Guadalupe County, TX — December 4, 2023, Freddie Banda, Melissa Banda, and two others were injured in an alleged intoxicated driver accident at 7:52 p.m. on Highway 46.
Authorities said in preliminary statements on the accident that they were called to the intersection of Highway 46 and F.M. 725.
According to officials, 31-year-old Freddie Banda and 32-year-old Melissa Banda were in a Ford Explorer along with two children. They were going southbound on the highway when they came to the F.M. 725 traffic signal. There, it appears a Toyota Tacoma crashed into the Explorer from behind.
As a result of the collision, Freddie and Melissa Banda both had reportedly serious injuries, as did the children in the vehicle. The other driver was recommended to face a charge for intoxication assault, however authorities did not give further information about this.
Commentary by Attorney Michael Grossman
When intoxication is mentioned, one thing to consider is whether or not police suspect alcohol or drugs contributed to this accident. Believe it or not, that can make a pretty big difference in what may lie ahead for the family involved.
I’ll give an example of what I mean. I handled a case not long ago involving a family whose car was hit by a drunk driver. We retraced his steps to the bar that served him, and evidence showed the man was illegally over-served. Until our investigations, authorities simply never bothered looking for that negligent alcohol provider. Thanks to further investigations bringing them to light, the bar was held accountable for their role in the crash and cleaned up their act before more people got hurt.
Situations like that are all too common with drunk driving whereas accidents involving drugs rarely go beyond the allegedly intoxicated driver. That’s why it’s important to be thorough in these situations, and I have to wonder if authorities have been thorough here to ensure the path forward is clear.
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