Houston Man Killed as Pickup Veers Into Oncoming Lane on FM 755 in Starr County

What Happened on FM 755 Near La Gloria?

On Friday, July 17, 2026, at approximately 1:40 p.m., a two-vehicle crash on FM 755 just south of FM 1017, near the community of La Gloria in Starr County, killed a 67-year-old Houston man, according to reporting by KRGV Channel 5 News and Telemundo 40.

Citing a Texas Department of Public Safety news release, KRGV reported that a silver Dodge Ram towing a trailer was heading northbound on FM 755 when a gray Dodge 1500 traveling southbound veered into the northbound lane. The driver of the Dodge Ram swerved to avoid a head-on collision, but the Dodge 1500 still struck the trailer.

The passenger in the Dodge 1500, identified by DPS as Noelio Garza Peña, 67, of Houston, died at the scene. The driver of the Dodge 1500 was taken to a McAllen hospital with injuries described as non-life-threatening, and the driver of the Dodge Ram did not seek medical treatment. DPS troopers are still investigating what caused the pickup to leave its lane.

Lane Departures on Two-Lane Farm Roads

Texas law addresses this situation directly: under Chapter 545 of the Texas Transportation Code, a driver must generally keep to the right half of the roadway and may not move from a lane unless the movement can be made safely. Why the southbound pickup crossed the center line here — driver error, a medical event, a mechanical failure, or something else — is a question for the completed DPS investigation, not the preliminary findings.

Two-lane farm-to-market roads like FM 755 leave little room for error: with a single lane in each direction and no barrier, a vehicle that drifts across the stripe meets oncoming traffic head-on. Federal and state traffic-safety data have long shown that roadway departures on rural two-lane roads account for an outsized share of Texas traffic deaths.

Who Can Be Affected?

A death like this reaches an entire family at once. People who may have questions about their legal options can include:

• The spouse, children, and parents of Mr. Garza Peña — the family members Texas law recognizes in a wrongful death case
• The estate of the person who died, which can have a survival claim of its own
• Anyone injured in the crash whose rights will depend on what the completed investigation shows
• Anyone now facing medical bills, funeral costs, or lost income because of the crash

What Kind of Claim Might Apply?

Attorneys who handle Texas fatal-crash cases generally describe several paths that can apply once the facts are established:

• A wrongful death claim — under Chapter 71 of the Texas Civil Practice & Remedies Code, the surviving spouse, children, and parents of a person killed by another’s wrongful act can generally seek compensation for their losses, and the estate can bring a survival claim for the deceased’s own damages.
• Passenger claims — attorneys explain that a passenger is almost never at fault for a crash, and that a passenger’s claim can exist against any driver whose negligence caused the wreck — including, in some cases, the driver of the very vehicle the passenger was riding in. Families are often reluctant to consider that path when the driver is someone they know; attorneys point out that such claims are typically paid by the driver’s auto liability insurance, which exists for exactly this purpose.
• Uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage — attorneys also review every auto policy in the household, because uninsured/underinsured motorist (UM/UIM) and personal injury protection (PIP) coverage can apply to a passenger’s death or injuries when the at-fault driver’s policy is too small or unavailable.
• Deadlines — for most Texas wrongful death and injury cases, the statute of limitations is generally two years, with limited exceptions.

A lawyer can obtain the DPS crash report when it is complete, preserve evidence from both vehicles, deal with the insurance companies, and identify every source of compensation that may apply.

Why Acting Quickly Can Matter

The legal clock is only part of the story. Attorneys who handle crash cases describe a second clock that runs faster: skid marks fade, vehicles are repaired or salvaged, onboard electronic data can be lost, and witness memories dim within weeks. While the DPS investigation into this crash is still open, many families choose to have a lawyer monitoring it on their behalf — so that when the final report issues, they already know what it means for them.

Sources

1. KRGV Channel 5 News — Houston man killed in Starr County crash
2. Telemundo 40 — DPS investiga choque fatal en el Condado Starr
3. Texas Transportation Code, Chapter 545 (Operation and Movement of Vehicles)
4. Texas Civil Practice & Remedies Code, Chapter 71 (Wrongful Death; Survival)
5. Texas Civil Practice & Remedies Code, Chapter 16 (Limitations)