Distracted driving appears to be the cause of a fatal pedestrian accident in Arlington, Virginia (VA).
As first reported by Washington, DC, television station NBC 4 on February 25, 2014, a dump truck hit and killed a 39-year-old mother of three young children on Little Falls Road. The woman was helping one her kids get out of the family car, which was parked on the street near Nottingham Elementary School.
A monthlong investigation into the deadly crash led police to charge the truck driver with failure to pay full time and attention. Conviction on the misdemeanor criminal charge can result in a higher financial penalty than a finding of distracted driving.
As Virginia-based attorneys who have represented hundreds of victims of crashes caused by commercial truck drivers and construction vehicle operators, my colleagues and I know that few things pose greater danger to everyone else on the road than getting distracted while controlling a machine that weighs tens of thousands of pounds and can reach speeds of 60-70 miles per hour. We also know that regardless of whether the Northern Virginia dump truck driver gets convicted in this case, family members of the woman who lost her life have legal rights to file claims against the man and his employer in civil court. Though, sadly, nothing can return what the crash victim’s loved ones lost, justice may yet be served.
Too many accidents illustrate almost daily how important it is for all drivers to keep their eyes and minds on the road. If some good can result from the tragedy in Arlington, it may be that a few more people concentrate more fully on what they do behind the wheel.
EJL