A 2014 national study across all states, including Texas, show that most children who die in car accidents are often the victims of drunk driving accidents. Researchers recently wrote about the risks children faced when riding in cars. From 2001 through 2010, they studied traffic safety data across the nation that involved kids under the age of 15 years old that were killed in drunk driving accidents.
Within the research period, there was a 41 percent decrease in the number of children dying from drunk driving accidents. Of the children who were killed in these accidents, over half were actually in the car with the driver who was drunk. Texas and California had the most incidents where a child died while riding in a car with the drunk driver.
The researchers also found that most of the children in the cars with drunk driver did not have their seat-belts properly secured. In addition, one-third of intoxicated drivers did not have valid driver’s licenses. Drunk driving is dangerous and remains the leading risk to children being killed in car accidents.
It is important for states and communities to protect children from drunk driving deaths. The main objective of the study is to raise awareness about the risks of drunk driving and that it is the leading threat in the lives of children. Families can seek financial relief for damages, including medical costs and other losses, through successful litigations in Texas courts. This may help those who have lost children because of drunk driving accidents as they struggle to move forward from an otherwise inconsolable tragedy.
Source: healthcanal.com, “Drunk Driving Remains a Threat to Children in U.S.“, , May 6, 2014