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Source: http://lsp.org/news_detail.html?id=3557

id cleanReleaseDate troopName title
3557 2013-05-23 Troop D DeRidder Man Dies After Being Ejected From Pickup Truck

TROOP D NEWS RELEASE

May 23, 2013
DeRidder Man Dies After Being Ejected From Pickup Truck

On May 22, 2013, shortly after 10:00 p.m., Louisiana State Police Troop D responded to a two vehicle crash on Louisiana Highway 26 east of U.S. Highway 171 in Beauregard Parish that claimed the life of a man and injured a woman, both from DeRidder.

The preliminary investigation revealed that a 2002 Chevrolet truck driven by 27-year-old Brian Lavelle Martin of DeRidder was traveling west on LA 26 when the vehicle he was driving crossed the center line and traveled into the path of an eastbound 2010 Toyota RAV4 driven by 67-year-old Doksun Kim O’Connor of DeRidder. The front end of the Chevrolet struck the driver’s door of the Toyota. The Chevrolet then overturned several times.

Martin, who was not wearing a seatbelt, was ejected from the vehicle and was pronounced dead as a result of his injuries. O’Connor, who was wearing a seatbelt, was transported to an area hospital with moderate injuries.

Impairment on the part of Martin is suspected to be a factor in the crash. A toxicology sample was obtained from the drivers and will be submitted for analysis. The crash remains under investigation.

The majority of vehicle occupants who die in crashes in our state are not wearing a seatbelt including eight of the nine people who have died in crashes investigated by Troop D so far this year. Five of these deaths have occurred in Beauregard Parish. Wearing a seatbelt is the single most effective thing motorists can do to protect themselves in the event of a crash. For SUV, pickup, and van occupants, seat belts reduce the risk of fatal injury by 60 percent. Motorists should always make the smart choice and wear their seatbelt.

The nationwide Click It or Ticket occupant protection enforcement campaign is currently underway through June 2. Overtime hours have been allocated to the Louisiana State Police and other law enforcement agencies across the nation to provide additional enforcement of seatbelt and child restraint laws. Louisiana state law requires vehicle occupants in all seating positions to be properly restrained, day and night. Now more than ever, “Click It or Ticket.”

This is the ninth fatal crash investigated by Louisiana State Police Troop D this year.

Contact Information:
Sgt. James Anderson
Louisiana State Police
Public Affairs Section
Office: (337) 491-2932
james.anderson@dps.la.gov
www.LSP.org

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