Maryland Car Accident Attorney Blog

Maryland Auto Accident News: Anne Arundel Police Officer Reportedly Involved in Six Previous Car Crashes

August 16, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

As Baltimore automobile and trucking accident attorneys, I and my staff have the utmost respect for our law enforcement officers here in Maryland and around the country. There is no question that state and municipal patrolmen put their lives on the line nearly every day in this state, enforcing traffic laws and helping to protect the public from those individuals who may cause serious or fatal roadway accidents.

Anybody injured in a car crash or tractor-trailer collision was likely assisted by a patrolman who was probably one of the first emergency responders on the scene. Like any person, we hold these uniformed civil servants in high regard for their selfless sacrifice in the public interest.

And while the majority of the men and women who dedicate their lives to the public good are thoughtful and conscientious individuals, there are sadly always a few bad apples in every organization. Police officers, in particular, are sworn to uphold the laws of this state. Although automobile, truck and motorcycle accidents can and do happen everywhere, to everyone, even the police. But, at the same time, it is a safe assumption that the public at large believe police officers should be without any fault. No doubt, the truth likely lies somewhere in between.

Not long ago it was revealed that an Anne Arundel patrolman had been involved in a half dozen prior car crashes before the one he was in earlier this past spring. According to news reports, Officer Adam Hinson, a five-year veteran with the Anne Arundel County Police Department, ran into two parked trucks along a stretch of Baltimore Annapolis Blvd. on May 27, 2011, while on duty in his police cruiser.

Baltimore Auto Accident News: Maryland Woman Dies in Single-car Anne Arundel County Rollover Crash

August 11, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Although it’s difficult to imagine, at least for those who haven’t been in a car crash, a single-vehicle accident can be quite serious for those involved. And while the circumstances of a single-car or single-truck wreck are unique, the results are typically similar depending on the severity of the crash and the type of vehicle involved.

As personal injury attorneys serving residents of Baltimore, Frederick, Hagerstown and Washington, D.C., we have experience in helping victims of car, truck and motorcycle accidents. It’s probably true that a single-vehicle auto accident can cause as much damage and bodily harm as a multi-vehicle collision, naturally when more than one vehicle is involved the number of occupants caught up in a crash can up the ante from an injury standpoint.

In single-vehicle accidents, again depending on the circumstances, police and auto accident lawyers look at all the possible causes. While driver error is certainly at the top of the list, other factors such as weather, road conditions and even the vehicle’s mechanical condition are considered as potential contributing factors. In the case of mechanical problems, there is always a chance that a faulty component or other critical part may have caused the accident, or at least exacerbated the outcome for the victims.

Faulty safety equipment, such as airbags, seatbelts and car seats, can result in more serious injuries than typical for a car in perfect operating condition. Poorly maintained vehicle equipment, such as tires and brakes, may have contributed to the accident by not allowing the driver to avoid a collision or cause the vehicle to go out of control and result in a secondary crash.

Whatever the cause, the police investigators typically look for the causes of an accident and other factors that may have contributed to the severity of the wreck. Insurance companies will always have their own people looking into the cause of a car, bike or commercial trucking accident. The evidence that turns up will likely drive the course of the investigation, insurance claims and subsequent law suits, if any.

Baltimore Personal Injury News: Pasadena, MD, Man Dies in Glen Burnie Traffic Accident

August 8, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

During the summer months is when we tend to see a greater frequency of car-motorcycle accidents here in Maryland. Of course, most every motorcycle rider knows that his or her chosen pastime can be fraught with risks, but when managed well those risks can be minimized, though not always eliminated. Much of what anybody on the road depends is the skills and alertness of other drivers; hopefully for most of us, motorists, truckers and bikers alike all do their part to be vigilant and safety conscious.

Unfortunately, as we all know too well, this is not always the case. As personal injury lawyers serving the residents of Maryland and Washington, D.C., I and my colleagues see our share of serious and sometimes fatal bike, auto and commercial truck wrecks in the news every week. Especially in the case of bikers, the stakes are high as far as bodily injury goes.

