Houston Personal Injury Attorneys – Smith & Hassler

Channel 2 is reporting on a major accident that occurred over the weekend claiming the lives of two young people; alcohol involvement has yet to be ruled out. Sheila Cronk and Justin Springer, both age 26, were pronounced dead at the scene of the Highway 59 head-on collision. Sheila and Justin’s car crashed head-on into a Jeep Wrangler that was traveling the wrong way on Highway 59 early Sunday morning in the Stafford area. Ms. Cronk and Mr. Springer were from Lincoln, Nebraska. The driver of the Jeep was taken to hospital though the news report does not indicate his condition. Officials say alcohol may have played a role in the deadly crash however no charges have been filed yet.

The Houston Chronicle’s article on the accident is available here and identifies the Jeep driver as 45-year old Roy Armstrong of Houston. Family members of Sheila and Justin indicated the two had been in Mexico and were on their way back to Nebraska at the time of the crash. Sheila Cronk’s Facebook page indicates Sheila was trained as a nurse and worked at the LTACH Unit at Madonna Rehabilitation Hospital in Lincoln, Nebraksa. Channel 13’s report is here.

What a terrible, terrible tragedy for the families of these two young people. Family and friends of Sheila’s mother Janet Klapperich Cronk have been posting condolence messages since Ms. Klapperick Cronk posted a link to a news story on the crash to her Facebook page midday Sunday along with the message: “This is my daughter Sheila Cronk and her good friend Justin Springer….we just got the news early this morning….they went down to houston for a friends wedding.”

This Jeep Wrangler collided head-on with the car on Highway 59. The Jeep was traveling the wrong way.

Sheila Cronk (26) of Lincoln, Nebraska.

Harris County Sheriff Deputies had to wrestle and then Tase hit-and-run driver Jerad Thomas to take him into custody after a fatal hit-and-run collision in northwest Harris County. The deadly wrecked happened on southbound Jones Road near Fallbrook when a 53-year old man riding his bicycle was hit by a man driving a cargo van. The victim on the bicycle was transported to the hospital but died shortly after that. Police were able to identify the cargo van because the license plate was dislodged at the scene of the accident. The van owner indicated he had loaned the vehicle to a friend; when officers accompanied the owner to the friend’s apartment they found Jerad Thomas asleep in the stairway of his apartment with the van keys underneath his body. Thomas initially resisted the officers when they woke him but was brought into compliance when deputies Tased him. Thomas admitted to driving the van but had no recollection of hitting anything. He will be charged with driving while intoxicated, resisting arrest and possibly other charges.

According to Harris County criminal records, this represents 36-year old Thomas’ third DWI arrest.

Jerad Thomas has been charged in a January 24, 2012 fatal hit-and-run

Smith & Hassler’s attorneys aggressively pursue drunk drivers and their insurance companies in order to compensate those injured or bereaved by the gross negligence of intoxicated motorists.

57-year old Joe Gamez died yesterday when he was run over by a dump truck in north Houston. Mr. Gamez, who was an independent dump truck operator, and another man were working near the intersection of Duoto and West Tidwell on private land at around 12:30pm on January 18, 2012. A truck tire got stuck in the mud so Mr. Gamez walked behind it and told the other driver to reverse, then as the dump truck was backing up Gamez was hit. According to officials the dump truck belonged to Antonio Segovia Trucking. Channel 2’s report on the accident is available here.

Joe Gamez was struck and killed January 18, 2012 by a reversing dump truck

Smith & Hassler has over 20-years experience assisting bereaved Texans with wrongful deaths claims. If you have lost a loved one due to an accident, contact Smith & Hassler.

An obituary for car crash victim Kaat Debeuckelaer published in the Fort Worth Star Telegram reports that Kaat’s funeral will be held today at the Good Shepherd Catholic Church in Coleyville, Texas. Kaat’s family and friends will gather to pay their respect and say their goodbyes to the 21-year old University of Texas student who died tragically on January 5, 2012 in a single car accident along with Kaat’s boyfriend Kenneth “Kenny” Joseph Lark (23) and Southlake attorney Ronald Eddins (40).

It is clear that Kaat is going to be terribly missed by her family and friends. Kaat’s obituary includes the following tribute:

Her smile and bright blue eyes lit up every room she walked into. She loved her family and friends fiercely and would do anything to protect them. She had been a fighter ever since she was born prematurely, never giving up and working hard to achieve her dreams. Kaat had a positive impact on so many people during her brief time with us. She was the best listener and never judged. It didn’t matter whether she knew someone well or whether she had just met the person, she always made you feel at home. Her devotion spread to more than just her friends and family, as burnt orange ran through her blood. Kaat had so many more things to do. She had yet to see her Longhorns win a BCS Bowl game. She never got to walk into her first class at dental school. We will never see how the plans that she and Kenny made for their future blossom. They were so much in love and everyone who knew them was sure they would spend the rest of their lives together.

