St. Cloud Personal Injury Lawyer - auto

Weather, Speed, And Holiday Cheer: Time To Be Extra Safe On The Roads

Mike Bryant — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 10:26:41 GMT

The first week in December has again seen an increase in highway deaths. Hopefully, this isn't a sign of what is coming for the rest of the month. It is important with so many people rushing around and holiday parties starting up, that we all keep a little better look out.

Saturday night, a truck went the wrong way on the 49th Ave. Ramp on I-94 and hit a mini van head on. A passenger in the van lost her eight month old unborn child. She and her 10 year-old son are in critical condition, and four other children, ages three to nine, were also hurt. The truck driver is suspected of being drunk according to the Minnesota Sate Patrol.
Friday afternoon, a 23-year-old Watkins man died when his 1996 Saturn was hit by a 1995 Jeep Cherokee in Meeker county. The jeep failed to yield at 642nd Avenue and 365th Street in Forrest Prairie Township, according to the Meeker County Sheriff’s Office.
Thursday afternoon, A pickup truck and sedan collided at the intersection of County Road 45 and County Road 9 in Farden Township , according to the Hubbard County Sheriff's Office. The driver of the pickup truck and a passenger in the car were each ejected. Both were pronounced dead on the scene. The Hubbard County Sheriff's Office is still investigating the accident.
Tuesday afternoon, a 78 year old Roseville woman died in a seven car chain-reaction crash on County Road C at Snelling Avenue. Six eastbound vehicles were at a red light on County Road C when a westbound minivan hit the woman's vehicle at high speed, pushing it into the next vehicle and so on, the Roseville police said.

The 2009 numbers have continued to drop. Weeks like this still cause concern. With the holidays and winter type conditions, hopefully people will be careful. More will be found out over the coming weeks as to the causes of each of these collisions, so it's to early to tell if the common causes of speed and alcohol were involved in any of the incidents. In all of these cases sorrow for the families of those involved goes out.

As with any death in a Minnesota motor vehicle collision, there are many issues that will need to be reviewed. My partner, Joe Crumley, addressed this topic in a recent article for the Minnesota Lawyers Trial magazine. I was interviewed on the same topic.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Mike Bryant

Hybrid Cars Are They Too Quiet?

Mike Bryant — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 09:28:00 GMT

I've had the chance to ride in a couple of Hybrids as of late. They seem like nice rides and they get great gas mileage and I like so many said "Man, they are quiet". OK, maybe not everyone said it that way, but it was at least the same idea.

But, are the cars too quiet? The silence for a pedestrian could be deadly, As a result, human factors/ergonomics researchers recently went to work on a study to examine participants' preferences for sounds that could be added to quiet vehicles to make them easier to detect. The National Federation for the Blind recently called for all cars to, at a minimum, emit a constant sound.

It's important to think about the old, young, and those who depend upon sound to navigate the world. Quiet cars don't do that. The U.S. Congress has considered the Pedestrian Safety Enhancement Act of 2008, which would require the Secretary of Transportation to study and implement regulations for hybrid, electric, and other silent-engine vehicles to emit non visual alerts for pedestrians. Hopefully, more protections will come from looking at this issue.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Mike Bryant

Tiger Woods Crashes Car after Rumors of Sexual Affair

Joe Crumley — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 15:34:56 GMT

News services Friday afternoon reported that Tiger Woods, the best golfer in the world, was seriously injured in a car wreck outside his Florida home early in the morning. Later reports indicated the injuries were not serious.

Woods apparently left his suburban Orlando driveway atand struck a tree and fire hydrant, causing serious facial injuries. Woods, who at 33 has consistently matched and exceeded all golfing records, may have heard recent internet and tabloid reports that he was having an affair with Rachel Uchitel.

The news reports regarding the crash did not intially reference the infidelity stories, but the blogosphere soon began questioning a link.

The police report, above, indicates the one-car crash occurred just outside Woods' driveway.

The Orlando Sentinel reported:

Woods was transported to Health Central Hospital in Ocoee in serious condition, FHP said. No other information about his condition has been released.

A Health Central hospital employee said at 2:30 p.m. that Woods was not a patient. A hospital operator would not say if Woods had been treated and released.

FHP said the airbags in Woods' Cadillac Escalade did not deploy, which means the vehicle was traveling under 33 mph.

Orange County Fire Rescue received the call for aid at 2:28 a.m. Woods was transported from his Windermere-area neighborhood by the hospital's own ambulance.

An Orange County Sheriff's Office official said his agency received it's call for assistance at 2:27 a.m. An operator was told the driver was injured and still inside the vehicle.

