Information about the upcoming hearing (Aug. 18) and Impact Statements (Aug. 6)

Sorry for not posting sooner, but I needed some time to process everything (actual and mental)...

Here are the main deadlines to keep in mind (for those that want/need to know):

***Deadline for sending Impact Statements to the Probation Department:
AUGUST 6th (This is a Friday...the office needs to RECEIVE the letters by this day)
(The two year anniversary of what has brought us to this point in the first place)

PLEASE see my last blog entry...it has outlines/suggestions provided
by the court.
By following these guidelines, being logical, factual, impactful, as well as strong and
heartfelt, you have the best opportunity at demonstrating the hard truth about
the effect of drunk driving on the immediate victims as well as the cascade of heartache
that effects family, friends, community members, and even strangers...as well as
issues on remorse, deceit, recovery, and violating probation, squandering an
opportunity given (regardless of whether we agree with that decision).

***Sentencing Hearing: The hearing is scheduled for 9:30 am ON AUGUST 18th
Location: Butte County Courthouse (Oroville)
Date: August 18th (A Wednesday)
Time (of hearing): 9:30am
Be there BY: 9:15 at the latest (You have to go through metal detectors and be waiting
outside the courtroom for the time when they let everyone in to be seated)
NOTICE: If you plan on attending/speaking, PLEASE let me know...the DA would like
to know how many people to expect (email me at: vidaenigma@hotmail.com)

Please, as always, feel free to pass on this information and/or blog address to people who may be interested or people who want to have an opportunity to say something on the matter to the court.

*** I have been given additional information that may be relevant for some...There is an address where citizens can file legitimate complaints regarding the conduct of judges.

http://cjp.ca.gov/index.php?id=16

This is the website for the California Commission on Judicial Performance. Everything you need to know about how to file a complaint and what to include in your statement can be found on this site. THIS website is the venue to air complaints regarding the conduct of Judge Glusman who has been reelected to a six year position as no person ran against him...

This information is in my previous blog, but it is so far down on the page I thought I would repeat it in this blog:

The address for the Butte County Probation Department is:

Butte County Probation Department

42 County Center Dr.

Oroville, CA 95965

For now, it is suggested that the letters be directed to this address so they will be included in the probation report. The report is given to the judge and DA in advance of the hearing. The Probation department needs to receive these letters by August 6th.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

I thought about what else I wanted to say today, as I write this blog...I have thought about things all weekend in fact...I believe those that have read my blog know how I feel and know how much my life has been impacted by the tragedy two years ago. My pain and heartache is only a fraction of what Deepika and Amit's family have experienced/are experiencing.

In some ways, I so wish my life was not what it is ...two years ago my life changed forever, I lost a piece of my heart that night...forever to be a scar that would not be forgotten...I will never forget...But I will also say this...The void that was left...a void filled with great pain and sorrow...overwhelming at times...over time also filled with joy, love, and friendship. I still feel the ache...I think it will always be there...but I also am overwhelmed with the blessing of having the friendship of Deepika, the joy of Jevesh, and the support, prayers, and positive thoughts of so many people from all over for Deepika and Jevesh...I cannot change what happened. Nothing I do will ever make things right...but I know this...in the end...I can say I tried...that I did what I could to try and make a differance...and that I will continue to do so for Deepika and anyone else I might be able to help...we have to stand up...even when it is hard...maybe, especially when it is hard.

I will stand in court and speak...I may be a mess, but I will be there.

Troy Hovey made choices...not mistakes...and those choices resulted not only in the death of a wonderful man, but a trail of heatache, sorrow, and anger. Drunk driving is NEVER an accident...the drinker knows before that first sip passes their lips that they have a choice, a choice not to drink, a choice to consume that drink at home with no plans of leaving, a choice to make sure they have a safe ride home...There is absolutely no excuse for driving after drinking...None!

