Personal Injury Law

Driver Cited with DWI After Serious Car Accident Near Kansas City

By Ryan Bradley, Esq.

Chensen Sauder, 28, was seriously injured early Saturday morning when her 2000 Pontiac was hit by a 1999 Cadillac, driven by Jacob Peterson, 19, on I-29 north of Kansas City.

Peterson was cited for driving while intoxicated and a lane violation, according to the Highway Patrol.

The investigating officer said Peterson?s vehicle was traveling north on I-29 when it crossed over into the oncoming southbound lanes and struck Sauder?s vehicle.

Sauder was taken to North Kansas City Hospital with serious injuries and an unidentified passenger was taken to Children?s Mercy with minor injuries. Peterson was not injured, according to the Highway Patrol.

A DWI conviction constitutes per se negligence. Negligence per se is a legal doctrine which states an act is deemed negligent if it violates a statute or regulation designed to keep people safe and is the cause of the injury. In this case, the regulation violated would be the laws against drunk driving. If a personal injury lawsuit were to follow, the lawyer would need to prove the violation of this statute contributed to cause the accident.

If you are injured in an accident with a drunk driver, even if you were partially at fault, you may be able to recover some of your damages because of the comparative negligence system. With comparative fault, a judge or jury will determine a proportion of fault for every party involved in an accident and damages will be paid based on this proportion. Every state has different rules about handling this type of proportional negligence. Missouri follows a pure comparative negligence system, which recently underwent some significant legislative changes.

In some situations, if a bar or tavern served alcohol to a driver who subsequently hurts another motorist, that bar can be held liable under Missouri's dram shop laws. However, the Missouri legislature has significantly limited these causes of action, commonly referred to as "Dram Shop" liability. In Missouri, bars are only liable for injury or death caused by a drunk driver if the bar knew or should have known that alcohol was served to a person under the age of 21 or was served to a visibly intoxicated person. The facts of each case must be evaluated to determine if Missouri will impose dram shop liability upon a bar.

There are many avenues to pursue if you are involved in an accident with a drunk driver and need help paying personal injury expenses. Contacting a personal injury lawyer as soon as possible after your incident will ensure your legal rights are protected.

The Bradley Law Firm has handled Missouri dram shop cases and has significant experience litigating personal injury claims over the last 30 years. Contact us for a free consultation.

Full post as published by Missouri Accident Lawyer Blog on June 16, 2008 (boomark / email).