FHP did not report the accident until just after 2 p.m. today. The agency said the crash remains under investigation and charges are pending.

Golf fans the world over are hoping for the best for Tiger.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zb2qJpDR6PQ&feature=player_embedded

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FUnNq1lFFbU

In any car wreck with injuries, assesing damages can be an issue. Wage and income loss, in particular, can be difficult to assess. Tiger Woods, the richest athlete in the world, would be an extreme example. How much would Tiger lose if he couldn't golf?

Tiger crashed his own car, and it sounds like he won't be seriously injured. If another driver were involved, insurance coverage would be a major issue. No one carries enough insurance to fully compensate Tiger, should he be unable to work.

For Tiger, and anyone else injured in a car accident, getting a lawyer who will be able to calculate and argue for full and fair lost earnings would be crucial. My partner Mike Bryant, and I have been representing such people for years, and have written many articles and taught many classes to other lawyers on these subjects.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Joe Crumley

20-year-old Eagan Woman Killed By Passing Car In St. Paul

Mike Bryant — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 23:18:40 GMT

Monday night, a 20 year old woman from Eagan was stepping on to W 7th street in St Paul when she was stuck and killed by a passing car. Sympathy goes out for all of those involved. Cause was still being determined by the St Paul Police.

A number of Injuryboard members have discussed pedestrian accidents and the issues that are often involved.

As with any death in a Minnesota motor vehicle collision, there are a number of issues that will need to be reviewed. My partner, Joe Crumley, addressed this topic in a recent article for the Minnesota Lawyers Trial magazine. I was interviewed last year on the same topic. In all of these cases sorrow for the families of those involved goes out.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Mike Bryant

Time For Arizona, Florida, and South Dakota To Protect Those Kids

Mike Bryant — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 09:23:00 GMT

The safety of booster seats for 4 to 8 year olds is beyond question. As was pointed out by my partner Joe Crumley, there are many advantages to extending the protection. The Minnesota Legislature went through the issues and with very little opposition, went for protection over the doubters. It's a group that needs to be protected. I was reminded of this last week when a mother called me and had two kids who were all shaken up after a rear end collision destroyed the back of the car. Thankfully, that's all they were and I would suspect that it was the safety of their being wrapped in booster seats that made the biggest difference.

Right now 47 states and the District of Columbia require booster seats for kids who are too big for child safety seats with harnesses, but too small to properly wear a regular seat belt. The hold outs are Arizona, Florida and South Dakota. The National Transportation Safety Board is working to change that. "If they use a booster seat and a seat belt, rather than a seat belt alone, they reduce their risk of injury by 59 percent," Deborah Hersman, head of the NTSB says. "And what the data and the facts tell us is that it's much safer to be in a booster seat that restrains your child properly in the event of an accident."

I'm a big fan of Mad Men on AMC. It was interesting last year when they showed the mother driving down the road and suddenly having to stop. The daughter, who was standing up in the back seat, went flying off the seat and ended up in the foot area on the passenger side. A different time and while a very simple scene, was indeed a scary moment. Hopefully, these states will come up to speed and join in the protection of these small children.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Mike Bryant

Semi Trucks And In Cab Computers

Mike Bryant — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 09:32:00 GMT

There have been a lot of posts here at the Injuryboard covering the states that have been forward looking enough to make texting illegal while driving. Some states have added emails to ensure that there are no loopholes. For semi truck drivers, the question has now come up about their computers.

Yes, many of the trucks are now being equipped with complete laptop systems. I would guess that it gets used a lot. But, what about the law? The drivers are saying they can use them safely and responsibly. Seems to me the real question is when are you using it? I haven't seen a law yet that bans any of the items from being in a vehicle, it only prevents it's use.

Truck safety has been a big issue around here as of late. The recent study which indicated that the number of truck accidents should be of great concern and at the same time posts about what the number mean. Clearly, the size of the vehicles and the damage that is done when there is a collision has got to be considered in weighing the significance of all of the concerns. What does even a couple of seconds of distraction add to those concerns?

For anyone involved in a collision with a semi truck, it's clear that questions should be asked about the use of these items. Because, despite having a "Don't Use While In Motion" warning, there is a proceed button. Yet, another reason why hiring an experienced attorney can make a difference to you.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Mike Bryant

Just Because It's Twitter, You Still Can't Text And Drive

Mike Bryant — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 09:26:00 GMT

My partner Joe Crumley wrote a great piece about the dangers of texting. He, like a number of other writers here at the InjuryBoard, continue to point out the dangers of texting and driving. Go watch the video that a couple of members have posted.

