Joyce and Reyes Personal Injury Attorney Remarks on Fatal Accident Involving Truck Driver with Checkered Driving History
Mar 20, 2014
Tampa, FL (Law Firm Newswire) March 20, 2014 – The driver of a tractor-trailer involved in a fatal auto accident has a driving history detailing over two dozen infractions during the past decade.
Wayne Damari Waldon, 30, has 27 infractions on his driving record. Just two of those, both non-moving violations, applied to his commercial driver’s license. Driving with a suspended license and speeding are among his personal violations.
“In Florida, your driving history, no matter how bad, cannot disqualify you from obtaining a commercial driver’s license,” explains Tampa personal injury attorney Robert Joyce. “You need only pass a written test and a driving skills test. Accidents like this one raise questions as to whether the law does enough to prevent irresponsible drivers from getting behind the wheel of these large, heavy and potentially dangerous commercial vehicles.”
The accident occurred in the early morning hours of February 12, 2014. Waldon was driving an ABC Fine Wine & Spirits semi-trailer truck southbound on Interstate 75. Waldon then clipped a BMW driven by James Dylan Proctor, 42, as he pulled out to pass the slower-moving car. The crash caused the truck to overturn and the BMW to veer off the roadway between the southbound and northbound lanes. The BMW dropped into the Alafia River, killing Proctor.
The Florida Highway Patrol initially said that low fog visibility had caused the accident, but later stated that visibility was over one mile at the time of the crash. The National Weather Service confirmed that dense fog in the area was unlikely at that time.
Some 30,000 pounds of alcoholic beverages spilled out onto the highway. Police were concerned that the alcohol could catch fire, and officers diverted traffic to State Road 60 for over seven hours as the wreckage was cleared and as the alcohol evaporated. The accident caused an extensive traffic jam on southbound I-75 as well as on other connecting roads.
“Passenger vehicles often do not fare well in collisions with fully-loaded tractor-trailers,” adds Mr. Joyce. “That’s why it is so important that truck drivers be cautious, alert and well-trained.”
Learn more at http://www.joyceandreyespa.com
Joyce and Reyes Law Firm, P.A.
307 S Hyde Park Ave
Tampa, FL 33606
Call: 813.251.2007
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