Gary R. Cooper, 60, arrested after car-motorcycle crash kills Westley L. Cummings, 52, and Wanda F. Cummings, 49, on Dawnville Road in Whitfield, Georgia
Arrest made in Sunday fatal crash in Whitfield, driver and victims identified
Cooper told officers he was lighting a cigarette and his vehicle crossed the centerline into the path of the oncoming motorcycle, state authorities said.
According to GSP, the motorcycle was headed east on Dawnville Road when Cooper's 1995 Mercury Grand Marquis cross the centerline of the road and hit the motorcycle head on.
Couple killed in crash ID’d; driver accused of drunk driving still in hospital
According to a press release from the state patrol, Cooper, 60, of 2205 Jim Petty Road in Crandall, told officers he was lighting a cigarette and crossed the center line. In addition to two counts of vehicular homicide, he was also charged with driving under the influence of both alcohol and drugs.
Why every fatality from a crash is not legally a wrongful death
After someone dies in a motor-vehicle accident, grieving family members and friends are often left with many questions. What caused the accident? Could it have been avoided? What do they do now that their loved one is gone?
Sometimes a fatal collision happens through no one's fault. Crashes caused by weather and road conditions, or by wildlife in the roadway, are examples. But when a fatal crash is caused by negligence, then family members should pursue a wrongful death claim, to uphold the victim's rights and begin the financial recovery process. Learn more about wrongful death claims here.
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