Houston Personal Injury Attorneys – Smith & Hassler

Alleged drunk driver responsible for head-on crash in Santa Fe, Texas: 53-year old Tony Rainey, pictured below, has been charged with two counts of intoxication assault in connection with a major car accident on July 4^th in Santa Fe, Texas that seriously injured a young woman and a little girl. Rainey is in custody on $100,000 bond.

Santa Fe Police say Tony Rainey was driving westbound on FM 1764 around 9:00pm when he suddenly swerved into the eastbound lanes crashing head-on into a vehicle driven by Terry Regnier.  25-year old Ashley Jackson and a five-year old girl were a passenger in Regnier’s vehicle. Both Ashley and the little girl suffered serious injuries and were life-flighted to hospital: thankfully they are now in stable condition. Ashley suffered facial fractures in the accident.

Two others were injured in the accident and were taken by ground ambulance to the hospital. Testing performed at the crash scene determined that Tony Rainey was legally intoxicated at the time of the crash. He was taken to the hospital for a mandatory blood draw and was then charged with intoxication assault. Rainey is currently in custody pending his transfer to Galveston County Jail. FOX News’ story is here.

According to the Galveston Daily News’ report, police found a spilled beer on the floorboard of Rainey’s vehicle. Hopefully Tony Rainey has plenty of automobile insurance to cover the injuries and damage caused. Speedy recovery to Ashley Jackson and the little girl.

If you or a family member have been injured by a drunk driver‘s selfish choices, Smith & Hassler is a Houston personal injury law firm that will aggressively pursue compensation for your damages.

Drunk driver hits pedestrian in Montrose: A woman was crossing West Alabama near Mandell in the Montrose area at around 2:30am this morning when she was struck by a 2008 Nissan Altima sedan. The driver of the Altima, Arturo Gonzales, initially left the scene, but then decided to return. Gonzales has been charged with driving while intoxicated. The female pedestrian was taken to Memorial Hermann hospital in serious condition. Channel 2’s report is here. Channel 13’s report is here. Unfortunately this will probably be one of many injury accidents caused by drunk drivers over the fourth of July weekend. Smith & Hassler has practiced personal injury law in Houston and throughout Texas since 1989, and leverages that experience to protect the rights of clients hurt by drunk drivers.

Police believe drunk driving was to blame for yet another fatal accident in the Houston area. At around midnight last night a 29-year old male driver and his 34-year old male passenger were traveling on the Southwest Freeway (US 59) near Edloe in a Nissan 350z sports car when the driver lost control and crashed into the concrete median. The sports car flipped over the median, rolled over, and landed in the beginning of the HOV lane, sliding down the freeway. The passenger was ejected in the accident and his body slid around 150 feet: he was pronounced dead at the scene.  The driver of the Nissan refused a breathalyzer test, however we are in a no refusal period through July 4th, so one way or the other police will obtain an alcohol test from the driver. Channel 13’s report of the accident is here.

A driver was trapped this morning when a Budget box truck crashed into a passenger car in an accident on the Gulf Freeway near Almeda Genoa. The accident happened during the morning rush hour just after 8:30am in the southbound lanes. The Budget truck ran partially on top of the car, and the car’s driver was transported to hospital in an unknown condition.  The scene was cleared in about an hour. Channel 11 report.

Channel 2 is reporting that a person was killed this morning in an accident involving a crane collapse.  The accident happened around 10:00am this morning at the Garden Ridge store in Conroe. Construction crews are currently rebuilding the store after it was damaged in an arson fire in October 2011. Police say the crane was in the process of hoisting a portion of the store wall when the collapse happened. The cause of the crane collapse is under investigation. FOX News’ report indicates that a worker was seriously injured in the accident, but does not mention a fatality.

A pedestrian is in hospital in serious but stable condition after a hit-and-run accident at the Star Stop gas station and convenience store at 102 Cavalcade Street in Houston. According to FOX News’ story, two men were walking in the parking lot of the Star Stop around 4:15am Friday when a black SUV struck and ran over one of the men. The other man was able to jump out of the way and avoid being run over. A tow truck driver attempted to chase down the SUV but it would not stop: the driver is described as a bald, white male. Another witness told police he saw the two men and the SUV driver arguing near the door of the Star Stop before the hit-and-run, so the SUV driver may have intentionally struck the pedestrian.