Maryland Car Accident Attorney Blog

The phrase, “It takes two to tango,” may seem a bit flippant when referring to something as serious as traffic accidents, automobile crashes and fatal car and truck collisions, but the point to be made here — at least when driving your loved ones around — is always use your head because someone else might not be using theirs. As Maryland car accident attorneys, we make this statement with more than a little experience in representing victims of severe and sometimes fatal traffic accidents; passengers and drivers alike.

Anyone who has taken the wheel of a motor vehicle — car, SUV, minivan, pickup truck — knows that accidents can be lurking almost anywhere. One of the most important things a driver can do to avoid a serious auto wreck is to take the extra time to be sure traffic is clear when crossing an intersection or making a turn onto a busy, high-speed roadway.

Most driver education courses attempt to hammer this point home with students, but over time some drivers tend to forget those early lessons and in doing so may even create their own rules of the road. According to a recent article, police have increased traffic patrols along a stretch of U.S.15 at Hayward Road due to potentially dangerous traffic conditions. Apparently the high incidence of car and truck collisions in that area of Fredrick County has necessitated the added enforcement.

Based on information from the local authorities, 99 percent of all accidents at the intersection are caused by drivers failing to yield. It was reported, also, that the majority of drivers travel through the intersection at the posted speed limit. The Maryland State Police have reportedly taken part in a “slowdown initiative” on U.S.15 for the past 18 months or so. This now includes additional enforcement at U.S. 15 and Hayward Road, which has now been ongoing for nearly four months.

According to officers familiar with the intersection, most every automobile crash that happens there is a bad one. Said one officer, it’s one of the worst intersections along U.S.15. In fact, during the interview for this particular article, police had only just responded to one of numerous accidents at that location, this one involving a Honda that was hit by an oncoming Ford. The collision sent a 64-year-old Frederick woman to the R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center in Baltimore.

Enforcement continues at dangerous intersection, FrederickNewspost.com, June 12, 2010

If anyone needs an example of how distracted driving can result in senseless automobile accident injuries or traffic fatalities, look no further than the pages of your local newspaper. It seems that every day we read about one person or another hurt or killed by the negligence of another driver. As Maryland car accident attorneys, I and my staff recognize the need for better driver education and improved driving safety training.

Smart phones, iPods, vehicle navigation systems, even the lowly car radio; each of these devices and countless other distractions all conspire in their own way to take motorists’ attention from the primary task at hand… driving down the road in a careful and thoughtful manner. This is not just empty rhetoric; newspaper articles and television news anchors constantly describe terrible accidents that maim or kill dozens of Maryland residents every month on our roadways.

A recent story, which may not have gotten much press was that of a 30-year-old Baltimore woman who died following a bad three-car accident in Howard County as she apparently waited to turn left into a local neighborhood. According to reports, the accident occurred just before 8am in Fulton, MD, as Jasmine Ann Brisson was driving her Dodge Neon westbound on Scaggsville Road.

Police reports show that while the woman was waiting to make a left turn onto Fulton Estates Court, her vehicle was hit from behind by a much larger Ford Excursion SUV. The force of the crash pushed the economy car into the eastbound lane, where it was struck again by a Dodge minivan.

Rescue workers arriving on the scene administered medical treatment to Brisson, who was then transported to Howard County General Hospital. Sadly the woman died from her injuries at the hospital. The Grand Caravan driver was also treated at the scene but did not have any life-threatening injuries, according to the police.

At the time of the news report, police were still conducting their investigation; however preliminary findings suggest that the SUV driver may have been distracted when the large truck hit the smaller Neon passenger car. The collision was still under investigation, but based on preliminary information spokeswoman Elizabeth Schroen said the crash appears to have been caused by distracted driving

City woman fatally injured in Howard Co. crash, BaltimoreSun.com, June 8, 2010

As auto accident attorneys practicing in the Baltimore area, I and my colleagues have seen the aftermath of some of the worst of Maryland’s car and truck collisions. Traffic accidents can kill and maim the occupants of a passenger in a split second. What is tragic is that many accidents could have been avoided if it weren’t for driver negligence.

