An early morning collision in New Orleans claimed one life and sent another person to the hospital in critical condition. The deceased party was the driver of a vehicle that was traveling the wrong way on Pontchartrain Expressway. That individual crashed their car into another vehicle in a head-on collision that caused serious injuries to the other driver.
The injured victim in this story was taken to University Medical Center where their current status is unknown. As they fight to recover, their accident-related costs will likely mount as their medical bills add up and their income diminishes from being out of work.
This story is both tragic and interesting when considered from the perspective of liability and one’s right to recover from a negligent or reckless party’s actions. In the present case it appears that the deceased individual’s actions caused the crash: that person operated their motor vehicle on the wrong side of a busy throughway and collided with a car that appears to have been operating according to the rules of the road. However, readers may question if a victim can still recover their damages if the person who harmed them dies.
The short answer is yes, but the victim should not wait to take legal action. As a deceased person’s assets will be amassed into their estate for probate and disposition the victim would want their claim to damages included in the estate distribution process. Whether the injured victim in this story will take this action is unknown but readers who have questions about suing estates for personal injury damages may wish to consult with their attorneys about these specialized cases.
