Recent Blog Posts
Man Dies in Crash with 18-Wheeler
On October 3, a man was killed after he tried to pass an 18-wheeler on I-35, winding up going under the vehicle on the right side. The car wound up coming to a stop just off the Manor Road exit, after sustaining severe damage. The driver was found deceased in the car. While there are no charges pending against the truck driver, this type of accident does illustrate how easy it is to misjudge distances and speeds when dealing with large trucks, and how it can be very easy for either you or the trucker to make a mistake. If you are involved in an accident with a big rig, understanding your options is a good idea going forward.
Numerous Causes of Accidents
If one examines statistics from the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT), one can see that in approximately 5,430 fatal crashes in 2017, 433 (approximately 8 percent) involved semi-trucks or trucks with trailers. For injury crashes, the number lowers – of approximately 135,934 crashes involving injury, 3,325 involved big rigs (approximately 2 percent). It may not sound like much, but only passenger cars (including pickup trucks and SUVs) and motorcycles were responsible for more. Across these categories, one can infer numerous causes – for example, a lower percentage of injury crashes involve large trucks because the accidents involving large trucks tend to be more serious (thus, causing more fatalities than injuries).
Hit-And-Run Driver on the Run After Fatal Leander Accident
During the last weekend of September, a hit-and-run accident on Ronald W. Reagan Boulevard in Leander left one motorcyclist dead, and the driver missing. According to law enforcement, the truck turned into the path of the motorcyclist, who was headed southbound, and the cycle hit the rear part of the truck, which caused the rider to be thrown. The truck did not stop to assist the injured man, instead choosing to drive on. There are multiple things that might breed a cause of action in this story, especially for the family of the deceased motorcyclist, as they seek compensation that could somehow even partially mitigate the loss of their loved one.
Failure to Stop and Render Aid Is a Crime
Motorcyclists are in some danger while on the roads, even if they operate their vehicle perfectly, simply because they lack the protection and the weight that automobiles have, and this, unfortunately, translates to injury and fatality statistics – on average, around 500 motorcyclists per year are killed in auto accidents on Texas roads, according to data from the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT). While this obviously does not excuse reckless or negligent driving or other actions, it is worth remarking on how an action that can be lethal against a motorcyclist might cause an automobile’s driver mere irritation. If an accident occurs, it is the responsibility of both vehicles involved to stop and render aid to anyone hurt.
Who to Sue After a Truck Accident
When a person is involved in a truck accident, there are multiple potential reasons why it might have happened. Many of them can be attributable to driver error, meaning that the driver is the one who should, in theory, be liable. However, a truck driver may not always have the funds to be able to meet the amount of a jury award. It begs the question of whether it is worth the time to sue the driver or to seek compensation elsewhere.
Causes of Truck Accidents Are Disparate
Recent available data shows that approximately 4,400 large trucks and buses were involved in fatal accidents nationwide in 2016, with as many as 73 percent of those crashes being at least partially initiated by encroachment into the truck’s path. However, if one breaks down those stats, one will see a host of different events that may play a role in truck crashes – distraction, substance abuse, reckless driving, lack of sleep or otherwise poor reaction times, and so on. In addition, there are multiple other potential causes that can be attributed to other actors besides driver error, such as poor road maintenance.
Bee Caves Road Closed After Power Line Break
On the night of September 17, a truck crash pulled power lines down all across Bee Caves Road, closing the road and causing a power outage up and down Loop 360. While there were complaints about traffic blockages, the road remained closed until the middle of the day on Tuesday, the 18th, with Austin Energy and law enforcement wanting to ensure a thorough job was done on both the accident investigation and the repairs. It is to their credit that this was done because any failure could have opened both the company and the City of Austin to liability for injuries if any had resulted from the downed power lines.
Hard to Sue Governmental Entities
Normally, if someone is injured in an accident where the cause is traceable to another person’s (or company’s) negligence, the injured person would sue the other in civil court. However, governmental entities are a different matter, because they enjoy protection – and sometimes, complete immunity – from civil suits by residents of the state, under a principle called sovereign immunity. Both Austin Energy and the Texas Department of Transportation are publicly owned entities, which means that they are part of local and state governments, and would thus be covered by Texas’ sovereign immunity laws. Sovereign immunity law is based on the idea that if every citizen wronged by the state were permitted to sue, the state would have neither time nor money enough to govern.
Air Force Trainer Plane Crashes Near Rolling Oaks Mall
A trainer plane flying out of Randolph Air Force Base crashed near Rolling Oaks Mall in northeast San Antonio on Wednesday, September 19, due to what was referred to as ‘engine failure at low altitude.’ The crash injured two crew members, though both were treated and released from a clinic on the base. The plane came down in a field on Circle Dot Ranch, causing no other damage or injury, but mere feet either way could have made the accident much worse. Airplane crashes are surprisingly common in Texas, and they can cause severe injury.
