Seattle Car Accident Lawyer Blog

A 13-year-old Lynnwood boy was injured in a pedestrian accident on Friday night around 5:30pm as he and several other people attempted to jaywalk across Highway 99 near 148th Street SW. The teen was taken to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle for treatment.

According to a report in the Everett Herald Net.com, the boy was waved across the road by several vehicles that had stopped for the teen and several other pedestrians when he was hit by a car driven by a 48-year-old Edmonds man.

Every year, thousands of pedestrians are seriously injured or killed while crossing streets. Jaywalking -- crossing the street other than a regular crossing or against a traffic light -- significantly increases a person's chance of being seriously injured.

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 due to the negligence of another.

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.

A 23-year-old pedestrian suffered life-threatening injuries and was taken to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle after being hit by a car near the University of Washington. The pedestrian apparently struck his head after he was hit.

According to a report in The Seattle Post-Intelligencer, the pedestrian was crossing the street on 43rd when a car driven by a 36-year-old man turned onto 43rd and hit the man.

Police are investigating the pedestrian accident.

Washington State Vehicle Code, RCW 46.61.235, which pertains to pedestrians in crosswalks states that a vehicle should remain stopped to allow a pedestrian or bicycle to cross the road if the pedestrian or bicycle is upon or within one lane of the half of the roadway upon which the vehicle is turning onto.

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.

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.

The Seattle Times reports that Antonio Cellestine of Vancouver has been sentenced to 60 months in prison for Vehicular Homicide after he hit a bicyclist who was riding home from work.

Cellestine was text messaging his girlfriend when his car veered into the bicycle lane and he hit and killed Gordon Patterson a 50-year-old high school teacher in September of 2009. Records from Cellestine's cell phone proved that he was text messaging using his cell phone prior to and during the car accident.

A person can be convicted for Vehicular Homicide if a person was killed and the driver was driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs or driving with reckless disregard to the safety of others.

Cellestine's conviction is thought to be the first Vehicular Homicide conviction due to text messaging in Washington. This conviction comes at a time when the state legislature is considering making texting and using a hand-held cell phone in the state a primary offense.

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 a car or bicycle accident and the family of those killed. If you believe your car accident was a result of someones negligent use of a cell phone, read "What if my accident was caused by someone using a cell phone?"

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.

A King County Sheriff's deputy was injured when he was hit by a car while he was out of his car on Highway 169 -- the Maple Valley Highway -- around 4:50pm Tuesday Night.

According to the report in The Seattle Times, the deputy was conscious and was transported to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle for treatment of unknown injuries. However, his injuries were thought to be non life threatening.

The pedestrian accident is currently being investigated. Apparently the driver of the car that hit the officer stayed at the accident scene.

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 family of those killed.

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.

We've been reading Malcolm Gladwell's book of essays entitled What the Dog Saw. In the book, Gladwell discusses how people handle risk. Gladwell cites psychologist Gerald Wilde who says that human beings have a tendency to "compensate for lower risks in one area by taking greater risks in another." Wilde's hypothesis is called risk homeostasis.

Gladwell asks the question, "Why are more pedestrians killed when crossing the street at marked crosswalks than at unmarked crosswalks?" His answer is, because pedestrians feel that a crosswalk is a "safe environment," they take more risk and are less watchful for oncoming traffic or cross when the light is changing.

Something to think about.

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 car accidents and the families of those killed.

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.

A 14-year-old Mulkiteo boy has life-threatening injuries after being injured in a pedestrian accident around 7am this morning reports the Everett Herald.net.

According to the report, the boy was hit as he ran across Beverly Park Road neat the Mukilteo Speedway; He was not in a crosswalk at the time.

The injured teen was taken to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle for treatment.

Police said the driver that hit the boy was cooperating with police. According to Washington State Vehicle Code, RCW 46.61.240, pedestrians must yield the way to vehicles when crossing a roadway at any point other than a marked crosswalk or within an unmarked crosswalk at an intersection.

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 families of those killed.

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.

The Tacoma News Tribune reports that Daniel Morse, a 14-year-old Bethel Junior High School student, was hit and killed by a suspected drunken driver Sunday night near Graham. Graham is a city approximately 10 miles south of Puyallup via State Route 161.

According to the report, the skateboarding accident occurred in the 9800 block of 204th Street East around 5:30pm.

The driver of the vehicle that hit Morse was arrested at the scene but released pending an investigation of the accident.

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. With our help, you may recover compensation for your damages.

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.

Four people were injured in a two-car accident including a pedestrian who was standing on a corner in the Fremont area of Seattle reports The Seattle Times. The driver of one of the vehicles, a red Nova, fled car accident scene and police are searching for him.

