SALEM, Ore. — Friends and loved ones gathered Monday night to say goodbye to three teens who were killed in a Salem car crash this month.
On the night of June 2, 18-year-old Makayla Tryon, and Madison Capobianco and Trinity Watt, both 19, were killed in a car crash at Cherry Avenue NE and Salem Parkway.
Juan Carlos Rodriguez Palacios, 25, is accused of driving drunk and hitting them after running a red light. He faces multiple charges, including three counts of manslaughter. According to police, Rodriguez-Palacio's blood alcohol level was nearly three times the legal limit.
Rodriguez-Palacio lived. The teens did not.
"We didn't get a decision and my daughter didn't get a decision," Trinity’s father, Jack Watt, said. "She didn't get a choice and none of the other girls did either."
Loved ones have continued adding to a growing memorial at the crash site, hoping it would help keep others from drinking and driving. It's the place where Trinity’s mother goes to remember her daughter.
"That was the last place my daughter was alive," Tammy Watt said. "We just buried her and it seems more comforting to go where she was alive, than where her body is five-and-a-half feet down in the ground."
As friends look back, emotions are still raw and memories are still painful. But for those who loved Madison, Makayla and Trinity, thinking of a future without them seems to hurt the most.
"They all had plans, they all had jobs, they all had a future," Tammy Watt said. "We never get to talk to our kid again."