Tragedy in the Wake of Alleged BWI Crash in Missouri

Q: Who can sue for damages in a boating while intoxicated accident?

An alleged Missouri boating while intoxicated accident has left tragedy in its wake and legal trouble for the boat’s driver.

According to police, the driver crashed the boat into a rock bluff, ejecting himself and two of his four passengers into the water. The two ejected passengers died as did one other passenger on the boat. The only other survivor allegedly sustained serious personal injuries.  The driver reportedly “faces three charges of BWI– Death of another, BWI–serious physical injury and negligent operation of a vessel.”

Like Missouri car accidents, boat accidents often result in personal injury or wrongful death lawsuits. If the victim’s injury or death was a result of the negligent, reckless, or intentional actions or inactions of someone else, the responsible party or parties may be liable for compensatory damages.

In the event of a personal injury suit, the victim may be entitled to recover for their current and future medical expenses, current and future lost income, pain and suffering, and more depending on the circumstances of their particular case.

More complicated is the wrongful death lawsuit. Brought by the closest surviving members of a victim who died from their injuries, wrongful death actions are complex in terms of establishing which family members have standing to sue and what types of damages they may be entitled to recover. While wrongful death compensatory damages generally cover the victim’s final medical and funeral expenses and the victim’s pain and suffering before they died, damages may also include financial and other losses suffered by the victim’s surviving family members as a result of the victim’s death–like loss of the victim’s future income, medical benefits, retirement benefits, and companionship.

If you or a loved one has been injured or a loved one has been killed as a result of the actions of someone else, the personal injury attorneys at Noland Law Firm can help maximize the compensation to which you may be entitled. Contact us today for a free consultation.

From our office in Liberty, Missouri, we represent accident victims and their families throughout the Kansas City metropolitan area and Western Missouri, including Clay County, Liberty, Blue Springs, Independence, and Gladstone.