Troy Hovey chose to put lives at risk and ultimately succeeded in the worst possible sense. Judge Glusman gave Hovey an opportunity (despite the fact that I think most people would agree it was a poor decision) to show remorse and to "embrace recovery." Glusman fully expected that he would not see Hovey again...technically, he was right...the judge that would end up seeing Hovey was/is Judge McClean. Hovey has not shown remorse and he has demonstrated, by his deception, that he is not addressing his alcohol addiction/embracing recovery. I do believe that if a man shows this kind of character (or lack thereof for that matter) that one must wonder...if he is willing to deceive the court in one way or two...what else may he be lying about...and worse...whose life/lives is he now putting at risk.

I miss Amit so very much. He should be with his wife and beautiful child, holding them close...instead I can only think of him looking down on them as a guardian angel.

Thank you all for your thoughts, kind words, letters, prayers, etc. It means a great deal and I hope you all know how much that is appreciated. Please feel free to contact me via email if you have further questions or concerns.

Troy Hovey has violated his probation...

Here are links that mention the case:

http://www.buttecourt.ca.gov/online_index/CMSCaseDisplay.cfm?URLCaseNumber=CM029163

(This is a listing of the items filed in court on Hovey regarding this case)

http://www.chicoer.com/news/ci_15417428

(Chico E-R news article regarding the probation violation)

www.topix.com/forum/state/ca/TN401PD2SHM78V2IA

(This is a forum discussion that someone started....)

www.paradisepost.com/opinion/ci_15378819
(This is an opinion letter to the paradise post...)

I would really love to overflow that courtroom with people....overwhelm their mailroom and email inboxes with letters asking for justice....Please...I am begging you....help us achieve justice this time if we are given that opportunity...

I would like to share some thoughts with you and I apologize if I offend anyone for that is never my intention, but I do realize that my strong feelings may not be shared by everyone who reads this blog...

Something to ponder...

I would like to point out that Hovey may not be a murderer...but he is, without question...a killer...he took a human life...plain and simple...He may not have specifically chosen Amit Tandon as his victim...but Troy Hovey was and is no child...

Hovey drank to excess...knowing he had issues with alcohol...He Chose...to drink (elevating his BAC to Three Times the Legal Limit)...He Chose...to not call his wife or a taxi or Someone to get a safe ride home...He Chose... to get behind the wheel of a multi-ton vehicle turned death machine...He Chose... to drive at excessive speeds (between 60-90 mph by law enforcement estimates)...He Chose ...to talk on a cell phone while driving (at excessive speeds, intoxicated)...

All of these Choices Ultimately lead to Hovey driving Through a barrier and driving the wrong way on 99...Hovey drove through that barricade...The vehicle in front of Amit saw what was coming and was able to avoid Hovey...Unfortunately...Amit did not have that chance...

Hovey collided with the little Nissan truck that Amit was driving home...Home to his wife of only 7 months...a wife that was pregnant with his child whom he had found out only two days prior was to be a boy...a Child I would point out, Amit never had the chance to see, to hold, to love...

And despite all of that...Judge Glusman handed down a sentence that, to all but the most blind, was sickening and a mockery of the justice system. There have been people who have stolen walnuts from the orchards that received a harsher punishment than Hovey ...a man who took, nay stole, a human life...

What happened on August 6th of 2008 was a collision resulting from One person's Series of Selfish, Bad choices...That crash was not an accident (an accident implies no one is at fault)...It is no different than waving a gun around and having it go off...one knows that a gun can be dangerous and that waving it around is extremely dangerous...and if you choose to wave that gun around...you know there is a risk that someone will get hurt or die...Hovey made choices...and those choices resulted in the death of a 32 year old husband, son, brother, friend, and father...

Amit Tandon...Never had a Choice...

Thousands die each year...senselessly...at the hands of drunk drivers...more deaths, in fact, than all the soldiers that have died in Iraq or Afghanistan. The difference? Soldiers choose to be soldiers...These victims...Never had a Choice...

