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barajas dui killer
David Barajas was arrested when police arrived at the scene of an accident, only to find the drunk driver who, crashed and killed Barajas' two sons, dead. (Photo: ABC News)

You Be The Jury: Should a judge show mercy to this dad?

BY Jillian Raftery  on February 13, 2013 @ 1:56 pm (Updated: 4:16 pm - 2/13/13 )

What would you do if a drunk driver hit your car and killed two of your children? One Texas father living that nightmare took the law into his own hands and killed the drunk driver on the scene.

Dori wants you to be the jury, and decide the fate of this man.

David Barajas and his family were driving home on a rural road outside Houston when their car ran out of gas just 50 yards from their home. Barajas and his two sons, Caleb, 11, and David Jr., 12, got out to push the truck home when they were hit by a drunk driver. One son was killed instantly. The other died later at the scene.

Police have now arrested Barajas for shooting the 20-year-old drunk driver that killed his sons.

But many people are now saying that Barajas shouldn't be jailed even if he is convicted, since he's already paid the ultimate price by losing his two sons.

Dori knows that under the law what this dad did was wrong, but he can't help but think that this is case of misplaced justice.

News anchor Ursula Reutin said she can understand the father's anger, but she couldn't justify charging him with murder.

"Maybe there would be a lesser crime that he could be charged with," said Ursula. "Maybe not premeditated murder."

Producer Jake looked at it from the how the drunk driver's life would affect others. The driver would probably only get three to five years for vehicular manslaughter. He might go on to re-offend.

Dori knows that he would go mad if he saw anyone hurt his daughters. He can only imagine what David Barajas felt when his children died.

"Temporary insanity," voted Dori.

One listener calling in said he couldn't feel any sympathy for the murdered drunk driver: only for the father. He didn't see it as a premeditated murder.

"He sees his two little boys murdered right in front of him," said Bob. "And yeah, he does walk to his house, but it's 50 yards away so it's almost like it's in front of his yard. It's not as if he drove across town and got his gun and then came back."

Some listeners that thought Barajas should be convicted and jailed pointed out that, while his children were killed, he also killed someone else's child.

Others didn't like the precedent that would be set by letting this man go, no matter how tragic the situation.

"If we all go out and kill criminals," said listener Sherry, "then what kind of chaos do we create?"

What you're saying on Facebook:

Chris Young: The government needs to really punish those who drive drunk, treat everyone who does it as a potential killer.And reoffenders need to be banned from driving forever. Too soft means very little legal consequence and the drunk drivers seem to ALWAYS survive!! Thoughts, prayers and love to the family...

Greg Gegax: Slap on the wrist.. Community service.. Less than a year in jail

Zach Rusk: i couldnt convict him of murder, maybe a lesser charge but i wouldnt send a man to prison for 25-life for this.

Roddy Miller: He should be reimbursed for the cost of the bullet and given a bonus equal to what it would cost to take the drunk to trial again for DUI.

James Barr: It depends on the circumstances. Was the truck in the road/normal lane, all dark with no lights or flares? Then he should serve some jail time, as he's partially responsible for being dumb. If he had proper precautions like flares or emergency lights on, and was on the edge of the road, then let him go and good riddance to the drunk driver.

Amanda Brennan: Okay, first who was "driving" this broke down truck, while they were pushing It? Second was the kids life worth having them push it instead of waiting for or calling for help? Sorry for the loss of the boys, now the mother is left to raise the little girl alone.

Jason Osborne: Yeah let's go back to the wild west days when vigilante justice was ok. I mean the movies make it look ok. Seriously, murder is murder. There's a reason we have laws. There's a reason our legal system defines those laws. Granted the drunk driver made a horrible mistake. I don't think he deserved to die. If they don't charge the dad for his acts it sets a precedence which leads to a very slippery slope. God forbid your kids make a mistake and wind up dead for it.

