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Alcohol Impairment
Alcohol can reduce reaction time, judgment, coordination, attention, and the ability to safely respond to traffic conditions.
Dallas–Fort Worth Drunk Driving Accident Lawyer
Impaired driving is a choice.
The damage can last a lifetime.
Alcohol and drugs can impair judgment, reaction time, coordination, perception, and the ability to safely control a vehicle.
The Piri Law Firm represents people throughout Dallas–Fort Worth who suffer serious injuries or lose family members in crashes involving impaired drivers.
CrashPreserve evidence
DriverInvestigate impairment
RecordsDevelop proof
LossDocument damages
DFWNorth Texas representation
Direct Answer
Can I bring an injury claim against a drunk driver in Texas?
Potentially. When an impaired driver causes a collision, an injured person may pursue a civil claim for accident-related losses. Evidence from the crash investigation, witnesses, field sobriety testing, chemical testing, video, criminal proceedings, and other sources may become important in establishing what occurred.
Impaired Driving
The civil case requires evidence of what happened before and during the crash.
A drunk-driving injury case can involve both the physical collision and a separate body of evidence concerning the driver's condition, conduct, alcohol or drug consumption, and actions before impact.
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Drug Impairment
Illegal drugs, prescription medications, or combinations of substances may affect alertness, perception, coordination, or driving ability.
03
Excessive Speed
Impaired drivers may combine poor judgment with dangerous speed, increasing both crash risk and impact forces.
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Wrong-Way Driving
Severe impairment can contribute to wrong-way entry and devastating head-on collisions on highways and divided roads.
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Failure To Stop
An impaired driver may run traffic lights or stop signs, fail to brake, or react too late to vehicles and pedestrians.
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Lane Departure
Drifting, weaving, crossing center lines, and leaving the roadway can result in sideswipe, head-on, rollover, and roadside crashes.
Preserving Evidence
The evidence of impairment may extend far beyond the damaged vehicles.
A serious impaired-driving investigation may generate police reports, body-camera footage, dash-camera video, witness statements, photographs, chemical-test information, medical evidence, vehicle data, and records connected with any criminal case.
Police and crash investigation records
Body-camera and dash-camera footage
Witness and surveillance evidence
Testing and impairment evidence
Building The Case
Four questions help establish what happened.
Was the driver impaired?
Testing, officer observations, video, witness accounts, admissions, driving behavior, and other evidence may help establish impairment.
How did the impairment affect the crash?
Investigators may examine speed, braking, lane position, traffic controls, reaction time, vehicle movements, and the sequence leading to impact.
What evidence exists outside the police report?
Businesses, residences, witnesses, electronic systems, vehicles, and other sources may contain independent evidence of the collision or events beforehand.
What losses did the collision cause?
Medical treatment, disability, lost income, pain, impairment, future care, and other consequences should be fully documented.
Civil & Criminal Proceedings
A criminal DWI case and an injury claim are not the same case.
The government may pursue criminal charges against an impaired driver, while an injured person may separately pursue a civil claim. Evidence developed during the criminal investigation may also be relevant to the civil case.
Crash Investigation
Scene evidence, vehicle damage, measurements, photographs, witness accounts, and electronic information can help reconstruct the collision.
Impairment Evidence
Officer observations, testing, video, statements, driving behavior, and other records may provide evidence regarding the driver's condition.
Medical Evidence
Emergency treatment, surgery, rehabilitation, specialist care, restrictions, prognosis, and future needs establish the medical consequences.
Financial Loss
Lost wages, reduced earning capacity, medical expenses, future care, and other financial consequences may form part of the damages analysis.
Serious Consequences
Impaired-driving crashes can cause catastrophic and fatal injuries.
High-speed, head-on, intersection, pedestrian, motorcycle, and highway collisions involving impaired drivers can cause brain injuries, spinal trauma, fractures, internal injuries, permanent disability, scarring, chronic pain, and death.
Related Personal Injury Services
Impaired driving can lead to many forms of serious collision.
Related pages provide additional information about vehicle accidents and catastrophic injuries that may result from drunk or drug-impaired driving.
Car Accidents
Passenger-vehicle collisions can involve substantial injuries, disputed insurance issues, and complex damages.
Explore →Motorcycle Accidents
Motorcyclists can suffer devastating injuries when an impaired driver fails to yield, maintain a lane, or react in time.
Explore →Pedestrian Accidents
Impaired drivers may fail to recognize pedestrians in crosswalks, intersections, parking areas, and roadways.
Explore →Traumatic Brain Injury
High-force impacts can cause lasting cognitive, neurological, behavioral, and functional impairment.
Explore →Spinal Cord Injury
Severe collisions can damage the spinal cord and cause permanent mobility or sensory impairment.
Explore →Catastrophic Injuries
Permanent injuries may require extensive medical treatment, rehabilitation, assistance, and future care.
Explore →Wrongful Death
Families may have civil claims when an impaired-driving collision causes a preventable death.
Explore →Personal Injury
Explore the broader Dallas–Fort Worth personal injury practice.
Explore →Frequently Asked Questions
Drunk driving accident questions.
Can I sue a drunk driver who caused my accident?
Potentially. A person injured by an impaired driver may have a civil claim for losses caused by the collision. The available claims and damages depend on the facts of the case.
Does the driver need to be convicted of DWI for me to have a civil claim?
A criminal prosecution and a civil injury claim are separate proceedings with different purposes and legal standards. The outcome of a criminal case is not necessarily the sole factor determining whether a civil claim exists.
What evidence can show that a driver was impaired?
Potential evidence can include officer observations, chemical testing, field sobriety information, body-camera or dash-camera video, witness statements, admissions, driving behavior, photographs, and other records.
Can evidence from the criminal investigation be important to my injury case?
Yes. Depending on the circumstances, police records, video, witness information, testing evidence, and other materials developed during the criminal investigation may also be relevant to a civil claim.
How long do I have to file a drunk-driving injury claim in Texas?
Texas generally applies a two-year limitations period to personal injury claims, although exceptions can apply. Evidence may disappear much sooner, so prompt preservation can be important.
Confidential Consultation
What Are You Facing?
Tell us where the crash occurred, why impairment was suspected, whether police arrested or tested the driver, what injuries occurred, and what medical treatment you have required.
Call833-FOR-PIRI
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