thedrifter
03-15-06, 06:41 AM
Marine in jail on fatal wreck charges
20-year-old driver accusedof reckless homicide, DUI
Published Wednesday March 15 2006
By LORI YOUNT
The Beaufort Gazette
A Parris Island Marine was in jail Tuesday after being charged in a fatal accident that killed one Marine and seriously injured another.
Lance Cpl. Jorge Alexander Cardona, 20, was charged with reckless homicide and two counts of felony driving under the influence, authorities said.
According to arrest warrants, Cardona had an "elevated blood alcohol concentration" the morning of March 5, when police say he drove a 1999 Honda Civic at a high rate of speed off the right side of the road on Boundary Street near Piggly Wiggly, striking several trees, a utility pole and then another tree. The speed limit in that area is 35 mph.
The front passenger, Lance Cpl. Sean Jackson, 23, was trapped in the car and died at the scene, police said. The back-seat passenger, Pvt. Jeremy Maxwell, 19, was transferred to Memorial Health University Medical Center in Savannah in critical condition, but he was in good condition Tuesday evening, according to hospital officials.
Beaufort police arrested Cardona on Tuesday at Marine Corps Re-cruit Depot Parris Island, and once at the Beaufort County Detention Center, his bond was set at $100,000, with the option of paying 10 percent for his release.
Cardona's mother, father and sister, who had driven from Orlando, Fla., to support him, cried as they saw him leave the jail's courtroom on crutches.
Pending a base investigation, Cardona could face additional charges from the Marine Corps, but that could take another few weeks, depot spokesman Maj. Guillermo Canedo said.
If released from jail, Canedo said Cardona, who joined the Corps in 2003, would return to Parris Island and continue his job until any military action is decided.
All three Marines in the accident worked closely together at an administrative building and lived in the single men's barracks on the base.
With about 40 Marines working in their building, the group is close-knit and is struggling with the absence of three co-workers, their supervisor, Master Sgt. Anthony Yallum, said.
"We feel like we've been walking around in a fog for the past couple days," Yallum said Thursday before leaving with 14 others to attend Jackson's funeral in Montrose, N.Y.
Parris Island Marines also had a chance to pay their respects to Jackson on March 8, when about 200 crowded the depot's chapel. Friends shared how Jackson, who had been stationed on Parris Island since June 2003, tended to be quiet but was considered a strong mentor.
"If it weren't for this tragedy, he would've had a great life," Cpl. Clinton Ford said, after recounting Jackson's obsession with the newest "gadgets" and the television show "Saved by the Bell."
Jackson was only a few classes short of a degree in international relations at American Military University, Ford said.
Cardona, in street clothes and toting crutches, attended the memorial service last week, and he was comforted by several Marines as he sobbed.
"We're the biggest support group for each other," said Cpl. Matthew Lennon, who worked with the three Marines. "We're all a big family. (Cardona and Maxwell) are still part of our family too."
Ellie
20-year-old driver accusedof reckless homicide, DUI
Published Wednesday March 15 2006
By LORI YOUNT
The Beaufort Gazette
A Parris Island Marine was in jail Tuesday after being charged in a fatal accident that killed one Marine and seriously injured another.
Lance Cpl. Jorge Alexander Cardona, 20, was charged with reckless homicide and two counts of felony driving under the influence, authorities said.
According to arrest warrants, Cardona had an "elevated blood alcohol concentration" the morning of March 5, when police say he drove a 1999 Honda Civic at a high rate of speed off the right side of the road on Boundary Street near Piggly Wiggly, striking several trees, a utility pole and then another tree. The speed limit in that area is 35 mph.
The front passenger, Lance Cpl. Sean Jackson, 23, was trapped in the car and died at the scene, police said. The back-seat passenger, Pvt. Jeremy Maxwell, 19, was transferred to Memorial Health University Medical Center in Savannah in critical condition, but he was in good condition Tuesday evening, according to hospital officials.
Beaufort police arrested Cardona on Tuesday at Marine Corps Re-cruit Depot Parris Island, and once at the Beaufort County Detention Center, his bond was set at $100,000, with the option of paying 10 percent for his release.
Cardona's mother, father and sister, who had driven from Orlando, Fla., to support him, cried as they saw him leave the jail's courtroom on crutches.
Pending a base investigation, Cardona could face additional charges from the Marine Corps, but that could take another few weeks, depot spokesman Maj. Guillermo Canedo said.
If released from jail, Canedo said Cardona, who joined the Corps in 2003, would return to Parris Island and continue his job until any military action is decided.
All three Marines in the accident worked closely together at an administrative building and lived in the single men's barracks on the base.
With about 40 Marines working in their building, the group is close-knit and is struggling with the absence of three co-workers, their supervisor, Master Sgt. Anthony Yallum, said.
"We feel like we've been walking around in a fog for the past couple days," Yallum said Thursday before leaving with 14 others to attend Jackson's funeral in Montrose, N.Y.
Parris Island Marines also had a chance to pay their respects to Jackson on March 8, when about 200 crowded the depot's chapel. Friends shared how Jackson, who had been stationed on Parris Island since June 2003, tended to be quiet but was considered a strong mentor.
"If it weren't for this tragedy, he would've had a great life," Cpl. Clinton Ford said, after recounting Jackson's obsession with the newest "gadgets" and the television show "Saved by the Bell."
Jackson was only a few classes short of a degree in international relations at American Military University, Ford said.
Cardona, in street clothes and toting crutches, attended the memorial service last week, and he was comforted by several Marines as he sobbed.
"We're the biggest support group for each other," said Cpl. Matthew Lennon, who worked with the three Marines. "We're all a big family. (Cardona and Maxwell) are still part of our family too."
Ellie