A motorcyclist who tangles with a larger motor vehicle such as an SUV, minivan or commercial delivery truck can receive any number of injuries ranging from lacerations and contusions to neck, back and closed-head trauma, otherwise known as traumatic brain injury. Recovery from the latter types of injuries can be a long and costly road for the victim as well as his or her family. In some cases, the individual may never be the same, having been permanently disabled due to another driver’s negligence.

Maryland Personal Injury News: Glen Burnie Man Killed in Car Accident with Unlicensed Teen Driver

August 6, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

It’s one thing for an unlicensed or uninsured individual to drive a motor vehicle unlawfully on a public road without incident, but it’s a totally different story when someone who is untrained, uninsured or otherwise unauthorized to drive and then crash that car, truck or motorcycle on the street. To cause an accident as an unlicensed or uninsured driver is not uncommon, but to have an accident that results in a fatality is serious business.

For accidents caused by an uninsured or under-insured driver, the injured party typically files an insurance claim through their own insurance company, which provides coverage for such events under the heading termed uninsured motorists (UM) or under-insured motorists (UIM).

As Baltimore car accident attorneys and Maryland personal injury lawyers, we understand that being issued a driver’s license by the State is a privilege that tens of thousands of Marylanders enjoy because they practiced, studied and passed driving tests designed to prove their competence behind the wheel. But this privilege to drive on public roads does not extend to unlicensed individuals.

Causing a fatality with a motor vehicle and not having a license or proper authority to operate a vehicle on a public road can result in serious consequences. Maryland law enforcement and the state’s court system take vehicular homicides very seriously. More often than not, an unlicensed person poses a greater danger to others on the road when compared to those persons who have been legitimately licensed to operate a passenger car or commercial truck by the State of Maryland.

Unlicensed drivers can and do pose a hazard to pedestrians and occupants of other cars and trucks. The danger these people present is real as evidenced by a fatal car crash that occurred not long ago in Anne Arundel County. And while this incident may have started out as an “innocent” prank or even a “harmless” impulse, the result was tragic to say the least.

According to police reports, the teenagers involved appear to have taken a relative’s vehicle without permission and driven it on public roads in the middle of the night without proper licensing and likely without proper training. Who’s to blame? That is the question. Are the teen’s parents? The relative whose vehicle was taken? These and other questions must now be answered by the authorities and sorted out in a court of law. At the same time, a man has been killed in another senseless traffic accident.

Maryland Traffic Injury News: Baltimore Police Officer Sent to Hospital with Life-threatening Injuries Following Wreck

July 31, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

It’s true that even with extensive training, police officers can be taken by surprise by a traffic situation that results in bodily injury to that patrolman. Over the past several years police departments and law enforcement agencies have put in place safety-related policies for officers whose work is conducted almost exclusively on roadways, not far from high volumes of traffic.

But even with safety training and procedures, the potential still exists for an officer to be hit by a passing car, commercial truck or motorcycle. The message here, for those in the general public, would be to use extreme caution whenever you or a family member is stranded by the roadside with a car-related mechanical problem or other event. Fatal or severe injury is just a step away on Maryland’s highways and surface streets, where pedestrians and motor vehicles are in close proximity.

As Baltimore automobile and commercial truck accident lawyers, we represent individuals who have been hurt in a traffic accident or other kind of personal injury accident in Maryland and Washington, D.C. Whether a person is hurt in a roadway collision injuries can range from mild to severe, with some people being laid up in the hospital for weeks or months recovering from such problems as traumatic brain injury, spinal cord damage, or trauma to internal organs.

Not long ago, a police officer was critically injured when she was thrown off an elevated roadway after her patrol car was struck by another passenger vehicle along a northbound stretch of Interstate 83 in the Baltimore area. According to reports, 27-year-old Officer Teresa Rigby fell more than 25 feet, landing on the hard concrete surface of a parking area below the highway. Eye witnesses said that they looked up after hearing screeching tires just in time to see the officer fall from the upper roadway.