A recent study concerning the social networking tool, Twitter, points out there is more reason for concern. According to Crowd Science, about 11% of Twitter users admitted to accessing social media while driving in the preceding 30 days, compared to only 5% of other social media users. 29% of Twitter users said they had accessed social media from cars at some point in the past, compared with 13% of non-users. This is one too many people reading and twittering while they should be driving.

Since this post will go out on a tweet, I truly hope not one single person reads it while they're driving. It makes you wonder how broad we need to make the law to make sure that people get the idea. A number of other interesting findings from the study:

- 41% of Twitter users prefer to contact friends via social media rather than telephone, compared with 25% of non-Twitter social media users, and 11% (vs. only 6% of those not using Twitter) actually prefer social media over face-to-face contacts.

- More than twice as many males than females (32% to 15%) access Twitter primarily through a third-party application.

- 43% of Twitter users employ a third-party application at least some of the time, and 26% as their main mode of access.

- Twitter users tend to be older than non-Twitter social media users (54% over 30 years old, vs. 42%), twice as likely to be self-employed or entrepreneurs (18% vs. 9%) and to be planning to start a business during the next six months, and more tech-savvy (24% vs. 15%

Driving needs to be driving time.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Mike Bryant

Red Sox Down Two: But The Angel's Are Inspired

Mike Bryant — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 08:28:00 GMT

I've said it many times, I am a die hard Red Sox fan. That used to be a much harder thing to be for most of my life. The past couple of years, they have been much easier to watch. But, I do have to admit, that the California Angel's ongoing remembrance of Nick Adenhart does touch me because of the work I do.

Drunk Driving is a horrible thing. It is so very true when that horrid mistake leads to the taking of a life. For the young promising Angels right hander it was a loss that affected his family, his team and all of their fans. It put the game in perspective and reminds us of how precious each life is.

Today, I will still be cheering for my team as they come back to Fenway, but that being said, I do hope that people reflect upon what happened. Number 34 needs to be remembered for what he might have done and what his death can teach us all.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Mike Bryant

Another Deadly Weekend On Minnesota Roads

Mike Bryant — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 20:28:02 GMT

Columbus day weekend has started out as a tragic one in Minnesota as four people have been killed on Minnesota Highways. Unfortunately, the at least the third weekend that we have seen increased numbers of road deaths. The scary numbers are that on an average weekend, two people are killed.

Friday morning, a former junior high teacher was killed as he road as a passenger on a SUV that collided with a grain truck in Rice County.
Friday afternoon, an 18-year-old woman was killed and two other people were seriously injured in Coleraine, Minn., when their car pulled in front of a school bus carrying the Ely High School football team to a homecoming game in Onamia, Minn.
Late Friday night, a 32-year-old Minneapolis woman was hit head on as she drove the wrong way on Highway 280 near Energy Park Drive in St. Paul.
Saturday morning, a Cedar, Minnesota woman was killed by a passing car on 35W as she stood on the side of the road after an earlier accident.

The overall yearly numbers continue to drop for the year, but if we continue to see weekends like this they will rise. With Fall bringing us winter type conditions, hopefully people will be careful. More will be found out over the coming weeks as to the causes of each of these collisions, so it's to early to tell if the common causes of speed and alcohol were involved in any of the incidents. In all of these cases sorrow for the families of those involved goes out.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Mike Bryant

MNDOT Needs To Look At Most Deadly Section Of Highway 14

Mike Bryant — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 09:33:00 GMT

Highway 14 between Dodge Center and Owatonna is starting to attract more state attention as the number of accidents and highway deaths seems to be on the increase. The concern is a busy highway, that needs to be crossed for many drivers. Dodge County Chief Deputy Mike Leonhardt says the 2-lane stretch of 14 between Dodge Center and Owatonna is one of the most dangerous. "If you make a mistake it's either in a ditch or you hit another car,"

At Present MnDot has been looking at the area and had made some changes with new signs and center line ruble stripes. But, that additional money is not available at this time for major changes.

No matter what is done drivers must always be aware of:

the amount and type of traffic sharing the highway with them. The traffic may be heavy or light and may include trucks, cars, motor homes, farm equipment, motorcycles and bicycles.
changing weather conditions—fog, snow, water and ice, for example—that affect visibility and road conditions.
the type of vehicle being driven, particularly the condition of the brakes and the weight of the vehicle, which affects braking ability.
the character of the highway the driver is traveling. Drivers should adjust their speed for hills or for winding and narrow roads.
the presence of intersections, railway grade crossings or pedestrians.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Mike Bryant