Montgomery v. State

Facts

On March 24, 2008, appellant was driving her mid-size SUV in the center lane of the three-lane service road adjacent to Interstate Highway 45 and talking on her cell phone. Appellant abruptly swerved into the left lane to try to get onto the lamp, even though the beginning of the solid-white-lined area on the pavement between the ramp and the service road was behind her. The state’s expert testified that it was 92 feet past the entrance to the ramp. As appellant moved abruptly into the left lane, she cut off Cochise Willis, who was driving his truck in the left lane. The collision caused appellant’s vehicle to rotate in a counterclockwise direction, crossing over the safety barrier and onto the entrance ramp itself. The front of appellant’s SUV struck the passenger side of Terrell Housley’s pickup truck, which had just been driven onto the entrance ramp. Chance Wilcox was a passenger in the truck. After the collision, Housley’s truck rotated clockwise, causing it to hit the curb that separates the entrance ramp and the safety barrier and flip over, coming to a stop upside down. As Housley’s truck flipped, Wilcox was ejected, and he died at the scene from trauma to his head and neck.