DUI death in Kansas City should be wake-up call for Gene Suellentrop, Kansas GOP
Kansas Republican state Sen. Gene Suellentrop recently made headlines in the worst possible way.
The Senate majority leader was allegedly under the influence of alcohol when he drove 90 mph in the wrong direction on a Kansas highway. He should face serious consequences for his actions.
So far, the GOP leader has rejected calls to resign or even really step down from leadership duties in the state legislature, despite his promise to do so.
Suellentrop was charged in Shawnee County with multiple offenses, including driving under the influence, driving the wrong way on an interstate and fleeing police. Suellentrop drove on the wrong side of Interstate 70 in Topeka for nearly 10 minutes, according to audio from a 911 call. He is lucky he didn’t kill anyone.
Kevin Daniels wasn’t as fortunate. The 30-year-old Kansas City man died March 6 in a fiery, wrong-way wreck on U.S. Highway 50 in Lee’s Summit. The father of eight was engaged to Kieanna Brooks, the mother of his 4-year-old son, Kevin Jr.
Daniels did not deserve to die at the hands of an alleged drunk driver.
“They stole everything from us,” Brooks said.
As an act of contrition, Suellentrop should speak with the loved ones that Daniels tragically left behind. To say nothing and just keep walking is a slap in the face to all survivors of crashes caused by impaired driving.
Daniels was driving a red pickup truck westbound on the highway when the vehicle was struck head-on by a gray pickup truck driven by Joseph A. Cook, 34, of Lee’s Summit. Cook was traveling eastbound in the westbound-only lane when he collided with Daniels near the Chipman Road exit, according to a criminal complaint filed against Cook.
The impact of the crash was too much for Daniels to survive. He was pronounced dead at the scene. Passersby pulled Cook from the burning pickup truck and tried to help him until emergency personnel arrived. Later, Cook had surgery at an area hospital.
An officer who met Cook at the hospital said Cook admitted to having three drinks, said, “I’m sorry for the lost family member,” and “I made a huge mistake,” charging documents show.
Cook was then placed under arrest and refused to answer further questions.
A toxicology report found Cook had a blood alcohol content of .261, more than three times Missouri’s legal threshold of 0.08. He was charged in Jackson County with one count of driving while intoxicated, resulting in death, a class B felony. The charge is the highest felony count associated with a fatal drunk driving accident, prosecutors contend. Cook faces up to 15 years in prison if convicted.
A warrant for Cook’s arrest was issued March 25. He was released the same day after posting 10% of a $25,000 bond. The amount and conditions set forth with the bond were within the normal range for someone facing a similar accusation, defense attorneys said.
An attorney for Cook declined to comment.
Family members described Daniels as fun-loving and jovial. He kept close tabs on his children and was a doting father.
“My brother Kevin was an amazing person,” his sister Alyssa Daniels said. “He was always the life of the party, just goofy and kept everyone smiling and laughing.”
Daniels loved to travel and explore new things, she said. But spending time with his children was by far the most important aspect of his life.
“He worked very hard for them,” she said.
His death is a reminder of how dangerous it is to get behind the wheel of a vehicle while under the influence of alcohol.
Cook must answer for his actions. Suellentrop should, too.
