Cape Cod Injury Lawyer Blog
Police are trying to sort through the details of a tragic car accident that occurred in Newburyport on New Year’s Eve. The Massachusetts fatal accident took place with less than a half hour to go before 2013. A wrong way driver on the Gillis Bridge is said to have struck another car head on.
The 50-year-old driver had two passengers in his vehicle. One of them, a woman said to be 41 years old, died as a result of the injuries she sustained in the crash. All three, along with the driver whose car was struck, were taken to a local hospital. The female victim was declared dead. The driver, who is suspected of being intoxicated, was subsequently transferred to a Boston hospital, where he was arraigned on drunk driving allegations and a felony charge of vehicular manslaughter.
The other driver is a resident of Salisbury. Said to be 20 years old, he apparently escaped serious injury in the crash. The injuries sustained by the other passenger in the car of the wrong way driver were not detailed. Massachusetts authorities are looking into where the now criminally accused driver was prior to the fatal accident. Preliminary reports indicate that Salisbury and Newburyport police suspect the man may have been a patron of a bar or restaurant that may have served the driver alcohol in spite of indications he may have been drunk.
As this case heads toward a Massachusetts criminal court, the family of the deceased victim is likely struggling to come to terms with the tragedy. As the family members try to cope, they will surely take interest in the official investigation into the fatal accident. Should the evidence suggest that the woman lost her life due to the negligence of the wrong way driver and/or another party, our state courts will consider a civil claim for wrongful death. To prevail in this type of lawsuit, the family will need to prove the fatality occurred as the result of another party’s negligence.
Man charged in fatal car accident,” Dave Rogers, Jan. 3, 2012