Houston Car Accident Lawyer Blog

There were a number of fatal accidents in the Houston area over a recent 24 hour period, according to reports:

One occurred on the East Freeway in the early hours of Monday morning. According to witnesses a man on foot could be seen fleeing across a parking lot when a pickup truck struck him. The driver of the pickup did not stop and the victim was pronounced dead at the scene.

Only a few hours before another pedestrian accident resulted in death. In this case a woman walking in the early evening hours when she stepped in front of a vehicle traveling at a normal rate of speed for the area. The woman was struck and transported to the hospital where she later died from her injuries. The investigation is ongoing.

In another - what could be termed bizarre - incident a young man was actually standing in a moving traffic lane when he was struck by a large SUV and then struck a second time. Shockingly, neither driver stopped to check on the condition of the pedestrian - both fled and the pedestrian died at the scene. The police are asking for witnesses or anyone who knows anything about the case to come forward with their information.

In the span of a single day - three people on foot were struck and killed in our city and in three of the cases the drivers are now considered hit and run suspects. They stand to face severe criminal penalties if they are caught and successfully prosecuted.

Meanwhile, pedestrians must take more caution when walking in Houston area traffic.

Continue reading "3 Fatal Houston Accidents in One Day" »

At least 2 people were killed in a commercial truck accident in Walker County, Texas today. The fatal truck accident occurred on Interstate 45 in the south direction around Huntsville late this afternoon.

The Texas Department of Public safety is investigating the truck accident and can be expected to conduct a full accident reconstruction of the fatal wreck. Accident reconstruction includes surveying the accident site and locating important landmarks such as skidmarks, debris, resting positions of the vehicles and determining through objective evidence and eyewitness accounts the point of impact, the speed of the vehicles and why the accident occurred.

The Texas Department of Public safety routinely conducts the formal accident reconstruction when there is a fatality involving more than one vehicle. Often, defense or insurance interests as well as the victim's families also retained expert witnesses to reenact the accident to determine causation. It is important that families who have lost a loved one contact a knowledgeable truck accident attorney as soon as possible after an accident.

There are many computer aided programs that are used by expert witnesses and also by the DPS to assist them in their reconstruction of the crash. Additionally, today the surveys are done by virtue of a laser that shortens the time necessary to survey the accident scene and also is much more accurate than hand measurements.

There's not much known about this fatal crash at this time. We do know that there are roughly 5000 fatal truck accidents each year and a significant percentage of them are in Texas. One study indicated that 8.9% of the fatal traffic accidents in the nation happened in Texas between 1996 and the year 2000.

One reason for the large number of fatal truck accidents in Texas is the number of miles of highway across Texas. Not only is Interstate 45 a heavily traveled roadway for trucks but also Interstate 10 I-35, I-20 and other highways are heavily traveled by 18 wheelers.

About one half of all tractor-trailer fatal crashes happen on non-divided two-lane highways. The non-divided two-way highway is probably the most dangerous for the public in general. Most of the divided highway accidents either involve rear end crashes, loss of control or jackknife situations.

Continue reading "Semi Truck Accident Kills 2 North of Houston" »

Recent vehicle collisions on Houston roads have proved deadly for some drivers. Consider the following news stories.

As recently as last evening a woman was killed in a car crash on the Loop. It began when an individual - whom witnesses have stated was driving erratically - slammed into the back of another vehicle causing the gas tank to erupt into flames.

While the driver of this second vehicle was able to escape his passenger could not and she died in the car. The perpetrator of the accident fled the scene after attempting to secure a ride from one of the witnesses. He is still being sought.

In another case a vehicle with four persons inside led police on a chase across the city when police attempted to pull the vehicle over. The car finally came to a stop when it got a flat tire - but the suspects jumped out and attempted to flee before being caught and arrested.

Finally, two vehicles and seven persons also led police on a chase that ended in a cemetery - but fortunately there were no fatalities or even serious injuries. The occupants of the vehicles were suspected of burglary - and all were arrested.

Perhaps the most troubling part of this story is that a young child - unsecured by a seat belt or child car seat - was in the vehicle as the cars traveled at high speeds on city streets.

In all three cases either (or both) drinking and outstanding warrants were suspected to be a reason for the suspects fleeing the scene.

Continue reading "Houston Car Accidents" »

There are a wide variety of trailers that can be attached to cars or trucks for a number of purposes. The more common types are trailers for hauling items such as boats or bikes, horse trailers, trailers for the purpose of moving households from one location to another and trailers for other work such as construction or carnival employment. Many Houston car accidents are caused by trailers.

