Witness, Victim in Drunk Driving Case Dies

If you are going out and plan on drinking, please get a cab if you are too drunk and are unable to drive. This sad story is an example of why.

A man who survived a drunk driving crash in 2007, losing much of his family in the process, died March 16 of liver failure, without being able to give testimony at the trial of the driver who was arrested for causing the accident.

A family was in their SUV on their way to a family holiday gathering when a car collided with the side of their vehicle as they were stopped at a red light. Investigators estimate that he was travelling at somewhere between 75 and 98 mph.

The drunk driver was determined to have had a BAC of .045 percent, which is below Florida's legal limit of .08 percent, at which point a driver is determined to be intoxicated. Despite the fact that his BAC was below the legal limit, officers stated that he also had Xanax and cocaine metabolites in his system, which led to further intoxication.

The driver could face multiple criminal charges including offenses such as DUI manslaughter, DUI accident with serious injury, and other DUI charges.