Boston Drunk Driving Accident Lawyer Blog
Zombies may be on their second life, but at least one in New York is unlikely to get a another break from the judge.
According to recent article from ABC Eyewitness News, police in New York arrested the same woman, dressed as a zombie, twice in the same night for the same offense – drunk driving.
Authorities reported the 26-year-old driver was pulled over by police for driving without headlights on her way home from a local Halloween party. During this arrest, she is alleged to have tested at 0.11 percent blood-alcohol content (BAC) on a breath test machine.
After being processed and then released from the police station, a friend picked her up to take her home. About three hours later, she was pulled over a second time. This time she allegedly blew a .09 percent BAC, which is still over the legal limit of .08 grams of ethanol per 100 milliliters of blood.
Police have also reported that she has two prior alcohol-related arrests on her record. The earlier charges were reduced to impaired driving, so she was able to keep her driver’s license. The local chief of police expressed concern over the situation, and grappled with the question of] why people will continue to engage in such risky behavior when the consequences are so high.
As Boston attorneys who represent victims of drunk driving , we understand that many people who have been previously convicted of this offense do not learn their lesson until it is too late. It takes a tragedy to open their eyes.
Rarely does someone who crashes while driving drunk set out to do so. But the fact is, drunk driving is a form of negligence. It’s dangerous to all those who share the roads and sidewalks across the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. When a driver gets behind the wheel of a car, he or she has a duty imposed by law to act in a reasonable and prudent manner to prevent foreseeable harm to foreseeable persons and property.
Driving drunk is a clear breach of this duty of care, and can be used to establish a case of negligence in the event of a crash resulting in injury.
Duty and breach are two of the four elements necessary to win a car accident lawsuit under a theory of negligence. The next two elements are causation and damages.
Causation involves both actual and proximate causation of the accident. Actual causation means that the accident would not have occurred “but for” negligent conduct of defendant. Proximate causation means that it was close enough in time to be responsible for the car accident.
Proximate causation can play a role in some cases when there is an accident somewhat removed in time.
For example, let’s say a drunk driver hits a pedestrian and the pedestrian suffers serious injury. The pedestrian is transported to the hospital, where a doctor negligently provides care, causing further injury to the person. In these situations, the drunk driver (and/or his insurance company) can be responsible for the injury caused by medical negligence. The reason is that “but for” the DUI crash, the person would not have required medical attention in the first place.
These types of legal questions are best answered by a jury. Our accident attorneys are committed to providing our clients with top-notch legal representation at every phase of proceedings.
If you have been injured in a Boston drunk driving accident, call for a free and confidential appointment at (617) 777-7777.
Additional Resources:
ZOMBIE DWI: Woman arrested for two drunk driving offenses in same night, October 29, 2014, ABC Eyewitness News
More Blog Entries:
Alleged Drunk Driver Crashes into Saugus Massachusetts Home, Aug. 21, 2014, Boston Drunk Driving Accident Lawyer Blog