I would like to respond to Dianne Bates’ infuriating letter to the editor of the Malibu Surfside News on February 16. I’m a strong believer in First Amendment rights, and I am sure the Shane family is as well, so I am not going to challenge Ms. Bates’ right to submit this letter, nor the Surfside News’ right to print it. But, Ms. Bates should be reminded that with assertive opinion comes great responsibility and the cruelty she has chosen to express publicly will live with her for the rest of her days.
Her letter is not only despicable in many areas, it is totally incorrect. She refers in her letter (several times) to the word “accident.” This was not an accident. It was, according to witnesses, a conscious disregard for life and that equates to a charge of premeditated 2nd degree murder. If she had followed the case, she would know that it was a very difficult and frustrating journey for the Shane family given the complexity of our court system and the presence of a high profile lawyer for the defense.
As a result, the trial ended with a hung jury, and now the Shanes must go through this horribly painful process all over again to find some level of justice for the death of their beloved daughter. I have never lived in a place that has the number of traffic fatalities that we have in Malibu. This is an ongoing problem that many of us, especially those with children, have been very concerned about for decades. For Ms. Bates to be so ignorant and shortsighted to equate America’s pathetic obsession with the Kardashians with the Shanes’ dedicated obsession to make PCH safer, to create a brilliant Pass it Forward idea that helps people in a positive way in their daughter’s name, and to fight in court for justice for their daughter who is no longer with us to defend herself, is grossly irresponsible.
Emily Shane’s tragic and untimely death is the worst nightmare of every parent. When horrific things happen that are terribly wrong and can possibly be prevented in the future, the courageous and dedicated thankfully commit to doing whatever it takes to see that it doesn’t happen again. That is what the Shane family is doing, and Emily is the Shanes’ catalyst for trying to do something good for the future for all of us who live in Malibu and none of it is going to bring their daughter back. Those who love the Shanes pray constantly that someday they will find some peace, but Ms. Bates’ mean spirited, shortsighted, lack of insight or empathy for how painful this prolonged process has been for the Shanes is totally incomprehensible. I plead with her to give some serious thought as to what is within her that makes her so angry, so fearful, and so determined to cause so much pain. For there is more of what life is all about resonating in the memory of Emily Shane than I feel there is in her heart.
Peter Burrell