A 25-year-old man is being detained in the Chester County Prison on $75,000 bail after being in a car accident that left two Downingtown teens dead. He reportedly smelled of alcohol according to the Exton Police when they arrested him after the fatal crash on Route 100 at North Ship Road.

According to the police report, witnesses said his GMC Sierra pickup truck was going at a high speed and moving erratically before it collided with a Downington family’s Honda Odyssey minivan. Previous court records show that he had been charged in Chester County with drug possession, and in Delaware County, he had pleaded guilty for public drunkenness.

Along with the deaths of the brother and sister, ages 19 and 18 respectively, their father, mother and two other relatives were injured and went to an area hospital. The 19-year-old victim had been studying chemistry and biology at West Chester University. His sister, a student at Downingtown High School West, was praised on social media by her classmates. The high school released a statement that offered condolences and said that grief counselors were present to support upset students.

In a situation like this one with multiple injuries and deaths, substantial costs from medical bills, lost work and funeral expenses result. Sometimes, the fault for the losses are assigned to a negligent driver. Depending on the evidence in the accident report, an attorney might be able to advise a survivor on what types of compensation he or she has a right to ask for in a wrongful death lawsuit. If negligence can be identified, then a court might require the responsible party to compensate a family.

Source: philly.com, “Man charged in Exton crash that killed 2 teen siblings,” Emily Babay and Justine McDaniel, Feb. 16, 2015