Drunk driving is a leading cause of motor vehicle-related deaths, but when it comes to getting compensation in a wrongful death lawsuit, the person who got behind the wheel after drinking alcohol is not the only possible defendant, nor even the one most likely to be able to pay the victims’ surviving family members. DWI resulting in injury or death is a felony; drunk drivers are likely to be in prison by the time the survivors’ lawsuit gets to court. Therefore, when lawsuits related to drunk driving are the subject of news reports, the defendant is sometimes the company that owned the vehicle and employed the driver since the owner of a vehicle is legally responsible for damage caused by the vehicle, as well as for screening employees, such as by examining their driving record if their job duties will involve driving. The owners of bars and restaurants can even be legally responsible if a customer drives drunk and causes an accident after drinking at the establishment, even if the drunk driver was the only person injured.
After an accident that killed three family members, a New Mexico family is suing not only the driver but also the public entities that they claim could have helped the victims survive if they had rendered better assistance. If you have been injured in a drunk driving accident, contact a Santa Fe motor vehicle accident lawyer.
Plaintiffs Sue At-Fault Driver and Allege Insufficient Response by Public Identities
In the summer of 2022, an accident on NM-120 near Wagon Mound claimed the lives of three family members. The only survivor in the struck vehicle was a 21-year-old woman. Her mother, 42, niece, 9, and daughter, 4, died of injuries sustained in the accident. The car that struck the family’s car was traveling at 80 miles per hour at the time of impact; police believe that the driver was drag racing. The driver, who was 22 at the time, was charged with DWI resulting in death. His passenger suffered non-life-threatening injuries in the accident, and he is being charged with tampering with evidence for trying to hide empty bottles of liquor from police.
In a wrongful death lawsuit, the surviving woman has named not only the driver as a defendant but also the village of Wagon Mound, its fire department, and the New Mexico Department of Transportation. She claims that her daughter’s injuries were survivable, but that lack of caution by first responders in extracting her from the vehicle made things worse, as did the delays in the arrival of an ambulance. She filed the lawsuit in December 2023, and as of July 2024, it is still pending.
Contact Slate Stern About Motor Vehicle Accident Lawsuits
Slate Stern is a personal injury lawyer who represents plaintiffs injured in motor vehicle accidents. Contact Slate Stern in Santa Fe, New Mexico or call (505)814-1517 to discuss your case.
Sources
https://www.krqe.com/news/crime/video-moments-after-dwi-crash-in-wagon-mound-that-killed-3
https://www.krqe.com/news/crime/wrongful-death-lawsuit-filed-in-fatal-wagon-mound-crash
https://www.krqe.com/news/crime/woman-and-two-children-killed-in-wagon-mound-dwi-crash
Photo by Gabe Pierce on Unsplash