Whipped Cream Difficulties

Jacqui Saburido passed away on Sunday Saturday. She was 40.

On the night of September 19th, 1999, she and three friends were returning from a party at Lake Travis. Along RM 2222, their car was hit by a drunk driver. Two people died in the crash. Two more were pulled out of the car before it caught fire.

Saburido, trapped in the front passenger seat, burned for nearly a minute before paramedics could put out the fire. Horrific burns covered nearly her entire body, except for the bottom of her legs and feet. She spent months at a Galveston burn unit, undergoing skin grafts and emergency surgeries. One by one her lips, ears and nose fell off. Her eyes were sewn shut so they wouldn’t dry out. The dead bones of her fingers were amputated.

The drunk driver, Reggie Stephey, was convicted on two counts of intoxication manslaughter and sentenced to seven years in prison.

During the trial, Saburido asked to meet with Stephey; she told Stephey she forgave him. He served every year of his sentence before being released in June 2008. Throughout his prison stint, he collaborated with Saburido on the drunken-driving campaign, filming public service announcements and speaking to high schools.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, April 23rd, 2019 at 9:10 am and is filed under Obits. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.