Danya Minter, 43, of Lubbock, was killed Friday when a vehicle in which she was a passenger ran a red light was was t-boned. Police say that Minter was a passenger in a 1994 Pontiac Bonneville, which was travelling eastbound on Slaton Highway 84 when it ran a red light at the 6200 block of the I-27 frontage road. A 2005 Chevy Silverado pickup was travelling northbound on that road and t-boned the Pontiac. The driver of the Pontiac suffered moderate injuries, and Minter suffered life-threatening injuries. They were transported to UMC where Minter later died. The driver of the Silverado was uninjured.
In trajic cases like these, an injured passenger or the family of a deceased passenger would have a claim against the driver of the vehicle the passenger was in. In fact, in almost any crash, injured passenger almost always have a claim against someone because the driver of their vehicle owes the passengers a duty to drive safely. Because nearly all car crashes are the fault of one or more drivers, passengers usually have a claim available against the driver or drivers who are at fault. In this case, Minter’s driver had a common law and statutory duty to stop at the red light, and when the driver ran the red light, they breached that duty.
If you or a loved was has been injured or killed, call us today to speak with an attorney to explore your legal rights. It’s never too early to talk to an attorney; it’s always too late.