Recent Blog Posts
14-Year Old Driver Crashes Car on South Side
Recently, a serious crash in the 6500 block of Padre Drive, in south San Antonio, claimed the life of a 15-year old girl and caused significant property damage to a home and yard. A Ford Fusion lost control after hitting a curb, crashing through a wooden fence, hitting a tree and bringing branches down on the home. The remarkable fact about this accident is that police identified the driver of the Fusion as a 14-year old girl, who is now facing charges of intoxication manslaughter. This episode raises questions about Texas’ parental liability statutes, as many people do not have any idea that they might be held liable for damage that their children cause.
Property Damage Only
Texas, like most other states, does have a parental liability statute which states that parents can be held liable for the conduct of their children. However, the important thing to keep in mind about Texas’ particular law is that it only applies to property damage. If your child causes property damage, you as a parent can be held liable for that damage if one of two conditions applies. The first is if your child between the ages of 10 and 18 can be shown to have acted willfully or maliciously. The second is if your child’s conduct can be “reasonably attributed” to your negligent parenting. The owners of the home whose fence and tree were damaged in the Padre Drive accident could plausibly sue the young driver’s parents under this statute over the damage to their home.
Highway 290 Crash Kills One
An early morning crash near the intersection of Hwy 290 and RM 1826 killed one person after an SUV failed to obey posted signs and turned left into traffic. The SUV was exiting a private drive, and while only right turns are permissible from that driveway, the SUV driver turned left, cutting across several lanes. Another driver, in a silver sedan, swerved to avoid a collision with the SUV but wound up being struck again. The sedan driver was killed at the scene, and while the SUV driver was cited (a misdemeanor), it is not implausible that the family of the sedan driver might want to pursue a wrongful death lawsuit, given that but for the SUV driver’s negligence, their loved one might still be alive.
Wrongful Death in Texas
Wrongful death is a cause of action under civil law (as opposed to criminal law; wrongful death is not a crime). In a wrongful death lawsuit, a deceased person’s loved ones are seeking to hold the defendant liable for their role in causing that person’s death and may receive money damages if they are successful. Texas law states that a person should be liable for damages if that person’s “wrongful act, neglect, carelessness, unskillfulness, or default” caused an injury that led to the death of the deceased.
Vehicle Crashes into Building on San Antonio’s South Side
Recently, a driver crashed into a residential building in the 900 block of Deely Place, near South Flores Street, causing serious damage to the cornerstone of the home. Law enforcement stated that the driver lost control of their vehicle after hitting a speed bump, crashing into a mailbox and then the home. No one appeared to be home, and no injuries were reported, but the driver fled on foot after the crash. San Antonio police are currently seeking them, though no word exists as to whether they will be charged. If you are injured in this type of accident, however, you have many different options to potentially explore so that you can ensure your medical bills are taken care of.
Not As Uncommon As One Might Think
While it may seem like vehicles crashing into buildings are very unusual events, in reality, it happens much more often than the average person hears. A group called the Storefront Safety Council (SSC) was launched in 2011 to chart the prevalence of these types of accidents, though they only deal with damage to commercial buildings. Still, the statistics are instructive – the largest percentage of the crashes charted in their most recent available data were attributed to driver error (approximately one-third), with pedal error (malfunctioning automobiles or parts) being the next most prevalent cause.
Motorcyclist Killed in Crash with 18-Wheeler
Recently, a motorcyclist was killed after becoming stuck under an 18-wheeler on I-35 South. The accident happened near Kyle Crossing, and the highway was shut down for almost two hours while the accident was cleared. This accident, while a tragedy, does illuminate some of the safety hazards present for both truckers and cyclists, especially when traveling at a high rate of speed. If you have been in a crash with a truck or with a motorcyclist, there are certain particular features of that accident that are different than having been struck by another automobile.
High Fatality Rates for Motorcyclists
Because of the sheer lack of protection between a motorcyclist and the road, motorcycle riders have a significantly elevated risk of injury and death compared to automobile drivers and passengers. Statistics from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) estimate that in 2016, motorcyclists were 28 times more likely to die in accidents than drivers or passengers in other vehicles – many of the fatalities caused simply by being unprepared to be struck, or to strike something, at such velocity.
Pile-Up Crash Closes SH 130 for Hours
Due to an accident involving at least three 18-wheelers and three smaller vehicles, southbound SH 130 was closed almost all day on Thursday, April 4. The accident occurred near the Pecan Street exit in Pflugerville, leaving one person dead and one person transported to the nearest hospital. In the event of such a large crash, it can be difficult for injured people to seek compensation, Depending on the situation, you may be able to try and hold multiple defendants liable for your injuries.
Fault Apportionment Is Key
Multiple-vehicle pile-ups can be difficult for the injured party to navigate because it can be so much more complex to untangle each actor’s liability or lack thereof. In a standard auto accident case, the plaintiff simply has to look at the defendant and determine whether or not their actions breached the duty to exercise reasonable care that every motorist owes to every other. If there are multiple defendants, the same process must be followed, but it can be too hard to tell who actually did what in such a large accident.
