Recent Blog Posts
Texas Representative Endorses Bill to Ban All Texting While Driving in Texas
Texas Rep. Tom Craddick, R-Midland, is attempting once again to get a statewide ban on cell phone use while driving through the state legislature. According to the representative, Texas is only one of four states that does not have a distracted driving law. Currently, Texas bans young drivers and bus drivers from using mobile phones while behind the wheel, and close to 100 cities have banned cell phone use while operating a vehicle at a municipal level. However, Craddick and others believe this is not enough to save lives and they want all texting while driving to be illegal.
Distracted Driving Crashes in Texas
Craddick may be right as 476 people were killed in crashes that involved distracted driving in 2015. This was a slight increase from the year before, according to the Texas Motor Vehicle Traffic Crash Facts. Additionally, 4,148 accidents in Austin last year were related to distracted driving, KXAN reported. This is despite the fact that Austin is one of the cities that bans hand-held devices through a local ordinance. In Austin, if you are found using a hand-held device you could be fined up to $500.
School Zone Laws and Wrongful Death in Texas
A MacArthur High School student was struck by a truck and killed outside of his school in late October. The student lived in an apartment complex close to the school and had to cross a busy five-lane road without a crosswalk to get to his class before 7 a.m., according to the Houston Chronicle. The student had crossed the first two lanes and was waiting in the turn lane for a break in traffic when he was struck by a truck driven by a 33-year-old woman taking another student to the school. Investigators believe the truck may have been traveling up to 40 mph at the time of the collision. This is the third fatality in a Houston-area school zone, the Chronicle reported.
Texas School Zone Laws
Local towns and municipalities have the authority to impose special driving laws for vehicles in school zones when children are present. These laws can significantly change the way a motorist drives. For example, a road that may normally have a 30 mph speed limit may have a 15 mph speed limit during school hours. Schools located on highways with speed limits of 55 mph or more may have a buffer zone with a speed limit of 35 mph before and after the actual school zone.
Defective Children’s Riding Toy Leads to Injuries and Recall
In late October, Peg Perego USA recalled children’s riding vehicles due to a fire and injury hazard. According to an announcement by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, the company recalled 3,000 of the 850 Polaris Sportsman toy vehicles. The vehicle uses a 24-volt battery and is intended for kids between the ages of five and seven. The toys were sold in stores and online between October 2014 and May 2015. Due to the circuit board failing, the motor overheats and can ignite, causing a fire and burn hazard. There have been at least three reports of children using the toys when they have overheated, and one of these includes burn injuries.
If your child has this model of a Peg Perego children’s riding toy, you should immediately stop using it. Your child could be hurt. However, if your child has already suffered an injury because of this toy vehicle or another Peg Perego model, contact the New Braunfels personal injury attorneys of the Bettersworth Law Firm immediately.
Take Advantage of Your Smartphone after an Auto Accident
Using your cell phone while you drive is not only dangerous, it is often illegal. Texas and many cities in the state have strict cell phone laws. Young, inexperienced drivers cannot use handheld or wireless communications while operating a vehicle. In most cities and in school zones around the state, it is illegal to text while driving. However, after you have been in a car accident and have come to a complete stop, a cell smartphone can be incredibly useful. The following includes information regarding how you can take advantage of having a cell phone after a collision:
Call for help immediately.
Decades ago, someone had to get to a landline to call 911. Now, if you, someone in your car, or someone in another vehicle needs help, you can pick up your cell phone and call 911. This is a major advantage; indeed, the sooner you call, the faster first responders can get to the scene and provide aid.
Semi-Trucks: The 80,000 Pound Threat on the Road
Getting into an accident with a truck can lead to severe injuries or death. When trucks are fully loaded, they can weigh 80,000 pounds and are no match for passenger vehicles. In 2015, 34,230 crashes involving tractor-trailers in Texas were reported. Of those, 601 people died and 1,522 people were left with severe injuries. Many more were left with non-incapacitating injuries.
Getting into an accident with a truck can also lead to a complex lawsuit because there could be several parties potentially liable for your injuries. In addition, the lawsuits tend to be complex because there are laws that specifically apply to trucks.
Federal Regulations
Because of the dangers trucks pose, there are many laws in place meant to keep drivers of cars safe. Depending on the truck that hits you, state or federal regulations may apply. If the truck is only driven in-state, typically state law applies. Federal law applies to trucks who drive across more than one state.
