Pedestrian Killed in Semi-Truck Crash on Marsha Sharp Freeway in Lubbock

Texas Transportation Code Section 552.006 sets the rules for pedestrians who cross a roadway at a point other than a marked crosswalk or intersection, including a controlled-access highway like the Marsha Sharp Freeway. Under the statute, a pedestrian crossing outside a crosswalk must yield the right-of-way to vehicles on the roadway. The law does not, however, relieve a driver of the general duty to exercise due care to avoid colliding with a pedestrian on the roadway. Investigators typically weigh right-of-way and driver attentiveness together when a freeway pedestrian crash like this one is reviewed.

Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code Section 71.002 allows the surviving spouse, children, and parents of a person killed by another’s wrongful act, negligence, or default to pursue a wrongful death claim. The statute applies when a death is caused by an injury that would have given the deceased the right to sue had they survived. For a freeway pedestrian fatality like this one, the law gives the family a legal path to seek accountability once investigators determine how the crash happened. No fee is owed unless a claim succeeds.