Texas has its fair share of accidents where pedestrians are struck by motor vehicles and are either killed or receive serious injuries. This is particularly true on the many sprawling college and university campuses throughout the state. Recently, for example, a female student at UT Arlington was struck by what appears to have been a negligent driver operating a white pickup truck.
The accident occurred at about 5 p.m. in the 500 Block of West Abram Street. The student was attempting to cross Cooper Street at the Abram Street intersection. The pickup turned right onto Cooper from Abram and struck the woman while she was in crosswalk. One witness said that she thought the truck was going to stop, but the driver did not make an attempt to do so.
One witness saw the front end of the truck hit the student and saw her go under the front end and the wheels roll over her. The Arlington police were investigating but had not arrested the driver. The cause of the accident is still under investigation but it appears that the truck operator was not paying full attention when the right turn was made.
Under Texas law, the driver has an obligation to be looking ahead on the road and should be driving carefully enough to avoid hitting a pedestrian in a crosswalk. If the facts hold up as reported, the truck operator would be deemed to be a negligent driver who is liable for any damages caused from the incident. The surviving family of the decedent has a right to bring a claim for damages against the pickup driver. This is generally referred to as a wrongful death claim, which is a civil claim for monetary damages to which the decedent’s heirs and estate may be entitled.
Source: theshorthorn.com, “Student hit, killed by truck at Cooper and Abram intersection“, John Hoang, Nov. 16, 2016