Drunk Illinois Driver Causes Crash, Injures 12

Date
Posted by

A Morton, Illinois man was arrested after allegedly drinking and driving and causing a car crash that injured 12 other motorists. The  car crash that sent 12 people to area hospitals occurred on Sept. 16

Jesse A. Horn, 23, of 119 E. Hazelwood St., Morton, was coming from the Morton Pumpkin Festival, where, according to court records, he was doing community service hours for a past DUI conviction.was charged with five felony counts by the Tazewell County State’s Attorney Thursday: unlawful possession of a converted vehicle, a Class 2 felony; three counts of aggravated driving under the combined influence of alcohol and drugs resulting in an accident causing great bodily harm, a Class 4 felony; and driving on a suspended driver’s license, subsequent felony offense, a Class 4 felony.

At the hospital after the accident, Horn was issued citations for DUI, reckless driving and driving on a suspended driver’s license. Those tickets were dropped so that the state could charge him with the felony counts, said Umholtz.

Umholtz said the Pumpkin Festival organizers are in no way to blame for the accident. He said Horn allegedly took the truck, loaned by Mike Murphy Ford in Morton to the festival committee, without permission.

Witnesses said that Horn was driving eastbound in the westbound lane when he encountered a Toyota truck waiting to turn onto Durant Street. As Horn was trying to get back into the eastbound lane and a Jeep was coming toward him in the westbound lane, the front of Horn’s vehicle hit the Toyota and the back of his vehicle hit the Jeep, which went into a spin and went into a cornfield on the south side of Route 150.

According to court records, injuries to some victims were serious. One man’s arm was broken in three places and required surgery to install pins to repair it. Another victim suffered rib and vertebrae fractures.

Click here, to read the complete story.

This was an unfortunate incident, and I think everyone involved and their families should count their blessings that no one died.

Should you or someone you know become involved in a car accident or trucking accident, then call attorney Aaron J. Bryant for a free consultation at 312-588-3384.

 

Fatigue A Huge Factor For Car Accidents

Date
Posted by

Reuters recently reported that 1.9 million people are involved in car accidents and near misses every year. The National Sleep Foundation’s 2009 Sleep in America poll shows that 1% or as many as 1.9 million drivers have had a car crash or a near miss due to drowsiness in the past year. Even more surprising, 54% of drivers (105 million) have driven while drowsy at least once in the past year, and 28% (54 million) do so at least once per month.

“People underestimate how tired they are and think that they can stay awake by sheer force of will,” said Thomas Balkin, Ph.D., Chairman of the National Sleep Foundation. “This is a risky misconception.  Would there be 1.9 million fatigue-related crashes or near misses if people were good at assessing their own ability to drive when fatigued?”

“The problem,” says Balkin, “is that although we are pretty good at recognizing when we feel sleepy, we do not recognize the process of actually falling asleep as it is happening.  The process robs us of both self-awareness and awareness of our environment.  All it takes is a moment of reduced awareness to cause a car crash.” If you have been injured in a car accident, get a good automobile accident attorney to help you file a claim.

Studies show that being awake for more than 20 hours results in an impairment equal to a blood alcohol concentration of 0.08%, the legal limit in all states. Like alcohol, fatigue slows reaction time, decreases awareness and impairs judgment. But unlike an awake driver impaired by alcohol, a sleeping driver is unable to take any action to avoid a car crash.

As I discussed a few days ago, the federal government could step in and require truck drivers to take an hour break for rest every ten hours. Based on the above statistics, that seems to be appropriate action that could cut down on some of the dangerous driving on our nation’s highways. We will watch this closely.

To read this entire story, click here.

If you or someone you know has been involved in an auto accident or truck accident, then call attorney Aaron Bryant for a free consultation at 312-588-3384.

CTA Train Door Closes On Stroller, Throws Todler On Train Tracks

Date
Posted by

The Chicago Sun-Times recently reported about an incident that occurred on the Chicago Red Line. A woman was attempting to enter the train with her toddler and stroller in tow. The doors of the train apparently shut on the stroller, eventually leading to the toddler being thrown out and onto the tracks. The woman was able to retrieve her child immediately and both are apparently unharmed.

A preliminary investigation showed the train’s doors were working properly, said CTA spokeswoman Noelle Gaffney. “We don’t know the cause. We want to do more extensive testing.”

