Single-vehicle Accidents

Baltimore Automobile Accident Update: Certain Jeep Models May Hide Dangerous Mechanical Issues

January 7, 2012 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Every once in a while, one hears or reads of a potentially life-threatening situation or condition created by a faulty or poorly designed car, truck or motorcycle component; and, it’s not a stretch to say that some single-vehicle car or truck accidents are caused, at least in part, by a mechanical failure in on of the vehicle’s critical control systems.

One glance at some owner and enthusiast sports car, biker and off-roading websites and it’s easy to see that potential trouble lurks when people attempt to modify their vehicles beyond what the manufacturer intended. But problems can also crop up even without radical modification to a motor vehicle. In this respect, preventative maintenance is also important to follow, especially with older vehicles that may have many tens of thousands of miles on their odometers.

As Maryland personal injury attorneys, my firm has the skills to represent victims of automobile, truck and motorcycle accidents. One thing we know is that even seemingly minor mechanical or structural problems on a motor vehicle can easily lead to serious injury or even death. As injury lawyers, our job is to help victims and their families recover the costs and expenses from medical treatment and rehabilitation as a result of a passenger car or commercial vehicle accident caused by someone else’s negligence.

Maryland Auto Injury News: Baltimore Mans Dies in Single-vehicle Crash near I-695/I-795 Interchange

December 27, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Single-car or single-truck accidents can be the result of many factors. Top on the list is usually driver error, distraction or fatigue, followed by poor weather or road conditions, and even poor roadway design or bad badly placed signage. In some cases, a mechanical problem with the vehicle’s brakes, steering, suspension or other critical components may be partially to blame for a wreck.

When an accident happens on a low-speed surface street, the out come can range from minor injuries to death of the vehicle’s occupants. While higher speed interstate crashes can be serious as well, the lesser number of obstacles immediately adjacent to the roadway helps to reduce the number of fatal accidents. However, this is not to say that people don’t die on a regular basis as a result of bad highway collisions.

As Maryland personal injury lawyers, I and my legal staff are well-versed in handling injury and fatal car, truck and motorcycle crashes. Certainly, when a multiple vehicle accident occurs, one or more drivers may be to blame. Filing a wrongful death suit against another individual based on claims of negligent or thoughtless acts is not uncommon here in Baltimore, or over in Rockville, Gaithersburg or the District.

In the case of single-car or truck crashes, the injured party is typically the driver himself. If the driver was found to be at fault, having caused the accident, other passengers may decide to file a claim against that driver to recoup the costs of medical care or other claims of pain and suffering which directly resulted from that particular traffic wreck.

Baltimore Injury Accident News: Suspected Drunk Driver Crashes Car into Light Pole, Occupants Trapped in Vehicle

December 22, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

From the standpoint of most people who drive on Maryland’s roadways, drinking and driving is an activity that we all wish was a thing of the past. But, sadly, as Baltimore automobile and trucking accident lawyers, I and my legal staff know that drunken driving will likely be with us for some time to come. With human nature what it is, it can sometimes take a long while for individuals to see the light even after society as a whole has accepted an idea or renounced a certain practice.

Without a doubt, over the past several decades the mixture of cars and alcohol has been a major contributor to highway deaths across the country. Locally, in Baltimore, Frederick, Montgomery and Prince George’s counties, not to mention Washington, D.C., anti-drunk driving campaigns have slowly made inroads toward creating a safer driving environment for all concerned. Still, as we say, there is much work to be done to eliminate the threat.

Anyone who has been involved in a car or motorcycle accident caused by a drunken driver can relate to this subject on a very personal level. Anyone who has lost a loved one due to a fatal DWI or DUI traffic collision knows the pain and the emptiness that follows; a void in one’s life that can never truly be filled. While it is our job, as Maryland personal injury attorneys, to help provide a modicum of closure to those who have lost a loved one in a car or commercial truck accident, no amount of recompense can ever take the place of a deceased relative, spouse or child.

Maryland Auto Injury News: Two Teenagers Critically Injured in Single-Car Traffic Accident in Baltimore County

December 19, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Personal responsibility is one of the more important facets of a civilized society. As we see every day, individuals who are negligent and cause damage to property or injury to another person are routinely expected to own up to their mistake and make amends to the victim and/or his family. This is the civilized thing to do; however, when someone does not follow the law, then the law provides avenues for the victims to recover damages resulting from that negligent or willful act.

As parents everywhere know, teenagers of driving age can be a concern almost daily. A driver’s license or even a driving permit represents, for many, freedom from the constraint of the home and parents. And while a driver’s license may be a rite of passage in our modern world, this new-found independence can be frightening for mothers and fathers.

A car, pickup truck or motorcycle can offer a young person much more than a way to get around, it can also become a social gathering point; but this may be where the danger starts for a young person just getting a taste of his or her independence — as every mature adult understands, teenagers do not always possess the same commonsense that the rest of us take for granted after years of life experience.