Right or Wrong, Troy Hovey was given an opportunity by Glusman to channel his remorse to "embrace recovery"...and yet....In the two years since Amit has died...has Hovey shown or demonstrated remorse? Has he "Embraced" recovery? Has Hovey done anything of his own volition (that is, has he done anything on his own, of his own free will) to show his remorse or to address his alcohol addiction? or has he only done what the court has required him to do?...I don't know, but I don't feel like he has...Example?...At the end of May/beginning of June, Troy Hovey, via facebook, inquired, on a motorsport vehicle business page, as to the availability and cost of a recreational vehicle. I ask you...Would a man filled with remorse over the taking of a life be 1) playing on facebook and 2) inquiring as to the availability of a luxury item purchase with a price tag approaching $9000? Meanwhile, the widow of his victim, Deepika Tandon, works every single day to make ends meet and provide for her child...I am sorry, but that does not sound like an act of a remorseful person.

What I also know is that Hovey is facing charges of having violated his probation, of falsifying AA logs...Would a remorseful person violate probation? Would a remorseful person falsify AA logs? Would someone who has "embraced" recovery falsify AA logs? And if he is guilty of falsifying the AA logs, then a potentially even more serious question may be, what else could he be guilty of?

I do not desire vengeance...vengeance is an act of violence, of hate, ...an act of inflicting harm or the like on another as a means of revenge, I do not choose to foster hate...there is nothing in this world that will bring Amit back to Deepika and those that cared for him...no matter how hard we might wish and hate accomplishes nothing...What I would like...and what I would ask each and every person to consider, is the need for justice... A man has violated the law and he must be held accountable for his actions. If he is not remorseful of his prior or "alleged" recent crimes and he has not embraced recovery, he has the potential to repeat his past sins...and in so doing, puts each and every one of us and our loved ones at risk. Perhaps Troy Hovey Needs to go to prison... not only to be held accountable for his actions and misdeeds, but to gain perspective on what he has done and to be given the opportunity in a more secure and supervised setting, to attempt recovery. There are no guarantees as to whether or not Hovey will ever have remorse or will ever seriously address his addictions, however, I do believe that keeping him off the streets for as long as possible could save lives.

We must ALL take a stand...We must ALL let our voices be heard....Write letters, emails, make phone calls, share the stories, vote, do whatever you can to take a stand...to make a difference. As I have said many a time...In August of 2008, Amit was the one who fell victim, leaving behind his wife, sick child, family, and friends....all of us, losing a little piece of our hearts...tonight, tomorrow, next month, next year, the victim could be someone you care about...

Worst Judge ...

Please see this link: http://www.courthouseforum.com//forums/worstjudge.php?id=133295

There is a survey to rate Judge Glusman and a section to provide comments.

Please...fill out the survey and provide your comments...let the voices be heard...Please pass this link on to anyone and everyone you know...maybe we can make a difference.

Still Talking

Just wanted to post a link to other commentary regarding this case...please feel free to let me know if there are other discussions regarding this matter...or if there is any information on what can be done to hold Glusman accountable for this tragedy of justice.

http://www.courthouseforum.com/forums/makepost.php

Never Forget

(The above picture is of Amit's wife, Deepika, at the children's hospital, where her child now fights for his life).

As this year comes to a close, I look back on 2008 and it makes me sad, angry, regretful, and not quite at a loss for words. Amit Tandon was not the only unfortunate victim of someone else's selfish choices or a judges actions in a travesty of justice...he is one of many...too many...

How many more people have to die? How many more families must suffer this grief? How many more wives, husbands, children, parents, friends, and so on must see their loved ones die and the perpatrators of such crimes essentially go free?

