Car Accidents

NTSB Urges Ban on Cell Phones for Truck Drivers

September 23, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

The National Transportation Safety Board has formally recommended a ban on the use of cell phones and other mobile electronic devices by commercial truck drivers while driving. While this does not have the force of law, the recommendation follows on a prior recommendation to ban text messaging by truck drivers. The Washington DC Injury Lawyer Blog previously reported on how this led to a formal ban by the federal government on texting by commercial truckers. Nineteen U.S. states and the District of Columbia already ban all drivers from texting while driving. The federal texting rule for truckers, set by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, carries fines of up to $2,750 per incident. The NTSB recommendation on cell phone use is likely to lead to similar rules regarding cell phone use.

The NTSB recommendation resulted from its investigation into a tragic crash on Interstate 65 in Kentucky last year in which a commercial truck driver veered across the median of the highway into oncoming traffic and struck a van carrying a total of 12 people. The crash killed the truck driver, the van driver, and nine of the van’s occupants. Two children in the van were reported to have been saved by their child-restraint systems. The investigation concluded that the truck driver’s distraction from use of a cell phone, combined with fatigue, caused the crash. Investigators found that the truck driver had used his phone for calls and text messages while driving 69 times during the previous 24-hour period. Road conditions, weather, and driver health issues did not play any role in the accident, according to investigators.

The National Transportation Safety Board is an independent agency of the United States government, formed in 1967 and tasked with investigating accidents in the civil transportation system. It investigates certain types of car and truck accidents. Since the accident in Kentucky occurred on an interstate highway, which is partly administered by the federal government, it came under the NTSB’s jurisdiction. The NTSB also investigates aviation, marine, shipping, pipeline, and railroad accidents. The agency lacks the legal authority by itself to create laws or rules, but its system of recommendations frequently leads to the adoption of new safety regulations. In it 44-year history, it has issued over 13,000 recommendations.

Washington Area Car Crashes Kill at Least Eight In Less than 48 Hours

August 13, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Over the last two days, at least people have been killed in Washington area motor vehicle crashes. AAA says that we currently in the deadliest driving period of the year through the Labor Day weekend. Part of this can be attributed to there being so many people on the road driving long distances because its the summer holiday season. Unfortunately, reports AAA, some motorists that are in vacation mode may forget to be as vigilant while driving, which can lead to fatal DC car crashes.

On 4am on Friday, a driver of a 2004 Mercedes-Benz lost control of the vehicle in a Southeast Washington car crash. The auto hit a utility pole before bursting into flames. The bodies of two juveniles were retrieved from the vehicle. That same day, a St. Mary’s County motorcycle crash claimed the life of Devin Sweeting, who sustained multiple pelvic fractures when his bike left Route 5, hit a cement culvert, skidded on its side for approximately 170 feet, before hitting a utility pole. Sweeting was pronounced dead at a Baltimore hospital.

Several hours later, two people died in a Montgomery County car crash that also involved the vehicle leaving the road and bursting into flames. Not long after that an adult and a teenager were killed in a Prince George’s County SUV accident on the Baltimore-Washington Parkway. The vehicle went off the road before crashing into a large tree. Five other kids and one adult were transported to local hospitals in critical condition. One of these children, a 3-month-old baby, was later pronounced dead.

Preventing the Non-Crash Auto Deaths of Kids

July 26, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

While motor vehicle crashes are a leading cause of child fatalities, our Washington DC personal injury lawyers want to warn you of other auto vehicle-related dangers that could put a kid at serious risk. Here are a few of these safety hazards, as identified by the National Highway Safety Administration:

Backover accidents: This usually involves a vehicle backing out of a driveway or parking lot and the driver not realizing that there is a child behind the auto. Backover accidents can prove fatal. Because the vehicle is being operated in reverse, the motorist must take extra precautions to check all viewing mirrors, footage from the backup camera, and perhaps even physically look back to make sure there is no one there.

Power windows: Power windows can entrap a young child’s hands, fingers, feet, neck, or head. It is important to make sure that power window switches have been locked. Otherwise, a child can accidentally activate the switch.

Up to 25% of US Car Crashes Caused by Distracted Driving and Gadget Use

July 12, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

According to the Governors Highway Safety Association, up to 25% of motor vehicle accidents in this country occur because motorists were distracted driving and more often than not using cell phones and other handheld devices. The GHSA’s report, which was released last week, is called “Distracted Driving: What Research Shows and What States Can Do.”

As our Washington DC personal injury law firm has reported in past blogs, distracted driving is very dangerous and can dramatically increase the chances of injuries or deaths. It also can be grounds for a DC car crash lawsuit against the driver. Other findings from the study:

• Some drivers are distracted as much as 50% of the time they are on the road.
• Texting while driving, which is both a manual and visual distraction, is even more dangerous than talking on a phone.

• Examples of other common types of distracted driving behavior include talking to other passengers, looking for tapes or CD’s, switching radio stations, drinking, eating, reading directions or a map, reading books or newspapers, dealing with kids or pets, shaving, putting on makeup, shuffling through an iPod, and reading your GPS.

