When I started to read the article, as an experienced Nashville auto accident lawyer, I knew before it told me that 27-yerar-old James White was driving on a suspended license. What a Bozo. Ok, you’re driving on a suspended license, you’re carrying dope and syringes on your person and in the car, and you speed through Johnson City Tennessee. I mean, Duh! How stupid can you get?

When Police light him up for speeding what does this genius do? He tries to flee, but you guessed it, he was too high to avoid the police and he then leads them on a foot pursuit, until he gave up in a local motel parking lot. Nothing makes police madder then having to chase some hop-head through the neighborhoods. Now, charged with  speeding, fleeing the police, possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia and, oh yeah, driving on a suspended license, he is where he should be, housed in the County jail awaiting a preliminary hearing on a bond he can’t make.

If you or a loved one is injured or killed in a Tennessee automobile accident by a driver like this, you owe it to yourself to contact the experienced Tennessee automobile accident attorneys at Phillip Miller & Associates and find out aobut your rights and remedies.

Drag Racing Is Aggressive Driving

As an experienced Tennessee car accident lawyer, I regularly witness the role of aggressive drivers in many Tennessee car accidents. Statistics suggest that as many as one third of traffic crashes resulting in death can be attributed to aggressive driving and two-thirds of resulting deaths can be attributed to aggressive driving. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)  defines aggressive driving as “the operation of a motor vehicle in a manner which endangers or is likely to endanger persons or property.” Some of the most common actions considered aggressive include:

* Speeding

* Red light running

* Failure to yield

* Following too closely

* Unsafe lane changes

* Failure to obey traffic control devices

* Failure to use proper signals

* Improper passing

During the last several weeks I have noticed three Tennessee accidents, one fatal, involving another type of aggressive driving and that is the drag racer. When a Tennessee driver uses the highways and byways of our state as a race track, without regard for the lives and safety of innocent fellow drivers they are committing a crime.

Many states around the nation have specific statutes prohibiting aggressive driving, specifically drag racing. In Tennessee aggressive driving is addressed in the statutes as Reckless Driving. TN Code section 55-10-205)55-10-205, describes reckless driving as; “Any person who drives any vehicle in willful or wanton disregard for the safety of persons or property commits reckless driving.” Sound like the shoe fits the drag racer? You bet it does.

I would encourage each driver who ventures out onto the highways and byways of Tennessee to arm themselves with the telephone number of the appropriate law enforcement agency, either 911 or *847 for State Troopers and when you witness an aggressive driver, or a drag racer, pull over to a safe place and call in the license number, description of the vehicle and any other specifics that you observed. Save a life and tell all of your friends and families to step up and help reduce traffic fatalities in Tennessee.

If you or a loved one is injured or killed in a Tennessee automobile accident by an aggressive driver or drag racer, contact the experienced Nashville automobile accident attorneys at Phillip Miller & Associates and get a complete picture of your rights and remedies.

As an experienced Tennessee car accident lawyer with a large client base I try to keep them informed about issues related to highway safety. A recent study by the Governor’s Highway Safety Association regarding mature drivers caught my attention.

According to the study, since 1900, the percentage of Americans 65 and older has tripled, from 4.1% in 1900 to 12.4% in 2004. The older population itself is getting older. In 2004, the 65-74 age group (18.5 million) was over eight times larger than in 1900, but the 75-84 group (13.0 million) was 17 times larger and the 85 and older group (4.9 million) was 39.8 times larger. What this means is that it is becoming more and more likely that more and more Americans will outlive their ability to drive safely. According to the American Medical Association, older drivers (also referred to as mature drivers) have a higher risk of traffic fatalities

Older drivers have higher fatalities for two reasons: First, drivers aged 75 and older are involved in significantly more motor vehicle crashes per mile driven than middle-aged drivers. Second, mature drivers are considerably more fragile than their younger counterparts, and are therefore more likely to suffer a fatal injury in the event of a crash.

A AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety study in 2004 found that drivers over the age of 65 are almost twice as likely to die in car crashes as drivers aged 55 to 64. The report also revealed that drivers over 75 were over two-and-a-half times as likely to die in a car crash and drivers over 85 were almost four times as likely to die when compared to drivers aged 55 to 64.

If you or a loved one is involved in a Tennessee automobile accident involving an elderly driver contact the experienced Nashville automobile accident attorneys at Phillip Miller & Associates and learn about your rights and remedies.

Tennessee Drunk Driving Fatality

Several East Tennessee media sources reported on a tragic Tennessee automobile pickup truck collision that took the life on a 63-year-old Sequatchie man. For some reason Ms. Ruby Payne, 57, was, according to witnesses, swerving in and out of traffic on I-24. She lost control of her vehicle, left the roadway, overcorrected and crossed back into traffic and hit a Ford Pickup truck driven by John Taylor. The collision caused Mr. Taylor to leave the roadway, hit a ditch and roll several times.

Unfortunately, Mr. Taylor didn’t have his seatbelt on and was ejected from the vehicle and was dead at the scene. My prayers go out to the family and friends of Mr. Taylor for their terrible loss. My prayers also to Ms. Payne that she find peace and redemption for the tragedy she caused. I suspect that she will have plenty of time in jail to ponder that event.

Now I may be wrong, but from the facts set out in the media, which is all I have to go by, I would make the assumption that Ms. Payne was under the influence of either alcohol or drugs or that she was suffering some sort of medical emergency.

Drunk driving is one of America’s deadliest crimes. Here in Tennessee in 2008, 327 people were killed in crashes where the driver or motorcyclist had a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .08 or higher. That is down from 377 people killed in 2007 with a BAC of .08 or higher.

On average, a human being is killed by a drunk driver every 45 minutes. In 2008, an estimated 11,773 people died in drunk driving related crashs a decline of 9.8 percent from the 13,041 drunk driving related fatalities of 2007.

If you or a loved one is injured or killed in a Nashville automobile accident by a drunk driver contact the experienced Nashville automobile accident attorney’s at Phillip Miller & Associates and take advantage of a free consultation so that you can get a complete picture of your rights and remedies

Motorcycle Fatality

WSMV TV in Nashville reported on a tragic Tennessee motorcycle pickup truck fatality on Highway 31 just North of Nashville. Regina Hall, 36, of Bethpage, died when her motorcycle swerved suddenly into the path of an oncoming truck. The article goes on to say that Ms. Hall was an inexperienced rider and was riding her motorcycle for only the second time. Ms. Hall’s had a passenger on board and there is no mention of his outcome from the crash. My prayers go out to the family and friends of Ms. Hall.

Motorcycles made up nearly 3 percent of all registered vehicles in the United States in 2006 and accounted for only 0.4 percent of all vehicle miles traveled. Per vehicle mile traveled in 2006, motorcyclists were about 35 times more likely than passenger car occupants to die in a motor vehicle traffic crash and 8 times more likely to be injured.

In 2007, 2,641 (50%) of all motorcycles involved in fatal crashes collided with another type of motor vehicle in transport. In two-vehicle crashes, 78 percent of the motorcycles involved were struck in the front. Only 5 percent were struck in the rear. Motorcycles are more likely to be involved in a fatal collision with a fixed object than are other vehicles. In 2007, 25 percent of the motorcycles involved in fatal crashes collided with fixed objects, compared to 18 percent for passenger cars, 13 percent for light trucks, and 3 percent for large trucks.

As an experienced Nashville automobile accident attorney I couldn’t help but think of the many factors that could have caused this fatal Tennessee motorcycle accident. She left her lane and crossed into the oncoming lane for no apparent reason. Was there a medical emergency, a vehicle malfunction such as a blown tire, was she distracted by something such as a cell phone, or was she drowsy and nodded off for just a second?  So many reasons and so many unanswered questions left for the family to process. The one thing they do know is that their loved ones are gone, and have become just another traffic fatality statistic.

