The tragic auto accident, which occurred in March 2015 at the intersection of State Road 78 and U.S. 27 in Glades County, was the subject of a year-long investigation and a number of changes to the intersection where the crash occurred. The conclusions of the report help to clarify the avenues of financial recovery victims may have.

All the people aboard the bus were from Fort Pierce and belonged to the Independent Haitian Assembly of God Church and were returning from a Palm Sunday celebration with a sister church in Fort Myers.

Local investigators determined early on that the 58-year-old van driver breezed through a stop sign, apparently not seeing it, before tearing across the four-lane highway and careening off the road and nosediving into a steep embankment before landing in a canal. The driver – one of only two people wearing a seat belt in the van – did not survive. Of the 10 who survived, all – including a four-year-old girl – were seriously injured. 

There were no other witnesses to the crash. In fact, the only reason help arrived was because one of the passengers was able to stagger to the roadside and flag a passing vehicle to call police.

Investigators also knew fairly quickly that the van was rated for safely carrying 15 people, and yet was carrying 18. A 2004 report by the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) revealed car accidents involving these 15-passenger vans were more likely to be deadly due to the risk of rollover. That didn’t happen in this case, but investigators did learn the van was not properly equipped with seat belts, as the law requires.

The driver had an active class B commercial driver’s license good through 2019, had been medically cleared by his doctor per annual state requirements and appeared to be in good health. He was also familiar with this particular route. As far as his driving safety history, he had been cited for speeding three times in his driving history, the most recent in 2010, and he had a citation for careless driving in 2004.

As far as the van itself, there were no notable mechanical problems.

The intersection was equipped with all the legally required signage, though the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) did end up making some changes after the crash, per recommendations made by the NTSB. Those included: A larger stop sign, a flashing “stop ahead” sign, rumble strips and reflective markers along the canal.

As far as liability, it’s tough to know without having in-depth knowledge of all the details, but in general, we can say potential parties in this case might include:

• The estate of the driver/ driver’s insurer
• The church/ church’s insurer (both as owner of the van and employer of the driver)
• Victims’ underinsured motorist (UIM) carrier

In other situations, we might recommend exploring whether the manufacturer could be held liable for a defect and also the government agency responsible for road maintenance, but neither of those appear to have been an issue in this case.

If you have been a victim of a traffic accident, call Chalik & Chalik at (954) 476-1000 or 1 (800) 873-9040. 

Additional Resources:

Fatal Glades County Van Crash Report Released, April 12, 2016, By Michael Braun, News-Press

More Blog Entries:

Facts About Florida Car Accidents, April 8, 2016, Miami Car Accident Attorney Blog

After an in depth investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), it was revealed that the trucker, 53-year-old Russell Staley, was driving under the influence of synthetic marijuana, also referred to as a synthetic cannabinoid. The driver, with a documented history of drug use, crashed his semi into the bus carrying the team.

The team bus was heading home to Gainsville, Texas, when the big rig maneuvered its way through a slight curve, drifted across the driving lane, barreled through a 100-foot-wide median and traveled on for more than 366 yards, ramming into the smaller bus. Four died, five were seriously injured, and six passengers, in addition to the drivers, sustained minor injuries.

Although synthetic marijuana, like other synthetic drugs, is sold as legally and as a cheaper alternative, the effects of smoking the chemical compound may cause seizures, psychosis and non-responsiveness. The main issue according to the NTSB is that while there are laws prohibiting truckers from driving while impaired, only a few such substances are tested per federal regulations.

The reality is that the world of drugs is changing far faster than laws can keep up to those changes. There is a new, emerging class of synthetic drugs, and employers and law enforcement need better tools at their disposal to detect an impaired driver. Even though the NTSB made recommendations to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) about dealing with synthetic chemical compounds, it may be some time before anything is done.

Lee, Gober and Reyna – If you need a personal injury lawyer or help with an auto accident, motorcycle accident, wrongful death, or burn injury case, contact Lee, Gober and Reyna by visiting http://www.lgrlawfirm.com or calling 512.800.8000

According to the NTSB, 90 percent of all transportation-related deaths occur in motor vehicle accidents. Many of these involve alcohol or drug impairment and are therefore considered completely avoidable. In the past decade, more than 119,000 people have been killed in auto accidents involving alcohol impairment. According to a AAA study, about one in seven drivers admits to having driven when suspecting him- or herself to be over or close to the legal BAC limit.

The problem extends beyond alcohol. Over-the-counter, prescription and illegal drugs can also cause impairment. The National Survey on Drug Use and Health found that more than 10 million people admitted to driving under the influence of illegal drugs within the previous year.

Efforts to prevent impaired driving can be divided into general deterrents and specific deterrents. General deterrents are aimed at the general public, and they include legal limits on blood alcohol content (BAC) and high-visibility enforcement campaigns. Specific deterrents are used to encourage those who have been caught driving while impaired to refrain from doing so again. These include jail terms, fines and license revocation.

The NTSB points out that conventional deterrents are often ineffective in cases where the individual has a substance abuse problem. Driving While Intoxicated (DWI) courts aim to change offender behavior by focusing on accountability and long-term treatment with close, comprehensive supervision.

