Tiffany Chapman was out with friends at a pool hall off Crowley Road, just south of Interstate 20 in Fort Worth, when a stranger's car slammed into her in the parking lot, leaving her with two broken legs, a collapsed lung and a broken rib, as noted by NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth. The mother and nurse says she never got a good look at the driver before impact — just headlights, and then pain.
A Friday Night Turns Into a Fight for Survival
Chapman spoke Monday from Harris Methodist about the crash, describing a night out with friends that spiraled into a medical emergency, according to NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth. She said someone in her group had a verbal exchange with a man in the parking lot, and that the man appeared intoxicated. Less than a minute later, Chapman said she saw headlights and then felt the impact.
In the chaos that followed, Chapman said she called on God. She described a wave of emotion and pain washing over her as she realized what had happened, and said she did not know the driver who struck her.
Police Identify Driver, Say He Tried to Run
Fort Worth police identified the driver as 22-year-old Yoriel Cabrera. According to police, Cabrera tried to run away after the crash but did not get far — bystanders kept him from fleeing, per investigators. He was arrested at the scene and later charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and intoxication assault with a vehicle. Cabrera has since been released from the Tarrant County Jail after posting bond.
Chapman said she is bruised and broken, but able to heal. She described her road ahead as uncertain, yet said she is thankful simply to have survived and to be able to share her story.
A Broader Pattern on Fort Worth Streets
Chapman's case follows another serious crash in Fort Worth involving an allegedly impaired driver. On June 11 at approximately 7:00 p.m., a driver traveling eastbound on the 4000 block of E. Rosedale Street struck a pedestrian crossing near Chicago Avenue, according to DFW Scanner. That pedestrian was pronounced deceased after being struck and landing on top of the vehicle, which came to a stop in a nearby fish-market parking lot. The driver in that case was evaluated by a DWI unit and arrested on suspicion of intoxication manslaughter, the outlet reported.
For Chapman, the outcome was survival rather than tragedy, but the injuries were severe enough to leave her hospitalized and facing a recovery she has called uncertain. She is now left to heal from two broken legs, a collapsed lung and a broken rib while the criminal case against Cabrera moves forward.
