Maryland Car Accident Attorney Blog

A serious traffic accident can happen to anyone, anytime and almost anywhere. A recent news report shows that not only everyday motorists can be hurt or killed in truck or car crashes, experienced and highly trained law enforcement professional can also be hurt. Injuries from highway collisions can range from bruises and minor cuts to head and brain injuries. It’s not uncommon for a person to be seriously injured and later die from those injuries in the hospital.

According to reports, 39-year-old Trooper Kenneth Myers Jr. and another Maryland State Trooper were carrying out traffic enforcement duties on Route 50 around mid-day on January 19 when the accident occurred. Police reports indicate that Myers, of the Easton State Police Barrack, was driving an unmarked police car eastbound on Route 50. The 2006 Ford Crown Victoria carrying the two troopers was chasing another vehicle that was exceeding the posted speed limit and traveling around 80mph.

Details at the time of the news reports were not completely clear, however it is known that Myers cruiser hit a 2004 Toyota Avalon driven by 75-year-old Marjorie MacSorely at the intersection of routes 50 and 731 shortly after noon, according to reports. Based on police statements, it appears that MacSorely’s vehicle pulled into the path of the oncoming police cruiser.

Police could say how fast Myers, who has been working for the state police for four years, was driving at the time of the vehicle collision. Crash scene investigators will be going over all of the evidence to determine the cause of the wreck, and it is not know if the Myers had activated the emergency signal equipement on his cruiser or if the patrol vehicle's lights were working correctly or faulty. Police spokesmen said that the crash was serious and “something that we certainly don't want to ever have happened,” said Greg Shipley of the Maryland State Police.

First responders to the crash scene treated Myers, who was then flown to the R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center in Baltimore. According to reports, a second Maryland State Police helicopter transported MacSorely to Peninsula Regional Medical Center. The woman’s daughter, 50-year-old Kathy MacSorely of Trappe, MD, was taken to PRMC by ambulance.

All three victims were reported to be in stable condition at the time of the news article.

Trooper, 2 others stable after crash, DelmarvaNow.com, January 20, 2010

3 Injured in Route 50 Crash Involving Md. State Trooper, WBOC.com, January 21, 2010

Vehicle accidents can and do occur everyday in Maryland. Whether you live in Baltimore, Annapolis, Owings Mills or the D.C. area, being hit or injured by any vehicle can cause serious physical harm and sometimes fatal injuries. Construction machinery in particular is dangerous and U.S. Government’s Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) has strict guidelines designed to improve the working conditions of men and women across the country.

As a Maryland automobile injury attorney, I read daily of accidents, car crashes and truck wrecks that leave passengers and pedestrians alike in physical pain that can last for year. According to a recent article, a highway construction worker was seriously injured when an excavating machine hit him, injuring his leg and sending him to the hospital.

The accident happened at the intersection of intersection of Md. 17 and Md. 180 just after 3pm on January 5. The man was apparently working in a ditch when someone or something released a safety interlock on a piece of excavating machinery. The equipment may have rolled forward or somehow landed on the man’s leg.

According to the Maryland State Police, emergency personnel arrived at the scene and rendered treatment, after which the unidentified worked was flown to the R Cowley Shock Trauma Center in Baltimore. He was admitted to the facility a serious leg injury. Based on the news reports, the Maryland’s Occupational Safety and Health service is investigating the case.

Highway construction worker hurt in accident, Herald-Mail.com, January 6, 2010

Some have likely heard this said: “That wasn’t such a bad traffic accident; the damage to the vehicle was minimal.” If you haven’t, then you probably have not dealt with an insurance company as a plaintiff in an injury case. Having represented hundreds of victims of car, truck or sport utility vehicle (SUV) crashes, my firm understands that it is quite easy to be seriously hurt in an automobile accident even though the repairs to the vehicle don’t amount to much at all.

This is a case of major bodily injuries, yet relatively minor vehicle or property damage. Sadly, this familiar, yet deceptive argument is used very frequently by defense attorneys and insurance companies when auto collisions are concerned. And it’s one of the best reasons to consult a personal injury lawyer experienced in the area of auto accident law.

