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Grieving mother on drunk drivers: They have a choice

Six years haven't dulled the pain a local mother feels after losing her daughter to a drunk driver.

A grieving mother who lost her daughter in a car crash caused by a drunk driver is urging people to take responsibility for their actions, especially as the holidays approach.

Debbie Pruett’s plea came just days after a Jacksonville Sheriff's Office court bailiff was killed and her husband, also a member of JSO, was injured by a suspected drunk driver on Sunday.

“A horrible tragedy that could have been prevented,” Pruett said of the crash that killed bailiff Cathy Adams. “I can’t imagine what they’re going through, especially during this [holiday] time.”

But if anyone can understand what the Adams family is going through, it’s Pruett. Six years ago, Pruett’s daughter, Jennifer Kirk, was killed by a drunk driver.

“He was speeding, ran a stop sign and t-boned her,” Pruett said. “And killed her instantly.”

Kirk, 26, was a mother-of-three. Her youngest son had celebrated his first birthday the day before her death.

“All these three children have no mom,” Pruett said. “Because someone had done something so stupid that could have been prevented.”

Pruett is now raising Kirk’s oldest and youngest children, while the middle child is being raised by her father.

In the six years since Kirk’s death, Pruett has turned her heartbreak into action by helping to found JAXImpact, an organization that does awareness campaigns against drunk driving. Pruett has recovered her daughter’s car and brings it around to events to show people the consequences of drunk driving.

The car is in the same condition as when Kirk drew her last breath on that Baker County road; an Easter basket that never made it to eager children is in the back seat.

“I just wonder what flashed in front of her eyes before she died, if anything,” Pruett said. “And how scared she had to have been when it all took place.”

Ahead of the often booze-filled Christmas and New Year’s holiday, Pruett urged everyone to be accountable for their actions.

“The first sip of alcohol messes with your judgment,” she said. “Anybody who goes to bars or to parties or to a friend’s house, they have a choice. They have a choice for their lives and they have a choice for other people's lives.”

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