Charles Morgan Jr. Killed in Conroe, TX, Motorcycle Accident
Conroe, TX -- January 24, 2017, Charles Morgan Jr. was fatally injured resulting from an accident in which his motorcycle and a pickup collided.
Conroe authorities were called out to the accident scene just after 1:00 p.m. The crash occurred along FM 1485 in front of Caney Creek High School.
According to preliminary police reports, 53-year-old Morgan was traveling southbound on the roadway. Authorities say he attempted to pass an SUV in front of him. As he did so, a pickup in front of the SUV attempted to switch lanes in order to turn around. After this, the motorcycle crashed into the side of the pickup, sending the vehicle beneath the truck.
Morgan suffered critical injuries in the crash, and he was eventually pronounced deceased at the scene of the accident by EMS. No other injuries occurred.
Conroe Police say they have not filed any citations or charges at this time. They also said that the SUV reported in the accident did not stay at the scene and hasn't been located.
Currently, authorities continue their investigations. No further details are available at this time.
Map of the Area
Commentary
The details in this accident become a bit murky when trying to determine the exact positions of the vehicles leading up to the crash. Things are made especially troublesome considering a potentially key witness left the scene. Whatever the case, this accident will certainly require an extensive investigation to determine what truly occurred. The problem many people face with these kinds of accidents, however, is believing that police reports are going to cover all the bases. This usually isn't the case in car accidents, and motorcycle accidents are significantly more complex.
Most of time, a police report is simply trying to determine if there was any sort of criminal offenses committed in the crash. Other than that, they typically only offer a basic summary of events. As a result, people will find that many police reports are missing very crucial details or even mistaken on facts they included. This can be detrimental following any accident because victims and their families could be misled about the facts of the incident. Not only could this be detrimental to a potential claim for compensation, but more importantly it often leaves families with a lack of information regarding what happened to their loved one. This constant wondering and asking what ifs can further harm people in an already difficult time.
So how does this make it that much worse if motorcycles are involved? Believe it or not, many people have an unfair bias against motorcyclists following an accident. The general population tends to think of all motorcyclists as people who speed, weave in and out of traffic, and barrel down emergency lanes. Our firm has handled plenty of motorcycle accident cases, and I know from experience this is not the case. The majority of motorcycle accidents I've seen are from larger vehicles failing to notice the rider coming toward them and either changing lanes or turning into their path, leading to an accident.
Despite this, people still hold to their baseless generalizations. This is made that much worse when there is a lack of information surrounding the crash. Holes in the story allow people to fill in the blanks with their own assumptions, meaning people will probably say, "oh I bet the motorcyclist was speeding and got himself hurt." Now this is certainly possible with any given accident--I'm not saying no motorcyclist has ever caused an accident. The problem here is that people are passing judgement before they have the full story, and incomplete or inaccurate investigations only worsen this.
By getting the aid of a private investigator, victims and their families ensure that any and all possible factors surrounding a crash are discovered. Nothing is considered too insignificant or too unlikely to consider. If something could have happened, then it is either confirmed or ruled out. It's the reason I've always advocated for the services of independent investigators. When pursuing compensation, accurate and tangible evidence speaks volumes. Even if there is no compensation to be gained, families should at the very least find some sense of closure in knowing the full story of what occurred. Waiting on police reports to cover all the facts is often a never-ending waiting game. Taking the initiative and looking into a 3rdparty investigation is a significant step forward in the recovery process of any accident.
--Grossman Law Offices
[jump]