How can a judge, or anyone, in their right mind or heart believe that justice is served when a murderer gets minimal time in jail, if at all, probation, and only loses their driver's license for a year? Where is the punishment? Where is the justice? How many more have to die? Does it take someone famous? Someone in power? the loved one of a judge or legislator? When will the punishment fit the crime? When will the punishment be a deterrant to the behavior? because obviously a moral barometer doesn't work, the punishment does not deter, doing the right thing takes too much time or is inconvenient...What will it take?

I am just one person and my words are just that, words...Troy Hovey and all the other murderers like him continue to kill and walk away (yes, I said murderer...Hovey and the others like him, made choices, choices that resulted in death...not an accident, not an icy spot on the road, not swerving to miss a deer, choices...The choice, to drink and to drive and kill)...Judges continue to allow this to happen...Legislators turn a blind eye to the need for change...and I just don't know what to do anymore...what can we do to make a difference? I talk of taking action but I just don't know what to do. It is an empty false hope to believe that people can make the right choice on their own, for as much as so many people do do the right thing, it only takes one person and one selfish choice, to tear a life from this world and leave a family in grief.

We try to be good, to not wish ill will...but people like Troy Hovey and Judge Glusman, and all the others out there that walk that same path, make that very difficult...we continue to try and move beyond that anger and hurt...it will take a great deal of time...for some...a lifetime...

Drunk Driver, Troy Hovey, Kills 32 year old husband and father-to-be, Amit Tandon...Killer gets Probation!

This is my first blog so I apologize if I fail to follow some sort of particular etiquette.

The topic I am writing on is something I feel Very Strongly About. A man, Troy Hovey, took a life, that of Amit Tandon, husband and father to be (pictured), and for Hovey's crimes, he will receive probation...Please, if you are reading this, don't stay silent, don't just shake your head and say what a shame...Do Something! Say Something! Write letters, send emails, contact the governor, senators, assemblyman, Take Action! Make a Difference!

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On August 6th, 2008, Troy Hovey, a 36 year old from Chico, California, drank to excess, resulting in a blood alcohol content three times the legal limit. Mr. Hovey got behind the wheel of his vehicle and drove at speeds in excess of almost twice the legal speed limit, crashing through a sign and continuing to drive north in the south bound lane of highway 99 at the north end of Chico. Amit Tandon was returning home after a day of work, selling his delicious Indian food to hungry patrons in the north state. Troy Hovey hit Amit Tandon head-on, Mr. Tandon was pronounced dead at the scene, Mr. Hovey walked away with minor injuries.

On October 15, Troy Hovey was scheduled for sentencing after first pleading not guilty, then changing his plea to no contest. Troy Hovey, for his crimes, in what is being seen by many as a travesty of justice, was sentenced to three years probation and 180 days in jail (of which approximately 60 days have been served) with an opportunity for early release into an alcohol treatment program. Citizens of Chico and throughout northern California are outraged, disgusted, shocked, and saddened by the inequity of Troy Hovey's punishment to the crime he committed.

There are no words to express the suffering that Troy Hovey has brought to the lives of so many through the death of Amit Tandon, some have even called Mr. Hovey a murderer. Troy Hovey may not have been legally labeled a murderer, but his actions are considered by many to be just that, murder.

Troy Hovey stole the life of a man considered to be extremely talented, magnetic, charismatic, full of life, and a wonderful husband to his wife of seven months, Deepika. Amit Tandon was only 32 years old. He was a son, a brother, an uncle, a cousin, a friend, a husband, and in December, he would have been a father to his son. Amit was a successful community member and business man who made Chico a better place. Everyone who met him was better for having him in their lives. He was Deepika's love, her life, her partner, her friend, he was her perfection. Deepika must now face the rest of her life without him by her side. She must try and keep the business running without his help, his knowledge, his life. She must raise her child without him. Amit's son will never get to know the joy of having a father, never get to be held, comforted, taught, teased, and loved by his father. Amit's parents will never get to see their son become a father, to see him grow old, to see the success that Amit was achieving. Amit's niece and nephew will never get to see their beloved uncle ever again, to know him, to have his love in their lives. Amit's brother will never get to tease him, learn from him, to be with him. The community of Chico has lost an upstanding member of the community who touched so many lives. Amit was loved from Chico, to Redding, to Red Bluff, to Sacramento, to San Jose, To Truckee, to Stockton, to Paradise, to Oroville, to Malaysia, to Dubai, to India…Around the world, we have felt this loss.

