1. What you are about to see is true. Every year in Texas more than 1,000 people are killed in alcohol-related traffic crashes. But not everyone who gets hit by a drunk driver dies.

2. “Jacqui’s Story” An amazing journey of courage, determination and devotion

3. In 1999, 20 year old Jacqueline Saburido left her family and friends in Venezuela to come to Austin, Texas. She traded flamenco dancing and jet skiing for an adventure in a new country and the chance to learn English.

4. Jacqui called her dad from Austin because she wanted to go to a birthday party that Saturday night outside the city, on Lake Travis. The birthday boy, who was Venezuelan, would pick her up. Her father didn't like the idea and told her to take cab fare with her in case she got stranded. Take a minute to walk in the father’s shoes. Ask yourself what he was thinking about that night, how he felt after the accident.

5. Reggie Stephey was a senior at Lake Travis High School near Austin. He played baseball and football. College was in his future.

6. One of his prized possessions was the SUV he had customized.

7. Early one Sunday morning in the fall of 1999, Jacqui’s and Reggie’s paths crossed.

8. In a split second, their lives would be changed forever. Austin Police Department

9. Just a few hours earlier, Jacqui had been at a birthday party with some of her new friends. It was late when they left the birthday party. Neither she nor the driver had been drinking.

10. That same Saturday, Reggie met some friends after work and had a few beers. Later, he went to a party and drank some more, even though it is illegal for anyone under 21 to buy or possess alcohol in Texas.

11. At the same time Jacqui was on her way home, Reggie was driving home, too. But he was drunk.

12. On a four-lane road just outside of Austin, Reggie’s SUV crossed the centerline and hit the car Jacqui was riding in, head-on. Austin Police Department

13. The front of Natalia's Oldsmobile was twisted and crumpled like an accordion. Broken glass covered the road. In the front seat, Jacqui struggled to free herself. She was pinned between the dashboard and the seat. Flames from the engine were starting to creep toward her face. Next to her, Natalia was dead, crushed against the steering wheel. In back, on the floorboard behind the driver's seat, Laura lay curled in a ball, also dead. The two other back- seat passengers, Venezuelans Johanna and Johan, were dazed and injured. Austin Police Department

14. The flames edged closer to Jacqui's face. She pushed back, thrashing with her broken right arm for leverage. Jacqui rotated her face away from the flames. She couldn't twist far enough. Jacqui flailed. Flames wrapped around her. Her nose and her ears were on fire. Clumps of burning hair fell away. She started to wail. The paramedics had never heard anything like it. There were so many sounds at once — suffering and despair, terror and hopelessness. Absolute agony, one paramedic thought. Then he started screaming, too. "Oh my God, she's burning!“ Jacqui's wails seemed to go on forever.

15. Then there was silence.

16. The paramedics listened, not to the fire, but to her silence. “Thank God she’s dead,” Fitzpatrick said. A firefighter began flooding the car with water. Another firefighter trained a second hose on the car. In a few seconds, the flames died out. Bright red spots still glowed on Jacqui’s body. Gently, a firefighter doused her. Her body steamed. Black, sooty water splashed McIntosh, still standing by the car. I’ve got to take care of the living, he told himself, then sprinted past his partner. “Fitz,” he said, “she’s dead.” Fitzpatrick needed to know for sure. He went to the Olds. On the shoulder of the road, Johanna and Johan looked up at McIntosh. The paramedic placed his hands on Laura’s lifeless body. “She’s DOS,” McIntosh shouted to his partner. Dead on scene.

17. Fitzpatrick peered into the car. Every square inch looked burned. The seats were melted goop. He reached for Jacqui’s wrist, then froze. Across the road, McIntosh heard him yell. “Oh my God, she’s still alive.” Jacqui moved her head and whimpered. Remnants of her hair, crisp and curled, clung to her skull. Her scalp was seared, her face indistinguishable. One eye looked burned open, the other burned shut. Her shirt was melted, and her skin was crusty, cracked. She looked like a black silhouette. Firefighters pried the door open with the Jaws of Life. The men tried to lift her, but she stuck to the seat. Gently, they peeled her off. A firefighter held her hand, where the skin hung loose, sliding off. Jacqui, the firefighters agreed, burned intensely for about 45 seconds.

