Crash Between Civilian and Police Officer in Charleston Leaves One Severely Injured

CHARLESTON, SC- Abcnews4.com writes that a collision occurred between a police officer’s vehicle and another car this week in West Ashley. The incident took place on Old Town Road close to its intersection with North Hillside Drive.*

The civilian involved in the early morning incident was left with severe injuries. The officer also suffered injuries, but nothing that is considered life-threatening. The crash is under investigation, which will be handled by the South Carolina Highway Patrol. 

South Carolina is one of the worst states in the nation when it comes to fatal vehicle accidents. In one recent study, the state had 20.5 car crash deaths for every 100,000 people. Overall, the Palmetto State was in third place in terms of deadly crashes throughout the United States. 

The other states that were at the top of the list include Mississippi, where 23.1 people are killed for every 100,000, and Alabama with a rate of 21.3.

One reason that the state seemed to perform so poorly in terms of traffic safety is that South Carolina is not doing enough to prevent distracted driving. When compared to other parts of the country, the state issued far fewer traffic citations for violations of the distracted driving laws. Even if the state ticketed a driver for distracted driving, the minimum fine was just $25. Delaware’s minimum fine is $100, and may, therefore, create a greater deterrent. 

Distracted driving killed 2,841 people in the United States in 2018. Another 400,000 are estimated to have been injured in collisions caused by distracted drivers illustrating the high amount of risk presented by this dangerous behavior. 

Accident News is a safety and education initiative from Montlick & Associates, designed to help people better understand and thereby avoid common accident causes.  To learn more about our injury prevention programs, including iridesafe.com - click here. We hope you are never in an accident, but if you or a family member are injured, call Montlick & Associates 24/7 for your free consultation at 1-800-LAW-NEED (1-800-529-6333) or use our live chat at Montlick.com.

Sources:

https://abcnews4.com/news/local/civilian-critically-injured-in-crash-involving-charleston-county-deputy

https://www.wistv.com/story/38030136/sc-ranked-no-3-deadliest-state-for-fatal-car-crashes-study-says/

https://www.nhtsa.gov/risky-driving/distracted-driving