Maryland Car Accident Attorney Blog
It’s one thing for an unlicensed or uninsured individual to drive a motor vehicle unlawfully on a public road without incident, but it’s a totally different story when someone who is untrained, uninsured or otherwise unauthorized to drive and then crash that car, truck or motorcycle on the street. To cause an accident as an unlicensed or uninsured driver is not uncommon, but to have an accident that results in a fatality is serious business.
For accidents caused by an uninsured or under-insured driver, the injured party typically files an insurance claim through their own insurance company, which provides coverage for such events under the heading termed uninsured motorists (UM) or under-insured motorists (UIM).
As Baltimore car accident attorneys and Maryland personal injury lawyers, we understand that being issued a driver’s license by the State is a privilege that tens of thousands of Marylanders enjoy because they practiced, studied and passed driving tests designed to prove their competence behind the wheel. But this privilege to drive on public roads does not extend to unlicensed individuals.
Causing a fatality with a motor vehicle and not having a license or proper authority to operate a vehicle on a public road can result in serious consequences. Maryland law enforcement and the state’s court system take vehicular homicides very seriously. More often than not, an unlicensed person poses a greater danger to others on the road when compared to those persons who have been legitimately licensed to operate a passenger car or commercial truck by the State of Maryland.
Unlicensed drivers can and do pose a hazard to pedestrians and occupants of other cars and trucks. The danger these people present is real as evidenced by a fatal car crash that occurred not long ago in Anne Arundel County. And while this incident may have started out as an “innocent” prank or even a “harmless” impulse, the result was tragic to say the least.
According to police reports, the teenagers involved appear to have taken a relative’s vehicle without permission and driven it on public roads in the middle of the night without proper licensing and likely without proper training. Who’s to blame? That is the question. Are the teen’s parents? The relative whose vehicle was taken? These and other questions must now be answered by the authorities and sorted out in a court of law. At the same time, a man has been killed in another senseless traffic accident.
Based on news items, the 63-year-old Glen Burnie resident, Javaid Firdaus, was driving his Ford Crown Victoria sedan in the early morning hours this past Sunday when he was hit by a Jeep Grand Cherokee being driven by 19-year-old Elizabeth Ramirez. At the time of the accident, Ramirez reportedly only had a learner’s permit, not a valid Maryland driver’s license, according to local police.
News articles indicate that the Ramirez and her friend were the only occupants in the Jeep when the unlicensed driver attempted a left-hand turn onto Maryland Rte 3 from Davidsonville Rd. The Jeep reportedly struck the victim’s Ford, which was traveling along Rte 3 at the time. According to police, Firdaus was critically hurt in the wreck, having received multiple injuries as a result of the collision. He was taken to Baltimore Washington Medical Center for treatment, but reportedly died not long after being admitted to the hospital.
Police accounts show that the teens, who sustained only minor injuries in the crash, reportedly took the Jeep, which apparently belonged to a relative, without the owner’s knowledge or consent. At the time of the news article, an investigation was still ongoing.
Glen Burnie Man Dies in Two-Car Accident on Route 3, Patch.com, August 1, 2011