A wreck between a car and a Ford F-350 pickup truck caused a 4 yr. old Brandon ,MS girl to become paralyzed. The driver of the truck, Tonya Gann, crossed over the centerline hitting the car head-on resulting in Graceyn Thrailkill's spinal cord injury from the waist down. The negligent driver was charged with DUI in the accident. Mrs. Thrailkill was also injured in the accident and had to use a wheelchair for a long time after the accident.
Who has a claim against whom and why? The mom and daughter have a claim against the drunk driver for crossing over the centerline and hitting them head-on. They also have a claim against the bar or package liquor store or grocery store if alcohol were sold to the drunk driver at a time when the driver was visibly intoxicated. They also have a claim against their own insurance company if the drunk driver did not have enough car insurance to cover all of the damages. Mr. Thrailkill has a claim for loss of consortium because of the injuries to his wife.
There may be other avenues of recovery if more facts are known, for example, if someone else owned the truck and let the drunk driver drive the truck knowing that she was drunk, then the owner could be liable for negligent entrustment. Both the owner and driver's car insurance policy should apply to the accident even if the driver was not drunk. Because of the severity of the injuries and the lifetime medical care and costs that is going to be required, one should look very hard at all areas of recovery. A MS Accident Lawyer should be consulted to review this case in detail.
