Recent Blog Posts
Crash on US 183 Sends Motorcyclist to Hospital
On the evening of August 8, a man was thrown off his motorcycle as he collided with another vehicle on northbound U.S. 183. He was transported to Dell Seton Medical Center with serious injuries, but as of this writing is expected to recover. Law enforcement has few details, but it is easy to wonder about the nature of the accident. Motorcycle riding is a dangerous hobby, but at the same time, if someone acted negligently, the injured man may have a good claim against the driver of the vehicle that struck him. If you are ever involved in an accident on your motorcycle, you should know that you have just as many rights as the driver of an automobile.
Motorcycling Can Be Dangerous
Texas has approximately 381,000 motorcycles registered in the state, and it is extremely common to see motorcycles on Texas roads. While most riders are scrupulously cautious and do everything they can to protect themselves while riding, what many non-riders are not aware of is that even if all precautions have been taken, motorcycling is markedly more dangerous than riding in a car. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) estimates that a motorcyclist is 28 times more likely to die than a vehicle driver or passenger, should an accident occur.
One Killed As Pickup Hit By Train
Travelers on the morning Amtrak train from San Antonio to Houston on Friday, August 2 received an unpleasant shock when their train hit a pickup truck coming out of a private drive on FM 78. According to law enforcement, no one on the train was harmed, but the driver of the pickup truck was killed. The train could not stop immediately, but did eventually halt so that law enforcement could process the scene. Train accidents are very rare, thankfully, but they do happen in Texas, especially in the Houston-San Antonio corridor where the tracks can be extremely busy. If you have been involved in a train accident, and you believe the train was operated negligently, you may be able to try and seek compensation for your injuries.
Train Accidents Are Devastating
Train-car crashes are not always fatal, but often are. Those who survive are left with serious medical bills for a host of injuries, from broken bones, cuts, and bruises to whiplash and traumatic brain injuries. The Bureau of Transportation Statistics does not include highway-grade rail crossing accidents in their annual tally, but even without them, one can see that there are hundreds of train-related injuries and fatalities each year.
Improvements Sought for Roosevelt Avenue in South San Antonio
The Villa Coronado Homeowners’ Association and other citizen’s groups may finally get some of the safety improvements to Roosevelt Avenue that they have been seeking, since the passage of a 2017-2022 bond earmarked for the area. The stretch between the Loop (I-410) and I-10 has historically played host to significant numbers of fatalities, and those who live and work in the area have cited these statistics as reason to improve the road. As of this writing, a pedestrian mobility project is in the works, and other improvements will follow – but it is still wise to use caution in walking and driving around this area, as accidents can and do occur.
City May Be Liable
If you are involved in an automobile accident, even as a pedestrian, it is sometimes true that the cause of the accident can be linked to problems with the road or its surrounding conditions. Texas has a problem with poorly maintained roads – statistics estimate that only around 33 percent are in good condition, with the majority being in fair condition and roughly 15 percent in poor condition. San Antonio specifically only has around 20 percent of its roads in good condition. Poor conditions can mean anything from an uneven driving surface to poor lighting and can cause significant damage to a vehicle.
Bicyclist Hospitalized After Hit-and-Run
On the night of July 21-22, a bicyclist was struck by a driver at the intersection of Brady Blvd and Driftwood Street, causing a lacerated spleen and other significant injury. The driver did not stop to render aid, but the bicyclist was taken to University Hospital, where he is in stable condition as of this writing. If the driver is located, they may face serious legal issues in both the criminal and civil arenas. If you have been injured in a hit-and-run crash, know that you may be able to seek compensation from the person who struck you.
Hit-And-Run Crashes Are Common
Unfortunately, hit-and-run crashes occur with regularity in Texas. It is not unusual for a driver to make a mistake, get spooked, and try to flee the scene. However, if they do this, the victim of their negligence may have no way to get their medical bills paid. Texas law is on the side of the victim, and allows them to bring suit under a theory of negligence in addition to any criminal penalties that might be assessed.
Two Hospitalized in Rollover Crash on East Side
In the early morning hours of July 25, two men were hospitalized with serious injuries after the driver of their vehicle lost control on East Houston Street, near North Hackberry Street. The driver and the passenger both sustained significant injury after the vehicle rolled, with the driver walking a block or so before collapsing. Both men were taken to Brooke Army Medical Center, with the driver in critical condition and the passenger stable. This is sadly not uncommon with regard to rollover crashes, and if you are injured in one, you may wind up building up significant medical expenses as you recover.
Deadlier Than Most
Rollover accidents involve quite a lot of metal, glass, and plastic moving around at extremely high rates of speed, which leads to their being significantly overrepresented in lists of traffic fatalities. Statistics from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) estimate that while only 2.1 percent of automobile accidents are rollovers, nearly 35 percent of all passenger vehicle fatalities occurred in rollover crashes. This is only made worse by other common causes seen in rollovers, such as alcohol (or other substance) usage and excessive speed.
