Articles Posted in Fatal Traffic Accidents

A tragic Maryland car accident last month resulted in the death of a 2-year-old boy and left an infant and two adults seriously injured. According to the Maryland State Police, the crash happened around 2:30 PM one afternoon in Waldorf, Maryland on Route 5 (Leonardtown Road) near Pika Road. The toddler’s mother, a 21-year-old woman, was driving a 2017 Hyundai Elantra when the crash happened. Although it’s not clear exactly what happened, her vehicle crashed into a 2018 Ford F-250 truck in what was described as a “nearly head-on” collision. After the crash, the 2-year-old was rushed to the hospital but pronounced dead shortly thereafter. His mother and 2-month-old brother were also taken to the hospital with injuries, along with the driver of the other vehicle. Information on the extent of the injuries of those individuals has not been released. The crash is still under investigation since the cause remains unknown. Police did report that they are investigating what role, if any, the children’s car seats may have played in causing the death or injuries.

In the aftermath of such a tragic accident, families can face some significant financial costs whilst also mourning their loved one. There are medical bills and funeral and burial costs. Affected individuals may end up having to miss some work, causing them lost wages. The financial stress that fatal Maryland car accidents cause can be incredibly difficult for families to deal with, especially as they mourn the loss of a loved one.

While there is, unfortunately, nothing that can undo the accident or the damage it caused, Maryland law allows those injured in these accidents—or those who lost loved ones—to recover financially through a personal injury lawsuit. These lawsuits can provide financial compensation for all damages actually suffered, helping the family at least not worry about finances while they mourn. These lawsuits can be brought against another driver who was at fault and caused the accident—a driver who ran a red light, for example, or was texting while driving and swerved into the other lane.

A recent Maryland car accident, occurring in Gaithersburg, Maryland, left one person dead and others injured, highlighting how dangerous car accidents can be. According to a local news article covering the accident, the crash occurred early one Sunday morning, before 6 AM, along Clopper Road at the intersection with Orchard Hills Drive. The initial investigation of the accident showed that a 29-year-old man was driving a 2018 Chevrolet Malibu west on Clopper Road when, for unknown reasons, he crossed the center line of the road and hit the driver of a 2018 Nissan Sentra traveling east. Unfortunately, the driver of the Chevrolet Malibu died at the scene of the crash, and the other driver, a 27-year-old woman, was taken to a local hospital with injuries. Although the details are not known now, the news report noted that another passenger from one of the vehicles suffered traumatic injuries and that a firefighter was injured at the scene as well.

Accidents like this show how Maryland car accidents can have a range of negative outcomes. Individuals may be seriously injured—perhaps even suffering broken bones or internal bleeding—and require emergency medical attention. Even in less serious cases, car accidents can cause pain and soreness days or weeks later. And of course, in the worst cases, Maryland car accidents can be fatal, leading to the death of drivers, passengers, or pedestrians. Clearly, Maryland car accidents can have severe negative impacts. But what some people do not realize is that the state law allows for individuals to seek financial compensation when they suffer in these accidents. Personal injury lawsuits, filed against a defendant responsible for the accident in some way, can provide injured car accident victims with monetary damages to cover medical bills, lost wages, funeral and burial costs, and more.

To be successful in these personal injury lawsuits, a plaintiff generally must prove four things. First, that the defendant owed a duty of care to the plaintiff. Generally, this duty of care is just to be reasonably careful while driving and follow safety rules. Second, that the defendant breached that duty. Usually, this is proved by showing that the defendant was being careless—maybe texting while driving, ignoring traffic signs, or blowing through red lights. Third, that this breach actually caused the accident. And fourth, that the plaintiff suffered real damages as a result—either injuries or death. If these four things can be proved, a plaintiff can generally recover. But proving them may be more difficult than one expects, and many accident victims choose to work with a personal injury attorney through the process rather than going it alone.

After being injured in a car crash, victims will often wonder if they are partially to blame for the accident. While this is often not the case, it can still be worrying. If a victim wants to bring a lawsuit against the responsible party in Maryland, they can bring a personal injury suit. However, Maryland is one of the few remaining states that rely on the doctrine of contributory negligence—meaning, if the plaintiff negligently contributed to his injuries, he cannot recover damages. Although this may then seem like a lost cause for many potential personal injury cases, personal injury attorneys are skilled at explaining to juries why their client was not at-fault for the accident that resulted in their injuries.

Earlier this month, a Southern California crash between an S.U.V. and a tractor-trailer has led to at least 13 deaths. According to a recent report, an S.U.V. and tractor-trailer collided on a California highway after the S.U.V. had crossed a fence from the U.S.-Mexico border. The S.U.V. pulled in front of the truck at an intersection, where they then collided. Investigators are still unsure what caused the collision. However, the S.U.V. had over 20 people inside the vehicle and all of the accident victims were in the S.U.V.

