When police arrive at the scene of an accident, the mechanics of what happened may not take much investigation to determine. For instance, in a head-on collision, it would normally be obvious that one vehicle was headed in the wrong direction and crashed into another vehicle. However, determining how the wrong-way vehicle ended up in the oncoming lane of travel may take further investigation.
Troopers with the Ohio State Highway Patrol recently responded to a two-vehicle crash on State Route 2. It was not difficult to determine that shortly before 11:20 p.m. on that Friday night, one vehicle was headed westbound in the eastbound lanes. At the same time, another vehicle was headed eastbound in the correct lanes.
The two vehicles collided on a bridge. The 82-year-old driver of the wrong-way vehicle died at the scene. The 17-year-old driver and his 18-year-old passenger in the other vehicle survived, but suffered what were referred to as incapacitating injuries for which they were transported to an area hospital for treatment. While police may know how the crash occurred, they were still attempting to determine why it occurred at last report.
That information may not be necessary for any personal injury claims filed against the estate of the wrong-way driver in an Ohio civil court. However, it could help the victims and their families obtain some closure regarding how they ended up in this position in the first place. The information would also help establish negligence on the part of the deceased driver as the victims and their families pursue restitution for the financial losses incurred as a result of this head-on collision.
