Speed and No Seat Belt Kills Two in Prattville

A speeding driver killed himself and his passenger near Prattville early Thursday morning. The wreck occurred at 2:47am when the driver lost control of the car due to a high rate of speed and slammed into a few power poles. The impact ejected the passenger, who was apparently not wearing a seat belt. Both the driver and passenger were rushed to a local hospital where they were later pronounced dead.

This Prattville tragedy involves two, and possibly three, of the seven DEADLY DRIVING DECISIONS known as D.A.N.G.E.R.S., which cause 99.99% of all road fatalities: Speed, No seat belts, and given the hour, possibly Exhaustion (fatigue). The acronym D.A.N.G.E.R.S. refers to:

Distractions (cell phones, pets, music, putting on make up, eating, etc.)
Alcohol (driving impaired)
No seat belts (failing to buckle up)
Groups (too many passengers)
Exhaustion (driver fatigue)
Riding bumpers (tailgating)
Speed (exceeding the speed limit or failing to slow down due to inclement weather or bad traffic)

This Prattville event is entirely too common in Alabama. Out of the seven D.A.N.G.E.R.S., Speed is one of the most common irresponsible decisions which accounted for more than 30 percent of the traffic fatalities in 2009. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), drivers who speed are 10x more likely to be involved in a fatal car wreck. Nationwide, car wrecks are the NUMBER ONE cause of death for young drivers ages 15-24, claiming over 11,000 lives each year. Most alarmingly, Alabama ranks third worst in the U.S. for traffic fatalities. These traffic fatalities are NOT “accidents”, BUT THEY DO RESULT FROM DECISIONS OR CHOICES MADE BY THE DRIVER AND/OR PASSENGER TO IGNORE THE BASIC SAFETY RULES ABOUT DRIVING.

Fortunately, there is a way to prevent this senseless loss. It is a National Safety Council program called, “Alive at 25” – a course that has proven to be 90% effective in reducing teen traffic fatalities. This course is offered totally free by Mobile attorney Andy Citrin at local schools through the non-profit, Citrin Safety Foundation (“CSF”). Andy is a 25-year veteran and board certified trial lawyer, and he created the CSF after representing thousands of individuals and their families who were injured or even killed by the seven deadly driving decisions or D.A.N.G.E.R.S.

If you would like to make a tax-deductible donation to the Citrin Safety Foundation, or would like the life-saving “Alive at 25” program taught at your school, call Pam Winstead at 251-626-7766 or visit CitrinSafetyFoundation.org. If you or a loved one have been injured in a car, truck or motorcycle wreck as a result of another driver’s choice of D.A.N.G.E.R.S., and you want experienced, passionate, and proven trial lawyers on your side, please call the Citrin Law Firm at 251-621-3000 for a FREE consultation, or complete the Free Case Review form on this page.