Georgia Injury Law Blog

Published on: July 15, 2009

Shipper Sponsored Poll Shows Most Americans Support Heavier Trucks

A shipper group has announced the results of a nationwide poll that shows that a majority of Americans are in favor of raising weight limits on trucks on our interstate highways. Considering that the poll was commissioned by an association of more than one hundred shippers and other allied trucking groups, truck accident attorneys and other opponents of any such increase, should probably not give too much credence to those findings.

The poll was commissioned by the Coalition for Transportation Productivity, and the results apparently show that more than 50 percent of Americans are in favor of allowing trucks to carry more weight on interstate highways, as envisioned in the Safe and Efficient Transportation Act of 2009. According to the CTP, most Americans are in favor of higher weight limits on trucks that have higher safeguards if it would help create safer roads and more efficient highway transportation.

The Safe and Efficient Transportation Act of 2009 or HR 1799, has been opposed by truck accident attorneys, safety advocates and families of victims killed in truck accidents. The bill would authorize states to allow trucks weighing up to 97,000 pounds to operate on interstate highways. Trucks would be required to add a sixth axle with brakes.

Published on: July 14, 2009

Fiery Interstate 75 Car Accident Linked to Road Rage

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

Earlier this month, we reported on an accident involving a car and a rental truck in Lowndes County on I-75. The accident, that occurred just before the Fourth of July weekend, left four people dead. Days later, several other details have emerged. Georgia State Patrol now believes that road rage could have been a possible factor in that crash.

The victims were four female passengers, including a mother, her two young daughters and her boyfriend, Jerome Roberts. Police are looking into whether road rage on the part of Roberts could have been a factor in the car accident. The tragic sequence of events unfolded when another motorist, Douglas Jones, called police to tell them that a driver in a gold 2003 Saturn Vue was driving recklessly and aggressively. A rental truck driver then struck both Jones’ car and the Saturn Vue. The passengers in the Saturn Vue were trapped, and both the rental truck and the Saturn caught fire. Witnesses at the scene pulled Roberts from his car, but he was declared dead at the scene. The three female passengers died in the car from serious burin injuries. Douglas Jones also suffered injuries. According to the police, they were still on the phone with him when the crash occurred.

The Georgia State Patrol has listed Jerome Roberts as the at-fault driver in its accident report.

Published on: July 13, 2009

Traffic in Atlanta Ranks Third Worst in Country

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

As we discussed earlier on this blog, Atlanta’s drivers are not only some of the rudest, but also some of the worst motorists in the country.Apparently, there’s more glowing praise for us. A survey ranks the city at No. 3 on a list of the most traffic congested cities in the nation.

While the number of vehicles on our roads over the past year has dropped somewhat because of rising gas prices and the recession, and this has contributed to a drop in accident rates, Atlanta’s traffic continues to be congested. Our city ranks behind Los Angeles and Washington DC, and ahead of Houston and San Francisco in the study. According to the results, the average motorist in Atlanta spends about 57 hours in the year simply stuck in traffic.

There seems to have been a slight improvement over the last couple of years however, and that’s probably due to the rise in gas prices. In 2007 which is the year the study considered, gas prices were $3 a gallon in Atlanta, which could account for the slight drop in congestion rates. However, we don’t yet have figures for 2008, which is when gas prices touched $4 a gallon, further cutting down non-essential travel in metro Atlanta.

Published on: July 9, 2009

Motorcycle Accident in Murray County Kills Two

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

Two people from Dalton, Georgia were killed in an accident when a pickup truck sideswiped their motorcycle.

According to the Atlanta Journal Constitution, the crash occurred on highway 225 south in Murray County.Apparently, a Ford Ranger crossed the centerline for unknown reasons, and struck the motorcycle. The two riders, 39-year-old Ty Woods and 29-year-old April Lynthlin were ejected from the motorcycle, and sustained fatal injuries. According to reports, Lynthlin was in an advanced state of pregnancy. The State Patrol’s Specialized Collision Reconstruction Team has initiated an investigation.

This tragic accident coincides with the release of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s report on traffic fatalities for 2008. The numbers for last year have been very encouraging all round, except in one category- motorcycle accident fatalities. For the 11^th year running, motorcycle accident-related deaths have shown a sharp rise. In fact, deaths in motorcycle accidents now comprise 14 percent of the highway fatality rate in the country. These rates have risen even as there has been an overall drop in the number of automobiles on the highways, because of the recession and the hike in gas prices that we saw last summer. While the number of automobiles traveling our roads has dropped, collisions involving motorcycles have increased.

Published on: July 8, 2009

18 wheeler-Ice Cream Truck Accident in Atlanta Leaves Driver Injured

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

An accident involving an 18 wheeler and an ice-cream truck has left the driver of the truck seriously injured. Police have now arrested the 18 wheeler driver.

According to police, the 18 wheeler driver was traveling east on Camp Creek Parkway. He seems to have made a left turn at a green light that didn’t have a left turn arrow. The 18 wheeler was struck by an ice-cream truck, and also collided with another vehicle carrying four occupants. The driver of the ice-cream truck suffered serious injuries, and was airlifted to the Atlanta Medical Center. He is reportedly in serious condition. No other people were injured in this truck accident.

