(Video by Marc Lester, Anchorage Daily News)
Lanita Sweatt-Sanders lost her daughter to a drunk driver on June 30, according to Anchorage police. The death of Citari Townes-Sweatt, 20, began a string of deadly DUI accidents in the city that sent police scrambling for solutions. Lanita last saw her daughter alive here in her Mountain View home.
“Nothing prepares you for this. Nothing does. And the pain is never going to go away. I was so angry. I’m not going to lie. I was angry at God. Because I feel like he has the power. He could have stopped this. You know, when he (the other driver) came into the courtroom, I could see in his face that he was hurt. I don’t know if it was sorry for what he had done. Sorry that he . . . drank and then got in his car. I don’t know if he was sorry for killing someone. But I could see the hurt and the remorse. And I really honestly do forgive him. I really do. I believe that he should still be held accountable for his actions. But I forgive him. I have no hatred for him at all. I just, I pray for him.”
Originally published October 12, 2013 by Mark Lester in Anchorage Daily News.