Trailers are attached to a 'hitch' and these come in various sizes and styles to meet the myriad towing needs of the American public. Some of the more common types include (but are not limited to) standard, ball and front mount. The standard hitch is usually attached to the frame of a vehicle and is used for towing. The ball type of hitch is spherical and most likely found in situations that require bumper pulling. The front mount is attached directly to a truck's framework.

Trailers that have not been attached properly cause hundreds of auto accidents and injuries each year including many wrongful death cases.. Often, these problems arise because the driver has failed to follow the proper safety precautions when attaching and securing the trailer.

For instance, problems may arise if the trailer has not been 'leveled' or the locking mechanism is not secure. Too, if a trailer's tires are in poor condition then the loss of one could cause the trailer to fishtail and disconnect or otherwise lead to an unexpected tragedy.

Finally, if a driver has not properly secured the load he is carrying or speeds and brakes mindlessly he or she is placing themselves in danger as well as the other drivers and passengers on the road.

One would hardly expect that a vehicle device designed specifically to save lives could actually be a source of further injury to drivers and passengers. However, unfortunately, this is the case in some instances with the most basic of vehicle safety devices - the seat belt.

For instance, in one accident the seat belt actually ripped - failing to provide the passenger with adequate protection - as well as failing to prevent the individual from being thrown against the front dash and suffering multiple injuries.

Those who design and manufacture seat belts realize that the construction of a seat belt is actually a complicated webbing of material. The seat belt is deliberately crafted of interwoven threads to further strengthen the belt and ensure that it remains intact under stress.

Defective seat belts may be traced to the actual manufacturer but can also be the cause of consequences such as its severance in a vehicle collision due to the protrusion of sharp objects or edges. Most seat belt cases stem from defective designs of the seat belt system.

In addition, there have been multiple cases in which cars equipped with air bags have exploded in a crash and actually burned the individual - instead of offering further protection.

Vehicle collisions and safety devices designed to protect individuals in a car or truck is not quite an exact science - although millions of dollars are poured into the engineering and manufacturing of each.

Defective seat belts can result in product liability on behalf of the manufacturer - and those businesses that profit from the fabrication and sale of faulty products can sometimes be held liable when they fail.

Continue reading "Defective Seat Belt Claims" »

If you are in the market for a new car and safety ranks as your most important consideration over price or even over gas mileage then the following blog is dedicated to your search.

Even as gas prices soar the temptation to purchase a smaller vehicle in order to stretch an already squealing budget should be given a second or third look. Though there have been advances in vehicle construction and safety, small cars in general are more likely to provide the driver and passengers less overall protection in a catastrophic collision.

No matter how safe your own driving record is - you simply cannot account for the driving behaviors of everyone else on the road and that is usually the cause of most accidents - the other driver.

The fact is that smaller cars weigh less and it is this factor that often leads to more severe injuries in an accident - even if the other vehicle is a car of similar size and weight.

However, when a larger car or truck collides with yours injury results rise markedly. In a survey done by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety the number of deaths that occur in small car collisions is 33% higher than in a mid-size car accident. Furthermore, the number of deaths in car and truck accidents drops significantly as the size and weight of the vehicle increases.

Finally, I myself am not an advocate of one car company or vehicle design over another. Rather I am an advocate of anything that keeps Americans safe on the roads.

Continue reading "Buying a Small Car for Mileage or Larger One for Safety?" »

Drinking and driving has deadly consequences - and more often than not it is the innocent and unsuspecting driver who loses his or her life - not the drunk driver.

Take a reported story of fellow just into his early twenties and add ten beers to his blood stream. Put him behind the wheel of his pick-up and hold your breath as he attempts to navigate on the open highway. ONLY he heads off in the wrong direction driving on the wrong side of the highway. WRONG WAY drivers often are the cause of catastrophic accidents and this case was no exception.

The young man's truck slammed into a tanker on a highway and the result was an explosion and fireball that lit up the sky for miles. The truck driver was killed in this horrific collision.

The drunk driver is behind bars having miraculously escaping with HIS life.
The news report quotes the driver who caused the accident as being 'real sorry'. He was further quoted as saying he knew he'd caused 'a real bad accident'.

The tanker driver had spoken to his wife on the phone only moments before the accident that claimed his life. He'd told her he had a couple more deliveries and would then be on his way home.

Even in the retelling of this incident it is difficult to decide whether it is more gut-wrenching or heart-wrenching. The man leaves behind 3 children as well. It is difficult to imagine losing your loved one at all - let alone in a conflagration caused by negligence and ignorance.

A driver who is intoxicated and causes a wrongful death of another can be assured that the world as they know it is about to change drastically.

Don't, don't, don't drink and drive.

Continue reading "DWI- Dont Do It" »

Anyone can access the Texas Department of Transportation to access specific information regarding automobile and truck accidents in our state. Unfortunately, the statistics are grim. Recent reports find that there were nearly 3500 deaths in a recent year across the state.