Drivers of commercial trucks must pay attention to traffic rules at all times. As the driver of a massive vehicle that can weigh up to 80,000 pounds, a tractor trailer driver simply does not have the luxury of making errors in judgment or other mistakes while driving. Any errors made by a tractor trailer driver can prove deadly.

Published on: July 7, 2009

Georgia Home Depot Customer Awarded $1.5 Million in Premises Liability Lawsuit

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

A Home Depot customer, who sustained serious injuries in a Marietta store from a piece of wood falling off a folk lift, has been awarded $1.5 million in premises liability damages.

In 2005, Larry Reece was at a Home Depot in Marietta when a pallet of plywood fell about 24 feet on him. Reece suffered serious neck and spinal injuries that left him debilitated, and unable to continue his work as a residential contractor. According to his attorney, he settled with Home Depot over punitive damages, but the case had to go to jury trial over personal injury damages. He has now been awarded $1.5 million in damages, while his wife has been awarded $30,000 for loss of consortium as part of the damages.

Besides the debilitating injuries and the severe pain that he suffered, Reece also had to deal with the high expenses of hospitalization and other medical costs. Since the accident, Reece has racked up about $120,000 in medical expenses.He was required to have permanent hardware in his neck to resume his normal activities. Most traumatic of all, Reece who has been a construction worker all his life, was unable to return to his job. He lost his livelihood, along with the trauma and loss of income that that accompanies.

Published on: July 6, 2009

More Accident Fatalities Result from Highway Defects Than Speeding, Alcohol

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

A report by a transportation development advocacy group says that the country could save more than $200 billion from automobile accidents if it invests in better highway design, maintenance and repairs.

The Washington Post has this interesting report about how road-related conditions are responsible for more than half of the 42,000 accident-related deaths that occur each year. Contrary to popular perception, it’s poorly positioned utility poles, steep curves, road obstructions and other hazards that contribute to the most number of accident-related deaths in the country- not drunk driving, speeding or failure to wear seatbelts.

Consider this:

Published on: July 3, 2009

Four Dead in Lowndes County Car- Truck Accident

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

News coming in has confirmed a deadly truck accident this morning in Valdosta in Lowndes County. Apparently, four people have died in the accident that involved a car and a rental truck on I-75. The crash happened early this morning at about 2:30.

It’s a tragic start to the four-day long Georgia Highway Patrol crackdown that will last over the Fourth of July weekend. The crackdown begins at 6 pm today. Georgia Highway Patrol is expecting that there will be 22 fatalities in accidents over the weekend, which will end on July fifth. Law enforcement officers are gearing up for special anti drunk driving and speeding crackdowns to keep drunk drivers and dangerous speeders off the road. This will include special checkpoints around the state and additional patrolling.

The Fourth of July holiday sees the largest number of accident-related fatalities for a single day each year, and Georgia Highway Patrol, in spite of the crackdown, will be expecting no different this year. With the holiday traveling set to begin in full earnest on Thursday evening, Georgia car accident lawyers would encourage motorists to be careful out there.

Published on: July 2, 2009

Motorcycle Rider Critically Injured in CowetaCounty Accident

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

A motorcyclist was seriously injured in an accident involving a passenger vehicle and his motorcycle on I-85 north of Coweta County.According to news reports, the motorcyclist collided with a four door sedan leaving the rider with critical injuries.

The accident occurred on a construction zone on I-85 where work to widen the highway is underway. We don’t know yet if that had an effect on the accident, but speed limits along the areas that are under construction have been lowered to 50mph. The highway has also been the scene of several such accidents in the past few months including a fiery tractor trailer accident earlier this year, in which one of the trucks burst into flames leaving the driver with burn injuries. That accident was one among several accidents involving tractor trailers, as well as passenger vehicles on interstate 85.

Construction work along several sections of I-85 are expected to continue for the rest of 2009, which means that driving conditions on the highway will continue to be congested. Authorities have made repeated appeals to motorists, truckers and motorcyclists to keep the ongoing congested conditions on the highway in mind while driving, and to slow down speeds. Unfortunately, according to officials, there are too many motorists and truckers who don’t seem to be heeding those pleas.

Published on: July 1, 2009

Search Efforts Continue after Atlanta Parking Deck Collapse

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

Two days after a fourth level parking deck in Atlanta collapsed, damaging several cars, and resulting in, miraculously enough no injuries, rescue personnel were still not willing to take chances. Rescue efforts continued through Tuesday as Fire and Rescue personnel used cranes, dogs and thermal cameras to comb through the debris to search for any injured persons who could be trapped inside.

So far, there have been no reports of missing people, and the extent of the damage seems to have been restricted to the at least 38 vehicles that were damaged in the collapse. The deck in Midtown district collapsed at around noon on Monday.What caused the sudden collapse is still largely unclear.However, the company that acted as a general contractor and oversaw the construction of the deck was the same one that has been involved in another high profile, but far more serious accident last year.

As we have discussed in this blog earlier this year, the company Hardin Construction Company is the same company that was involved in the construction of the pedestrian walkway at the Atlanta Botanical Gardens in December last year. Yes, the very same walkway that collapsed while concrete was being poured, leading to at least eight people with injuries and one contractor dead.Earlier this month, in fact, Hardin was fined for its role in that collapse. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration cited the company for failure to see that the towers were properly braced, fining it $6,300.