Manslaughter Fugitive Lives High Life in Peru

Nov. 29, 2007 — -- The father of the victim who died in a 1996 drunken driving car crash told ABCNEWS.com that he does not want the driver of the car extradited back to the U.S.

Evelyn Mezzich, 29, is facing charges of intoxicated assault with a vehicle and intoxicated manslaughter with a vehicle, after the car she was allegedly driving in downtown Austin, Texas, crashed into a light post, killing one and paralyzing another.

After posting bail, Mezzich failed to appear in court and fled the country, according to the Travis County district clerk's office. She is now a fugitive currently living in Peru.

"I see no point in [Mezzich] getting extradited," said Brashier, whose daughter Lindsay was killed in the crash. "There is nothing constructive about bringing a pregnant woman back to the states to get prosecuted; there are a lot worse criminals wandering around."

You'd never know from Evelyn Mezzich's MySpace page — which is filled with photos from her recent wedding and nights out on the town with friends — that she is actually a fugitive avoiding criminal charges in the United States.

Mezzich seems to have moved on with her life in Peru — she's expecting her first child and even posted a video on her MySpace page poking fun at drunken driving.

Mezzich posted photos of herself drinking and pole dancing, listed "drinking" as one of her favorite activities in her profile and even uploaded a video to her site that showed a Paris Hilton look-alike running from the cops and making fun of drunken driving. The site, which was viewed by ABC News, has since been made private.

Marilyn Datz, the mother of Lindsay Brashier, who was killed in the crash while Mezzich was allegedly at the wheel, hasn't moved on. In fact, the Houston woman is determined to bring her daughter's killer to justice.

"She had no remorse when she killed Lindsay and she has even less now," Datz told ABCNEWS.com. "How do you forgive someone who has never said sorry, never asked for forgiveness?"

Mezzich's "current mood," displayed on her Web page, reads "content" and is accompanied by a smiley face.

According to Datz, Tatiana Sartori, the car's third passenger whose neck was snapped in the crash, said that Brashier had been screaming from the passenger's seat "Slow down! Slow down!" while Mezzich drove and then eventually "fell asleep."

"They were intoxicated at the time," said Officer Robert Hasselman. Now retired, Hasselman was on the scene that night. "They caused their own wreck. Killed one person, paralyzed another. It's just something that [the driver] was responsible for."

All three women were students at the University of Texas-Austin. Mezzich and Brashier were suite mates, just two months into their freshman year.

"If you could custom order a daughter, it would be Lindsay," said Datz. "She was beautiful inside and out."

Brashier was very involved in the Jewish community during high school, said Datz, and had already joined Hillel at UT. She also had a part-time job, spent her free time volunteering at blood drives and had graduated from high school with a 4.3 grade point average.

Brashier's father, Thomas Brashier, told ABCNEWS.com that he does not want to see Mezzich get extradited.

"I see no point in Evelyn getting extradited," said Brashier, who did say that he thought Mezzich's MySpace page was done in poor taste. "There is nothing constructive about bringing a pregnant woman back to the states to get prosecuted; there are a lot worse criminals wandering around."

Brashier told ABCNEWS.com that Mezzich apologized to him and "showed remorse" several times after Lindsay was killed, and that he has since moved on the "best he can."

"I don't blame [Mezzich] anymore than I blame my own daughter," said Brashier. "It could have been my daughter behind the wheel just as easily. They were a bunch of 18-year-old college freshmen doing what college freshmen do."

When ABC News reached Mezzich by phone, she refused to comment for this story.

When asked about the cause of the crash, her uncle Ricardo Mezzich said that his niece had "swerved" to avoid an oncoming car. He also said that he had heard that Mezzich was drinking at the time.

He described Mezzich as being very upset at the time and "asking how her friends were."

But for Datz that's not enough. With no apology and no closure — because Mezzich fled the country, her trial has been stalled — she's enraged by the MySpace page, documenting a young woman's happy life, much like the one she had dreamed of for her own daughter.

"Nothing will bring Lindsay back," said Datz. "My hopes have been diminished over the years in terms of justice that I don't even know what I want. I know [Mezzich] is pregnant, which is a knife in my heart, so I hope that when she looks at that baby for the first time she thinks of Lindsay."

Texas Lawmaker Spearheads Extradition Plan

After Mezzich left the country in 1997, getting her back was virtually impossible, according to U.S. Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Austin, who said there was then no extradition process between Peru and the United States.

But after the Sept. 11 attacks, McCaul said, the treaty was amended, which is why today papers are being drafted to bring Mezzich back for trial.

"We are applying a lot of pressure on Peru to extradite her," said McCaul, who added that process could still take months. "But we're very hopeful that Peru will abide by their treaty obligations so justice can be served."

McCaul added that because Mezzich comes from a prominent and wealthy family in Peru and due to the impending birth of her child and her Peruvian citizenship, the extradition orders could still be challenged.

"To be a fugitive and have a MySpace page is pretty flagrant," said McCaul, who said he's confident the district attorney's office will increase Mezzich's charges if she is extradited. "Some of the things on the Web site — drinking, for example, which was obviously a cause for the tragedy — is very harmful and difficult for her mother."

A scholarship fund has been created in Lindsay Brashier's name. For more information, please visit http://www.awindowofopportunity.net/