Victim's parents show empathy

A man accused of DUI-manslaughter breaks down when the mother of one victim tells him, "I do not hate you.''

By DAVID KARP

© St. Petersburg Times, published March 7, 2001

TAMPA -- As she sat in the front row in court Tuesday, Jennifer Smith looked for the person charged with killing her 19-year-old son.

Joseph Safrany, 35, charged with three counts of DUI manslaughter for a wreck April 7, 2000, that killed Brandon Smith and two friends, was scheduled for a routine court hearing.

Mrs. Smith and her husband, Fred, who had driven from Tennessee, were angry that he was free on bond and had spent the holidays in New England with his family. But when they finally saw him Tuesday, instead of venting their rage, they did something totally unexpected:

"I am Jennifer Smith, Brandon's mother," she said to Safrany after the hearing. "I just want you to know I do not hate you."

Safrany broke into tears. "Ma'am, that is simply amazing," he said. "You don't know how that makes me feel."

Safrany told Mrs. Smith he had thought about writing to her at Christmas, but didn't. Mrs. Smith had thought about contacting him last summer. She had gotten his address off police reports.

"I had to talk to you," she said. "I just had to."

"Do you want to know what happened that night?" he asked.

She said yes.

"I looked and I never did see that car," he said.

Authorities said Safrany was driving 73 mph on Sheldon Road about 3:15 a.m. when he hit a 1998 Honda driven by Troy D. Call, 24, and carrying Smith, Shawn Falla, 20, and Robert Falla, 23. They were turning into their apartment complex after a night in Ybor City. Only Robert Falla survived.

The drivers of both cars had been drinking, authorities said. Safrany, 35, who had pleaded no contest to a DUI charge in 1996, had a blood-alcohol level of 0.186 percent.

Brandon Smith, a MacDill Air Force Base airman, was the youngest of the Smiths' three children. Mrs. Smith, 45, a nurse, and Mr. Smith, 48, a salesman, had taken time off from their jobs to attend the hearing in Tampa, a city full of painful memories. Mr. Smith made sure to avoid driving past the "Air Cargo" sign by Tampa International Airport because it reminded him of transporting his son home for his funeral.

"I hope and pray you are not drinking and driving," Mrs. Smith told Safrany.

"I am not," he said.

After a few more minutes, the two paused in the hall. She said she would leave Safrany's punishment in God's hands.

"That was the strangest feeling," she said a minute later. "I know you are going to feel this is the dumbest statement, but my heart bled for that boy."

© 2006 • All Rights Reserved • Tampa Bay Times
490 First Avenue South • St. Petersburg, FL 33701 • 727-893-8111

Contact the Times | Privacy Policy
Standard of Accuracy | Terms, Conditions & Copyright