Car Accidents

April 5, 2012

Fall River Man Dies, Woman Injured, in Motorcycle Crash

A young man from Fall River, Massachusetts, was killed yesterday following a motorcycle crash in Dartmouth, Massachusetts at the intersection of Milton and Sharp streets. Thirty-two-year-old Stephen Adams and his 32-year-old female passenger were transported to Rhode Island Hospital, both in critical condition after the crash. Adams died shortly after. Although the cause of the crash has not been determined, two cars were found in the road by officers; the drivers and passengers apparently were uninjured.

Less than a month ago, we commented on another serious crash between a motorcycle and a car in Allston. There, we wrote that Massachusetts requires all motorcyclists to wear helmets (unlike some states) and noted that national rates of wearing helmets have increased. We currently have no reason to believe the man and his passenger in the present case were not wearing helmets.

With more motorcyclists on the road in the upcoming warmer months, we urge bikers and car drivers to use even greater care on the roads. If you have been injured in a motorcycle crash, or a loved one has been killed in a motorcycle crash, contact a skilled Boston and Cambridge motorcycle accident attorney as soon as possible to determine your potential for recovery in a personal injury lawsuit or wrongful death suit.

March 28, 2012

Aquinnah Car Accident Claims Two Lives on Caroline Kennedy’s Martha’s Vineyard Estate

by Altman & Altman

A Massachusetts car accident on the Martha’s Vineyard estate of Caroline Kennedy has claimed the lives of two people. Caroline inherited the property from her mom Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis.

The Martha’s Vineyard auto crash happened on the Aquinnah estate at around midday on March 23 when the driver of a 2000 Toyota Land Cruiser hit a tree while backing her vehicle down a private driveway. Her car lurched forward, hitting an electrical box and porch before going down a hill and hitting another tree in a head-on crash. State police say the vehicle traveled 319 feet.

Killed in the Aquinnah car accident were the driver of the Toyota, 70-year-old West Tisbury resident Judith Morse, and front seat passenger Susan Lambard. The passenger in the back seat, 68-year-old Susan Papanicolaou, sustained minor injuries.

March 24, 2012

Prevent Boston Personal Injury by Knowing About 15-Passenger Van Safety Issues

by Altman & Altman

With Spring underway, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration wants to remind drivers that there are risks involved with driving a 15-passenger van. These vehicles have been involved in some very catastrophic traffic crashes, one reason being that with so many passengers able to ride in these vans, the number of injuries and deaths tend to be higher.

A few years back, CBS’s 60 Minutes II called the 15-passenger van one of the more dangerous vehicles on the road. This can be primarily attributed to the design of the vehicle. Because the back end has been extended so that up to four people can ride behind the van’s rear axle, this part of the vehicle can end up being very heavy, which can cause it to swing out should the vehicle suddenly swerve. Also, 15-passenger vans tend to have a high gravity center. The more people riding in it (even if there are no more than 15) the heavier it becomes, which increases its rollover risk. Tire blowouts can prove very dangerous on a 15-passsenger van.

Our Boston injury lawyers represent victims and families involved in Massachusetts 15-passenger van accidents. Even if driver negligence played a factor, you could have a valid auto products liability claim against the vehicle manufacturer.

To decrease the chance of a Boston 15-passenger van accident and any resulting injuries (NHTSA):

• Don’t overload the van.
• Wear a seat belt.
• Maintain the car regularly.
• Make sure the you are using tires that are the proper size; check them regularly to ensure that are properly inflated.
• Only let motorists with the proper license and experience drive your 15-passenger van.

A lot of people that ride professionally driven 15-passsenger vans treat the vehicle as if it were a bus by not bothering to buckle up. This is not a good idea. 15-passenger van accidents can result in head trauma, broken bones, traumatic brain injuries, massive internal injuries, burn injuries, spinal cord injuries, and other serious injuries.

