The man responsible for the Sept. 9 2003 DUI death of a Mud River man, causing turmoil and a rift in the family that endures to this day has been released from prison. An action that the victim’s daughter called “adding insult to injury.”

A criminal complaint filed by West Virginia State Troopers at that time said a vehicle driven by Andy Chadwick Seaton, then 32, of Dandridge Tennessee, plowed into the rear of a Geo Tracker at the intersection of U.S. 119 and Lick Creek Road late that night. Charles, Walter Blackburn, 49, died at the scene. The medical examiner’s report said Blackburn died of “blunt force trauma of head, and trunk.”

Seaton, who had previous arrests for DUI in Kentucky, had been driving that night on a license that had been revoked in that state and reissued in another, was arrested on the scene for DUI and DUI causing death. Reports indicate that the accident had culminated a night where officials believe the man had gotten off work, then consumed at least a case of beer before getting behind the wheel. When Seaton took a blood alcohol test, he registered a .158, which was far over the legal limit.

Blackburn, a district manager for Charleston Newspapers, had just left Danville, heading for Chapmanville to check on other newspaper drops, when the accident took place.

After numerous court delays, Seaton finally entered a guilty plea in the case and was sentenced 1-10 years in prison. He served two years and just over eight months. The man was released into the custody of the Tennessee Department of Parole, where he is now. He is required to attend Alcoholics Anonymous meetings and attend alcohol counseling. If he doesn’t fulfill these requirements, he can be returned to prison.

For the family, the death took their father and husband, but also caused a rift in the family that endures to this day.

“My father’s death has torn us apart,” said Blackburn’s daughter, Lorrie Johnson. “The family was ripped apart, and the problems will never be healed,” she said. “It was all because of the man who killed my father.” She continued, “there are no words to ease your pain and guilt that comes when the phone rings in the middle of the night,” Johnson added. “Drinking and driving brings devastation and regret for both the intoxicated person and the people they hurt. I wish Andy Seaton had served more time in prison for what he did to my family, but I understand they can’t keep them in there forever. It will still stick with me, as well as all my loved ones, forever.”