Maryland Car Accident Attorney Blog
We can’t always know the initial causes of car, truck or motorcycles accidents, though police and other investigators usually can get down to the bottom of most roadway collisions fairly fast. The issue that makes the most difference to Maryland personal injury lawyers such as ourselves is whether or not the particular wreck was caused or precipitated by another, possibly negligent party.
This goes as much for accidents here in Baltimore, Annapolis and Bowie, as it does for Gaithersburg, Rockville and The District. Whenever a person is hurt or seriously injured by another party through inattention, aggressive driving or another willfully negligent act, the law provides remedies for the injured party to recoup some or all of the damages sustained as a result of that passenger vehicle or commercial trucking collision.
Just as with cases of medical malpractice, nursing home negligence, and even slip-and-fall law suits, an auto accident case can require a great deal of evidentiary discovery work as well as interviews with police and fire officials, not to mention EMS and healthcare workers who may have been involved in the rescue or emergency treatment efforts. The problem is that once an accident has happened, the driver may be in no position to recall everything that happened. Depending on the severity of the crash, the passengers may also have been incapacitated.
Not long ago, a woman from Severna Park, MD, was badly hurt in what news reports described as a serious injury crash along a stretch of Waterford Rd over in Pasadena. Based on police reports and other information, the accident took place just after one o’clock in the morning on a Wednesday in May. Apparently responding to a 911 call, police arrived on the scene to find a Hyundai Sonata off the road and nosed into a nearby stand of trees.
Police and other emergency response personnel arriving on the scene discovered the damaged vehicle as well as its driver, who was reportedly standing outside the vehicle exhibiting multiple and substantial bodily injuries. At the time of the news article covering the wreck, the police department’s crash scene investigation unit had not had enough time to provide a detailed analysis of the car collision, but it did appear as though the Sonata was going southbound on Waterford Rd. when it veered away from the roadway for unknown reasons.
In cases such as this, human error is always considered, but mechanical problems with the vehicle should not be ruled out. Faulty steering system parts, braking components or bad tires can all contribute to a driver’s loss of control. Depending on vehicle speed, type of road surface, and weather conditions, a mechanical failure can be quite deadly.
As mentioned previously, in this case the Anne Arundel County Police Department needed to make an assessment of the crash site and the vehicle itself before drawing any conclusions as to the cause of the accident. Meanwhile, the 53-year-old victim was taken to Maryland Shock Trauma in Baltimore for treatment of her injuries. If news reports were correct, and the woman was standing on her own following the crash, her condition may not have been life-threatening, though a full medical evaluation would be needed to be sure she wasn’t suffering from a closed-head injury, internal injuries to vital organs, or other kinds of trauma.
Woman in Serious Condition After Crash, Patch.com, May 23, 2012