Brian Deshawn Willingham Killed in Truck Accident in Jenkinsville, SC
Jenksinville, SC -- March 6, 2023, Brian Deshawn Willingham was killed due to an accident where a vehicle and a semi-truck crashed.
Investigators said that the incident happened at approximately 6:14 a.m. along Highway 213 near the intersection of Alston Road.
According to officials, 19-year-old Brian Willingham was in a Chevy Avalanche traveling north on the highway. Somehow, a collision occurred with an oncoming tractor-trailer.
Due to the collision, Willingham sustained fatal injuries. The truck driver was taken to a hospital. No further information can be confirmed at this time.
I can only hope authorities have been more thorough behind the scenes to get answers for the victim's loved ones. With head-on collisions like this, it's usually a matter of finding out who crossed the center line and why. But even that can present challenges if investigators aren't prepared or simply don't bother to give the accident the attention it deserves.
I recall a recent crash a family came to me about where their loved one crashed head-on with a semi. Authorities took weeks to investigate and eventually came back blaming their loved one. They wanted to be sure they were getting all the facts, but independent investigators found that authorities completely got the facts wrong. The officer left in charge wasn't experienced, didn't have access to proper equipment, and essentially guessed based on his "gut feeling."
It shouldn't take someone with decades of experience to point out that families deserve answers after an accident like this. That's why I hope authorities here are as experienced and prudent as many of the officers I've worked with rather than haphazard like others that simply didn't have the best interests of the victim's loved ones at heart.
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