Dallas Fort Worth Injury Lawyer Blog
Another lawsuit has been filed in the Texas bus crash that killed 17 people earlier in August 2008. The lawsuit was filed by the estate of Cham Nguyen, who alleges that negligence on the part of the owner and driver of the bus, as well as the vehicle’s manufacturer, caused her death.
The August 8th 2008, bus accident was the nation’s deadliest since 2005. The charter bus, which was taking a group of Vietnamese Catholics to a religious festival in Missouri, blew an illegally treaded tire, skidded off the highway and overturned. In addition to the deaths, 38 people were injured.
Iguala Busmex, a Houston-based company which is owned by Angel De La Torre had the bus registered to his company.
According to news reports De La Torre opened Iguala Busmex shortly after federal investigators banned one of his other companies, Angel Tours, from interstate travel after finding safety violations. Iguala Busmex was able to receive a U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) number. But, the company had not yet been approved for operation at the time of the accident.
The 52-year-old driver of the bus, Barrett Wayne Broussard, had been cited by police motor vehicle violations — once for driving while intoxicated and twice for speeding.
Legal Analysis: This tragic case highlights the down side of NAFTA and the problems facing the border states with negligent transportation companies who flaunt their disregard for safety of their customers.