Seattle Car Accident Lawyer Blog

A Seattle driver hauling a kayak was responsible for a multiple vehicle accident on Interstate 5 near South Spokane Street in Seattle early Friday morning when the kayak fell from her car.

Seattle's KOMO News.com reports that the woman's car dropped a kayak on I-5 and two cars collided as they tried to avoid the kayak. Two other vehicles were hit with debris from the car accident.

Washington state vehicle code RCW 46.61.655 is the statute that covers lost loads. It is also known as "Maria's law" for the young woman who was seriously injured and blinded after a lost load crashed into her vehicle. The statute provides that a driver is guilty of criminal negligence if he/she fails to secure all or part of a load. If a lost load causes bodily injury, the driver could spend up to a year in jail and face a fine of $5,000.

Unsecured loads are responsible for more than 400 Washington state motor vehicle accidents each and every year. Many of these accidents result in serious injury or even death. Nationwide, approximately 100 people are killed every year due to accidents caused by lost loads.

This information is provided by Seattle Car Accident Lawyer blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent people who have been seriously injured in motor vehicle accidents caused by the negligence of another. With our help, you may recover compensation for your damages.

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The father of Donald Barrett, 40, who was struck and killed by a bus, settled a wrongful death lawsuit with Los Angeles County Metro Transit Authority (Metro) for about $1.43 million. Barrett was a pedestrian on a city street and in an intersection when he was struck and killed.

In the case of Barrett V. Los Angeles Co. Metro. Transp Auth, the attorneys representing Barrett's father and estate sued the bus driver saying that the bus driver was negligent and did not keep a proper lookout and yield to pedestrians.

The lawsuit also claimed that the bus driver did not follow Metro policy when the driver began the turn before the signal light had changed to green.

The defendants in the lawsuit claimed that Barrett stepped into a crosswalk without a walk signal and also failed to take into account a bus making a turn.

Both parties settled the lawsuit before it went to trial for about $1.43 million.

A "wrongful death" is when a person is killed due to a wrongful or negligent act of another. Often wrongful death lawsuits arise from motor vehicle accidents but they can also arise from criminal attacks, on-the-job accidents or activities such as school sports.

In Washington state, the family of a person who was wrongfully killed may file a lawsuit asking for damages on behalf of their deceased loved one.

This information is provided by Seattle Car Accident Lawyer blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We hare more than 30 years representing families with their wrongful death claims.

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Continue reading " Family settles wrongful death lawsuit with Metro after pedestrian killed in bus accident " »

We saw an article posted on Transportation for America, an organization that campaigns for pedestrian safety, about a mother who was charged and found guilty of vehicular homicide after her young son was struck and killed by a hit-and-run driver.

How could this happen? Raquel Nelson, of Atlanta, was crossing the street with her children after stepping off of a bus at a bus stop located directly across from her apartment complex. Nelson and other people who lived at her apartment complex routinely crossed the road there to get home because the nearest crosswalk was a half mile away.

Nelson's youngest son was struck and killed by a driver who than drove off. Nelson was charged and convicted because she had failed to walk the half mile in the dark to go to the nearest traffic signal. The jury convicted her of vehicular homicide and a judge sentenced her to probation and community service.

A charge of vehicular homicide is generally reserved for a person who is driving recklessly or driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs so it was quite a surprise that the Cobb County prosecutor decided to charge a grieving mother with a serious crime when she didn't even own a car.

Transportation for America has started a campaign to get Nelson's conviction overturned. We'll quote them here:

What about the highway designers, traffic engineers, transit planners and land use regulators who allowed a bus stop to be placed so far from a signal and made no other provision for a safe crossing; who allowed – even encouraged, with wide, straight lanes – prevailing speeds of 50-plus on a road flanked by houses and apartments; who carved a fifth lane out of a wider median that could have provided more of a safe refuge for pedestrians; who designed the entire landscape to be hostile to people trying to get to work and groceries despite having no access to a car?

This article certainly makes one think about the plight of the approximately 4,000+ people killed in pedestrian accidents every year. Of those killed in pedestrian accidents, the old and the young are the most common victims because these are the citizens who walk. The elderly, age 70 and over, are the most at risk for being killed in a pedestrian accident with the rate of pedestrian accident death approximately 62% higher for people 70 and older than for people under the age of 70.

For more information about Transportation America's campaign on Nelson's behalf, click here, "Demand full pardon for Raquel Nelson".

This information is provided by Seattle Car Accident Lawyer blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent people who have been seriously injured in pedestrian accidents and the family of those killed.

