Atlanta Personal Injury Lawyer Blog

On August 25, 2011, Priscilla Johnson, 48, of Clayton County, Georgia veered off Highway 138 and collided into three teenagers killing all three. The third victim was taken off life support at Grady Hospital on August 27. Ms. Johnson was charged in the Magistrate Court of Clayton County with more than 12 separate offenses, including reckless driving, DUI, hit and run and failure to exercise due care while using a cell phone.

Allegedly, Johnson was on the cell phone arguing with her husband when she drove through a red light, left the roadway and crashed into the teenagers. Tests indicated that Johnson also had a high level of antidepressants in her system. The teenagers were walking on the side of the highway at the time of the impact. One teenager died at the scene and two others died later at the hospital.

Hines Ward, current wide receiver for the Pittsburgh Steelers, was arrested early this morning in DeKalb County for driving under the influence (DUI). He previously played football at the University of Georgia from 1994-1997 as a tailback and wide receiver. If you are not a fan of football, you may have seen him dancing on Dancing With The Stars where his fleet feet won him the coveted mirror bowl trophy. My wife, a Georgia graduate, told me the details. In any event, he spent several hours in one of DeKalb County's finest facilities today.

The facts are somewhat sparse. However, Ward was booked in the DeKalb County Jail around 3:41 a.m. and released on a $1,000.00 bond. He allegedly told officers that he had been at a club in downtown Atlanta and had two drinks. The AJC reports that this is not Hine's first brush with the law in DeKalb County, Georgia as he was previously charged with reckless driving and speeding. Apparently, he entered into a plea bargain and pled guilty to speeding with the more serious charge of reckless driving being dismissed.

Allegedly, Ward was arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol. He failed a field sobriety test at the scene and refused to take a breathalyzer. In Georgia, the law mandates that a motorist shall not drive or be in actual physical control of a vehicle if the motorist was under the influence of alcohol, drugs or toxic vapor that makes it less safe to drive. Since Ward refused the breathalyzer, then under Georgia law his driver's license would be suspended for one year and the solicitor would be able to admit evidence of his refusal in court against him. However, Ward could request an administrative hearing on his license suspension.

Yesterday at 11:05 a.m., the day before his arrest, Ward posted on his official Facebook page that he was "bad" about driving and texting saying "I am bad at doing that. It's very unsafe. Help remind me from time to time to stop texting, tweeting, or facebook while driving. Let's help each other!" Fourteen minutes later, he wrote " I know it's dangerous. Trust me, I love my LIFE! But it's a bad habit I have. So let's help each other to knock my habit. And ladies putting on make up while driving is just as bad."

Ward's penchant to text and drive is a bit concerning inasmuch as he apparently resides in Sandy Springs, Georgia in the off-season and presumably is driving regularly on the roads in Georgia. Ward is but one of many motorists that text and drive. And the purpose of this blog is not to focus on Ward or to insinuate that he is a bad person. He's not. He is just human and makes mistakes as humans do. Rather, the issue should be focused on inattentive drivers on the roadways in Atlanta and Georgia.

In a stunning move that has broad implications, the Georgia Supreme Court issued an opinion today in Flores et al. v. EXPREZIT! Stores 98-Georgia, LLC., et al., S10G1652, that found a Georgia convenience store was liable to the families of individuals killed and injured as the result of an intoxicated person who purchased beer at the store and subsequently caused an auto collision. The justices voted 6-1 (Judge Benham the lone dissent) and held that Georgia's Dram Shop Act, O.C.G.A. 51-1-40, applies when a store sells "closed or packaged containers of alcohol not intended for consumption on the premises to a noticeably intoxicated adult."

Previously, case law in Georgia never expanded the Dram Shop law to include grocery stores, convenience stores or mom-and-pop stores. For those who are unfamiliar with the definition of a dram shop, a dram shop is a shop (e.g. tavern, bar) that sells alcohol or liquor by the dram (a unit of measurement for liquid). Dram Shop law are statutes or laws that impose legal liability on businesses/establishments that sell alcohol to noticeably intoxicated persons who then cause injury or death to persons as a result of crashes or accidents that are alcohol related.

In the case before the Supreme Court of Georgia, Billy Joe Grundell drove to Exprezit! Stores 98-Georgia with his friend and bought a twelve pack of beer roughly four hours before the crash. The facts showed that Grundell was noticeably intoxicated at the time that the clerk sold him the beer. Grundell left the store, got into his vehicle and drove away consuming the twelve pack at a later point in time. Thereafter, Grundell crossed the centerline of a highway and crashed into a van traveling in the opposite direction. Grundell's blood alcohol concentration (BAC) was 0.181 grams per 100 milliliters which was equivalent to twice the legal limit in Georgia. As a result of the car collision, six people were either killed or injured.

The trial court and the Court of Appeals both agreed that the Dram Shop did not apply to the sale of closed or packaged alcoholic beverages that were not intended to be consumed on the premises of the shop. However, the Supreme Court interpreted the terms "sells, furnishes, or serves" alcohol to also include sales of alcohol at places other than taverns, bars and nightclubs inasmuch as convenience stores are indeed selling alcohol. The Supreme Court further found that one of the two optional exceptions in the Dram Shop law imposing legal liability applied to Exprezit inasmuch as the store's clerk furnished or served alcohol to a noticeably intoxicated adult (Billy Joe Grundell). The store argued that it had no idea that Grundell would soon be driving and that convenience store clerks have limited time to determine whether a customer was noticeably intoxicated at the time of sale.