In May, I blogged about an Arnold grandmother who was charged with drunk driving in the auto accident that resulted in the death of her granddaughter on July 4, 2011. An update to that blog post—The 49 year old grandmother was sentenced Friday in St. Louis Circuit Court to 12.5 years in prison. The grandmother was driving from Arnold, Missouri to St. Louis with her 20-month old granddaughter as a passenger when the grandmother crashed into a street sign, a house, a tree and a fence as she exited Interstate 55 and Loughborough.
Witnesses said that she was driving so fast that at times the wheels on the driver’s side were not touching the ground. Both the grandmother and the granddaughter were rushed to the hospital and the child was pronounced dead due to sever blunt force trauma. The black box in the car revealed that the grandmother was driving around 69 mph and never applied the brakes before the crash.
According to police, family member earlier in the evening had told the woman not to drive because she had consumed too many alcoholic beverages. Her blood alcohol level was later found to be .226, almost three times the legal limit of .08
In April, the grandmother was found guilty of second-degree murder, armed criminal action and first-degree endangering the welfare of a child. A 20 year sentence was sought by St. Louis Circuit Attorney, Jennifer Joyce.
This story strikes at the hearts of parents and grandparents everywhere. Because we generally think of our children safe with their grandma or grandpa. In no way am I saying this grandmother did not love her grandchild but she did make a very bad decision. That decision to climb behind the wheel after drinking has forever changed the life of her family.
If you have been drinking, the last thing you want to do is climb behind the wheel! If you are in an auto accident while driving under the influence, you will be lucky to only injure yourself. Lives are forever changed by these bad decisions. If you plan to drink, have a plan for getting home—call a cab, call a friend—take keys away from those who have been drinking.
I know from personal experience it is not always easy to govern all of your friends and sometimes you can make them mad when you take their keys away. It is irresponsible to drive if you have been drinking and they will thank you later for taking a stand. If they remain mad that you were looking out for their wellbeing then, I wonder, where they a quality friend to begin with?
If you have been injured in an auto accident and you think that alcohol may have been involved, then you will need an expert personal injury attorney to assist you to be certain that you get the compensation that you deserve. The criminal charges against someone for DUI will not pay for your medical bills and lost wages—a 3rd party personal injury claim or wrongful death claim may have to be filed in order for you to gain deserved compensation.
Our attorneys understand that car accidents and semi-truck accidents are live changing events. Dealing with a serious injury or the death of a loved one is one of the hardest things to cope with in life. During that time, you do not want to be negotiating with insurance companies and frankly, during traumatic times like this, you are not in the right frame of mind to make decisions regarding the future—so don’t.
Talking to an attorney and having a personal injury attorney assist you does not require that you will have to file a law suit. However, contacting a personal injury attorney ensures you will get the valued advice you need to be sure that you leave all options open until you are ready to make such life changing decisions. I have seen too many instances of family members signing away releases with an insurance company shortly after a severe accident only to find out in the months to come the victim will need far more medical services than originally thought. Once you sign a release with the insurance company, you may still be responsible for many medical expenses not covered in the release —-this can be financially devastating for most of us.
We are available seven days a week to talk with you, locally (314) 276-1681 or toll free (80)0) 685-3302
Source: Arnold woman gets prison for drunk-driving wreck that killed granddaughter, KMOV, 6/28/13
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