A frequent cause of traffic accidents is drunken driving. To some, driving under the influence of alcohol is the height of driver negligence because it is something that should be in every motorist’s control not to get behind the wheel in an intoxicated state. To choose to drink knowing that one will be driving in an impaired condition is at least an irresponsible act, at worst it can be a death sentence to some unknown and unsuspecting victim.

To often it seems, the people whose negligence results in the death of another individual are punished only after the fact, which is cold comfort to the families of the victims. In the conclusion of a rather sad story that began last year, a woman has finally felt the hand of justice following the fatal drinking and driving accident that led to the deaths of two men in 2009.

According to news articles, Kelli R. Loos was sentenced to 10 years, which is at the high end of the state-recommended guidelines for a case of this kind. Loos will likely not serve all that time in jail. According to reports, she will receive credit for the 10 months she has already been held in jail since the accident.

Loos will also be eligible for parole in 20 months because vehicular manslaughter is considered a nonviolent crime under state rules. Add into the equation the state's good behavior credits which could make Loos eligible for mandatory release in as little as 3 1/2 years.

Last summer, the 33-year-old Loos had rear-ended a pickup truck on the beltway, causing that vehicle to crash through a guardrail and roll down an embankment, landing on its roof 60 feet below. The accident killed 37-year-old Franklin Manzanares and 39-year-old Gradys Mendoza.

Following the crash with the pickup truck, Loos fled the scene and reportedly drove toward Virginia. She crashed her vehicle again while attempting to exit the Beltway onto Georgetown Pike, hitting a highway sign. Not long after that, police took her into custody where she subsequently registered a blood-alcohol content (BAC) of 0.20 percent on a breathalyzer.

At sentencing in drunk driver's fatal accident, competing pleas for justice, WashingtonPost.com, May 21, 2010

It’s a sad fact of life that people die senselessly in car, truck, SUV and motorcycle accidents every year here in Baltimore and across the state. Pedestrians are the most vulnerable, since they are both difficult to see and have little if any protection from a 3,000-pound motor vehicle. Highway workers number as part of this group of individuals killed or maimed each month on Maryland’s roadways.

As a Maryland car accident attorney and personal injury lawyer, I know that many accidents can be prevented. Unfortunately, the statistics speak for themselves and show that severe injuries, such as neck and head trauma, are common in pedestrian crashes. We are never surprised, sadly, that such collisions can result in pedestrian deaths as well.

A recent news story shows how deadly a nighttime traffic accident can be for a lone individual on a dark stretch of highway. According to reports, a highway worker was killed in during a late-night collision, after which the driver of the car fled the scene. Even though Ghassen Sabra had an active warning light on the nearby work truck he was using, the 52-year-old was still struck and killed while doing highway maintenance work late at night in Anne Arundel County.

Based on police reports, Sabra was clipped by a car and left for dead in the center lane of Route 50. An 18-wheel tractor-trailer then ran the man over when the truck’s driver had no time to stop. The accident occurred around midnight in a non-construction zone. This was apparently the first fatal car accident involving a highway worker in Maryland since 2006. Sabra’s untimely death raised to eight the number of highway workers killed over the past five years.

Preliminary investigation by police showed that Sabra was working in the left lane of eastbound U.S. 50, either setting up or removing traffic-counting devices, at the time he was hit. Sabra, who was wearing reflective clothing at the time of the accident, was thrown into an adjacent lane where he was run over by the big rig.

Continue reading " Maryland Highway Worker Killed in Apparent Hit-and-Run on U.S. 50 in Anne Arundel County " »

Police can only do so much to curb the dangerous driving behaviors that we all see on our highways, rural roads and city streets. It’s not uncommon to have a bad injury accident or even fatal traffic collision caused by another driver’s impatient and belligerent actions on a public road. These kinds of crashes, which involve SUVs, sedans, pickup trucks and even motorcycles, can cause bodily injuries ranging from bumps and bruises to deep cuts and even fatal traumatic head injuries.

