Maryland Car Accident Attorney Blog
Having represented many individuals injured, hurt or permanently disabled in automobile accidents here in Maryland, we can say that the youngest of these victims, children and toddlers, are many times the most at risk in traffic-related accidents. Being small of stature and difficult to see in the first place, youngsters can be hit by cars while walking to school, riding bikes with friends or just playing near the street.
As Maryland personal injury attorneys, we know that drivers need to take extra precautions when traveling through neighborhoods and when approaching schools and establishments that attract kids, such as ice cream stands and fast food restaurants. Although adults are just as much at risk of serious injury, juveniles can easily be killed or critically injured by cars, SUVs, minivans and commercial vehicles.
Being hit by a car or truck will almost certainly result in an emergency trip to the hospital, with injuries to the child ranging from lacerations and heavy bruising to head trauma and neck and spinal cord damage. In the saddest of cases, a child can end up losing one or more limbs, being bed ridden for months or years, or even being killed as a result of a thoughtless or negligent act on a driver’s part.
Not long ago, the young son of a Baltimore County family was hit by a passing vehicle right outside of a McDonald’s restaurant off of Reisterstown Rd. According to news reports, the 10-year-old was hit by a station wagon just before 6pm. Fortunately for the boy and his parents, news articles indicate that the youth’s injuries were not life-threatening.
Baltimore County Police reported that the boy was alert when emergency responders arrived at the scene. Witnesses saw the boy standing in one of the northbound lanes out in front of the fast food chain store. The driver of one vehicle was able to stop in time however the youngster was subsequently struck by a Volvo wagon. The force of the pedestrian-car accident caused the child to be thrown into the air, knocking off one of the boy’s shoes in the process.
Eye witnesses in the first car said the boy got up and went over to the Volvo and began talking, perhaps angrily, to the driver. According to reports, another witness who was later identified as a medical technician came to the boy’s aid and rendered basic medical care at the scene.
A state police medevac chopper arrived shortly thereafter take the boy to Johns Hopkins Pediatrics for further medical treatment and observation. According to police at the time of the news article, the boy had no life-threatening injuries. There was no mention of whether police cited the driver of the Volvo wagon for any traffic offenses.
10-Year-Old Struck on Reisterstown Road, Patch.com, May 18, 2011