Articles Posted in Car Accidents

Following a Woburn car accident that injured a motorist and a state trooper, Massachusetts State Police have charged the 21-year-old motorist with negligent operation of a motor vehicle, failure to slow down for workers or equipment in the road, failure to obey signs and signals, and failure to wear a seatbelt.

The driver allegedly drove his sedan into a road construction set-up on Monday evening on Route 93 outside of Woburn, hitting a state trooper on paid detail in a marked cruiser. Authorities say the driver disregarded warning signs and hit the rear of the cruiser, followed by the right guardrail.

Emergency medical crews took the trooper by ambulance to Massachusetts General Hospital, where he was treated for injuries and released overnight. The driver was treated for minor injuries at Lahey Clinic in Burlington.

Here in Massachusetts, drivers cited for Negligent Operation of a Motor Vehicle are subject to a $250 fine. The fine for failure to wear a seatbelt is $25 for drivers or any person over the age of sixteen, plus an additional $25 fine for each passenger between the ages of twelve and sixteen who fails to wear a seatbelt.

Source: Tewksbury man charged in Woburn crash, WickedLocal.com, December 14, 2010 Continue reading

Fifteen car accidents were reported in the Waltham area on Sunday morning as a result of icy roads, causing warnings from Waltham police to stay at home if possible. The accidents included one six-car crash on Route 128 and a tractor trailer accident on the Route 20 rotary. Most of the accidents involved spin-outs, skidding, and steering into the Route 20 median. No major injuries were reported, and roads became less dangerous as the mixed precipitation turned to rain.

Although those involved in Sunday’s accidents were fortunate that no serious injuries occurred, others were not so lucky this weekend. There were three fatal accidents on Saturday, and four are dead as a result. A 16-year-old Westport male died in a Fall River crash on Route 24 after losing control of his Jeep Wrangler. A 20-year-old woman was thrown from her vehicle after a Walpole two-car accident on I-95. Two others were killed in a two-car crash on I-91 in Longmeadow. That accident happened when one of the cars was going north on the southbound side.

While not all of these accidents have been officially linked to weather, our car accident attorneys would like to take this opportunity to remind you to drive safely as we begin to see harsher weather conditions. Here in Massachusetts, we are no strangers to snow, ice and rain. All too often, this kind of weather causes drivers to skid and lose control of their vehicles. It is important to remember to take due care when driving in bad conditions. For example:

• Drive more slowly.
• Leave more space between your car and the car in front of you.
• Clear snow off of your car, and make sure your windshield isn’t foggy.

Although snow, ice and bad roads can make car accidents more likely to happen, we still have the responsibility to drive carefully.
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Christopher Kaszyk, a state trooper, was hit by a car on a Fall River highway Wednesday. The accident occurred where Route 97 merges onto Route 24.

The trooper was outside of his car helping with a previous single-car accident around 6:30 a.m. when a driver attempting to merge hit him as well as the car he had stopped to assist. Kaszyk was taken to Charlton Memorial Hospital with minor injuries. Police are investigating, and no charges have been filed.

We know that being a police officer is a risky job in terms of fighting crime, but it can easy to forget the personal injury dangers that come with being a cop. Officers are frequently injured in circumstances like this one or while on details like directing traffic. Chases, emergency responses and long hours patrolling in cruisers also increase officers’ chances of becoming involved in a serious crash. In fact, car accidents are the most common cause of police officer deaths. Recent statistics show that 35% of officer deaths were vehicle-related, with only 3% of those occurring during vehicular pursuits or chases. In addition Injured- On- Duty pay, police injured on duty may be able to collect other compensation.

If you have been injured in a car accident, call Altman & Altman to discuss your options with an experienced personal injury lawyer.

Source: The Boston Globe, Trooper injured in Fall River highway accident
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A car crashed into a Chicopee bedroom around 6:30 a.m. on Tuesday. William Flores and his girlfriend woke up to debris and the car inches away at the foot of the bed. Neither the residents nor their two dogs were injured, but firefighters are concerned about the stability of the home’s front wall.

According to police, the car driven by 66-year-old Patricia Naimey smashed into a street light, a stop sign, and a fire hydrant before hitting the house. They are investigating how she lost control.

This was the second time within a three-day period that a car hit a Chicopee building. On Sunday, 43-year-old Kimmy Dubuque was killed inside a Cumberland Farms when an SUV driven by 81-year-old Edwin Skowyra crashed through the front of the store. In addition to the shopper who was fatally injured, another customer, the clerk and the driver were injured. Police say that the car was travelling through the intersection at Front and Grove Streets and then went over a barrier and through the store. Police are looking into the possibility that a medical issue caused the driver to lose control.

Sources:

Cbs3springfield.com: Chicopee police release names in fatal crash; Continue to investigate cause

Cbs3springfield.com: Car smashes into Chicopee bedroom

Drivers can lose control of their cars for many reasons. Speed, inattention, and mechanical defects are among the common causes. The possibility of a medical issue in this second incident raises the issue of physical infirmities. These kinds of infirmities can be considered in determining the reasonableness of conduct. For example, if this driver suffered an unforeseeable heart attack that caused him to lose control of his SUV, he would not be responsible. If, on the other hand, he knew that was subject to some medical condition that would cause him to lose control of the vehicle but drove anyways, he could be liable in a negligence action.
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On Monday afternoon, a car rolled over on Route 24 in Avon, Massachusetts. Police said the 20-year-old driver refused medical treatment following the traffic accident. The Brockton man was reportedly driving a 2000 Ford Mustang. The car accident occurred at 1:52pm near the Route 27 exit, and police said the scene had been cleared by 2:30pm.

The cause of this Avon car crash remains under investigation.

Although there were no injuries in this instance, crashes involving cars, bikes, trucks, SUVs, or pedestrians can result serious and even deadly injuries. With insurance claims for personal injury, lost wages, and damage to your vehicle, these cases can pose a number of complicated legal challenges that require the assistance of an experienced personal injury attorney.

Source: Car rolls over on Route 24 in Avon, no injuries, The Enterprise, November 29, 2010 Continue reading

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is determining whether to open a full-blown investigation into possible Honda Accord hybrid acceleration problems. An unidentified woman filed a complaint with the federal agency asking it to investigate after she was injured and her passenger died in a crash in her 2005 Accord Hybrid. She said that her car crashed into oncoming traffic after losing break power and accelerating on its own. Many documents on the NHTSA website indicate that several have been injured in similar accidents in these cars, according to the Boston Herald.

Similarly, Toyota has received thousands of unintended acceleration complaints in recent years. More specifically, since 1999, 2,262 incidents involving sudden and unintended acceleration of Toyota cars have been recorded. Last year alone, Toyota had to recall about 10 million vehicles, and after the recalls, Toyota faced hundreds of law suits. The unintended acceleration problem came under even more public scrutiny when an off -duty California police officer was recently killed in one of these crashes.

If the NHSTA decides to open the Honda investigation, the results should be interesting. In August, the agency released its preliminary findings about possible Toyota defects, and driver error (hitting the gas instead of the break) was determined to be the main cause of the failed breaks and unintended acceleration. So, time will tell whether these Hondas are defective in design or manufacture or whether drivers are misapplying the pedals.

Source: The Boston Herald, NHTSA reviews claim of Honda acceleration
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