Teen Passenger from Virginia Beach, VA, is killed After Driver Loses Control

By John Cooper, Norfolk, VA Accident Injury Attorney

A 17-year-old from Virginia Beach, VA who was the passenger in a car that police tried to stop, has died in Charles City County.

The teenager died on Dec. 10, 2011, on Va. 106 in Charles City County, just south of south of Va. 617, the Virginian-Pilot reported.

The 17-year-old, was a passenger in an Audi that fled from a Charles City County sheriff’s deputy who tried to stop the car for reckless driving, a news release from Virginia Beach police stated.

It appears the 21-year-old driver of the Audi then lost control of the car, ran off the left side of the roadway and smashed into several trees.

Police said both alcohol and speed are considered factors in the crash. The driver suffered serious, life threatening injuries, according to police.

As an experienced car injury accident attorney I see many fatal accidents caused by excessive speed or alcohol, as well as a combination on both.

Teenagers appear to be particularly vulnerable to the temptations of alcohol and speed. In March, 2010, a 16-year-old varsity baseball player at Kempsville High School, was killed on Avalon Avenue in Virginia Beach, VA.

The victim was the passenger in a 1999 Oldsmobile driven by another 16-year-old. Police charged the teen driver with DUI and involuntary manslaughter, the Daily Press reported.

Recently we reported on a crash that claimed the lives of two Christopher Newport University students in Newport News. In this case a wrong way driver was charged with DUI.

Teens are about four times more likely to be involved in car accidents than adults, according to a recent study by the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. And road crashes are the largest cause of deaths among adolescents.

If a passenger in a car is killed by the reckless driving of the driver or alcohol is involved, his or her family could have a case for a wrongful death lawsuit.

The Norfolk based personal injury law firm, Cooper Hurley, handles automobile, truck, and motorcycle injuries. John Cooper and Jim Hurley have over 40 years of combined experience in handling auto injury accident claims. Attorney John Cooper has been named to Virginia “Super Lawyers” since 2010. Cooper Hurley represents people hurt in accidents in Norfolk, Virginia Beach, Portsmouth, Suffolk, Chesapeake, Hampton, Newport News and throughout VA, and always put the best interests of the our clients first.. The firm is recognized by other lawyers as “AV” by Martindale-Hubbell, a national attorney rating service, for our top level of legal skill and highest ethical standards. If you need help or advice about a serious injury, please call us ( 757) 455 -0077 or contact through this website.