According to Dallas News, a drunk driving crash on early Monday morning at East Ledbetter Road in Oak Cliff led to the death of one person. The police revealed that the victim was former Dallas City Councilwoman Carolyn Davis, age 57. She was officially declared dead at Baylor University Medical Center at Dallas.
The intoxicated driver, Jonathan Alger Moore, has been charged for manslaughter, intoxication assault that led to a brain injury and for having a suspended license. Records showed that Moore had four DWI arrests prior to this incident.
Many current and former council members spoke positively about Carolyn Davis despite her upcoming sentencing in a federal corruption case. One friend even said that even with everything going on, she was "upbeat recently, always ready for the next struggle."
Attorney contributor Anjali Nigam represents drunk driving victims and their families in civil lawsuits. Below he has offered to share some legal options that these victims may wish to understand regarding the matter.
In Texas, like in most other states, victims and families of a drunk driving crash usually can choose from a few different legal routes to pursue in trying to receive compensation. For one, drunk driving victims usually have the opportunity to make a personal injury lawsuit against the inebriated river. And while this is a popular option, not all drunk driving cases are similar, thus leaving other alternatives for the victims.
For instance, a lot of states observe dram shop laws - in which a drunk driving victim can file a lawsuit against the vendor who sold the alcohol to the drunk driver. These dram shop laws are not universal and in fact they usually vary by state. In Texas, the dram shop laws claim that an alcohol vendor may be made liable for a drunk driving accident if the vendor is:
As a result, a drunk driving victim can bring forward a lawsuit against the vendor if one of these laws are violated and the drunk driver harms somebody.
If you or someone you know has been injured or killed by a drunk driver in Texas, you can learn more about your legal options by talking to one of our experienced drunk driving crash victims attorneys today.