A woman is facing serious charges in Louisiana following a fatal car accident in Iberville Parish. The 27-year-old woman is set to be charged with negligent homicide as well as several other charges after an accident she is believed to have caused claimed the life of a child and injured several other people. It is unknown whether she has sought criminal defense representation at this time.
According to the accident report, the woman was traveling southbound on LA 75 when the accident occurred. She was transporting seven children, including a 9-year-old girl, in her SUV, as well as another adult. At the same time, a 34-year-old woman was also traveling south and was attempting to pull left into a driveway.
At this point the accused woman is alleged to have attempted to pass the other vehicle in a no-passing zone, causing her SUV to strike the front driver’s side of the left-turning car. The force of the impact flipped her vehicle, ejecting the 9-year-old girl. The child was apparently not wearing a seat belt and was pronounced dead at the scene. The other passengers and the driver were taken to local hospitals with conditions reported from stable to severe.
Thankfully, the driver and passengers in the other vehicle were wearing seat belts at the time and were not injured. Before any conviction can occur, Louisiana prosecutors will have to prove that the accused driver is guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. That is a legal standard that is exceedingly difficult to meet. The criminal defense will surely focus on both the factual accusations and the arrest procedures in order to identify appropriate issues to raise before the court.
Source: ksla.com, “Driver to face charges after crash kills child, injures her and 7 others”, Elizabeth Vowell, June 28, 2016