A high-speed car wreck in Shongaloo transformed a vehicle into a twisted piece of metal and sent two area residents to the morgue.
According to the Webster Parish Sheriff’s Office, 35-year-old Freddy Bryant, of Shongaloo, evidently lost control of his fast-moving 2006 Toyota Corolla on State Highway 2 and crossed over the center line. The vehicle then careened into a school bus carrying mostly pre-kindergarten through second grade students; the driver – 67-year-old Michael Timmons of Sarepta – was unable to avoid the car wreck. Mr. Bryant and a passenger – 29-year-old Gary Matlock of Plain Dealing – were both pronounced dead at the scene.
None of the forty-eight people on board the bus (the driver and forty-seven students) were seriously injured. [Read more…] about Two Dead After Speeding Car Slams Into School Bus
Wrongful Death
Fatal Wreck Raises Liability Questions
One young girl is dead, and another one is seriously injured, following a serious truck crash in Assumption Parish that may have been speed-related.
According to the Louisiana State Police, 38-year-old Frannie Landry, of Belle Rose, was hauling trash cans to State Highway 1000 for retrieval; the two girls were riding on the tailgate of her pickup truck. A few minutes after Ms. Landry parked in the westbound lane facing east, 21-year-old Corey Crochet approached the scene in a separate pickup truck. He reacted late and swerved quickly to avoid a head-on collision with the parked vehicle, but he evidently sideswiped it. 15-year-old Sydny Landry and her 12-year-old sister were both thrown from the bed; Sydney Landry was declared dead at the scene and her sister was rushed to a nearby hospital clinging to life.
Investigators have ruled out impairment as a possible cause and they are still looking into the truck crash.
Speed and Breach of Duty
As discussed in a previous post, excessive speed multiplies the force in a track crash. But, there is more. Speed increases both components of braking distance, which includes both reaction distance and stopping distance. The scientific equation, Vf2=Vo2+2ad, is far too complicated for a country lawyer to understand. However, the concept behind braking distance, and its applicability to truck crashes, is easy for me and jurors to comprehend.
The faster an object travels, the longer it takes to slow or stop safely. At the same time, as speed increases, reaction distance increases as well. That is the amount of ground that the vehicle covers in the half-second or so it takes a driver to see a hazard, mentally react to the hazard, and move his or her foot from the accelerator to the brake pedal. At 50mph, reaction distance is about three car lengths and stopping distance is about ten car lengths. At 70mph, these distances increase to four and twenty car lengths.
So, speeding truck drivers are unable to avoid crashes. Alternatively, as illustrated by the above story, they are only able to partially avoid these collisions. Either way, damages in these cases typically involve compensation for both economic damages, like lost wages, and noneconomic damages, like loss of enjoyment in life. Additional punitive damages are also available, in some truck crash cases.
Just a little extra speed transforms normally careful drivers into negligent drivers. For a free consultation with an assertive personal injury lawyer in Lake Charles, contact Lee Hoffoss Injury Lawyers. Home and hospital visits are available.
Deadman’s Curve?
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?
Regional Athlete Wins Olympic Gold
Houston native Simone Manuel now shares the world record for the fastest time in the 100-meter freestyle, and she is also the first black American athlete to win a gold medal in any swimming or diving event.
Her victory roughly coincides with the release of a university study which concludes that 70 percent of black children cannot swim. Furthermore, black children between ages 11 and 12 suffer from an accidental swimming pool drowning rate that’s ten times greater than white children of a similar age. To explain the discrepancy, some scholars blame the residual effects of racial segregation. Many municipal pools were not legally integrated until the 1960s or 1970s, and informal discrimination remained at some locations for decades afterwards. As a result, swimming was not part of the black experience for many children who grew up in the latter part of the 20th century, and some parents may pass their preferences onto their children. [Read more…] about Regional Athlete Wins Olympic Gold
Mysterious Crash In Swamps Southeast Of Lake Charles
Investigators hope that a data recording device similar to the ones in most cars and trucks will yield clues about a helicopter crash in Iberia Parish.
Authorities immediately became concerned when the Gulf Coast Helicopters aircraft, which was surveying pipeline in the area, did not arrive at a scheduled refueling stop in Patterson. The Civil Air Patrol began combing the area shortly thereafter; by evening, several other agencies, including the Coast Guard and the Iberia Parish Sheriff’s Office, had joined the search. Rescuers soon found the wreckage of the helicopter in the Atchafalaya Basin, and removed the lifeless body of the 29-year-old pilot. [Read more…] about Mysterious Crash In Swamps Southeast Of Lake Charles
RIP Jimmy Long Sr.
The 84-year-old statesman died shortly after sustaining serious injuries in a car crash near his home in Natchitoches.
Authorities report that the former state Representative was backing out of a private driveway when a 16-year-old driver in a Jeep Wrangler smashed into with Mr. Long’s vehicle. The driver’s name was withheld due to his age, and Natchitoches Police Detective John Greely indicated that charges may be forthcoming as the investigation continues. Mr. Long served in the state House from 1968 to 2000, and served as chairman of the House Education Committee for sixteen years. A year after leaving that body, Mr. Long joined the University of Louisiana System’s Board of Supervisors, where he had served ever since. [Read more…] about RIP Jimmy Long Sr.