Trucking Accident Lawyer Blog

After a rough winter such as Maryland and the East Coast has recently experienced it is easy to say that weather is unpredictable and that drivers can be caught off guard with little recourse to prevent an accident. While trucking accidents can and do happen every week on the highways and surface streets in and near cities such as Annapolis, Frederick, Rockville and D.C. the weather is just one factor.

As Maryland trucking accident attorneys, my office understands how severe a tractor-trailer, delivery truck or commercial carrier accident can be. Many times, persons injured as a result of a truck driver’s negligence must pursue legal means to recover damages, such as medical costs, lost wages and other accident-related expenses. Of course, fatal auto accidents are the worst-case scenario for a truck-related wreck, which unfortunately no amount of compensation can make up for the tragic loss of life.

A recent editorial in the Baltimore Sun brought up the point that truck drivers should be held responsible for situations involving tractor-trailer jack-knifing. While there are many who would argue that weather conditions themselves make a jack-knife accident less avoidable, it is not unreasonable to expect that all drivers are responsible for operating their vehicles within its physical limits based on weather and road surface conditions, such as snow and ice.

The author of this editorial piece suggests that tractor-trailer drivers who cannot control their rigs on Maryland highways should be labeled as “Public Enemy No. 1.” This came out of the suggestion that some truckers are not competent to operate commercial trucks in winter weather conditions.

As the author suggests, if a truck driver is capable and responsible he or she should be able drive their rig at a speed appropriate for conditions and avoid a jack-knifing accident.

As motorists, we all must trust the abilities of these big-rig operators. But many of us have also seen the carnage created by those all-to-frequent trucking accidents in which a smaller passenger car gets hit or forced of the road by a larger and more threatening 18-wheeler.

There is no doubt that some accidents occur as a result of another person’s negligence, in which case the police investigation is crucial in determining cause and fault. Regardless of how the accident happens, if the truck driver is at fault the victim and his or her family deserve to be compensated for injuries and other losses from that crash -- all the more reason to consult a trucking accident attorney to understand your options.

Truckers have choice words about jackknife cause, BaltimoreSun.com, February 15, 2010

Two individuals were injured by a semi driver during a highway accident near Hagerstown, MD, along southbound Interstate 81. According to news reports, the passengers of a 1992 Dodge Dynasty were taken to Washington County Hospital on the afternoon of February 13 following a harrowing car-truck wreck in Washington County.

As a Baltimore trucking accident lawyer, I and my colleagues are quite familiar with the factors that lead to tractor-trailer accidents involving sedans, minivan and sport utility vehicles. These types of accidents can frequently result in severe injuries, such as head, neck and back trauma, and can occasionally be fatal. In this instance, the two-vehicle crash on the southbound lanes of I-81 sent two occupants of the smaller passenger car to a nearby hospital, according to Maryland State Police in Hagerstown.

Based on news reports, the crash occurred around 1:30pm on a Saturday afternoon. The driver and passenger in the Dodge were heading south along I-81, just north of Md. 68, when a 2009 Peterbilt tractor-trailer made an unsafe lane change, police reports show. The semi trailer hit the Dynasty’s driver’s side, which then caused the car to spin out of control, strike the median and overturn.

Police reported that the sedan’s occupants -- 57-year-old Judith Ann Athey and 67-year-old Marshall Lee Athey -- were taken to Washington County Hospital to be treated for their injuries. The truck driver, 51-year-old Donald Paul Shallcross, was not injured, according to Maryland troopers. There was no mention at the time of the news article what charges, if any, would be brought against the semi driver.

Two hurt in I-81 crash, Hearld-Mail.com, February 13, 2010

Traffic accidents caused by large semi and tractor-trailer rigs are fairly commonplace on Maryland’s roadways. But crashes involving fire and rescue vehicles can also occur and have similar and possibly tragic results. As a Maryland injury lawyer and commercial truck accident attorney, I see reports of motorists injured as a result of these kinds of wrecks fairly often in the Baltimore area and around our state.

As recent a news article pointed out, the potential for injury or death from a trucking accident can impact the lives of both drivers and passengers traveling in smaller motor vehicles. These individuals are most vulnerable, as are pedestrians, when caught in crashes involving big rigs and delivery trucks. According to reports, witnesses stated that a Calvert County fire engine hit another Anne Arundel County ladder truck while apparently on the way to an emergency call.

The collision, which reports described as a side-swiping accident, also affected two passenger cars when the Calvert County truck sideswiped the Anne Arundel ladder truck on a Sunday afternoon in Galesville, Maryland.

Witnesses to the accident claimed that the driver of the Calvert County fire engine hit the West Annapolis-based Tower 40 and then continued on without offering assistance. The accident occurred just after 4pm, according to Anne Arundel police, at the intersection of Muddy Creek and Owensville roads. At the time of the article, police said that a 24-year-old volunteer with the Dunkirk Volunteer Fire Department in northern Calvert County was at fault in the wreck.

Although no body was seriously injured in the crash, the incident resulted in putting the Anne Arundel ladder truck out of service for the rest of the day and caused damage to two private vehicles. One driver of the two smaller vehicles that were hit reportedly took himself to the hospital for observation.

According to police reports, James Russel Carey Jr., a firefighter who started driving fire department vehicles in 1993, was driving Tower 40 south on Muddy Creek Road through the intersection of Owensville Road on a green light. While crossing the intersection, the county ladder truck was struck by an eastbound fire engine manned by the driver and four other Dunkirk volunteer firefighters.

Continue reading " Baltimore Trucking Accident News: Maryland Motorists Involved in Calvert County, MD, Fire Truck Crash " »

As a Baltimore trucking accident attorney and personal injury lawyer, I know the heartache associated with the physical injuries sustained during a bad traffic accident. Most of the people we represent in the course of our work are drivers and passengers of sedans, minivans and pickup trucks. When these smaller vehicles go up against a larger motor vehicle, such as a Peterbilt, Kenworth or International semi tractor-trailer rig, the passenger car and its occupants usually end up losing.

While most Maryland trucking accidents result in minor to severe injuries, occasionally occupants can suffer fatal injury as a consequence of a trucking wreck. The higher the speed, the more seriously people can be hurt. Multiple vehicle crashes involving semi trucks can raise the injury or death toll at an accident scene.

A recent news article reported a multi-vehicle collision involving a tractor-trailer on Route 113 in Worchester County and Ironshire Station Road near Berlin, MD. The incident occurred just after noon during bad weather and poor visibility, which police say were contributing factors to the afternoon crash.

According to reports, a Honda passenger car and a following van both were slowing down because of the poor weather conditions when a semi struck the two vehicles from behind. The tractor-trailer then jack knifed, blocking the southbound portion of the roadway.

A passenger vehicle following the truck slowed down for the first accident and was rear-ended by a other motor vehicle. That impact pushed the vehicle into a third one, causing some minor injuries.

The chain-reaction continued as a second tractor-trailer rig slowed to a stop to avoid the second crash site, which resulted in a sport utility vehicle (SUV) crashing into the second semi. The SUV was subsequently hit from behind by a pickup truck. Several drivers in all were taken to the hospital with serious but non-life-threatening injuries. The drivers of the two semi trucks were not injured.

The three related accidents, which resulted in a total of nine damaged vehicles, caused Route 113 to be closed for nearly two hours while emergency crews cleared the wreckage.

Multi-Vehicle Crash in Worcester County, WBOC.com, February 11, 2010