Flat Tire Leads to Homicide Plea in Fatal Accident in Louisiana

A man was traveling north on U.S. 171 last April when he got flat tire on the Calcasieu River Bridge. At the same time, another vehicle was also traveling north on U.S. 171 heading toward the man and his disabled vehicle. The woman driving that car ended up slamming into the disabled car killing the man and his daughter who was only 13 years old at the time of the fatal accident.
Now, a little more than a year later, the woman driving the car has pleaded guilty to vehicular homicide and negligent injuring in connection with the deaths of the father and daughter. Louisiana authorities discovered that the woman had taken a number of drugs on the day of the accident. It is believed that due to this drug use, she was impaired when she struck the man’s car.
The entered her plea just a week before she was to go to trial. Her sentencing has been scheduled for July 26. It is not known whether the victims’ family will be present at that sentencing.
This fatal accident may serve as a reminder to Louisiana drivers just how fragile life is and how quickly things can change. This family didn’t only lose one member that day, but two. The young girl that was killed will never get a chance to grow up, and her family will never know the kind of woman she would have become. The victims’ family may be able to gain their own sense of justice by filing wrongful death claims against the woman who has now admitted to taking their lives.