Car accidents: High speed driving kills 1 teen, injures 2

Teenagers, parties and speeding motor vehicles can be deadly combinations. Too many Missouri teenagers die in car accidents that occur after parties. In many such incidents, it is the passengers who suffer the most severe injuries — or lose their lives.

A 17-year-old girl died in a single-vehicle crash on a recent Friday evening. A girlfriend says the girl left a party in Blue Springs shortly before midnight. She got into a car with two other teens and said she’d be right back. The two friends were texting, and when the girl in the car stopped responding, her friend realized that something had happened.

A report by the Missouri State Highway Patrol says the crash occurred in Lee’s Summit when a 17-year-old boy lost control of the vehicle. The car crashed into the guardrail and flipped over. All three occupants of the vehicle were ejected. The driver and another 18-year-old male suffered serious injuries, and the girl lost her life.

Officers reported that a high rate of speed caused the driver to lose control. To obtain financial relief for medical or end-of-life expenses, injured victims of Missouri car accidents — or the surviving families of those who lost their lives — may pursue financial relief through the judicial system. Personal injury or wrongful death claims may be filed in a civil court against the person deemed responsible, even if that person was the driver of the vehicle in which the victims were passengers. However, before the court considers the entry of a monetary judgment, negligence must be established. Financial and emotional losses may form part of a documented list of claims for the consideration of the court.

Source: fox4kc.com, “Blue Springs crash leaves teen dead, 2 injured“, Molly Balkenbush, Jan. 23, 2016