Whether you live in Baltimore, Annapolis, Columbia or the D.C. area, car accidents can occur most anywhere, some of them with devastating consequences. Insurance companies many times will try to downplay the extent of an accident to try to justify a reduced settlement to the injured parties. This is done sometimes by introducing evidence in the form of distorted, grainy or out-of-focus photos showing minor vehicle or property damage.

But this is done without offering any expert testimony regarding the direct and causal relationship between the extent of the property damage and the victim’s bodily injuries. Brain trauma as well as neck injuries can occur even when a vehicle has sustained minimal outward damage itself. Yet every year, hundreds of auto accident victims settle for less than what they deserve due to these kinds of tactics.

The purpose of the defense is to disprove, usually by false implication, what has been proven by medical evidence and expert testimony -- typically by a licensed physician. It’s easy to forget how much energy is released – or inflicted on a victim’s body -- as a result of a traffic accident. Yet insurance company attorneys will usually make no mention of the sudden and very high energy forces that are transmitted throughout a motor vehicle in the milliseconds following a collision.

Continue reading " Maryland Auto Injury Update: So-called Minor Car or SUV Accidents can Cause Serious Personal Injury " »

The year just past was marred by hundreds of traffic accidents throughout Maryland, some of which resulted in fatalities. One of the saddest was the death of a Stephen Decatur High School sophomore who was hit by a car as he and some friends tried to cross Route 50 near Ocean City. As a Baltimore personal injury and auto accident lawyer, my office understands the terrible grief that friends, families and communities feel at the loss of any youngster.

Unfortunately, traffic accidents involving pedestrians are often fatal and almost always severe. As drivers, we all must be especially vigilant when approaching people walking along the roadside or crossing the street. Cars, pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles (SUVs) are much more massive and quicker than a person on foot. Therefore additional caution should always be exercised whenever pedestrians are nearby.

According to news articles, the driver who hit the boy last year in May had a 0.10 percent blood-alcohol content at the time of the accident. Other than the drunken driving offense police had not issued any other charges in connection with the fatal crash. The man recently received six months in jail from a Worchester County court for his part in the accident.

According to the Maryland State Police, 16-year-old Matthew Barcase of Ocean Pines had crossed the westbound lanes and made it to the median before he was struck by a vehicle traveling east toward Ocean City. Police believe Barcase might have stumbled or tripped into the path of the oncoming vehicle. Barcase was taken to Atlantic General Hospital in Berlin where he was pronounced dead.

The driver of the vehicle that hit the young man, 29-year-old Luis Angel Rodriguez of Massapequa Park, N.Y., was indicted by a Worcester County grand jury in October on drunken driving charges.

In sentencing the man, Judge Theodore Eschenberg stated that he couldn’t treat the defendant’s arrest for drunk driving as a first offense. “Considering what the family wants, what the state wants, what the facts of the case suggest, I’m sentencing you to six months in the Worcester County Jail,” Eschenberg said. “No matter what sentence I give you, it’s not going to bring that young man back.”

Motorist Jailed 6 Months In Pedestrian Fatality, MdCoastDispatch.com, January 15, 2010

Decatur student struck, killed; driver charged with DUI, OceanCityToday.com, January 1, 2010

Everyday, families in and around Maryland lose loved ones who have made a difference in the lives of people throughout their community. Unfortunately, a traffic accident can suddenly and tragically put an end to anyone’s life in an instant. The emotional scars that losing a mother, daughter, friend or colleague can last for years, if not forever. As an injury lawyer practicing in the Baltimore area, I help families of victims recover damages from negligent parties who cause fatal car, truck or SUV crashes.

Sadly, any monetary damages can only alleviate the pain of loss. Nothing can bring a person back who has been killed by a careless motorist, drunk driver or deficient product safety. Recently, I was reminded of the senseless randomness of traffic accidents. According to a news article, Alisha Mae Deneen, young teacher from Washington County died in a single-car accident on I-81 at the railroad crossing north of Maugansville Road.