With the pace of everyone’s working and private lives ever increasing, it’s not difficult to see why people are in a hurry, but there is no excuse for endangering other drivers as a result. As Maryland automobile accident lawyers, we applaud law enforcement’s efforts to reduce the amount of aggressive driving on our streets and in doing so perhaps limit the number of accidents as well.

One area of note is a stretch of Interstate 97, which apparently is the focus of the latest police crackdown on aggressive driving. Anne Arundel County police officers and state troopers, 45 in all using vehicles and a police helicopter, were part of a month-long program to target and ticket offenders on the I-97 corridor in Anne Arundel County.

According to police organizers, police were focusing their attention on impatient drivers who speed, tailgate, honk, abruptly switch lanes, and badger cars in front of them who are already doing the speed limit. In the process, police conducted a twice-weekly detail that began on May 5, saturating the interstate with marked patrol cars, as well as the county’s unmarked Dodge Charger police cruiser.

In just five details, reportedly staggered throughout the month, officers stopped 273 vehicles and issued more than 100 tickets for speeding and aggressive driving, amoung others. They also handed out 258 warnings to drivers and issued 13 state equipment repair orders. Four people were reportedly arrested, including a Baltimore man suspected of breaking into a Severn man's home minutes before the traffic stop.

County, state police target aggressive drivers on I-97, HometownAnnapolis.com, May 24, 2010

Depending on how you read the data, Baltimore pedestrians either have a lot to celebrate or a fair amount of caution yet to exercise when traversing the city’s crosswalks. According to Transportation for America, a pedestrian and bicycle safety group, more than 76,000 Americans have died over the past 15 years just crossing the street in their own communities.

My office provides legal services to individuals injured in pedestrian accidents caused by negligent passenger car drivers or as a result of a commercial trucking accident. As Maryland injury attorneys, we understand the pain and suffering that can follow a pedestrian-automobile accident, as well as the associated medical costs for treatment and rehabilitation.

The published report on pedestrian injuries and fatalities across the country ranked a number of metropolitan areas in terms of frequency of accidents involving persons on foot. In discussing the issue of pedestrian injuries, the authors of the study sum up the total number of deaths as being the equivalent of a jumbo jet crashing with a full passenger load once every month or so. It’s shocking to say the least.

Calling out the total number of deaths in this decade, Transportation for America points out that nearly 4,000 children under 16 years have been killed so far in the 2000s. Based on their figures, the authors observed that in children, elderly and infirm individuals, and ethnic minorities are over-represented in the totals.

The study is quick to address the fact that many pedestrian deaths are typically termed “accidents,” which indicates an error either on the part of the vehicle operator or the person on foot. However, the authors make a strong point that quite a large percentage of these so-called accidents occurred along roadways that were “dangerous by design.” In other words, the blame should perhaps be shifted to the poor roadway and sidewalk design, rather than to the users of those streets and walkways.

It has become more and more prevalent that communities are retrofitting poorly designed roadways into more complete streets. This is being done through the addition of sidewalks and bicycle lanes, reduction of crossing distances and the installation of trees and crosswalks to make walking and biking safer and more inviting.

Continue reading " Maryland Automobile Accident News: Baltimore Ranks 29th Nationwide in Fatal Pedestrian-Car Accidents " »

A four-vehicle automobile collision on Kent Island, resulted in four persons being hurt, one seriously. The chain-reaction traffic accident on Route 50 in Queen Anne’s County, which caused a backup to the Kent Narrows Bridge, occurred around 5am on a Saturday morning.