As Maryland personal injury lawyers, we understand how a car full of teens can lead to distraction and potentially dangerous driving situations. Sadly, this potential scenario continues to be played out in the real world, with real world consequences, every year. Under normal circumstances, it’s not uncommon for young children and minors to be hurt as a result of auto and trucking accidents. Although kids are resilient, thousands of children are sent to hospitals nationwide each year because of poor or negligent driving.

Maryland Auto Injury News: NTSB Urges Halt to Any Cellphone Use in Cars, Trucks

December 15, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

It’s all over the news and on the lips of safety-conscious people across the nation; the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has urged state legislatures across the U.S. to move to ban any and all cellphone use in car and trucks on the nations roadways. While we occasionally hear of individual state legislators condemning the dangers of texting and hands-on cellphone use, it’s not often that a department of the federal government makes such a broad and sweeping recommendation regarding the safety of all drivers.

As Maryland personal injury lawyers, I and my staff have seen the results of auto, truck and motorcycle accidents caused by distracted drivers. The misery and suffering that a negligent act can inflict on a person and his or her family is far worse than any minor distraction that initially caused the traffic collision in the first place. Texting, cellphones and smart phones are just one more, albeit major, distraction that drivers deal with on a daily basis.

Now, with the NTSB’s recommendation, it seems that the issue of traffic deaths caused by distracted driving (due to any kind of cellphone use) is going to be a serious topic of conversation and possible legislative efforts in the months and years to come. For anyone who wonders, the NTSB is usually associated with serious plane and train accidents, rather than with everyday automobile and trucking-related crashes, which they also investigate when necessary.

However, the 3,000-plus deaths attributed to distracted driving in 2010 — as well as the close association that cellphones and smart phones have with driver distraction — has placed this issue front and center with other serious safety-related discussions.

Baltimore Car Accident Update: Things for Maryland Motorists to Remember following a Traffic Collision

December 3, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

For drivers working or residing in cities such as Baltimore, Annapolis and Washington, D.C., nobody needs to be reminded that high traffic volumes and congestion are a constant problem with little chance of letting up in the future. With high traffic density a fact of daily commuter life, it’s no surprise that car, truck and motorcycle accidents continue to occur on a regular basis.

As Maryland car and trucking accident attorneys, we know the frustration of being stuck in traffic following a major accident. But as personal injury lawyers, we also know that the victims of those “inconvenient” car and truck collisions are facing much more severe and painful recoveries; certainly more extended than the hour or so of delay the rest of us experience when a tie-up occurs due to a roadway accident.

It’s a matter of record that the driver and occupants riding in sedans, minivans, sport utility vehicles and other small passenger cars can be seriously injured or killed in a high-speed wreck with another motor vehicle. Although Maryland motorists have faced the prospect of physical injury for decades ever since the first horseless carriage hit another vehicle, the fact remains: car accidents can result in broken bones, deep cuts and laceration, back injury and closed-head trauma.

Of course, when a traffic accident does occur — whether between two cars, a truck and a bicycle, or a single-vehicle crash caused by a defective automotive component – the victims are often overwhelmed from the event. Still, if at all possible, it is important to make note of the facts following a car crash or commercial trucking wreck so that it is easier to determine if that motor vehicle collision was a result of a negligent act or the carelessness of another motorist.

Maryland Auto Accident News: Police Say Excessive Speed Contributed to Fatal Calvert County SUV Crash

November 20, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

As Baltimore auto accident attorneys, my firm represents individuals injured as a result of a car, motorcycle or trucking-related highway collision. Naturally, being Maryland personal injury lawyers, we understand the factors that can contribute to a serious or fatal traffic wreck. As such, we know that vehicle speed and mechanical issues (defective equipement problems), weather conditions, traffic patterns and other factors can have a significant bearing on whether or not a motor vehicle accident will be minor or, at worst, fatal.

Of course, as many individuals who have survived horrendous car and commercial truck wrecks already know, luck is also a significant factor in these kinds of severe roadway crashes. Regardless, injuries do occur and fatalities are also quite common for high-speed accidents and those where vehicles of vastly different weights are concerned.

As mentioned previously, vehicle speed is a key factor in determining the severity of a traffic accident. With every doubling of vehicle speed, the crash energy is essentially quadrupled. This is why the old saying, “speed kills” is not just a popular phrase with police and other safety experts. That said, as drivers ourselves, we can understand that the practical considerations of modern life necessitate highway speeds despite the increased danger should a collision occur.

Nevertheless, driving faster than conditions will permit or attempting maneuvers that the vehicle was not designed to handle at high speeds can be disastrous for the car and its occupants. Whether one lives in Rockville, Annapolis or the District, it’s likely that as a motorist you have witnessed the aftermath of some kind of traffic accident. Multiple-vehicle crashes are some of the most common, but single-car and truck wrecks are also frequent occurrences on the state’s roadways.

