California’s big city highways are famous for being some of the busiest and most congested in the country. Inevitably, car accident occur. Sometimes this is simply die to the sheer volume of traffic and the speeds of the vehicles. Other times, it may be due to poor road conditions or inclement weather. Often though, negligence or driving under the influence figure in as well. This is reportedly the case in a recent incident that occurred along Interstate 805 on Jan.10.
The drive accused of being at fault is said to have been driving drunk at the time of the incident. Three of the passengers in his vehicle died, and he has now been taken into custody. The charges he faces include multiple counts of gross vehicular manslaughter, plus additional counts of DUI causing great bodily injury. He will appear in court to face those charges.
The California Highway Patrol says that the incident occurred at approximately 11:15 p.m. on a Friday. The 2000 Cadillac Escalade driven by the defendant, which had five passengers, spun out of control on I-805 while trying to merge onto SR-52. The CHP believes that the SUV was speeding at the time.
It went off the road and then went up and embankment, colliding into a cement pillar. After that, it rolled over several times and landed in traffic lanes. At that point, the situation got worse, as a chain reaction resulted in two other vehicles being struck.
The driver accused in the case was injured and treated at a local medical facility. The families of those who are injured or killed due to such negligence have a right to hire a Santa Ana personal injury lawyer and seek compensation from the at-fault driver. While no amount of money can bring back a loved one, it can help the family begin to move forward without financial insecurities.
Source: NBC San Diego, “Driver Jailed, Charged in Deadly DUI Crash That Killed 3” Monica Garske, Jan. 14, 2014