Today marks the one-year anniversary of the day Corey La Barrie, a popular YouTuber, died in a car crash on his 25th birthday.
La Barrie was a passenger in a McLaren sports car driven by his friend and celebrity tattoo artist Daniel Silva when it crashed into a tree in Valley Village, Los Angeles. They were leaving a party celebrating La Barrie's birthday.
Silva spoke out about La Barrie's death for the first and only time in February.
On February 16, Silva shared a photo of a tattoo on Instagram and said: "I had the honor of tattooing this leopard on Corey before the accident. I'm grateful for the time we spent together and I will cherish those memories every day. I have so much that I want to say but unfortunately, I'm limited at this time.
"I just posted a video on YouTube with everything that I could. This still doesn't feel real, but your love and support for Corey and I means so much to me. Love you Corey."
In the YouTube video, Silva said: "I want to start off by saying how sorry I am for all the pain everyone is going through. I'm sorry to Corey, I'm sorry to Corey's friends and family, and I'm really sorry to Corey's fans.
"I know this might not be good enough for some of you but there's so much I want to say but unfortunately I'm just limited to what I can say at this time. This will be the first time that I'm talking about the accident out of respect to the La Barrie family."
Silva then went on to discuss the accident and said: "But making this video has been very difficult for me as it's almost impossible trying to find the right words for something like this. At the moment, I'm still processing all these emotions that I'm going through and just being forced to confront the fact that this accident resulted in the death of one of my best friends.
"He's not only a friend to me but he's a loving son, a brother, a person that had an incredible personality, drawing people to him with his kind heart and his humor. It's hard to cope with the fact that his absence will leave a void in hundreds of thousands of people's hearts, especially to the people who had the privilege to know him personally."
Silva also discussed his and La Barrie's friendship, saying: "I will always cherish every single moment that I had with him. When I moved to LA he was one of the first people I met and because we're so similar we instantly bonded, it felt like we had been friends our entire lives.
Read more
- 'Ink Master's Daniel Silva Apologizes for Accidental Death of YouTuber
- 'Ink Master' Contestant Daniel Silva Charged with Murder of Corey La Barrie
- YouTuber Corey La Barrie Dies After L.A. Car Crash
"Corey would go out of his way to invite me places and he was always great at making me feel welcome. I'll never forget how much that meant to me and I'll think about him every single day for the rest of my life."
Silva also said: "After the accident, all I could do was keep thinking about how the family was doing and the pain they must be going through. When I was in the hospital I was able to see the news unfold and I watched as the media kept spreading this misinformation."
In the video, he said that the La Barrie family asked the judge to drop the second-degree murder charge to manslaughter instead, and read out the letter that the La Barrie family sent to the judge.
He ended the video by thanking those who had shown "love and support" and by saying he's had "a long time to reflect" on himself and his actions. Silva said: "I want to be a positive influence and an advocate for safe driving, and I hope one day I can sit down with Corey's family and tell them how sorry I truly am."
He has not posted on Instagram or YouTube since.
In July last year, Silva entered a no-contest plea to one felony count of gross vehicular manslaughter, and in August, he was sentenced to 364 days in jail, five years of formal probation, 250 hours of community service, and a suspended prison sentence of four years. According to CBS Los Angeles KCAL 9, he was released from jail in October.
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