Fatal Traffic Accidents

Maryland Personal Injury News: AAA Joins Victims’ Families in Pushing for Stricter Vehicular Homicide Legislation

May 24, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Traffic accidents that take innocent lives are some of the most regrettable events anyone has to face. Recently, the Maryland legislature assed House Bill 363 that essential says drivers who are found guilty of being grossly negligent in fatal car crashes will be facing a new prison term option from courts across the state.

According to news reports, the general assembly approved the bill that calls for “grossly negligent” drivers who are determined to have caused a fatal traffic accident will be looking at mandatory jail time. Previously, even reckless drivers’ actions were found to have resulted in a deadly automobile or motorcycle crash were not always help to account for another person’s death.

Under Maryland’s current statutes, a motorist could be facing jail following a fatal car-bike crash, but only if it can be proven that the defendant was grossly negligent. Many experts have suggested that some of the state’s prosecuting attorneys feel gross negligence is an extremely high standard to reach in court. The approach, according to earlier reports, was to get lower the standard to something closer to “substantial deviation from the standard of care.”

Naturally, demonstrating “substantial negligence” is typically more difficult than “ordinary negligence,” however it is easier than meeting the standard for “gross negligence.” It has been suggested that the standard of substantial negligence would apply to more instances of, say, vehicular homicides in which the defendant was found to be going twice the speed limit on a winding country road, or passing a slower vehicle on a blind curve.

Nevertheless, the new jail-time penalties likely to be used by state and local prosecutors’ offices may begin to make a dent in what seems to have become the painful and all too common occurrence of deadly car-bicycle accidents. The goal, as suggested by many observers, is to thwart the sometimes reckless behavior of motorists and even to reduce or eliminate fatal biking accidents, not unlike the way that DWI and DUI laws have helped to reduce the number alcohol-related traffic accidents, injuries and fatalities.

As Maryland auto and motorcycle accident attorneys and Washington, D.C., injury lawyers, my office has seen the results of road accidents involving passenger cars, commercial trucks and bicycle riders enough to know that new laws designed to protect cyclists and pedestrians are a step in the right direction.

Baltimore Auto Accident News: Darlington, MD, Man Gets 10 Years in Jail for Fatal Harford County Car Crash

May 19, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Nothing can make up for the loss of a loved one who has been killed in a traffic accident. We say that because as Maryland personal injury lawyers, we understand how the death of a family member can leave a gaping hole in the lives of the victim’s parents, siblings, children, and of course a widowed spouse. Whatever the circumstances, car crash, trucking accident, or motorcycle wreck, a fatal traffic collision that could have been prevented is a tragedy for everyone involved.

Sadly, once a person has died in a truck or car wreck, there is nothing that can bring that individual back. However, the family that loses a father or mother, must pick up the pieces and try to continue in the absence of that person, hard as it may be. Depending on the situation, medical expenses, lost wages and other collateral costs can put a family in dire financial straits. If the victim was the sole breadwinner, this can be particularly difficult.

As Baltimore auto accident lawyers, our job is to help victims’ families recover the costs associated with the loss of a family member, which can include money awards for actual expenses and lost wages, as well as for pain and suffering. As hard as it may be for the wife or husband, understanding the last moments of the victim’s life is important to determining the amount of any monetary award to the surviving family members.

Not long ago a motorist from Darlington, MD, was sentenced to 10 years in jail for his role in a fatal Harford County traffic accident that claimed the lives of three people back in 2009. According to news reports, 32-year-old Travis Gray was found guilty of drunken driving

The multi-vehicle collision occurred two years ago on November 14, 2009, when the Ford pickup Gray was driving crossed the double yellow center line on a stretch of Rte 543 in northern Harford. Police reports indicated that Gray was driving northbound just before 5am when the accident happened. As it entered the southbound lane, the F250 struck another truck carrying several occupants just south of Prospect Rd.

