Every year, more than 300,000 people are injured in accidents caused by drunk drivers, including over 10,000 fatalities each year. Despite efforts to educate and advocate, drunk driving car accidents in Normal remain all too common.
For those who are injured in a wreck caused by a drunk or high driver, an experienced injury lawyer can help by maximizing the value of your claim, reducing your medical bills and liens, and making the process of dealing with insurance companies and their lawyers much easier for you, so you can focus on healing.
Proving Another Driver Was Intoxicated
Operating a car while intoxicated obviously qualifies as a violation of the duty of care every driver owes to other drivers, because impaired driving is a a reckless act that puts other people at risk of injury. Unfortunately, knowing that another driver involved in a collision was drunk and actually proving that they were can be more difficult than it might seem, especially if a responding police officer did not cite or arrest that other driver at the scene for violating state law.
If there is no police report indicating a DUI offense leading up to an auto accident in Normal, there are other pieces of evidence that could help an injured claimant build a case for civil compensation. For example, eyewitness testimony and security camera footage may indicate that a defendant driver was weaving between lanes or not maintaining appropriate distance from another vehicle.
Likewise, bottles in the defendant’s vehicle, receipts from alcohol purchases, and even testimony from servers at nearby restaurants or bars could play a role in proving a drunk driving car crash claim. While it may not be strictly necessary to prove another driver was drunk in order to recover compensation, being able to do so could substantially improve a plaintiff’s chances of a positive case outcome, not to mention maximize the amount of money recovered.
Your Normal injury attorney can also contact the McLean County State’s Attorney to assert your rights as a victim of the crime of drunk driving, and ask the Assistant State’s Attorney, the prosecutor in these cases, to seek a conviction on the drunk driving charge, and make the State’s Attorney’s office aware of the fact that the drunk driver’s misconduct resulted in your injury.
How Could Comparative Fault Impact a DUI Car Wreck Claim?
Even if the at-fault driver in a car wreck in Normal was arrested for drunk driving immediately afterwards, that fact alone does not always prove fault for the collision. For example, if someone driving under the influence collided with a person who ran a red light, the latter driver might bear partial liability for the wreck despite the former’s intoxication.
In this kind of situation, 735 Illinois Compiled Statutes §5/2-1116 allows the court overseeing the case to reduce the plaintiff’s final damage award proportionately by their assigned percentage of fault, or even bar them from recovery altogether if their share of total fault exceeds 50 percent. Assistance from a qualified lawyer can be key not only to proving someone else liable for a drunk driving car crash in Normal, but also to disproving allegations of comparative fault that could otherwise reduce recovery.
Discuss Drunk Driving Car Accident Options with an Attorney in Normal
If you or a loved one were harmed by a drunk driver, please do not hesitate to reach out for a free consultation. We can discuss the details of your case confidentiality, help you identify all potential sources of recovery, discuss your damages with you, and help you understand the potential value of your case. We can also help with gathering evidence needed to prove fault, and advise you of what deadlines, or statute of limitation, applies to your case.
Our team has experience handling cases involving impaired driving and we can help provide answers to your questions, and make the process much easier for you, so you can focus on your recovery.. Learn more by calling today.