Forensic Engineering Determination Of who Was Driving

Abstract

The Investigation Of Vehicle Crashes Occasionally Presents A Question Of Who Was Driving A Vehicle At the Time Of A Collision. Many Accidents Result In Drivers And Passengers Being Thrown About The Passenger compartment, Or Being Completely Ejected From Their Vehicle. In Such Cases, Driver, Passenger, And witness Statements Are Often In Conflict With One Another; Especially When The Driver Could Potentially be Charged With A Crime, Or Be Held Liable For Damages Resulting From A Crash. In Many Cases, Physical evidence Can Provide The Forensic Engineer With Information To Conduct A Proper Reconstruction Of The crash, To Perform An Occupant Kinematic Analysis, And To Make A Determination And Render An Opinion regarding Who Was Driving The Vehicle At The Time Of The Crash.  this Paper Will Address Methodologies For Data Collection And Crash Reconstruction That Can Be Used in Determining Who Was Driving A Vehicle At The Time Of A Crash. It Will Include Instruction To The At-Scene investigator As To Data That Can Be Helpful In Such Analyses And Determinations. Two Case Studies Will Be presented In Which The Author Analyzed The Crash Data To Determine Who Was Driving.