Hit by drunk driver, army veteran waiting on justice years after losing leg

Columbia, South Carolina – September 22, 2019 was the day when Everette Scott’s life was changed forever. That was the day when Scott was hit by drunk driver while driving his motorcycle on Garners Ferry Road in Columbia.

“I remember the impact. I remember the landing. I remember looking down and seeing that my leg was gone,” said Scott. “It happened so fast. I wasn’t able to get prepare for it. I just had to react.”

Scott suffered heavy injuries. Doctors had to amputate part of his leg in order to save his life. He spent more than a year in wheelchair and on crutches. He finally managed to get a customized prosthetic for his leg.

“It’s getting better over time. I still have a little limp in my arm. It’s getting better. It’s pretty challenging sometimes,” said Scott. “My military dreams got destroyed, my civilian dreams got destroyed. It’s life changing.”

As Scott awaits justice in his case, there is a number of legislative pushes in the SC General Assembly to stiffen the penalties for DUI drivers. One of them is Senate Bill 28, that would require all DUI offenders have an interlock intermission device installed in their cars to breathalyze them before they can drive. MADD SC executive director Steven Burritt is leading the initiative.

“So far it has not been put on a subcommittee agenda yet, so that’s what we’re really trying to push for,” said Burritt. “It’s the most important thing we can do to prevent occurrences of repeat impaired driving. These devices nationwide since 2006 have prevented 3.4 million drunk driving trips.”

Scotts is still fighting the difficulties in life. In a recent Fox News interview, he said he is taking the road to recovery one step a time, while accepting the things he can do and can’t.