Multi-vehicle Accidents

Baltimore Car Injury News: Reckless Driving Suspected Injury Accident in Anne Arundel County

February 20, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

A head-on collision and subsequent multi-car crash along Marley Neck Boulevard in Glen Burnie sent four individuals to the hospital in what police believe was a case of reckless driving. As a Maryland personal injury attorney, even I am shocked at the number of highway accidents and traffic deaths attributed to reckless or aggressive driving. Not only are the actions of the motorists who cause such crashes appalling, but these kinds of incidents should never happen in the first place.

In situations where a person has been killed due to thoughtlessness or outright negligence on the part of another driver, my heart goes out to the family of the victim. Any time someone dies due to careless or reckless operation of a passenger car, commercial truck or motorcycle, motor vehicle, there is a possibility of a wrongful death lawsuit. In such cases, consideration must be made for the emotional suffering of the victim’s family, as well as financially, especially when the victim may have been the sole breadwinner for a young family.

In a recent news article, we saw that a 21-year-old motorist was apparently driving recklessly prior to a terrible car collision in Anne Arundel County. According to police reports, Patrick Ryan Galliher was driving a Mercury Cougar in what police described as a reckless manner when his vehicle crossed the centerline and hit a Toyota Corolla head-on.

Prior to the wreck, which occurred on a Saturday afternoon, Galliher’s vehicle had been observed passing other vehicles in the moments leading up to the head-on crash with the car of Saulius Kasiulionis, 36. In a chain reaction, the Corolla was struck by a Nissan Murano following behind, as well as a Mercedes sport utility vehicle.

The force of the crash caused Galliher to be ejected from the Mercury; police said that the driver was not wearing a seatbelt at the time of the accident. Emergency responders arriving on the scene transported him to Maryland Shock Trauma where he was listed in serious but stable condition at the time of the news report.

Baltimore Car Accident News: Maryland Woman Dies; Other Injured in Charles County Traffic Collision

February 18, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Driver error appears to be the cause of a fatal traffic accident in Waldorf, MD, when a local woman turned left in front of another passenger car on a stretch of Rte 5. According to Maryland State Police, 80-year-old Mary Gertrude Wade Chandler was reportedly attempting to turn her Chevy Cavalier from the southbound side of Rte 5 onto Gallant Green Rd just after 4pm in the afternoon.

In the process, Chandler apparently failed to yield right-of-way to an oncoming northbound Olds Aurora carrying four individuals. Chandler was critically injured as a result of the car crash and was taken to Prince George’s Hospital Center where she later died of her injuries.

The other people in the Oldsmobile received injuries that were not life-threatening. The driver, 37-year-old Jennifer Rae Snyder of St. Mary’s County, MD, and her three passengers were likely treated by emergency responders at the scene before they were taken by ambulance to Civista Medical Center. All three were minors were riding in the rear seat of the Olds at the time of the wreck. They included two boys — 10- and 14-years-old — and a 13-year-old girl, all riding in the back seat, according to police reports.

Baltimore Injury Accident News: Alcohol Blamed in Fatal I-70 Car Crash that Killed Montgomery County Woman

February 6, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

A head-on traffic accident with a semi tractor-trailer along Interstate 70 killed a Damascus, MD, woman early on a Wednesday morning. Police investigating the car-truck collision believe that drinking and driving may have been the cause of the woman using the wrong exit and allegedly driving against traffic on the highway.

The accident reportedly occurred sometime before 3am shortly after Jennifer Shankle Owen’s 2005 Acura entered the interstate from Md. 85 via and exit ramp. The 49-year-old’s vehicle then traveled in an easterly direction in the westbound lanes, this according to eye witness reports provided by police. The Acura was eventually hit head-on by an 18-wheeler operated by 53-year-old Gregory Heavener.

Police and emergency personnel responded to the crash scene at around 2:45am. Based on news articles, Owen was pronounced dead at the scene; her body was transported to the Baltimore medical examiner’s office to undergo autopsy. According to police, the trucker was unhurt following the crash.

Annapolis Man Gets 6 Months for Head-on Car Crash that Killed Anne Arundel Grandfather

January 31, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

According to news reports, Anne Arundel prosecutors’ arguement that the death of a 73-year-old Howard Wright of Gambrills, MD, was likely the result of aggressive driving was apparenlty not sufficiently persuassive. As a result, the court recently sentenced an Annapolis resident to just six months in jail for killing the grandfather of six when his Toyota crashed head-on into the older man’s classic car two years ago. The two-car crash, which happened along a curved portion of Defense Highway near Nob Hill Dr., was caused when the the Toyota driver crossed the centerline. Prosecutors claimed that the defendant, Savvas Andres Pantelides, was going 80mph in a 45mph zone when the vehicles collided.