Stories like these remind us that when we get behind the wheel, or handbars, of a motor vehicle we have to have our full attention on the task at hand. We must regularly check the condition of our tires and brakes, we must avoid doing things that cause us to take our eyes off the road, and if we begin to feel drowsy or ill we need to quickly and safely get off the road and address these issues.

If you or a loved one is injured in a Tennessee motorcycle accident contact our experienced Nashville accident attorneys at Phillip Miller & Associates and learn about your rights and remedies.

Another Tennessee roadway departure crash takes the life of a Bristol, Tennessee woman on Friday.

Roadway Departure Crash Epidemic

The facts of this case are identical to those of dozens of fatal Tennessee automobile accidents that occurred over the past two weeks. A Tennessee driver tooling along a highway and for no apparent reason drives off one side of the road or the other, and overcorrects and leaves the road, hits something that doesn’t move, and if they happen to be not wearing their seatbelt like this particular Bristol driver, they die.

If you care about this trend and want to protect your family and friends take a minute to contact the following people and ask them what they are going to do about the carnage:

If you or a loved one is injured or killed by a Tennessee driver who leaves the road, contact the experienced Nashville automobile accident attorneys at Phillip Miller & Associates and find out about your rights and remedies.

Roadway Departure Epidemic

Driver inattention is the leading factor in most crashes. Nearly 80 percent of crashes and 65 percent of near-crashes involved some form of driver inattention within three seconds before the event.  Primary causes of driver inattention are distracting activities, such as cell phone use, and drowsiness.

Distraction from the primary task of driving could present a serious and potentially deadly danger. In 2008, 5,870 people lost their lives and an estimated 515,000 people were injured in police-reported crashes in which at least one form of driver distraction was reported on the crash report. While these numbers are significant, they may not state the true size of the problem, since the identification of distraction and its role in the crash by law enforcement can be very difficult.

Something distracted 25-year-old Jeremy Black in a one vehicle accident that left three passengers injured. He was driving along in his SUV when he drove off of the roadway on the left side and hit a tree. None of the three passengers who were injured were wearing their seat belts.

As an experienced Nashville automobile accident attorney we know that these crashes are referred to as “Roadway Departure Crashes” (RDCs). The Federal Highway Administration defines a RDC as a non-intersection crash that occurs when a vehicle crosses an edge line or a centerline, or otherwise leaves the traveled way.

According to the Federal Highway Administration roadway departure crashes are frequently severe and account for the majority of highway fatalities. In 2008, there were 19,794 fatal roadway departure crashes resulting in 22,080 fatalities, which was 53 percent of the fatal crashes in the United States. FHWA uses the Fatal Analysis Reporting System (FARS) compiled by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to compute statistics on roadway departure crashes.

If you or a loved one is injured or killed in a Tennessee car crash by a distracted driver or a case like the present one that will require and experienced Tennessee automobile accident lawyer contact the lawyers at Phillip Miller & Associates for a free consultation to learn about your rights and remedies.

Tennessee Teen Fatality

Under age and want to drink and get behind the wheel? Think again, and if you can’t think again pay attention to the arrest of a 16-year-old Hendersonville teen has been charged with vehicular homicide after being under the influence of drugs or alcohol when he crashed, causing the death of his friend.

From Middle Tennessee media reports we learn that the indictment followed a long investigation of the October 25 wreck. Apparently, the police attempted to contact the teen to tell him of the indictment but they were unable to do so. The teen was arrested at school. Vehicular homicide while under the influence is a class B felony.

Among experienced Tennessee automobile accident attorneys, the Governor’s Highway Safety Association (GHSA), the National Highway Safety Administration (NHTSA), and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), it is generally agreed that teen drivers have the highest crash risk of any age group. Per mile, the crash rate for 16 year-old drivers is 10 times the rate for drivers between 30 and 59. The basic reasons behind this statistic are obvious, teen drivers have no experience with the myriad issues faced by drivers with experience, furthermore, they are immature and often takes risks, most often speeding, and are easily distracted which contribute to the increased death rate.