“The door has sensitive edges that, when pressure is applied, are supposed to open,” said Gaffney. “The procedure is that the operator is supposed to look outside the motor-cab window and make sure it’s clear. The operator also is supposed to look at signal lights for each train door [to make sure they’re closed].”

Kelly said the operator “did not see anybody caught in the doors and [got] the proper signal that the doors were closed to proceed.”

A supervisor relieved the operator at the Lawrence station, Kelly said. A northbound train operator then told the supervisor that two rear doors on the southbound train were not working, Kelly said.

The supervisor bypassed the system to allow the doors to open, Kelly said.

To read the complete story, click here.

If you or someone you know has been involved in a CTA train accident or bus accident, then call attorney Aaron Bryant for a free consultation at 312-588-3384.

Highway Deaths At Record Low In First Half Of 2009

Date
Posted by

ABC News recently reported that there was a sharp decline in highway deaths in the first half of 2009.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reported Friday that 16,626 people died in traffic crashes between January and the end of June, a 7 percent decline from the same period last year. It followed up on a record low number of deaths achieved for that period in 2008, when an estimated 37,261 motorists died, the fewest since 1961.

The recession is probably the biggest contributor but it’s not the only contributor,” said Barbara Harsha, executive director of the Governors Highway Safety Association, which represents state highway safety agencies.

Highway safety officials also reported a decline in the fatality rate, the number of deaths per 100 million vehicle miles traveled. It fell to 1.15 during the first half of 2009, compared with a record low — at the time — of 1.27 in 2008.

Harsha and others noted that seat belt use has climbed to an all-time high, many new vehicles offer safety-enhancing side air bags and anti-rollover technologies and authorities have stepped up enforcement of drunk driving laws.

Seat belt use climbed to 84 percent in 2009, helped by many states allowing police to stop a vehicle for a seat belt violation, even if this is the only violation the officers notice.

To read the entire story at ABC News, click here.

If you look closely, I mean very closely, a few positive things have come about as a result of the recent recession. Hopefully this trend in highway safety continues even as the economy recovers.

If you or someone you know has been involved in an auto accident or a truck accident, then call attorney Aaron Bryant for a free consultation at 312-588-3384.

New Law May Require Truckers Take Extra Hour Of Rest

Date
Posted by

CBS Radio 780 in Chicago recently reported that the Federal Government is looking to require truck drivers take an extra hour of rest while on the road. 

Every year in the U.S. some 700 people are killed and 20,000 others are injured in big rig accidents. Many of them, like the crash in Round Lake, are caused by truckers asleep, or wasted by fatigue.

It also caused the 1999 Bourbonnais Amtrak derailment that killed 11 and injured more than 100 people.

Soon, the federal Department of Transportation is expected to require truckers to stop and rest after 10 hours of driving. Now, they can go 11 hours without sleep.

Truck driver Terrance Shumake conceded, “You do have a lot of guys with the paper logs and they do fudge the log books.”

It will be interested to see if the Obama administration will make increased truck driver safety regulations a priority. Based on the statistics, it appears that this is an idea that should be looked at closely by lawmakers.

To read the entire story, click here.  

If you or someone you know has been involved in a trucking accident or car accident, then call attorney Aaron Bryant for a free consultation at 312-588-3384.

Illinois Traffic Safety Leaders Urge Safe Driving Over Halloween Weekend

Date
Posted by

The Illinois Traffic Safety Leaders (ITSL) recently posted an article discussing the for drivers and pedestrians over Halloween and what can be done to keep you and your family safe.

The ITSL reported that  According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), in 2008, 58 percent of all highway fatalities across the nation on Halloween night (6 pm Oct. 31 to 5:59 am Nov. 1) involved a driver or a motorcycle rider with a Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) of .08 or higher, which is illegal in every state.

“One foolish decision can turn a fun Halloween into a real-life horror story,” said ITSL Vice-President
Mike Rompala.  “There are simple precautions partygoers can take such as designating a sober driver in
advance or taking a taxi.”

ITSL also recommends these simple tips:        
        Plan a safe way home before the festivities begin;
        Before drinking,  please designate a sober driver;
        If you’re impaired, and haven’t designated a sober driver, use a taxi, call a sober friend or family      
member, or use public transportation so you are sure to get home safely;
        Use your community’s Sober Rides program
        If you happen to see a drunk driver on the road, don’t hesitate to contact your local law enforcement

If you or someone you know is involved in a car accident or truck accident, then call attorney Aaron Bryant for a free consultation at 312-588-3384.

