14-year-old boy injured in fatal New York car accident

A young man was injured in the accident that killed the other two occupants of the vehicle he was riding in on Sept. 15, according to local law enforcement.  New York police responded to the single-car accident that destroyed the car they were riding in.  The driver was killed in the incident, so no criminal charges will be forthcoming, but civil suits may be a possibility. 

The accident record states the 20-year-old male driver may have been speeding when attempting to overtake and pass another vehicle on Belt Parkway in Queens.  When the driver attempted to correct and return to his original lane in order to exit the parkway, he lost control of the vehicle.  The car left the road, entered the shoulder and struck a light pole and a tree.  

The force of the impact killed the driver outright and seriously injured the 19-year-old passenger, who was rushed to a local hospital by arriving medical personnel.  He was pronounced dead later in the day.  The 14-year-old passenger suffered a leg injury and was also transported to a hospital, where he is expected to make a full recovery.  

This tragic New York car accident is made all the more so by the fact that, based on preliminary reports, it could have been avoided.  If the evidence indicates that the driver was speeding at the time of the accident, he could be held posthumously responsible for the accident, in which case the family of the deceased passenger and the family of the injured minor passenger would both be entitled to file civil suits against the driver’s estate and any other owners of the vehicle.  Such suits would require appropriate evidence to prove the driver’s culpability.  

Source: CBS New York, “2 Dead, 14-Year-Old Boy Injured In Belt Parkway Crash“, , Sept. 19, 2014