A 32-year-old Rusk woman died at the scene of a two-vehicle crash on FM 2138 in Cherokee County last Friday evening after a southbound driver made a U-turn directly into her northbound lane. The impact sent her car off the road, into a ditch, and into a tree, while the other driver was hurt and taken to a hospital in Jacksonville.
Texas DPS identified the deceased driver as Sharicia Hinson, who was headed northbound on FM 2138 when the southbound vehicle attempted the U-turn in front of her, according to CBS19. As reported by KLTV, the crash happened around 8:10 p.m. Friday near County Road 3141, when the vehicle making the U-turn was struck in the back by Hinson's car, per the DPS report. That impact sent the turning vehicle spinning to a stop in the roadway, while Hinson's car left the road, went into a ditch, and struck a tree. She died at the scene, and the other driver was injured and taken to a Jacksonville hospital, the station's report notes.
A Mother Grieving Her Own Husband's Death Months Earlier
Hinson worked as an outpatient Care Coordinator for ACCESS in Rusk and was the mother of a 5-year-old daughter. Her husband, Anthony Hinson, had died just five months earlier, in March 2026, according to the Instanews Cherokee County Facebook post and Hinson's obituary published by Autry Funeral Home.
Public visitation for Sharicia Hinson is set for August 16 in Jacksonville, with funeral services scheduled for next Monday at Autry Funeral Home, followed by burial at Holleyman's Chapel Cemetery in Maydelle, per the funeral home's listing.
Road Closed for Over an Hour as Air Ambulance Stood By
The crash forced authorities to shut down FM 2138 south of Jacksonville for more than an hour while emergency crews worked the scene and an air ambulance was placed on standby, according to the Instanews Cherokee County report. Local emergency units needed the extended closure to manage both drivers and clear the wreckage from the two-lane roadway.
FM 2138 is an undivided two-lane Farm-to-Market road connecting Jacksonville to rural communities near US 84 and FM 347, according to TxDOT records, meaning any U-turn on the corridor crosses directly into oncoming traffic with little room for error.
Statutory Rules Govern Turns on Texas Highways
Under Texas Transportation Code § 545.103, a driver may not turn or move across a roadway unless the maneuver can be completed safely without endangering other traffic, according to Justia Law. A related statute, Transportation Code § 545.104, requires drivers to signal their intent to turn or change lanes continuously for at least 100 feet beforehand, per FindLaw. It remains unknown whether Texas DPS issued any citation or is pursuing charges against the surviving driver in connection with the U-turn.
The Hinson crash was not an isolated tragedy that weekend. On the same Friday evening, Texas DPS troopers were also dispatched to a separate fatal wreck in neighboring Rusk County, caused by a driver attempting to pass in a no-passing zone, CBS19 reported.
Rural Roads Carry Heavy Crash Toll Across the County
Cherokee County emergency dispatchers fielded 2,260 vehicle accident calls in 2025 alone, part of a 47 percent surge in total 9-1-1 service calls over two years driven by local population growth, according to data reported by High Ground Media Network. Statewide, Texas recorded 4,291 traffic fatalities in 2023, with undivided two-lane rural highways accounting for a substantial share of those deaths, per figures compiled by Bond Legal from TxDOT crash records.
For a county whose rural highways already carry a heavy crash burden, Hinson's death adds another name to that toll — one that leaves behind a 5-year-old daughter now without either parent within the same year.
