Maryland Car Accident Attorney Blog
As Baltimore automobile and trucking accident attorneys, I and my staff have the utmost respect for our law enforcement officers here in Maryland and around the country. There is no question that state and municipal patrolmen put their lives on the line nearly every day in this state, enforcing traffic laws and helping to protect the public from those individuals who may cause serious or fatal roadway accidents.
Anybody injured in a car crash or tractor-trailer collision was likely assisted by a patrolman who was probably one of the first emergency responders on the scene. Like any person, we hold these uniformed civil servants in high regard for their selfless sacrifice in the public interest.
And while the majority of the men and women who dedicate their lives to the public good are thoughtful and conscientious individuals, there are sadly always a few bad apples in every organization. Police officers, in particular, are sworn to uphold the laws of this state. Although automobile, truck and motorcycle accidents can and do happen everywhere, to everyone, even the police. But, at the same time, it is a safe assumption that the public at large believe police officers should be without any fault. No doubt, the truth likely lies somewhere in between.
Not long ago it was revealed that an Anne Arundel patrolman had been involved in a half dozen prior car crashes before the one he was in earlier this past spring. According to news reports, Officer Adam Hinson, a five-year veteran with the Anne Arundel County Police Department, ran into two parked trucks along a stretch of Baltimore Annapolis Blvd. on May 27, 2011, while on duty in his police cruiser.
That accident occurred just after 5am in Glen Burnie, MD, as the officer was traveling south along the boulevard on the way to a reported armed robbery and assault. Based on police reports, an unknown vehicle pulled onto the roadway allegedly causing the wreck that involved Hinson’s Crown Victoria patrol car.
Reports indicate that the officer swerved to avoid the collision and in doing so lost control of his Hinson swerved and lost control of his vehicle. The officer’s Ford sedan apparently slid sideways on the boulevard, crossing two traffic lanes and hitting a Ford light pickup truck that was parked on the shoulder of the roadway. After that initial collision, the Crown Vic continued out of control onto the grass lawn of an adjacent residence. Before coming to rest, Hinson’s patrol car careened through a portion of a fence on that property and struck another pickup truck that was parked in the nearby driveway.
Following the crash that morning, Officer Hinson was transported to Maryland Shock Trauma Center with serious, yet non-life threatening, injuries after the crash in Glen Burnie.
Based on news articles, Hinson has not been available for comment since May 27 accident, and it was still not clear is that crash or any of the preceding six wrecks were determined to have been preventable by the police Accident Review Board. Based on a response to the Maryland Gazette’s request for information, the Custodian of Records for the county responded that Hinson was not currently on active duty and he had not been assigned a departmental take-home vehicle.
Under the current policy, pending an investigation of any departmental accident which results in personal injury or property damage an officer who “exhibits carelessness or neglect” during the operation of police department vehicles may be suspended or removed; he or she may also be denied from participating in the take-home vehicle program.
Gazette: Officer Involved in May Crash Has History of Accidents, Patch.com, June 29, 2011
Crash was seventh for Glen Burnie officer, MdGazette.com, June 29, 2011