N.C. Woman Found Guilty of Providing Alcohol to Underage Driver of Fatal Chadbourn Crash | Shapiro, Washburn & Sharp

What happened:

In a follow up to a story we wrote about in a prior post, a 47 year old Whiteville woman was found guilty of giving alcoholic beverages to a person younger than 21, and aiding and abetting a person younger than 21 in the possession and consumption of alcoholic beverages. She was sentenced to a suspended jail sentence of 45 days, a year on probation and 10 hours of educating teens about the dangers of alcohol.

The defendant and her husband hosted a party at their house in May, 2012. One of the guests, a 20 year old Clarkton man, left the party and ended up slamming his 2003 Toyota Camry into a tree on Shade Fisher Road south of Chadbourn, nearly splitting the car in half. His passenger, a 21 year old Chadbourn resident who had also attended the party, was killed after being thrown from the car. The driver pled guilty to felony death and received a six month prison sentence, three years of supervised probation and ordered to undergo alcohol and psychological evaluations and treatment.

Charges aiding and abetting in the underage possession and consumption of alcohol against the defendant’s husband were dropped after the state rested their case during trial.

 

Shade Fisher Road, Chadbourn, NC – location of fatal accident


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The North Carolina Injury Lawyer Perspective:   

Although nothing can replace a loved one tragically lost in an accident, the victim’s family should consult with a North Carolina wrongful death attorney about the civil liability not only the driver of the vehicle has for the death of their son, but also the defendant in this case, who served the alcohol to the driver.

 

Helpful Info:

Our firm published an in-depth legal guide on the North Carolina wrongful death claims process. Read it here.

Have Questions?

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