According to the State Police, the accident happened sometime prior to 5:30pm on New Year’s Day after a passer-by noticed the woman’s vehicle on the railroad tracks. Reports indicate that the 31-year-old Deneen was driving a 2009 Infiniti G37x, which apparently crossed the median, overturned and fell on to the tracks below. The exact time of the accident had not been determined at the time of the news article. Emergency personnel found the driver dead at the scene.

A single-vehicle crash can be caused by any number of reasons, from driver error or defective equipment to an animal crossing in front of the vehicle or even debris on the roadway itself. Whatever the cause, police investigators will determine it in time. Meanwhile, Deneen’s family, as well as the students at Clear Spring Elementary School where she taught, will likely miss her dearly.

Deneen remembered for smile, rapport with students, Herald-Mail.com, January 3, 2010

As a Baltimore auto injury attorney, I wouldn’t get too complacent just yet, but it’s heartening to read that our state received high marks for traffic safety recently. Fatalities and injuries from car crashes represent a fair percentage of our annual accident statistics here in Maryland. But according to a recent report, we can rest a bit easier knowing that we scored pretty high in the area of traffic safety.

According to news reports, Maryland is ranked among the top four states on a yearly “report card” put out by the group known as Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety (AHAS). According to the AHAS, the recently adopted anti-text-messaging legislation now in effect gave us a big boost in the rankings. This law alone could co a long way toward cutting the number of automobile crashes.

Maryland reportedly gets credit for adopting nearly 12 of the AHAS’s 15 “model laws,” which it recommends every state take on. Achieving a fourth-place ranking was apparently nothing to sneeze at since the group has raised its requirements year over year.

As a matter of fact, the number one ranked area in the AHAS’s report card was Washington, D.C., which was credited with adopting more than 13 of the model laws. South Dakota was at the bottom of the list with only three of the recommended laws on its books.

Of the 15 model laws listed by the AHAS, mandatory requirements for safety-related devices such as seatbelts, motorcycle helmets and child safety seats are some. Also included are laws applying to teen driving, distracted driving and drunken driving. An interesting fact: Back in 2001, only 10 states in the Union had 0.08 percent blood-alcohol limit on the books. By 2005, every state set 0.08 as the legal limit for drunk driving arrests.

Areas in which the group said Maryland fell short were its failure to set 16 as the minimum age for a learner's permit, although the state did raise that from 15 years about nine months ago; passenger and cell phone restrictions on teen drivers and an ignition interlock requirement for any motorist convicted of drunk driving.

Based on reports, Maryland’s adoption of a texting ban, as well as raising the minimum age for an unrestricted license to 18 year old, brought the state up from last year’s number 18 ranking to fourth this year.

Maryland ranks high on safety report card, BaltimoreSun.com, January 12, 2010

Depending on the speed of a car or truck accident, injuries to the occupants of the vehicles can be substantial. Seatbelts, also known as safety belts, provide a first line of defense against severe injury or death. Bus accidents are particularly dangerous since passengers rarely use or even have seatbelts available to them. Being a Maryland auto accident and personal injury lawyer, I know how critical using seatbelts is to passenger survival.

According to a recent news report, eight people were injured as a result of a bus-car crash in Baltimore, MD. The motor vehicle accident occurred in the early morning of December 19. Based on that report, Maryland police personnel along with EMS emergency crews arrived at the accident scene not long after the crash. The bus involved in the wreck was carrying individuals with special needs, according to police.

The crash, which took place at 8am on the 3200 block of Philadelphia Road in Baltimore, was apparently caused by a small passenger sedan that had rear-ended a taxi, which had stopped on the road prior to the accident. Police reported that following the collision, the sedan subsequently crossed the road’s center line, heading into the oncoming traffic lane where it struck the special needs bus.

There were eight victims who sustained injuries in the crash. Emergency crews helped to transport eight people to local medical facilities for treatment of their injuries. Two of the eight victims were transported via ambulance to the Shock Trauma center. Two more victims were transported to Bayview Medical Center, while four others were transported to Upper Chesapeake for treatment by medical personnel.

The identity of the driver in the passenger car was not immediately know, nor were the extent of that person’s injuries. As for the others injured in the accident, healthcare officials at the various medical facilities had not released the identities or the condition of those delivered to hospitals in the area.

