He Broke The Law... But What Would You Have Done?
Late Saturday
afternoon, Dr. Mark Lundell watched in horror as the airplane his
son Jacob was flying went down as he practiced touch-and-go's
at Casa Grande Municipal Airport. One of the victim's brothers also
witnessed the accident.
No one can say what thoughts went through Lundell's mind -- or
if he was even thinking rationally at all -- as the two men drove
up to the wrecked 1961 Nord N320 (file photo of type, below) and
removed Jacob's body from the cockpit. They then sped off,
according to the Arizona Republic.
Casa Grande police officers responded to the scene within
minutes, only to find the wreckage of an apparently fatal accident
-- but no body. A witness told officers two men drove off with the
victim in a red pickup truck.
When the witness asked the men if he should call 911, the older
man said no, they could handle it, according to police.
Using the aircraft's N-number, Paradise Valley police found an
address for the airplane's owner, and pulled up to the Lundells'
home seconds before a red pickup pulled into the driveway. They
were met by several other family members, including the victim's
mother Deborah.
"They were all in shock," said Assistant Paradise Valley Police
Chief Larry Scott.
By the time officers reached the body of Jacob Lundell, there
was nothing they could do to save the 21-year-old. His body was
taken to the Maricopa County Medical Examiner's Office for an
autopsy.
The Lundells have five children, according to the Republic.
Newspaper accounts indicate flying is in their veins, and the
family has appeared in articles in connection with their love of
airplanes.
In addition to the tragic loss of his son, Lundell now faces
federal charges over the incident, including possible FAA
violations for tampering with the scene of an accident and moving
the body of a plane accident victim. There are also several state
statutes that address such situations, including one stating a
human body cannot be removed from the scene of a suspicious death
unless a county medical examiner gives permission.
Authorities said the Nord was not registered, nor did Jacob
Lundell have a PPL or a valid student certificate. Laws were
apparently broken there, too, although the state AG's office would
not comment on the matter, pending the outcome of an NTSB
investigation.
Deborah Lundell told Phoenix's KTVK that her husband brought
their son's body home because "he knew my grieving, he knew my
heartache; he knew I needed to see him before they took him
away."
"He may have legally not done the right thing, but morally he
did the right thing," she added.
IDENTIFICATION
Regis#: 22532
Make/Model: EXP Description:
NORD N320
Date: 10/23/2005 Time: 0000
Event Type: Accident Highest Injury:
Fatal Mid Air: N Missing:
N
Damage: Unknown
LOCATION
City: CASA GRANDE State: AZ Country:
US
DESCRIPTION
ACFT FOLLOWING TOUCH AND GOES, CRASHED UNDER UNKNOWN
CIRCUMSTANCES 1/4 MILE
SHORT OF THE RUNWAY, THE ONE PERSON ON BOARD WAS FATALLY
INJURED, CASA
GRANDE, AZ
INJURY DATA Total
Fatal: 1
# Crew: 1 Fat:
1 Ser:
0 Min:
0 Unk:
# Pass: 0 Fat:
0 Ser:
0 Min:
0 Unk:
# Grnd:
Fat: 0 Ser:
0 Min:
0 Unk:
WEATHER: METAR CGZ 222355Z AUTO 27006KT 10SM CLR 29/06 A2982
OTHER DATA
Departed:
Dep Date: Dep.
Time:
Destination:
Flt
Plan:
Wx Briefing:
Last Radio Cont:
Last Clearance:
FAA FSDO: SCOTTSDALE, AZ
(WP07)
Entry date: 10/24/2005