54 pages • 1 hour read
Matt RichtelA Deadly Wandering
Nonfiction | Book | Adult | Published in 2014A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
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BetaChapters 32-35Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 32 Summary: “Hunt for Justice”
Bunderson files a motion to prohibit the prosecutors from using diagrams of the crash site because they cannot be verified. He files subsequent motions trying to keep David Strayer, the expert on distracted driving, from testifying. Linton files countermotions and the two attorneys argue this point. Bunderson doesn’t want Strayer giving the jury the impression that texting while driving is inherently negligent.
As Reggie and his mom drive to the hearing, his mother thinks about a Christmas song and tries not to feel hate for the legal system and those saying bad things about her son.
Chapter 33 Summary: “Terryl”
Jackie becomes romantically involved with Gary, her friend and fellow World of Warcraft enthusiast. Jackie still feels uneasy about moving on, as evidenced by her dreams of Jim saying, “I’m not dead” (257). Leila is fairing worse.
Jackie and Terryl strike up a friendship. While Terryl is judgmental of all of the media that Jackie and her family consume, Jackie doesn’t see a problem with it. Jackie’s perspective squares with many other parents’ perspectives, according to various studies.
Chapter 34 Summary: “Reggie”
At a hearing in April, Bunderson argues that the State of Utah should pay for Reggie’s defense to hire expert witnesses. Reggie takes the stand and Linton questions him about the Chevy Cavalier he just bought. In the end, they agree to have the defense and State of Utah split the cost.
The legal battle heats up as the defense and prosecution argue who is and isn’t at fault. Reggie doesn’t want to lose because he feels “like it would be shame piled on shame in the community” (264).
After several positive turns for the prosecution—a forensic sciences firm determines that Reggie had not hydroplaned and the judge rules that Rindlisbacher can testify—Bunderson approaches Reggie about a plea deal. Reggie would serve minimal jail time and then become a poster boy for the dangers of texting and driving. Crucially, if he completes this sentence, the charges will be removed from his record.
Now living in Salt Lake City and working at a Utah Jazz sports arena club, Reggie takes a girl named Elise on a date. Although her dad had long ago given her a newspaper clipping of Reggie’s accident as a reminder to be safe, she doesn’t realize who Reggie is until he tells her. Things do not work out between them.
Chapter 35 Summary: “Hunt for Justice”
On December 11, 2018, a two-and-a-half-hour hearing takes place. Dr. Strayer testifies that texting and driving leads to a six-fold increase in crash risk. Strayer and Bunderson go back and forth on the time it takes to regain full awareness of the road after texting (which Strayer claims to be anywhere from 15 to 20 seconds), and the words move Reggie. He is ready to take the plea bargain.
Chapters 32-35 Analysis
The trial is an unequivocal victory for science. Despite Bunderson’s attempts to disqualify evidence, scientific analysis of all kinds ends up winning the day. First, forensics specialists determine that Reggie’s SUV could not have hydroplaned. Then, Dr. Strayer’s expert analysis becomes the key factor in getting Reggie to understand his role in what happened. Testifying that texting is inherently distracting, Strayer explains that texting doesn’t just distract a driver for a moment, but hijacks attention for almost half a minute afterwards. The facts break through Reggie’s wall of shame, fear, and inability to admit his guilt.
However, despite this small victory, the book point out that the culture is inexorably drifting towards accepting more and more unprecedented levels of technology use in the household. Parents like Jackie think that unlimited screen time is harmless and part of a normal family dynamic. A nationwide effort to change parents’ minds and children’s behavior is such a losing battle that in 2011, the American Academy of Pediatrics has to walk back its message: When the Academy called for no screen time for children under two years old to be more realistic: “the Academy took a lot of flak […] from industry, and even from pediatricians, asking, ‘What planet do you live on?’” (260-61).
