'Pulp Fiction' Oscar-Winner Roger Avary Sentenced For Fatal DUI

VENTURA, Calif. — An Oscar-winning screenwriter of "Pulp Fiction" has been sentenced to a year in jail for causing a fatal traffic crash in Southern California.

Roger Avary was sentenced Tuesday in a Ventura court. He also received five years of probation.

Avary pleaded guilty in August to gross vehicular manslaughter and drunken driving for the 2008 crash that killed a passenger in Avary's Mercedes in Ventura County. Authorities say Avary's car was traveling at more than 100 mph when it crashed into a telephone pole.

Avary's wife was ejected from the vehicle and was treated for non-life-threatening injuries.

Avary and Quentin Tarantino share the 1995 Academy Award for writing "Pulp Fiction." He also co-wrote the screenplay for the movie "Beowulf."

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Information from: Ventura County Star, http://venturacountystar.com

Comments

[poomplet]

For someone with no history of DWI arrests and/or a criminal record, this is a common...and JUST...sentence.

Unlike so many celebs/quasi-celebs/athletes...this guy really manned-up; he plead guilty, talked about it in a way you see TRUE, honest remorse (and NOT a press release read by a publicist) and didn't delay, appeal the trial and/or sentence.

And, though I don't wanna get all Polanski here, the victim AND the victim's wife both volunteered to get in the car with him (I hadn't known about her before reading this), KNOWING he was drinking....how much AND how drunk he seemed. Not only was that a very culpable act on their part, but not only should they not have gone with him, but they should have stopped him from going by himself.

Not to hide behind terminology, but they truly did 'enable' this tragedy....big-time.

[jamesjc]

Umm........for all of you who are clearly WAY smarter than the judge in this case.........what about the passenger who decides to get into the car with the drunk guy?

I mean, I've gotten into the car with my friends on thousands of occasions. Some of those times, no doubt, my friends were probably tipsy. Of course, my tipsy friends never drive 100mph, but it's quite possible that they might get in an accident that injures or kills me. Would I be upset? Obviously.

But I made the decision to get in the car. I'm an adult, and I'm responsible for getting in the car. If I were to be killed, I can assure you that the last thing I would want is for my family to push for my friend to be charged with vehicular manslaughter and to go to jail. However irresponsible it would have been for my friend to decide to drive, I take on just as much responsibility for deciding to get in the car with them.

[agandia]

One year???!!!!

[chrish]

One YEAR? What an insult to the family of the deceased. No justice there. People have much longer sentences just for having some pot, for chrissake.

[VOTER]

What a joke!

This drunken man's sentence of 1 year doesn't discourage Drinking and Driving.
Someone earned a bit of extra non-taxable income.

[CessnaDriver]

Just remember when drinking: There is no such thing as a $25,000 cab ride. Avoid the DUI, take a cab.

[fcsakes]

A year for taking a life? Oh yeah, that sounds fair. Your career is in the toilet and karma is hunting you down - have a good time in there, loser.

[LiberalBuzz]

Hey Vince Neil did FIFTEEN DAYS for a DUI that killed his passenger and destroyed a band's career....Hanoi Rocks (it was the drummer who was killed)

[Nooneyouknow]

Well, when he was released, he was still Vince Neil, and he'll have to spend the rest of his life being Vince Neil. It's a kind of justice... .

[JohnIII]

He shouldn't be prosecuted. He's a Hollywood writer.

[Blimpius]

Correct. We should start a petition to free him immediately!! lol

[MacManLB]

And yet a black athlete gets TWO years for accidentally shooting himself in the leg.

[Glencora]

And another black athlete gets 30 days for the same crime as the writer - your point is?

[BKearney]

but another black athlete (leonard little) got probation for killing a woman driving drunk. then oooppps got another dui

[thebirdstheword]

i know this is off-comment, but i just saw inglorious basterds (or however it's spelled) this past weekend, and i have a question:

how did shoshanna at 22, running from the nazi's, actually end up owning a movie theater in paris? i know it was touched on briefly as part of her fake backstory about it being left to her, but that would be impossible in nazi-controlled france.

huge, gaping plot hole in this supposedly "amazing" film.

[Nooneyouknow]

She had a fake identity card; it's shown in the film, IIRC.

[thebirdstheword]

thanks, i must have missed that part. but that begs the question of whether the id card came with tons of cash to buy the theater? movie theaters aren't doing great now, but they were cash cows in the 40's.

[brahdog]

how about suspension of disbelief? that always works for me

[Classof89]

He should've been sentenced to vehicular homicide. I think that if you know you're going out to have drinks and have no designated driver, you would have sense enough to realize that there's a possibility that you will drive back home drunk. I don't consider incidents such as this an accident. Maybe I'm wrong, but I always believed that accidents were things that happen unintentionally.

And I've never understood how drunk drivers always come out most times unscathed, while their victims are seriously injured or dead.

[sonoffestus]

It is because drunk bodies tend not to tense up and are "fluid and flexible". The body "gives" a bit more.
It's the same with drunks falling down stairs.

[Ping]

Most vehicular "accidents" are preventable and should be prosecuted as a crime.

[The Ogre]

I am sure he didn't intend to kill a passenger in his car. I understand your point, but you don't make it very well...it WAS an accident. Accidents are often caused by bad judgment. That does not mean that the person "intended" it to happen.

[fcsakes]

So if I hold a gun to your head and "accidentally" pull the trigger, it's just bad judgment because I didn't "intend" to kill you?

Get drunk, climb in a car, same exact thing.

[littlepuffycloud]

because they're drunk and floppy and don't tense up before or at impact. For real...I adjusted auto claims for 15 years.

[fcsakes]

I agree with you. Anyone who drives to a bar and proceeds to get drunk knows they will be driving back and what the dangers are. But then, if our hypocritical society really was "tough on drunk driving" why are there parking lots around bars?

[BKearney]

great point new fan

[kendraro]

there have also been many inventions over the years to deal with the drunk driving problem, but the auto industry doesn't want to step up. I think the "logic" is that if they did use one of the various technologies it would be opening them up to liability on the basis that they would then be taking responsibility for the driver's sobriety (which I would think a good lawyer could get them out of, but hey, what do I know?)

[JShankel]

That's what you get for neglecting to give _Killing Zoe_ any sort of second act, Roger. Let this be a lesson to you.

[ladycubsfan]

It would have been nice to know the name of the victim. Show some respect, people!

[StopMakingSense2]

Slap on the wrist..

[SouthpawSass]

But Mr. Avary has to go to jail? But, but he's got talent! Debra and Harvey, have you heard?

Sorry, a bit snarky, I know. I couldn't resist.

It's too bad a life was taken, but jail isn't the end of the world. At least he's still on it, rather than under it.

[lil11]

He probably won't serve the whole year. Maybe 60 days and get off for good behavior and the probation will probably be commuted to about 6 months.