There’s nothing wrong with photographing a car milestone, like when your rusted 1998 Toyota Camry hits 200,000 miles, and you take a picture of the odometer, and it immediately turns to dust at 200,001 miles. Unless, of course, you’re driving while the milestone happens, and the car’s going over 100 mph, and you’re not snapping a quick photo — you’re using SnapChat.
On Sept. 10, 2015, Christal McGee, 18, took her father’s Mercedes Benz out for a late-night joy ride. According to a lawsuit filed by attorney Michael Lawson Neff, she “pushed the speed of her Mercedes to above 80 miles per hour. McGee then pushed the speed of her Mercedes to above 90 miles per hour. And McGee continued to push the speed of her Mercedes to above 100 miles per hour.” McGee got all the way up to 107 mph (in a 55-mph zone) when she collided with Maynard Wentworth’s Mitsubishi in Clayton County, Georgia. They both, miraculously, survived the crash (as did her three passengers and his wife), but Maynard has permanent brain damage and can no longer work as an Uber driver. Now he’s suing not only McGee, but also SnapChat.
[Wentworth] and his wife are suing McGee — and Snapchat — for negligence. The narrative of that night is outlined in a civil complaint filed in Spalding County court last week, which alleges that Snapchat was equally responsible for the cause of the crash because the company did not delete the miles per hour filter from the app after it was cited in similar accidents prior to the crash. (Via Washington Post)
The “Speed Filter” determines how fast a user is traveling using GPS. The app warns, “Do NOT Snap and Drive,” but after the crash, McGee, with blood still on her face, reportedly Snapchatted, “Lucky to be alive.”
(Via the Washington Post)