Juan Torres Killed, Brittany Esquivel Injured in Crash on US-84 near Lawn, TX
Lawn, TX — October 2, 2022, 75-year-old Juan Torres died and 35-year-old Brittany Esquivel was injured in a fiery accident on U.S. Highway 84 in Taylor County.
Authorities say the incident happened Sunday evening along US-84, roughly half a mile outside Lawn. Preliminary investigation suggests Torres was driving a Dodge Ram pickup truck south on the highway when police believe he slowed to make a turn into a private drive. Moments later Esquivel's southbound Lincoln MKS sedan crashed into the pickup. After the impact both vehicles ran off the road and caught fire.
Torres was pronounced dead at the scene. Esquivel was transported in serious but stable condition to an area hospital.
No further information is currently available.
Commentary on Juan Torres, Brittany Esquivel Accident near Lawn
Police later added that the man who lost his life in this accident was slowing to turn into his home's driveway and that the woman who rear-ended his truck may have been briefly distracted or possibly speeding. I can't speak to the accuracy of either of those allegations, but I hope further investigation can shed more light on precisely what caused this terrible incident.
As with most wrecks, the best way to get to the bottom of things is to round up all the clear facts possible and let them do the talking. Did the car's speedometer freeze on impact as they often do? Both drivers had blood drawn for tests; what did or will the results show? Are there lights along that stretch of road? Does evidence suggest the pickup's lights were on or off? Are there other sources of data that could further illuminate what really happened and why?
The reality is that most accidents are more complex than a few sentences in a news or police report make them seem. It's always important to know the whole story--to eliminate conflict and confusion, but also to be sure that the people who need and deserve that information will get it. In the meantime it's best to extend the benefit of the doubt to those involved until clear evidence can say more.
