Director of USU Counseling Center Killed in Logan Car Crash

Posted By Ron Kramer on August 18, 2009

57-year-old Mary E. Doty, head of Utah State University’s counseling center was killed in a Logan, Utah car accident on Wednesday August, 12th, 2009. The Salt Lake Tribune reports that
Doty’s vehicle was hit head-on by a pickup truck on State Road 30.

Utah Highway Patrol Officers believe the driver had apparently fallen asleep at the wheel. He drifted into Doty’s lane killing her on impact. The driver of the pickup was taken to the hospital in stable condition.

My thoughts are with the Doty family as they struggle to recover from this loss. Doty has been the counseling director since 1992 and I think of the countless University students she has helped in her tenure at Utah State. This loss will no doubt be difficult for the Utah State community as well.

I haven’t blogged on drowsy driving in quite some time. Most people know and are concerned about the dangers of drinking and driving but do not understand the dangers of drowsy driving. According to drowsydriving.org, driving drowsy causes many of the same problems as driving drunk. It slows reactions time, decreases awareness, impairs judgment, and significantly increases your risk of crashing.

Although it is difficult to determine if a crash was caused by fatigued driving, a 2005 poll called Sleep in America showed that 60% of adult drivers say they have driven a vehicle while drowsy, and more than 1/3 have fallen asleep at the wheel. Approximately, 100,000 accidents are contributed to driver fatigue each year. causing 1550 deaths, 71,000 injuries and $12.5 billion in losses. Startling statistics considering we are reliant on other drivers to make proper decisions to keep us safe.

I have had a few clients who have been victims of another parties driving while drowsy. Large settlements and/or jury verdicts have been paid to families of crash victims of individuals who were involved in drowsy driving. As far as I’m concerned, drowsy driving can and should be avoided. We all have busy schedules but we should not put ourselves in a car if we know we are going to be drowsy.

Ron Kramer is a Utah accident attorney and personal injury attorney with offices in Bountiful, Draper and Provo, Utah.