Kaat died January 5, 2012 while riding as a passenger in a Porsche Panamera sports car driven by Ronald Eddins. Preliminary findings by law enforcement investigating the accident suggest the Porsche was traveling at a high rate of speed when it left the roadway and crashed into the Las Colinas Canal near Dallas, Texas. Kaat and Kenny apparently had no prior connection to Eddins, and it appears a chance meeting at a hotel bar was the couple’s first encounter with the prominent Southlake lawyer.

Media reports state that a toxicology report is pending to determine whether alcohol was a factor in the crash. Presumably there will be an attempt by authorities to retrieve and analyze the event data recorder or “black box” from the Porsche Panamera to extract crash data, though whether the device will be operable after being submerged in water is an open question.

Kaat’s family has requested that in lieu of flowers a donation be made to a charity of the well-wisher’s choice.

Services for Kenny Joseph Lark will be held Saturday January 14, 2012 at Epiphany Lutheran Fellowship Hall in Houston, Texas. Kenny’s family has asked that in lieu of flowers a donation be made to a charity of the donor’s choice, or alternatively to the Kenneth J. Lark Memorial Fund.

Our prayers are with the young couple’s families.

Kaat Debeuckelaer and Kenny Lark

23-year old Luis Alberto Dorantes had just come out of a Washington Avenue bar at around 1:40am Saturday January 7, 2012 when he was fatally struck by an SUV: Luis died at the scene. The 19-year old SUV driver Rebecca Bowman fled the scene but was arrested a few block away police say. Bowman now faces charges for intoxication manslaughter as well as underage drinking. Danielle Reichle, an 18-year old friend of Bowman’s, was also in the SUV and may be charged as an accessory and also for being intoxicated. Bowman was released after the incident after posting $50,000 bond and is scheduled to make her first court appearance Monday January 9, 2012.

Houston Fire Department rescued one man but another man remains buried after a trench collapsed around 7:30pm on Friday January 6, 2012. The two men were working on a drainage project at the Little Nell Apartments in the 8220 block of West Sam Houston Parkway at Beechnut when the dirt surrounding the trench collapsed in on them. Approximately 40 firefighters were involved in the rescue effort, but unfortunately the man who remained buried is presumed dead. A photograph of the scene on Channel 2 News’ web site shows heavy construction equipment present but it is not clear from the news report if that equipment was already present or was part of the rescue effort. One 28-year old workers was pulled from the trench at around 9:25PM and was transported to hospital, though his condition was not reported. A story on the trench collapse by ABC Channel 13 indicates that the collapsed trench was behind the apartment complex, and may not have been on the property. The same article indicates that the cause of the collapse was when a slough around the trench pushed a pipe, pinning one worker and burying the other. FOX News Houston’s coverage reports the trench was 12 feet deep and 8 feet wide.  Certainly with a trench that is deeper than it is wide, one would hope the trench had the appropriate protective system to minimize the chance of a collapse.

OSHA’s web site includes extensive information regarding trenching safety practices, including the use of a trenching protective system to stop the trench walls collapsing in on workers.

Two workers were buried when a drainage project trench collapsed on 01.06.2012 at the Little Nell Apartments

21-year-old Kaat Debeuckelaer and 23-year old Kenneth Lark have been identified along with driver Ronald Eddins are the victims of a tragic crash in the Dallas area.  In the single vehicle accident a Porsche car driven by Eddins, a 41-year old lawyer from Southlake Texas, apparently left the roadway and crashed through a barrier into the Las Colinas Canal. The alarm was raised when on Wednesday maintenance personnel noticed a broken guardrail which lead to the submerged Porsche being located with two bodies inside. Based on information that there may have been a third person in the vehicle at the time of the wreck police divers searched for and found the body of Ronald Eddins in the canal. Toxicology results are pending to determine whether drugs or alcohol played a role, however authorities suspect high speed was factor in the deadly crash.

An article in the Fort Worth Star Telegram identifies the vehicle as a Porsche Panamera, an expensive four-seat sports car. The article also states that Ms. Debeuckaler’s autopsy revealed she died as a result of blunt force trauma caused by the collision. Based on information from a Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) worker who noticed the guardrail damage at around 4:30am, authorities have narrowed the time of the crash to between 2:30 am and 4:30am on Wednesday January 4, 2012. Ronald Eddins was driving, Ms. Debeuckelaer was in the passenger seat and Kenny Lark was in the back seat according to police.

Witnesses have provided information that the crash victims were seen at the Hilton Southlake Hotel late on Tuesday, but the timeline of events has not yet been completed. Mr. Eddins lived in a large home near Lake Grapevine in north Southlake with his wife Michelle and and the couple’s two children. Reportedly Eddins represented clients in asbestos and mesothelioma lawsuits and had attained multi-million dollar settlements in a number of high profile lawsuits.