As Baltimore injury attorneys, our main focus is helping the victims of traffic accidents recover from potentially life-changing situations. While no one lost their life in this particular crash, the chance is always present that a family could lose a parent and provider. With lost income and possibly exorbitant medical bills, a family could easily be thrown into a downward financial spiral that may only get worse if medical and associated costs cannot be recuperated.

Many traffic accidents result from driver error, although faulty vehicle equipment such as the braking or steering system have been known to cause some very severe wrecks. In this case, news reports indicate that the pileup resulted from a pickup truck that slowed down on Route 50 to allow work crews to reenter the roadway.

Based on police reports, maintenance crews from the Maryland Transportation Authority had been working overnight on a bridge. As the workers were attempting to get onto the roadway and leave the bridge, a pickup truck driver apparently stopped to allow them access. At this point a second vehicle ran into the back of the pickup.

This started a chain reaction as two other vehicles crashed trying to avoid the initial two-vehicle collision. In the aftermath four vehicles were damaged and three people were injured. Police and emergency responders helped those hurt during the crash, treating minor injuries and getting two of the victims transported via ambulance to the Anne Arundel Medical Center in Parole, MD. They were eventually released from the hospital.

One individual, who apparently sustained much more serious injuries during the crash, was treated and then rushed to the Maryland Shock Trauma Center in Baltimore. According to hospital officials, that person’s injuries were said to be no longer life-threatening at the time of the news report. Regarding the official cause of the accident, police had not yet determined the reason and were considering all possibilities.

Chain-reaction crash caused island backup, Hometownannapolis.com, May 14, 2010

Alcohol use is one of the biggest factors when it comes to traffic accidents. To say that an individual is not responsible for his actions when drunk is to ignore the fact that the very same person made a conscious decision to begin drinking in the first place. Regardless of a person’s intent when entering a bar or taking a drink at home prior to getting into a motor vehicle, the results of such actions can be long-lasting, if not permanent or even fatal.

As Baltimore auto accident lawyers, I and my associates work to help victims and their families recover from tragic and life-changing car and truck collisions. Adding alcohol or prescription drug use into the equation turns an already sad event into a regrettable and heartrending experience for all of the affected parties.

Not long ago a news article caught our attention in which excessive vehicle speed and possibly alcohol consumption were likely factors in the fatal crash of an SUV along Perring Parkway. The single-vehicle accident occurred in the early evening hours on a Sunday, killing a six-year-old boy and injuring seven other passengers and the driver.

Based on police reports, the sport utility vehicle was apparently going southbound on the 6400 block of Perring Parkway around 6pm when for some reason the driver lost control of the vehicle. The truck traveled across the median and then rolled several times, ejecting all of the passengers, according to reports. The vehicle came to rest in the northbound lanes of the 6500 block of the parkway.

Baltimore City firefighters responded to the accident, including eight medic units from Baltimore County and the city of Baltimore. Crews treated eight patients who were scattered about the crash site. Police said that most of the passengers appeared to be teenagers and that many of the victims sustained varying degrees of fractures, cuts and bruises.

Victims were transported to Johns Hopkins Hospital, Johns Hopkins Pediatrics, Maryland Shock Trauma Center and Sinai Hospital. Six-year-old Jaeden Dulin was critically injured in the crash and died at Johns Hopkins Hospital where he being treated for his injuries.

Police investigators said initially that they believed speed and alcohol to be factors in the crash, however at the time of the article not cause had yet been established by the Baltimore City police.

Speed, alcohol possible factors in SUV crash on Perring Parkway, police say, BaltimoreSun.com, June 01, 2010

Eight hospitalized in Perring Parkway accident, BaltimoreSun.com, May 31, 2010

She survived with just cuts and bruises, but Rachel Ankrom is far from fine after a harrowing late-night automobile accident on a Maryland interstate that left three of her friends dead after a nightmarish ordeal. As parents we all worry about our youngsters, teenagers and young adults barely out in the world who have less real-life experience than their mothers and fathers, so it’s natural that we worry about them.

