Driver Who Killed Mother and Daughter in Suffolk Was Texting, Say Police

Distracted Driving Awareness Month has come to a close with a stark reminder of the horrific consequences of texting behind the wheel.

April was designated Distracted Driving Awareness Month and Cooper Hurley Injury Lawyers wrote a series of articles and filmed videos on the issue.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says that at any given time in America about 660,000 drivers are using cellphones or other devices. Distracted driving has become an epidemic that killed 3,154 people in 2013 and injured as many as 424,000, according to NHTSA.

It now appears that a man who was involved in an accident in February that killed two women in Suffolk may have been texting, according to a WAVY.com article. WAVY reported on how Suffolk police have arrested a Windsor man over the vehicle crash in February that killed a mother and daughter.

Police say the 26-year-old was allegedly texting while driving when his minivan crashed into a car on Whaleyville Boulevard in Suffolk on February. Teresa Brooks Brown, 60, and her mother Bernice Ping Brooks, 84, both from Colerain, North Carolina, were killed in the crash.

WAVY reported that the minivan driver has been charged with texting while driving, possession or distribution of drug paraphernalia, failing to obey highway marking, driving while intoxicated, possession of a gun and schedule I-II drug, possession of heroin and two counts of aggravated involuntary manslaughter.

He is being held without bond at Western Tidewater Regional Jail. This was a very tragic accident and my thoughts are with the family of the deceased.

If you lose a loved one due to a driver who is texting, you have a strong case to file a wrongful death claim. If you lose a loved one in an accident in which alcohol is a factor, Virginia law allows additional damages (known as punitive damages) on some occasions.

Our website sets out the circumstances in which you can claim additional damages if a driver is drunk in Virginia. Generally, the Commonwealth of Virginia allows drunk driving victims to recover punitive damages if a drunk driver refused to take a BAC test, or if they had a BAC of .15% or above. These damages are intended to punish a drunk driver for his or her actions.

Here are some tips to avoid distracted driving.

1 – Unplug.

Keep your phone in an accessible place but not one in which you can see it light up when messages are received. Put your phone in silent mode so as it is not a distraction. If you need to make an important call, pull over to a safe place.

2 Focus on the Road

Distracted driving is not just about devices. A recent French study, referenced in the Huffington Post, suggested as many as 50 percent of distracted driving crashes were caused by wandering minds. Only drive when you are alert and fit to do so.

3 Program Your GPS before you leave.

A GPS can be a major distraction. Set your route before you start driving and don’t look at your GPS when you are on the road. If you have a passenger, get them to help you with directions or change the radio station.

4 Secure Your Cargo

There are few things more distracting than items that are sliding around. Secure these before you leave and never place items on your lap or near the driving controls.

If you have been injured in an accident involving a distracted driver or if you have lost a loved one, call Cooper Hurley Lawyers for a free consultation. We take on cases in Virginia and North Carolina and can come to you.