Maryland Car Accident Attorney Blog

Maryland Auto Injury News: Three Restaurant Customers Injured When Car Crashes into Building

December 13, 2010 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Anyone who watches the evening news will agree that you don’t have to be riding in a motor vehicle to be hurt as a result of a car crash. Pedestrians and bicycle riders are two groups of people that are constantly in the news due to traffic-related injuries. As a Maryland auto accident attorney and personal injury lawyer, I also can say that when it comes to car-versus-person impacts, the car or commercial truck almost always wins.

Frankly, it’s not uncommon to see fatalities in cases where pedestrians have been hit by an oncoming car, truck or city bus. Some people don’t even see the accident coming, especially in cases like the one in the news not long ago. According to reports, two diners at a local Mexican restaurant were sent to the hospital after a passenger car drove through the front of the building.

Police reports indicate that a Honda Accord crashed through the glassed-in entryway of La Promesa Taco Shop on York Road just before 3am on a Sunday morning. News reports show that around 30 people were in the restaurant at the time of the accident. Based on reports, witnesses said that the Honda drove through an adjacent Jiffy Lube facility then went over a curb and drove across the restaurant’s parking lot before hitting the building.

Tragic Car-related Accident Takes Life of Maryland Teen in Anne Arundel County

December 10, 2010 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Young people do some of the strangest things growing up, most are harmless and lead to nothing more than a rebuke by a parent or police officer. There are other instances, where automobiles, motorcycles and commercial trucks are involved, when a simple lack of judgment results in serious bodily injury and sometimes even unexpected death.

Fatal car crashes and truck accidents are nothing new in metropolitan areas such as Baltimore, Cumberland and Hagerstown. As a Maryland auto accident lawyer and injury attorney, I and my colleagues have the training and experience to help victims and their families recover costs related to serious car and motorcycle wrecks, such as extended medical treatment, lost income due to a car crash, and other related expenses.

Not long ago a young man was killed while riding in a vehicle that was traveling eastbound along Davidsonville Road in Anne Arundel Co. According to witnesses, the 19-year-old resident of Silver Spring, MD, was leaning out the right rear window of a 2004 Chevrolet truck apparently trying to get the attention of some friends walking across a nearby field when the vehicle reportedly sideswiped a utility pole.

Maryland Single-vehicle Traffic Accident Leaves Driver Dead; Sends Two Passengers to Baltimore Shock Trauma

December 8, 2010 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Whatever the cause of serious car or truck crash, the results can be terrible for the occupants and their families. Regardless of the reasons, a fatal automobile accident can deeply affect lives of victim’s relatives and close friends. A recent accident reported in the news brings up a point that bears repeating: Always wear your seatbelt.

If we could predict the future, those who choose not to wear their safety belt might do better over time, but since traffic wrecks are not predictable, drivers and passengers are smart to belt-up whenever going out onto the road. As a Maryland personal injury lawyer and auto accident attorney, I understand how extensive a person’s injuries can be following a bad car accident.

The fatal crash in question reportedly occurred in Montgomery County, MD, on a Friday night as three people were traveling in a Honda Accord sedan along Chandlee Mill Road around 10pm in the evening. According to police, 19 -year-old David Oughton somehow lost control of the vehicle which then left the roadway and hit a tree by the roadside. Based on police reports, the driver died at the scene. He was allegedly not wearing his seatbelt.

Baltimore Traffic Safety Update: Watch Out, Maryland’s Aggressive Drivers Cause Half of All Automobile Accidents

December 6, 2010 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Over the past year we’ve seen lot of traffic accidents resulting from aggressive driving. While it might be a dream to hope for complete harmony on Maryland’s roadways, the fact of the matter is being civil and courteous to your fellow motorists makes for a safer and more event-free commute. Sadly, there is a portion of the driving public that either has no thought for others or is simply too focused on their own agenda to worry about another individual’s rights or safety.

As Baltimore auto injury attorneys, my firm has represented dozens of people injured as a result of another person’s negligence. Aggressive drivers, it is now known, account for a large number of car and truck wrecks every year here in Maryland and across the U.S. Regardless of whether you living in Hagerstown, Rockville or Frederick, MD, you probably take one or more of Maryland’s highways to get to work, school or to go shopping. And the chances of getting caught in an accident caused by an aggressive driver are pretty high these days.

It’s a fact that the American Automobile Association (AAA) estimated that more than half of all fatal passenger car and commercial truck crashes were the result of some type of aggressive driving. Those who survive such accidents can end up with serious injuries as well as long-term medical problems, the cost of which can be a continuing burden on the individual and his or her family for years after the actual crash.

Maryland Auto Injury News: Drinking and Driving Suspected in Fatal Rockville, MD, Traffic Accident

December 3, 2010 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

With the holidays not far away, this may be a good time to remind everyone to be especially cautious when driving this winter. From the standpoint of traffic accidents, after-work parties, holiday gatherings and other festivities always invite some amount of alcohol consumption. While most Maryland residents are aware of the way in which beer, wine and hard liquor can impair a driver’s judgment, some individuals choose to ignore that fact and drive anyway.

As a Baltimore automobile accident and personal injury lawyer, I and my colleagues have seen the results of more than enough DWI and DUI accidents to know that it’s not worth the risk to drive while under the influence of alcohol. Passenger car crashes, motorcycle wrecks and commercial trucking collisions have all been caused from time to time by a drunken or drug-impaired driver.

The seriousness of any accident will typically impact the number and extent of any injuries sustained by the occupants of each vehicle involved in the collision. Depending on the kind of accident — head-on crash, rollover, side-impact collision, etc. — passengers can receive mild to severe injuries. From minor cuts and bruises to heavy concussions and spinal trauma, the potential for extensive and prolonged medical treatment is always present.

