Billboards honor DUI victim

Hazleton Times // News

April 27

Family of Joseph Gigliotti is using anniversary of his death to help others.

By Edward Lewis elewis@timesleader.com
Staff Writer

A year ago Friday, Joseph Gigliotti was killed by a drunken driver on East Butler Drive in Butler Township.

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Please Don’t Drink & Drive billboard along Route 93 in West Hazleton was put up by the Gigliotti family in honor of the late Jo Jo Gigliotti, who was killed by a drunken driver on April 24, 2008.

Pete G. Wilcox/The Times Leader

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His untimely death happened on his wife’s birthday.

Instead of reliving the tragedy that took the life of a husband, father and grandfather, Gigliotti’s family is using their pain to do something positive.

Two billboards with Gigliotti’s picture and messages about the dangers of drunken driving were unveiled in the Hazleton area on Wednesday, and the car Gigliotti was driving when he was killed has been donated to Hazleton Area’s chapter of Students Against Destructive Decisions, formerly known as students against driving drunk.

“This is how I’m healing; I won’t let the anger take control,” said Gigliotti’s daughter, Carla Kringer. “I really struggled with the pain; I was going through a difficult time, but doing this has been a tremendous help for me personally.”

Kringer and her family have publicly declared war on drunken driving by using their personal tragedy to tell others that people are killed by drunken drivers. Gigliotti’s family is also lobbying state lawmakers to stiffen penalties for those convicted of drunken driving.

Gigliotti, 69, was on his way to his home in McAdoo when his vehicle was struck by a sport utility vehicle driven by Kevin Prussock, 25, at about 1:45 p.m. April 24, 2008. Gigliotti was killed instantly. Prussock suffered minor injuries.

Township police said Prussock had a blood alcohol level of .181 percent at the time of the crash.

Prussock admitted to police, according to testimony at the preliminary hearing, that he had been drinking at a West Hazleton tavern for much of the morning but couldn’t recall how many beers he had consumed.

Prussock pleaded guilty to homicide drunken driving charges and was sentenced in February to three to seven years in state prison. He is an inmate at the State Correctional Facility at Camp Hill.

The billboards were strategically placed to send a message, Kringer said.

The one on state Route 93 near the Valmont Industrial Park, where Prussock worked at a manufacturing company, shows Gigliotti holding his 1-year-old granddaughter with the message: “Because of a drunk driver, I’ll never get to know my Pop Pop.” The billboard also has a picture of Gigliotti’s gravestone.

The other sign is on state Route 309 near Gigliotti’s hometown of McAdoo. It says “A drunk driver killed me on my wife’s birthday.”

Both billboards have the message, “Please don’t drink and drive.”

“We picked messages that are really powerful, that this is reality, people are killed by drunk drivers,” Kringer said.

Kringer said Lamar Advertising donated the space on billboards.

Edward Lewis, a Times Leader staff writer, may be reached at 829-7196.

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EyeOnYou said...

During the winter months, the same type message was put on multiple billboards in Lycoming County over a young girl, Kelly Rae Mertes, who was killed in 2005 in this county. Unfortunately, it didn't seem to do anything to deter drunk drivers from driving in Lycoming County because we are seeing more and more arrests for the offense listed in the newspaper.

April 27, 2009 at 7:28 AM

Jennie Metzgar said...

I hope this helps get through to those who need it most. If just one or two people admit they need help and get it you are on the right road.

April 27, 2009 at 12:56 PM

rich said...

Drunk drivers kill 13-17,000 of our loved ones a year, they maime and cripple 10's of thousands more,they cause billions of dollars in damages. This is war, make no mistake about it. We can no longer sit by and let these murderers get away with this, stronger laws must be passed, these people must be targeted and profiled, everything they own must be taken away from them, homes cars, lively hood,savings accounts, EVERYTHING, this should treated as 1st degree murder...if 17,000 people were killed last year in airplane crashes How do you think people would react? We need to do anything and everything we can to get this killing scum off the roads....the next phone call you get may be the murder of you wife, husband, son daughter, killed by a drung driver. Oh and lastly we have scum for legislators who don't want to "offend" these voting drunks by passing stonger laws.

April 28, 2009 at 8:35 AM

Amy said...

I nearly cried when I saw these billboards. Unfortunately, none of us can completely stop drunk drivers from getting behind the wheel. However, if this message reaches the conscience of but ONE person thinking about driving under the influence, that's at lease one more life that will be saved by the noble stand that the Gigliotti family is taking. It truly moves me...what a strong example of family and love that the Gigliotti's demonstrate. Jo Jo was obviously a great man...to leave behind such fine people as these.

April 28, 2009 at 4:05 PM

Sarah said...

EyeOnYou... it may not have made a huge impact on everyone but i can guarantee there are a lot of people that see those and think about it, and even if it stops one person than that is a great accomplishment. But then again seeing a picture of someone one who was killed by drunk driving may not have a huge impact unless there is some connection there. As for those of us who would never do that, and have that connection, seeing those pictures like Kelly's plastered on those billboards is like having your heart ripped out every time you drive past them. Both a good reminder of how choices control more than our own lives and also that there are consequences for every action. it is hard spending 18 years being around someone then have them taken away in the blink of an eye. So in memory of my best friend, my brave half, Kelly Rae Mertes, keep those Billboards and support them, because stopping one person could save so many lives.

May 20, 2009 at 12:39 PM