A two car crash in downtown Sacramento caused multiple deaths and harmful injury.

California – November 12, 2021

An accident resulting in catastrophic and fatal injuries was under investigation earlier this month after a multi-vehicle crash in downtown Sacramento. The Sacramento Police Department reported that two vehicles were involved in the collision and five people were transported to the hospital with injuries. One person succumbed to fatal injury at the scene and the Sacramento Fire Department reported that one of the five other people hospitalized suffered critical injuries which became fatal, two suffered major injuries, and the other two suffered moderate injuries. A California personal injury attorney can answer accident victim’s questions regarding damage recovery options.

Car Insurance and liability.

Car insurance is a requirement for California drivers and provides a means to cover costs related to harmful losses resulting from a car accident. California law recognizes responsibility for any part of negligent acts that lead to injury of another person, and insurance compensation is adjusted in accordance with the percentage of fault assigned to each driver. A Sacramento injury lawyer can assist victims with the valuation of damages after an accident that will usually include economic, non-economic damages and can file insurance claims to expedite funds for unexpected funeral and burial costs. There are rare instances when punitive damages are awarded and an accident attorney can explain the possibility of punitive damages for individual cases when DUI, or other proven negligence results in fatal injury.

Criminal charges may impact damage award.

Criminal charges range from misdemeanors to felony offenses, and penalties for impaired, distracted, or reckless driving can include driver’s license revocation, fines, and jail time. Insurance companies may take an arrest for a criminal offense causing a car accident into consideration before paying out any claims for accident victims. Consultation with experienced car accident attorneys is a prudent option to make certain that all avenues of fiscal recovery are addressed.

Wrongful death.

A wrongful death legal action can be filed in court when a person dies because of the negligent, reckless, or deliberate act of another. Only certain people are allowed to file a wrongful death lawsuit in California. The wrongful death statute specifically allows the following parties to bring a wrongful death claim:

the deceased person’s surviving spouse,
the deceased person’s domestic partner,
the deceased person’ s surviving children,
if there is no surviving person in the deceased person’s line of descent, then a wrongful death lawsuit may be brought by anyone “who would be entitled to the property of the decedent by intestate succession”; that can include the deceased person’s parents, or the deceased person’s siblings, depending on who is living at the time of the deceased person’s death.

Damages in these lawsuits can include:

Medical bills and burial expenses,
Compensation for lost wages,
Compensation for pain and suffering,
Punitive damages that are intended to punish the person who caused the death.

Hire an attorney.

Seek legal counsel with an experienced car accident attorney in Sacramento immediately after an auto accident causes fatality or harmful injury to yourself or a loved one. They may provide guidance in the recovery of damages that may include hospital and medical bills, future lost wages, property damages, and pain and suffering. California car accident attorneys will assist with the completion of insurance and legal documents toward the recovery of damages on behalf of victims and surviving loved ones.

Sources.

https://sacramento.cbslocal.com/2021/11/01/downtown-sacramento-2-killed-crash/

https://www.dmv.ca.gov/portal/vehicle-registration/insurance-requirements/

https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=201520160AB1785