Maryland Car Accident Attorney Blog

Baltimore Traffic Safety News: Maryland Drivers Face Dangerous Roads in December Due to Increased Drunken Driving

November 30, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

As mentioned prior to Thanksgiving, the end-of-year holiday season appears to be a good excuse for some Maryland motorists to drink and drive, making the state’s highways and secondary roads more dangerous for the rest of us. As Baltimore auto accident lawyers and personal injury lawyers, we know how a simple ride to school, work or the store can turn into a life or death struggle to survive a horrendous traffic accident.

Sadly, the message that drunken driving is a danger to everyone — perpetrator included — has not made it to the ears of those most responsible for these kinds of accidents. As a result, drivers in Gaithersburg, Annapolis, Rockville and the District can expect to face continued threat of roadways collisions caused by drunk drivers.

This is not just a theory of ours, but a fact that recent news articles already have confirmed. According to reports, Drunk driving arrests are already up this season based on the opening weeks of a statewide law enforcement safety initiative. Injuries from auto, truck and motorcycle accidents are just as painful and debilitating whether they are caused by distraction, aggression or impairment from alcohol or other substances.

According to news reports, the interval between Thanksgiving and New Year’s has come to be regarded by traffic safety experts as one of the most dangerous times to be driving on Maryland roads. These experts point to a new crop of young adults who don’t remember Maryland’s targeted anti-drunk driving enforcement efforts begun in the late 1980s and carried on into the early ‘90s. Nearly 20 years ago, as news articles remind us, police agencies first began to notice a disturbing trend in drinking and driving. Now, with a new generation coming of age, those older initiatives are apparently not in the current consciousness, hence the renewed enforcement efforts of late.

Police departments across the state arrested nearly 20 drivers for driving under the influence on Thanksgiving eve, a figure that is practically two times that of last year. (The night before Thanksgiving has over the past several years become known as the most dangerous time due to the large number of motorists who likely drink and drive.)

Glen Burnie Auto Accident News: One Person Dies in Two-vehicle Collision on Crain Hwy

November 29, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Disparity in vehicle size can be a contributing factor when it comes to traffic accidents involving automobiles and other motor vehicles. Certainly most every driver has felt, at one time or another, a visceral twinge of fear or anxiety as they pass an 18-wheeler or other large commercial truck on the highway. The close quarters of some highways and surface streets can elevate that reaction among drivers and passengers of smaller, more vulnerable vehicles.

As Maryland automobile injury attorneys and drivers ourselves, I and my legal staff can relate to those feelings of danger when a semi tractor-trailer comes a little to close. But even smaller trucks, such as delivery vehicles and medium-duty work trucks can pose similar dangers without evoking the dread that larger motor vehicles do.

Because vehicle size usually correlates closely to vehicle mass, or weight, it’s not a stretch to say that some drivers worry every time they come near a big truck. But those medium-duty work trucks, though smaller than other large commercial vehicles, can also cause a great deal of damage in a traffic collision given the right circumstances; more than just a vehicle’s weight, the cargo that a truck may be hauling can pose significant danger in a roadway collision.

It’s not a stretch to imagine that a fully-loaded work truck can weight three to four times that of a small economy car. Given that amount of weight disparity, in a crash the passenger vehicle might end up sustaining serious damage; and the same goes for any occupants riding inside the car as well.

Baltimore Auto Accident Update: 25 Percent of Maryland Traffic Accidents Caused by Smartphone Use, Other Electronics

November 28, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Many people could be spared painful injury and potential death were it not for automotive negligence on the highways and surface streets. Every week in and around cities like Rockville, Gaithersburg, Frederick and Washington, D.C., occupants of passenger cars and city buses, pedestrians crossing urban streets, and motorcyclists are hurt or killed as a result of another person’s inattention.

As Baltimore personal injury attorneys, I and my staff have seen the results of traffic accidents caused by distracted driving. It makes little difference to the victim of an automobile or commercial trucking accident whether the individual who caused the accident was drunk, under the influence of prescription drugs, eating a hamburger, or texting a friend on their cellphone; the injuries are the same and the recovery typically slow and many times painful.