Consumer Advisory: NHTSA Offers Tips for Safe Travel in 15-Passenger Vans, NHTSA, March 22, 2012

Q&A: 15-passenger vans, Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, April 2011

Rollover, CBS News, February 11, 2009

More Blog Posts:
NTSB Calling for Total Cell Phone Ban on All US Roads and Highways, Boston Injury Lawyer Blog, December 15, 2011

Preventing Boston 15-Passsenger Van Accidents: NHTSA Reissues Consumer Warning, Boston Injury Lawyer Blog, October 15, 2010

15-Passenger Van Accident on Massachusetts’s Tobin Bridge Leaves 13 People Injured, Boston Injury Lawyer Blog, September 1, 2008 Continue reading

March 23, 2012

New Bedford Bicyclist Hit and Killed by FedEx Truck

by Altman & Altman

With record-breaking temperatures yesterday, Massachusetts residents poured outside to enjoy the sunshine and summer temperatures. Walkers, runners, bicyclists, rollerbladers, picnickers, and beach-goers (including kids playing hooky from school) were seen in droves. Unfortunately, the day did not end as gloriously for all.

According to news reports, on Wednesday evening around 6pm, 58-year-old Cynthia Pacheco of New Bedford was hit and killed by a FedEx freight truck in New Bedford Industrial Park. The FexEx truck was making a left-hand turn when it hit her. The incident is still being investigated. Police could not confirm whether or not Pacheco was wearing a helmet.

With virtually no protection against guardrails, trees, fences, cars, and trucks, bicyclists can suffer minor injuries like bumps and bruises to serious injuries such as broken bones, head injuries and even fatalities. If you or a loved one has been injured or killed in a bicycle accident in Massachusetts, you should contact an experienced MA bicycle accident attorney to determine whether you may be able to financially recover.

March 21, 2012

Car Collides with School Bus in Marshfield, Injuring Three

by Altman & Altman

According to news reports, a serious bus crash today in Marshfield on Route 3A caused two individuals to be MedFlighted to trauma centers for help. A full sized school bus apparently crashed into a Ford station wagon that had run a stop sign at an intersection. The two seriously injured individuals were MedFlighted were riding in the station wagon, and the third woman in the wagon was seriously injured as well. The South Shore Community Action Council (SSCAC) bus was carrying 11 preschool students and 3 adults, on the way to South Shore Head Start and Day Care, who were all wearing seat belts and were uninjured.

Buses are clearly a very economical mode of transportation that has become nearly essential today, particularly in the transport of children. At the same time, history has shown that buses-along with other larger vehicles-are more prone to turn-overs and can cause incredible amounts of damage when involved in accidents. The SSCAC bus involved in this accident was owed by the privately owned SSCAC, a non-profit on the South Shore to aid low-income individuals.

If you or a loved one has been injured in a car, bus or truck crash in Massachusetts, you should contact an experienced car accident attorney to determine whether you may be able to financially recover.

March 20, 2012

Alcohol May Have Been A Factor in Deadly Orleans, Massachusetts Car Accident Involving Woman that Fell out of Pickup Truck that Struck Her

by Altman & Altman

Police are investigating a deadly Barnstable County, Massachusetts traffic accident that claimed the life of 47-year-old Diane Cole. They believe that both Cole and the driver of the GMC pickup truck she had been riding in on Friday afternoon, 69-year-old Dennis Maskell, had been drinking.

According to witnesses, on Friday afternoon, Cole fell out of the truck and that was when the vehicle’s rear tire struck her. At the time, the vehicle was reportedly moving at a slow speed. So far, the authorities don’t believe that the truck’s door opened unexpectedly as a result of any type of mechanical failure. They also don’t believe that domestic problems played a role in the tragic incident.

Maskell has been charged with motor vehicle homicide. A man who knew Cole and Maskell said that she jumped out of the vehicle. Maskell and Cole were reportedly not a couple.

Barnstable County, Massachusetts Wrongful Death
Figuring out who was responsible for a Massachusetts injury accident can be tough. Even with investigators and police involved, you want to make sure that you retain the servicers of someone that can advocate on your behalf and protect your rights.

If someone you love was killed in an Orleans, Massachusetts injury accident that you believe was caused by someone else’s negligence, you may be able to sue for damages.

Orleans woman falls out of truck, is killed, CapeCod Online, March 17, 2012

More Blog Posts:
Car Collides with School Bus in Marshfield, Injuring Three, Boston Injury Lawyer Blog, March 21, 2012

Pregnant Massachusetts Woman Killed in Fort Lauderdale Vacation Accident, Boston Injury Lawyer Blog, March 19, 2012

Truck Rollover in Freetown, MA Injures Two, Boston Car Accident Lawyer Blog, March 6, 2012 Continue reading

March 19, 2012

Pregnant Massachusetts Woman Killed in Fort Lauderdale Vacation Accident

by Altman & Altman

Somehow, vacation accidents strike an even more painful chord in our hearts than other types of accidents. A vacation is a time to escape from the stresses of daily life and relax. For some, vacation means snow-covered mountains, skiing, and snowboarding. For many others, vacation means sunshine, pools, tropical cruises, boating and family. Regardless of the case, the term “vacation accidents” may appear a tragic oxymoron to some.