Many people don’t realize that distracted driving impairs their ability to drive safely. This does not change the fact that this behavior can result in very deadly consequences.

Should other parties aside from a distracted driver be held liable for DC personal injury or wrongful death? A couple of years ago, one woman sued Nextel, Samsung, and Sprint for her mother’s distracted driving death. The plaintiff claimed products liability because the three companies allegedly failed to warn the driver that using a cell phone wile driving is a safety hazard. Samsung countered that it did include safety warnings on its websites and packaging and in its user manuals and advertising.

Report: Gadgets Linked To 25 Percent Of Car Accidents, AutoGuide, July 13, 2011

Read the GHSA’s Distracted Driving Report

Related Web Resources:
Distracted Driving, US Department of Motor Vehicles
Cell Phone and Texting Laws, Governors Highway Safety Association
More Blog Posts:
US DOT Holds Second Annual Distracted Driving Summit in Washington DC, Washington DC Injury Lawyer Blog, September 22, 2010
Preventing Maryland Car Crashes: State Senate Approves Ban on Reading Text Messages While Driving, Maryland Accident Law Blog, March 9, 2011
Maryland Lawmakers Want Texting While Driving Ban to Block Drivers From Reading Messages, Maryland Accident Law Blog, February 20, 2010

Chevy Chase Driver Found Guilty of Negligence Homicide in Washington DC Car Crash that Killed Howard County Woman

June 28, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

A jury has found Jorida Davidson guilty of negligent homicide, driving under the influence, and leaving the scene after a crash in the DC car accident that claimed the life of Kiela Ryan. The 24-year-old traffic crash victim died after Davidson, struck her just south of Dupont Circle on October 7, 2010. October 7 just south of Dupont Circle. The Chevy Chase driver then fled the hit-and-run crash site.

Prosecutors had accused Davidson of driving drunk when she hit Ryan, who was emerging from a parked car at the time. Meantime, Davidson’s lawyer argued that she wasn’t inebriated when the collision happened. They also say that she did not report the DC pedestrian accident because she was suffered post-traumatic stress disorder and amnesia—a fallout from watching her dad die from a heart attack, her mother succumb to breast cancer, and growing up in war-torn Albania. When police later found her SUV, Davidson was slumped in the driver’s seat. She also failed two sobriety tests.

Washington DC Car Crashes

Washington DC Wrongful Death: Family of Woman Killed in Adams Morgan Pedestrian Accident Seeks $20M from Drunk Driver

May 18, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

According to WUSA9.com, the family of Julia Bachleitner is suing Chamica Adams for DC wrongful death. Bachleitner, a Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies student from Austria was killed last September in an Adams Morgan pedestrian accident. The 26-year-old student’s family is seeking $20 million from Adams, who was drunk when she drove a car into a group of graduate students. Other defendants include the bar that served Adams alcohol prior to the deadly collision and her mother.

At around 8:30pm on September 8, 2010, Adams, who was making a left turn, drove over a traffic island to accidentally struck Bachleitner and another woman. She then crashed the vehicle into an empty restaurant. The other woman, Melissa Basque, suffered a concussion with a brain bleed, teeth loss, facial fractures, and a compound leg fracture.

Police say that Adams’s blood-alcohol level was almost two times the legal limit. The 24-year-old Mitchellville woman had consumed alcohol at the District Lounge and Grille right before the DC pedestrian accident. The Washington Times reports that there is security footage from the club showing her consuming several drinks and then stumbling out of the place. The C. Fields Group LLC, which owns the bar, is also a defendant in the Washington DC wrongful death case.

Ford F-150 Pickup Truck Recall Over Air Bag Safety Issue Expanded to 1.2 Million

April 14, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Two months after recalling 144,000 Ford F-150 Pickup Trucks over concerns that the air bags might deploy inadvertently, Ford Motor Co. has expanded its recall to 1.2 million pickup trucks. Our Washington DC car accident lawyers are pleased to see that the automaker has decided call in these additional vehicles, a move that had been called for by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Following the original recall, NHTSA said that the recall of the 144,000 vehicles wasn’t enough to address the air bag safety issue, which had resulted in at least 269 inadvertent air bag deployments and about 98 injuries. Ford, however, insisted that only those vehicles were affected by the problem, which involves a possible short-circuit that could cause the safety device to suddenly go off. The wiring needs to be replaced. In addition to more F-150 pickup trucks (model years 2004, 2005, and 2006), Ford is now also recalling a number of Lincoln Mark LT trucks (model year 2006).

Air Bag Safety

DC Injury Lawsuit Filed Against FBI Employee Over Hit-and-Run Car Accident

April 6, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Two Voice of America journalists have filed a Washington DC personal injury case against Joy Ellen Mullinax, who is an FBI employee. They claim that she struck them during a hit-and-run accident on March 23. The plaintiffs, William Greenback and Thomas Bagnall, are each seeking $1 million.

According to the men, on the morning of March 23, Mullinax pulled up behind them as Bagnall was unloading equipment from their SUV that was outside the National Press Club. Greenback was sitting in the driver’s seat.

