Alcohol and boating are an even more lethal combination than booze and automobiles. Often the combination is tragic.
David Hatyina had been drinking and was operating his powerboat. His boat sped straight toward Tony Borcia as the 10-year-old bobbed in the water in his life jacket. As reported in articles.chicagotribune.com.
Despite the screaming of family members who could only watch, Hatyina continued onward straight into the boy who was in the water after falling out of his water tube.
Not only did Hatyina have booze in his system, but cocaine too.
The 51-year-old is charged with reckless homicide and aggravated DUI.
Witnessing his son being mowed down by the speed boat is something Borcia’s father will never be able to forget. It obviously did not concern Hatyina who proceeded to take a nice long trip to Cancun,. He was arrested at O’Hare airport upon his return.
A forensic scientist with the Illinois State Police used a principle called retrograde extrapolation to calculate that Hatyina's blood-alcohol content at the time of the incident was 0.09 to 0.128, establishing that Hatyina was over the legal limit.
With nine deaths, Illinois had the second-highest number of alcohol-related boating fatalities nationally in 2011. Only Wisconsin, where 11 people died in drunken boating accidents.
Hatyina is going to spend time behind bars. He can take an alcohol class and devote his life to saving other people. He caused the death of an innocent 10-year-old boy. At 51, he still has time to make amends to society should he choose to do so.