Multi-vehicle Accidents

Washington County, MD, Accident News: Hagerstown Man Killed in Multi-car Crash on Interstate 70

April 14, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Many vehicle accidents happen for reasons not initially understood. Although driver error is many times to blame, other factors such as bad weather conditions, improper signage or a poorly-designed roadway can contribute to a serious car, truck or motorcycle accident. When fault is found with a driver, numerous reasons are possible including impairment due to alcohol or improper prescription drug use, drowsy driving, distracted driving due to cellphone operation, or medical emergency, as well as others.

As Baltimore car accident attorneys and Maryland personal injury lawyers, our job is to find evidence of negligence on a driver’s part that may have led to a collision that injured another individual. In instances of a fatal wreck, there is always the possibility of a wrongful death lawsuit depending on the circumstances and facts specific to that case. Occasionally, an accident is caused by failure of a critical automotive component, such as a steering tierod, brake system part, poorly maintained tires, or a damaged suspension component, among others.

Not long ago, 69-year-old Ray S. Linebaugh died in a collision with a Megabus parked on the shoulder along a stretch of I-70. Linebaugh, a Hagerstown resident and former head of the Joint Veterans Council of Washington County, was reportedly driving westbound on the freeway when for some reason his pickup truck veered across the median and entered the opposing traffic lanes near the Big Pool exit.

Based on police reports, Linebaugh’s vehicle careened into the disabled bus as it was parked on the roadside awaiting for a repair vehicle and second bus to transfer the passengers. Linebaugh was declared dead at the scene, while several other people who were passengers on the bus received minor injuries and were taken to the hospital.

Police reported that another vehicle carrying a woman and her two children crashed as the driver attempted to avoid the out-of-control pickup truck as it crossed the eastbound lanes. The mother and kids also received injuries as a result of the incident and were taken to the hospital for treatment.

Maryland Auto Accident Update: Recovering from Traumatic Brain Injuries can be Frustrating, Yet Also Amazing

March 31, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Bodily injuries suffered as a result of an automobile accident can range from minor cuts and bruises, to broken bones and closed-head injuries. The latter, also referred to as traumatic brain injuries, can spell serious trouble for victims of traffic collisions. Yet as scary as head trauma can be, the recovery can turn out to be quite amazing, according to some experts.

As a Baltimore car and truck accident lawyer and Maryland personal injury attorney, I and my colleagues have seen the aftermath of many car, truck and motorcycle wrecks, as well as the human toll. But as the story of U.S. Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords has shown, the road to recovery from traumatic brain injury can be just this side of miraculous.

While it’s surely too early to tell — according to medical professionals a patient’s progress in this area is best measured at the six- to 12-month mark following a closed-head injury — Ms. Giffords progress shows that there is hope for many people who have suffered serious trauma to the brain.

Baltimore Auto Accident News: Harford County Girl Dies in Fatal Head-on Collision with Light Truck

March 29, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Statistics tend to bear this out, but it should come as little surprise that younger drivers have a higher incidence of traffic accidents than more mature drivers. This is not an indictment of young people or their driving habits, but is simply a matter of fact that most every insurance company knows, as evidenced by the typically higher policy premiums charged to families with drivers in their 20s.

As Baltimore auto accident lawyers and personal injury attorneys, I and my colleagues know how easily a traffic accident can take a person’s life. Car crashes, like commercial trucking accidents and motorcycle wrecks, happen with uncomfortable frequency throughout the state of Maryland and the Washington, D.C. area as well. One simply way of increasing one’s odds of surviving a serious car or truck collision is to wear a seatbelt. Combined with airbags, this can make walking away from a crash many times more likely.

Unfortunately, safety belt use is not always observed by young and old alike; but as fate doesn’t discriminate, these unbelted drivers and passengers run the risk of severe injuries such as broken bones, deep lacerations, internal injuries, spinal cord damage and closed head trauma. Not long ago a teenage girl died after the car in which she was riding went out of control and crashed into an oncoming vehicle.