At 2:16am on Thursday January 5, 2012 Kaat’s mother Krista Debeuckaler posted a message to her Facebook page reporting Kaat missing since Tuesday evening, and that she had gone to a hockey game with her boyfriend Kenny Lark at the American Airlines center in Dallas, then at the Copeland’s of New Orleans bar at the Hilton in Southlake where they had drinks with a lawyer who paid cash for the drinks.

Ms. Kaat Debeuckelaer (pictured below) was a student at the University of Texas in Austin but is originally from Coleyville, Texas. Our prayers are with all of the families involved as the reality of this tragedy begins to settle in.

21-year old University of Texas student Kaat Debeuckelaer

The Houston Chronicle’s coverage of the accident is available here and includes video footage. FOX News DFW’s coverage of the Porsche Panamera crash is available here. Irving Weekly’s coverage is here.

Kenny Lark and Kaat Debeuckelaer

Attorney Ronald Eddins, driver of the Porsche Panamera that crashed into Las Colinas Canal

The severely damaged Porsche Panamera is lifted from the Las Colinas Canal crash site.

Kaat Debeuckelaer's mother's Facebook post seeking information.

Tammy Rhoades was driving home from her birthday celebration last night (Sunday January 2, 2012) when she was struck and killed by a driver who was subsequently arrested and charged with intoxication manslaughter. Ms. Rhoades had apparently pulled over to offer help to a motorist who was stranded on I-45 near FM 3083. The stranded driver had got a flat tire in a construction zone in Conroe and was stopped in a moving lane of traffic: Tammy Rhoades pulled in behind him and turned on her emergency flashers. The third driver, 21-year old Tyler Shelton, then crashed into the rear of Ms. Rhoades’ vehicle with such force that the rear seat was crushed forward into the front seat. Shelton has been charged with intoxication manslaughter. Police advise any motorist who gets a flat in the Conroe construction area to keep driving on the bad wheel until they are able to pull over in an area away from the travel lanes. Tammy Rhoades was from Willis, Texas and had been celebrating her 45th birthday. Channel 13’s report did not indicate whether the driver in the first car with the flat tire was injured. The Houston Chronicle’s story on the deadly accident is here.

The Montgomery County Police Reporter provides a detailed account of the accident, including that Tammy Rhoades was driving a Pontiac Grand Am and that Tyler Shelton was driving a black colored Chevrolet pickup. Apparently after the collision Shelton fled the scene in his heavily damaged pickup. When interviewed by police Shelton offered the explanation that a fourth vehicle, a white colored pickup, struck Ms. Rhoades’ vehicle first forcing her car into his lane, at which time he was unable to stop and struck her vehicle himself.

It is a real tragedy that Ms. Rhoades’ act of kindness toward a stranger cost her life.

Tammy Rhoades of Willis, Texas died when her vehicle was rear-ended on I45 in Conroe. Ms. Rhoades had stopped to help this motorist change a flat tire in a construction zone.

Tammy Rhoades' Pontiac Grand Am sustained massive damage in the January 2, 2012 collision

Channel 2 News is reporting an intersection collision involving a drunk driver that killed a 60-year old pedestrian in a crosswalk. A 52-year old man was driving drunk, heading westbound on Aldine-Westfield at around 11:00pm on Thursday December 22, 2011. A 27-year old man driving a Buick was heading south on Woodcreek Lane driving a blue-colored Buick. The 52-year old attempted a left turn that caused a collision with the Buick, making the Buick slide sideways and collide with the 60-year old man who was in crosswalk at the time. The 52-year old was intoxicated at the time and is in custody for DWI. Investigators are hoping security camera footage from a business near the scene of the collision with help them determine whether the 52-year old had a solid green light or a green left turn arrow when he entered the intersection. That in turn would determine whether other charges would be filed. The name of the 60-year old victim has not been released. Channel 11’s report on the fatal crash is here.

An intersection collision involving a drunk driver on 12/23/2011 left a pedestrian dead.

Early on Saturday December 17, 2011 a woman was killed when her car was t-boned by a wrecker truck leaving the scene of a prior collision. A triple wreck had happened on Highway 6 near FM529 at around 2:30am. A two truck driver was leaving this wreck when he t-boned a 24-year old woman pulling onto Highway 6. Tragically the young woman was pronounced dead at the scene. Channel 2’s report of this crash states that the 24-year old woman was pulling out from a stop sign when she was hit by the wrecker. Investigators said several tickets were issued to drivers who attempted to pass through the accident scene, even after Highway 6 had been shut down in both directions.

Fatal accident on Highway 6 near FM529 on Dec 17, 2011

Police are investigating the cause of the fatal accident involving a tow truck.