Rusk County, TX — May 28, 2025, Ana Martinez was injured in a truck accident at about 9:45 p.m. on Old Kilgore Highway/F.M. 2276 near Henderson.

A preliminary accident report indicates that a southbound 2024 Freightliner semi-truck allegedly ran a stop sign and collided with a 2020 Honda Pilot that was going southwest on State Highway Loop 571.

Honda driver Ana Martinez, 41, was seriously injured in the crash, according to the report.

The truck driver, who was not injured, was cited for disregarding a stop sign, the report states.

Authorities have not released any additional information about the Rusk County crash at this time.

Commentary by Attorney Michael Grossman

When people read about a crash like this, the first question is simple: how does a fully loaded semi-truck run a stop sign at night? A citation may feel like an answer, but it usually isn’t the whole story. What matters is why the stop sign was missed and whether that failure points to something deeper than a single mistake.

Right now, all we know is that the truck driver was cited for disregarding a stop sign. That tells us what law enforcement believes happened, but it does not explain what caused it. We don’t yet know whether the driver was distracted, fatigued, confused about the intersection or dealing with a problem inside the cab. Each of those possibilities leads to different questions and different sources of proof.

In situations like this, the evidence inside the truck often matters more than what’s written in a preliminary report. The truck’s engine control module can show speed, braking and throttle use before impact. Cell phone records can confirm whether the driver was on a call or sending messages. If the truck had in-cab or outward-facing cameras, those recordings may show whether the driver ever slowed for the stop sign or even saw it.

It’s also not clear whether this was just a driver error or something tied to the company behind the truck. Was the driver properly trained on this route? Was he rushing to meet a delivery window? Had he been driving too long that day? Those questions can only be answered by looking at driver logs, dispatch records and the company’s safety practices.

I’ve handled many cases where a citation made things look simple at first. But once the evidence came in, it turned out the real cause had more to do with what the company allowed, or failed to check, than with one moment at an intersection. That’s why these crashes need independent investigation, not assumptions.

Until more information is released, we don’t yet have the full picture. Accountability only comes after the evidence shows what actually happened and who had the ability to prevent it.

Key Takeaways

• A traffic citation explains the rule that was broken, not necessarily why it was broken
• Black box data, cameras and phone records are critical in stop-sign crashes involving trucks
• It’s not yet clear whether distraction, fatigue or company pressure played a role
• Trucking company policies and driver oversight often matter as much as driver actions