Pantelides’ defense attorney said his client was going no faster than 55 mph in the 45 mph zone when his vehicle struck Wright’s 1936 Ford 5-window coupe on June 25, 2009. According to news reports, the now-20-year-old Pantelides entered an Alford guilty plea to one count of auto manslaughter. For those unfamiliar with the term, an Alford plea allows a defendant to maintain his innocence while at the same time admitting to the court that the prosecution has sufficient evidence to convict him or her (the Alford plea carries the same consequences as that of pleading guilty).

In an earlier report, during the entering of the defendant’s plea, court records showed that the judge in the case would likely sentence Pantelides to six months for his part in the fatal car wreck. While this garnered disbelief from the victim’s family members, others believed it to be a fair sentence. Maintaining that the crash was an accident, Pantelides’ father reportedly said that his son was sorry and that he never meant to hurt anyone.

According to news reports, Pantelides was allegedly traveling eastbound on Defense Highway just before 8pm when his 2003 Toyota Corolla collided head-on with Wright’s westbound Ford coupe. As a result of the wreck, Wright died at the scene and Pantelides was flown to the Maryland Shock Trauma Center with serious injuries. The younger driver was reportedly in a coma for five days following the crash and spent another 55 days in the hospital; he has had to undergo nearly a dozen reconstructive surgeries on his legs and abdomen over the past year and a half.

Baltimore Auto Accident Update: Westminster, MD, Driver Returns Home following 3-Month Hospital Stay

January 28, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Ask almost any survivor of a serious injury car crash and you’ll probably find that he or she went through extensive medical treatments and may have avoided life-threatening injuries such as head trauma, spinal cord damage or internal injuries. As personal injury attorneys serving the Maryland and Washington, D.C. area, we understand the pain, discomfort and financial cost that can be the inevitable consequence of a car, truck or motorcycle crash.

A while back, a story caught our eye regarding the long-awaited homecoming of a Westminster woman who was severely hurt during a traffic accident last September. According to news reports, 29-year-old Mary Medicus was involved in a terrible head-on collision with a drunk driver along a stretch of Interstate 795. At the time of the accident, Medicus and her father were reportedly traveling home from a music concert in Baltimore in the early morning hours just before the crash on September 10.

At about 3am, the family members’ vehicle was struck head-on by a drunken motorist driving his vehicle in the wrong direction on the interstate with no headlights. That man, Davis E. Patterson of Reisterstown, MD, was killed as a result of the wreck. Medicus was transporter to University of Maryland Shock Trauma after the crash and then spent the first of her three-month recovery in a coma.

Restricted to a hospital bed even now that she is home, Medicus said that she can’t believe she survived the ordeal. Her recovery has apparently been amazing since her injuries were so serious; following the crash, the woman’s skull was starting to separate from her spinal column, her legs were broken and she had a split breast bone. Her other injuries included shattered knees, crushed right heel and broken ribs on her right side.

Her medical treatments included 17 operations, yet doctors expect that she will need additional surgeries in the future. Medicus was told that she could have lost her right foot if it hadn’t been for the efforts of the Pikesville volunteer fire company, who rescued her from her smashed vehicle.

Baltimore Auto Accident Update: What to Expect Following a Serious Traffic Wreck with Occupant Injuries

January 24, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

For Maryland drivers who find themselves caught up in a sudden and possibly serious injury accident on one of the state’s highways, rural roads or urban streets, the pain of injuries sustained during a car crash are sometimes equaled only by the cost of medical treatment for same. As Baltimore personal injury lawyers and car, motorcycle and trucking accident attorneys, I and my staff understand the uphill battle that injured parties can sometimes face.

From the standpoint of the negligent party, be it a taxi or livery driver, a trucker behind the wheel of an 18-wheel rig, or a passenger car driver who may have been texting or otherwise impaired by drugs or alcohol, they already have representation, their insurance company. That’s right, many a negligent driver — the man or woman who caused the collision and subsequent serious injuries to others — is almost always represented by a lawyer on behalf of an insurance company.

As an auto accident attorney, I know that negligent drivers have the strength of a large insurance company on their side. The job of corporate attorneys is to keep the plaintiff from receiving fair compensation for any injuries the victim(s) may have sustained as a result of the negligent driver’s actions.

Maryland Automobile Injury News: Drug Use Suspected in Fatal 4-Vehicle Glen Bernie Co. Traffic Accident

January 17, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Having seen our share of auto-accident injuries over the years, I and my colleagues understand the damage and suffering that can result from a poor driving decision or other individual choice. In the more serious of injury accidents, a car crash can cause prolonged of even permanent damage to a person’s head, neck or lower spine.

