Drunk Driver Kills Man in Hit and Run Accident in Porterville
A little over a month ago in Porterville, California, a motorcyclist was killed when he encountered a drunk driver on the road ahead of him. The 48-year old man who was driving the motorcycle was, as far as police can tell, obeying all traffic laws, including the speed limit, when a drunk driver pulled in front of him and caused the fatal accident. The 23-year old drunk driver was in a car that recklessly turned in front of the motorcycle at the last minute. The motorcyclist did not have time to react and hit the car, resulting in the accident. The motorcyclist was not killed instantly, but died a short time later. Rather than stop to help the victim of the accident, the drunk driver of the other vehicle drove away, leaving the injured man to suffer alone in the street.
The driver of the vehicle was later apprehended by police officers, and it became apparent why he had fled the scene of his crime. The man was not a licensed driver and was determined to have been drunk at the time of the accident. To the disappointment of the family members of the fatal victim, the drunk driver has only been sentenced to one year in jail for the accident he caused. Following his stay in jail, the man will be required to pay for and attend a substance abuse treatment program and will not be allowed to leave the state of California for a certain period of time. This, however, still leaves the family of the victim feeling unjustified in the death of their loved one.
Perhaps the most significant and distressing aspect of this accident is that the man who died was not doing anything wrong. He was driving safely and according to all traffic laws, and it was only by the reckless behavior and negligence of another person that he was injured and killed. The drunk driver in the vehicle that caused the accident, in contrast, was going too fast and driving completely recklessly while under the influence, yet he sustained no serious injuries of any kind and received a proverbial slap on the wrist in court with a mere one year sentence in jail. His stay in jail will also not satisfy the financial demands that have likely been placed on the victim’s family as they’ve faced the heavy expenses that are unavoidable in funeral arrangements.
If you have a family member that has been seriously injured or killed by a drunk driver, you should get a personal injury attorney. Los Angeles Personal injury attorneys help the family members of victims receive monetary compensation for the pain and suffering they’ve been forced to endure. In this instance, the 48-year old man had a wife and children that relied on him to be the breadwinner of their family. He also left behind parents and siblings that are likely helping to pay for his funeral expenses. The loss of income that his family is likely experiencing and the expensive funeral arrangements that they’ve already been required to pay were the direct fault of the Los Angeles drunk driving accident lawyer who caused his death, and should therefore be paid by him.