Three of the other vehicle’s passengers — 48-year-old James Bielanski, 47-year-old Pamela Bielanski, and 35-year-old Robert Arbogast — died in as a result. Gray survived the accident and reportedly told police that he had consumed three or four beers at an establishment that was later determined to be the Old School Tavern on Rte 1 in Dublin, MD.

Baltimore Traffic Safety News: Families of Injured Maryland Highway Workers Push for Increased Driver Awareness

May 16, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

It should come as no surprise that state highway workers are injured or killed in traffic-related accidents quite frequently. This is not to say that these individuals are any different than other pedestrians crossing urban roadways or biking on public roads; but as drivers ourselves, we know that construction zones should be treated as hazardous areas — if not for the safety of your own passengers, but for those hard-working men and women who make our highways safe and efficient for all Marylanders.

As Baltimore auto accident lawyers, we see numerous victims of car, motorcycle and trucking accidents every year. Pedestrian accidents are some of the most serious, since people have no real protection against a two-ton passenger vehicle, much less a 30-ton semi tractor-trailer. Broken femurs, tibias, fractured collar bones, injured spinal columns and closed-head trauma are just a few of the potential injuries that a person can receive when struck by a motor vehicle.

Since road workers spend the majority of their working day in close proximity to cars and trucks traveling at rather high speeds, it’s amazing that more of these people are not hurt or killed on an annual basis. Still, with all the safety reminders on our highways, it’s sad that more motorists don’t heed the warnings and really give these folks “a brake.”

A little while ago, the families of injured Maryland road workers began to press the state to make things a little bit safer for those workers still on the job. According to news reports at the time, the latest Maryland highway injury occurred on March 22. A worker for the Jessup, MD, office of the State Highway Administration (SHA) was severely injured as he tried to help clear a traffic wreck along a stretch of Rte 1 near Whiskey Bottom Ln.

Based on reports, Robert Garcia was struck by a vehicle as he was holding up a stop signal in a highway work area. The force of the impact caused Garcia to be thrown into the air. Emergency personnel arriving on the scene apparently treated the injured SHA employee and then transported him to Howard County General Hospital. He was subsequently moved to Johns Hopkins Hospital with severe injuries.

Baltimore Personal Injury News: Ruling Delayed on Fatal DUI Traffic Accident that Killed Maryland Woman

May 13, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

The facts are the facts, or so some would say. But in a percentage of traffic accident cases, witnesses’ accounts and those of the victims can vary widely. As Maryland personal injury attorneys, our job is to gather the facts and present them to the court for judgment. These kinds of cases can arise from automobile accident-related injuries or even wrongful deaths from traffic collisions or pedestrian accidents.

In cases that involve occupant injuries, a car or trucking-related crash could result in something as minor as superficial cuts and bruises to more serious lacerations and bone fractures. Depending on the severity of the wreck, the driver or passengers may have suffered back or neck injuries, some of which can have a major impact on a person’s quality of life down the road. These kinds of life-threatening, or certainly life-altering, injuries can include spinal cord damage and closed-head trauma.

Whether a judge or jury rules in a victim’s favor can have a strong bearing on the testimony given by those involved in the accident, as well as witnesses to the car, truck or motorcycle crash. In a vehicular homicide case that came before a Carroll County court a while back, the judge decided to postpone his ruling because of some conflicting expert testimony pertaining to the 2009 car wreck that killed a woman from Westminster, MD.

Baltimore Injury Accident News: Maryland Driver Killed in Fatal Wicomico, MD, Single-Car Rollover Accident

May 7, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Rollover accidents are one of the more deadly traffic wrecks that occur on public roadways. When occupants of a vehicle are not belted in, a rollover can cause severe bodily harm, if not death. Closed-head trauma and neck injuries are fairly common when a person is thrown around the interior of a rolling motor vehicle.

