Fatal Accident Takes the Life of Georgia Accident

A Georgia woman and her friend were out for a walk on the sidewalk along Steam Mill Road in Columbus when a Muscogee district pickup truck left the road and struck the two women. Columbus police are investigating the accident. What started out as part of a daily exercise routine ended in a tragic, fatal accident.

The Georgia woman and her friend were part of a group of 10 to 12 women who meet during the weekdays to walk. Not everyone participates on the weekends, so these two women were on their own on the day of the accident. Investigators did not indicate what caused the driver of the pickup truck to leave the road and hit the women.

What is known is that the impact of the crash was severe enough that one of the women was killed as a result of the injuries that she suffered. The other woman was injured as well and remains hospitalized. The extent of her injuries and her current condition are unknown. As friends and family of these two women struggle to make sense of this tragedy, authorities will need to determine what charges, if any, will be filed against the driver of the pickup truck.

Regardless of whether there are any criminal charges filed, the family of the deceased woman and the injured woman have the right to file civil actions in connection with this fatal accident against the driver and the school district. No amount of money can help the deceased woman’s family recover from her loss or help the hospitalized woman recover from her injuries. However, successfully litigated claims can help these two families recover from the financial impact that inevitably follows such a tragedy. Medical bills, funeral costs and lost wages are only some of the expenses that may be recovered through either a wrongful death claim or personal injury claim, in addition to other damages allowable under our state laws that the court may feel are appropriate. To prevail, the families will need to establish by competent proof that the accident was caused by the negligence of the truck driver.

Source: Columbus Ledger Enquirer, “UPDATE: School district truck on sidewalk struck woman in fatal Saturday pedestrian accident,” Tim Chitwood, Dec. 17, 2012