Louisiana State Police are investigating the seventh traffic fatality of 2016 – and the second drowsy driving-related wreck – on a single stretch of State Highway 27 in the western part of the Bayou State.
Between Sulpher and DeQuincy, S.H. 27 is very windy in the south and there is an elbow curve in the north. It was in this curvy part not far from DeQuincy that 23-year-old Jasmine Phillips crossed from the northbound to the southbound side. “We suspect Ms. Phillips nodded off,” commented Sergeant James Anderson of LSP Troop D. She collided with a southbound truck driven by 23-year-old Cody Massie, of Singer. Ms. Phillips was declared dead at the scene; Mr. Massie was rushed to a local hospital with serious injuries. In February 2016, 18-year-old Charlee Smith, of DeQuincy, crossed from the northbound to the southbound side at almost the exact same spot. She collided with 17-year-old Lauren LeBlanc, of DeQuincy. Both women were killed almost instantly, and authorities speculate that fatigued driving was the cause of that crash as well. [Read more…] about Deadman’s Curve?