Missouri Accident Lawyer Blog

Courts around the nation are using prison sentences to deter and punish drunk drivers when other measures fail to contain the problem. Missouri and other states are sentencing drunk drivers to prison after these reckless drivers cause personal injury and death in accidents.

A California woman, Danae Marie Miller, was recently sentenced to four years in prison after she killed a bicyclist in a DUI accident. The 23 year old Californian was drinking at a restaurant before driving her Volkswagen Jetta. She began texting on her cellphone, causing her to swerve into the bike lane of the roadway. The Volkswagen crashed into and killed a female bicyclist who was riding in the bike lane. The drunk driver was charged with felony vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence while intoxicated. The drunk driver had previously received numerous citations for the type of driving negligence that caused the accident.

Missouri courts have enacted even harsher punishments for drunk drivers who cause fatal Missouri DUI car accidents. The St. Louis Post-Disptach reported that local man Newton Keene was sentenced to 28 years in prison after his negligence caused a DUI accident. Three people were killed in the crash.

Keene drove the wrong way on an interstate highway at 2am when he crashed into another vehicle. The accident killed a woman named Tawanda Jackson, Jackson’s friend Jon Moss, and Jackon’s son Arnold. Jackson’s daughter Takia, an 11 year old child, survived the DUI accident. The accident victims were on the interstate because they were returning home from a funeral of a family member.

Prior to this accident, Keene had been jailed for five previous DUIs. Since Keene has shown through his actions that routine punishments did not deter his negligent behavior, the court sentenced Keene with the maximum penalty allowed. Keene must also serve at least 24 years of his term before he is even eligible for parole.

When drunk drivers are convicted of criminal offenses for their negligence in causing car accidents, an experienced Missouri drunk driving accident attorney can use that conviction against the drunk driver in a civil lawsuit on behalf of the accident victims. Accident victims should contact an attorney to understand their legal rights.

A fun hayride turned disastrous as a chronic drunk driver crashed into a leisure wagon in Oak Grove, Missouri. Thirteen people, including six children, were transported to local hospitals after the Missouri drunk driving car accident.

Six children and seven adults were enjoying their hayride on Saturday night on Highway H, near I-70. The area was dark, but the tractor pulling the wagon was illuminated. Drunk driver Kaylon Childers, 27, crashed into the hayride. According to the Missouri Highway Patrol, the impact of the Missouri drunk driving car accident destroyed the wagon.

Childers was intoxicated during the Missouri drunk driving car accident. The authorities arrested Childers on suspicion of drunk driving, though Childers attempted to flee the scene of the accident. Last year, Childers was sentenced for repeated drunk driving.

Multiple accident victims had extended hospital stays after the accident. According to local reports, a five year old girl and an 18 month old boy suffered serious injuries in the Missouri drunk driving accident. An adult had to endure surgical operations as a result of the accident as well.

Drunk driving endangers the public roadways in Missouri. Statistics show that at least 350 Missourians die each year in alcohol-related traffic accidents. In one year, more than 600 Missourians died in drunk driving accidents. Even more Missourians are seriously injured in drunk driving accidents. The consequences of drunk driving accidents are dire. These accidents are even more devastating because they are preventable.

The State of Missouri prosecutes offenders of the state’s driving while intoxicated (DWI) laws to preserve the public safety. In 2010, Missouri strengthened its DWI laws to target repeat offenders. Missouri House Bill 1695 created new structures to prosecute repeat DWI offenders. HB1695 creates specialized DWI courts to hear the cases of repeat offenders while preventing municipal courts from hearing those trials. HB1695 creates a statewide database for DWI offenses, including arrests. The law also limits which DWI offenses can be expunged from an offender’s record.

Continue reading "Chronic Drunk Driver Crashes into Hayride, Injures Children" »

Accident victims Clarence Everett Wood and Mary Wood won a $1.1 million dollar judgment in Missouri drunk driving car accident lawsuit. The plaintiffs sued Huey E. Crocker for causing a Missouri front impact accident. The accident occurred on January 28, 2008 on U.S. Highway 50. Crocker drank heavily before driving his pickup truck. Crocker swerved across the centerline of the roadway and slammed into the Woods’ vehicle head on.

Clarence Wood suffered severe physical injuries. He suffered from a shattered pelvis and an injured knee. Ultimately, the accident victim was billed for more than $237,000 for medical expenses. The medical treatment resulted in a substantial loss of income for the accident victims. Mary Wood sued for her own loss of consortium. The couple sought compensation for their loss as well as punitive damages.

Crocker and his defense attorneys tried to argue against the evidence showing his role as the cause of the Missouri drunk driving accident. The defense argued that the accident victim caused the collision by not wearing a seatbelt and speeding. The defense also attempted to argue that Crocker did not drink before driving. However, Crocker was convicted of driving while intoxicated resulting in injury. Crocker received a five-year sentence for the DUI.

Wood v. Crocker is a good example the types of arguments that defense attorneys make in Missouri car accident lawsuits. Even when the car accident is the result of drunk driving, defense attorneys will attempt to shift blame to accident victim. If the accident victim did not wear a seatbelt, the defense attorneys will attempt to use that fact to decrease the accident victim’s compensation.

