15th Judicial District Judge David Smith sentenced a 25-year-old Lafayette man to twelve years in prison, following a February 2015 drunk driving crash in which he destroyed two vehicles and killed one person.
Police and witnesses state that Bryan Chapman was heavily intoxicated and driving at least 100mph when he smashed into 66-year-old Carol Ann Richard’s vehicle near the intersection of Halifax Drive and Moss Street. The force of the impact propelled Ms. Richard’s burning car into another vehicle, causing it to topple over. Mr. Chapman pleaded guilty in July 2015, and he has remained in the Lafayette Parish Correctional Center since then. At the sentencing hearing, Mr. Chapman’s parents asked for leniency, because they say he is remorseful, has been completely sober since the drunk driving crash, and is a good caregiver to his disabled sister. At the same hearing, witnesses testified through tears about Ms. Richard’s career with the school district and giving spirit. Judge Smith announced that Mr. Chapman must “carry on [that] tradition of giving” after his release from prison, by speaking once a month for twelve months in sobriety court and performing 250 hours of community service at an alcohol counseling center for young people. [Read more…] about Drunk Driver Sentenced For 2015 Fatal Crash
Fatal Accident
Distracted Driver Kills Teenager
Even though she was properly restrained, a 14-year-old girl is dead after a tortfeasor (negligent driver) ran off the road and smashed into a tree.
The wreck occurred on westbound Louisiana Route 422 near the intersection of Louisiana Route 19. According to police, 24-year-old Shannon Sessions “became distracted by a bug that flew into her vehicle.” She then drove her Jeep Wrangler off the road, and it plummeted down a steep embankment before crashing into a tree and overturning. Backseat passenger 14-year-old Emily Sessions, of Woodville, Miss., was declared dead at the scene; Shannon Sessions and a frontseat passenger were both seriously injured. [Read more…] about Distracted Driver Kills Teenager
I-10 Crash Kills Good Samaritan And Seriously Injures Driver
A runaway tractor-trailer killed a bystander as he tried to help a stranded motorist re-attach a U-Haul trailer to her vehicle.
According to Louisiana State Police, the large truck wreck occurred on westbound Interstate 10 in Henderson. As 26-year-old Tanika Adams, of Jacksonville, Fla., pulled a trailer with her Volkswagen Tiguan, it came loose and blocked the outside lane. Ms. Adams pulled to the shoulder and then tried to pull the stranded trailer out of the traffic lane; a short time thereafter, 25-year-old Vineeth Keesara, of Lafayette, stopped and rendered assistance. A few moments later, an oncoming Perterbilt tractor-trailer slammed into the disabled trailer, instantly killing Mr. Keesara and seriously injuring Ms. Adams. [Read more…] about I-10 Crash Kills Good Samaritan And Seriously Injures Driver
Deuces Wild: Two Dead In Two Crashes In Two Hours
Authorities are investigating two separate fatal vehicle collisions in Acadiana. Although they occurred at two different locations, they shared some common elements.
The first one occurred in St. Martin Parish near Breaux Bridge, close to the intersection of Juleau Champagne Road and Anse Broussard Highway. The driver of a 2011 Camry, whose name was not released, apparently lost control of his vehicle and left the road. The driver was rushed to a nearby hospital due to serious injuries; a passenger in the car — 40-year-old Christopher Richard, of St. Martinville — was declared dead at the scene. Louisiana State Police officers said that neither individual was wearing a seatbelt. [Read more…] about Deuces Wild: Two Dead In Two Crashes In Two Hours
Feds Assign Blame In 2013 Plant Explosion
The U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB) ruled that workplace safety deficiencies at the Williams Olefins Plant in Geismar, Louisiana caused an explosion that killed two workers.
Specifically, according to the CSB, in the dozen years prior to the incident, management neglected issues with a over-pressure reboiler, which ultimately ruptured. The facility normally employs about 110 people, but roughly 800 people were onsite at that time, as contractors worked to expand the petrochemical plant. At the time, the reboiler was offline and not hooked up to its pressure-relief device, so the heat build-up lead to a BLEVE (boiling liquid expanding vapor explosion) and subsequent fire. Most of the 169 casualties (two dead and 167 seriously injured) were contractors.
In announcing the findings, CSB Chairperson Vanessa Allen Sutherland said that “The tragic accident at Williams was preventable and therefore unacceptable. This report provides important safety lessons that we urge other companies to review and incorporate within their own facilities.” [Read more…] about Feds Assign Blame In 2013 Plant Explosion
Bus Driver Faces Multiple Charges After LaPlace Wreck
The man who allegedly caused three deaths in a bus crash in August of this year has been indicted on three separate counts of negligent homicide.
37-year-old Denis Yasmir Amaya-Rodriguez, a Honduran national, did not have a valid license when he allegedly lost control of a tour bus carrying workers to flood-damaged areas of Baton Rouge. Both at the scene and in subsequent interviews, Mr. Rodriguez claimed the brakes failed moments before he slammed into a St. John Fire District truck that was responding to the scene of an earlier collision. Three people were killed in the bus crash, including 36-year-old Fire Chief Spencer Chauvin. Mr. Rodriguez, who had a history of traffic infractions, claimed that the bus’ owner, Christian Lombardo of Kristina’s Transportation LLC, knew that he did not have a valid license. “I even told him, ‘I don’t want to drive because I don’t have a license to drive these large vehicles here,'” he recalled saying. The company did not inspect the bus before the trip, Mr. Rodriguez added.
In addition to the three deaths, more than two dozen people were injured in the incident. [Read more…] about Bus Driver Faces Multiple Charges After LaPlace Wreck