Harris County, TX — January 18, 2025, Charmayne Bridges was killed and Paige Chapman was injured as the result of an alleged intoxicated driver accident at around 10:39 p.m. on the East Freeway.
According to initial reports, the accident took place along westbound lanes of the East Freeway along the 16300 block.
It appears that Charmayne Lashawn Bridges and Paige Shonteal Elaine Chapman were in a Kia Optima going along the interstate. Up ahead, a Dodge Ram reportedly stopped in the lane of travel without its lights on. Bridges’s vehicle then crashed into the back of the Dodge, and Bridges sustained fatal injuries as a result. Chapman was taken to a hospital with reportedly minor injuries.
Authorities at this time allege that the Dodge driver was intoxicated at the time. Harris County officials report there are charges for intoxication manslaughter pending for the Dodge driver.
Commentary by Attorney Michael Grossman
If the allegations here are true, it would certainly explain why someone would come to a stop in the middle of a busy interstate without their lights on. As serious as these reported charges are, though, they may not be the end of the story. Not a lot of people realize that intoxicated drivers often have an accomplice who also needs to be held responsible for their actions: a negligent alcohol provider.
Simply put, if an intoxicated driver was unlawfully over-served by a local bar, restaurant, liquor store, or other venue, that establishment can be responsible for contributing to the accident. This potentially exposes them to criminal investigations, fines, suspended licenses, or liability for the injuries or deaths resulting from the intoxication.
The reason I bring this up whenever possible is that this area of the law rarely gets the attention it deserves. I’ve handled hundreds of cases against negligent alcohol providers. Most of the time, families come to me without any idea that there could even be a complicit alcohol provider to hold accountable. Then, when we get to investigating them, authorities are nowhere to be found. They simply moved on once they charged the drunk driver.
So while details about this accident are still early, the allegations raise familiar red flags. My hope is that the accident is getting thorough investigations to ensure that all responsible parties face appropriate consequences. Perhaps that’s just an individual reckless driver, or maybe that driver had help from a local alcohol provider who needs to be set straight before they cause more harm to the community. That will be up to more thorough investigations to say for sure.
call us 
Email Us 
Text us