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.
Kenneth Charles Watkins III Killed in Chain-Reaction Accident Caused by Suspected Drunk Driver in Houston, Texas
According to KHOU reports, a passenger was killed when their vehicle was rear-ended by a suspected drunk driver, causing a multi-vehicle accident in Houston, Texas. The wreck occurred around 8:15 p.m. Thursday, October 27 when traffic slowed due to a minor accident ahead. As traffic began to move, a woman driving an Infiniti was struck from behind by a Honda Civic. The impact sent the Civic into oncoming traffic and was then struck by another Honda vehicle. A passenger in the Civic was killed in the accident, while the driver, and the other Honda driver were taken to Kingwood hospital with injuries. The Harris County Traffic Enforcement Division believe alcohol to be a factor in the accident, and the driver of the Honda Civic has been arrested for intoxication assault.
Update: The victim has been identified as Kenneth Charles Watkins III, while the suspect has been identified as 24-year-old Steven Joseph Rawline.
Commentary When alcohol is suspected to be a contributor to an accident, an investigation in collaboration with the police reports is absolutely vital in developing a strategy regarding any potential civil strategies moving forward. The police reports prove or disprove the alcohol link, but the separate investigation examines the potential consequences if the link is established. Certainly most realize that if a person is operating their vehicle under the influence, they could be at-fault in an accident, as the law views this action as reckless. What others may not realize is there could be another party who is liable in the accident. If the allegations of alcohol are concreted, the first task of the investigation would be to examine if a bar or restaurant served the intoxicated driver prior to the accident. To legally serve alcohol, an entity must be certified by the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission, and must continue to operate under their guidelines. Relevant to this analysis, one of their key rules makes it illegal to serve a patron past the point of intoxication. In Texas it is legal to imbibe, and it is even legal for a bartender to serve someone to intoxication, however it is not legal to serve someone past that point. If service was found to be negligent, a bar or restaurant could be held partially liable in a dram shop claim. These laws help to balance the interests of for-profit alcohol-serving establishments with the safety of the patrons they serve. The laws will never hold a bar fully liable, as at the end of the day, they were not the ones operating the vehicle, but they do recognize that other parties could have played a role in the cause of the accident. Dram shop actions can help to rightly compensate a victim or their survivors in a drunk driving accident, but also have another effect. When a claim is made against a bar, they are put on notice that their reckless behavior cannot continue. The hope is that this notice could prevent a future accident from happening.
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