In an incredibly tragic and unusual accident, a pregnant woman from Medford and her unborn child were killed yesterday in Florida when a driver lost control of her car and crashed into a cabana. The 34-year-old female driver, Rosa Rivera Kim, crashed into the 2-story hotel cabana in which the 26-year-old Medford resident Alanna DeMella and her husband had been staying in during their vacation. DeMella was 7 months pregnant with her son at the time. According to reports, Ms. DeMella was a third grade teaching assistant in Arlington and the school is preparing to deal with the crisis.

This case is distinct from the standard run-of-the-mill car accident case in several major ways: (1) the driver had an unborn child who was also killed; (2) the manner in which the accident occurred-crashing through a cabana-is incredibly unusual and somewhat bizarre; and (3) the couple was on vacation out-of-state. How this combination of factors could influence the location and outcome of a potential wrongful death lawsuit have not been determined.

March 12, 2012

Motorcycle Collides with Car in Allston, Causing Serious Injuries

by Altman & Altman

This has been a glorious day for most people in the Boston area, with high temperatures drawing walkers, bikers, runners, and dog-walkers out into the sunshine. The day also held hopes of being a great one for motorcyclists to speed along in in one of the first warm breezes of the year. Unfortunately, however, the day has not been so bright for all. Around noon today, a motorcyclist was involved with a collision with a car near an intersection in Allston, causing the biker serious, life-threatening injuries. The collision occurred along Commonwealth Avenue at the intersection with Harvard Avenue, one of the city’s busiest intersections and a stop on the above-ground “B” train of the MBTA’s Green Line.

Although most motorcyclists wear (or should wear) helmets, motorcyclists generally have no other form of protection from outside forces, including weather, concrete, trees, and–as was the case here–other cars. While car and truck drivers at least have a physically separating them from other cars, motorcyclists (and bicyclers) have no such protection, so contact with another vehicle is typically direct and, therefore, quite dangerous.

Our thoughts and sympathies are with the injured rider and his family.

February 21, 2012

MA Supreme Court holds that teens who don’t supply alcohol at underage parties they host cannot be held civilly liable

by Altman & Altman

It’s no secret that high school kids host parties with underage drinking. It’s also no secret that sometimes these parties don’t always end well-news reports of underage drunk driving accidents, and even deaths, speak for themselves. You’re all familiar with the incredibly tragic scenario. A high school party. Underage binge drinking. 3am car crash. The case on which today’s decision was based stems, not surprisingly, from a similar tragic fact pattern that occurred in 2007.

Who can be held responsible? Who pays in liability suit or a wrongful death suit? The teenagers who held the party? The friends or parents who supplied the alcohol? The hurt teenager himself, who was drinking illegally?

The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial court unanimously ruled today that teens who host parties where underage drinking occurs cannot be held civilly liable-usually meaning responsible for monetary damages-if they did not supply the alcohol. The court “reaffirm[ed] that liability attaches only where a social host either serves alcohol or exercises effective control over the supply of alcohol.”

February 16, 2012

Man Charged with Drunk Driving and Hit-and-Run in Fall River

by Altman & Altman

An hit-and-run accident this week in Fall River left a 52-year-old woman with a broken leg and other serious injuries. Police allege that 32-year-old Antonio Martis hit Donna Adams as she was crossing the street after leaving a bakery, got out of the car and looked at her, then backed up-driving over Adams’ legs as he did so-and sped away. According to news reports, one car stopped to let Adams cross the street, but Martis’ vehicle was traveling so quickly on the wet roads and he was unable to stop in time. Witnesses to the accident began to chase Martis, who ended up striking a parked car and then a utility pole-leaving Martis’ face bleeding from the airbags that deployed. Martis has been charged with an leaving the scene of an accident, OUI, and assault and battery.

A witness to the accident took out his cell phone and began recording the accident after he saw Adams struck by the vehicle. He apparently captured Martis’ vehicle driving over Adams’ legs before he sped away.

The Massachusetts legislature and courts take hit-and-run accidents very seriously. Adams’ injuries could have been even more serious, and even fatal, and our sympathies are with Adams and her family.