Last week, a 12-year-old boy was playing football with his friends when he was struck and killed by a car that was drag racing. According to The Tampa Tribune, the boy was getting his ball from the street when two cars sped by, one of which struck him. One of the cars sped away from the scene. The boy was airlifted to a local hospital, where he died a few days later.
Cases like this are especially tragic because of the extremely reckless nature of the events surrounding the death of the victim. In the majority of wrongful death cases, the wrongful party may be at fault, but that doesn’t mean that there is a more intentional or reckless act involved, such as there is with street racing. When it comes to street racing, there is a reckless disregard for other drivers on the road and pedestrians, all for the need to drive fast and impress others.
Like nearly everywhere in the US, drag racing is highly illegal in Florida and can result in heavy fines, jail time and even the loss of someone’s license. The reason why is that it is so inherently dangerous to other people using public roads, and even the drag racers themselves, that there is really no justification for it. Innocent people are killed as a result of drag racing, in especially senseless and tragic deaths.
Reckless driving related to criminal actions such as drag racing or drunk driving can cause especially painful consequences for the family of wrongful death victims because there is more of a purposeful nature behind these accidents. These are not tragic events causes by someone making a mistake such as not seeing another car stop in front of them or even being tired while driving after working a night shift. Instead, reckless driving such as the Miami Gardens drag racing accident are the result of someone getting behind the wheel while knowing they are doing something dangerous, and just not caring about the consequences and what other people may be affected by one’s actions.
There are extra damages that can be awarded in especially egregious acts such as reckless driving, for example, drink driving or drag racing. Besides the heavy criminal penalties that a driver will face when they cause the death of someone due to their reckless driving, a plaintiff in such as case will most likely be awarded higher punitive damages in a wrongful death claim such as this because of the reckless disregard of the driver for human life.
If you or a loved one has been involved in an accident where the other driver acted especially recklessly, such as a case of drag racing or drinking and driving, your life may be turned upside down. Besides the heavy emotional toll such an accident pays to a victim and their family, there are heavy financial consequences for someone that is an innocent victim such as lost pay due to not being able to work, high medical bills and having to pay for replacement services such as house cleaning or pet walking. Hiring a lawyer right away will help you get justice for such an accident. Call the Brooks Law Group at 1-888-WE-MEAN-IT to schedule your free consultation.