Last month, tragedy struck in Montgomery Village, when a 36-year-old man—a husband and a father—was killed in a Maryland car accident. According to a recent news report, the incident occurred early one morning. The man and his stepson were on their way to work, driving separate cars, when his stepson got into a minor crash on I-95 near Maryland Route 32. He pulled over to assist in the accident and check the damaged vehicle, allowing his stepson to continue on to work. While he was on the side of the road checking the damage, a Honda Civic came speeding by. A witness says the car seemed to be driving 100 miles per hour, despite the wintry conditions on the road. Unfortunately, the car lost control and hit one of the cars on the side of the road. The impact of the crash pushed the second car forward, and essentially pinned the victim between the two cars. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

The victim leaves behind two stepchildren and two young daughters, ages 4 and 10, as well as a fiancée. He and his fiancée were planning on getting married last year, but because of COVID-19, they pushed their wedding date to May, which would have marked 14 years together. The family is, of course, heartbroken, struggling with the tragic loss of their fiancée and father.

Losing a loved one unexpectedly is one of the hardest tragedies a person can face. Unfortunately, hundreds of Maryland residents experience that heartbreak every year as a result of Maryland car accidents. In fact, in recent years there have been over 500 deaths on Maryland’s roads annually. Recognizing that families mourning in the aftermath of fatal car accidents may also be struggling financially to recover, Maryland state law gives them the option to file wrongful death lawsuits against whoever caused the crash that led to the fatality.

Maryland car accidents happen every day. In fact, car accidents happen every day, all day, all across the nation—some of them minor, some fatal. Most of these accidents go unnoticed by the general public; maybe they see them while driving by, or know someone involved, but generally, most are unknown to the average Maryland resident. Every so often, however, there occurs a major car accident that makes national news. And tragically, just after the New Year began, one of those accidents occurred in California, killing 9 people.

According to the New York Times, which covered the accident, the crash occurred around 8 PM local time on State Route 33, and involved an SUV (2013 Dodge Journey) driven by a 28-year-old man. The man was traveling southbound. As the driver approached a 2007 Ford pickup truck traveling in the opposite direction, he suddenly veered onto the dirt shoulder, lost control, and veered back onto the road, across the center line. According to the California Highway Patrol, this caused a head-on collision with the pickup truck. The pickup truck, driven by a woman of unidentified age, became “fully engulfed in flames,” and all 8 occupants of the truck were killed. Seven of these people were children, ranging from 6 to 15 years old. The driver of the SUV was also killed.

When tragic events like this happen, it is natural to wonder who is responsible for causing these deaths. Indeed, officials responding to the scene of the crime always try to figure this out, since there is a possibility that criminal charges may be filed. Right now, the investigation is underway. Officials are trying to figure out whether or not alcohol or drugs were involved in the crash. Additionally, they made public the fact that the pickup—carrying 8 people—was only equipped with 6 seat belts. When people are not buckled up, the chances that they will suffer serious injuries in a crash are “far greater.”

In the tragic event of a loved one’s death, certain family members may hold responsible parties accountable through a wrongful death claim under Maryland’s Wrongful Death Act. To file a wrongful death claim after a Maryland car accident, in general, a spouse, parent, or child may file the claim. Normally for a claim involving a car accident death, the claim must be filed within three years of the person’s death. If no spouse, parent, or child exists, another person may file the claim who is related to the person by blood or by marriage and who was substantially dependent upon that person. A wrongful death claim is meant to compensate family members for their loss and hold wrongful actors accountable after their loved one’s death.

Only one wrongful death claim can be filed after a person’s death. Qualifying family members may be able to recover financial compensation for their emotional pain and suffering, loss of companionship, loss of parental, and other damages. Family members may have to defend against claims that their loved one was negligent and contributed to their own death, which would bar recovery even in a wrongful death claim.

One state appeals court recently considered a wrongful death claim against a driver and his mother after a young girl was tragically killed in a car crash. On New Year’s Day in 2016, a 17-year-old boy was driving the girl and another passenger home after a New Year’s party. The driver accelerated to 80 miles per hour in a 25 to 30 mile-per-hour zone, lost control of the car, and crashed. The driver and the other passenger survived, but the girl died in the crash. The girl’s parents sued the driver and the driver’s mother, who owned the car, for wrongful death (the passenger was also sued but dropped from the suit).

Maryland car accidents, unfortunately, occur every single day, and can be caused by a variety of different things. Usually, they are caused by someone making a mistake while driving. As we have written about previously on this blog, small careless errors can sometimes be the difference between life and death, and can cause tragic Maryland car accidents. The errors may include running a red light, swerving into the other lane, getting momentarily distracted, and then failing to brake when needed, or making a turn without the right of way. While we write a lot about these causes, we wanted today to focus on another contributing factor to Maryland car accidents: debris in the road.

For example, consider a recent Maryland car accident that occurred earlier this month. According to a local news report, the accident occurred in Montgomery County on northbound Interstate 270 near the I-370 interchange. Around 10:30 one morning, a blue Nissan Rogue struck some debris in the road—believed to be a chair—and then stopped on the left shoulder. The driver, a 34-year-old woman from Frederick, got out of the car and walked toward another driver who had also pulled over after avoiding the debris. Tragically, she was then struck by a Toyota Corolla that had swerved to avoid traffic. She was killed as a result, and the driver of the Toyota was rushed to Holy Cross Hospital, where his condition is unknown. As a result of the accident, much of the interstate was shut down for hours. An investigation of the crash is ongoing.