Graduated Licensing Requirement For Teens In Illinois Appears To Work

Date
Posted by

Everyone concerned with teen driving safety seem to be in agreement that Illinois’ graduated licensing requirement is a success. Enacted in 2008, the new legislation aims to get teens more supervised time on the road while limiting the number of passengers and distractions in their cars.

Statistics released by the Illinois Department of Transportation show the law has been quite effective in its first year. From January to October, 60 individuals between the ages of 16 to 19 died in teen related automobile accidents, according to IDOT. For a comparable time in 2007 — the year prior to the GDL’s enactment — automobile accidents claimed the lives of 127 teens.

Because of the limited number of fatal crashes seen by police departments here, local teen-driving statistics were unavailable.

In 2008, Illinois joined 31 states by implementing a graduated driver’s licensing program.

The new legislation — which sprung partially from Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White’s teen driving task force, which began meeting in 2006 — created two stages for young drivers: learner and intermediate.

Foremost among the new requirements was the tripling of the amount of time from three to six months a teen must spend with a learner’s permit.

Under the GDL, even intermediate teen drivers — those having passed their driver’s test — are not allowed to drive after 10 p.m. on weeknights or 11 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. And these newly-licensed drivers are not allowed to have more than one teenage passenger in their car during their first year on the road. The age of teens allowed to use cell phones was also raised from 18 to 19. 

To read the complete story about Illinois’ graduated licensing requirement, click here.

Should you or someone you know become involved in an car accident or truck accident, then call attorney Aaron J. Bryant for a free consultation at 312-588-3384.

Police Consider Homicide Charges After Baby Dies In Car Crash

Date
Posted by

An incredibly sad story came in  from the new wires yesterday. A 27 year old woman, Kim Brown, had her vehicle struck by another vehicle that allegedly ran a red light.  Brown, who died at the scene, was rushed to Stroger Hospital as paramedics attempted to save her unborn child.

Doctors at Stroger Hospital delivered the boy by cesarean section after Wednesday’s car crash. He was listed in “extremely critical” condition and died just before noon today, according to hospital officials.

“The baby suffered injuries (from the car crash) in addition to being premature,” said Stroger Hospital spokesman Marcel Bright. The boy had been 6 or 7 months along.

The driver of the minivan, a 39-year old man from the West Side, was taken to Loretto Hospital after Wednesday’s car crashcar crash and was in police custody this morning, authorities said.

He has so far been cited for running a red light, driving on a revoked license and driving without insurance. Even before the baby died, police had been seeking reckless homicide charges against the man. The Cook County state’s attorney’s office is looking into the case, officials said.

The driver cited in the car crash has been previously convicted 15 times for driving without a license, or on a suspended or revoked license, and has not been properly licensed since September 2002, according to the Illinois secretary of state’s office. His license has also been suspended twice for driving without insurance, once in the case of an auto accident.

The auto accident occurred around 11:30 a.m. when a Ford van heading east on Washington Boulevard was struck by the Chrysler Town and Country minivan that was heading south on Kostner Avenue, running a red light, police said.

The impact pushed the Ford into Brown, a 30-year-old woman and two small girls. The 30-year-old woman and the girls, ages 3 and 1, were in good condition at Mt. Sinai Hospital.

This is a tough story to report about and discuss. There is nothing positive for me to mention. The icing on the cake for the Brown family is that it does not appear that the man driving the minivan has appropriate insurance to compensate the family for an obvious wrongful death lawsuit.  Keep your wits about you folks. There are some crazy and irresponsible drivers out there.

To read the full story, click here.

If you or your family have been involved in a car or trucking accident, then call attorney Aaron Bryant for a free consultation at 312-588-3384.

AAA Reports That Aggressive Driving Is The Cause Of Over Half Of All Accidents

Date
Posted by

AAA recently posted an article to help define aggressive driving and how it leads to the majority of accidents in the United States. The article points out that some of the studies done on aggressive driving have focused on specific driving behaviors, such as speeding, tailgating, or violating traffic control devices, which are commonly thought of as behaviors typically associated with aggressive driving. Other studies have distinguished between aggressive driving behaviors and driving behaviors that may be dangerous but not necessarily aggressive on the basis of the driver’s intentions. Finally, studies have investigated acts of assault committed by drivers against other drivers with the intent of causing physical harm, which is a criminal act often referred to as “road rage,” and is considered to be distinct from aggressive driving due to the intentionality of the harm that it may cause. In this paper, we focus on aggressive driving, and have not attempted to investigate criminal acts of “road rage.”