Statistics and Causes Vary
While many think that plane crashes are isolated events, private plane ownership has made them more common, especially in states like Texas with a lot of space and open air. Recent statistics show over 12,000 private planes owned in the United States; one can imagine that a significant portion of them are housed in Texas. Between private jets, the state’s many busy commercial airports, and the six Air Force bases, planes are popular and common. Mere numbers do not cause crashes, however; there are multiple possible causes of aviation accidents, and the causes of some incidents may never be discovered.
High School Students Struck By Cars in 2 Separate Incidents
Statistically, young drivers are among the most reckless, being involved in the most accidents of any age group. However, at Akins High School in South Austin, young people have been the victims lately. The student body has experienced multiple pedestrian accidents in recent weeks, with both occurring on the same road, in the same general area. While one pedestrian accident is a tragic accident, two or more occurring in the same place at roughly the same time may imply that a duty of care is not being met.
Texas Has Poor Record on Pedestrian Safety
Texas’ record in pedestrian safety is decidedly subpar, or at least it has been in recent years, though changes are being implemented slowly. In 2017, there were 614 pedestrian fatalities in the state, which is a drop of approximately 10 percent. However, the national total remained roughly the same, according to the Governor’s Highway Safety Association (GHSA)’s preliminary data. Only California and Florida reported more pedestrian fatalities in 2018 than Texas, which is a trend that has existed for a number of years now.
Hit-And-Run Driver Caught After Injuring Teenager
The night of September 17 proved unlucky for a teenager trying to cross the intersection of Blanco Road and Parliament Street in San Antonio, as he was struck by a driver who ran the red light and then fled. The driver was later apprehended and charged, but the damage has still been done to the teenager, who was taken to University Hospital. As of this writing, no lasting damage appears to have been done, but hit-and-run accidents are still taken extremely seriously by San Antonio police, as they should be by every driver. If you have been the victim of a similar incident, you may be able to seek compensation for your injuries.
Leaving an Accident Scene Is Illegal
One of the most important things anyone can take away from this type of accident is that it is a crime to leave the scene of any accident that causes property damage or injury in Texas. Failure to stop after an accident that results in, or is likely to result in, injury or death is a felony in most cases, though if the injury is more minor, a misdemeanor may be assessed. Despite these stringent penalties, though, people, of course, do leave accident scenes, especially if they believe there is a possibility they will be able to escape without being stopped. The driver on Blanco Road fled the scene and was apprehended later, which added an additional count of failing to stop and render aid to the charges against her.
Pedestrian Dead After Crash In North Austin
In the early morning hours of September 11, a man was struck by a vehicle in the 1000 block of Parmer Lane, later dying in a Round Rock hospital. While the man was found in the road by police upon arrival, the driver who struck him did remain on the scene and cooperated with law enforcement. Nonetheless, a wrongful death suit may be pending by the victim’s family against the driver, which is a common result after such tragic accidents.
Wrongful Death in Texas
Any death in Texas that occurs due to the “wrongful act, neglect, [or] carelessness” of another person has the potential to be classified as wrongful. Of course, to do that, one must define neglect or carelessness, which is not always straightforward. Wrongful death cases are tried under a theory of negligence law, meaning that one must establish that the defendant was negligent in their actions in order for the plaintiff to recover.
Heroes Rescue Truck Driver From Fiery Wreck
On September 13, a potentially explosive crash occurred on Highway 281, with an 18-wheeler skidding into the guardrail. Upon impact, the truck burst into flame. Three men traveling in a nearby plumbers’ truck pulled over and extricated the driver from the cab, dragging him clear. The driver sustained only cuts and bruises, but the truck was totaled. This type of accident opens up multiple types of potential liability and questions, for both the trucking company and – in certain situations – the driver’s rescuer.
Trucking Company Liability
Normally, if an accident occurs involving an 18-wheeler, the discussion centers around the potential liability to a car struck by the truck. While no other driver was involved in the accident on Highway 281, this is more due to luck than anything, as the driver described losing control of the vehicle. Four hundred and thirty-three fatal crashes involving semi-trucks and large trucks occurred in 2017, and of these accidents, a significant portion involved automobiles. Sheer size and velocity mean that many of the fatalities in such accidents were passengers and drivers of smaller cars.
Argument In Crash Leads to Passenger Death
On the night of August 22, the passenger in a black sedan was attempting to leave the car when it was T-boned in the intersection of the I-35 S service road and Koenig Lane in Austin. The passenger was killed, and the driver sustained minor injuries, along with the driver of the vehicle that hit the sedan. This type of accident is among the most difficult to experience or witness, because it can come completely out of nowhere, and create tragic consequences. If this happens to you, it is imperative that you understand your potential liability.
T-Bone Accidents
T-bone accidents are common and can cause real problems. Unlike front and rear collisions, side impact crashes can be particularly dangerous because there is very little between passengers and the crash. Recent data states that approximately one-quarter of all crash deaths in 2016 were due to side-impact collisions. In most situations, it can be difficult to determine who is at fault in a side-impact collision, just because so many scenarios are possible, though in a situation such as the Koenig Lane accident, the record shows fault, and this may be true in your accident as well.
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