18. 45 seconds Think about how hot your hand gets if you hold it above a candle. Now, close your eyes. Think about how it would feel to have your whole body on fire. Remain silent for 45 seconds and realize how long it really is.

19. Austin Police Department Other than a few bruises, Reggie was OK except for one thing. A blood test showed he had been drinking. Police officers arrested Reggie and took him to jail.

20. Jacqui was barely alive when she arrived at the hospital. She was burned over most of her body. Her hair was gone. Her eyes were scorched. So were her nose and her ears. She was almost completely blind. Fingers on both of her hands had to be amputated. © 2002 Austin American-Statesman

21. The pain was indescribable and constant. Jacqui spent months in the hospital. © 2002 Austin American-Statesman

22. Reggie Stephey was tried and convicted for causing the deaths of two people while he was driving drunk. He is now in the state penitentiary, serving two concurrent 7-year sentences for intoxication manslaughter. Texas Department of Corrections

23. Reggie never thought this could happen to him. He will be 28 years old when he is released from prison. The damage he did, he says, is “a pain that will never go away.” © 2002 Austin American-Statesman

24. Four years later, Jacqui’s recovery continues. She has had more than 50 operations so far and has many more to go. To get the medical care she needs, she must live in the United States—far away from family and friends.

25. Once fiercely independent, Jacqui has come to rely on her father, Amadeo, to take care of her. © 2002 Austin American-Statesman

26. Amadeo left his business in Caracas to take care of his only child. He has not left her side since the crash.

27. Jacqui and Amadeo live in Louisville, Kentucky so she can be close to her doctors. She faces years of more surgery and medical treatment.

28. Determined to do what she came to the United States for in the first place, Jacqui recently completed language classes at the University of Louisville. She is now able to speak and write English.

29. In May, 2003, after many, many operations to replace her left eyelid that was completely destroyed in the fire, Jacqui was able to have a cornea transplant. The operation was a success, and some of her vision has now been restored.

30. Jacqui doesn’t want anyone else to have to endure the suffering that she has experienced. © 2002 Austin American-Statesman

31. In 2002, she appeared in a TV commercial produced by the Texas Department of Transportation to remind people not to drink and drive. More than 300 million people throughout the world have seen it.

32. A poster with her photograph shows high school and college students and others what can happen as a result of drunk driving. Ads with Jacqui’s picture have appeared in newspapers and magazines in the United States, Canada and Great Britain.

33. Police departments, schools, organizations and many others have begun using the educational materials in which she is featured.

34. When she is physically able, Jacqui speaks out against drunk driving.

35. Jacqui’s incredible story of courage and determination has touched millions of people throughout the world. Thousands of people have written her letters or sent emails.

36. Many people who hear Jacqui’s story want to do something. A fund has been established to help defray the staggering costs of her medical treatment. If you would like to help, you can contact Help Jacqui Fund, PO Box 27667, Austin, TX 78755. or visit www.helpjacqui.com

37. Educators and law enforcement officers say the Texas Department of Transportation’s “Before and After” drunk driving prevention materials are among the most hard-hitting and powerful ever produced. For information about how to order copies, visit www.helpjacqui.com

38. You can do your part to help stop drunk driving. Please feel free to forward this presentation to everyone you care about. And please, don’t drink and drive. Ever.

39. © 2003 Texas Department of Transportation. Schools, law enforcement agencies and nonprofit organizations are authorized to use this presentation in programs to deter people from drinking and driving. Photographs provided by the families of Jacqueline Saburido, Reginald Stephey and the Austin American- Statesman are used with permission and may not be reproduced without written authorization. www.TexasDWI.org