Truck Driver Fatigue Kills on Texas Roads
Truck drivers have difficult jobs, and they work hard. However, there are far too many instances where truck driver fatigue has played a role in causing auto accidents, and too many injuries sustained in situations where they could have been avoided. If you have been in an auto accident involving a large truck, and you suspect that the driver was fatigued, it may be an important fact to help build a negligence case around.
Proving Negligence
Most of the time, auto accidents involving large trucks are brought under a theory of negligence, and establishing negligence requires four criteria to be shown. You must establish that a duty to exercise reasonable care exists on the part of the defendant (in Texas, this is often stipulated; each motorist on the road is presumed to have a duty of care toward every other motorist) and that the duty has been breached. More specifically, the defendant’s conduct (or lack thereof) must be shown to have been the direct cause of the breach – no other intervening cause can have played a role – and you must also be able to show that you have suffered actual harm.
Church Bus Carrying 40 Children Catches Fire
The morning of July 18 was a terrifying one for some San Antonio-area parents, as the bus carrying their children back from church camp caught fire on Highway 281, near Johnson City in Bianco County. While everyone got off the bus safely, the entire vehicle eventually wound up in flames, totaling the vehicle. The cause was later determined to be a fault in the bus’ engine, which began to smoke and then caught fire. While thankfully, there were no injuries, the engine’s total failure raises legal questions of liability, both between the manufacturer and the church and between the church and the children.
Bus Accident Cases Are Complex
Accidents involving buses can lead to very high casualty counts – between 2009 and 2017, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) estimates approximately a 40 percent increase in the number of fatal crashes involving buses – and sometimes it can be quite difficult to determine how the accident occurred. There are so many potential factors in any road accident – inclement weather, malfunctioning parts, driver error – that anyone can be the tipping point; the Bianco County accident is an exception, rather than a rule. If there had been any casualties, parents would have had to either determine who bore the most liability or choose to bring suit against multiple defendants.
Pedestrian Struck and Killed on I-35 Was “Crossing The Street”
Austin police have recently released more information on a July 14 crash that killed a pedestrian on I-35, in the 300 block of the interstate. A 43-year old man was crossing the street when he was struck by an SUV. He was pronounced dead at the scene, though the driver of the SUV did stop to render aid. If you are unfortunate enough to be struck by a vehicle while crossing a street, be aware that you may be able to seek compensation for your medical bills and for lost wages.
Texas Metro Areas Are Hazardous To Pedestrians
Statistics show that metropolitan areas are disproportionately hazardous to pedestrians, especially those over the age of 65 – the Centers for Disease Control estimate that 15 percent of all pedestrians injured in 2015 were elderly, as were approximately 20 percent of 2016’s pedestrian fatalities. The think tank Smart Growth America ranks metropolitan areas, giving each a Pedestrian Danger Index (PDI), and San Antonio-New Braunfels ranks at #21 on the list (second in Texas; the first was McAllen-Edinburg-Mission).
Broken Botts’ Dots Make Hays County Road a Hazard
Hilliard Road in Hays County is a fairly commonly used thoroughfare, hitting Lime Kiln Road just a few miles north of Bexar County. To help with the increasing traffic level on Hilliard, the county installed approximately 150 Botts’ dots, which are small ceramic button-like discs ostensibly intended to slow speeds. However, residents have found that the dots are coming loose, causing damage to cars and nearby homes. What many do not realize is that in situations like this, you may be able to sue either the city or the contractor who installed the dots, and try to recover for any medical expenses or property damages you might have incurred after being struck by a flying disc.
Poorly Maintained Roads Cause Damage
Texas is a very large state, and its roads require constant upkeep. Average wear and tear is something that every driver accepts as part of using Texas roads, but when something out of the ordinary happens, drivers should know that they have options to seek redress. The Bureau of Transportation Statistics estimates that almost 40 percent of Texas roads are in poor or mediocre condition. If a road is in poor repair, in theory, it means that the governmental entity in charge of its maintenance is not doing its job.
One Dead in Loop 1604 Rollover Crash
On the morning of Independence Day, a rollover crash on Loop 1604 claimed the life of one person, when the sedan he was riding in flipped over, ejecting all four occupants. A man in his 20s was killed, and the other three passengers in the car sustained serious injuries, though as of this writing their conditions are not known. Rollover accidents are some of the most dangerous one can experience, and if you are unfortunate enough to be involved in a rollover that is the result of someone else’s negligence, you may be able to recover compensation.
Higher Percentage of Fatalities
Statistics from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) shows that rollover accidents are very serious. In the relevant data, rollovers comprised approximately 1.5 percent of all crashes but were responsible for roughly eight percent of the fatalities. There are many different reasons for this, not least of all because of the sheer weight of a vehicle flipping around can cause serious damage to a human body.
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