That works out to be one person killed every two and a half hours and an injury every couple minutes. The accidents themselves run the gamut of one car to multi-vehicle caused by everything from distracted driving, drunk driving accidents and more.

Fortunately ownership of cell phones is nearly universal which ensures that emergency services can be quickly summoned to the site of a wreck - a move that could be life-saving for many.

Too, GPS helps police and first responders arrive in less time because this technology provides the most accurate route to the scene. Finally, the average citizen has access to life saving information simply by querying their mobile phone for appropriate first aid suggestions - a more common and level headed approach to help injured persons than most realize.

So, now we know the statistics on injury accidents in the state and also what might be the expected response. The question of how to avoid an accident is equally as important. If you cant avoid the accident and get injured call a Texas personal injury lawyer as soon as possible. Keep the following advice in mind when you head out on the roads.

Don't tailgate. Don't speed. Don't change lanes without using your signals. Don't drive aggressively. Don't drive inappropriately for the weather conditions. Don't talk on your cell phone or text. Don't drive drowsy. Don't drive drunk. Don't drive distracted.

Many times accidents are chalked up to drunk driving, but after autopsies have been performed, the reports will show about thirty percent of these bodies had large doses of drugs that impaired the driver's judgment. The problem is that there really is no roadside test for the average police department to check for drugs in the driver's system.

Typically, they will arrest them for being suspect of drunken driving, and get a judge to issue a court order for a full work up on a blood sample. This is nothing new, but the public has not become aware of drugged driving yet.

People consuming narcotics like heroin, LSD, and marijuana have no idea what they are doing at times behind the wheel of a four thousand pound car that now becomes an assault weapon with the capability of killing one or as many as a dozen people before crashing to a halt or being forced to stop by the police.

Someone that is hallucinating from drugs while driving is just as deadly as a person consuming a fifth of vodka before getting in their personal vehicle. Sadly, the driver is usually spared in these types of accidents, but the personal loss that is caused by the victim's families cannot be calculated.

Even more deadly are combinations of drugs, and alcohol for vehicle operators, some will die from overdosing while driving, and cause a crash, as there is not a living person behind the steering wheel any longer.

The federal government, and several car makers are working on technology the could possibly render vehicles immobile in the future by sensing the chemicals that are coming out of the pores of their hands, but that is years away from becoming a reality. Making this type of technology, a requirement for each vehicle will have to be fought out in congress, and at state level legislatures too.

People who kill others while under the influence of drugs are just a guilty, as drunk drivers, and are just as liable in civil court for wrongful death, and personal injury lawsuits.

When technology finally catches up the with drug users, the jails will start swelling by double, but for now most of these people are only caught after the damage has been done to them, and their victims.

Prevention through new inventions will hopefully curtail this whole area of criminal activity, and prevent thousands of deaths each year in the future.

Continue reading "Drugged Driving Is Just As Rampant As Drunk Driving" »

Great news - pundits, state and federal groups and famous personalities have formed a united front to combat the increasingly deadly phenomenon of distracted driving!

Daily public service announcements can be heard on the radio and seen on television warning drivers of the potential deadliness of their actions - that include everything from texting to talking on the phone and eating to reading!

As cars have become more of a home away from home for people - their ability to recognize the disaster that awaits them when they become too comfortable - and don't put driving as their first priority - is becoming part of the national consciousness.

While it is not possible to determine to the letter which Houston car accidents were caused by a distracted driver - experts can state definitively that several deaths a day occur across the country because people were inattentive behind the wheel. Equally as disastrous is the fact that there are thousands of injuries (both temporary and permanent) that can be traced to distracted driving as well.

As awareness continues to grow about the dangers of driving distracted the state and federal legislatures are starting to take an active role in passing laws that will help to curb the worst of these offenses - texting and/or talking on cell phones while driving.

Do your part as well - discourage family members from driving distracted - and model appropriate driving behavior for others. Put your cell phone down or better yet turn it off until you arrive.

Continue reading "Distracted Driving Fight Goes On" »

The no refusal program which was implemented a few months ago for areas surrounding Houston is gearing up for Super Bowl weekend. All in all, the program has led to record numbers of arrests for those suspected of being under the influence of alcohol and driving.

The program enables officers to obtain a warrant for drawing blood from those drivers who refuse a breathalyzer test. News reports indicate that over 13,000 drivers in Harris County were charged with DWI last year. It is no surprise that Houston leads the nation in fatal drunk driver accidents and Texas leads the nation in the same category.

Designated driver, call a cab or stay put but please do not drink and drive.

