Gonzales County, TX — December 26, 2025, Jimmie Chessher Jr. was killed in an alleged drunk driver accident at about 5:40 a.m. on State Highway 97.
A preliminary accident report indicates that a 2004 Ford F-150 was going south in the wrong lane when it collided with a 2011 Ford Escape, causing the SUV to overturn.
Escape driver Jimmie Gene Chessher Jr., 75, died from injuries suffered in the crash south of Waelder, according to the report.
The pickup driver, who was seriously injured, was charged with intoxication manslaughter and failure to stop and render aid after the crash, the report states.
Authorities have not released any additional information about the Gonzales County crash at this time.
Commentary by Attorney Michael Grossman
When I read about incidents like this one, what stands out to me isn’t just what happened, but what’s missing from the conversation. A man lost his life in an early-morning collision, and the other driver now faces serious criminal charges, including intoxication manslaughter. But amid the understandable focus on the arrest and charges, there’s an important legal question that rarely gets asked: Where did the driver get their alcohol?
One of the most important but often overlooked questions in cases like this is whether an alcohol provider may have contributed to the chain of events. In Texas, dram shop law allows families to pursue answers if it turns out a bar, restaurant or other licensed establishment served alcohol to someone who was clearly intoxicated. That kind of overservice isn’t always obvious to the public, but it’s a key part of how the law helps prevent drunk driving in the first place, and how it offers a path to accountability when prevention fails.
If someone was overserved before getting behind the wheel, the consequences don’t just fall on the driver alone. That’s the kind of question dram shop law is built to answer. And while criminal charges may provide a measure of justice, they don’t always reveal the full picture, or help families understand the broader circumstances that led to their loss.
The way I see it, public safety depends not only on holding drunk drivers accountable, but also on shining a light on those who may be enabling dangerous behavior behind the scenes.
Here are three things worth considering:
- Dram shop law exists to hold alcohol providers accountable if they serve someone who’s already obviously intoxicated, and that accountability matters when lives are lost.
- Investigating where the alleged drunk driver was drinking is just as important as what happened on the road. That step is often overlooked, even though it can reveal key facts about how the crash occurred.
- Even if most people don’t realize it, Texas law gives families the right to pursue answers when overservice may have played a role in a serious crash.
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