Victim's family questions not guilty verdict in fatal crash

June 25, 2011

A not guilty verdict for an accused drunk driver has stunned the family of the young man he hit and killed in Gallup almost two years ago. A Gallup jury found 40-year-old Daryl Begay not guilty of vehicular homicide, DWI causing great bodily harm, and plain old driving while intoxicated, even though he blew a .15 - almost twice the legal limit. Begay t-boned Scott Costley's pickup truck in a Gallup intersection in September 2009. Costley was 21. Motorcycle racing was his passion and he was good at it. He got a motorcyclist's funeral and became a symbol of Gallup's ongoing struggle against drunk driving. Costley's parents believe there is no justice in the verdict. "Dropping the DWI charge when clearly there was more than enough facts - on video, the breathalyzer test, the blood tests - I mean where did the jury come up with that," asked Todd Costley, Scott's father. "That's the thing we are questioning in our minds." "If Daryl Begay had any remorse for what he's done he would have looked us in the eye and apologized to us, whether he was guilty or not, found guilty or not," said Christy Costley, Scott's mother. "He never looked at us and never apologized to us for what he's done, and that's been very hurtful." Scott Costley's family and friends still feel that he did not die in vain. McKinley County has made significant strides in reducing drunk driving, but there is still a long way to go.