Continue reading "No Refusal DWI Program for Houston Super Bowl Parties" »

Drinking and driving is the number one cause of vehicle fatalities in this country.

Even with increased laws on the books intended to curb drunk driving - upwards of 43% of car and truck deaths occur because of a drunk driver.

Consider the following scenarios which - although arguably quite gruesome - when shared with friends and family they may prove to be the best deterrent against intoxicated driving.

The sad truth about drunk driving and children is that two-thirds of children who are killed in auto accidents are in a vehicle in which the driver has been drinking. Another truism of alcohol mixing with driving is that September is the deadliest month for college students as they get back into the swing of binge drinking and driving.

Grievous circumstances in which a death occurred because a driver was drinking includes a story about an intoxicated father who ran over his own child near his home while the seven year old girl was walking the family dog.

Equally as unsettling is a case of one brother witnessing the accidental death of his other brother at the hands of a drunk driver. In yet another case a man was sentenced to a little less than twenty years of hard time in prison for a drunk driving accident that left an unborn child dead.

Take a cab, get a designated driver, walk or stay in a hotel. Don't drink and drive.

Continue reading "Drunk Driving Accident Statistics" »

We often discuss the number of vehicle fatalities and their many causes in this blog. Let us take a more positive tone and offer some advice compiled by experts that will increase your chances of surviving an accident.

The most important proactive measure a person can take to help them walk away from an accident intact is to wear your seatbelt. While for many of this it is simply a habit - a recent survey found conflicting evidence of regular seatbelt wear. While some researchers claim that over 90% of people always buckle up others state that perhaps one in seven do not.

Speaking of seat belts - when you make a new (or used) car purchase make sure it has the greatest number of recent safety devices available in your price range. Older cars do not have neck supports, anti-lock brakes and other safety technology. Remember that when you are buying a car your goal is also to ensure the safety of you and your passengers.

Secure items in the car so that in case of an accident no one will be hit by objects flying from the impact. This is true of pets as well. There are a number of safety seats and securing devices for dogs and animals.

Make sure your car is in good working order BEFORE you set out on a trip. This includes ensuring that you have enough fuel, the tires are in good shape and that all the fuels are topped off.

Finally, follow all traffic and road signs. Stay alert and drive safely.

Continue reading "Surviving an Automobile Accident" »

I have a friend who was waxing long over the fact that his neighbor was still driving at the age of 95. He went on to describe at length how he would see the garage door roll open several times a week at all times of the day and night and marvel at how this little elderly woman - nearly impossible to see above the dashboard and behind the steering wheel - would inch her way down the drive and then down the street.

Those who lived close by knew to stay off the road when she set off because she had a habit of forgetting to stop at stop signs as well as driving on the wrong side of the road. Police had been called on several occasions but - as yet - law enforcement had been unable to deny her a driver's license.

This might be mildly amusing if it weren't so potentially deadly. As baby boomers and their parents inch into their twilight years it is difficult to get them to accept what should be considered a natural limit to their abilities. With age comes decreasing eyesight clarity, reflex response times and impaired judgment - such as predicting the amount of time needed to make a left hand turn in front of oncoming traffic.

I am not elder-bashing here. A wealth of studies have been done to support these premises - and the statistics are available to show that aging adults are less capable of handling a several thousand pound machine in increasingly congested traffic situations.

If you have an older parent or family member who is still driving - consider discussing alternative methods of transportation that may keep everyone safer.

News stories in which an elderly driver caused injury and death to others because of incapacitation are difficult to read - and most certainly are even more tragic to experience.

We want to protect elderly drivers from not only contributing to a car accident but getting injured in the process.

Continue reading "When is a Person Too Old to Drive?" »

Recently a father on his way to work was broadsided by an automobile. The impact sent his truck tumbling and when it came to a stop he was dead.

Accident reconstructionists found no skid marks at the scene which led them to conclude that the driver of the car did not even see the truck before hitting it...most likely because she was distracted. This type of auto accident happens every day in Texas.

Distracted driving is quickly becoming the national focus of local, state and government organizations as well as people of influence - including well known celebrities.

In order to drive home the fact that people who are being killed in distracted driving accidents are our mothers and fathers, brothers and sisters, family members and friends - the United States Department of Transportation has developed a video entitled 'The Faces of Distracted Driving'. In it, family members share the pain and tragic stories behind what many only see as the statistics of the death and devastation that accompanies a distracted driving accident.

The video is a series of segments in which family members are friends are encouraged to share their losses with verbal frankness. It is difficult to look away - and haunting for those who give little thought to their own behavior behind the wheel.

An accident can be an unfortunate mishap - but distracted driving is not an accident - it is clear negligence instead.

Continue reading "Distracted Driving and the DOT" »