Deadly Lake Worth Crash Caused By Medical Emergency?
LAKE WORTH (CBS 11 NEWS) - Lake Worth police say Tarrant County prosecutors will now subpoena the medical records of 82-year-old Vincent Martinez. Police say surveillance video shows his pick-up truck plowing through a strip mall parking lot, then into a group of people and killing seven-year-old Savannah Deegear.
Her father, Mark Deegear, is devastated. "She is always going to be special in our hearts, a loving kid that loved life."
Martinez's family has told police and reporters that he may have suffered a diabetic emergency, which led to Saturday's crash.
Dr. Shaun Murphy, a general practitioner at Medical City Dallas, couldn't comment about the driver involved in this crash. But in general, he says a diabetic emergency happens when a person's blood sugar drops too low.
Murphy says, "It can be very serious."
It can cause serious problems without much warning wherever you are -- including while you're out driving.
Dr. Murphy says, "So patients can black out. They could lose consciousness, they could become confused, have a seizure."
Police and prosecutors will now try to determine if Martinez did suffer a diabetic emergency.
We wanted to see how common crashes are that are caused by medical conditions. We checked with the state and federal governments, and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. But they tell us they don't keep those statistics.
Regardless of the crash's cause, it has touched not only little Savannah's family and friends, but those who didn't know her.
A vigil will be held at the crash site in Lake Worth at 8pm Tuesday.
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