Tag Archives: accident

Elise’s Story

December 2, 2025True Crime, Uncategorizedaccident, alcoholism, Drunk Driving, Podcast, reform, Trajedytellinglives

The tragedies wrought by drunken and drugged driving continue, despite the knowledge and the ability to easily prevent them in today’s society. Still many believe they are only putting themselves at risk when they chance having a drink and then driving a short distance home. But what about when you are choosing to get behind the wheel of a company vehicle—or a 60-ton semi-truck—after having a few drinks or taking painkillers or other narcotics?

That fateful choice by a repeat offender cost Elise Acosta everything.

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Deanna’s Story

October 6, 2025True Crime, Uncategorizedaccident, alcoholism, Podcast, reform, Telling Lives, Trajedy, True Crimetellinglives

March 29, 2011, in Gulfport, Mississippi started out as a cool, breezy spring day along the beautiful Mississippi Gulf Coast. People were busy with springtime activities – proms, gardening and planning summertime vacations—and for Gulfport Police Chief Alan Weatherford, his family was looking forward to a wedding. But this day, one drunk driver changed everything.

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Bill Kelly’s story

September 18, 2023True Crime, Uncategorizedaccident, alcoholism, Podcast, Telling Lives, Trajedytellinglives

The Kelly and Cumberland families had a lot in common. Both “old Coast” families whose roots dated back decades in the Orange Grove area of Gulfport. Coincidentally, both had homesteads on the same rural road in the county. Unfortunately, years of the lack of accountability for the choices of one would have deadly consequences on the other.

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Shayna’s Story

July 29, 2023True Crime, Uncategorizedaccident, alcoholism, reform, Telling Lives, Trajedy, True Crimetellinglives

North Dakota passed legislation to strengthen DUI penalties in 2013. The deadly 2015 DUI crash you are about to learn about would be the precedent-setting case testing the mettle of the law. Three young women—two of them University of North Dakota students on summer break—met up for a night of fun. What they got was a parent’s worst nightmare.

We will also explore why North Dakota and other sparsely populated midwestern states have some of the highest DUI numbers per capita in America—and why that isn’t necessarily a bad thing.

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Shelley’s Story

May 19, 2023True Crime, Uncategorizedaccident, alcoholism, jada, reform, Telling Lives, True Crimetellinglives

We all blame the driver in a DUI crash that injures or kills people or damages other’s property. But sometimes the problem isn’t just one person.

With a DUI crash, we typically turn the other way if we aren’t directly affected. We read stories and we get angry at the person who was driving drunk. In this case, it was Shelley Rose who drove drunk and killed innocent people.

It’s her fault, right?

Well, the story is so much more complicated than that.

No one dreams of growing up and becoming an alcoholic and killing people in a drunken or impaired car crash.

But some of us—all of us, actually, at times in different circumstances of life—need roadblocks, boundaries, mentors, tough love—to save us from ourselves.

Instead, Shelley Rose was her own worst enemy. Unfortunately, she had several partners in crime, including those sworn to protect us.

This is the story of how Shelley Rose arrived at that fateful Thanksgiving Day 2018.

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