Jillian Raftery, Social Media Captain
Jillian Raftery is a social media captain for the Dori Monson Show. She loves the neighborly vibe of the Pacific Northwest and spends as much time as possible outdoors.
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Comments (9)


  • Add A Comment

  • MrsW wrote...
    The father made 2bad choices that enabled "drunk" driver to cause the accident
    February 13, 2013 3:53 pm
    A perfectly sober driver could have hit a disabled car on a dark rural road. We don't even know if the alleged drunk driver was truly DUI. He didn't flee the scene, we know that. Why was dad driving his kids home on a rural road in the dark with not enough gas in the vehicle? No, no one should pay with their kid's lives for the otherwise minor error in judgement, but all the same - this unfortunate choice, which turned tragic, was his own. Dad chose to put the return of his car to the home ahead of the safety of his boys. Again, no one should pay for mistakes with their child's life, but this man put his young boys life at risk. He gambled with their life to return the car to his property, and lost. He could have walked them home safely and figured out a safer way to get gas in his car ...like walk back there alone with a can of lawn mower gas. The older of the two boys was old enough to be home alone with his brother while dad took care of the car. Three dead people would be alive today had this man acted more responsibly In the first place. The man should not only be charged for murder but also for wreckless endangerment of his kids, resulting in loss of their lives. I feel sorry for the man because the bad choices he made resulted in "worst case scenerio" playing out in full force. But at the end of the day, he is still accountable for his own actions. Dori, isn't that your mantra?
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  • mck wrote...
    Mercy for the dad?
    February 13, 2013 10:17 pm
    The dad put his kids in harm's way by letting his vehicle run dry, then placing them between oncoming traffic and their rig. Why? Wasn't a gas can fifty yards away as easy to get to as a gun? One of the kids died "later at the scene", presumably after first responders got there, so the dad left his injured, but alive, son to kill a defenseless stranger. I don't believe in "hate crime" enhancements for bad acts, and don't believe in mitigation for a premeditated revenge killing.
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  • hpitantso wrote...
    Mercy
    February 13, 2013 11:52 pm
    Should only be offered by injuried party,never the system or a person bound or obliged fairly to impose if agreemment is offered (not state or federal) by injuried party
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  • froggy wrote...
    The sentence should be what the DUI driver would get.
    February 14, 2013 6:06 am
    Driving intoxicated is a choice and there is a prescribed sentence for doing so and getting in a crash and killing someone. If someone kills you after you kill someone driving drunk, they should only get your jail time. I do not condone taking the law into your own hands, but I can certainly understand someone doing so when they know the ridiculously small penalties for some crimes. For you people blaming the father for putting his children at risk, you must be unaware of the countless numbers of drunk drivers who have struck parked cars on the side of the roadway. There are also countless drunks who have hit police cars along the side of the road that had their emergency lights activated. If you have to blame anyone, blame our legislators for having failed to enact penalties that would instill enough fear to prevent anyone driving drunk.
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  • messiah101 wrote...
    Froggy
    February 18, 2013 7:01 am
    So if the father of the drunk driver shows up at the father of the kids home and blows his head off he also is entitled to leniency? You use an example of what you consider the government not punishing drunk drivers enough then say government should not punish murderers using the sentence guidelines for murderers but use te guidelines for drunk drivers,that makes no sense at all.
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  • froggy wrote...
    My attempt at subtlety isn't working.
    February 19, 2013 5:05 pm
    Messiah, I was actually trying to point out the ridiculousness of the weak sentences we give out for killing others while driving drunk. There is a big difference from being there when someone kills one of your relatives and taking the law into your own hands as opposed to coming there much later and doing it. While I wouldn't condone either, I can certainly understand when it happens as it did in this case. I am actually surprised it doesn't occur more frequently by people tracking down DUI drivers much later after the fact when they've killed someone. Especially when it is so well known that the sentences are so weak.
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  • Concerned US Citizen wrote...
    Only one
    February 14, 2013 6:23 am
    The drunk driver would not have had to kill both my children. Only one would have been enough!! Knowing the light penalties given for drunk driving and that the suspect would probably walk after a year in jail I too would have gotten street justice.
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  • DesertRez wrote...
    Case
    February 14, 2013 11:11 am
    Their was a case similar where a man shot his sons pedophile kidnapper. In fact the shooting was video taped by a news reporter. You can watch it on Youtube. He ended up getting 5 years probation. Seems about right for this guy, maybe charge him with manslaughter, 5 years prison, 5 years suspended, probation.
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  • LOGANATOR wrote...
    dad shoots dui guy.
    February 15, 2013 1:29 pm
    I think they charged the dad with an unconvictable charge. Texes is a good ole boy club. They had to charge him but, He'll get a pass. You'll see.
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