Michigan Injury Lawyer BlogUnderstanding how comparative negligence may affect your Lansing accident claim
Lansing, MI – A 43-year-old Mulliken man was killed earlier this month after crashing into a car driven by a 17-year-old girl in Eagle Township. However, according to the Clinton County Sheriff’s Office, neither of them was in fact responsible for the tragedy. The accident was caused by a 76-year-old Eagle drunk driver who escaped unscathed.
It seems that the drunk driver was negligent while making a turn in front of the car driven by Livingston Thompson, who was driving east on West State Road, approaching South Grange Road. Thompson was forced to swerve to avoid a crash. He crossed the center line and couldn’t avoid a head-on collision with the westbound car driven by the girl. The man was pronounced dead at the scene. The teenage driver appeared unharmed, but she was taken to the ER by her mother as a precaution.
The old man was arrested for drunk driving and he may face vehicular manslaughter charges. Irrespective of that, the family of the deceased and the young girl will have to file civil claims to recover damages for the accident, and this is where comparative negligence comes in.