Missouri truck driver pleads not guilty to charges after fatal tractor trailer crash
 |
Donald Creed, 76, a truck driver with a Kansas City based company, has pleaded not guilty to charges in connection with a fatal tractor trailer accident that killed 10 people in Oklahoma.
Creed is facing 10 counts of misdemeanor negligent homicide from a crash that occurred on June 26. On that day, he was driving a tractor trailer which plowed through a line of cars that had been stopped due to an earlier wreck. In all, six cars were hit and 10 people left dead.
The Oklahoma Highway Patrol crash report found there were no mechanical problems with the truck and that Creed’s cruise control was set within the speed limit.
Local media reports say witnesses described the truck as traveling very fast and changing lanes without signaling. It appears Creed did not attempt to brake as there were no skid marks on the road and an arrest warrant cited witnesses claiming they never saw brake lights, according to a NewsOK.com report.
Troopers cited in the NewsOK report also said Creed had been driving for around 10 hours, which is approaching the Hours of Service Regulation limit of 11. Creed had been on his cell phone minutes before the crash.
No new information was available about any potential personal injury or wrongful death lawsuits. If the evidence proves that Creed was distracted by his phone or negligent in some other way causing the crash, the family of the deceased may be able to contact a tractor trailer accident lawyer and recover significant damages.
