Mother and Daughter Are Killed in Head-On Crash on Whaleyville Boulevard in Suffolk

I was saddened to read about the deaths of a mother and daughter in a crash in Suffolk, Virginia close to the North Carolina border.

Teresa Brooks Brown, 60, and Bernice Ping Brooks, 84, from Colerain, North Carolina, were killed when a minivan struck their PT Cruiser just after 8 a.m. in the 8700 block of Whaleyville Blvd., near the North Carolina line.

Mrs. Brown was reported to be the driver of the PT Cruiser. Police said the driver of the minivan, who was badly injured in the accident, was to blame and that charges are pending.

Few details are available about this crash but we know it was a head-on collision. It’s tragic that a family was wiped out by what may have been a lapse of concentration by another driver and my thoughts are with the families of Ms. Brown and Ms. Brooks.

As a personal injury lawyer who is licensed in North Carolina and Virginia, I have dealt with many wrongful death cases which involve the laws of two states.

The TV station WAVY.com reported on how the accident occurred outside a home on Whaleyville Boulevard in Suffolk. The homeowner, GC Branton, told TV reporters he was sitting at home when he heard the crash. He called 911 and then ran out to help.

“You could tell that the cars did not hit solidly dead on, but it was so crushed in that you could tell it was a bad accident,” he told WAVY.com.

Rural roads such as those in Suffolk and over the North Carolina border in Gates County, have a bad accident record and head-on collisions are more likely on narrower roads. It’s important to drive carefully on such roads and keep your speed down, especially at night.

If you have lost a loved one in an auto accident due to the fault of another driver, you may have grounds to file a wrongful death lawsuit against the insurance policy of the at-fault driver.

Every year lives are lost in Hampton Roads due to the fault of inattentive, tired, speeding, distracted or drunk drivers. These deaths are so avoidable and unnecessary. All cases are different and we cannot guarantee the same result in your case, but last year we settled the case in which a van driver was hit and killed by a truck driver who may have been suffering from sleep apnea, for $1.5 million. If you have lost a loved one in Virginia or North Carolina, you should call me for a free consultation at 757.455.0077.