An Extraordinary Teenager and Her Law Enforcement Family
Fight Against Drunk Driving
‘Life is a precious gift from God, to be cherished and lived to its fullest.’
Lives Changed Forever
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| Jennifer Robi, in her brace |
When Jennifer Robi was 12 and a half, she and her family never imagined she would be addressing student audiences about drunk driving and underage drinking 18 months later. But when a drunk driver with three prior DUI convictions severely injured Jennifer and her mother, Kath, on April 27, 2007, the family’s lives changed forever. In the past three months Jennifer has talked to 800 students about drunk driving, using a presentation she created. She’s also been asked to speak to first-time offenders and college criminal justice students.
On November 11, 2008, Jennifer and Kath addressed the North Hollywood town hall meeting sponsored by MADD and Assemblyman Mike Feuer in support of proposed ignition interlock legislation. The family full of law enforcement officers can’t understand why a 4-time DUI offender charged with a felony only served 90 days in the county jail. Kath is a retired Los Angeles Police Department [LAPD] officer; Jennifer’s dad, Paul, is a Detective II with the LAPD Bomb Squad; and her brother, Christopher, is an LAPD police officer.
The Devastating Crash and Its Aftermath
Kath was driving the family’s truck when the 46-year-old female offender, with a .27 blood alcohol concentration (BAC), broadsided Jennifer’s door, knocked the truck over the curb and slammed it into an oak tree. Jennifer’s head shattered their truck’s windshield. Her concussion still causes headaches and memory loss. For a year-and-a-half, 20 hours a day, Jennifer’s spinal injury has required her to wear a rigid plastic brace from her hips to her underarms. Her nightmares and difficulty concentrating are easier to handle than her emotional injuries. She juggles duties as her school’s student body president, Girl Scouts activities and speaking for MADD. She also has endless doctor and therapy appointments.
Knocked out by the crash, Kath’s head was cut open and she underwent several surgeries. She needed help walking for six months and couldn’t drive for nine months. Her memory loss is the most frustrating. She and Jennifer still go to physical therapy, but they’ve found Bikram “hot” yoga (in a 105-degree room) especially helpful. They laugh watching Dad assume yoga poses.
MADD Supporters Borne of Personal Experience
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| The Robi family Walks Like MADD |
Determined to help strengthen laws against drunk driving and support MADD, the family recruited 80 teammates and raised $9,000 in the recent Walk Like MADD Los Angeles County. Jennifer collected $250 by soliciting a donation from the bar that served alcohol to their offender.
Kath now serves on the local board for MADD Los Angeles. She’s also working on a project with the Los Angeles County Probation Department. “We were a close family before, but we’re even closer now,” Kath says. Jennifer’s two sisters and everyone in the Robi family help with Jennifer’s presentations. “We are very proud of her. She has turned a very devastating experience into a positive by reaching out to educate other teens.”
An Extraordinary Teenager
The articulate and passionate eighth-grader enjoys speaking to groups, considering her MADD time part of her down time, when she gets to express herself. Turning 14 on November 15, she admits she’s much more mature than her classmates. “I’ve had to grow up pretty fast,” Jennifer says. “It’s hard for them to relate to what I’ve gone through. They have no idea. They take small things so seriously. In the big picture, it doesn’t really matter.”
Enduring many sleepless nights, she cried herself to sleep for months. “In an attempt to accept the fact that we barely escaped with our lives, I’ve learned how valuable life is,” Jennifer says. Sobbing before the judge, she was “unprepared to face the irresponsible woman in the courtroom who showed no remorse or shame for causing such great bodily injury to two innocent people.”
Jennifer knows she’ll never be the same. She hopes she’ll be a better person. Rehabilitation tested her faith in God, but she now understands “life is a precious gift from God, to be cherished and lived to its fullest.” Unsure of her dreams, she knows she wants to help people the best way she can and to always be a part of MADD. “I’ll carry MADD along for my whole life.”
If you or a loved one has been affected by a drunk driving crash, 
MADD Victim Services can help. We have more than 1,500 trained victim advocates nationwide who provide bereaved families and injured victims with support and information. Call our Victim/Survivor Helpline at
1-877-MADD-HELP (877-623-3435) to speak with a Victim Advocate.
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