The Mississippi Highway Patrol recently reported that the state saw only one car accident related fatality during the busy, and almost always deadly, Fourth of July holiday weekend. The state’s Highway Patrol spokesman Ray Hall said that one 56-year-old man from Canton was killed in a one-car accident near Camden. Apparently the man lost control of his van and ran off the road, hitting a pole.
The lack of fatalities may, at least in part, be credited to zealous enforcement by state police agencies. Over the holiday, Hall says state troopers issued some 3,227 traffic citations, arrested 95 suspected drunk drivers, and made 4 felony arrests. Over the same period Hall says state troopers investigated 47 traffic collisions.
Though news from this usually deadly weekend seems to offer hope for drivers across the state, a recent report from the Trust for America’s Health should give serious cause for concern to those getting behind the wheel of a car in the state. The Washington, D.C. based group says that Mississippi’s comparatively lax drunk driving and child-safety laws have contributed to the state earning the distinction of having the nation’s most automobile-related deaths.
The organization used data from the Centers for Disease control gathered over a span of three years and found that Mississippi’s automobile death rate is 26.7 per 100,000 drivers, the highest in the country. The group launched the survey to help bring awareness to the dangers of driving and emphasize that nationwide, more people between the ages of 5 and 34 are killed in crashes than by any other cause.
The report is titled “Investing In America’s Health,” and says that Mississippi had the 19th highest number of auto fatalities, coming in at 784. The damage was not limited to loss of life, but hit the state hard in the wallet, as $823.5 million in statewide economic productivity was lost due to work loss associated with Mississippi car wrecks.
The report gives the state credit for having a primary seat-belt law and laws making motorcycle helmets mandatory. However, the praise stops there. The group says that the state’s lack of a mandatory ignition lock for convicted drunk drivers accounts for the high number of deaths associated with car crashes. Also problematic is that Mississippi is one of only 18 states that does not mandate booster seats for children ages 8 or younger.
For those who have suffered injuries through accidents that were not their fault, seeking representation on personal injury claims with the right attorney is crucial. If you or some you know has been injured, you need the help of a Mississippi injury attorney to help protect your rights and recover damages for your injury. Contact The Stroud Law Firm today toll free at 833-536-5656.
Source: “South Has Deadliest Roads,” by R.L. Nave, published at JacksonFreePress.com.
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