Bucharest, Romania
A U.S. Marine hit and killed a Romanian rock star this week while allegedly driving drunk. The Marine, Robert Christopher, was driving one of the U.S. Embassy’s SUVs when he slammed into a taxi carrying Teo Peter, the bass player with the influential Romanian group Compact. Peter, 50, died at the scene. Police said a breathalyzer test showed Christopher’s blood-alcohol content to be 0.09 percent, above the legal limit in most U.S. states; under Romanian law, people are not allowed to drive after drinking any amount of alcohol. Christopher left the country immediately after the accident, and the Romanian government lodged an official complaint seeking his extradition. “Apparently, when it comes to facing justice,” Bucharest’s Jurnalul National said, “some people are more equal than others.” A State Department official said the U.S. regretted the tragedy, and was conducting its own investigation while cooperating with Romanian police.
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