AAA found that based on recent studies and reports that 56 percent of fatal crashes from 2003 through 2007, with excessive speed being the number one factor. They did point out that 56 percent may to some degree overestimate the contribution of aggressive driving to fatal crashes. Although, it is likely that aggressive driving contributes to at least some crashes in which it is not reported due to lack of evidence.

AAA looked at a FARS Study (2003 – 2007), which showed that sspeeding was the most common potentially-aggressive action by far; nearly one of every three fatal crashes over the period studied involved a driver who was reported to have been exceeding the speed limit and/or driving too fast for conditions. Half of the fatal crashes (53,358, 50.0%) coded as involving potentially-aggressive actions were single-vehicle crashes; 45,021 (42.2%) involved two vehicles, and 8,348 (7.8%) involved three or more vehicles. Of the 45,021 two-vehicle crashes, potentially-aggressive actions were coded for only one of the drivers in 94.5 percent of these crashes and for both drivers in 5.5 percent. Of the 8,348 crashes involving more than two vehicles, potentially-aggressive actions were coded for only one driver in 91.6 percent of these crashes, two drivers in 6.9 percent, and more than two drivers in 1.5 percent.

The above statistics are somewhat sobering. Speeding and aggressive driving lead to accidents, which often end in fatal results. Often stress in our lives can cause us to grip the wheel tightly and act erratically and drive overly aggressive. I think it is important for all of us to take a deep breath, count to 3 and relax when we feel the aggression coming on.  Why take the chance of hurting yourself or others while on the road.

If you or someone you know is involved in an accident or has been a victim of road rage, then contact attorney Aaron Bryant for free consultation.  Call today at 312-588-3384.

 

Study Shows In Cab Computers Are Distraction To Truck Drivers

Date
Posted by

The New York Times recently reported on the use of computers by truck drivers while on the road. Truck drivers remain adamant that their use of computers are not a distraction and provide less of a hindrance than the use of cell phones or Blackberrys. 

“We think that’s overkill,” Clayton Boyce, spokesman for the American Trucking Associations, said of a federal bill that would force states to ban texting while driving if they want to keep receiving federal highway money.  Mr. Boyce, who said the industry does not condone texting while driving, said computers used by truckers require less concentration than phones. The trucks “have a screen that has maybe two or four or six lines” of text, he said. “And they’re not reading the screen every second.”  Banning the use of such devices, he added, “won’t improve safety.”

Safety experts have an opposing view and are determined to include computers in trucks in the texting ban. After videotaping truckers behind the wheel, the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute found that those who used on-board computers faced a 10 times greater risk of crashing, nearly crashing or wandering from their lane than truckers who did not use those devices. That figure is lower than the 23 times greater risk when truckers texted, compared with drivers simply focused on the road, according to the same study. However, the Virginia researchers said that truckers tend to use on-board computers more often than they text.

The study found that truckers using on-board computers take their eyes off the road for an average of four seconds, enough time at highway speeds to cover roughly the length of a football field.

Richard J. Hanowski, director of the Center for Truck and Bus Safety at the Virginia institute, said videotape monitoring of 200 truckers driving about three million miles showed many of them using the devices, even bypassing messages on the screen warning them not to use the devices while driving.

“Is this any different than texting?” Mr. Hanowski said. “With either one, the risks are very high.”

But Robert D. Foss, a senior researcher at the Highway Safety Research Center at the University of North Carolina, said the dispatch computers and texting devices present the same potential for distraction.

“It’s hard to accept the assertion: ‘We’re just different,’ ” he said. “You know full well this is motivated by economic considerations.”

There appears to be a strong lobby by both the trucking industry and safety experts and advocates. The statistics do not lie and based on the Virginia Tech report, computers are just as distracting as texting. It will be interesting to see if the in cab computers will be included in any proposed legislation involving the ban on texting and driving.

If you or someone you know has been involved in a trucking accident or car crash, then contact attorney Aaron Bryant at The Bryant Law Group for a free consultation at 312-588-3384.