und -schubladen abzuschleifen!
Melanie did all the cleaning of all doors . Oliver had fun by sanding all the kitchen cabinet doors and drawer!

Wir hatten viel Arbeit - aber auch viel Spass (und das, obwohl wir letztendlich nur eine Magarita hatten). Waehrend Heike den Kuehlschrank schrubbt, bauen die Maenner die Turen der Schraenke schon wiedere in!
We had a lot of work - but also a lot of fun (and that's although we had only one Magarita). While Heike was cleaning the fridge the men reassembled the kitchen cabinets.
Als kleine Pause gab es ein einfaches BBQ fuer die fleissigen Helfer!
Jack, der lange arbeiten und danach auf Preston aufpassen musste, schaute auch schnell mal vorbei!
For a little break we had a simple bbq. Jack came over for a short visit. He had to work all day and later he was looking after Preston.

Und Shy kam natuerlich nicht zu kurz - sie genoss zwischendurch immer wieder Streichelheiten von allen. Oli hat sich auch immer wieder die Zeit genommen, mit ihr zu spielen - und beide hatten sichtlich Spass daran. Wie man auf den beiden Bildern mit Herbert und Jack sieht, liebt Shiloh es, Kuesschen zu geben.
Shy got a lot of attention from everybody. Oliver was always playing with her - and it seemed they both had a lot of fun. Shiloh likes to kiss as you can see on the both pictures with Herbert and Jack.

Hausschuhtag / slipper day

Dezember und Januar sind fuer eine Payroll Company die arbeitsreichsten Monate. Bei Paychex wird es ganz offiziel "Year End" genannt. Jedes Jahr gibt es fuer diese zwei Monate einen Stress Kalender, der so einiges zu bieten hat, um uns ein bisschen vom Stress abzulenken. Da hatten wir den Stress Walk (einmal um den nahegelegenden, kleinen See) mit Muesliriegeln und Saeften, letzten Freitag war Eiscreme Tag, naechsten Freitag ist YE (Year End) Pizza Party und heute fielen Abteilungsleiter Fruehstueck (unsere Chefs fuhren ein Fruehstuecksbuffet auf mit allem, was das Herz begehrte) und Hausschuhtag zusammen. Auf dem Bild oben seht ihr nun einige der witzigen Hausschuhe, die heute zur Schau getragen wurden.
At Paychex we call December and January, the busiest time of the year, Year End. Every Year End we got a Stress Calender with lot of fun stuff on it to keep us away from too much stress. There is always the stress walk (around a littel nearby lake) with bars and juice, last friday was ice cream day, next friday is Year End Pizza Party and today we had supervisor breakfast and slipper day. The picture shows a few of the funniest slippers my coworks have worn today.

Das Haus / the house

Heute waren wir noch mal im Baumarkt...
Da wir noch ein paar Haustuerschluessel benoetigten, habe ich diese zwei netten Exemplare ausgesucht.
Today we went again to a building supplies store....
I decided to buy these nice keys for our new house!

Und hier nun die ersten "Vorher-Bilder" von unserem zukuenftigen Zuhause.
Now I will show you the first "before" pictures of our new home.

links: Eingang mit dahinterliegender Terrasse (der Garten ist hinter dem Haus).
rechts: Wohnzimmer mit Haustuer.
left: Entrance with patio right behind the fence (we find the garden behind the house).
right: Livingroom with front door

Kueche - hier werden wir die meiste Arbeit reinstecken! Dank der Idee unserer Freundin Mindy gibt es am Samstag eine "Paint Party". Wer immer zu uns kommt, bekommt in die eine Hand einen Pinsel und in die andere Hand ein Getraenk. Schaun wir mal, was dabei rumkommt.
Kitchen - we definitely need to do a lot of work in this room! Our friend Mindy had a great idea - on Saturday we will have a "paint party". Who ever wants to join us gets a drink and a paint brush. We will see what happens thereby.

Hier das Schlafzimmer mit den "Kirchenfenstern". Dieser Raum ist mittlerweile so gut wie fertig renoviert.
Here we see the master bedroom with the church windows. This room is almost ready.

