It’s difficult to argue with this statement from the stepfather of a young woman who died from a fatal hit-and-run accident:

“When you say you’re going to do something and you document that you’re going to do it and you’re seen doing it, it can’t be an accident anymore. He murdered Olivia and we want him to be held accountable for that,” Olivia’s stepfather, Dennis Molloy, told NBC 10 at the rally.

It’s possible that some technical provision in the law might differentiate killing somebody with intentional disregard for life from murder, but this factor really should escalate the penalties.  Speaking of penalties, Rhode Islanders shouldn’t lose track of the need to impose them on the elected officials who created the circumstances that allowed this crash to happen.