The “seat belt defense” is an argument that defense attorneys make when their clients caused an injuries traffic accident. The defense attorney will claim that if the accident victim had worn a seatbelt, the accident victim’s injuries would not have been so severe. In some cases, courts will decrease the accident victim’s award because the accident victim did not wear a seat belt. An accident victim should contact an experienced Missouri car accident lawyer who understands how to combat the seat belt defense.

A Chesterfield Missouri car accident resulted in serious physical injuries for a popular teacher and her son. Janet Esrock, a teacher and coach at Whitfield High School, was leaving a football game on Friday night in a 1992 Infinity when the accident occurred. Her son, sophomore Jonathan Esrock, was an occupant in her vehicle. Esrock’s vehicle was hit by a speeding Chevy Tahoe that was careening down Wildhorse Creek Road. The accident was a Chesterfield Missouri head on collision. According to local reports, the driver of the speeding Chevy Tahoe was 53 years old. The Chesterfield police stated that the accident could have been alcohol-related. The Missouri State Highway Patrol did not release a crash report for the St. Louis County Missouri car accident.

Esrock and her son had to be extricated from the vehicle by Monarch Fire Protection District paramedics. Both accident victims were taken to St. John’s Mercy hospital. Esrock reportedly needed a respirator to breathe as of Wednesday. Her son underwent surgery for broken bones. According to an email written by Mrs. Ruth E. Greathouse, the Interim Head of School at Whitfield School, both accident victims were under heavy sedation and could not see or speak with anyone from the broader community. The email was made public.

Missouri car accidents may be distressing for entire communities. The accident victim herself has to deal with the physical pain and suffering caused by personal injury. The accident victim and her family have to struggle with the financial consequences of numerous medical bills and an inability to work. Other members of the community – friends, colleagues, students – have to struggle with the uncertainty of the accident victim’s health outcomes. When intoxicated, distracted, and unsafe drivers injure accident victims by negligently causing Chesterfield Missouri car accidents, they harm the entire community that surrounds the accident victim.

Missouri car accident lawsuits cannot heal a community after an accident, but it may alleviate the financial losses sustained by the accident victim. Under Missouri law, accident victims may obtain compensation for the medical expenses resulting from the accident. Accident victims may recover compensation for any wages lost due to missing work because of the accident. Accident victims may even recover compensation for the pain and suffering caused by the accident. Accident victims should contact a Missouri car accident attorney to discuss their legal options after an injurious accident.

Continue reading "Chesterfield Missouri Car Crash Injures Whitfield Teacher and Her Son" »

Laura Fisher, 31, died Sunday from serious injuries suffered as a result of a three-vehicle crash that occurred on Friday night. The Missouri car accident took place around 8:30 p.m. near the south entrance of the Wal-mart store. Laura’s was traveling westbound in her 1996 Corolla, when Frederick Thornton, 31, also of Cameron, Missouri, hit Fisher’s car, then hit a Kia Optima driven by Karen Sleeth, 58. Mr. Thornton was traveling northbound on US 69 approaching a red light when he failed to yield, striking Ms. Fisher’s car in the driver’s side door. Thornton’s car then struck Ms. Sleeth’s car which was stopped, facing southbound on US 69. The damage to Ms. Sleeth’s car was minor, and she sustained no injuries from the accident. Ms. Fisher was wearing a seat belt, however Mr. Thornton was not.

Unbelievably, Thornton fled the scene on foot, but was later apprehended by a police officer following a short chase. According to a Missouri Highway Patrol report, Ms. Fisher was taken to Cameron Regional Medical Center and later transported to North Kansas City Hospital. Mr. Thornton refused medical treatment at the scene of the accident.

An simple background check revealed Thornton has at least two convictions for drunk driving. In 2006, after he pled guilty to DUI charges, Thornton was sentenced to 15 days in jail and two years of probation. Less than a year later, in 2007, Thornton received a four year sentence for a second DUI, but was paroled early. Thornton is being charged with DWI as well as leaving the scene of an accident. Police stated they will be talking to Cameron prosecutors this morning to discuss the possibility of adding more charges.

When a fatality occurs in an accident such as this, additional investigations will be conducted, and you may find you need the services of a Missouri personal injury lawyer. While criminal charges often follow in a situation such as the one above, the victims and family members who have lost loved ones can seek civil damages by filing a wrongful death claim. It is often said the criminal charges make one pay his debt to society whereas a civil lawsuit makes the offender pay his debt to the victim.

Oftentimes, in cases like this, insurance companies will look for ways to reduce their liability, and the amount owed to the victim's family. Insurance companies rarely offer assistance to victims making it essential families at the very least obtain a free consultation with a Missouri wrongful death attorney to ensure their rights are protected.

In cases where the insurance company has made a "policy limits offer," it is necessary to ensure all insurance is exhausted. Many times, insurance companies will take advantage of families and hide additional or supplemental insurance. Bottom line: never trust an opposing insurance carrier. Have a competent Missouri wrongful death attorney review your case for free.