A 23-year-old La Verne man who died in a vehicle rollover accident on Highway 18 on November 22, 2008, has been identified as Timothy Richard Dewhurst, the San Gabriel Valley Tribune reports. Dewhurst, a passenger, was ejected from the 2003 Subaru station wagon when it rolled over near the westbound side of Highway 18 near Orchard Drive. He suffered severe injuries and was transported to a local hospital where he later died.
My heart goes out to the family of Timothy Richard Dewhurst, who died in this tragic rollover accident. Please keep his family in your prayers.
Rollover accidents are among the most common and most catastrophic types of crashes that occur on our roadways today. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), more than 10,000 people are killed and more than 24,000 people suffer catastrophic injuries in rollover crashes every year in the United States.
There are many things that could have gone wrong in this 11/22/08 accident. There could have been a vehicle malfunction or an inherent product defect in the station wagon that caused the driver to lose control of the vehicle. It is also possible that there may have been a dangerous condition on the highway, which caused this crash.
Based on this newspaper article, it seems as if Dewhurst was buckled up. If I were a member of Dewhurst’s family, I would also want to have the station wagon thoroughly checked for seatbelt failure since he was ejected from the vehicle. I’d bet that Dewhurst’s life would have been saved had his seatbelt worked the way it was supposed to work.
I’d urge the family of Timothy Richard Dewhurst to retain the services of an experienced seatbelt defect attorney who can help analyze the facts of the case and help determine whether seatbelt failure caused Dewhurst’s fatal injuries. There are many reasons why seatbelts can fail, either due to inertial unlatching or false latching (when the seatbelt comes unlatched during a crash). Seatbelt failure can also occur when the seatbelt retractor, which is supposed to lock the seatbelt webbing and hold the occupant in place, fails. A skilled auto product defect attorney can use experts to analyze the vehicle and help determine what went wrong, why the accident occurred and who should be held responsible for Dewhurst’s fatal injuries.