Lubbock County, TX — October 22, 2023, James Frank Gillon was killed due to a semi-truck accident at around 9:20 p.m. on U.S. Highway 62.

Details released by the Texas Department of Public Safety say the crash took place at the intersection of U.S. 62 and County Road 3800, just outside of the towns of Idalou and Lorenzo.

According to current information, 62-year-old James Frank Gillon was in a Nissan Murano said to be going eastbound along the highway. At the County Road 3800 intersection ahead, authorities say that a westbound Peterbilt semi-truck made a left turn but left its rear-end in the eastbound lane of travel. While it was there, Gillon's vehicle crashed into it.

As a result of the collision, Gillon sustained fatal injuries. There were no other reported injuries.

Commentary by Attorney Michael Grossman

Currently, there is no indication of pending charges or citations as authorities continue their investigations. With that in mind, I'm going to address why that is often how these stories go in situations like the one described here.

A lot of times, when a driver does something that tends to draw only moderate consequences like fines, that's all they're going to get even if someone was hurt as a result of those actions. Folks don't generally look at a mistake like a misjudged turn thinking it deserves harsh criminal consequences. The exception to that comes when investigations reveal other, more serious contributing factors, such as texting and driving, drunk driving, or other mistakes that typically result in further trouble with law enforcement.

For example, I handled a truck wreck case not long ago involving similar circumstances to these. A truck was crossing the highway, blocked lanes of travel, and caused a serious crash. Authorities saw fit to simply cite the truck driver for failing to yield despite the serious injuries the victim suffered.

Through independent investigations, however, it came to light that the reflective tape on the trailer was so caked in dirt that it was practically useless, meaning the trailer would have been all but invisible at the time of the crash. That's a mistake that could result in serious fines, but authorities completely missed it.

I know fines could never really balance the scales of justice when a victim suffers life-changing injuries or a family loses a loved one. But it's far more just than if the driver or company responsible faced no fines at all. That's why when serious mistakes lead to people being hurt or killed, it's important to remember there could be more to the story than what we see in the public after initial investigations.