Every year, impaired driving crashes in San Marcos, Texas leave victims facing serious injuries, mounting medical bills, and complex legal challenges. Whether caused by alcohol, illegal drugs, or prescription medications, these preventable accidents often result in devastating consequences for innocent motorists and pedestrians. Common scenarios include wrong-way driving on I-35, failure to yield at major intersections like Wonder World Drive, and rear-end collisions near Texas State University's campus. When impaired drivers get behind the wheel, they put everyone at risk through delayed reaction times, poor judgment, and reduced coordination. For victims, these crashes can lead to traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord damage, broken bones, and other severe trauma requiring extensive medical treatment. Understanding your rights after being hit by an impaired driver is crucial, as these cases often involve both criminal proceedings against the intoxicated driver and civil personal injury claims to recover damages for medical expenses, lost wages, pain and suffering, and other losses.

Legal Rights and Considerations

Texas law sets clear standards for impaired driving under Transportation Code Section 545.401, with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) limit of 0.08%. Victims of DUI crashes generally have two years from the accident date to file a personal injury lawsuit under Texas's statute of limitations. The state follows modified comparative negligence rules, allowing recovery if the victim is less than 51% at fault. Texas requires minimum liability insurance of $30,000 per injured person and $60,000 per accident, though many impaired driving cases involve damages exceeding these limits. Victims may be eligible for compensation including medical expenses, lost income, property damage, pain and suffering, and in some cases, punitive damages. Additionally, Texas's Dram Shop Act may allow claims against establishments that over-served the impaired driver. An experienced San Marcos drunk driving accident lawyer will handle all aspects of the legal claim.

Other types of injury accidents that can be caused by a DUI driver include:

• San Marcos truck accidents
• San Marcos motorcycle accidents
• San Marcos bicycle accidents
• San Marcos pedestrian accidents

Related Resources

Local Courts:

• Hays County District Court
• Hays County Justice of the Peace Courts
• San Marcos Municipal Court

Support Services:

• Hays County Victim Services Division
• MADD Central Texas Chapter
• Texas Crime Victims' Compensation Program
• San Marcos Brain Injury Support Group

Legal References:

• Texas Transportation Code Chapter 545
• Texas Civil Practice & Remedies Code Chapter 33
• Texas Alcoholic Beverage Code Chapter 2
• Texas Department of Transportation Crash Statistics

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