Baltimore Automobile Injury Accident News: Charles County Driver Killed in Fatal Three-Car Traffic Wreck

July 30, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

All manner of individuals travel Maryland’s roadways every day, each of them trusting in their own way that the drivers of all the other vehicles with whom they share the road are each paying attention and doing the right thing. As Baltimore personal injury lawyers and auto/trucking accident attorneys, we know of what we speak; traffic accidents do occur frequently on Maryland highways and surface streets. And these crashes, both minor and serious, happen to young and old, men and women; a traffic wreck is, in a word, indiscriminate when it comes to choosing its victims.

Of course, this does not mean that accidents happen without cause, it’s simply that the causes, which vary widely, can be the result of human error, poor roadway design, or even through mechanical defect. In cases where negligence is potentially the reason, that is when litigation is sometimes called for. Whether a car, truck or motorcycle wreck results in property damage, serious injury, or the death of another individual depends on the circumstances and occasionally the luck or lack thereof on the part of the various victims.

When a person operates a vehicle in a negligent or uncaring manner — due to impairment, distraction, or reckless and aggressive driving — that individual risks setting into motion events that can affect many innocent lives. There are countless news articles printed every day that detail the results of bad driving habits or just plain thoughtlessness. Whatever the cause, be it here in Baltimore, Rockville or the District, people are bound to be hurt or killed. The results can rock families and communities to their core, and cause the victims a lifetime of pain and discomfort.

Maryland Pedestrian Accident Report: Two Teens Die in Hospital Following Fatal Baltimore Street Accident

July 29, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

It is sometimes hard to believe that thousands of people are killed in pedestrian accidents every year across this country. And the sad fact is that many of these deaths, at least those that were the result of another person’s negligence, could likely have been prevented. As Maryland personal injury attorneys, I and my staff provide representation for the victims of automobile accidents and their families.

Pedestrian injury cases can arise when the driver of a motor vehicle hurts or fatally injures an individual on foot who may be traversing a roadway in a marked crosswalk, walking through a parking lot or occupying an area where cars and people share a common space.

Although individuals walking, running or jogging on sidewalks, park paths or marked pedestrian crosswalks must take proper precautions to insure their own safety, people can and are hit by commercial trucks and passenger cars at an alarming rate, especially in densely populated areas, such as Gaithersburg, Frederick and Washington, D.C.

While some people are killed outright in pedestrian-related traffic accidents, the majority of incidents result in a variety of injuries. These can range from “simple” cuts and bruises to more serious bodily injuries, such as broken arms, cracked ribs and compound fractures of the leg. In very severe cases, a victim of a car- or truck-pedestrian accident may suffer closed-head trauma or spinal damage, which may require months or years of rehabilitation at great cost.

A tragic pedestrian accident occurred in Baltimore not long ago, which sent two teenage girls to the hospital where they both subsequently died from their injuries. These sad deaths were precipitated by a hit-and-run driver who struck the two girls as they attempted to cross four of the southbound lanes of Baltimore’s Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd. late on a Monday night. According to police reports, the girls were in a marked crosswalk a little before midnight when the two were hit by a passing motorist.

Based on new reports, the two teens and long-time friends were on their way to meet another friend just before 12am when a southbound vehicle hit the 16 and 17 year olds in the crosswalk at W. Pratt St. Police stated that the car then left the scene without stopping.

Maryland Police Officer Injured by Alleged Drunken Driver in Harford County Traffic Accident

July 27, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Almost anyone can be hurt or killed in a traffic accident. That’s a sad fact of life in a densely populated state such as Maryland. Throw in the usual, and mostly preventable causes — such as drinking and driving, operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of prescription medication, driving while distracted, and even drowsy driving — and you will find that more and more people are hurt or fatally injured in traffic accidents every day.

