The man who apparently allowed an unlicensed and allegedly high 18-year-old to take the wheel of a passenger van—she then crashed the van into a Hempstead house, killing its owner—has spoken out, through a lawyer, about the fatal incident. Brian Steele's lawyer Michael DerGarabedian told Newsday (subscription required), "Mr. Steele is also grateful the operator of the car, Kayla Gerdes, and her attorney, by virtue of both their many statements released to the press earlier this week, has accepted responsibility for her actions. Mr. Steele hopes that Ms. Gerdes gets the help that her attorney claims she desperately needs to become a productive member of society."
Steele was initially driving the van, but police say that Gerdes was unhappy with how slow Steele was driving—Gerdes was trying to make a court appearance over jewelry she stole from her mother—and the pair switched. Police also say that Gerdes, who had only a driver's permit, was high on Xanax and Oxycontin and probably speeding when the van jumped a curb and struck Rebecca Twine-Wright. However, Gerdes' lawyer says, "She was behind the wheel because he was nodding off, because he was high on drugs."
DerGarabedian said his client and Steele were an "intimate relationship," and, regarding possible criminal charges, "If her parents can't be responsible for her, how can a 29-year-old kid who just met her a short period before be responsible for her?" And Steele's father told the Post last week his son had known Gerdes for a few weeks. Brian Steele Sr. said he called the cops to kick her out of his house, "She says she's a model... There's something wrong with her... She was supposed to be gone today. She's got a big mouth. She's nasty." Gerdes told police that she didn't "feel so bad" about killing Twine-Wright because "I mean, 70 years is a long time to live."