Maryland Auto Accident and Traffic Safety Update: Maryland’s Move Over Law Protects Emergency Personnel

November 30, 2010 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

If you you’re not doing it by now, you had better start. What are we talking about? Moving over a lane to give police officers, fire fighters and other emergency personnel a little extra margin of safety on Maryland’s highways. As a Baltimore automobile accident attorney, I know the kind of carnage that a motor vehicle can cause to a pedestrian, especially at high speeds. Maryland’s legislators finally took this to heart and passed what is known as the “Move Over” rule.

It’s been a few years since the new rule was proposed, but now that it’s law drivers across the state should be extra careful when coming up on a car, truck or motorcycle accident scene or even a routine traffic stop. The potential for severe injury during a traffic accident is quite high even for those traveling in vehicles.

Even so, serious head, neck and spinal injuries have been know to occur even at low speeds, which makes this new law a boon for our hard-working police and emergency personnel. And not a moment too soon, since over the past decade more than 150 police officers alone have been killed nationwide at roadsides when they were hit by passing vehicles.

Baltimore Injury News: Policeman Hurt in Hit-and-Run Auto Accident on I-495

November 27, 2010 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Anyone can find themselves the victim of a car-pedestrian accident, even a police officer. The truth of the matter is that car crashes and other traffic-related accidents occur with alarming frequency in cities like Baltimore, Annapolis and Frederick, MD. As a Maryland auto accident lawyer, my experience is that these kinds of collisions happen when one is least expecting it.

An unexpected pedestrian traffic accident can lead to personal injuries as serious as head trauma and concussions to those relatively minor bodily injuries such as cuts, abrasions and bruises. As negligible as some injuries may seem, medical treatment and hospital costs can add up to significant money for a family whose income may not be able to support such heady amounts.

No matter what the cause, anyone hurt in a traffic-related accident should consult a qualified personal injury lawyer if only to understand their options and how to proceed going forward. A family trying to deal with a fatal accident may also want to consider filing a wrongful death suit.

Maryland Auto Accident News: Alcohol Suspected in Fatal US 29 Traffic Accident in Prince George’s County

November 24, 2010 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Drunk driving is a known killer on Maryland’s highways and surface streets. And as long as alcohol is available to adults there will, sadly, be drunken driving accidents on our roadways. As a Maryland automobile accident attorney, I see reports every week of innocent people hurt, injured or killed as a result of another driver’s negligence.

In the case of driving while intoxicated (DWI) or driving under the influence (DUI) of alcohol and prescription medication, drivers have a responsibility not to get behind the wheel of a motor vehicle when they are impaired. That’s why we have the concept of designated drivers; to help prevent serious and sometimes deadly drinking-related car, truck and motorcycle accidents from happening.

Some might say it’s a matter of conscience, but it should really be a matter of personal responsibility to oneself and the rest of society. Yet there are drivers every day who take the wheel of a potentially deadly two-ton weapon when they know full well that they have had too much to drink. Many get from Point A to Point B without killing someone; others aren’t as lucky. The innocent drivers who are killed or injured are always the unlucky ones.

Baltimore Traffic Accident News: Two Highway Construction Workers Killed in Fatal Crash on Rte 228

November 21, 2010 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Drivers see the signs all of the time: Construction Zone, Reduced Speed Ahead, Give ‘em a Brake. As Maryland motorists we enjoy the convenience that our highways and interstates provide and the ease with which we can cross the state or the country in our cars, trucks and buses. But the construction and maintenance of these concrete and asphalt ribbons is a constant job. That’s where highway workers earn their keep.

But safety for these men and women is a relative and fleeting thing. With hundreds of passengers cars, motorcycles, SUVs and commercial delivery trucks passing by construction zones every hour the opportunity for injury is always present. How those individuals function in such a dangerous environment most of us will never know, the fact is a number of highway workers are killed every year as a result of car accidents and just plain negligence on the part of some drivers.

Families of the victims may have a hard time making ends meet, what with possible medical bills and lost wages suffered as a result of a construction zone crash. Whatever the situation, it’s never easy for a family to recover emotionally from the death of a breadwinner, much less a mother or father, wife or husband. This comes to mind just a story hit the wires about two Maryland highway workers who were killed not very long ago on a stretch of Rte 228.

Maryland Injury News: Pasadena, MD, Pedestrian Struck and Killed by Passing Automobile

November 19, 2010 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

If there is any advice that we would give to people it would be take care whenever you cross the street on foot. Regardless of how well you know a stretch of road, never for a moment assume that cars and trucks will see you in the street, especially at night. As Baltimore personal injury attorneys and auto accident lawyers, I and my colleagues have the skills to help victims of car, truck and motorcycle accidents, as well as pedestrian-auto collisions.

The sad thing is we seem to be constantly bombarded by stories of pedestrian injury accidents, and sometimes fatal crashes. Again, when crossing a busy city street or a quiet country road, exercise the same caution you would want a loved one to use. The reason is simple: People on foot are no match for a larger and much heavier motor vehicle. Injuries sustained in a pedestrian-auto accident can range from cuts and bruises to traumatic brain injury and death. Cross the street safely and live to see another day.

As we say this, we are aware that accidents like the one that happened recently in Pasadena, MD, will likely continue to occur. According to the news, a man who was trying to cross the road in Pasadena was stuck and killed by a passing car. Police reports indicate that the victim, 49-year-old Adam J. O’Conner, was hit while crossing Fort Smallwood Road around 11pm.