On July 22, a vehicle traveling along Highway 252 in Brooklyn Park collided with the rear end of another automobile. The driver of the car that got rear ended was a 16-year-old student. He was taken to the hospital, but succumbed to his injuries and died a few days later.
Meanwhile, the driver who seems to have caused the car accident was taken to the hospital overnight. He had been driving on a revoked license, and apparently the police officer who responded to the crash noted the odor of alcohol on his breath.
Shortly after the crash, the driver posted photos of his totaled vehicle on his Facebook page, signing one of them with a smiley face emoticon. According to him, he did not know at the time that he had hit a vehicle with another person in it or that the victim of the crash was hospitalized in critical condition. The photos have since been taken down, but not before they had been widely viewed and discussed.
In all legal matters, it is a good idea to stay away from social media with anything that could be used as evidence or construed in a bad light. This is just one example of why. As though it was not already bad enough to be facing charges and civil liability for a death while driving without a valid license, possibly while intoxicated, now there are photos circulating that, even giving the driver the benefit of the doubt, are in the very least in bad taste.
Source: Star Tribune, “Driver who killed teen posts his totaled car online with smiley face,” Paul Walsh, July 31, 2014
