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Elderly Florida Woman Who Killed Three In Car Accident Only Get Her License Suspended

car accident

An elderly Florida woman who killed three people when she backed her car into them will have her license suspended for a year and will have to pay a fine.

Doreen Landstra, 79, was attempting to maneuver a community church parking lot when she backed into a group of people in February, killing three people and injuring four others.

On Wednesday, Landstra pleaded no contest and had her license suspended for a year by Judge Robert A. Farrance. Along with the suspension, Landstra was also fined $1,000, according to Bay News 9.

After the suspension has ended, Landstra will be allowed to renew her license on the condition that she goes to driving school and passes Department of Motor Vehicle tests.

The victims, 80-year-old Johanna Dijkhoff, 72-year-old Margaret Vanderlaan, and 70-year-old Wilhemina Paul were all killed in what the Florida Highway Patrol has called an accident.

Landstra stepped on the accelerator instead of the brake, unintentionally backing her SUV into the group, according to First Coast News.

“I had just walked away and heard the crash and the screams,” Wilhelmina’s widower, John Paul, told the station. “I ran back, I did not realize my wife was on the ground.”

Paul told Bay News 9 that he questioned the judge’s decision, and doesn’t think Landstra should ever be allowed to operate a vehicle.

“She should have had her license removed immediately and she should have stopped driving years ago,” he said. “That’s the reason for the tragedy.”

In 2011, the Bradenton Herald reported that Landstra drove her SUV into a McDonald’s after stepping on the accelerator instead of the brake. After the incident, she was required to retake her driver’s exam.

Source: Huffington Post

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