8 Injured In Collision Involving Bus, WBALTV.com, December 29, 2009

No matter if you’re from Annapolis, Washington, D.C., Baltimore or anywhere else in Maryland, more than one person has seen the result of a roll-over accident on a highway or rural road. Roll-over crashes are particularly common with sport utility vehicles (or SUVs), which have a high center of gravity and can tip over much more easily than a sedan or other low-slung passenger car. Minivans can also be involved in roll-over crashes in Maryland, meaning multiple passengers can be hurt or killed as a result.

As Maryland car accident attorneys, I and my colleagues have represented dozens upon dozens of victims of motor vehicle collisions, including roll-over accidents. Seatbelts, of course, save lives and I stand by their use. But in a roll-over situation, not even a seatbelt can save a person 100 percent of the time.

A recent article pointed up the danger of driving not only an SUV, but also mixing possible drug or alcohol use with vehicle operation. According to reports, an out-of-state motorist was involved in a single-vehicle accident along U.S. 15 near U.S 40. The accident occurred just after 4pm on January 7 when 37-year-old Michael Edward Brooks apparently swerved his sport utility vehicle off the southbound lane of U.S. 15.

The man’s SUV ended up at the bottom of an embankment near West Patrick Street in Frederick County, according to Maryland State Police. After rescue personnel arrived at the scene, the Pennsylvania resident was treated and then flown to Washington County Hospital with several injuries he received when the vehicle overturned during the accident. Fortunately for the driver, it appears that none of his injuries were life-threatening.

Due to the nature of the crash, police investigators checked the interior of the vehicle and found some type of illegal paraphernalia, however charges were still pending at the time of the news report. Emergency workers also rescued the man’s injured dog, which was trapped inside from the SUV. Rescue workers attached to the Independent Hose Company turned the dog over to the Frederick County Animal Control.

SUV driver injured in crash, FrederickNewsPost.com, January 08, 2010

Product liability suits arise out of faulty or poorly designed parts or components. In the case of automobile accidents, defective vehicle equipment, such as tires, steering system parts, brakes or air bags can either result in injury or death, or exacerbate the effects of a car or truck crash. As Maryland auto injury attorneys, my firm understands that car and truck collisions happen for all kinds of reasons including defective equipment.

A defective automobile part or component can cause a driver to lose control of his or her vehicle resulting in a possible traffic accident and personal injury. Depending on what system or safety equipment failed, the resulting wreck can cause injuries from cuts and bruises to serious internal bleeding, damaged organs and even fatal brain or spinal trauma.

According to reports, a 36-year-old Baltimore County resident lost his life when his truck went out of control, slid down an embankment on Mount Carmel Road and crashed. According to police, Richard Winkler III, of the 3200 block of Mount Carmel Road, was driving his 1990 Chevy pickup in the westbound lane near Masemore Road in Parkton just after 11pm when the truck crossed the center line, overturned and rolled down an embankment.

Emergency crews attempted to rescue and revive the man, however he was pronounced dead at the scene. It was unknown at the time if the roll-over was to blame for the man’s death or if he died as the truck hit the bottom of the embankment. Police were unsure, at the time of the report, whether or not the accident was caused by the record-breaking snowfall in the area or if it was due to defective vehicle equipment or driver area. An investigation was no doubt needed to determine the cause.

Man dies after crashing his truck in Parkton, BaltimoreSun.com, December 22, 2009

According to a recent news report, the Anne Arundel County Police Department has identified the person suspected of the fatal hit-and-run accident that killed an Annapolis resident in late December as he was walking on the roadside. As a Maryland automobile accident attorney, my office is ready and able to represent families who have suffered tragic loses similar to the one in this case.

According to police, the fatal pedestrian accident happened in the early morning on New Year ’s Day on Bay Ridge Road in Annapolis, MD. Sometime around 2am on Friday morning, 40-year-old Alfred Byrd was hit by an east-bound motor vehicle, killing the man as he walked along the road.

Police believe that Byrd, who was wearing dark clothing at the time of the accident, was either crossing the street or walking within the right travel lane when he was struck. By the time emergency personnel arrived at the scene, the man had already died from his injuries.

