The parents of a 19 year-old woman who was killed in a rollover accident in Lubbock last summer have filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the bar she and her friends were drinking at as well as the driver of the car. The family accuses the bar staff of serving drinks to the 31 year-old driver when he was already intoxicated.
The driver of the car, who at the time worked at University Medical Center as a general surgery resident, was indicted by a Lubbock County grand jury in September 2011 on charges of intoxicated manslaughter and intoxication assault. A second passenger in the vehicle, an 18 year-old woman, was injured in the crash.
According to the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal, the driver had a blood alcohol content of 0.14– nearly twice the legal limit. Police say speeding and drinking caused him to lose control of the car, hit a guardrail, and roll off of the North Loop 289 overpass. The man’s trial begins early next month. Officials at the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission have been investigating the bar that served them drinks for allegedly allowing minors to consume or possess alcohol and selling alcohol to intoxicated patrons.