Update: Saturday morning about 8:30, three vehicles were headed south on Highway 121 near FM 455 while another vehicle, a Chrysler 300, was northbound. Our Highway 121 accident attorneys note that the driver of the Chrysler, suspected of DWI, veered into the southbound lanes. Two of the oncoming vehicles managed to evade the Chrysler. But a third vehicle, a Honda Civic, did not move out of the way.
Authorities report that the driver of the Honda Civic, Steve Clayton of Savoy, unfortunately was texting through his phone’s Facebook app and did not see the danger when the Chrysler swerved into his path. Mr. Clayton was killed at the scene of the head-on crash. Jonathan Dorman, the driver of the Chrysler, was critically injured in the fatal head-on crash. The highway was shut down for around 8 hours to investigate and clear the accident scene.
Police indicated that this was the 4th fatal crash on this particular stretch of Highway 121 this year. They say it’s simply a deadly stretch of roadway. Distracted and drunken driving only increase the dangers of fatal wrecks. (Sources: Morgan Downing, kxii.com, 8/28/13; and Matthew Watkins and Julie Fancher, The Dallas Morning News, 8/24/13)
The Highway 121 accident attorneys at Denena Points, PC express their condolences to the family and friends of Mr. Steve Clayton. We hope the injured victims of the wreck safely recover.
Contact the Highway 121 Accident Attorneys at Denena Points, PC for a Free Initial Legal Consultation
Our Texas Board Certified attorneys’ 14 years of experience successfully guiding our clients through complex personal injury and wrongful death cases could help you make informed decisions for your family’s future after a serious head-on crash has changed your life. Call us at 713-807-9500or reach us anytime through our online contact form to obtain your free, no obligation legal consultation. Our goal is to help accident victims and their families successfully recover after serious crashes, so we never charge you attorneys’ fees unless we win your case for you.
DWI and Texting While Driving Account for a Major Proportion of All Fatal Crashes in the United States Each Year
Our Highway 121 accident attorneys emphasize that drunken driving leads to about one third of all fatal accidents in the United States each year. Distracted driving accounts for about one in every six accident fatalities.
For example, the U.S. NHTSA said that in 2008, 5,870 of the year’s 34,017 accident fatalities were linked to distracted driving. And another 500,000 were injured because of the distracted drivers. A large number of distracted driving crashes result from texting behind the wheel.
In an interesting court case involving texting while driving that could have strong influences on future lawsuits, a New Jersey appeals court said that a person who knowingly sends a text to a driver with expectation that the driver will view the text can be held liable if that driver causes an accident because of the text.
The NHTSA indicates that a person’s crash risk triples when they dial a cell phone behind the wheel. Almost one in five drivers under 20 who die in fatal accidents were using their phones behind the wheel at the time of the accident. And a study involving drivers of heavy trucks found that their crash risk increased by 23 times if they were texting while driving. Our Highway 121 accident attorneys urge you to always drive safely: avoid distractions behind the wheel.
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