January 2017 was a month of serious injuries caused by drunk drivers. Here are just a few that came to our attention. This list shows what an uphill battle law enforcement faces in keeping these dangerous drivers off our roads and highways.
January 4 – A drunk driver had to be arraigned in her La Jolla hospital bed. She was driving the wrong way and collided with another car, killing the mother of a young child. The driver’s blood alcohol level was measured at .33 percent.
January 18 – A drunk driver loses control and flips his car right into a Bob’s Big Boy restaurant in Downey. Luckily, no one was inside.
January 19 – A pedestrian died after being struck by a driver in California City, near Bakersfield. She was airlifted to a nearby hospital but pronounced dead. The driver’s BAC exceeded the .08 legal limit.
January 22 – A suspected drunk truck driver jumped the curb and piled his Ford F150 right through a Fresno home. The driver lived just a few doors down.
January 24 – A drunk driver being pursued by police crashed into a South Los Angeles living room. A family of four was asleep upstairs. Two men inside the car were arrested hiding in the bushes. One got away. Police say one of them tossed a gun out the window.
January 30 – A drunk driving checkpoint set up in Escondido screened over 1,900 vehicles, arresting one driver for DUI.
At one point this month, former boxing champion Oscar de la Hoya, was arrested for DUI, in Pasadena.
These, of course, are just a small sampling of the drunk driving accidents occurring statewide and in the Temecula/Murietta area. Drunk driving accidents and injuries are so common that most news outlets don’t consider them to be news. Sadly, our society has accepted this carnage as part of life.
A recent survey showed that 14 of the 20 most dangerous cities to drive in our state are here in Southern California. The number of drunk driving incidents were weighted heavily in determining which cities were most dangerous.
Other studies have shown that 30 percent of California drivers in fatal crashes had one or more drugs in their systems.
Law enforcement can only do so much, of course. Most victims of these accidents have one legal recourse, and that is to file a claim against the drunk driver.
If you or someone you love has been hurt or killed in a drunk driving or drugged driving case, talk to us at Ellis Helm, APC. We can help you obtain justice and closure, and drive home the point that this insane behavior will not be tolerated.