As an experienced Nashville automobile accident lawyer I have seen far too many teen deaths and I strongly encourage parents to be realistic about the skills and propensities of their children. It’s a time of excitement and dread for every parent, the time when their precious little Bobby or Betty reaches the age when they can drive. Excitement because their child is growing up and the parents can relinquish to job of being the chauffeur for their busy teens and dread because the know in their heart of hearts the dangers that teen drivers face as they take to the highways and byways.

In addition to laws, safety experts agree that parents play a key role in helping teens become good drivers. Parents should not rely solely on drivers education classes to teach good driving habits and should restrict night driving, restrict the numbers of passengers riding with their teen, supervise practice driving, always require use of seat belts and choose vehicles for safety, not image. Parents can also set a good example by practicing safe driving techniques themselves.

If you or a loved one is injured or killed in a Tennessee automobile accident caused by a teen driver contact the experienced Nashville automobile accident attorneys at Phillip Miller & Associates and find out about your rights and remedies.

A tragic and totally preventable automobile accident took the life of a five-year-old girl took place the other night in Campbell County in East Tennessee. Had the driver/Mother not allowed herself to be distracted by reaching for a bottle of water, and had she seen to it that her daughter was protected in a child safety seat, she would still be alive today. My prayers go out to the family and friends of the driver and child.

Driving along an East Tennessee interstate highway, the mother takes her eyes and her mental focus away from the job at hand and drifts off the side of the road, over-corrects and loses control. The five-year-old is ejected from the vehicle and dies.

Driver inattention is the leading factor in most crashes. Nearly 80 percent of crashes and 65 percent of near-crashes involved some form of driver inattention within three seconds before the event.  Primary causes of driver inattention are distracting activities, such as cell phone use, and drowsiness.

The use of safety belts, child restraint safety seats and child booster seats, are required by Tennessee law. Seat belts, child restraint safety seats and child booster seats can help save you and your passengers lives in the event of a traffic crash. There were three other children in the vehicle at the time of the crash and they were unhurt. The lesson her is too obvious to restate, use your head and you won’t lose it, our someone else’s, for that matter.

If you or a loved one is injured or killed in a Tennessee automobile accident by a distracted driver, contact the experienced Nashville automobile accident lawyers at Phillip Miller & Associates

Distracted Driving

and find out about your rights and remedies.

Drunk Driving Makes You Stupid

As an experienced Nashville automobile accident attorney I can tell you for a certainty that when it comes to drinking and driving,  that stupid is as stupid does. First of all, for people who haven’t been paying attention, it’s really stupid to get behind the wheel when you have been consuming alcohol. It’s stupid to get behind the wheel under the influence and speed. And stupider and stupider, when you get behind the wheel drunk and speed and have sex all at the same time.

Reference an article on the web page of Nashville WSMV TV. A couple had been out on the town, took drunk and came to the conclusion that it might be a good idea to engage in sex while they sped along into the night. Unfortunately the driver got somewhat distracted and left the road and rammed, at high speed, into a house.

The collision literally tore the kitchen off of the house. The homeowners and the driver lucked out. Only moments before the climax they had been sitting in the kitchen talking. Had they not moved to the living room they would have been killed and Loverboy and his princess would have been looking at some serious prison time.

The article went on to say that the driver’s blood alcohol level was double the legal limit. He told officers that he lost his concentration while having sexual relations with the woman in his truck while he was driving.

If you are the victim of a Nashville or Tennessee automobile accident we urge you to contact our car accident attorneys today for a free consultation. When you hire an auto accident attorney from Phillip Miller & Associates, you’re getting a qualified and dedicated lawyer. Details about our attorneys and staff can be found by viewing our website at www.seriousinjury.com where you can get to know the men and women who will be looking out for your best interest.