Caleb Aaron Smith Injured in 18-wheeler Accident in Kingsville, TX
Kingsville, TX -- May 25, 2022, Caleb Aaron Smith was injured due to an accident where an 18-wheeler hit Smith's vehicle.
Investigators reported that the crash took place at around 12:54 a.m. along US Highway 77 near Corral Avenue.
According to officials, 31-year-old Caleb Aaron Smith was in a GMC Envoy traveling southbound along the highway during inclement weather. Police claim that Smith was going too fast for conditions, causing the car to lose control and hit the barrier. An unspecified amount of time later, an 18-wheeler then crashed into Smith's car.
Smith was said to have incapacitating injuries due to the crash. No other injuries were reported. At this time, no further information is available.
Commentary on Caleb Aaron Smith Truck Accident in Kingsville
As straight forward as these reports may seem, there are certain factors reports do not mention which need clarification. Primarily, what was the timing of the secondary collision with the truck, and how reasonably avoidable was it? Here's why that matters.
Generally speaking, the law is nuanced enough to recognize multiple factors contributing to a crash. If it's true that unsafe driving led to the victim's car losing control, then they may bear responsibility for those actions. Additionally, if those actions caused the car to be unavoidable--either due to the amount of time the truck driver had to react or possibly blocking the road in a way the vehicle wasn't clearly visible--it would be ridiculous to expect a reasonably prudent professional driver to avoid a collision.
However, if enough time passed between the two collisions, and the victim's car was clearly visible, an attentive truck driver should be able to slow down or go around the car without incident. A truck driver in that situation failing to react in time would likely be a sign they were doing something wrong. Consider for example a case I handled recently where a truck driver claiming a disabled car wasn't visible was found to be watching shows on a tablet once we got a court order to pull video from the truck. Could it be something similar led to this crash?
My place isn't to say one way or another what happened here. I merely seek to help folks understand why reports like these rarely tell the whole story. There are still countless other factors to consider, and police often fall short when it comes to getting all of those facts. That's why more thorough independent investigations are often necessary, and the same could prove true here.
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