According to the Killeen Daily News, a 50-year-old retired soldier is on trial in Texas for killing a motorcycle rider when driving home drunk. The driver was reportedly traveling westbound on Westcliff road at the time when he struck and killed the 47-year-old motorcyclist.  He reportedly hit the motorcycle from the rear, near where the road intersected with Beta Circle. The motorist was reportedly intoxicated at the time and fled the scene of the accident.

Our San Antonio motorcycle accident lawyers know that motorcycle riders are at serious risk on the roads, accounting for 13 percent of highway deaths despite representing only three percent of drivers on the nation’s roadways. In fact, as the National Transportation Safety Board reported, an average of 12 motorcycle riders are killed every day. Tragically, this recent accident fits the pattern of so many motorcycle crashes, which are often caused by motorists in passenger cars.

Motorcycle Riders at Risk

The Killeen Daily News reports that the rider was thrown from his motorcycle after being struck by the car.  The motorcyclist was thrown onto the windshield of the Toyota Camry.

Instead of stopping to help the injured motorcycle rider, who suffered a serious brain injury, the driver drove off in his Toyota Camry and went home to his back yard where his wife reportedly found him drinking heavily. The man claims his post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) activated his fight-or-flight response and caused him to leave the scene of the accident. However, this is not a valid excuse for fleeing the scene of a crash, and the evidence that the motorist left the scene will be used against him in trial.

Other evidence linking the motorcyclist to the crash includes DNA lab tests and blood samples on the windshield of the Camry. The fact that the motorcyclist was thrown onto the windshield thus was a major contributing factor in his death and will also potentially be useful in helping to bring his alleged killer to justice.

Unfortunately, motorcycle accidents like this are far too common. While drunken driving significantly increases the chance of any type of accident occurring, motorcyclists are far more likely to die when hit by a drunk driver than those in other passenger vehicles.

The accident was also a rear-end crash, and rear-end accidents are another very common cause of both fatal and serious injury crashes that harm motorcyclists. Motorcycle riders may be especially likely to become involved in tailgating accidents because drivers often don’t give riders sufficient space, misjudge the speed that motorcyclists are going, or fail to understand the impact that a change in road conditions can have on a motorcycle rider.  When drivers tailgate or follow too closely behind a motorcyclist, they can be held responsible if their actions cause an accident. This is true even when the motorist is completely sober, too, if he or she has behaved in a careless or unsafe way that puts the motorcyclists life in jeopardy.

If you’ve been injured in an accident, contact the Herrera Law Firm at 800-455-1054 for a free case evaluation.