Seventeen year-old Laura F. was killed by repeat DWI offender H.P. A new law named after Laura, signed by Governor Bev Perdue, has brought about tougher punishments for those now charged with DWI. Laura F.'s mother, M.A., is now continuing her fight by filing a wrongful death suit against H.P., as reported by WBTV.
Laura F. was killed in July of 2010 as she rode in the front passenger seat of an Oldsmobile driven by V.E.I., 19. Both V.E.I., and rear seat passenger, E.G., 17, survived the crash.
H.P. was found to have been driving under the influence. In his plea agreement he was sentenced to 21 to 28 years in prison without parole.
H.P.'s parents, according to the lawsuit, were aware of their son's drug addiction yet they continued to allow him the use of their 2007 Jeep. Also, as noted in the suit, they knew that his driving license had been revoked.
The suit contends that H.P. acted in a reckless manner by driving under the influence. His parents are also cited for their recklessness – by letting him operate their vehicle illegally.
The lawsuit states that H.P.'s actions were the "proximate cause of the collision and the death of Laura, as well as the conscious pain and suffering that she endured prior to her death."
The lawsuit goes on to note that H.P.'s parents had a conversation with H.P.'s girlfriend in which they allegedly told her that H.P. would "kill someone one day because of his continued habit of driving while impaired."
Along with wrongful death of her daughter, M.A. is suing for her own emotional stress since loosing Laura F. She is asking for a trial by jury.
Under the newly erected "Laura's Law", DWI offenders will be facing more prison time, fines and penalties.
Another caveat of the new law requires offenders to wear an alcohol-monitoring bracelet for a longer period of time. In the past, repeat offenders need only wear the bracelet for 60 days. Under the new law, that amount of time can be stretched to 3years.
Of her daughter's namesake law, M.A. said, "…She knew her mama and she knew I wasn't one to back down and I wasn't going to let her death be in vain."
Cleveland County representative Tim Moore, along with former representative Wil Neumann, were the first to lend their support to the bill. Moore said, "And the reason we did this in Laura's Law is because the fellow who killed her was on one of those monitoring devices and when he was on it, he was doing well and when he came off of it is when he started drinking again and unfortunately started driving again."
Loosing a loved one in any scenario is difficult, but loosing a loved one in a wrongful death situation, a preventable situation, is grounds for a wrongful death lawsuit. Contact a personal injury lawyer from our directory today for help with your case!