As Baltimore car accident and injury lawyers, my office has represented families who have lost loved ones in tragic car, truck and motorcycle accidents. Whether you are young or old, there is no guarantee that any driver will avoid a deadly traffic accident. While most accidents don’t result in death, the chance of a fatal car, minivan or truck wreck is always present on our highways or rural roads.

A recent news story pointed out how terrible a car accident can be. Sadly, the crash mentioned here took the lives of three individuals, while only one of their group survived to talk about the experience. Based on news accounts, the 18-year-old survivor, Rachel Ankrom of Fayette City, was riding in a vehicle with her friends through Maryland on their way to Ocean City, MD, when the vehicle apparently went out of control.

According to police, the car went off Interstate 68 and rolled down a hill. Investigators believed that excessive speed likely had some hand in the cause of the crash. One testimony to seatbelt use, Ankrom was reportedly the only one of the four occupants who was wearing one, which miraculously saved her life.

Still the youngster did not escape injury. Based on reports, doctors were surprised that she survived. In addition to sustaining cuts and bruises, Ankrom also had a partially collapsed lung, lacerated kidney, bruised spleen and a portion of her part of her ear was torn off. Hospital officials say that the 18-year-old has another seven months of recuperation time yet ahead of her.

The accident apparently took the girl by surprise, who remembered seeing the 46-year-old driver being ejected from the vehicle before losing consciousness herself. Originally in the back seat, when she awoke the next morning she found herself in the front seat. She crawled up the embankment and signaled for help.

Aside from speed, there was no addition information on the cause of this terrible crash, although defective steering components or a blown tire could also have caused the accident. Police likely are looking into a possible factors.

Local Teen Survives Tragic Car Accident, KDKA.com, May 15, 2010

The loss of any life is tragic to say the least, but to lose an infant in a senseless automobile accident leaves a scar that rarely if ever heals. Unfortunately, here in Maryland every parent’s nightmare is just one bad decision away. Thoughtless drivers rarely consider the ultimate consequences of their actions, yet time and time again, people are injured or killed on our streets and highways due to someone’s negligence behind the wheel.

As Baltimore auto accident attorneys and injury lawyers, our office offers help to victims of these pointless traffic accidents. When a fatal single-vehicle accident occurs with a parent at the wheel the tragedy is all the more disturbing, such as the one that took place just last month in Prince George’s County. In that crash, a little 2-year-old child was killed in what local police believe was a combination of drinking, speeding and poor roadway conditions.

According to news reports the incident happened in mid-May on a Wednesday night in Landover, MD, when a two-door Chrysler Sebring, which was traveling on Brightseat Road, for some reason veered into the opposing lane, then sped into a nearby woods and struck a tree around 7:30pm. Police reports show that the impact literally split the vehicle in half.

The driver, 24-year-old Kiwana Baker-Jennings, and her two-year-old baby girl were the only passengers in the vehicle at the time of the accident. Based on police reports, the mother did not realize that her child had been ejected from the vehicle during the crash.

Police say the driver lost control of the vehicle near the intersection of Brightseat Road and Arena Drive. The victim, Kimyra Chante Brown, was thrown from the car and found several feet away in the woods. According to news reports, investigators were looking into whether or not the infant’s car seat had been properly secured into the vehicle. There was no mention of any investigation into the possibility of defective vehicle equipment.

The little girl and mother were taken to the hospital where the two-year-old was pronounced dead. The mother was treated for minor injuries and subsequently released. According to reports at the time of the crash, police said that charges were possible pending the conclusion of an investigation. A police spokesperson said that the department was not aware of a second vehicle that the driver's sister claimed triggered the crash in the first place.

Police Eye Alcohol, Speed, Road Conditions in Fatal Crash, WJLA.com, May 13, 2010

A head-on collision is one of the most deadly types of traffic accidents. Even at low-speeds, the combined force of two cars or trucks hitting each other from opposing directions can be quite high. Seat belts and air bags can help to lessen the effect on occupants, but the outcome is never certain.

