A Deadly DUI Collision Before The Driver Even Left The Parking Lot

The saying goes that friends don’t let friends drive drunk, but how far should you go to stop a drunk person from driving or a driver from drinking? Being a designated driver is one of the most thankless jobs around. It is no fun to be around a bunch of drunk people when you are sober, and every parent knows how frustrating it is, and how hard to stay focused on the road, when you are driving a car full of people who are not in control of adult faculties and who are in a silly, belligerent, or pucky mood. Being a designated driver only works if you have a sober buddy to keep you company at the drinking party and to ride shotgun while the drunks carry on in the back. Bonus points if you and your buddy are neighbors, so after your designated driving ordeal, you can go back home and unwind with a nightcap, and then all your buddy has to do to get home safely is walk down the hall. Things got easier with the advent of rideshare services, but trying to dissuade a drunk person from something unwise they are determined to do is no simple task, and a lot can go wrong by the time the rideshare car arrives. If you got injured by a drunk driver, despite your efforts to stop him or her from driving, contact a Columbia car accident lawyer.

Woman Died While Trying to Stop Friend From Driving Drunk

Drunk driving and causing an accident does not always lead to prison time. The criminal court cannot convict someone of DUI or any other crime unless the defendant pleads guilty, or unless all 12 jurors are sure, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the defendant is guilty. Meanwhile, Jose Manuel Ramirez is serving a 12-year prison sentence for DUI and related crimes, and the accident he caused occurred when he had barely started driving.

One evening in 2023, Ramirez and Marbel Lopez were guests at a child’s birthday party in Lexington. When Ramirez left to go home, Lopez tried to talk him out of driving, because she knew he was too drunk to drive. Ramirez was determined to drive, though, and Lopez was determined to stop him. When he got into the car, she clung to the door from the outside. While still in the parking lot of the apartment complex, Ramirez accelerated, and this caused Lopez to lose her grip on the door and go flying. She struck a fence with her head, suffering a severe traumatic brain injury; she died of her injuries several weeks later. Ramirez was charged with drunk driving resulting in death, vehicular homicide, and other offenses.

Let Us Help You Today

The personal injury lawyers at the Stanley Law Group can help you get justice after an accident where a drunk driver struck a pedestrian.  Contact The Stanley Law Group in Columbia, South Carolina or call (803)799-4700 for a free initial consultation.

Source:

wistv.com/2025/09/25/lexington-county-man-sentenced-12-years-after-dui-death-conviction/