Midland, TX — February 6, 2026, Tamara Cates sustained fatal injuries as the result of a truck versus bicycle accident at 7:35 p.m. on Business 20.

Investigators said that the incident happened near the intersection of the I-20 service road and County Road 1103.

According to officials, 63-year-old Tamara Jan Cates was on an e-bike traveling eastbound along the service road. While doing so, a semi-trailer hit Tamara Cates from behind. Following the collision, authorities pronounced Tamara Cates deceased.

Authorities did not release any additional details at the time.

Commentary by Attorney Michael Grossman

There isn't a lot of information about what went wrong here. In these situations, I always emphasize the importance of gathering and preserving evidence as soon as possible . Simply assuming authorities have everything under control without verifying their actions risks losing vital evidence. Let me give an example of why I say this.

I had a truck accident case a while back where a family wanted a second opinion about what police were doing. They waited for months without following up with authorities because they assumed that officers share what they found when they found it. Naturally, the lack of answers for months made them grow restless. So, they asked us to look into things. What we found was nothing short of jaw-dropping.

Apparently, that commercial truck wreck was left in the hands of an inexperienced officer who hadn't handled truck wrecks before. One thing that officer did was let the trucking company take the truck's Engine Control Module (or ECM) from the scene without independently preserving the evidence. This device can show things like speed, braking, and steering leading up to a collision. It provides vital insight after any serious crash. The officer figured the trucking company would pull the data and freely share what they found. In reality, what the inexperienced officer did was akin to letting a murder suspect into a crime scene to dust for fingerprints. Ultimately, we were able to help that family, but one officer's mistake nearly torpedoed a family's chances of getting a just resolution for the loss of a loved one.

I've handled hundreds of commercial vehicle accident cases. These kinds of oversights are unfortunately common. That's why it can be crucial for families to follow up with authorities as soon as possible. If authorities can show they're turning over every stone to secure evidence, that's good. However, if it turns out authorities are making missteps or failing to give the accident the attention it deserves, that's a serious red flag. That's when families may decide the accident needs to be in the hands of more diligent, experienced professionals. Whether or not those steps will be necessary here remains to be seen.