Tulsa Man, Lost Leg In Drunk-Driving Accident, Set To Face Driver In Court

A Tulsa man is getting ready to face the drunk driver who changed his life forever, in court.

Wednesday, October 22nd 2014, 7:06 pm

By: News On 6


A Tulsa man is getting ready to face the drunk driver who changed his life forever, in court.

Bradley Wilkerson not only lost his leg after being run over, but said he's ruined financially because of medical bills that top $750,000.

Angel Morales was out on bail, didn't have a license and has pleaded guilty to the drunk-driving crash.

9/12/2014 Related Story: Claremore Man Charged With DUI, Child Endangerment After Crash

At the sentencing, Wilkerson plans to talk about the nightmare he's lived in for the past 15 months, the agonizing physical pain, emotional toll and finances ruined.

He'll ask the judge to give Morales the maximum sentence of five years.

"I want to show you my scars so you can get an idea what we're dealing with," Wilkerson said.

Wilkerson is a tough guy, but said the past 15 months have been a living hell for him and his family.

He's worked since he was 15 years old, has always been active and his number one passion was driving big bikes with big engines. He took trips all across the country on them.

Then, in August, 2013, he was on his way home from Arkansas when a drunk driver in a Cadillac Escalade ran over him in Claremore.

"No one who saw me in the hospital thought I would live. My family was told to expect the worst. It was, without a doubt, the most horrifying, disgusting tragedy of our lives," he said.

Wilkerson woke up ten days later without his left leg. He spent a month in the hospital, missed six months of work, spent his life savings, lost his truck and could lose his home because of a mountain of debt.

"Hospital bills are a half a million, the life flight was 30-grand, the prosthetic, a couple hundred thousand, the co-pay alone on the prosthetic is $18,000," he said.

Whether Wilkerson is using his prosthetic to get around or his wheelchair, he said his life will never be the same again, all because of someone else's choices.

"I'm reminded every single day in a million different ways what this man's done to me and my life," Wilkerson said.

Morales pleaded guilty to driving drunk and hurting Wilkerson, the max sentence for that is five years.

Morales also had his three young kids in the car that night, so he could get up to four years for each count of endangering a minor and he was out on bail at the time on a drug charge and could get up to ten for that.

"I would like to see the judge give him the max sentence for every charge and it still won't be enough," said Wilkerson.

When he reads his victim impact statement in court, it will be the first time Wilkerson's been able to tell Morales about all the suffering he caused.

He said Morales wrote him a letter saying he's sorry and just wants to be free to raise his family, but Wilkerson said no amount of regret or remorse can undo what Morales did.

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