Many clients who visit a personal injury attorney do so after being injured in a car crash, and drunk driving is a major cause of car crashes. From the perspective of personal injury law, plaintiffs injured by drunk drivers have a strong case because drunk driving is an obvious instance of negligence.
Drunk Driving in North Dakota
Drunk driving is a serious problem in North Dakota. Out of all 50 states, North Dakota has the highest percentage of drunk driving involvement in fatal traffic crashes. 41% of fatal traffic crashes in North Dakota involve one or more drivers driving under the influence. In more than three quarters of North Dakota’s fatal crashes involving a drunk driver, the drunk driver had a blood alcohol content (BAC) of 0.15 or higher, which is nearly twice the legal limit.
Perhaps rather surprisingly, beer is the alcoholic beverage implicated in many of North Dakota’s catastrophic drunk driving crashes. According to the Beer Institute, North Dakota and Texas, two of the states with the highest beer consumption per capita, also have some of the highest rates of traffic fatalities. Beer has lower alcohol content by volume than wine or liquors but any type of alcoholic beverage, if consumed in sufficient amounts, can increase the risk of car crashes and injuries.
Personal Injury Lawsuits and Drunk Driving
Driving under the influence of alcohol is illegal in North Dakota, as it is in every state, so someone who gets caught driving drunk can face criminal charges even if he or she does not cause a crash, and even if that crash does not cause injuries. Meanwhile, a person injured in a crash accident involving a drunk driver can file a personal injury lawsuit related to injuries arising from the crash. The DUI case is a criminal case, separate from the personal injury case, which is a civil lawsuit.
Contact O’Keeffe O’Brien Lyson Attorneys About Car Crash Injury Cases
Our attorneys have experience representing plaintiffs injured in car crashes in North Dakota and Minnesota. We can help you recover damages related to your injuries in car crash with a drunk driver. If you have been injured in a car crash involving a drunk driver, you should contact a car crash attorney licensed in North Dakota and Minnesota, such as Tim O’Keeffe, Tatum O’Brien, or Sara Monson. Contact O’Keeffe O’Brien Lyson Attorneys in Fargo, North Dakota or call 701-235-8000 or 877-235-8002 for a consultation.
