Austin, Texas 78749

August 10, 2005

Raven Kazen, Director of Victim Services Division

Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles

Fax: (512) 452-0825

Dear Ms. Kazen:

I oppose parole for Ricky Carter, whose abominable decision to drink and drive resulted in the premature death of four teenage girls.  Equally atrocious is your consideration to even allow Carter to serve less than five years of his full prison sentence.

Parole for Carter would send three very disturbing messages to the citizens of Texas as well as the entire nation.  Parole for Carter would send the message to all who chose to drink and drive that such a crime is not serious enough to deem that the offender serve their full sentence and that they lives he took are insignificant.   Parole for Carter would also send the message that such a brutally fatal decision is excusable by some measure of behavior which allows the offender to walk free, able to live his life and pursue his goals, opportunities he selfishly stole from four young girls who had barely begun their life. 

These girls who were prematurely and abruptly taken away from society would have changed the course of history.  Their contributions to society could have made our future existence remarkable.  But, we will never know what these girls could have done because Ricky Carter killed them.  Furthermore, Carter has dramatically and forever changed the lives of those left in despair, struggling to figure out how to cope with such a magnitude of loss.

The bare minimum that he deserves is to fulfill his entire prison sentence.  He should have been the one to die because of his choice to drink and drive.  Do not allow Ricky Carter parole.

Formally,