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Continue reading " Shocking story: pedestrian convicted of vehicular homicide even though her son was killed by hit-and-run driver " »

Rachel Beckwith, an Issaquah girl who died shortly after her 9th birthday after being involved in a multi-car accident on Interstate 90 last Wednesday, has a legacy that continues to grow.

The little girl, who died of spinal cord and head trauma injuries at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle on Saturday, had a birthday wish. Instead of birthday presents, she asked friends and family to donate $9 towards clean water projects.

Rachel's goal was to raise $300 on her birthday. Upon hearing of her death, the donations have literally poured in to honor her and at this writing over $150,000 has been donated with 2,902 separate donations.

Here's the web-site address if you'd like to contribute: http://mycharitywater.org/rachels9thbirthday

We are spreading the word to honor this accident victim.

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This information is provided by Seattle car Accident Lawyer blog, a service of The Farber Law Group.

Continue reading " Rachel's Birthday Wish continues to grow " »

One pedestrian was critically injured and another suffered minor injuries when they were struck by a car while standing in a parking lot on Aurora Avenue reports Seattle's King5.com.

The Seattle pedestrian accident occurred around 7:30am this morning when a vehicle making a right hand turn into the business parking lot was rear-ended by another vehicle in the 11500 block of Aurora Avenue North.

The force of the rear-end accident propelled the first vehicle forward causing it to strike the pedestrians. The second car then hit a tree.

In all five people were injured, including the two pedestrians.

Police shut down Aurora Avenue North to investigate the accident. It is unclear at this time whether the following driver was distracted, speeding or following too closely. It is likely the second driver will be cited. Washington State vehicle code RCW 46.61.145 specifies that a driver of a motor vehicle shall not follow another vehicle more closely than is reasonable and prudent.

This information is provided by Seattle Car Accident Lawyer blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent people who have been seriously injured in pedestrian accidents and the family of those killed.

Continue reading " Pedestrian critically injured in accident on Aurora Avenue in Seattle " »

A 17-year-old employee of the Golf Club at Newcastle was injured in a golf cart accident when he rolled his golf cart down an eight foot embankment reports The Bellevue Reporter.

The accident happened around 6:30am as the teen was backing up the golf cart and he drove over a stair or the embankment, causing the cart to roll.

The teen was rescued by Bellevue Fire Department and was taken to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle for treatment of undisclosed injuries. Fire Department spokesman, Lt. Troy Donlin, said the teen lost consciousness in the accident.

A University of Alabama study published in the Journal of Trauma: Injury Infections and Critical Care found that nearly 1,000 Americans are injured in golf cart accidents every month in crashes and rollover accidents.

The most common golf cart accident injuries include head traumas and fractures. Injuries most common occur in boys between the ages of 10 and 19 and men, ages 80 and over.

Only about a half of all golf cart accidents, however, actually occur on a golf course. Other accidents occur at private homes and on public property.

Golf carts are designed to be driven at speeds of up to 15mph, however, many are modified to operate at higher speeds.

This information is provided by Seattle Car Accident Lawyer blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent people with serious injuries due to motor vehicle accidents including car accidents, boating accidents, ATV accidents and golf cart accidents.

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Continue reading " Teenage Newcastle golf employee injured in golf cart accident " »

The Washington State Patrol, in a media release, are asking motorcycle riders to slow down and obey traffic laws on the heels of five fatal motorcycle accidents on the North Cascade Highway (SR 20). In the last two months, there have been two fatal motorcycle accidents near Winthrop. There have been five fatal motorcycle accidents on the highway since January 1, 2010.

The WSP is placing special emphasis on safe driving on mountain highways and keeping speed down on curvy roads. Speed and impaired driving are the leading factors in motorcycle accidents throughout the state.

Motorcycle riders should also obtain their Motorcycle Endorsement. In nearly 40% of all fatal motorcycle accidents, the rider did not have the proper motorcycle endorsement. Getting a Motorcycle Endorsement involves taking an approved rider course with a trained instruction. Courses teach riders lane position, hazard avoidance and they work with the rider on skills such as braking, cornering, swerving and quick stops.

This information is provided by Seattle Car Accident Lawyer blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent motorcycle accident victims and their families.

Continue reading " WSP asking motorcycle riders to slow down on mountain highways after fatal accidents on SR 20 " »

AAA reports that the most dangerous days for teenage drivers fall between Memorial Day and Labor Day. AAA says that 7,300 teenage drivers and their passengers, ages 13-19, were killed in traffic accidents between Memorial Day and Labor Day in the years 2005-2009.

The AAA gives the following advice to parents of teenage drivers:

• Limit your teen's driving to "essential" trips during their first year of driving.
  
• Continue practicing driving with your teen and coaching them even after they get their license.
  
• Limit the number of passengers your teen can drive. Parents should also restrict their teen from riding as a passenger with a teenage driver.
  
