Baton Rouge, LA – Three Officers Injured When Alleged Drunk Driver Plows into Previous Crash on I-10
Baton Rouge, LA (August 21, 2021) – Three officers with the Baton Rouge Police Department sustained injuries while investigating a collision on Interstate 10 on Saturday, August 21st when a suspected drunk driver crashed into a previous accident.
The crash took place in the area of College Drive at about 3:00 a.m.
The driver struck two officers standing outside their patrol cars and a patrol car with an officer inside.
One of the officers who was outside his car sustained serious head trauma while the other endured a broken leg. The officer who was inside his vehicle received multiple leg injuries. All three were transported by paramedics to a local hospital.
The driver, 27-year-old Joseph A. White, a resident of Gonzales, was arrested and charged with DWI as well as several counts of negligent injuring, and one count of reckless operation.
His blood-alcohol test came back at more than double the legal limit.
Officers stated that White, in addition to smelling strongly of alcohol, had bloodshot eyes, was slurring his speech, and exhibiting poor balance. He was also charged as a fugitive out of Caddo parish where records show he is wanted on charges of possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia.
Our thoughts are with the injured victims and their families at this time. We hope for their full recovery.
Drunk Driving Accidents in Baton Rouge
According to federal law, drivers with a blood-alcohol content of 0.08% or higher are considered to be driving under the influence. This driving law applies in all 50 states as well as the District of Columbia with the singular exception of Utah that has a maximum blood-alcohol level of 0.04%.
Drunk drivers are the primary factor in about 35% of all fatal automobile accidents nationwide. On any given day, approximately 300,000 drivers on our country’s roadways are under the influence of alcohol with an insufficient 14% ever being arrested.
Our Louisiana personal injury attorneys at Smiley Law Firm genuinely care about the health and welfare of our clients. When an accident caused by another’s negligence causes harm, it is imperative that they reach out to a reliable Baton Rouge car accident attorney as soon as they can.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reported that one person was killed by a drunk driver every 48 minutes in 2017, indicating 10,874 people died in alcohol-related car accidents that year, representing 29% of all traffic fatalities in the United States. These numbers were nearly identical to 2016’s totals, which had not been that low since 1985.
Our Baton Rouge personal injury attorneys are here to support their clients and work to make sure they receive the highest amount of financial compensation possible for their damages.
Similar to other kinds of car crashes, liability on the part of the intoxicated driver has to be established in order for you to obtain financial compensation for your damages. Damages in a drunk driving claim cover both economic and non-economic. Under very particular circumstances, punitive damages may also be sought because the driver showed gross negligence in their decision to drive drunk.
If you were hurt in a car crash, don’t put off getting in touch with our car accident attorneys in Louisiana by calling our offices at 504-688-3494 or 504-822-2222, and schedule a free case review to learn about the legal options you have available.
Note: These posts are constructed with the use of secondary sources. These sources include but are not limited to local and state news stories, local and state police accident reports, social media platforms, and eyewitness accounts about injury accidents that take place in New Orleans and throughout Louisiana. We did not independently verify the fact surrounding this accident. If you locate any information that is inaccurate, please contact our firm and we will correct the post to reflect the most accurate information available. We will also remove this post upon request.
Disclaimer: These posts are created to raise awareness about the dangers of driving in Louisiana. We hope that by casting light on serious accidents like this one, other drivers will take heed, and avoid being seriously injured in a similar accident. This post is not a solicitation for business. The information contained in this post is not intended to be legal or medical advice. The photo used in this post was not taken at the accident scene.
