A second-grader was killed on Tuesday in Temecula as he was crossing the street to reach an ice cream truck. According to KABC News, the 7-year-old boy, Diyarbek Uzakbaev, was crossing the 29000 block of Pujol Road when he was struck. The driver of vehicle, 25-year-old Bradley Megginson, was arrested on suspicious of gross vehicular manslaughter, and investigators suspect alcohol was a factor. Megginson was booked into the Southwest Detention Center in French Valley, and his bail has been set at $75,000. A fund has been setup to help Uzakbaev's family with burial costs, and donors can make deposits at any Wells Fargo Bank branch. For cash donations, use account No. 3451570190, and for checks, deposit to account No. 6451481763 under the name Nuratdin Amankulov.
Scene of the Accident
The stretch of roadway where the accident occurred is in a residential and fairly rural area. Any driver traveling through the area should reasonably expect children playing along the side and perhaps even in the road. The posted speed limit in on Pujol Road is 30 miles per hour which is slow enough to give a driver a sufficient opportunity to see and potential danger and react in time to avoid an accident. Assuming that Megginson was indeed impaired, that could explain a slower perception and reaction time. In such a tragic accident, especially where a criminal prosecution is contemplated, you would expect a full accident reconstruction, which might include the opinion of experts relative to driving while impaired and engineering/accident reconstruction.
Wrongful Death Claims
Under California law, the parents of a child killed in an accident caused by someone else's negligence have the right to bring a wrongful death claim against the negligent party. The damages recoverable can never adequately compensate a parent for the loss of their child, but they are the only thing our civil justice system can provide. Generally, the measure of damages is based on the loss of the child's love, companionship, comfort, care, assistance, protection, affection, society, and moral support. Additionally, economic losses to the parents such as funeral and burial expenses incurred, as well as financial support the child would have provided to the family, can be recovered.
If you have been injured or a loved one killed in a DUI accident, contacting an experienced injury attorney can be the most important step taken toward obtaining civil justice for you and your family.
SOURCE: 7-year-old boy struck, killed in Temecula heading to ice cream truck, KABC News, September 18, 2013, Inland Empire News
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