Shiloh

Ja, seit Freitag, 09. Januar 2009, haben wir ein neues Familiemitglied. Es ist eine Schaeferhuendin, die wir Shiloh nennen. Sie ist am 27. Dezember 2007 geboren und lebte, seit sie von ihrer Mutter getrennt wurde, im gepflasterten Backjard einer Millionenvilla. Doch ihr Besitzer hatte sie schnell ueber, trat nach ihr und wollte sie nun los werden. Er bot sie Herbert an - andernfalls waere sie ins Tierheim gekommen. Da Shiloh noch nicht wirklich viel gesehen hat, ist alles fuer sie neu. Sie ist auf den ersten Blick ein wenig schuechtern (deshalb auch der Kosename Shy) aber sehr aufgeschlossen. Bereits am ersten Abend musste sie die sechs (!) Hunde unserer Freunde kennenlernen, auf die Herbert dieses Wochenende aufpasst. Der Zeitpunkt an dem wir unser neues Familienmitglied bekommen haben, ist nicht der Beste, da wir zur Zeit ja auch noch renovieren. Doch sie hat sich, nach einer kurzen Aufwaermphase, mit allen Hunden super verstanden und im Haus (zwischen Farbeimern und Muelltueten) fuehlte sie sich gleich wohl. Sie liebt es, wie wild mit Bossy und Bianca zu toben und Rocky Balboa findet sie super klasse.
Yes, since Friday, 01/09/2009, we have a new family member. It is a German Sheperd and we named her Shiloh. She's born on December 27. 2007 and was living in a million dollar home. But real quick her owner had enough of her and so he wanted to give her away. There were only two options: either we take her home or she has to go into the animal shelter. She is a really puppy, everything is new for her. First she is a little bit shy (so her nickname Shy) but she is also very open for everything. On Friday evening she met directly the six dogs of our friends. Herbert is taking care of the dogs while the owners are on a littel familie trip this weekend. Shiloh did very well and she enjoyed also being in our new house which we are renovate right now.



New friends forever - Shiloh, Bianca, Bossy.


Spielstunde...
Playtime...

Was denkt Ihr? What do you think?

Arbeit und Spass / work and fun

Wir haben mittlerweile mit der Grundreinigung und Renovierung unseres zukuenftigen Zuhauses bekommen. Man(n) worauf haben wir uns da bloss eingelassen? Auf jedenfall haben wir eine Menge Arbeit vor uns, bevor wir uns so richtig wohl fuehlen koennen!
We started with the cleaning and renovation of the house in which we want to move in a few weeks. There is definitely a lot of work to do before we can feel really comfortable there.

Wir haben sogar zwei kleine Zitronenbaeumchen im Garten.
We have two little lemon trees in the garden.
Heute mussten wir dann bereits am fruehen Nachmittag mit unserer Arbeit aufhoeren, weil wir von meiner Freundin und Arbeitskollegin Sarosh und ihrem Mann zu einem traditionellen Essen ihres Heimatlandes, Sri Lanka, eingeladen wurden. Leider kann ich die Namen der Gerichte weder aussprechen noch aufschreiben. Aber ich kann sagen, es war super lecker!
Vielen Dank liebe Sarosh!
Today we stopped our work in the early afternoon because Sarosh, my friend and coworker, and her husband invited us to a real Sri Lankan dinner, their homecountry. I have already forgotten the name of the dishes but I still can say they all were delicious.
Thank you so much Sarosh!

Neue Tradition / new tradition

Dieses Jahr fuehrten wir unsere, im vergangenen Jahr eingefuehrte, Tradition fort, den ersten Tag des neuen Jahres am Strand zu verbringen. Leider war es an der Kueste, im Gegensatz zu Irvine, ziemlich neblig und wir waren froh, unsere dicken Pullis dabei zu haben. Doch wir liessen uns nicht von unserem geplanten Picknick abhalten.
This year we went again on the first day of the year to the beach. We started this tradition last year. It was very foggy on the coast today - totally different to Irvine. We were glad to have our big sweaters. But nothing could stop us to have a picnic at the beach.

Ab heute gilt auch das neue Gesetz, dass verbietet SMSen zu schreiben, waehrend man faehrt. Hoffentlich halten sich da auch viele Leute dran! :)
Since today it is the law - no texting while driving! I hope a lot of people will follow this rule! :)