St. Louis Injury Attorney Blog

In February, 2008 a teenage brother and sister were involved in an auto accident with an intoxicated driver. Shortly before the accident, the drunk driver had been drinking beer at a local Kansas City restaurant. His blood was drawn after the accident, and his blood alcohol content was beyond the legal limit. Both teenagers suffered severe injuries in the accident. The young man's medical specials totaled $115,000, and the young woman's totaled $150,000.

The brother and sister brought a personal injury action against the restaurant in Jackson County, Missouri, based on an alleged violation of Missouri's dram shop law. The plaintiffs claimed the restaurant knew the man was intoxicated before he left. They further claimed the restaurant failed to have precautionary policies in place regarding the safe administration and service of alcohol by its employees. The case settled for $4,000,000. The identity of the parties was not released due to the confidentiality terms of the settlement.

Chivas Day, of St. Louis, Missouri, was sentenced to 11 years in prison for his role in the St. Louis area traffic accident that killed Matthew Cole, 23, of Maryville, Illinois. Matthew Cole was driving home from work on the Martin Luther King Bridge when Chivas Day, who was driving under the influence of ecstasy and marijuana, crossed the center line and hit Cole's car head-on. Chivas Day was driving over 100 miles per hour, and the police reported that the gas pedal was fully compressed at the time the accident occurred.

Chivas Day also suffered severe personal injuries because of the automobile accident, including a broken leg, arm, neck, and ankle, and had severe head injuries. Urine tests showed the presence of marijuana and ecstasy, but blood tests taken at the hospital did not show the presence of any drugs or alcohol in Day's system. Either way, Day was driving at speeds well over the speed limit when he hit Cole's car. Further, Day was driving with a revoked licensed at the time of the car crash.

Newton Keene, a St. Louis area man, was sentenced to 28 years in prison today for his role in a traffic accident that killed three. Keene was driving drunk when he drove the wrong way down I-255 in Illinois, and he hit a car driven by Tawanda Jackson, who was driving to her grandmother's funeral with her friend and children. Tawanda, her 9-year old son, and her friend were killed. Tawanda's daughter survived.

Keene was a repeat Missouri DWI offender, as well as having DWIs in Illinois, and had a total of at least 5 DWIs at the time of the crash. He had already served time in prison for his fifth DWI. His blood alcohol content was 0.240 at the time of the incident. Keene pleaded guilty to 3 counts of aggravated drunk driving that resulted in death, and one count of aggravated drunk driving that resulted in bodily injury.

Continue reading "St. Louis area man sentenced to maximum sentence for DWI offense that killed 3" »

Missouri DWI laws are one step closer to becoming stronger in Missouri, as the Senate passed Senate Bill 880 today. After reaching a compromise, the portion of the bill that was passed in the House that would allow blood draws without a warrant if there was a suspicion that the driver was driving while intoxicated was removed.

The Missouri House must now pass the Senate version of the bill. After that, Governor Nixon will have to sign the legislation into law. If Governor Nixon signs the bill, it would become law on August 28, 2010.

Update: Governor Nixon will sign the DWI reform bill into law in both St. Louis and Jefferson City on June 2, 2010. He will sign the bill first in St. Louis at 1:30 at the Missouri State Highway Patrol Super Site, and then will head to the Missouri Highway Patrol Training Academy in Jefferson City for a second signing.

Continue reading "Missouri DWI law passes Senate but warrantless blood draw portion removed" »

Missouri House Bill 1695, which allows the police to draw blood from a driver suspected of driving under the influence, has moved one step closer to law after passing in the House. The bill states that any person operating a motor vehicle is deemed to consent to the testing of his breath, blood, urine or saliva for purposes of determining if he is driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

House Bill 1695 makes many changes to DWI laws in Missouri. The bill proposes tougher penalties for drivers driving with a blood alcohol content of 0.15 or more. The bill also addresses communication between various police agencies, so that different agencies can be made aware of DUIs a person has received in other jurisdictions.

Missouri Senate Bill 880 is currently working its way through the Senate, and has many of the same provisions.

For a full summary of the bill, click here.