Any death is devastating to a family, but when a child dies, it is truly heartbreaking. Emergency personnel here in Louisiana have seen their share of this heartbreak. One thing that might make it even more difficult is when a child dies in a car accident believed to have been caused by the person who was responsible for their care and safety.
When police officers were recently called to the scene of an accident that occurred at around 8 p.m., they arrived to find that three vehicles collided. When emergency medical personnel arrived, they discovered a 5-year-old child in the wreckage. The child’s injuries were fatal, and it was his lifeless body that was pulled from the vehicle in which the child was a passenger.
Officials in Louisiana were unable to tell whether the child was properly restrained at the time of the crash. To make matters worse, the driver that witnesses say was driving recklessly and caused the crash was the one out of which the child was pulled. No information regarding the relationship between the driver and the child was reported. All three drivers involved suffered injuries for which they were transported to hospitals.
A toxicology test is being conducted to determine whether the alleged at-fault driver was impaired at the time of this deadly car accident. Depending on the relationship of the child to this driver, the family may be able to file a wrongful death claim seeking damages. In these types of tragedies, insurance coverage may play an important role. The other two injured drivers may file personal injury claims as well. Any financial restitution awarded in a successful claim could help cover the expenses and other damages typically incurred in motor vehicle crashes.
Source: wdsu.com, “Child killed after accident leads to three-car pile up in Thibodaux“, Juan Sanchez, Oct. 6, 2014
