It was with a heavy heart that I read the Nov. 15 Letter to the Editor from Larry Benson regarding the assault on his son.

I, too, hope he finds justice but based on my experiences I have such little hope. My daughter was hit by a drunk driver (his fourth DUI) in 2019 at the age of 19 while traveling on I-5.

She suffers from a traumatic brain injury and with PTSD. The “justice” we experienced was that the criminal spent seven months in prison. He currently owes me $75,000 in restitution for the out-of-pocket expenses I have incurred taking care of her. I don’t expect to see a penny.

If you have been reading the articles in the Courier-Herald regarding the Buckley resident, Donald Linder, it was my daughter and I on the receiving end of his mental delusions. The “justice” we experienced was that the government has provided him with a roof over his head, a bed, three meals a day, etc. while once again I am left holding the bill for the damage he caused to my daughters auto and to the house.

Let me be clear we had never met, nor seen this man. When the state decided to place him in a “clean and sober” house that he can walk away from at any time I had to jump through hoops to find out what he looked like. He could have walked up to the house to deliver a pizza (or with his guns and bombs) and we would have never known it was him. I was not able to get his mug shot as the release of those violates his rights. Finally with the assistance from Congresswoman Schrier I was able to gain access to his picture.

I can totally understand wanting justice. It’s a path I have been on for years. Sadly there is so little justice and the criminals know it. I have hope that someday the system realizes that there needs to be a penalty for criminals that hurts them more than the crime they committed hurt their victims. I also have hope that Larry Benson’s son fully recovers from his injuries and that they see some form, any form, of justice.

Susan Barfknecht

Enumclaw