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By Ronen Zilberman, Star-Bulletin
Dana Ambrose's boyfriend, Willy Asprey, left, and her brother,
Nik Ambrose, scattered some of her ashes at sea during a memorial
service yesterday at Sunset Beach. On Saturday, the family will hold
a service at Capistrano Beach, Calif. Lifeguards from San Clemente
State Beach will scatter the rest of her ashes.

Crash victim’s
mom asks help
to find justice

'We're not done with this,'
vows the mother of
Dana Ambrose

---

By Treena Shapiro
Star-Bulletin

Susan Ambrose has called on others to help her family find justice for her daughter, Dana Ambrose.

At a memorial service at Sunset Beach yesterday, Susan Ambrose said, "We're not done with this." She was referring to the handling of the investigation into the crash that killed Dana. A police officer was arrested last weekend in connection with the case.

"I think her death ... is perhaps an opportunity ... to make everything a better place for somebody, everybody," Susan Ambrose said.

More than 100 family members and friends gathered on the beach yesterday to celebrate Dana's life.

Dana's brother, Nik Ambrose, and boyfriend, Willy Asprey, were among those who paddled out to scatter her ashes at sea.

Accident probe needs 3 to 6 months Star-Bulletin staff The negligent-homicide investigation of the Oct. 7 collision that killed 19-year-old Dana Ambrose at Pali Highway and School Street is expected to take from three to six months to complete. Police Internal Affairs Lt. Gregory Poole said today the case has been placed on a "fast track" but that negligent-homicide investigations take longer to complete because evidence requires detailed technical analysis. Poole noted that it is possible to determine which car had the green light from testing of the signal light.

Dana Ambrose, 19, died Oct. 7 at Pali Highway and School Street when off-duty officer Clyde Arakawa's car broadsided her car. Arakawa was arrested for drunken driving and negligent homicide and refused a field sobriety test. He was released pending further investigation.

Dana's brother, 21, said: "This situation ... it happens on TV. It just doesn't register as something that could possibly happen to yourself."

His sister's death was caused by a lack of responsibility, he said. "I would like you to take the initiative to think about your actions. It would have been beneficial, I think, in this situation. I think it could have been avoided."

Dana had been a waitress at Brew Moon Restaurant & Micro Brewery and also worked at North Shore Swimwear while attending classes at Leeward Community College.

She had just been awarded a $5,000 scholarship, and planned to transfer to the University of Hawaii-Manoa in January.

"She was so determined," her father, Rod Ambrose, said.

"That determination is one of the qualities that would have served her well."

In her Bible, Dana had marked a passage in Psalm 30:5, "no tears past the gate," but those gathered at her service had trouble choking back tears even as they recalled happy memories.

"She'd say, 'Those better be tears of joy,'" Dana's father said.

Susan Ambrose shared hugs and stories with Dana's friends and said it was because of them she was able to keep going. "I want to scream," she said. "My womb hurts. I want to hug her little body. I want to see her little toes ... and those little dimpled fingers and those little freckled cheeks."

Tomorrow the family will return home to San Clemente, Calif. On Saturday, they will hold memorial services at Calvary Chapel in Capistrano Beach, and lifeguards from San Clemente State Beach will scatter the rest of her ashes. Dana had been a member of the lifeguards' group when she was 16 and in a prestigious swim team.

And after their grief, Dana's family will try to find justice. "We'll have plenty of time to focus on that later," her father said.