One drink is no big deal. A glass or two of wine with dinner is just common sense in America. Who eats pizza or a burger without a beer? And even if you get pulled over, you just have to balance on one foot for a few seconds, right? Thinking like this - careless and complacent - is exactly what costs thousands of lives to drunk driving every single year.
Drunk driving causes thousands of crashes nationwide each year, and many of them are fatal. Las Vegas is hit especially hard: it is famous as a party and entertainment city, and alcohol is sold around the clock, so drunk driving accidents happen here with alarming frequency. Some involve only the impaired driver, but a large number involve collisions with other vehicles.
Victims of drunk driving accidents - and their families - can pursue compensation and justice for the harm caused by a driver reckless enough to get behind the wheel intoxicated. Driving under the influence in any degree impairs your ability to drive, and it endangers not only the drunk driver but everyone else sharing the road.
What makes drunk driving accidents stand apart is that they are so often preventable. You were injured and your property was damaged because another driver made the illegal, careless choice to drive after drinking - and you deserve compensation for it. Your life may have been turned upside down because someone violated Nevada's DUI laws and put you in danger. That injustice should never simply be accepted.
At Parke Injury Law, we are committed to helping accident victims recover for their losses and their suffering. We have the experience and the know-how these cases demand. If you were hurt by a drunk driver - especially while you are still recovering from your injuries - you should not have to face the at-fault driver or the insurance company alone.
Relying entirely on the insurance company can also be risky. We want to help you pursue the full compensation you deserve: medical bills, future treatment costs, lost income, and more. We will work to hold the responsible parties accountable and make sure you are treated fairly.
How we build a winning case
Our firm has extensive experience with drunk driving accidents, car accidents, truck accidents, and other negligence cases. We know how to identify the legal issues these cases turn on and how to present a persuasive case for our clients. Before anything else, we investigate the facts carefully to establish liability - reviewing everything thoroughly and identifying every potentially responsible party so our clients can recover the maximum compensation available.
We account for every loss our clients suffer - medical bills, lost wages, and the emotional distress of victims and their families - and build all of it into the claim. In every case, our goal is maximum recovery. That means documenting the full scope and severity of your injuries and damages, and assembling strong evidence for the claim against the drunk driver.
We take drunk driving cases especially seriously, because the at-fault driver did not just cause serious harm - they committed a crime. The criminal side of a DUI case is not ours to handle, but the civil liability side is, and we pursue the maximum recovery from the drunk driver and their insurance company.
Drunk driving cases involve extra layers that ordinary accident cases do not. For example, substantial evidence of the driver's intoxication must be gathered: police reports, the driver's arrest record, field sobriety test results, and blood test results showing the driver was well over the legal limit at the time of the crash. This evidence is critical to establishing liability.
Likewise, if the drunk driver is criminally convicted of DUI, that conviction can be used to help prove negligence in the civil injury case - a significant advantage for victims. We monitor the progress of the criminal case closely, because a conviction can strengthen our client's civil claim.
Common injuries in drunk driving accidents
Far too often, drunk driving victims suffer serious, extensive injuries with effects that last for years - permanent disability, scarring, even amputation. Some injuries are life-threatening or fatal. And recovery is rarely quick: it can take months, with ongoing care such as regular rehabilitation or additional surgeries, and some victims never return to the condition they were in before the crash. A victim left with a partial disability or the loss of a limb may never fully recover what was taken from them.
If a drunk driver caused you serious physical injury and property damage, you are often entitled to compensation from the driver or the driver's insurance company. Keep in mind that state law imposes a statute of limitations on these claims - if you miss the deadline, you can lose your rights entirely. That is why it is so important to move forward without delay, with the help of an experienced drunk driving accident attorney.
Drunk driving cases also have some special features that favor victims. Under Nevada law you cannot sue the bar or restaurant that overserved the driver, but you can pursue compensation from the driver and the driver's insurance company.
The State of Nevada takes these cases seriously as well. For public policy reasons, drunk driving cases may be exempted from arbitration, which increases the potential for a larger settlement or trial award. Blood alcohol test results from the police DUI investigation can support that exemption and, if the case goes to trial, can be presented to the jury. Our firm has experience successfully obtaining arbitration exemptions and will pursue one whenever it is the best path for your case.
When a drunk driving crash takes a life, the case becomes even more complex. If you lost a loved one to a drunk driver, we will stand behind you with strong legal support while you grieve. No lawsuit can bring your loved one back, but a wrongful death claim can provide financial stability through the hardest of times - covering the deceased's medical bills, lost income, funeral costs, and other non-economic losses.
Victims of drunk driving accidents may also recover punitive damages on top of ordinary damages such as medical bills, hospitalization, lost income, and property damage. Punitive damages are awarded to punish the driver who broke the law by driving drunk and causing a crash.
Drunk driving cases call for an experienced Las Vegas attorney. They come with special considerations, and insurance companies are almost always involved - more than an injured victim should have to manage alone in the days after a crash. Placing the legal process in the hands of an experienced drunk driving accident lawyer gives you the time and space you need to focus on healing.
This article is general information, not legal advice about your specific situation.