Most any passenger vehicle can be involved in a rollover incident, but this depends on numerous factors including weather and road conditions, vehicle speed and other steering inputs, all of which affect the vehicle’s dynamic performance. It’s commonly accepted that sport utility vehicles (SUVs) and larger passenger vans are more prone to rollover crashes than other passenger vehicles with lower centers of gravity, such as sports cars and sedans.

As a Maryland injury accident lawyer, I have seen the aftermath of highway rollover accidents and the human toll that can result. In some cases, the driver or another passenger can be ejected as the vehicle flips over and over. When thrown from a car or truck, a person can be easily killed by the impact with the roadway or another object such as a tree, bridge abutment or traffic sign pylon.

Not long ago a man died in a single-car accident along a stretch of road in Wicomico County, MD. According to reports, the crash happened just after 12am on Norris Twilley Rd., which connects Delmar with Mardela Springs, where the victim lived. Police stated that 58-year-old Milton Shiles died from injuries he sustained after being ejected from the vehicle.

Based on police reports, Shiles was along in the car and heading south when for some reason he was apparently unable to negotiate a curve. The vehicle reportedly left the roadway and overturned in a nearby field. Police and emergency rescue personnel arrived at the scene shortly after the accident to render aid, transporting the victim to Peninsula Regional Medical Center. Sadly, doctors could do nothing for the man and he was pronounced dead shortly after being admitted.

Baltimore Auto Accident News: Maryland Woman Gets 4 Years for Death of Passenger in Fatal Crash

May 4, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Negligence on the part of one driver can result in the injury and death of one or many innocent people. As Maryland injury accident lawyers, I and my colleagues feel deeply for the families of automobile accident victims, especially in cases where loved ones have died as a result of a car, truck or motorcycle wreck. Of course, there is no amount of money that can bring a person back to life, but the recovery of medical expenses and any court-ordered award for pain and suffering can help a family get back to the job of living.

With this in mind, a wrongful death lawsuit is one way a family can punish an individual whose negligent actions brought about the untimely death of a loved one. These victims can be other drivers, innocent bystanders, and even passengers in the defendant’s own vehicle. Whether you live in Rockville, Gaithersburg, Annapolis or Washington, D.C., car, bus and commercial trucking collisions happen all too frequently. The results can be devastating, with even the survivors suffering long-term disability due to spinal cord damage, neck injury or traumatic brain injury.

Drunken driving is probably one of the most common causes of preventable traffic accidents, which take lives, destroy property and scar families for years to come. The choice of a driver to get behind the wheel in an impaired state is as much a function of poor judgment as trying to beat a red light, or speeding in dense traffic. It’s a sad fact that a driver’s bad choices on the road can and do result in injury and death to others around them.

Not long ago, an article caught our eye that illustrates how quickly one individual’s poor judgment can take the life of another vibrant and lively human being. According to news reports, a 33-year-old Laurel, MD, woman received more than fours years in jail (plus 3 years of supervised release) for the drunken driving-related death of a 31-year-old passenger in October of 2009. That passenger was a basketball player for Howard University, as well as James Madison.

Maryland Injury News: Aggressive Driving Cited in Fatal Car Crash that Killed Baltimore County Woman

April 30, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

As a Baltimore automobile and trucking accident lawyer, I understand how easily a car crash can happen. Whether one is traveling on a city street in Annapolis, Washington, D.C., or Rockville, or if you are on the Beltway, even the simplest of mistakes or driving errors can result in a serious injury accident. As a motorist myself, I know that obeying our traffic laws is one way to help avoid the effects of a tragic car wreck.

Unfortunately, there are drivers among us who for one reason or another choose to tempt fate and drive in a less than safe manner. Exceeding the posted speed limit, weaving in and out of traffic, or driving without regard to the safety of other motorists can lead to a bad traffic wreck involving one or many vehicles. An aside here, some motorists are at higher risk when they become caught up in a traffic accident, namely motorcycle riders, due to less protection against bodily injury.