Maryland Auto Injury Update: Nationwide, Male Drivers More Likely to Drink and Drive than Females

November 14, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Disconcerting as it may be, a recently released study by the national Centers for Disease Control (CDC) shows that men are more inclined to operate car, trucks and motorcycles while under the influence of alcohol than are females. As Maryland personal injury attorneys, we are hardly surprised at the finding of this study, which clearly indicates that male drivers take to the road more often while intoxicated than most any other segment of the driving public.

Although is certain that not everyone who gets behind the wheel of a car, motorcycle or commercial motor vehicle is legally intoxicated, it can be said that many people who do operate motor vehicles while impaired to some degree may not actually realize the chance they take with their lives, much less the lives of innocent people all around them.

Here in Baltimore, as well as Gaithersburg, Rockville, Annapolis and Washington, D.C., even persons who are stopped by police and subsequently charged with drunken driving, may actually be surprised that they had a blood-alcohol content (or BAC) of 0.08-percent or more.

If only for this reason, the Maryland State Police and local law enforcement departments continually try to enforce our anti-drunk driving laws. Of course, a portion of those motorists arrested for driving while impaired are actually under the influence of doctor-prescribed medication; some are even high on illegal drugs.

Regarding the CDC’s report, men nationwide are reportedly four times more likely to drive drunk than women motorists. Based on news reports, the study released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicates why men many times find themselves being ticketed for drunken driving more than women.

Maryland Automobile Accident Update: Surviving a Bad Car Crash Doesn’t Mean the Pain is Over

November 8, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

As personal injury lawyers representing victims of traffic accidents in Maryland and Washington, D.C., we know that recovering from a serious car, truck or motorcycle wreck involves more than just being treated for severe or life-threatening injuries, but also means facing the possibility of persistent and sometimes chronic pain for months or years after the initial collision.

Nearly anyone who has been severely injured in an automobile or trucking-related traffic collision will likely tell you that the pain associated with certain injuries can continue on, long after the physical wounds have more or less healed. Nerve damage and other medical and neurological complications can make even day-to-day tasks painful and sometimes difficult to complete.

For anyone injured in a car, truck or pedestrian accident, these are concerns that should always be considered when pursuing a personal injury claim against another negligent party. An article published not long ago brought this topic to the fore, if only because it applies to many individuals in similar situations here in Maryland and around the rest of the country.

The report focuses on a Westminster, MD, man who has had to deal with what medical professionals refer to as chronic pain syndrome. Suffering from full-body complex regional pain syndrome, Michael Harris follows a regimen of aquatic therapy exercises, as well as other physical therapies, in an effort to alleviate the pain resulting from complications after an auto accident back in August 2007.

According to the article, Mr. Harris was apparently caught up in a 2007 car wreck when the vehicle in which he was riding was struck from behind by a drunken driver. The crash happened at an intersection along a stretch of Maryland Rte 140. The victim’s vehicle was reportedly stopped at the intersection waiting for a red light when the crash occurred.

As a result of the crash, Harris received several injuries, including a ruptured spinal disc. Some time after the wreck, doctors discovered that a piece of bone was impinging on the nerves in the man’s back, causing significant pain and discomfort. Harris apparently began to experience a number of associated symptoms, including tingling in his arms all the way to his fingertips, as well as numbness in his upper limbs. Unfortunately, these initial symptoms only got worse as time progressed following the car crash.

Subsequent pain throughout the man’s body included severe shooting pains felt all the way down his right leg, plus complaints of a sharp, “burning sensation” in other portions of his anatomy, as well as excessive sweating and changes in body temperature. His legs and hands also experienced swelling and color changes.

Baltimore Personal Injury News: Driver Escapes Drowning in Howard County after Driving Car into Pool

November 3, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

For some people, aging is accompanied by a progressive loss of physical and mental capabilities. Sadly, for People who cannot — or will not — relinquish their relative independence as a motorist with a car in the garage and places to go. In Maryland, older men and women every year must give up their driver’s licenses either after relatives urge them to stop driving or the state will not renew their operator’s license due to certain mental or physical impairments.

As Baltimore automobile and trucking accident lawyers, we understand the hard choices that families must make when an aged relative has had one to many minor car accidents, or their ability to remember how to get home suggests a potential for a serious traffic accident down the road. For many people in urban areas such as Annapolis, Baltimore and Washington, D.C., giving up driving may be easier with mass transit readily available; those in rural areas may have a more difficult transition.

Despite the potential dangers, many older seniors and elderly people continue to drive beyond a time when they can reasonably be expected to operate a vehicle with sufficient safety. It is at this point that they can become a danger to themselves and a potential menace on the road. As Maryland personal injury attorneys, we sympathize with the plight of the aged when it comes to driving, but it goes without saying that public safety many times must take precedence over an individual’s desire to keep driving despite loss of ability.

A while back, we were reminded of how easily an elderly driver can get themselves into a possibly life-threatening traffic accident. According to news articles, a car crash in Howard County ended with a woman and her vehicle underwater in a neighborhood pool. Based on police reports, the wreck occurred in the early morning hours on a Saturday in Columbia, MD.