Cheryl Bruner Jacobs Injured in Semi-Trailer Accident in Garland, TX
Garland, TX -- April 18, 2022, Cheryl Bruner Jacobs was injured after an accident where an 18-wheeler crashed into Jacobs's vehicle.
Investigators reported that the crash took place at around 3:14 p.m. along the President George Bush Turnpike near mile marker 1190.
Officials said that 65-year-old Cheryl Bruner Jacobs was in a vehicle traveling westbound along the turnpike. An 18-wheeler then reportedly made an unsafe lane change, merging into the same lane as Jacobs. Jacobs reportedly attempted to avoid the crash, causing the vehicle to lose control. It then swerved into the path of the 18-wheeler, resulting in a collision between the 18-wheeler and Jacobs's vehicle.
Reports listed Jacobs as having non-incapacitating injuries. Additional injuries were not listed. At this time, additional details about the accident are unavailable.
Commentary on Cheryl Bruner Jacobs Semi-Trailer Accident in Garland
It's important that folks understand why reports like this aren't always as straightforward as they may seem. While they say the truck here made an unsafe lane change, they don't mention any actual collision prior to the victim's vehicle losing control. That can be a detail defense teams latch onto and try to use to their advantage. Taking steps to anticipate those challenges is crucial.
Essentially, they can say that the victim simply made a faulty evasive maneuver. Even if their driver made a mistake, it was the victim overreacting that caused the crash. Now, do I think that happened here? I can't rightly say without a more thorough investigation, but I've had folks come to me with similar situations over the years. In a few cases, a driver did indeed make a hasty, unnecessary maneuver. Most of the time, however, the driver was perfectly reasonable trying to swerve out of the way. After all, a 40 ton tractor-trailer was bearing down on them. What are they supposed to do, hope the driver sees them before they and their family get crushed? Getting out of the way is almost always the right thing to do.
That's why it's important there is evidence to clearly show the chain of events as well as the proximate cause of the crash. Essentially, what is the but for which the crash would not have occurred? Was it the victim swerving to avoid an 18-wheeler bearing down on them, or was it the 18-wheeler merging into their lane unsafely? Again, it's not my place to say without knowing more about this particular crash. It's up to the investigations and ultimately what the evidence shows happened here. That's why getting victims and families the help they need usually requires more thorough independent investigations. Were those steps taken here?
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