A man whose wife was killed by a drunk and drugged driver has been awarded 44.8 million by a jury.
Interestingly, the guilty driver’s father was also charged for letting his daughter drive his car – even though he knew she had lost her driving privileges. Those charges, though, were later dropped.
The Case at a Glance
According to reports, the woman who caused the head-on crash had a blood alcohol content (BAC) of 0.29 – nearly three times the legal limit – was high on cocaine and had a bottle of alcohol in her car.
In most parts of the country, anyone with a BAC over 0.08 is considered to be under the influence.
In addition to a loving husband, the 47-year-old victim was also the mother of two daughters. At the time of the accident, she was on her way home from working at an area group home.
A Repeat Drunk Driving Offender; Charges Made After the Crash
After pleading guilty to first-degree vehicular manslaughter, the woman who caused the crash was sentenced to 4-12 years behind bars.
A repeat offender, she had been charged with driving while intoxicated (DWI) three separate times before the above accident.
The woman’s father, 64, had bought the car for her. He was charged with circumventing an ignition interlock device and for allowing his daughter to use the car. He was later found no guilty.
The Problem With Repeat Drunk Driving Offenders
Data from Mothers Against Drunk Driving confirms that more than 1.2 million people are arrested for drunk driving each year.
Sadly, about a third of those are repeat offenders, like the woman who caused the accident described above.
If You’ve Been Involved in a Drunk Driving Accident, Call the Alaska Personal Injury Lawyers With Barber & Associates.
We stand by our claim that drunk driving is a scourge on our great nation. There simply is no excuse for driving impaired.
If you’ve been involved in an accident with a drunk driver, we’ll aggressively fight on your behalf.
For a free consultation, call us at 800-478-5858. You can also reach us via email or by completing our online contact form.