Aggressive Driving

Maryland Joyriders Crash into Second Car Killing Three People in Fatal Baltimore County Traffic Accident

December 17, 2010 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

As a Baltimore auto injury attorney and personal injury lawyer, I and my colleagues have seen all manner of severe and fatal automobile wrecks. Many crashes are caused by simple human error, while others can be the result of defective vehicle components, poor judgment, or worse, conscious decision to violate the laws of the State of Maryland.

Malicious or not, these kinds of terrible car accidents can and do claim innocent lives. Regardless of whether the accident involves an automobile, motorcycle of commercial truck, a driver who over-indulges in the consumption of alcohol, prescription medication or illegal narcotics before getting behind the wheel can many times be the cause of a deadly DUI crash. Other individuals, such as the two men implicated in a fatal car accident last month, actively choose to break the law and end up killing or maiming another person.

This latest crash combined a joyriding scenario with drinking and driving. The result was sad, yet not unexpected considering the potential for injury that high vehicle speeds and impaired vehicle operation can cause. According to the news, three innocent people are now dead as a result of a car theft gone wrong on a Sunday night.

Baltimore Traffic Safety Update: Watch Out, Maryland’s Aggressive Drivers Cause Half of All Automobile Accidents

December 6, 2010 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Over the past year we’ve seen lot of traffic accidents resulting from aggressive driving. While it might be a dream to hope for complete harmony on Maryland’s roadways, the fact of the matter is being civil and courteous to your fellow motorists makes for a safer and more event-free commute. Sadly, there is a portion of the driving public that either has no thought for others or is simply too focused on their own agenda to worry about another individual’s rights or safety.

As Baltimore auto injury attorneys, my firm has represented dozens of people injured as a result of another person’s negligence. Aggressive drivers, it is now known, account for a large number of car and truck wrecks every year here in Maryland and across the U.S. Regardless of whether you living in Hagerstown, Rockville or Frederick, MD, you probably take one or more of Maryland’s highways to get to work, school or to go shopping. And the chances of getting caught in an accident caused by an aggressive driver are pretty high these days.

It’s a fact that the American Automobile Association (AAA) estimated that more than half of all fatal passenger car and commercial truck crashes were the result of some type of aggressive driving. Those who survive such accidents can end up with serious injuries as well as long-term medical problems, the cost of which can be a continuing burden on the individual and his or her family for years after the actual crash.

Maryland Auto Injury Update: Four Killed in Fatal Crash; Speeding and Aggressive Driving Blamed

November 8, 2010 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Once again the senseless loss of life hits the news. This time, Maryland State Police point to speeding and aggressive driving as the likely cause of a horrendous accident that left three adults and one toddler dead in the aftermath. Describing the crash, law enforcement authorities say that the multi-car crash was “uncommonly violent.”

As a Baltimore personal injury lawyer who represents victims of traffic collisions and other automotive accidents, I have helped individuals following bad accidents. This particular crash likely should never have happened. One can only feel for the families of those killed and hope that the survivors make full and rapid recoveries.

According to the news reports, the head-on collision and subsequent deaths and injuries began when a Nissan Cube stuffed with seven individuals was being driven in what police termed and aggressive manner northbound along Rte 113. Based on reports, the driver of the vehicle was traveling very fast and passing other cars on the road in posted “no-passing” zones.

Baltimore Car Accident News: 19-Year-Old Maryland Driver Injured after SUV Leaves Road, Hits Tree

September 26, 2010 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Single-vehicle accidents number in thousands across the country every year. As a Baltimore and Washington, D.C., automobile accident attorney and personal injury lawyer, I have seen, up close, the aftermath of multi-vehicle and single-car wrecks. Just because there is no other vehicle involved, such as a semi tractor-trailer or other large vehicle, many people could be excused for thinking that these kinds of one-car accidents are less serious — they would often be wrong.

