Another Louisiana teen was cited this past week for careless operation of his vehicle, texting while driving and failing to stop for a school bus. These charges occurred after he caused an accident involving his pickup truck and a school bus on its way to a Calcasieu Parish school.
Louisiana State Police Sgt. James Anderson confirmed the details of the bus accident that occurred on Monday, April 14. It was a 19-year-old boy that was driving the pickup when he crashed into the school bus that had been stopped at the time. Although not officially confirmed, Sgt. Anderson said that it is the department’s belief that his cellphone use was the primary cause of the crash.
Hearing that “an accident was caused by a driver that lost control of his or her vehicle because they were not paying attention to the road ahead while sending a text message” almost seems like white noise at this point. Why bother repeating the message that distracted driving costs lives; don’t people know that by now?
The message has been repeated over and over again, but the accidents continue to occur. Maybe people aren’t listening? Maybe people don’t appreciate the risk? We can’t answer those questions definitively, but there is one message that we can give that bears repeating as well.
That message is that victims that suffer serious injuries as a result of another’s negligent decision to text or talk while driving can file a personal injury lawsuit that will cover associated medical costs, lost wages and even compensation for the pain and suffering they endured as a result.
Source: Insurance Journal, “Louisiana Truck-Bus Crash Caused by Texting, State Police Say,” April 16, 2014
