A 7-year-old child died after a head-on crash early Saturday in the 4000 block of College Street in Beaumont, in a wreck that has police weighing possible criminal charges. Emergency crews pulled the child from a mangled vehicle, got a pulse back, and had the child flown to a Houston hospital, where officials say the child later died. Beaumont police identified the driver as 46-year-old Leosha Livings. The department says its traffic unit is investigating and that charges could follow.
Crash details and scene
Beaumont police were called about 3:10 a.m. Saturday to a major collision in the 4000 block of College Street. Investigators told reporters that Livings was driving east on College with the child in the front seat and not properly restrained. Witnesses said she stopped at a green light, then suddenly accelerated, crossed a concrete median and hit a westbound SUV head-on. Firefighters used hydraulic rescue tools to free Livings from the vehicle, and the driver of the other SUV was treated for minor injuries and released, as reported by the Beaumont Enterprise.
Child restraint and risk
Police said the child was not properly restrained, a detail that often proves critical after serious crashes. Research cited by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration finds that correctly used child safety seats cut the risk of fatal injury by about 71% for infants and 54% for toddlers in passenger cars. That is why crash investigators routinely document how and whether restraints were used, and why safety advocates keep pressing seat belt and car seat compliance as a core strategy to prevent child deaths on Texas roads.
Investigation and possible charges
The Beaumont Police Department's Traffic Unit is leading the investigation, and officers told reporters that charges are on the table as they sort through the evidence. Livings was taken to a hospital in critical but stable condition, while the child was flown to a Houston hospital and later died, according to the Beaumont Enterprise. Authorities have not said whether impairment, speed or any other factors contributed. The traffic unit typically gathers witness statements, vehicle data and detailed scene measurements before sending a case to prosecutors.
Possible charges under Texas law
What prosecutors ultimately pursue will hinge on what investigators find. Under Texas law, a death caused while operating a vehicle while intoxicated can be charged as intoxication manslaughter (Penal Code §49.08), a felony. Other fatal crashes can lead to charges such as manslaughter or criminally negligent homicide if a driver is found to have acted recklessly or with criminal negligence. For details on the statutes and how they apply, see Justia and the Texas Penal Code.
What to watch next
The traffic unit's findings could lead to charges or close out the case with no criminal filing. In the meantime, the crash is sharpening local attention on child passenger safety and intersection dangers. State and district crash data show that intersections and unrestrained passengers make up a disproportionate share of serious injuries and deaths in the Beaumont area, and officials say keeping similar tragedies from happening again will take both enforcement and education, according to the TxDOT Beaumont District. Beaumont police have not released additional details, and the investigation remains active.