Serious bodily injury and even death can occur as a result of a single-vehicle accident. Not long ago, a Boonsboro, MD, driver was charged in connection with SUV accident that sent him and two passengers to the hospital. According to news articles, the crash happened just before midnight on a Saturday along a stretch of Alternate U.S. 40, just east of Maryland Avenue.

Police reports indicate that the accident, which occurred between Middletown and Frederick, Maryland, was possibly the result of reckless driving. Although details were sketchy, police statements indicate that the driver, 19-year-old Job Smith, may have ignored traffic signs in the area prior to his SUV leaving the roadway and colliding with a tree.

Maryland Automobile Accident Report: Two Passengers Killed in Queen Anne’s County Car Crash

August 31, 2010 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Once again drinking and driving has been pointed to as a contributing factor in yet another car accident in Queen Anne’s County. As a Baltimore personal injury lawyer and car accident attorney, I know all too well how alcohol can play a big role in traffic collisions. The pain inflicted on others as a result of another person’s negligent behavior can be extensive and long lasting.

In this latest incident, two people died when the vehicle in which they were riding crashed along a stretch of Maryland’s Route 8. According to news accounts, the accident happened around 8am on a Sunday morning when 41-year-old Victor A. Smith of Annapolis apparently lost control of his BMW, which then crossed the center line into oncoming traffic.

The Smith had been driving his black BMW northbound along Route 8 near Great Neck Road in Stevensville when the accident occurred. As the car veered into southbound traffic, 46-year-old Agnes C. Phelps tried to avoid Smith’s BMW by pulling off to the side of the road and onto the shoulder, according to police reports. Even so, Phelps’ car was hit by the BMW, which then caused both vehicles to leave the roadway.

Dorchester County Man Arrested for Drunken Driving-related Injury Accident on Maryland’s Route 50

July 9, 2010 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Automobile injury accidents can be severe and cause tens of thousands of dollars in medical and related costs. It’s bad enough to be saddled with these costs without having them be caused by another driver’s negligence. As Maryland auto injury attorneys, my firm helps people who have suffered injuries from cuts and bruises to closed head injuries and spinal damage.

A recent news story showed what can happen when someone fails to consider the safety and wellbeing of others as a result of their own mistake. According to reports, six people were sent to the hospital following a car crash with a man running from the police in the early morning hours of July 4th. The chase began when a Maryland State Police trooper, already at the scene of a previous accident on Route 33, observed an oncoming being driven erratically.

The officer was sitting in his vehicle when he noticed the approaching vehicle obviously weaving and crossing the roadway centerline. Pulling away from the scene of the first collision, the trooper followed and then pulled over a Ford Explorer. While interviewing the SUV’s driver, the patrolman recognized the smell of alcohol on the driver’s breath. When the officer requested the man to exit his vehicle, the driver instead drove quickly away, nearly hitting the policeman in the process.

The 19-year-old driver, later identified as Armand J. Cornish, led the patrolman on a chase from Route 33 onto the Easton bypass and then onto Route 50 eastbound. Additional traffic enforcement patrols from the Easton Police Department and Talbot County Sheriff’s Office were called to assist in the pursuit.

News accounts indicate that the chase continued along Route 50 at speeds exceeding 100 mph, during which police reportedly saw beer cans being thrown from the fleeing vehicle. Officers attempted to stop the suspect using stop sticks on the eastern side of the bridge in Cambridge. The man’s Explorer rolled over the stop sticks and seconds later hit the back end of an eastbound Mustang. Cornish then apparently lost control of his sport utility vehicle, which traveled across the median and then across the westbound lanes of Route 50. It came to rest on an adjacent pedestrian sidewalk.

Maryland Car Accident News: Anne Arundel County Crackdown on Aggressive Drivers Kicks Off Summer Season

June 18, 2010 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Police can only do so much to curb the dangerous driving behaviors that we all see on our highways, rural roads and city streets. It’s not uncommon to have a bad injury accident or even fatal traffic collision caused by another driver’s impatient and belligerent actions on a public road. These kinds of crashes, which involve SUVs, sedans, pickup trucks and even motorcycles, can cause bodily injuries ranging from bumps and bruises to deep cuts and even fatal traumatic head injuries.