Maryland Man Dies in Hagerstown Traffic Accident when Pickup Truck Hits Bus on I-70

March 27, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

It’s a good bet that most people never consider the possibility of being injured while riding on public transit, yet traffic accidents involving city buses, commuter trains and taxi cabs occur every day across the country, in cities like Baltimore, Annapolis and even the District. Although safety measures are in place to help avoid injuries, collisions between buses, commercial trucks and passenger cars can and do happen with alarming frequency.

As a Maryland personal injury lawyer, I know that accidents involving buses, taxis and limousines can result in serious injuries, such as broken arms and legs, cracked collar bones and ribs, skull fractures and spinal injuries. Depending on the road conditions, a bus or taxi cab accident can even result in death — fatal wrecks like these are the most heart-rending and regrettable accidents, since the victims usually have a fair expectation of safety when being transported by professionals.

Not long ago, a Hagerstown driver died when his pickup truck collided with a city bus along Interstate 70 near Big Pool, MD. According to Maryland State Police, 69-year-old Ray Linebaugh was apparently traveling westbound in his 2004 Dodge Ram when for some reason the vehicle veered into the median, crossing over into the eastbound lanes of I-70 and collided with a Megabus that was broken down on the roadside with mechanical problems.

Police Say Calvert County Car Crash was Intentional; Assault Charges Filed against Maryland Driver

March 26, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

As most people might agree, intentional actions that result in injury to or death of another individual are certainly more heinous than those which occur as a result from a so-called accident or other outside influence. Still, anytime a person is killed or injured in an automobile or motorcycle accident, the party at fault should be held responsible for the collision, depending on the circumstances, of course.

As Maryland auto accident lawyers and personal injury attorneys, we know the extent that victims and their families must endure the consequences of a serious traffic collision. Regardless of the cause, the costs of such an event can be staggering to a family even of modest means, with the subsequent surgeries, rehabilitation time and possibly long-tern care. It’s only right that the responsible party be held accountable for that pain and suffering.

As many people know, these kinds of highway and urban crashes involve a range of vehicles, from small two-wheeled motorcycles to large and heavy 18-wheeled commercial trucks. Although it’s hard for most law-abiding and thoughtful people to imagine, some accidents are hardly that — they are intentional in the eyes of the law.

Baltimore Automobile Accident News: Two Die in Head-on Washington, D.C., Car Crash on Canal Road

March 17, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

With millions of miles of expressways, highways, rural roads and cities streets crisscrossing the U.S. it should come as no surprise that not every one of these public thoroughfares has been engineered correctly. While most high-speed roadways are correctly designed, many secondary roads leave much to be desired when it comes to convenience and even outright safety.

As Baltimore personal injury attorneys and auto accident lawyers, we have seen the aftermath of enough car, commercial truck and motorcycle crashes to make the average person cringe at the thought of a loved one being involved in such collisions. Yet traffic wrecks — whether single- or multi-vehicle crashes — do happen on a daily basis here in Maryland.

It could be said that many motor vehicle collisions occur as a result of another driver’s negligence. But other factors can come into play, which sometimes make it difficult to attach blame to any one party, until further investigation is conducted. Defective vehicle equipment is one such cause of injury accidents and fatal traffic wrecks.

Maryland Mother and Children Hit, Severely Injured By Taxicab Driver Speeding on Suspended License

March 10, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

The law requires passenger car drivers and commercial truckers, among others, to be properly licensed by the state. This is not just a way for Maryland and other states to create an income stream, it’s done to make public roads safe for all people. When a driver operates a motor vehicle on a suspended license, not only is he or she is breaking the law, that person could be endangering the safety of the road-going public.

The sad thing is that the same people who break the law and are punished by having their driver’s license suspended many times go right back driving illegally on the road. Every year, residents of Maryland and other states are injured or killed by people driving illegally on a suspended license, or no license at all.

