Karen and her family. From left to right: Rob, Bill, Cynthia, Ken, Karen

On Tuesday my family is going back to court for the 5th (or is it 6th? Maybe 7th?) time, hoping that once and for all, a decision will be made: what exactly will the verdict be for the man who drove drunk and killed my sister Karen Holden?

You may have seen the reports online, or the story on TV. A man named Ryan Gurecki, who claimed to have had 5 beers at work (actual blood alcohol level? 0.13), crashed his car into the car containing my sister Karen, her husband Bill, and their youngest son Rob. Karen was pronounced dead later that night.

That was 8 months ago today. On Tuesday my brother-in-law Bill, my sister Lynne, and countless other family members and friends of Karen’s will go back to court, hoping that finally something will be done.

Not another delay. Not a new court date. A decision.

Lynne has been asking for people to write letters explaining their feelings on what should be done. I’ve decided to post one of my letters below.

If you knew Karen, if you knew one of us, or if sadly you knew someone like her, please consider reading and sharing this letter. Please consider making a statement of your own that we can present. I’m urging Judge Comacho to look at Gurecki’s actions and make a statement that he cannot get away with what he’s done to Karen, and to the rest of us.

If you’d like to send your own note, I’ve set up an inbox, and I’ll be sure to forward everything on: NotesForKaren2017@gmail.com. Please also check out my sister Kristen’s letter, it’s amazing.

Thank you

Judge Camacho, My name is William Rogers and Karen Holden was my sister. On the evening of June 26th she was killed due exclusively to Ryan Gurecki’s actions. Karen and her husband Bill, along with their son Rob were on their way to see Ken, their oldest son. They had a ton of paint supplies in the car. They were going to help Ken and his wife set up their new place. Just a few days earlier, Karen and I had been with our sisters Lynne and Kristen, my mom Kathie, and our father Richard in the hospital. Our dad had just had surgery, and Karen being a good daughter and a talented nurse, was helping us all make sense of what was happening. Karen lived a happy life. Given her fair share of adversity, she was constantly cheerful, and responded to stress by asking “what can I do to fix this?” I’ve never known another person like her, and I doubt I ever will again. I’m her brother, and so it’s probably easy to dismiss my bias, but I assume at this point you’ve been inundated with letters from other people who are backing up my claims: Karen Holden was a person with endless energy, who didn’t wait a SINGLE BEAT before jumping out of her chair to help a friend in need. It was unreal. She was always smiling. Always working. “Unreal” is only word. She cared for people both professionally and personally. It was her life. And thanks to Ryan Gurecki, those days are gone. It shouldn’t matter how incredible I thought Karen was. It should be totally irrelevant to note my belief that she could do anything. Ryan Gurecki’s life as a habitual destructive force has left a scar on Long Island. How many times will it take Gurecki to prove that he can’t be trusted? In 2006 he was convicted of a DUI. A decade later he proved he wasn’t going to let that get in the way of his dedication to careening through your neighborhoods, wreaking havoc. It’s remarkable he hadn’t killed anyone before. I would not be shocked if he did it again. He will keep going until his point is made. Ryan Gurecki lied about how much he had to drink. Having just murdered a woman, injuring her husband and son, he was worried about himself. He’s singularly dedicated to ensuring his own personal well-being. He can’t pretend to be surprised by his actions anymore. For my family, he was a wrecking ball out of nowhere. For him it was just another evening. Just a bigger mess to walk away from. His damage doesn’t stop. My nephews no longer have their mother a phone call away or down the hall. My brother-in-law doesn’t have his wife anymore. We don’t have our sister. We’ve lost a friend. Ryan Gurecki’s actions are permanent. They aren’t something he can apologize for. He did it before. He would do it again. The only variable is how much he will destroy. Do not make some other family relive our suffering. Stand up and state that men like Ryan Gurecki are no longer permitted to get away with driving drunk. Do not let this man go free. -William Rogers

If you have anything you’d like to share, please consider sending your own note to NotesForKaren2017@gmail.com

Thank you.