In any event, aggressive driving of almost any kind can not only precipitate a serious collision, but can also exacerbate the effects of a crash. From compound fractures of the arms and legs, to internal bleeding and closed-head injuries, a high-speed accident can surely result in serious medical complications, and sometimes even death. Some argue that surviving a motor vehicle accident may be worse, especially in cases where spinal cord damage occurs, leaving the victim paralyzed sometimes for life.

A news article pointed out the extreme downside of aggressive driving. Sadly for one Dundalk resident, her haste one evening on the Beltway apparently resulted in her own death. The only fortunate thing that can be said is nobody else was seriously injured as a result of that woman’s actions.

Baltimore Auto Accident News: Maryland Driver Found Guilty of Vehicular Manslaughter in Fatal 2009 Crash

April 28, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

You won’t find any argument from us; when it come to aggressive driving — whether its road rage, joy riding or illegal midnight drag races on public roads — fatal accidents resulting from unlawful driving behavior can only be viewed is negligence of the worst kind. Willful disregard for the safety of ones passengers, other motorists and innocent bystanders cannot be tolerated in a civil society.

Traffic laws are put in place primarily for the safety and well-being of all those who share the road. Whether one drives a passenger car, motorcycle, delivery truck or 18-wheel tractor-trailer rig, it’s all to easy under normal circumstances to become involved in a highway collision or rural traffic wreck. Injecting high-speed, sometimes alcohol-related street racing or other illegal vehicle operation only invites disaster.

As Maryland personal injury lawyers, I and my colleagues know that tragedy is just one mistake away when motor vehicles are involved. Even under “normal” driving conditions a typical crash can lead to serious injuries for the driver and passenger. Add to that highway speeds and heavier vehicles, like a commercial truck, and you’re looking at the potential for traumatic brain injury, spinal cord damage and possibly death.

Maryland Driver Dies in Baltimore County Single-vehicle Traffic Accident; Police Suspect Drunk Driving

April 26, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Although a person’s chances of being killed in a car crash are less than the odds of an individual being severely injured as a result of an automobile collision, it’s a fact that thousands of people die in traffic accidents every year in the U.S. In cities like Annapolis, Rockville, Gaithersburg and Washington, D.C., fatal motor vehicle wrecks make up a definite percentage of all highway accidents.

While being injured or killed in a multi-car pileup is not uncommon, there are situations where a driver or passenger can die in a single-vehicle crash. When a passenger dies in a one-car wreck, the circumstances may call for an investigation, which can ultimately lead to a wrongful death lawsuit on the victim’s behalf.

As Maryland personal injury lawyers and practicing auto accident attorneys, we understand the heartache associated with a fatal traffic accident. Families of victims experience a huge loss, emotionally and financially, when the main breadwinner is killed as a result of another driver’s negligence. Nothing can truly make a family whole after such a devastating loss, but with medical bills and lost wages, a grieving family needs all of the help it can get.

Maryland Pedestrian Accident News: LaPlata Man Killed in Fatal Charles County Hit-and-Run Collision

April 22, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

If it seems that there have been a lot of auto-pedestrian traffic accidents these days, you wouldn’t be wrong. And for anyone living in Baltimore, Annapolis, the District or Rockville, it should come as no surprise at all that our city streets are veritable killing fields when it comes to persons on foot or riding bicycles. This is only a guess, but these serious and sometimes deadly pedestrian collisions are only going to get worse before people really sit up and take notice.

As Maryland automobile and trucking accident attorneys, we’re continually dismayed by the number of fatal and near-fatal car, truck and motorcycle accidents in this state. Folks hurt or killed while traveling on foot have sadly become just another column in the sad tally of traffic wrecks across Maryland. A smaller, but no less important group, would be those individuals struck by hit-and-run drivers.

Scanning the various news sources recently, we saw an article detailing yet another in a string of these hit-and-run accidents that have killed another of Maryland’s residents. This particular incident took place in Charles County, where a 57-year-old LaPlata man lost his life to an apparently thoughtless and negligent driver.