The consequences of drinking and driving in Pennsylvania can be severe. This is true not only in terms of penalties faced by a person who is charged and convicted with a crime such as DUI, but of course in terms of the human cost of lives potentially lost or forever altered by the thoughtless actions of a drunk driver.
A car accident earlier this month took the life of a Harrisburg man and injured three other people. A sedan crossed the center line in the early morning hours of a recent Sunday and collided with another vehicle. The three occupants of the other vehicle were hospitalized as a result of their injuries. The passenger in the sedan, a 26-year-old man, was killed in the accident.
The sedan’s driver, age 30, was expected to be charged with DUI as a result of the crash. He was already awaiting a preliminary hearing on a DUI charge as well as a drug charge and other traffic violations. That hearing had been scheduled for mid-July, but it isn’t clear if it will take place as scheduled. The driver in the sedan was also injured in the crash; he was not wearing a seat belt at the time of the accident.
Because one man died in the accident, it’s conceivable that the driver could be charged with additional serious crimes, such as vehicular homicide. The family of the deceased man also might choose to pursue a wrongful death claim against the driver for the loss of their loved one.
Source: The Sentinel, “DUI charges expected in fatal Dauphin County crash,” June 11, 2014