High School Student Killed in Left-Turn Crash in Wake Forest | Shapiro, Washburn & Sharp

Failure to yield right of way while attempting a left-hand turn appears to have caused a fatal accident in Wake Forest, North Carolina (NC). The deadly wreck at the intersection of Capital Boulevard and Caverness Farms Avenue claimed the life of a 15-year-old high school student and sent four other teenagers from the two cars involved to hospitals with injuries that ranged from minor to life-threatening.

 

 

Witnesses and investigators described the crash at around 7 am on September 29, 2014, as occurring when a car being driven by a 17-year-old Heritage High student pulled out into the path of a car operated by a 17-year-old Wake Forest High student. A Wake County Schools driver’s education instructor interviewed by ABC11.com speculated that inexperience and impatience may have set the stage for the collision. “The tricky part about a left hand turn is you never have the right of way,” he told the television station. “Wait, it takes a split second out of your life just to let the next man go. Wait.”

The station also drew parallels with a left-turn accident that occurred two weeks earlier in nearby Cary, NC, that resulted in a teen’s girl’s death.

As tragic as both accidents were, they could have positive effects if they convince more young, newly licensed drivers to act with more caution and restraint behind the wheel. My Carolina wrongful death law firm colleagues and I know that lack of experience and a feeling of invulnerability often go hand-in-hand with negligence and recklessness. Keeping in mind the consequence of even minor mistakes can keep everyone on the road safe, uninjured and alive.

EJL