Police Suspect Drunk Driving to Blame for a 3 Vehicle Accident That Left 3 Injured
El Paso authorities report that alcohol may have been to blame for a car accident on December 14 that involved three vehicles. The collision was caused by a 38-year-old man who is now facing charges.
Incident Details
El Paso police report that they responded to a three-vehicle car accident near the intersection of North Desert Boulevard and Redd Road at around 5 p.m. on Monday, December 14. The accident involved a white pickup truck and two cars, one black and one silver.
Prior to the crash, the silver and black cars were stopped at the traffic light at Redd and Desert. The collision began when the pickup rear-ended the black vehicle, pushing it into the back of the silver vehicle in front of it. Police report that the accident resulted in three people being injured, one of them seriously.
Following the crash, North Desert was closed between Redd and Thorn until nearly 10 p.m. As a result, traffic was congested on Thorn and Mesa throughout the evening.
A day after the accident occurred, police announced that they suspect the 38-year-old driver of the white pickup truck may have been under the influence of alcohol at the time of the crash. As of Dec. 15, the truck driver was being held in El Paso’s downtown jail on a $75,000 bond. He faces charges of intoxication assault with a motor vehicle.
Texas’ Record on DUI Car Accidents
Those familiar with Texas roadway safety know that, in general, the state does not have an enviable record. Unfortunately, while the issue isn’t as severe as the state’s motorcycle or truck safety shortcomings, Texas’ rate of drunk driving accidents is also poor in comparison to much of the country. It says something about Texas’ safety record that we are ranked as the 11th worst state for drunk driving is a relatively good outcome for the state.
The 11th place ranking is based on calculations that take Texas’ large population into account. Without that control for population, Texas ranks worst in the country for DUI fatalities by far.
According to the Texas Department of Transportation, over the past ten years, DUI related crashes, in general, have stayed relatively stagnant. Despite efforts by government agencies and organizations to curtail drunk driving, drunk driving accidents have hovered just over 24,000, peaking at 25,509 in 2012.
The good news is the fatalities related to these crashes are on the decline. In 2010, there were 1,074 DUI fatalities. In 2019, Texas saw the lowest number of drunk driving fatalities in over ten years with 886 deaths related to DUI accidents.
Of those fatalities, the vast majority affect the DUI drivers themselves. In 2019, drunk drivers accounted for 67% of DUI fatalities, with passengers of non-DUI vehicles making up the next largest group at 15%.
If you or a loved one were involved in an accident caused by a drunk driver, contact the Houston car accident attorneys of Lapeze and Johns, PLLC, to begin seeking the compensation you may be owed.
Source: KVIA
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