As Baltimore car accident lawyers and personal injury attorneys, we have seen the outcome of terrible highway wrecks and serious automobile collisions caused by unlicensed and unfit drivers. Fatal traffic accidents occur every day, but those that are caused by another person’s negligence can result in a wrongful death lawsuit being filed against an individual.

Maryland Car Accident News: Baltimore Trucker Survives Head-on Crash when Minivan Crosses Centerline on Rte 9

March 3, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

While passenger car drivers can certainly be seriously hurt or even killed as a result of a highway collision with a large commercial truck or bus, the drivers and occupants of those heavier motor vehicles can also be subject to severe or fatal injury. As Baltimore auto accident attorneys and Maryland personal injury lawyers, our job is to represent the victims of accidents who have experienced pain and suffering due to another individual’s negligent actions.

In cases where a traffic accident results in death, there may be sufficient evidence to support a wrongful death lawsuit against the other driver. Certainly, when a motorist causes an injury accident, there are instances where the victims may wish to recover some of all of the costs associated with the medical treatment and rehabilitation following such an accident.

Earlier last month, a Georgetown man crashed his vehicle head-on into an 18-wheel tractor-trailer rig along a stretch of Rte 9 on a Tuesday morning. According to news reports, 50-year-old Richard Baker was traveling west on Rte 9 when for some reason the man’s minivan crossed over the centerline, running head-on into a semi driven by a Baltimore trucker.

Baltimore Auto Injury News: Three Hurt when Train Hits Minivan in Wicomico, Maryland

February 24, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Negligence comes in many guises. Most people usually think of a faceless driver who causes a car, pedestrian or motorcycle accident and hurts another individual. But sometimes a negligent act can come someone other than a stranger. As personal injury lawyers and auto accident attorneys for Maryland and the Washington, D.C. area, I and my colleagues work to help victims of traffic wrecks and other types of serious injury accidents.

A negligent driver can be one who drinks and drives, or while speeding hits another car or commercial vehicle and kills or injures the occupants of the second vehicle; similarly, negligence can take the form of a driver who is responsible for the safety of his passengers and fails to exercise proper precautions and in doing so causes an auto accident that injures the occupants of his or her own vehicle.

Not long ago, a minivan was hit by a Norfolk and Southern freight train at a Fruitland railroad crossing in Wicomico County. According to a news article, three of the van’s passengers were seriously hurt when the collision occurred at the Rte 13 and Cedar Ln crossing just prior to 7pm. The motor vehicle was caught and dragged nearly 500 yards down the tracks before coming to rest.

Baltimore Automobile Accident News: Kent Island Father and Young Son Die in Rte 50 Car Crash

February 22, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Tragedies still abound in our modern world and despite our desire to be in control of our destiny from one day to the next there are situations that arise — traffic crashes, for example — that seem beyond our ability to avoid certain fateful events. As Maryland auto accident lawyers and personal injury attorneys, we empathize with those whose lives are interrupted, sometimes violently as a result of another person’s negligence or thoughtless actions.

Highway collisions and rural road mishaps between automobiles or commercial vehicles can turn a normal day into a milestone of pain and suffering. Fatal car, truck and motorcycle wrecks do not discriminate between young or old, rich or poor. These events are random, yet not unusual. But one common thread is the havoc these accidents can wreck on an individual’s life and that of his or her family.

Not long ago, a 52-year-old father and his six-year-old boy were killed in a crash along a darkened stretch of Rte 50 in Bowie, MD, when their 2002 Hyundai smashed into an abandoned vehicle apparently sitting in the roadway. According to news reports, Joseph Hein and his young son, Mikey, were headed eastbound on a Friday evening around 9:30pm when the accident occurred. Based on police reports, as the Hyundai was approaching Rte 301, it ran into a 2004 Cadillac SRX that had no headlamps or taillamps operating.