Parents of Oklahoma woman killed by drunk driver send message to people hitting roads this weekend
It has been three years since Marissa Murrow died. She was a friend, daughter, student, and now a victim of a senseless tragedy.
It has been three years since Marissa Murrow died. She was a friend, daughter, student, and now a victim of a senseless tragedy.
It has been three years since Marissa Murrow died. She was a friend, daughter, student, and now a victim of a senseless tragedy.
An Oklahoma family whose child was killed because of a drunk driver sent a message to drivers hitting the road this weekend.
It has been three years since Marissa Murrow died. She was a friend, daughter, student, and now a victim of a senseless tragedy.
| MORE | Memory of 19-year-old UCO student killed in crash will live on with love she left behind
"Now we have a tough time with October," said Marissa's father, Jeff Murrow.
"Then it leads into Thanksgiving and Christmas and New Year's and Valentine's Day and her birthday. The hits just keep coming. It's rough," said Marissa's mother, Kristy Murrow.
Marissa's family now advocates for families of drunk driving victims with a nonprofit called VOID, or Victims of Impaired Drivers.
"Honoring victims and supporting victims' families is probably right up there at the top of what we’re trying to do and just raise awareness of impaired driving," said Jeff.
They also go to great lengths to support families.
"One of the things we’ve been doing is traveling around the state to sit with families during trials or hearings, and that’s been really good for us to meet the families we’re working with and just sit with them and support them as they go through a difficult experience," said Jeff.
The Murrow family said they have a message for anyone thinking about getting behind the wheel after having a drink.
"What we would most want them to do is plan ahead. Plan ahead for 'How am I going to get home?' We love a good celebration as much as the next guy, but we want everyone to be able to get home safely," said Kristy Murrow, Marissa's mom.
Oklahoma Highway Patrol troopers said they will be increasing patrols to look for drunk drivers this weekend.
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"We want to do everything we can to raise awareness of this problem and put a spotlight on it and make changes that are meaningful to get violent offenders off the road," said Jeff.
The man driving the car that killed Marissa was sentenced to life in prison.
"A DUI fatality is 100% preventable. It's about calling Uber. Call a friend. Arrange a ride," said Kristy.
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