It’s unfortunate that most of the injuries caused by drunken drivers are usually sustained by the other victims, not the suspect. As Maryland personal injury lawyers, I and my colleagues have seen the more tragic results of DWI and DUI accident cases, inlcuding serious traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord injuries and internal organ damage have been known to occur. The recovery time for individuals who receive serious or critical injuries in car, truck and motorcycle crashes can range from weeks to months, with full recovery not always achieved until years later for an unlucky few.

Just last month, a Harford County sheriff’s deputy was seriously injured in the line of duty along a stretch of Rte 40 out in Joppa, MD. The accident, according to police reports, happened in the early morning hours on a Wednesday when an allegedly drunk driver went out of control and hit the Deputy Brad Sives who was stopped in his patrol car at the intersection of Routes 40 and 152.

Maryland Car Accident News: Off-duty Annapolis Patrolman Implicated in Fatal Baltimore Drunken Driving Wreck

July 25, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

As citizens of this state, we rely on our police, fire and other emergency responders to provide safety and security to the public as a whole. To us, even as Maryland personal injury lawyers, it is difficult to reconcile any connection of a public servant with a negligent act that injures or kills another individual. Being sworn to serve and protect is the basis of a police officer’s duty to the local citizenry.

With that said, however, we understand that human beings can and do make errors in judgment that impact the safety of others around them. As automobile, trucking and motorcycle accident attorneys, we understand how a potentially deadly scenario can develop quickly to the point that someone is seriously or fatally injured in a car or trucking-related wreck. Drinking and driving is one such instance when a supposedly competent and law-abiding individual can cause the death of another person without reason.

Not long ago, an off-duty Annapolis police officer was apparently involved in a fatal drunken driving accident, although the officer’s potential responsibility regarding the collision was still an open issue even months after the accident. According to police reports, 52-year-old Officer James Salyers allegedly had a blood-alcohol content (BAC) of 0.19 percent following a motor vehicle accident that killed a teenager from Glen Burnie.

The crash occurred on Potee Street in Brooklyn, MD, last October when a Cadillac CTS that Salyers was driving hit a Dodge Durango sport utility vehicle driven by 19-year-old Philip Dornberger III of Pasadena. The officer’s vehicle was reportedly traveling southbound at 71mph in a 40 zone and the force of the traffic accident caused the westbound Durango to spin out; during the event, 19-year-old Andrew Arnold-McCoy of Glen Burnie was thrown out of the left rear passenger window and onto the pavement.

Emergency rescue personnel arriving on the scene treated Arnold-McCoy who was then transported via ambulance to Maryland Shock Trauma Center in Baltimore. Unfortunately, the man was pronounced dead after arriving at the hospital.

Anne Arundel Accident News: Reckless Driving Blamed in Single-Car Crash that Killed 3-Year-Old

July 23, 2011 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Reckless driving is one of the many causes of car and truck accidents throughout Maryland and the United States as a whole. Call it what you will; road rage, street racing, driving while angry, or just plain aggressive driving, this kind of behavior on public roads is the main ingredient of a recipe that can only serve up injury and potential death.

As personal injury lawyers serving the residents of Frederick, Baltimore, Hagerstown and Washington, D.C., we represent the victims of automobile accidents from all across the state. Besides so-called minor injuries such as superficial cuts, abrasions and bruises, many victims of traffic accidents can suffer more serious and life-threatening injuries like closed head trauma, damage to internal organs and spinal cord injuries.

Sadly, some victims die from their injuries even after they have reached a hospital. These people usually did nothing more than be in the wrong place at the wrong time, and for that indiscretion they and their families pay the ultimate price. In such cases, a wrongful death claim against the negligent party is not out of the ordinary.

A little while ago, a Maryland teenager from Halethorpe, MD, was the subject of scrutiny when police indicated that the young man was allegedly racing with another vehicle along a southbound stretch of Ridge Rd in Anne Arundel County. According to police, 16-year-old Buck J. Benny ignored the pleas of his passengers to slow down during a Wednesday night drive home from Patapsco Valley State Park. The vehicle, a Plymouth Acclaim, was filled with a number of the teen’s friends and relatives, including a three-year-old toddler sitting on the lap of one occupant.