Police reportedly found the suspect vehicle, a 2001 Chevrolet Silverado, along with the driver, 21-year-old Thomas Leonard Judge of Annapolis. Judge apparently also had two passengers with him in the vehicle at the time of the incident. Jason Ruegg, 21 of Annapolis and John Deleonibus, 21, of Davidsonville were both identified by police as as passengers that morning.

According to police reports, the force of the crash was enough to cause the truck to sustain significant damage to the front grille area, the passenger-side front headlight, passenger-side bug deflector and several portions of the right side of the grille.

At the time of the report, charges had yet to be pressed against the suspected hit-and-run driver. It was not yet known if drugs, alcohol or excessive speed were contributing factors in the accident.

Suspect Found after Fatal Hit-and-Run, ABC2News.com, January 2, 2010

Police, fire and rescue crews put their lives on the line every day of the week. While law enforcement and emergency personnel make up a small percentage of the overall population, injuries to these public servants represent a significant percentage of their respective groups. Police officers in particular are subject not only to injury or death on the job as a result of shooting incidents involving criminal activity, but traffic accidents are also a danger in this line of work.

Car and truck crashes can also injure fire fighters, ambulance drivers and EMS workers. As a Maryland injury lawyer, I have a deep knowledge of the kinds of injuries that can be sustained during a high-speed traffic accident. Just a couple days ago, a police officer was injured in an automobile accident when his patrol car struck another vehicle in North Baltimore, MD.

According to new reports, the officer’s vehicle was apparently speeding to a destination with its emergency siren and lights activated when the accident occurred. The crash happened on York Road when the pickup truck reportedly pulled out of a parking lot and into the path of the oncoming police car. The resulting crash caused the patrol car to flip over on its roof.

Officers arriving on the scene stated that the injured policeman was taken to Maryland Shock Trauma Center with a possible broken leg or ankle. Debris from both vehicles littered the road. After striking the pickup, the blue and white Chevy Impala also struck a Mercury Tracer passenger car before hitting the brick front of a local Subway restaurant. The officer involved in the crash was not identified at the time of the crash.

City police officer injured after patrol car, truck crash, BaltimoreSun.com, January 4, 2010

Families of victims killed in fatal traffic accidents have a hard enough time without having the death be related to drunk driving. In Baltimore, the District, Annapolis or anywhere else in Maryland, drivers and passengers alike are killed every day in senseless car, truck and SUV crashes. Recently, the person whose actions may have resulted in the death last summer of a Tall Timbers, MD, motorist has been charged with vehicular homicide.

According to news reports, a 31-year-old Hollywood, Maryland, resident was indicted on charges of manslaughter by vehicle, drunk driving and reckless driving by a St. Mary's grand jury. The incident occurred around midnight on July 25 on Route 249. The head-on collision allegedly caused by George Michael Bowes, Jr. resulted in the death of Russell Edward Wenzel, 58, and the serious injury of his wife.

Bowes was released recently on $100,000 bond after he was served the same day with an arrest warrant and the indictment from the two-vehicle collision last July.

Based on police reports, Wenzel was driving his wife home just after midnight following a hospital visit when their southbound sedan was struck by a northbound pickup truck that crossed highway's centerline.

After rescue crews arrived, Melissa Wenzel, also 58, was flown by a helicopter to a hospital in Prince George's County, where she underwent surgery for an elbow injury. Reports indicate that Bowes was treated at St. Mary's Hospital and subsequently released.

A sample of Bowes' blood was obtained during the initial investigation, according to the local sheriff office, and the case was then referred to county prosecutors after accident reconstruction apparently showed Bowes was at fault.

According to news reports, Maryland Attorney Richard D. Fritz, whose previous campaign treasurer is Bowes' mother, requested that the matter be handled by a court-appointed prosecutor, and it was assigned to Calvert County Senior Assistant State's Attorney Andrew Rappaport.

As a Maryland auto accident lawyer, my office handles numerous cases every year not unlike this one. If someone you know has been killed or injured as a result of another driver’s negligence, I highly recommend that the victim’s family contact a qualified personal injury attorney to find out what their options are.

Driver faces manslaughter, DUI charges, SoMDNews.com, December 23, 2009