Whiplash Symptoms after a Car Crash
Similar to other types of injuries that drivers experience as a result of car accidents, whiplash is an injury that can slowly creep up on us as the days and weeks following the crash unfold. Not all of the symptoms are apparent initially, making it difficult for us to be sure we are in fact truly unharmed after the collision. Rear-end accidents, in particular, are infamous for causing cases of painful whiplash. If you have recently been in a car accident, keep an eye out for the following three telltale signs that indicate you may be experiencing whiplash injury:
1. You notice an increase in stiffness or pain in the neck.
If you notice decreased range of motion in your neck or pain that is steadily increasing as the hours after the accident pass, you may be feeling the early effects of whiplash damage. Tenderness or pain in the arms or upper back may also accompany the neck pain.
2. Emerging headaches.
Your Rights When You Are Hurt in a Drunk Driving Accident
A driver in Houston has been charged with intoxication manslaughter after he hit a worker in early October. The accident occurred just before 2 p.m. and police believe the driver was intoxicated at the time. Unfortunately, drunk driving accidents that lead to serious injuries and deaths are all too common in Texas. Less than two weeks earlier a woman was killed in Harris County after a suspected intoxicated driver ran a red light and hit her vehicle head-on. This driver will also likely face intoxication manslaughter charges.
Alcohol-Related Crashes in Texas
Despite driving while drunk or impaired by drugs being illegal In Texas and throughout the U.S., many people still choose to get behind the wheel after drinking or taking controlled substances. These actions led to more than 10,000 alcohol-related crashes in Texas in 2015, according to the Texas Department of Transportation. Of these accidents, 861 were fatal that year, killing a total of 960 individual. Another 2,187 people suffered incapacitating injuries.
Driving Safely on Icy Roads
The winter storms will soon be arriving, even in Texas. In past winters, northern Texas has seen the thermometer drop in the single digits and in south Texas, the temperatures can drop into the thirties, cold enough for snow and ice. Although these cold temperatures bring a beautiful snowy backdrop to the holiday season, they also bring dangerous road conditions and auto accidents.
Drivers are used to the warm, dry roads, especially in Texas, so when the snow hits, it is especially important to take extra precautions. Auto safety advocates suggest the following tips:
- Avoid driving: If you can help it, stay off the roads until the conditions have improved. Avoiding dangerous roads means avoiding car accidents.
- Pay attention to the weather: Check the daily forecast before you head out so you will be expecting snow showers or any other changes in weather before they occur. You may even be able to plan your day accordingly so that you will be off the roads before the snow hits.
Understanding Texas Comparative Negligence after a Car Accident
When you are in an accident with one or more other vehicles, your recovery depends on who was responsible for the accident. If one other driver is found to be entirely at fault for the collision, you will seek to recover from that person. However, few auto accidents are that cut and dry. Many crashes are caused by more than one driver doing something they should not have done. You may have even been one of those drivers during your accident. Because of the complexities of fault and liability for auto accidents, Texas has a comparative negligence rule that requires judges to apportion responsibility. This can greatly affect how much you recover and from whom.
Comparative Negligence in Texas
When you are hurt in a car accident, you will either seek to recover from the at-fault driver’s insurance or by filing a personal injury claim in court. When your case is before a judge or jury, this is when the theory of comparative negligence matters most. Under Section 33.003, each defendant is only responsible for their portion of the recovery based on the percentage of their responsibility. For example, if you sue two different drivers and one driver is deemed 90 percent responsible for the accident while the other only 10 percent, then each driver is liable for that percentage of your compensatory and non-compensatory damages.
Marijuana Use Increases Risk of Car Accident
The culture surrounding marijuana has changed drastically in recent years. Research has pointed to marijuana as an effective treatment for constant pain, seizures, and other medical issues. Many states have approved some type of medical marijuana while other states have legalized both medical and recreational use. While marijuana and its related products may turn out to be important medical discoveries, it has become clear to safety agencies that a rise in marijuana use around the U.S. is associated with an increase in marijuana-related car accidents. If you were hit by a driver who you believe was impaired due to marijuana use, contact an attorney right away. Marijuana has the potential to impair a driver’s abilities like alcohol or drowsiness. An individual who is high and causes an accident must be held responsible.
Drivers Who Recently Smoked Marijuana More Likely to Crash
According to an analysis performed by Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, eight of nine studies found marijuana increased the likelihood of a car accident. After alcohol, marijuana was the most commonly detected drug in drivers involved in an accident. Drivers who test positive for marijuana in their systems are twice as likely to be involved in a crash as drivers who test clean for drugs or alcohol. Additionally, the more THC in a person’s system, the higher the risk of an accident.
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