As Maryland automobile injury lawyers, I and my colleagues have certainly assisted our share of victims from this kind of motor vehicle collision. Severe head trauma, back injuries, broken bones and lacerations top the list of bodily injuries associated with a high- and medium-speed car wrecks. Fatalities are also quite common in this type of accident.

Rural roads and undivided highways are quite often the scene of such devastating crashes. Not long ago, a woman was killed near the Antietam National Battlefield when the vehicle in which she was traveling was hit by another oncoming passenger car. According to police reports, the young woman who died was sitting in the front passenger seat and wearing her seat belt.

The accident happened on Route 65 around 1am on a Thursday morning when the northbound 1993 Buick Century driven by Lauren D. Dwyer, 21, and carrying 21-year-old Danielle R. Paikin and 25-year-old Joseph W. Dwyer, was hit head-on by a southbound 1982 Dodge Diplomat driven by 20-year-old William J. Turner of Sharpsburg.

The Buick, which ended up across the roadway, and was hit a second time on the passenger side shortly after the initial crash by another northbound vehicle driven by 25-year-old Cory S. Kuczynski. Paikin, who had been riding in the front passenger seat, died at the scene from injuries sustained in both crashes.

The Buick’s other two occupants were seriously injured. Rescuers arriving at the scene rendered medical assistance and then transported the two to the University of Maryland Shock Trauma Center in Baltimore, where they were listed in serious but stable condition..One of the other drivers was taken to Washington County Hospital in Hagerstown, and the third driver did not require hospitalization, according to Maryland State Police.

No word on whether driver error or defective equipment may have been to blame for the first collision. An investigation and crash reconstruction by the Maryland State Police CRASH Team was ongoing at the time of the news report.

Police investigate fatality after car is hit twice on Maryland Route 65, TheRecordHerald.com, May 7, 2010

Del. woman killed, three injured in crash near Antietam Battlefield, Herald-Mail.com, May 6, 2010

Some automobile, truck and motorcycle collisions are completely avoidable, while others are simply bad luck. Almost every time however, someone’s negligence leads to a serious injury or even a motor vehicle fatality. Occasionally, however, there are incidents that arise following a traffic accident which make no sense, are completely unexpected and due to aggressive and uncontrolled belligerence.

As a Maryland auto accident attorney, I understand how tempers can flare after a bad car or truck accident. What is rare, yet sometimes very real, is a physical attack on another individual based on anger and lack of self control. As drivers, we all must be aware of others on the road. To blame another person for one’s own error is petty and uncivilized. Yet a story out of the Baltimore Sun shows that these kinds of situations arise from time to time with tragic consequences.

According to news articles the rider of the allegedly-illegal dirt bike rider crashed into another vehicle, following which a passenger on the bike assault the driver of the passenger car involved in the accident. The traffic incident happened during the work week in West Baltimore at the intersection of South Monroe and West Pratt. The dirt bike rider apparently ran a red light and hit the sedan broadside. The traffic collision reportedly caused the operator of the bike to be thrown from the vehicle onto the roadway.

According to authorities, the worst of the bodily injuries sustained by the passenger car driver came not from the motor vehicle accident itself, but from the ensuing attack by the passenger and several others. The driver was hurt so badly that he needed urgent care at the Maryland Shock Trauma Center.

The teenager who was driving the bike suffered broken bones and was also admitted to the Shock Trauma Center. That individual was arrested and faces charges of assault, not to mention related motor vehicle infractions and charges associated with driving an illegal dirt bike.

Sadly, this isn’t an isolated incident involving illegal dirt bike operation. According to the news, teenagers and riders of other ages are known by police to ride in packs through city streets. Their activities threaten the safety and well-being of pedestrians and other motorists due to risky riding practices such as racing and doing wheelies and other stunts while in traffic.

Dirt bike rider crashes into car; assaults driver, BaltimoreSun.com, June 2, 2010