VIDALIA &8212; Two weeks ago Tammy Fletcher could walk without pain. She wasn&8217;t staring down the barrel of a forced career change and the family medical bills weren&8217;t piling up.

Then her family&8217;s red Jeep Grand Cherokee encountered the burgundy GMC truck of Michael R. Sugg on U.S. 84.

Police say Sugg was drunk. It was his fourth alcohol-related offense.

Tammy, 37, was first transported to Natchez Regional Hospital sometime after 7 p.m. last Saturday, then to a Jackson hospital.

She is covered in bruises &8212; some as black as black can be &8212; and the doctor told her that her sciatic nerve, a major nerve that runs through the leg, was damaged.

&8220;The doctor told me I might as well give up nursing because I wouldn&8217;t be able to stand for too long and I work 12-hour shifts,&8221; Tammy said.

She is a registered nurse at Ochsner&8217;s Medical Clinic in Baton Rouge.

Her husband Bryan, 35, is scheduled to have gallbladder surgery Monday The ruptured organ has caused the right side of his stomach to visibly bulge.

Their son Bryan has a broken collarbone, and their niece Amber Parker, 12, has stitches on her forehead.

&8220;When we were hit, I couldn&8217;t get control of the car and I kept wondering what had happened,&8221; the elder Bryan said. &8220;The brakes wouldn&8217;t work and I couldn&8217;t steer the wheel.&8221;

The collision caused the vehicle to swerve across the median in front of the Vidalia Wal-Mart, flip three or four times in mid-air and knock over a fire hydrant before landing in a ditch upside down, police reports say. Water from the hydrant began filling the car.

Sugg allegedly hit them from behind, police say.

Vidalia Police Department officer Lt. Arthur Lewis said witnesses have reported that Sugg was heading eastbound on U.S. 84 toward Natchez at a high speed and weaving in and out of traffic, using the shoulder.

&8220;As he attempted to weave back into traffic, he hit a red Jeep Grand Cherokee carrying four passengers,&8221; Lewis said.

Lewis said Sugg had allegedly been drinking and was speeding in excess of 100 mph.

Results from the blood alcohol test were not available.

Sugg, 45, fled the scene.

He was found and arrested shortly after. Sugg is facing charges of felony DWI, felony hit and run, felony vehicular negligence causing injuries, reckless operation of a vehicle and violation of the open container law.

He has been at the Concordia Parish Sheriff&8217;s Office jail since last Saturday and was not available for comment.

VPD Chief Billy Hammers said this accident was Sugg&8217;s fourth DWI offense.

&8220;From what I understand he is an alcoholic,&8221; Hammers said. &8220;It&8217;s a sickness, and it&8217;s just really sad that this had to happen.&8221;

But the Fletcher family hopes their story can become a lesson.

When she&8217;s able to stand again, Tammy said she would like to visit local schools and talk to students about the dangers of drunk driving.

It&8217;s a crime that has touched her family already, she said.

Six months ago, Tammy&8217;s cousin was driving drunk when he flipped his vehicle, killing his fianc/e.

But the Fletcher family isn&8217;t alone. Mothers Against Drunk Drivers&8217; Manager of Victim Services Valerie Cox said she shares Tammy&8217;s anger.

&8220;We get statistics every day about multiple DWI offenders and we&8217;re out there trying to get the numbers down but they don&8217;t seem to be coming down,&8221; Cox said. &8220;We believe in treatment, but when it comes to at least the third offense, incarceration is called for.&8221;

Bryan Fletcher, 14, admits he&8217;s had alcohol before, but now, things are different.

&8220;After this experience I doubt I&8217;ll drink again until I&8217;m older,&8221; Bryan said.

Most of the family has accepted Sugg&8217;s actions after the accident, but Tammy can&8217;t let go quite as easily.

&8220;My children say they want to speak to him and are not angry, but I&8217;d be lying to you if I said I wasn&8217;t so filled with anger that he left the scene,&8221; she said.

But for now, the Fletcher family is focused on recovery and Tammy is just glad her family is OK.