Cape Cod Injury Lawyer Blog
Teenage drivers and alcohol is often a recipe for disaster. Yet another serious DUI related car accident occurred recently in Worcester. Of the four females in one car, one was hurt critically and another seriously. The 17-year-old Massachusetts driver was not seriously hurt, and a front seat passenger escaped injury. The driver of the other vehicle, a 19-year-old male, also escaped injury.
The accident occurred close to midnight in mid-April. Preliminary evidence, including witness statements, suggests the car with four occupants tried to cross Route 20 to enter the parking lot of a McDonald’s Restaurant. As the driver crossed the highway, she moved directly into the path of an eastbound SUV operated by the male teen.
When Worcester police got to the scene of the crash, the two rear seat passengers from the first car, an 18 and 20-year-old, were lying on the road. One did not respond to emergency personnel and was later listed in critical condition at a Massachusetts hospital. The other was responsive but seriously injured. No one else was seriously hurt, and Worcester police placed the car driver under arrest for DUI, failure to yield to the SUV and a related offense. Authorities indicated that they are continuing to investigate.
The first concern, of course, is for the survival and recovery of the two teenage girls. Their families and friends are likely devastated by the tragic and senseless car accident. The path to getting well will undoubtedly be long and expensive. As the family prays and also deals with the financial fallout from the tragedy, they have the right to pursue a personal injury lawsuit against the accused woman and any separate owner of the car she was driving. A claim that is successfully navigated through the Massachusetts court system may help keep a personal tragedy from turning into an economic one as well.
Source: The Shrewsbury Lantern, “Teen critically injured — Shrewsbury driver arrested and charged with DUI,” April 16, 2013