$97,000 Settlement For Family Struck by Drunk Driver

In January of 2017 a family of three was at a complete stop at a red light just outside of Fairfax Hospital when a drunk driver slammed into the back of their car.  The defendant had to be removed from his seat by EMTs, who were the first ones to arrive on the scene.  Incredibly, when the police arrived, the drunk driver told them that he was not driving – that he was the backseat passenger in an Uber and that his driver had jumped out and run away.  Thankfully, the EMTs were still on scene and able to identify him as the driver of the car.

He failed all field sobriety tests and, when asked how much he had to drink that night told the police officer “not enough.”  A search warrant was obtained to draw his blood at the hospital to be tested for alcohol.  The defendant’s blood alcohol concentration was 0.16 or twice the legal limit.

Incredibly, when we filed suit against the driver, he and his lawyer filed an Answer stating that he was not too drunk to drive and was not the cause of the crash.

The case settled shortly after suit was filed in the Fairfax County Circuit Court and the family of three received just under $100,000 in compensation for their injuries.