Most car accidents involving alcohol occur when one vehicle hits another vehicle. Other times, a vehicle will hit a pedestrian or cyclist, which can be deadly because there is no steel cage protecting people walking down the street. In rarer cases, a vehicle will go off the road, and crash into a house. Despite houses appearing to be sturdy and safe for the residents inside, a number of drunk driving crashes involving houses end with serious injuries for those at home.

Earlier this year, we reported on a Livermore resident facing gross vehicular manslaughter charges and a DUI after he lost control of his vehicle and crashed into an apartment building, killing two and injuring two others. However, stories like this are more common that they first appear.

One man's home in Raleigh, North Carolina appears to be a strange magnet to speeding vehicles. An intoxicated driver recently lost control of his Honda sedan, which crashed through a brick pillar and then into the home at 4101 Fawn Glen Drive. Alcohol is suspected to be a factor. Although the owner of the home must not have been very surprised. This was the fifth time that home was hit by a car in the past 8 year. Three people died after crashes into the home in 2007 alone. According to the owner, the city claims, “they can not engineer out drunk driving.”

In Colorado, two people were injured in the early morning hours after a vehicle crashed into a home in Parker. The 20-year-old driver, and a 70-year-old man inside the house have been taken to the hospital. The driver was arrested on charges of driving under the influence, careless driving resulting in injury, and four counts of reckless endangerment and third-degree assault.

In San Diego, a crash could have had broader repercussions after the driver hit a house and ruptured gas lines. The suspected drunk driver's accident resulted in an evacuation of a neighborhood in National City. Although no one was injured, the driver and passenger were arrested. A man in Minnesota was involved in a similar accident, after a DUI crash into a home that lead to a natural gas leak.

In a more tragic story, a woman is awaiting sentencing for killing her husband and son-in-law after crashing her car through their lakefront home in Washington State. Carol Fedigan pleaded guilty to two counts of vehicular homicide, vehicular assault, DUI and reckless endangerment. She was having dinner with her family when she decided to move her vehicle into the driveway, while her daughter, son-in-law, and husband were sitting in the dining room. She lost control of the vehicle, which smashed through the dining room.

At the Gorelick Law Offices, attorney Lynn Gorelick has dedicated her legal career to defending people charged with driving under the influence in the East Bay. With more than 30 years of DUI experience, she understands the serious criminal penalties, and knows how to fight to keep your arrest from ending in a conviction. Contact your local East Bay criminal defense attorney who will make sure you get the justice you deserve.