Occupants of Pickup and Sedan Rescued After Head-On Collision
A head-on collision on State Highway 46 led to four people being trapped in two cars for some time until law enforcement could reach them. A pickup truck struck a sedan head-on and then rolled onto its side, while the sedan was too damaged for the occupants to escape. Eventually, the occupants were extricated and transported to area hospitals, but as of this writing, there is no word on their conditions. If you have been involved in an accident where you were trapped in your car, you may have a claim for compensation against not only the other driver, but also, potentially, against the manufacturer of your car – one should be able to escape the vehicle after an accident, not be trapped inside.
Defective Parts Are a Hazard
Product liability is the legal theory under which manufacturers, sellers, and distributors are held liable for injuries caused by the products they introduce into the stream of commerce. A myriad of car parts has been implicated over time in several fatal accidents, including steering columns, brakes, turn signals, and tires. Statistics from the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) estimate approximately 3,600 accidents occurred in 2017 that could be directly attributed to at least one defective car part.
Cyclist Critical After Crash in East Austin
Recently, a female cyclist was struck by an SUV on East Martin Luther King Boulevard, just east of I-35. The woman was immediately transported to Dell Seton Medical Center, with injuries that law enforcement called “life-threatening,” though no further details exist as of this writing. The driver of the SUV remained on the scene, and as of this writing it does not appear that any charges will be filed against them. Pedestrian and bicycle accidents can certainly be life-threatening, and if you have been involved in an accident like this, you will almost certainly have significant medical bills that need paying. Contacting an attorney is a good way to increase the odds that the person who injured you will pay them.
Bicycle Accidents on the Rise
For a variety of reasons, bicycle accidents in Texas have risen in frequency for the past few years, especially in urban counties. Statistics from Share The Road Texas show that Travis and Bexar counties rank in the top counties for both fatalities consistently, as well as in total bike crash numbers overall. Both counties also have notoriously high traffic levels, as well as more bicyclists than in past years.
One Injured, One Detained After SUV Crash
A crash on San Antonio’s northwest side recently left one injured, and one detained by police after a van crashed into a pole. The crash occurred near the intersection of West Hausman Road and University Heights Boulevard, with the passenger from the vehicle being transported to University Hospital for their injuries. Witnesses described the driver as ‘straddling the median’ before the vehicle crashed, and police detained the driver, though as of this writing there is no word on the exact reason for the driver’s detention. This type of single-vehicle accident can be difficult to recover from, though having an attorney by your side can help the process go more smoothly.
Single-Vehicle Accidents Are Deadly
Statistics show that single-vehicle accidents contribute a high number of fatalities to the overall yearly total of road deaths because many single-vehicle crashes involve rollovers. Rollovers are by far the most deadly type of car accident; the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety estimates that while rollover crashes only comprise about two percent of the yearly total, they are responsible for as much as 35 percent of the fatalities.
Austin Scooter Accident Data Shows Trends
Two-wheeled electric scooters have become omnipresent in Austin and many other metropolitan areas in the past year or so, purporting to offer commuters a little extra boost to their travels. However, they have been controversial, causing issues for disabled pedestrians and also, allegedly, leading to injuries on a regular basis. There has not been a completed study of scooter injuries as of this writing, though the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has requested Austin’s data on the issue as they work on theirs. If you have been injured by a person on a scooter or while using a scooter yourself, data like this can be very relevant if you decide to bring suit to try and recover for your medical bills.
Weekends Downtown Have Highest Risk
A pattern of injuries sustained in scooter accidents has been occurring ever since their installation in Austin some months ago. In January, an Irish exchange student died after being struck by a car while using a scooter; anecdotal evidence suggests at least a handful more have died while using scooters in traffic. Injuries have numbered in the hundreds at Dell Seton Medical Center alone since the end of September 2018, with head injuries, cuts, and bruises being the most common.
Pedestrian Pushing Shopping Cart Hit and Killed
Recently, a New Braunfels man was struck by a car and killed while he was pushing a shopping cart across I-35 South. The pedestrian was wearing dark clothing, and the young driver did not see him until it was too late to take evasive action. The pedestrian was pronounced dead at the scene. As of this writing, no charges are being filed against the driver, but in many pedestrian accidents, this will not be the case. If you or a loved one has been injured due to a driver’s negligence, you may be able to seek compensation for your medical bills.
Pedestrian Fatalities on a Net Rise
Statistics from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) report a very slight decrease in pedestrian fatalities in 2017, with just under 6,000 being reported. Many of the reported correlations from past years remained the same, however – for example, over two-thirds of those killed in pedestrian accidents were male, which has been the case for several years running. Another notable correlation is timing – for the last few years, the highest percentage of fatal accidents with pedestrians occurred between the hours of 6 pm and 9 pm.
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