The agency has also highlighted technological advances for curbing impaired driving. Passive alcohol sensors are small electronic devices built into police flashlights or clipboards that detect alcohol in the ambient air. They do not require a suspect’s cooperation, as they can work from outside a vehicle’s open window. Ignition interlock devices can be installed in offenders’ cars, requiring them to breathe into the device for a BAC reading before the car can be started.

The NTSB advocates a reduction of the BAC at which a driver is presumed impaired from the current 0.08 percent to 0.05 percent. It also recommends incorporating the use of passive alcohol sensors into enforcement efforts, expanding the use of ignition interlocks and developing best practices for DWI courts.

If you need to speak with a auto accident lawyer, Call Joyce & Reyes at 1.888.771.1529 or visit more of http://www.joyceandreyespa.com/.

One of the items on the list is the improvement of helicopter safety. According to the NTSB, the past decade saw 1,470 helicopter accidents in commercial, medical and search and rescue flights. These crashes resulted in 477 deaths and 274 serious injuries.

The board called attention to the importance of duty-time regulations for helicopter maintenance personnel. Unlike airline pilots, helicopter pilots are not usually on duty for extended periods. But maintenance and inspection personnel may work long shifts that could hinder their ability to identify crucial safety issues. The NTSB recommends regulations that account for factors such as shift start times, workloads and rest time to ensure maximum alertness.

The board also recommends that operators ensure that pilots are trained in hazardous situations, including inadvertent flight into inclement weather and autorotation. Autorotation is a state in which a helicopter’s engine fails and the only lift provided is by air moving upward through the rotors (as opposed to engine power driving the rotors). Skillful management of autorotation scenarios often means the difference between life and death after power loss in a helicopter.

When someone is killed or injured in a helicopter accident and another may be to blame, the counsel of an experienced personal injury attorney is key. At the Lietz Law Firm, we have extensive experience in transportation accidents of all kinds. We know how to deal with federal and state investigators to uncover the truth of what happened and to get you the compensation you deserve.

We Focus our Practice Exclusively on Wrongful Death and Critical Injury Cases – Contact a personal injury lawyer at The Lietz Law Firm by calling 866-554-1238 or learn more by visiting http://www.lietzlaw.com/.

Buses, by the numbers, are very safe. But because they carry large numbers of people – who often are not wearing seatbelts – a bus accident can result in many injuries or deaths.

The NTSB pointed out that much attention has been focused on the protection of passengers from injury in the event of a crash. But in this report, the board shifts focus to avoiding bus crashes in the first place. In order to do this, we need better oversight of drivers by the bus companies and better oversight of the companies by the government, the NTSB says.

Companies that operate buses should review a long and comprehensive driving history of potential new employees, according to the report. They should also use video recorders to assess driver performance and require drivers to get regular medical checkups to make sure they are fit to work. Drivers and their employers should work together to manage the risk of fatigue by setting responsible limits on hours of service.

The NTSB also recommends additional oversight of bus companies by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). The FMCSA should require new carriers to demonstrate their competence in safety before giving them the green light. And the FMCSA should develop methods for ensuring compliance in the event that a carrier is ordered to cease operations due to safety violations.

We Focus our Practice Exclusively on Wrongful Death and Critical Injury Cases – Contact a personal injury attorney at The Lietz Law Firm by calling 866-554-1238 or learn more by visiting http://www.lietzlaw.com/.

The legal limit has been lowered over the years. Initially, the DUI breath test limit was 0.15 in 1941. It was later reduced to 0.12, then 0.10, and now the 0.08 that is the law in Florida DUI cases. The 0.05 limit is used in Europe which is a much less car-centric society. As a DUI defense attorney, I rarely see cases where the driver has a breath test under 0.08. A person must be arrested for DUI before a breath test can be requested. The police do no “unarrest’ you if you blow under the legal limit and these DUI cases are still prosecuted in court. They are difficult DUI cases to prove obviously and many times are dismissed or reduced to lesser charges. Therefore, it is clear that this law would only affect social drinkers who are not a problem or hazard on the road. That’s why a driver is presumed to not be impaired by alcohol when they have such a low blood alcohol level.

DUI is a very serious crime and can have devastating outcomes when a person drives impaired and there is an accident. DUI Manslaughter or DUI causing Serious Bodily Injury can result in substantial prison terms. I do not think lowering the limit will dramatically cut down on alcohol impaired deaths. Even safety groups like Mothers Against Drunk Driving and AAA declined to endorse the NTSB’s call for a 0.05 threshold.

If you have been arrested for DUI, call and speak to an aggressive Polk County DUI defense attorney. Always make sure that the DUI lawyer you retain is actually located in Polk county and will go to court with you and not send an associate. Get someone working on your DUI case now because it can make a difference in the outcome of your criminal case!

DON’T HESITATE!!! CALL NOW!!!
PROTECT YOUR RIGHTS!!!

CALL THOMAS C. GRAJEK, POLK COUNTY DUI ATTORNEY

CALL NOW 863-838-5549 cell

Aggressive Polk DUI defense attorney handling all DUI arrests, DUI Manslaughter, and DUI with Serious Bodily Injury in Polk county, FL.