For those lucky enough to survive a high-speed collision, rarely do they walk away without a scratch. Usually, some kind of bodily harm occurs following a roadway collision, such as broken bones, cuts and bruises, and spinal injuries. Of course, not every accident is the result of inattention, but the large number that are could perhaps be reduced if drivers took a moment to consider their actions behind the wheel.

Recovering medical and rehabilitation expenses following a bad auto wreck can be difficult, which is why it’s always advisable to consult with a qualified personal injury lawyer. These days, many people have a hard enough time making ends meet, much less pay for a hospital stay that resulted from a car crash caused by a negligent party. Getting one’s medical bills covered is a priority for families whose earnings are already stretched to the limit.

Baltimore Automobile Safety News: Rte 235 Traffic Accidents Prompt St. Mary’s County to Add Red-light Cameras

November 25, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Personal injuries can result from most any activity. Whether one lives here in Baltimore, over in Frederick or out in Washington, D.C., it is a certainty that you or someone you know has been witness to a car, truck or motorcycle accident during your driving career. Many times, when someone calls our firm, it is because that person or a close family member has been hurt due to another individual’s negligent actions.

Malice is not the only cause of traffic-related collisions, just as it is not always the reason for a trip and fall incident or a medical error that has out someone into a nursing home. Very often, accidents that cause injury are a result of carelessness or distraction at a critical time. In the case of passenger car and trucking-related wrecks, the simple yet dangerous act of using a smart phone can and does lead to a serious and sometimes fatal roadway collision.

Innocent victims of these kinds of accidents may have just cause to bring a civil suit against the injuring party via a personal injury lawsuit. Such as claim is quite common if the victim or his family believes that the injury was caused either by intentional act or careless one. Needless to say, a defective or poorly designed consumer product can also cause harm to an individual, in which case the manufacturer, and even the distributor of that defective product — may be sued based on a plaintiff’s argument that the negligent party was legally responsible for the injury(s) sustained by the injured party.

‘Tis the Season for Drinking and Driving? Thanksgiving Holiday May Pose Dangers on Maryland Roadways

November 23, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Thanksgiving is tomorrow, but the holiday weekend will continue for several days. As Maryland personal injury lawyers, we feel it is important to advise caution when venturing out onto the state’s highways and surface streets during the coming holiday. According to the American Automobile Association (AAA), 42.5 million motorists nationwide will be hitting the roads this holiday weekend.

Here in Maryland, experts estimate that nearly 90 percent of residents will at one time or another be driving during the coming days — 800,000 people traveling to destinations all across the state. With this in mind, it is essential to remember that Thanksgiving has in many parts of the country become known more as drinking holiday than for the traditional family gatherings of the post.

As Maryland auto and trucking accident attorneys, I and my staff know that roadway collisions can and do happen everyday. While crashes of any kind are quite common, motor vehicle wrecks involving alcohol can make up more than 30 percent of all fatal incidents. Driving during this coming holiday weekend should be undertaken with caution and eyes wide open.

Although gasoline prices are more than 15 percent higher than a year ago this time, traveling by car is still one of the more cost-effective modes, especially when going relatively short distances of 100 miles or so. The gradual rise in fuel prices is not likely to limit the number of cars, trucks or even motorcycles on the road this weekend.

Safety when driving is an important consideration when noting the increased number of cars on the road when compared to other traveling-related holidays. According to the AAA, Thanksgiving holiday traffic represents is the first significant increase in vehicular traffic of the entire year to date. Based on news reports, Memorial Day travel was, one the whole, unchanged from previous years, while the July Fourth and Labor Day holidays saw slight decreases in travel.

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 Personal Injury News: Two Die in Fatal Fells Point, MD, Car Accident

November 18, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Fatal car crashes leave behind more than broken families; sometimes they can also spell the end of young and promising lives. As Baltimore personal injury attorneys, I and my colleagues have felt the very deep and profound sadness of loss from victims’ families and others who have known the deceased. Sadly, individuals who have been killed in a senseless auto, truck of motorcycle wreck will never again share time with their loved ones, and no amount of compensation can ever change that.

