The mother of a child who is on life support after a wreck involving a man accused of drunken driving said the driver should be charged with intoxication manslaughter.
"I want this man to be in jail for the rest of his life," said Loubna Elharizn, the mother of 2-year-old Abdallah Khader.
The family is demanding that charges against Stewart Richardson, 44, be upgraded to intoxication manslaughter. Richardson, who is accused of rear-ending the family's vehicle, has been charged with intoxication assault in connection with the crash.
Dr. Jeffery McGlothlin, a surgeon who is working to keep Khader alive with the help of life support, said he estimates 80 percent of the boy's brain has been destroyed.
"The parts that he has left are just barely keeping him alive," he said. "We don't expect that he would be able to stand, to walk to even sit or speak."
Khader is just more than a month away from his third birthday.
The wreck happened Friday as the family was returning from visiting a loved one in Arlington. Police said Richardson plowed into the rear of their vehicle as they were stopped at an intersection for a red light. The family's car was forced into oncoming traffic, creating a second collision, police said.
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Khader was pinned in the wreckage. His body was crushed, and his skull was smashed.
Family members said Khader is still alive, but Richardson's actions have murdered everything about the little boy that made him himself.
"I don't understand," Elharizn said. "How many times does someone have to be caught driving under the influence of alcohol until he's not allowed to drive in this country?"
Richardson has been previously arrested on suspicion of drunken driving.
Khader's family has filed a civil suit against Richard, alleging gross negligence, saying he had no regard for the impact his actions have on the lives of others.
The family said they will keep the little boy on life support for as long as his body can sustain it because of their religious beliefs.
They said they will also keep pushing for a stiffer prosecution and a manslaughter charge.
"He's my only joy, he's my only son, I breathe when he breathes, he is my only son and I want my son back," his mother said as tears flowed down her face.
