Music and art lovers from all over the country recently traveled to California to attend the popular Coachella festival. While most people appeared to be enjoying the music and other festivities, one family is mourning the apparent wrongful death of a young festival goer. The victim was an 18-year-old woman who was struck and killed by a motor vehicle.
The accident happened early in the evening at an intersection located close to the festival. Details regarding the wreck are sparse, and it is not clear whether the pedestrian was actually in the intersection at the time of the wreck or merely standing nearby. She was hit by a driver from the local area who was apparently not attending the festival but simply driving nearby with his infant.
While neither the driver nor his child suffered any injuries, the woman was taken to a local hospital. Hospital staff pronounced the woman dead around an hour after she was admitted. California police are currently still investigating the accident but have stated that they do not believe that either drugs or alcohol played any type of role in the wreck.
Even in the absence of alcohol or other criminal behavior behind the wheel, negligent drivers can still be held liable for the wrongful deaths of victims killed in car wrecks. Typically, this is accomplished when family members of a deceased victim file a wrongful death suit on their loved one's behalf. While no compensation or legal recourse can ever truly take away the pain of losing a loved one, the resulting compensation is usually effective for addressing damages -- such as unexpected funeral costs -- that arise from a wreck.
Source: nme.com, "Teen killed in car accident while attending Coachella Festival", Luke Morgan Britton, April 18, 2016