• Restrict night driving.
  
• Be clear about driving rules by using a driving agreement.

Washington state has a graduated or intermediate driver's license which has proven to prevent teenage car accident deaths. The intermediate driver's sets for the following restriction on the license:

• Passengers - Prohibits driving with passengers under the age of 20, unless they are immediate family, for the first six months. For the following six months, teens are not allowed to drive with more than 3 passengers under the age of 20 that are not family members.
  
• Night Time Driving: Teens are prohibited from driving between 1am-5am unless with an adult 25 years of age or older.
  
• Cell Phones: Talking of texting on a cell phone is strictly prohibited even with a hands-free device.

This information is provided by Seattle Car Accident Lawyer blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent people who have been seriously injured in motor vehicle accidents and the family of those who have died.

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Continue reading " AAA says "deadliest days" for teen driving occur between Memorial and Labor Day " »

The Yakima Herald.com reports that Christopher W. Beaver, 29, of Prosser, was critically injured in a multiple vehicle collision that was attributed to a trailer losing a wheel, setting off a chain-reaction of accidents.

According to the report, the accident occurred on U.S. Highway 195, just south of Colfax when a horse trailer lost a wheel. The wheel struck a car traveling in the opposite direction, causing that driver to lose control and hit Beaver's vehicle.

Beaver's vehicle was totaled in the collision. He was taken to St. Joseph's Regional Medical Center in Lewiston, Idaho with undisclosed injuries.

Two other drivers were injured in the accident.

When a vehicle traveling at high speed loses a wheel, the result can be a serious accident. Sometimes a lost wheel will crash through a vehicle windshield. When the accident involves a commercial vehicle, authorities look at the trucking company's safety and maintenance records to insure the vehicle passed appropriate inspections as wheels do not normally come off of vehicles.

Wheels ordinarily do not come loose from vehicle. At this point, one can not chalk up the accident to "bad luck." The injured parties should ask to see maintenance records of the trailer and find out the cause which resulted in this failure.

This information is provided by Seattle Car Accident Lawyer blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent people who have been seriously injured in car accidents and the families of those killed.

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Continue reading " Lost wheel causes accident that critically injures Prosser man " »

The family of James Madonia, 62, who was killed in a freeway motorcycle accident, has settled a wrongful death lawsuit for $1.02 with Horizon Communications and the driver they claimed was negligent in the accident, Arthur Murrieta.

Horizon agreed to pay $1 million of the settlement and Murrieta the remainder.

According to papers filed in Orange County Superior Court, Madonia's family claimed that Murrieta was negligent in the accident because he failed to keep a proper lookout when he suddenly braked and swerved to avoid hitting another vehicle when he ran over Madonia, who was on the ground after colliding with another vehicle.

In their lawsuit, Madonia's family claimed Horizon Communications Technologies under vicarious liability. Vicarious liability holds that employers and companies bear some responsibility for the negligent acts of their employees acting in the course or scope of their employment.

All the parties to the case settled before the lawsuit came to trial.

This information is provided by Seattle Car Accident Lawyer blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent people who have been seriously injured in motor vehicle accidents with their injury claims and families who have lost a loved one with their wrongful death claims.

Source: Madonia v. Murrieta, No. 30-2010-00337626-CU-PO-CJC (Cal., Orange Co. Super. Feb. 15, 2011).

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A Washington State trooper and two other people were seriously injured in a Bellevue car accident caused by drunken drivers at the Interstate 405 and State Route 520 interchange on Friday night around 11:45pm.

According to the Bellevue Reporter, the trooper had stopped a 32-year-old Bellingham man driving a silver BMW on suspicion of driving under the influence when the accident occurred. The trooper was in the process of arresting the motorist when an Acura, driven by a 26-year-old Shoreline woman, hit the patrol car which then pushed it into the BMW. The driver of the BMW, the driver of the Acura and the trooper were all taken to Overlake Hospital Medical Center in Bellevue with serious injuries.

The driver of the Acura may be charged with Vehicular Assault because troopers suspect she was driving intoxicated. Washington State motor vehicle code RCW 46.61.522 states that a driver can be charged with Vehicular Assault if he or she seriously injures another person while driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

It is not uncommon for a motorist driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs to hit a parked or stopped car. While troopers take every precaution by having motorists move onto the shoulder, flash their lights and angle the car to protect both themselves and the other driver, a drunken driver often mistakes the stopped cars for a moving lane of traffic.

This information is provided by Seattle Car Accident Lawyer blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent people who have been seriously injured in motor vehicle accidents and the family of those who have died.

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Continue reading " Washington State trooper and 2 others injured in Bellevue DUI car accident " »