Richmond, TX — A pickup truck carrying a father and son was struck by a suspected drunk driver this past Saturday morning (October 10, 2015) and left both of them injured, one critically. This happened along U.S. 59 in the Richmond/Rosenberg area of the Houston metroplex.
According to the news reports, this happened just after 12:00 a.m. Saturday morning.
A man driving a Ford Explorer SUV was headed along U.S. 59 that morning when he lost control near Williams Way and crashed into a pickup truck that was transporting a father and son. Allegedly, the SUV first lost control and crashed into a retaining wall, then over-corrected and hit the pickup truck.
The SUV then overturned and paramedics were called to the scene.
When they got there, they transported the father and son in the pickup truck to a nearby hospital, saying that one of them was in critical condition. The driver of the SUV, though, was suspected of being intoxicated at the time. While he was also taken to a hospital for his injuries, the police said that he may be facing serious charges pending the results of his BAC tests.
One of the news reports also mentioned a third person in the pickup truck who was also injured, but that person wasn’t named.
Map of the Approximate Area
Commentary:
If the news is right and alcohol was a factor in this wreck, then where was this driver coming from that morning? Had he been drinking at a bar? It seems to me that given the time of morning and the unfortunate history the State of Texas (in particular, the Houston area) has with drunk driving accidents, it’s likely this driver had been somewhere that served alcohol earlier that night.
That’s a problem. The reason why? Bars in Texas aren’t allowed to serve alcohol to customers who are obviously under the influence of alcohol or who pose a danger to themselves & others. If this man was obviously drunk to police officers (according to the news), then it stands to reason that if he was at a bar, they should have noticed his state of intoxication as well. Again, I’m making some assumptions here, but just for the sake of argument, let’s continue assuming that this driver had been drinking at a bar that night. What are the consequences?
Well, the driver’s fate is no surprise, an arrest and an unpleasant relationship with the local law enforcement. For a bar, however, it can be a little different. They may face fines from the local TABC office for over-serving a customer and they may be forced to make changes to the way they do business. However, the bar might also be found civilly liable for anyone hurt by the drunk driver’s actions if they indeed over-served him. In this case, it would be the folks in the other vehicle that was hit. But again, that’s all dependent on where this accused driver was in the hours leading up to the accident.
— Grossman Law Offices