With the pace of everyone’s working and private lives ever increasing, it’s not difficult to see why people are in a hurry, but there is no excuse for endangering other drivers as a result. As Maryland automobile accident lawyers, we applaud law enforcement’s efforts to reduce the amount of aggressive driving on our streets and in doing so perhaps limit the number of accidents as well.

One area of note is a stretch of Interstate 97, which apparently is the focus of the latest police crackdown on aggressive driving. Anne Arundel County police officers and state troopers, 45 in all using vehicles and a police helicopter, were part of a month-long program to target and ticket offenders on the I-97 corridor in Anne Arundel County.

Maryland Auto Accident News: Child Killed; Seven Injured in SUV Rollover Accident on Perring Parkway

June 12, 2010 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Alcohol use is one of the biggest factors when it comes to traffic accidents. To say that an individual is not responsible for his actions when drunk is to ignore the fact that the very same person made a conscious decision to begin drinking in the first place. Regardless of a person’s intent when entering a bar or taking a drink at home prior to getting into a motor vehicle, the results of such actions can be long-lasting, if not permanent or even fatal.

As Baltimore auto accident lawyers, I and my associates work to help victims and their families recover from tragic and life-changing car and truck collisions. Adding alcohol or prescription drug use into the equation turns an already sad event into a regrettable and heartrending experience for all of the affected parties.

Not long ago a news article caught our attention in which excessive vehicle speed and possibly alcohol consumption were likely factors in the fatal crash of an SUV along Perring Parkway. The single-vehicle accident occurred in the early evening hours on a Sunday, killing a six-year-old boy and injuring seven other passengers and the driver.

Maryland Auto Accident News: Criminal Suspects Held Without Bond in Fatal Northwest Baltimore Car Crash

May 17, 2010 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Two accused criminals have been charged in connection with a car crash that eventually led to the death of an elderly man. The accident occurred in late April in Northwest Baltimore when the two suspects allegedly fled police and subsequently hit the victim’s vehicle.

Based on police reports, 86-year-old Elbert Davis was driving his Chevrolet Monte Carlo at the time he was hit by the pair of fleeing suspects. The men, 29-year-old Umar Burley and 26-year-old Brent Matthews, were arrested following the accident. Davis and another elderly passenger were the only occupants of the Monte Carlo. Davis suffered a heart attack as a result of the crash and died later that day.

Police reports show that the plainclothes detectives who attempted to arrest the two suspects prior to the accident did not initiate any car chase, which police authorities said would be against department policy. News reports indicate that the detectives were driving in the general direction that the suspects had fled when they came upon the accident scene less than a mile away. According to reports, Davis was the father of a city police officer.

Maryland Man Sent to Hospital with Head Injuries after Washington County Police Chase

April 29, 2010 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

An out-of-state driver being pursued by police recently caused another innocent motorist to be hurt during a chase that ended with the suspect’s vehicle lying on its side. As a Baltimore auto accident attorney, I know how an unsuspecting driver can become a hapless victim of someone else’s mistake or misdeed. In this particular case, the victim received various injuries which required him to be transported to the hospital for treatment and observation.

According to news reports, a police chase ended badly for one man after his sport utility vehicle hit one vehicle and crashed into a utility pole. The incident began when a Maryland state police trooper observed the driver of a late model Honda Pilot operating his vehicle in “an aggressive manner” around 8:30am in Funkstown, MD.

The officer then saw the driver pull up to a red traffic signal behind two cars at the intersection of Baltimore Street and Edgewood Drive. Surprisingly, the man pulled past the two stopped vehicles and drove through the red light. According to police reports, the driver headed northbound on Edgewood Drive, but just prior to reaching Dual Highway he apparently made an abrupt U-turn and started going back south.