A report on drowsy driving by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that as many as one in 24 Americans has driven while drowsy or fatigued.
Learn More >>Texas Drunk Driving Accidents
Texas has the most alcohol-related motor vehicle fatalities each year, compared to every other US state. In 2008, out of 3,382 total traffic accident fatalities in Texas, 1,463 of them involved alcohol. This means at least 43% of our deadly motor vehicle accidents in Texas involve one or more parties consuming alcohol, and of those 1,269 were over the legal limit of 0.08. Drunk driving is a crime, and while the state may pursue its own cases against a drunk driver criminally, those who are the injured victims of a drunk driving accident can pursue a civil case as well. Civil and criminal proceedings may be brought simultaneously and lead to different consequences.
Under Texas law, you cannot operate a motor vehicle of any type, a water craft (boat), or an air craft (plane) if you have a blood alcohol concentration of over 0.08.
A DWI Accident and Collision Claims Attorney must work with law enforcement to make sure the accident is properly investigated and the drunk driver prosecuted, perform an independent investigation of the accident, understand the medical injuries, and protect the injured parties from the large insurance company's tactics to avoid paying legitimate claims.
Texas Dram Shop Laws
Under Texas Dram Shop Laws, you can sue the establishment that served the drunk driver. If applicable, a drunk driving victim may sue the person (or establishment) that sold, served or provided alcohol to a visibly intoxicated person who presented a clear and obvious danger to himself or to others. The establishment that provided the alcohol may have insurance or enough money to pay you the damages to which you are entitled. If an establishment wrongfully served a minor alcohol, in Texas a minor can then sue that establishment for their own injuries sustained while intoxicated. An experienced Texas Dram Shop Lawyer can assist you with figuring out the technical details of a dram shop claim.
What is Driving Under the Influence?
In Texas a person is considered drunk or "under the influence" if they do not have normal use of their mental or physical faculties due to:
- Alcohol
- Prescription medications
- Over the counter medications in excess
- Illegal drugs
- Controlled substances
If you have been injured or a loved one has been hurt in a Texas Drunk Driving Accident, you can collect damages for medical expenses, lost income, pain and suffering, funeral expenses, and even punitive damages which will punish the driver to deter him or her from driving drunk again. Contact the Texas drunk driving lawyers of Schechter, McElwee, Shaffer & Harris, L.L.P. today for more information about your case.
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