David Belter Killed in Alleged Intoxicated Driver Accident in Kendall County, TX
UPDATE (December 12, 2022): News sources say that a trial date has been set for Kendall Batchelor, accused opf intoxication manslaughter in connectino with the death of David Belter. At time of reporting, the trial is scheduled for March 27, 2023.
UPDATE (June 20, 2022): Recent reports allege that BAC tests for Kendall Batchelor returned a .166 result following the crash, over two times the legal limit. This and other details surrounding the allegations are still under investigation.
Kendall County, TX -- June 2, 2022, David Belter was killed due to an accident where a wrong-way driver hit his vehicle.
According to reports from the Bexar County Sheriff's Office said that the crash took place at around 10:00 p.m. along TX-46 outside of Boerne.
Preliminary reports said that 49-year-old David Belter was driving along the highway when a driver reportedly going the wrong-way hit Belter's vehicle head-on.
Due to the collision, Belter succumbed to fatal injuries. EMS transported the other driver, identified as 22-year-old Kendall Lauren Batchelor, to a hospital with reportedly serious injuries.
Currently, reports say that Batchelor faces a charge for intoxication manslaughter. No further information is available at this time.
Commentary on David Belter Wrong-way Accident in Kendall County
These are obviously serious allegations, though I want to make clear that I can't confirm or deny anything beyond what initial reports say. That said, when a driver faces intoxication-related charges after a wrong-way crash, it's a very concerning sign that alcohol may have been involved. The more recent BAC results included in reports only raises this concern further. But why does that matter exactly? Beyond possibly criminal charges, alcohol is particularly worth looking into because alcohol is inherently more complex for victims and families looking to make things as right as possible following a serious accident.
Put simply, alcohol providers can be responsible for contributing to deadly wrecks like this one. According to Texas dram shop law, an alcohol provider who over-serves an obviously intoxicated person can be liable for damages resulting from that intoxication. Here's why that is particularly of note after a crash like the one described here.
Wrong-way collisions so often involve drunk driving due to the fact that it's difficult for someone in their right state of mind to get on the wrong side of the road without realizing it. A while back, for example, a family came to me after a man turned the wrong way down service road and hit their car. Through our investigations, we found the man had been drinking at a bar, and that bar continued serving him past the point he could barely stumble his way to and from the bathroom. It was clear the bar broke the law, and their illegal service contributed to the crash, so they were liable under dram shop.
Again, I can't say if anything like that happened here. My point is simply that these reports are far from the whole story. While authorities seem to be taking steps to ensure a possibly intoxicated driver will tell their side of the story in court, there may still be accomplices out there that also need to answer for what happened. Are the proper steps being taken to get this man's loved ones the answers they deserve?
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