Can one even imagine, even begin to imagine what the pain of such a loss can bring? On Monday, August 4th, Amit found out that he was going to be father to a baby boy। On Wednesday, August 6th, Amit worked in the kitchen to prepare for the markets he would be having that day and for the rest of the week, never knowing the tragedy that would unfold. Imagine for a moment that you were in Deepika's place that night…There are no words to express the devastation, horror, trauma that one feels in that moment as the heart is torn from your chest and ripped apart, that your body screams out from the devastation, to pray to god that this is not happening, to beg that it is not true, to hope that it is all a nightmare and that they are wrong, it was someone else, that Amit would come walking through the door at any moment…but he didn't, he won't, he never will।

Troy Hovey is, for all intents and purposes, a murderer. When Troy Hovey chose to consume excess alcohol, chose not to call his wife for a sober ride home, chose not to ask or call a friend for a ride home, chose not to ask a bar patron to give him a ride home, chose not to call a taxi, chose to get behind the wheel of his vehicle, chose to drive drunk at three times the legal Blood Alcohol Content level, chose to drive at speeds that were almost twice the legal posted speed limit (through a school zone), chose to speak on a telephone while under the influence and speeding, Troy Hovey, chose to commit murder.

Troy Hovey is selfish, reckless, and without care. Deepika Tandon must suffer for the rest of her life to not have her husband, the love of her life, by her side. Amit Tandon's child will never get to know his father. All of those who knew Amit Tandon must suffer this loss. Troy Hovey should have been punished to the fullest extent of the law because he chose to take a life. Troy Hovey should be punished for the rest of his life…as everyone affected by the actions of Troy Hovey must suffer for the rest of theirs. Yes, Mr. Hovey may indeed have an alcohol problem, one for which he has been unsuccessful in treating, however, a long prison term and treatment while in prison would have been more fitting. Yes, Mr. Hovey has a family, but what of the family of Amit Tandon, his wife, his unborn child, his parents, brother, niece, nephew, what of them?

The hearts of those from communities near and far to Chico go out to Amit Tandon's family and all that cared for Amit. This is a double tragedy - the loss of Amit Tandon and the failure of our court system to punish those guilty of such a heinous crime. There are no excuses for the actions of Troy Hovey. There are hundreds of people, likely more, in this world, that suffer from alcoholism and drink to excess, and that though their actions may exhibit poor judgment and demonstrate an addiction that warrants treatment, never engage in actions that would result in the death of another human being. This may be the first recorded offense for Mr. Hovey, however, that does not mean that Mr. Hovey has not put lives at risk before or that he may not do so again...

On August 6th, 2008, it was Amit Tandon that fell victim to the careless, selfish choice of another person, it could have been you or one of your loved ones, on a different night it still may be…

Some of the above comments and thoughts were respectfully borrowed from the statement that Deepika Tandon had read in court that not all were fortunate to hear, she was eloquent; it was heart wrenching; and though many may have heard the words of this widow, not all listened.

I am attaching the link to the article regarding the results of the sentencing: http://www.chicoer.com/ci_10731922?source=most_viewed

You may also google search for the cached articles regarding this case.

Also see news media coverage: Deepika Interview http://www.knvn.com/mostpopular/story.aspx?content_id=7a58d611-d2ca-4d9c-8745-bccb5c7dffb1

Public Baby Shower http://www.knvn.com/news/local/story.aspx?content_id=8278571f-6153-4324-8390-f67db4c116ae