When a young person dies in a traffic accident, many who were close to that individual may ask themselves if anything could have been done to avoid or mitigate the collision. Second guessing and running “what if” scenarios in one’s mind are normal ways in which survivors may grieve, though in the end it may be better to celebrate the person’s life then to replay past events to the exclusion of all else.

As automobile accident lawyers, our job is to help families of victims recover costs for medical treatment, lost wages, and even attain compensation for the loss of companionship, love and comfort of that person. In fact, death does eliminate the right of a family to seek compensation for the loss of a loved one when wrongful death through the negligent act of another is the issue.

Annapolis Personal Injury News: Bar Sold Liquor to Underage Maryland Motorist Who Died in Fatal Accident

November 16, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Highway deaths in and around Baltimore, Rockville, the District, and Frederick, MD, occur for dozens of reasons every month. Many of these fatal car, motorcycle and commercial trucking accidents could possibly be avoided or mitigated in one way or another, but sadly not all. Drunken driving contributes to a significant percentage of car, truck and motorcycle crashes, a result of which is a substantial number of occupant injuries including closed-head trauma, spinal cord damage, and internal injuries.

A local Annapolis bar was in the news recently as law enforcement and the public focused on the serving of alcohol to underage patrons. According to news articles, the Acme Bar and Grill is under fairly intense scrutiny for an episode that occurred this past summer. Based on reports, the bar allegedly served several underage customers on June 15, two of whom died in a motorcycle wreck just minutes after walking out of that drinking establishment.

The incident raised serious questions about the bar’s practices vis-à-vis serving underage individuals, in particular those who may go out and drive a motor vehicle while intoxicated. While personal responsibility is a fine ideal, the law stipulates that people under the age of 21 cannot be served liquor legally. Criminal charges are not unusual in cases like this where a young person has been injured or died after being sold alcohol at a bar, liquor store or restaurant.

According to news articles, last summer’s incident involved two people allegedly known to at least one of the bar’s staff to be underage. Events following the entry of 20-year-old
Craig Eney, Jr., and 19-year-old Kelcey Silva transpired rather quickly, based on police reports. After stopping by the bar around in the early morning hours of that fateful day, both individuals consumed sufficient alcohol to raise their blood-alcohol content (BAC) to levels exceeding the legal limit of 0.08 percent.

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.

Baltimore County Auto Accident News: Elderly Maryland Driver Dies in Fatal Two-Car Roadway Collision

November 11, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

An elderly woman died following a two-car accident in Kingsville, MD, after the vehicle she was operating was struck by another car along a stretch of Belair Rd. The driver of the second vehicle was seriously injured as a result of the crash and was able to leave the hospital soon after.

Now, we’ve seen the results of this type of fatal car crash before, but it doesn’t make this or any other traffic accident less tragic or lamentable. While some older drivers make it through the majority of their lives without a single traffic collision, others — whether through inattention, physical complications or other problem — end up being involved in a serious or even fatal car or trucking wreck.

As Maryland personal injury lawyers, I and my staff are trained to represent victims and their families following a serious car, truck or motorcycle crash. Injuries from such accidents can range from mild to severe; even life-threatening. As with any motor vehicle collision, speed, roadway conditions, vehicle type and other factors, all have a bearing on the outcome of the crash.

In the case of car-to-car accidents, the occupants are enclosed in similarly sized vehicles, which is sometimes an advantage, but never a guarantee of survival. Even in wrecks involving two or more cars, SUVs or minivans, injuries such as broken bones and lacerations are not uncommon. Head, neck and back injuries are possible, all of which can have long term complications with lingering after affects for those who sustain such injuries.

Trucking collisions, especially those involving smaller passenger cars or pedestrians, can be particularly devastating, again depending on various factors. High-speed highway collisions can cause a passenger vehicle to be literally crushed by the much larger semi tractor-trailer or other heavy commercial truck. Vehicle fires and potentially fatal injuries are always possible following such roadway crashes.

Finally, it goes without saying that motorcycle, bicycle and pedestrian accidents can result in traumatic brain injury, as well as spinal damage and other critical bodily injuries. As a victim of a bike or pedestrian traffic accident, surviving is just the first step on a long road to recovery for many people. Anyone who can literally walk away from such violent traffic collisions can truly count themselves among the lucky ones.