Car accidents are a common occurrence in Las Vegas and throughout Nevada. Car accidents frequently result in personal injury issues that require car accident victims to seek compensation in court. There are many contributing factors to car accidents in the Las Vegas area, including driver distraction, reckless driving and intoxication. Any car accident can result in a lengthy civil litigation involving insurers and criminal litigation against the driver who caused the accident.
Although a car accident caused by a drunk driver is a fairly common occurrence, a car accident caused by a police officer is highly unusual and unfortunate. The trial of one local police officer accused of causing a car accident began this Wednesday. Prosecutors allege that the former police officer pursued a high speed car chase of a drunk driver despite his sergeant’s orders. The chase led to a car crash that killed the drunk driver and caused severe personal injuries to another driver according to ABC 8-News.
There is evidence that the officer continued the chase and hit the suspected drunk driver’s car. Authorities allege that the driver was under the influence of both drugs and alcohol during the chase and the metro police sergeant in charge of the incident decided to call off the chase because the driver was endangering other drivers by driving into oncoming traffic.
The police officer hit the drunk driver’s car and caused it to spin into oncoming traffic. The ensuing accident killed the drunk driver and caused another driver to suffer a smashed elbow and a punctured lung, among other injuries. The officer now faces two felony counts of reckless driving. A verdict in the trial is expected shortly.
Source: ABC 8-News, “Trial Starts for Former Officer Involved in Fatal Crash,” Nathan Baca, 5/19/11