Back in 2009, a Santa Barbara car crash happened when a drunk driver entered Highway 101 and drove the wrong way. It resulted to the death of one teenager and permanently injured two.
The driver named, Richard Rodriquez, entered the freeway and begun driving North on the fast lane of Southbound 101 until he collided with the vehicle driven by Marcos Arredondo, 18. His sisters Yessica and Karina were seated at the back seat. Rodriguez was sentenced to 13 years in prison and was ordered to pay restitution to the victim's families.
But the Arredondos also filed a wrongful death claim against the Santa Barbara Sheriff's Department. According to their Santa Barbara personal injury attorney, the Sheriff's Deputy who responded to the incident acted with negligence causing Arredondo to crash head-on with the wrong way driver. The family claims that the deputies lacked training in responding to wrong way drivers and broke from the protocol. They also said that freeways were under the jurisdiction of the California Highway Patrol, who have their own set of protocol for dealing with wrong way drivers. They claim that the deputy's negligent actions forced Arredondo's car into the path of the wrong way driver.
According to the complaint, Sheriff's Deputy Jeremy Rogers entered the southbound of Highway 101 and was driving at a very slow speed. He did not activate his left turn signal, overhead lights, or siren. He unexpectedly merged in Lane 2 where Arredondo was driving, forcing the young driver to go into Lane 1 in order to avoid the deputy which led to his collision with Rodriguez.
Though they initially denied any negligence on the deputy's response, the Santa Barbara County and Sheriff Department agreed to pay $4.8 millions in settlement to the victim's family. The Santa Barbara personal injury lawyer of the Arredondo's estimated the damages of the fatal car crash to total more than $12 million, but the family is grateful for the amount settled. Most of their compensation will go to their medical expenses.
If you are a victim of personal injury in Santa Barbara, consult injury lawyers immediately. Most Santa Barbara law firms are experts in dealing with personal injury cases.
No comments:
Post a Comment