Francisco Cruz Killed in Crossover Accident on US-380 in Bryson, TX
Bryson, TX -- June 2, 2022, 28-year-old Francisco Cruz was killed in a crash with a commercial truck on U.S. Highway 380 in Jack County.
According to reports the incident happened around 4:40 p.m. on US-380 near mile marker 526. Preliminary investigation suggests Cruz was driving a Hyundai Santa Fe west on the highway as a Freightliner semi-truck with a trailer was eastbound on the other side of the road.
Reports indicate Cruz drifted left of center for unknown reasons and his car and the big rig collided head-on.
Cruz was pronounced dead at the scene. Neither of the truck's occupants were injured.
No further information is currently available.
Commentary on Francisco Cruz Accident on US-380 in Bryson
Authorities believe the victim crossed left of center, but it's important to remember that preliminary reports aren't always 100% right. I've even seen a few cases where police at the scene were completely wrong about what happened.
I recently worked on a similar wreck in which a victim supposedly crossed over the center line and crashed with an 18-wheeler. We looked more closely on behalf of his family and learned he was only in the opposite lane to escape the truck, which actually crossed over first. It turned out the trucker fell asleep and drifted out of his lane, only to wake up when the victim honked at him. He swerved back on-course--once again in the victim's path.
Because police found both vehicles in the truck's lane when they got there, they said the victim crossed over. There were no witnesses but the trucker and he didn't want to correct a story where he wasn't to blame. If we hadn't looked again--more carefully than authorities did--the wrong person might have taken the blame forever.
That situation was pretty unusual and I'm not saying anything like that happened in Bryson. The point is more that things aren't always as clear-cut as they first appear. Unfortunately police don't always look carefully enough to learn that, especially if they've already decided on a story.
To be sure the whole truth is found I often suggest working with independent accident reconstruction experts rather than waiting for or entirely trusting police reports. The victim at least deserves the benefit of the doubt while things are still coming into focus.
