After a 14-month-old child succumbed to her injuries from a Vermilion Parish crash, State Police say they expect charges against the driver to be upgraded. Trooper Thomas Gossen said the infant was one of three children in the car and the toddler was sitting in the lap of the front seat passenger when the accident happened Friday night.
“No one expected this to occur, it’s not going to be able to be fixed and it certainly was something that didn’t need to happen. It was definitely preventable,” said Gossen.
27-year-old Jhori Danielle Peters of Abbeville is currently cited for careless operation, no driver’s license, and two counts of child restraint violations. The crash happened on LA 338. Gossen said they’re awaiting toxicology results to determine if Peters was distracted or impaired.
“She exited the roadway to the left, so two-lane roadway she crosses the centerline and continues left off the roadway into a ditch and struck a culvert at which time the vehicle flipped over onto its roof,” said Gossen.
Gossen said Peters and the adult in the front passenger seat holding the infant were properly restrained and two children in the backseat were not restrained. Those children were also taken to a local hospital with critical injuries.
Gossen encourages parents to always buckle up their children properly and if they need assistance to visit Buckle Up Louisiana’s Facebook page.
“For locations on where to go to get a certified child passenger safety technician to help you do that installation, again it’s always a free service, take advantage of it just to make sure these children are kept safe,” said Gossen.
For more information on Buckle Up Louisiana click here.
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