Ex-Offender in Fatal Boat Accident and Victim’s Mother Join Forces To Push Stalled Law

SYRACUSE, N.Y. - Sept. 30, 2015 - PRLog -- August 23, 2015, Keir Weimer and MaryJo Heitkamp-France spoke on the dangers of drinking and driving at Stop DWI Night in Syracuse, NY. Weimer was convicted of vehicular manslaughter after the boat he was driving while intoxicated caused the death of Heitkamp-France’s daughter, Tiffany Heitkamp, in 2006.

This unlikely pairing was born to bring awareness to a stalled bill in the New York State Assembly, Tiffany’s Law. The law would allow all previous instances of alcohol and driving related offenses, boat (BWI), auto and motorcycle (DWI), snowmobile (SWI), and all-terrain (ATV) to be considered when sentencing an offender.

“The goal of Tiffany’s Law is that justice will be served and those repeat offenders are not back behind the wheel of anything putting lives at risk again,” said Heitkamp-France. “It is a greater hope that the thought of being held accountable, the potential for what could happen if caught, is a deterrent, unfortunately the bill hasn’t made it passed the New York State Senate.“

Tiffany’s Law, sponsored by Sen. John DeFrancisco, was first passed in 2007 and has passed every year since in the New York State Senate. It has yet to be introduced into the New York State Assembly.

Heitkamp-France and Weimer think this is not enough. “We are hoping to share our story and the importance of getting Tiffany’s Law passed so that others will take notice and understand that no matter what you are driving, if you are drinking you should never get behind the wheel putting lives in danger,” said Weimer.

In 2006, Weimer was driving a boat that crashed into an island killing Tiffany and injuring two other passengers. He was arrested and subsequently served three and a half years in prison. Weimer’s two previous DWI convictions could not be considered during sentencing due to the difference in the class of vehicles he was driving.

“At my sentencing, I vowed that I would make a better life and avenge this wrong,” said Weimer. “This has driven me to take every opportunity I can to communicate the dangers of drinking and driving, and the devastating consequences that can result from poor judgment.”

While in prison, Weimer got sober and wrote his memoires, A Quest for Redemption: Stories from Prison, which he dedicated to Tiffany. All proceeds from the book go to SADD and The Make A Wish Foundation. After his 2011 prison release, Weimer began speaking at local high schools and venues to spread the message about the dangers of drinking and driving. Those speaking engagements led Heitkamp-France to decide to reach out to Weimer.

“A friend messaged us about one of Keir’s speaking engagements,” said Heitkamp-France. “It was at that time, I did something I never thought I would, I reached out to Keir and asked him to help me get Tiffany’s Law passed.”

Heitkamp-France and Weimer plan to continue with co-speaking engagements as they campaign to bring attention to Tiffany’s Law. Their plan is to speak to those who can be most influenced to drink: teenagers. The key focus on the potential dangers surrounding the relaxed attitude towards drinking and recreational vehicles such as boating.

In addition, Heitkamp-France and Weimer will be filming a documentary together to send to schools and driver's education programs across the country. They are also planning to lobby lawmakers to pass Tiffany Heitkamp's Law.

More Information:

To find out more about Tiffany’s Law visit:  http://open.nysenate.gov/legislation/bill/S3785-2015.

Or to find out more about their speaking and writing efforts to spread awareness, visit: www.aquestforredemption.com

Video of MaryJo and Keir Speaking together: https://vimeo.com/136348407