According to the report, the car accident occurred around 11:33 am at Fremont Avenue North and North 39th Street when a SUV and a red Chevy Nova collided. Flying debris from the accident hit the pedestrian, a woman in her 30s. She was taken to Harborview Medical Center for treatment.

Two people in the SUV and a male passenger in the Nova were also taken to Harborview Medical Center with non-life threatening injuries.

Many people who live in the area to this intersection say they are not surprised that an accident occurred here because of the intersection design. The intersection has multiple lights and streets converging. See a map of the intersection here.

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. With our help, you may recover compensation for your damages.

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.

On October 27th, Timsina Narmada was killed as she attempted to cross the Benson Highway in Kent. On December 17, Maximiliano Diaz-Salazar was killed as he attempted to cross the same highway. In both pedestrian accidents, the Washington State patrol determined that the pedestrians were not crossing the highway lawfully.

The Washington State Patrol reminds pedestrians to be safe and be sure to use crosswalks and pedestrian crossing when crossing a roadway.

Washington State Vehicle Code, RCW 46.61.240, states that pedestrians must yield the roadway when crossing a road that does not have a marked crosswalk.

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 families of those killed. With our help, you may recover compensation for your damages, including pain and suffering.

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.

A 40-year-old man who was struck and killed in a Olympia pedestrian accident may have been jaywalking reports The Olympian. According to the report, the man ran into the street at 417 S. Plum Street and was hit by an SUV.

The pedestrian accident is being investigated by the Olympia police.

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.

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.

The Washington State Patrol in a media release reports that Maximiliano Diaz-Salazar was injured in a pedestrian accident and died at the scene after being hit by a Toyota pickup on the Benson highway -- State Route 515 -- in Kent.

According to the report, the 58-year-old Kent man tried to run across the highway and he was hit by a car. He was not in a pedestrian crosswalk at the time of the accident.

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

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.

Two people suffered leg injuries after they were hit by a car as they were unloading luggage from a parked car in a driveway off of South Columbian in Seattle reports The Seattle Times. The pedestrian accident occurred in the 1700 block of South Columbian in Seattle around 7pm.

It is not know whether the driver of the 1998 black Chevy Corvette, a 50-year-old man, that hit the pair was driving under the influence or distracted at the time when he left the road and hit the pair. Police have booked him into King County Jail for investigation of Vehicular Assault. Vehicular Assault, RCW 46.61.522, can be charged if a person is seriously injured in an accident and the driver was under the influence of alcohol or drugs or driving with out regard for the safety of others.

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. With our help, you may recover compensation for your injuries, including pain and suffering.

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.

A 31-year-old man has been arrested and taken to Pullman Regional Hospital for a mental evaluation after he hit two pedestrians, both students, on the Washington State University campus in Pullman on Monday morning. Both students were taken to Pullman Regional Hospital with serious injuries.

According to a report in The Seattle Post-Intelligencer, the man hit the first student with his vehicle around 7:30am on Northeast Stadium way. He then continued down the street and hit the second student.

This driver faces Vehicular Assault and other charges, perhaps even attempted murder. We hope these students recover fully and fully from their injuries.

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. With our help, you may recover compensation for your injuries, including pain and suffering.

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.

A woman was critically injured in a Seattle pedestrian accident and the driver of the car that hit her was arrested about one mile from the accident scene reports The Seattle Times.

According to the report, a man driving a Toyota Corolla north on Rainier went up on a sidewalk and hit the woman around 7pm. The driver, a man who appeared to be in his 50s, then continued north but he was stopped by police about a mile up near 20th Avenue South and South Jackson Street.

The injured pedestrian was taken to Harborview Medical Center with life-threatening injuries.

The motorist is being investigated for Vehicular Assault and possible DUI. Vehicular Assault can be charged if a person was seriously injured and a motorist was under the influence or driving with reckless disregard.

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. With our help, you may recover compensation for your damages.

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.

The Tacoma News Tribune reports that Brandy Marie Marty, 28, has pleaded not guilty to charges of fatal hit-and-run driving with a suspended or revoked license in the death of a man in a pedestrian accident on Interstate 5 in Fife.

According to the report, Marty hit Michael Halberg, 45, last Thursday as he was running across I-5 in attempt to elude police. Marty hit Halberg but did not stop. Marty turned herself into police after an anonymous phone call identified her.

Marty's bail was set at $10,000.

Marty is in serious trouble because she left the scene of the accident. RCW 46.52.020 prescribes that it is the duty of any driver involved in an accident which results in the injury or death of any person should immediately stop at the accident scene and remain there until a law enforcement officer arrives.

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 accidents, including motor vehicle accidents, due to the negligence of another.

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.

An unidentified 17-year-old girl suffered minor injuries when she was injured in a pedestrian accident while crossing 168th Street SW across from Meadowdale High School in Lynnwood. The girl was treated at Stevens Hospital in Edmonds and released.

