Wrongful death lawsuit filed against former Franklin County Sheriff Ewell Hunt - www.roanoke.comThe suit contends that Ewell Hunt and two deputies failed to protect Chad English. Ewell Hunt, the former Franklin County sheriff, and two of his deputies failed to heed an informant's tip that might have prevented the murder of a 19-year-old man, according to a wrongful death lawsuit filed Wednesday.
Mayo Clinic wrongful death trial beginsA 13-year-old girl's death after surgery at Saint Marys Hospital in 2009 is at issue in a wrongful death trial that started Monday, May 14, in Olmsted County District Court.
Erica and Nick Montez Killed in Accident with Suspected Drunk Driver in Houston, Texas
According to ABC-13, a suspected drunk driver has been charged in a
crash that led to the deaths of a brother and sister in Houston, Texas.
The wreck occurred around 11:30 p.m. Saturday, October 22 when police
believe 55-year-old Barry Lewis Andrews caused a 5-car pileup along
North Beltway. His vehicle collided with the vehicle of siblings Erica
Montez, 27 and Nick Montez, 24, killing them both. Andrews has been
charged with two counts of intoxication manslaughter.
Commentary Recently, legislators in Texas have begun to realize the
growing problem of drunken driving in our state, and have increased
penalties for some of the offenses associated with the act. However, as
evidenced in this terrible accident, the problem certainly still exists.
To begin, a third party investigation is needed after the
police reports are concluded to formulate a civil strategy moving
forward. I say this because certain theories of liability may not be
present at the actual scene of the accident, and may be beyond the scope
of a criminal investigation. Before I begin, the obvious liability is
the driver himself. Irrespective of the alcohol allegations, if the
reports find him to be the cause of the accident, he could face fault in
multiple wrongful death claims. Now, regarding the alcohol claims, this
is where a third party could present itself in a possible civil action.
While just allegations at this point, if the police do
conclude that the man was operating his vehicle under the influence, the
separate investigation would trace the path of the possible defendant
to before the accident. Many of these intoxication accidents produce a
driver who was imbibing at a bar or restaurant prior to the wreck. If
that entity was found to serve the driver past the point of
intoxication, they could be found partially liable in the aforementioned
civil claims under Texas dram shop laws. In Texas, it is
legal to serve a patron to the point of intoxication. However, it is
illegal to serve someone past the point of intoxication. This is where
dram shop laws come into place. I mentioned earlier this amount of
service could find a bar partially liable. Partially, meaning the laws
do not remove fault from an intoxicated driver, or place full blame on a
bar or restaurant, as at the end of the day the bartender or server was
not the driver of the vehicle. So, what the laws do is identify a party
that could have had a hand in causing the accident, while still making
sure the driver feels the pinch themselves. A dram shop claim can
provide two positive outcomes: adding a bar or restaurant to a claim can
help to justly compensate a victim or their survivors in an
intoxication accident, and, the entity is put on notice (via tangible
financial penalties) that they need to change their ways, possibly
preventing a future accident.
Posted by:
Houston Wrongful Death Attorney Michael Grossman
| Posted on:
10/26/2011
| Comments (1)
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Visitor Comments
Dora Anderson said:
This man (drunk driver) is my next door neighbor. He is NOT a nice man, and never cared for anyone but himself. This doesn't surprise me, but has the entire neighborhood in shock. I'm so sad this happened.
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