As a Maryland personal injury attorney and car accident lawyer, I know how easy it is for a simple error in judgment to lead to a potentially life-threatening outcome. Drivers and passengers in automobiles, city buses and commercial trucks have from time to time died as a result of another’s negligent behavior.

Whether a serious traffic wreck occurs in Baltimore, Annapolis, the District or anywhere else across Maryland, the results can be difficult for the victims and their families going forward. A recent incident in Glen Burnie County illustrates what can happen when a driver is possible impaired due to use of controlled substances. Illegal drugs and even doctor-prescribed prescription medication can increase the chances of a bad collision depending on the individual circumstances.

The accident in this case involved a total of four cars and ended with one driver dead and several other people injured. According to county police, alleged drug use may have contributed to a chain-reaction crash that killed 24-year-old William Edward Gruber III on a Thursday morning.

Based on police reports, Gruber was driving a 1991 Honda Accord eastbound on East Ordnance Rd just before 8am when fore some reason the man’s vehicle rear-ended a Chevrolet Monte Carlo, driven by 59-year-old Linda Darnell Bohlen Lassiter, which was waiting to make a left turn onto Blades Lane. The force of the crash pushed the Chevy into the rear of Dodge pickup truck also waiting to make a left turn.

As a result of the initial collision between Gruber’s Honda and the Chevy caused the man’s Honda to spin across into westbound lanes of the roadway, where it was hit an oncoming Dodge Caravan driven by 58-year-old Elizabeth Mund of Pasadena, MD.

Maryland Auto Injury News: 4 People Hurt in Baltimore County in Multi-car Traffic Accident

January 7, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

It seems that some roads and stretches of interstate highways experience a preponderance of traffic accidents. Whether this is due to bad road maintenance, poor signage or other traffic related safety defect is hard to say. Human error can also make it difficult to point to any specific factor that makes a street or roadway appear to be dangerous for drivers and occupants of motor vehicles.

Regardless, when a driver makes a mistake that results in the injury or death of another individual, that person could be found to be negligent in a court of law. Especially in cases of fatal automobile crashes, wrongful death suits are sometimes brought against a motorist by the victim’s family.

As Baltimore personal injury lawyers and auto accident attorneys, our job is to represent car crash victims and their families. Situations that involve the loss of a loved one are particularly heartbreaking, especially when the accident could have been avoided — senseless car, commercial truck and motorcycle crashes happen far too frequently for anyone to be comfortable with.

La Plata Woman Dies from Serious Injuries following St. Mary’s County Car Accident

January 5, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

When a traffic accident happens — whether it involves two passenger vehicles, a car and a motorcycle or a small motor vehicle and a much larger commercial truck — the results can be tragic for the driver and occupants of either motor vehicle, although the smaller vehicle typically sustains the worst damage. One of the more difficult aspects of any highway or urban accident is when a death occurs in the aftermath.

As experienced personal injury attorneys and auto accident lawyers serving residents of Maryland and the District, we recognize how painful and costly a car or truck crash can actually be. While the initial medical treatment can be very expensive, not to mention absolutely necessary following crashes that are very nearly fatal, the recovery period and rehabilitation costs down the road can add up as well.

No one needs to be reminded that hospitalization can place serious financial stress on many families, especially in the current economy. While insurance companies will try to cut their loses and make a quick settlement, it is always wise to consult with an experienced auto injury attorney who knows the law. It’s easy to see one’s medical costs now, but future treatment for chronic problems arising from a car or truck wreck may not be as obvious.

Paraplegic Man Convicted of Vehicular Manslaughter Arrested for Violating “No-driving in Maryland” Probation Condition

December 31, 2010 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

A paralyzed man who had served seven years in prison for a terrible traffic accident in which a Hagerstown couple were killed in 2002 was recently arrested for violating a condition of his ongoing probation, that of not getting behind the wheel of a motor vehicle in Maryland. As a Maryland auto accident attorney and personal injury lawyer, I’ve seen many cases where a motorist was convicted of negligent manslaughter and sentenced to multiple years in prison.

According to news reports, 31-year-old Matthew David Meyer of Ellicott City, Maryland, has been on probation for several years now, having served his jail time for the deaths of Gerald and Mary Dietrich of Hagerstown, MD. Based on police reports, however, Meyer was taken into custody in mid-December by Howard County Sheriff, James Fitzgerald, a couple weeks ago for violating a no-drive order as part of his probation agreement.

Meyer had been sentenced to serve seven years in jail, as well as receiving another seven-year suspended sentence following his plea of no contest to two charges of vehicular manslaughter. The charges arose out of an October 23, 2002, car accident in which the Dietrichs, 59 and 61 years old, were killed when their pickup was hit by a BMW driven by Meyer. In situations such as this, a wrongful death lawsuit is one option that the family of the victims can choose to pursue.