Disaster Vacation: Shooting, car theft and hospital visit leaves Las Cruces couple stuck in New Orleans

May 09--LAS CRUCES -- Terry Brennan and his wife Cynthia Newport were looking forward to their New Orleans vacation. The Las Cruces couple planned to see friends, visit historical and natural landmarks and eat at least one crab boil.

But 24 hours into their vacation, the Big Easy turned into the Big Nightmare when an Audi slammed into the Lincoln Town Car they were traveling in, severely injuring Brennan, 63, and leaving Newport, 68, on death's doorstep.

More than two weeks after the crash, Brennan talked to the Sun-News from a New Orleans hotel. It would be his first night away from the hospital, where he had remained by his wife's side while she recovered from multiple surgeries and operations.

Crime spree

Charles Williams, 25, is accused of going on a crime spree Sunday, April 22, involving multiple shootings, a carjacking and a car chase, the New Orleans Times-Picayune reported. He was arrested and later charged with second-degree murder.

Williams is accused of shooting six people, including a police officer, during the rampage. Authorities believe Williams, in a stolen car, fatally shot Lil Ricky Goins, 38, while he was driving. The Audi that Goins was driving continued forward after he was shot in the head and it collided with a Lincoln Town Car being driven by Leo "Blackie" Gonzalez.

'Amazing she's alive'

Gonzalez, 87, is an old friend of Newport's. The New Orleans resident picked up Brennan and Newport in his Lincoln after they dined in a French Quarter restaurant on the second day of the couple's vacation.

Brennan said he doesn't remember the crash. He said he gained consciousness in the aftermath and heard his wife screaming in pain. But, then he blacked out. He woke up again in the ambulance, but didn't regain consciousness fully until he was in a hospital bed.

Doctors said he had two broken ribs, a fractured scapula and a wound to his shoulder.

Newport's injuries were much worse. Brennan said her diaphragm was "torn out," intestines were misplaced and her hip, pelvis and femur were shattered.

"It's amazing she's alive," he said, noting doctors performed somewhat experimental surgery to save her life. "My wife asked the doctor, 'Are you the bone guy or the diaphragm guy? He said, 'Ma'am, I'm the guy who saved your life.'"

Brennan said he hopes his wife is discharged by the end of the week.

Gonzalez also had serious injuries, but is now in stable condition. He's still in the hospital, but in good spirits, Brennan said.

Brennan was discharged two days after the crash, but spent the next couple of weeks at his wife's bedside. He's been sleeping in a chair.

"Well, I can't sleep in a bed because both sides of my body are broken," he said.

Missing purse

It wasn't until he was discharged that Brennan was able to use his cell phone to contact Newport's children.

Rachael Bankey said she heard from her stepdad days after the crash.

"I knew my mom was in New Orleans, but I hadn't seen anything on Instagram, and I was wondering what was going on," she said. "And then Terry calls at like 11 at night and told me there was a crash, a shooting. I was in shock."

Bankey, who lives in the Boston area, and her brother, who lives in Los Angeles, flew to New Orleans on the Wednesday following the crash.

One of their first orders or business: Finding their mom's purse, which went missing after the crash.

Newport's identification was in the purse. Without it, should couldn't board a plane. Even so, she's in no condition to fly commercially, as she'll likely have to lie down flat en route to New Mexico, Brennan said. The family has considered renting a medical air transport or a recreational vehicle for the trip home.

The missing purse is a head-scratcher. A Times-Picayune photograph of the crash scene shows Newport's purse on top of the mangled Lincoln.

"We went to the junkyard, the evidence room at the police station, the hospital, everywhere," Bankey said. Her and her brother invested hours into what turned into a fruitless search for the purse.

"Police don't know where it is. No one knows where it is," Brennan said.

Whatever option they go with, transporting Newport back to Las Cruces won't be cheap. Adding to that are insurance concerns.

"It's all very complicated," Bankey said, adding that she's talked to the insurance company and a lawyer. "Part of the problem is because the guy who hit them was shot (and killed)."

Getting home

Brennan said he's received support from the New Orleans community, especially after the Times-Picayune published a story Sunday detailing the couple's trials. Several residents have offered to help out financially and one man offered to lend the couple his RV.

Brennan only recently thought about setting up a Go Fund Me to raise money.

"I've spent all my energy dealing with my wife for two weeks, and when someone mentioned it (a Go Fund Me), I thought, 'Well maybe that's a good idea," he said.

Monday, Bankey set up a Go Fund Me to help her parents. The goal is $15,000.

"We are still trying to figure out a solution to getting her safely home," Bankey wrote in the campaign. "We don't know how much any of this is going to cost yet but it will be substantial and anything will help.

"We are raising money for medical transportation home and the rehabilitation needed once she is there," she wrote.

Loving Las Cruces

Brennan and Newport have been together for about 10 years, and married for eight. Before moving to New Mexico, they lived in Washington state, Brennan said. Last year, they began looking for a place to retire to. Las Cruces was in a warm climate, had a low crime rate, offered outdoors opportunities and a university. They moved here in August and fell in love with it.

"It's one of the safest cities I've ever lived in," he said. "And the people. Everyone's so happy there."

The couple joined a hiking club and enjoyed exploring new trails each week.

But their lives will change. Newport will have to undergo months of rehab before she's able to walk unaided. "I'll be cooking and doing a lot more work around the house," Brennan said. "And there's nothing wrong with that."

He said their goal will be to rejoin their desert hiking club for outings. And maybe there will be a return trip to New Orleans to experience the Big Easy that eluded them this trip.

Brennan said he prefers to look at the situation as his wife does. "She told me, 'We got caught on the edge of the thing, that's why it's been so sharp. It's not the city. The city's been great to us."

Lucas Peerman can be reached at 575-541-5446, [email protected] or @LittleGuyInATie on Twitter.

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