Drivers who operate their vehicles on the roads of Tennessee in a state of alcohol intoxication or other chemical impairment are among the most serious hazards presented on the highway. Drivers whose abilities have been influenced by drugs or drinking are responsible for a large number of injuries and fatalities across the United States every day. In fact, according to one authoritative estimate, almost 30 people are killed in alcohol-related traffic accidents every day.
This amounts to more than 10,000 fatalities in the average year. The collective costs associated with such accidents reach approximately $59 billion every year.
In addition, about 20 percent of the children under the age of 14 who die on the roads in an average year are killed in an accident involving alcohol. About half of these children were riding in the car with the intoxicated individual behind the wheel.
Those who have been hurt in a car accident involving an intoxicated driver may wish to pursue legal redress for their injuries and compensation for the economic harm that has been done to them. Driving while under the influence of alcohol is a serious violation of the law in the state of Tennessee, and the state will prosecute when there is evidence that such a crime has been committed. This criminal prosecution would be carried out separately from any personal injury suit that may be pending against an allegedly intoxicated driver, as the lawsuit would be a civil action. However, any information that enters the public record at a criminal trial may be used by the plaintiff in a civil case. An attorney may be able to assist with filing a lawsuit and assembling the necessary evidence for presentation to the defendant, their representatives and the court.
Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “Impaired Driving: Get the Facts“, January 03, 2015