So every October and early November we suffer a deluge of automated phone calls and political junk mail. Amongst today’s seven (7) pieces of political mail was a “letter” to me “from” the wife of Bob Marshall, our seven-term state delegate.

Against my better judgement, I opened the letter, wondering what language a wife would use to defend her husband’s 30 years of actively working against a woman’s right to have any authority over her own body.

Funnily enough, she didn’t mention all the times her husband has fought to outlaw women’s access to contraception and abortion. But she did brag, “I am proud that my husband authored the Virginia One Man – One Woman Marriage Amendment”.

Aw. But, really, what woman wouldn’t be proud of her husband for framing the words with which his commonwealth moved from discriminating de facto to discriminating de jure?

This woman, for one. So Byron, I apologize. I have been too hard on you. You aren’t perfect, but you would never ask me to beam proudly as you trampled on people’s civil rights. Tell you what – mess up all you want this weekend. I’m giving you a freebie.

Police announced today that the woman, Diane Schuler, had a blood alcohol level of .19 and had also smoked marijuana in the hour before her death.

Apparently, she was driving erratically for some time before the crash: straddling lanes, tailgating, flashing her lights, driving across a median, and trying to pass on the shoulder. Six people called 911 to report her.

My initial reaction when I heard about this crash was to feel a measure of relief that this woman did not survive. I thought no person could or should have to live with that much pain. But, thinking now of what those last minutes must have been like for those terrified children, I find myself wishing she had survived.