Marietta Daily Journal today

Father’s quest for justice is still strong

Published: 10/15/2007
Ashley Fuller and Marcus E. Howard

CHEROKEE COUNTY – One year after thinking he’d found justice for his son, Billy Inman of southwest Cherokee County is once again searching for the man responsible for the car crash that killed his son.

As time begins to fade, memories of their 16-year-old redheaded son, Dustin, and image of Gonzalo Harrell-Gonzalez, a reported illegal immigrant, have become seared into the minds of Inman and his wife, Kathy, as they search for his whereabouts.

It was late in the evening during Father’s Day weekend on June 16, 2000, when the Pontiac Grand Am driven by Inman and carrying Kathy, Dustin and their dog, was stopped at a traffic light on Ga. 515 in North Georgia’s Gilmer County and suddenly struck from behind by an Oldsmobile Cutlass Sierra driven by Harrell-Gonzalez at approximately 64 mph, hurling the Inmans car into the back of a Ford Bronco in front on it.

Dustin was killed in the crash. Billy and Kathy were knocked unconscious as a result of the impact, and Kathy suffered injuries that require her to use a wheelchair. The family’s dog was found dead at the scene.

Harrell-Gonzalez, who allegedly admitted to police he fell asleep behind the wheel, was taken to an Ellijay hospital and then transferred to a hospital in Dalton. He disappeared after being mistakenly released from the hospital.

In September of 2005, the man police believed to be Harrell-Gonzalez was arrested in Birmingham, Ala., but later was released after showing a magistrate court judge evidence alleging he was not Gonzalo Harrell-Gonzalez, but his brother, Roberto Harrell-Gonzalez.

He was arrested again a month later, in October, after a review of dental records convinced authorities that he was indeed Gonzalo Harrell-Gonzalez. A further review of records with dental experts found differences in the dental X-rays of Gonzalo Harrell-Gonzalez and the man in custody who claimed to be Roberto. The man was released last September.

The Inmans remember when authorities called them to Gilmer County last September to receive the news.

“I thought they wanted me to go over the case,” Inman said, not ready for the news he was about to hear.

Mrs. Inman didn’t take it any better.

“It was like the wreck happened all over again,” she said.

With Gonzalo Harrell-Gonzalez still walking around somewhere as a free man, Inman has resumed his quest to find him.

Posters displaying a picture of Gonzalo Harrell-Gonzalez and information about the case are displayed on both sides of Inman’s truck. He carries information with him in case anybody asks about what happened. He also maintains a Web site at www.legalamericanfolks.com and carries business cards with Internet addresses and contact information concerning illegal immigration.

The Dustin Inman Society

At around the time of the crash, a northeast Cobb man began doing research the issue of illegal immigration.

D.A. King said his crusade to end illegal immigration and the practice of hiring of illegal immigrants began when between 18 and 20 people, along with as many vehicles, moved to the house across the street from where he has lived since 1984.

Since, King has written numerous newspaper and magazine columns, appeared on national television networks and lobbied lawmakers at the Capitol in Atlanta and in Washington, D.C., with the single focus of persuading all Americans that illegal immigration is devastating the country.

It was during a protest rally in 2003 to counter a pro-immigration march in Doraville when King first met the Inmans and heard their tragic story, which bolstered his belief in his cause. He eventually quit his job as an independent insurance agent, refinanced his house twice and used his savings to launch the Cobb-based, nonprofit Dustin Inman Society, which he runs to educate the public on illegal immigration.

“Billy Inman is a personal hero of mine for his dedication to finding his son’s killer,” King said. “Billy and Kathy’s goal is to keep their son’s name alive and show what unsecured borders can do.”

Unfortunately, he said, illegal immigrants have killed too many Americans. The society’s Web site, www.thedustininmansociety.org, posts names of people across the country recently by reported illegal immigrants. This past weekend, it listed more than 150 names.

Billy and Kathy sit on the society’s board of advisors, which King said is made of an ethnically diverse group of people including two Hispanics.

“I think that we have made the American public aware that it’s O.K. to speak out against the organizational crime of illegal immigration and illegal employment,” King said.

The Dustin Inman Society offers a $1,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of Dustin’s killer.

Inman is not giving up his personal search, and regularly contacts media outlets, the Gilmer County Sheriff’s Office, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services – anyone he can get a hold of to keep the case alive. He said he occasionally hears from law enforcement agencies, but they tell him nothing more can be done without a lead.

“I don’t know where else to go. I feel like I’m at a dead end,” he said. “(Harrell-Gonzalez) will have his judgment one day. As far as him getting caught, I have no idea unless someone is able to pinpoint him.”

afuller@mdjonline.com, mhoward@mdjonline.com