According a report on Everett's Heraldnet.com, the girl was crossing the street around 8:30am when she was hit by a car that was described as a green mid-sized four-door car with a round top. Police are look for the adult female driver for the vehicle who left the scene of the pedestrian accident. They believe she had an adult female passenger in the car at the time of the accident.

Lynnwood police are asking anyone with information regarding the accident to call them at 425-670-5600.

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. With our help, you may recover compensation for your damages.

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.

The Seattle Post-Intelligencer reports that an 11-year-old Whidbey Island boy, Alex Snellman, was seriously injured on Monday morning when he was hit by a truck while walking to North Whidbey Middle School. According to the report, the pedestrian accident occurred around 7:30am in dark and overcast conditions. Snellman was allegedly struck by a pickup truck while he was in a crosswalk on Regatta Drive.

Snellman was taken to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle where he is listed in serious condition with a broken femur and a fractured clavicle according to the P-I.

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. With our help, you may obtain compensation for your damages including pain and suffering.

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.

The King County Medical Examiner's office reports that traffic accident deaths were down in 2008 when compared with 2007. In 2008, 163 people were killed as a result of motor vehicle accidents and in 2007, 170 people were killed.

Of the 163 people who died as a result of a motor vehicle accident, only 112 of the accidents occurred in King County; 51 people were injured in accidents outside of the county but the injured person was taken to a King County Hospital -- usually Harborview Medical Center in Seattle -- where they died.

King County includes the following communities: Algona, Auburn, Bellevue, Black Diamond, Bothell, Burien, Carnation, Clyde Hill, Covington, Des Moines, Duvall, Enumclaw, Federal Way, Hunts Point, Issaquah, Kenmore, Kent, Kirkland, Lake Forest Park, Maple Valley, Medina, Mercer Island, Milton, Newcastle, Normandy Park, North Bend, Pacific, Redmond, Renton, Sammamish, SeaTac, Seattle, Shoreline, Skykomish, Snoqualmie, Tukwila, Woodinville and Yarrow Point.

Safety Precautions

The statistics show that people are taking safety precautions: only 27% of those killed in traffic accidents were not wearing seatbelts and only 16% of those killed in motorcycle accidents were not wearing helmets. Two of those killed in bicycle accidents were wearing helmets.

Traffic accident data

Some finer analysis of the data shows:

• 44% of those killed were drivers
  
• 75% of driver deaths were male
  
• 6% of those killed were teenage drivers between the ages of 16-91
  
• 24% of those killed were drivers between the ages of 20-29
  
• only one infant (a child under the age of one) was killed
  
• only two children between the ages of 1-5 years were killed
  
• no children between the ages of 6-12 years were killed
  
• 26 people died in pedestrian accidents

Alcohol Data

Blood alcohol data on car accident victims is not tally descriptive because blood alcohol tests are not always performed on those who live for more than 24 hours after an accident. However, of those tested, 40% showed the presence of alcohol in their blood stream.

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 and pedestrian accidents and the families of those killed.

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.

Information for this posting is from:
King County Medical Examiner's Office - 2008 Annual Report prepared by David Fleming, MD and Richard Harruff, MD, PHD.

A 44-year-old pedestrian was taken to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle with "life-threatening" injuries after becoming entangled in a rope used to tow another car reports The Seattle Times. The man suffered critical head injuries in the accident.

According to The Times, the pedestrian accident occurred when a Toyota Camry was being towed by a GMC pickup truck using a nylon rope as a tow cable. The two vehicles were headed southeast on Renton Avenue South and the pickup truck turned right onto 62nd Avenue South but the Toyota did not make the turn. The pedestrian's legs became entangled in the rope as he crossed 62nd street in an unmarked crosswalk and the man fell and hit his head.

Seattle police are investigating the pedestrian accident.

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.

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.

Noni Echo-Hawk-Lopez, age 6, suffered an injury to his jaw after he was hit while walking by a bicyclist in a downtown Seattle intersection by a man who then tried to leave the area. Young Noni was hit while he was walking with his father Chris Lopez and brother on Friday night outside Pike Street Market. The bicyclist reportedly picked up his bike after the accident and tried to flee until a group of bystanders tackled him and subdued him until police arrived.

According to the report on Seattle's KING 5.com, Noni was treated at Harborview Medical Center where physicians had to wire his jaw shut. He may require reconstructive surgery in the future.

The article did not what charges the bicyclist might face. Washington vehicle code establishes crosswalks at all intersections and requires vehicles to stop for pedestrians (WAC 132E-16-040 Pedestrians — Right of Way).

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. With our help, you may recover compensation for your damages including medical costs and for pain and suffering.

Contact The Farber Law Group at 1-800-244-9087 or attorney@hgfarber.com to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation. We have offices in Seattle and Bellevue to assist you.