In their DC car accident complaint, they claim that Mullinax yelled and blew her horn. When Bagnall told her to drive around them, she allegedly accelerated her vehicle, striking Bagnall. Greenback then got out of the SUV and yelled at her to stop. Mullinax allegedly moved her car toward Greenback, pinning him between her car and another vehicle, stepped on the gas again, and hit him with her auto. This caused him to land on the roof of her auto.

Street Smart Program Aims to Prevent Washington DC Pedestrian and Bicycle Accidents

March 30, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

DC officials are kicking off their Street Smart campaign this spring to combat last year’s increase in pedestrian and bicycle crashes. Last year there were 83 cyclist and pedestrian fatalities in the Washington region—a 9% rise from the year before. This year, at least four people have died in DC pedestrian accidents.

More DC pedestrian and cyclists facts as reported in The Washington Post:

• There were 436 DC bicycle accidents in 2010.
• The number of bicyclists and pedestrians hit last year was 25% higher than in 2009.
• Ambulances answered 1,299 pedestrian collisions calls in 2010.
• 16 of the DC traffic fatalities were bicyclists or pedestrians.
• The intersection of Howard Road and Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue SE saw the most number of DC pedestrian accidents—13—with 1 of the victims dying.
• The intersection of New York Avenue and North Capitol Street saw 12 Washington DC pedestrian accidents.

• 11 Washington DC pedestrian injuries were sustained at the Seventh and H streets NW intersection and the H and North Capitol streets N.

Most DC pedestrian accidents take place at intersections when an auto is turning and a person is crossing the street while the “walk” sign is activated. Unfortunately, even if a pedestrian has the right of way, this doesn’t necessarily mean that the driver has seen him/her.

Pedestrians and bicyclists have little in the way of protection during a DC traffic crash, and the injuries are usually catastrophic. Spinal cord injury, traumatic brain injury, head trauma, severed limbs, and organ damage can be costly to treat and recover from. Some injuries are permanent.

Our Washington DC pedestrian and bicycle crash lawyers are familiar with the serious injuries can result. For years, we have helped many victims and their families prove liability and obtain the financial recovery that they are owed.

Hopefully, the Street Smart campaign will bring the DC cyclist and pedestrian injury toll down. In addition to new ads, the campaign will include heightened efforts by police to ticket drivers, bicyclists, and pedestrians who don’t follow traffic laws.

Campaign to protect pedestrians, cyclists as number of crashes in the District rises, The Washington Post, March 30, 2011
Related Web Resources:

District Department of Transportation

Street Smart

More Blog Posts:
71-Year-Old Dies in Hit-and-Run Washington DC Pedestrian Accident, Washington DC Injury Lawyer Blog, November 18, 2010
Washington DC Pedestrian Accidents At Higher Risk of Occurring After Daylight Saving Time Ends, Washington DC Injury Lawyer Blog, November 5, 2010
68-Year-old Mount Pleasant Woman Killed in Bicycle Accident with DC Guard Truck, Washington DC Injury Lawyer Blog, April 20, 2010

Washington DC Car Accident in Third Street Tunnel Claims 23-Year-Old’s Life

March 6, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Police are investigating a fatal Washington DC traffic crash in the Third Street Tunnel involving a Department of Public Works truck. The victim, 23-year-old Haja Seymore-Wilson, died on Tuesday after the vehicle she was riding crashed into the truck, which was stopped. Also injured in the DC truck crash were three city workers.

If the city workers were negligent in where they parked their truck or could/should have act in a way that would have prevented Seymore-Wilson’s car from crashing into the truck, her family may find that they have grounds for a DC wrongful death case. However, if it was Seymore-Wilson who was at fault, then it is the city workers who may have grounds for a DC injury case.

During such a stressful time, settling immediately may seem like the best solution. Unfortunately, you may be also be giving away your legal right to receive the maximum recovery possible. There is no need to make your healing process more challenging by trying to pursue your injury recovery without legal help.

Also, figuring out who caused a Washington DC car accident can be difficult, which is another reason why you need to have a DC injury law firm that is working for you. Your attorney can make sure that all evidence is explored and a solid case is built on your behalf. In addition to physical evidence and your actual injuries, your lawyer can look at driving records, witness testimony, auto repair/maintenance records, the history of traffic accidents on that road, and other key data.

Woman killed in D.C. tunnel crash, The Washington Post, March 1, 2011
Candlelight vigil for woman killed in Third Street Tunnel, The Examiner, March 4, 2011
Related Web Resource:
Department of Public Works, The District of Columbia
More Blog Posts:
Maryland Car Accident News: Baltimore Trucker Survives Head-on Crash when Minivan Crosses Centerline on Rte 9, Maryland Car Accident Attorney Blog, March 3, 2011
Baltimore Car Accident News: Driver Dies in Fatal Beltsville, Maryland, Automobile Traffic Wreck, Maryland Car Accident Attorney Blog, February 28, 2011
Baltimore Auto Injury News: Three Hurt when Train Hits Minivan in Wicomico, Maryland, Maryland Car Accident Attorney Blog, February 24, 2011