Tennessee Intersection Collision

WRBC TV in Chattanooga Tennessee reports on a tragic but very preventable automobile motorcycle accident just across the Tennessee line in Georgia. The victims, an adult driver and a 7-year-old passenger who was hospitalized and is expected to recover. The pickup was stopped at an intersection and for some unknown reason, he was probably distracted, pulled out into the path of the oncoming motorcycle. The distracted pickup driver was driving without a license.

More crashes happen at intersections than at any other place. Intersections constitute a very small part of rural and urban street/highway systems, yet they are implicated in 31.9 percent of all motor vehicle crashes and 15.5 percent of all fatal crashes (2004 NHTSA data). Be very careful when approaching any intersection or driveway. Never assume another driver will yield the right-of-way to you. Always be prepared to stop.

Approaching intersections safely. To do the Tennessee Rules of the Road suggest that you employ a concept called “Traffic Checks”, which is the process of looking frequently and carefully for vehicle traffic approaching from each direction. “Traffic Checks” is especially important when merging or changing lanes AND when approaching and crossing intersections. Below are five things to remember to navigate an intersection safely:

Preventing injuries and deaths at intersections should be a high priority for towns and cities. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) reports that in 2005 alone, nearly 9,200 people died and approximately one million people were injured in intersection-related crashes which account for approximately 40-45 percent of all crashes.

If you or a loved one is injured or killed in a Tennessee intersection collision contact the experienced Nashville automobile accident attorneys at Phillip Miller & Associates. The best law firms will provide a free consultation. We provide a free, confidential consultation to not at fault persons named in this article. The free consultation offer extends to family members as well.

Witness told police that these children raced in a residential area when the Toyota driver lost control, went airborne and hit a utility pole splitting in half and landing on it’s roof in the yard of a residence. The driver was trapped in the car and had to be extricated by emergency personnel. She is hospitalized in very serious condition. My prayers go out to her and family as well as my wishes for a speedy and complete recovery.

Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for American teens. Most Americans typically learn to drive during the teen years, when the brain is not fully mature yet. Recent research is beginning to give us insight why many teens have difficulty regulating risk-taking behavior:

* The area of the brain that weighs consequences, suppresses impulses and organizes thoughts does not fully mature until about age 25.

* Hormones are more active in teens, which influence the brain’s neuro-chemicals that regulate excitability and mood. The result can be thrill-seeking behavior and experiences that create intense feelings.

Teen Drag Racing Crash

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.

Teen Alcohol Abuse Over 4th of July Weekend

Since 2008, celebrating the Fourth of July has meant enjoying a 3-day weekend. With parades, picnics, and fireworks, the festivities, according to the report, can all too often lead to a trip to the hospital emergency room for underage individuals who have been consuming alcohol.

On an average July day in 2008, there were 502 emergency department (ED) visits involving underage alcohol use across the United States, according to estimates from the Drug Abuse Warning Network (DAWN). Over the 3-day Fourth of July holiday weekend, however, the number of daily ED visits jumped to 938, an increase of 87 percent. While all underage alcohol consumption is of concern, consumption that leads to a hospital visit should be of particular concern to adults and to health care professionals.

If you or someone you love has been hurt in a serious Tennessee car accident due to somebody else’s negligence, then you may be feeling angry, frightened, or even alone in your suffering.

There is no reason for you to bear your burden alone.  The experience of a Tennessee auto accident is traumatic enough and your recovery will bring its own challenges.  You don’t need the added stress of worrying about who will pay for the medical care you need, how your car will be repaired, and if the individuals responsible for your suffering will be brought to justice.  This is the time to call Phillip Miller & Associates, the law firm of local Tennessee attorneys and staff who for the past 25 years have dedicated their lives to protecting the rights of injured men, women, and children in Tennessee.

Tailgating-Two Dead

As an experienced Tennessee automobile accident attorney I can tell you that if you are distracted in any way as you drive on the highways and byways of Tennessee things can get hinky in just a second or two. Reference an article from the website of the Lexington, Kentucky Herald-Leader about a four vehicle crash on I-75 in East Tennessee.

According to the facts in the article automobiles had stopped on the highway because of an accident ahead. A tractor-trailer driven by a 63-year-old Tennessee truck driver, failed to keep his vehicle under control and rammed into the rear-end of a car carrying five passengers on their way to a religious convocation. The crash killed a 52-year-old woman and a 3-year-old little girl, and injured the others.

Tennessee law states: “The driver of a motor vehicle shall not follow another vehicle more closely than is reasonable and prudent, having due regard for the speed of such vehicles and the traffic upon and the condition of the highway.” When another driver makes a mistake, you need time to react. Give yourself this time by keeping a “space cushion” around your vehicle. This space cushion will give you room to brake and avoid hazards when needed.

Good drivers keep this safe following distance or space cushion to have a better view of the road. The more space you allow between your car and the car ahead, the more time you will have to see and react to traffic hazards or crashes down the road. Many drivers don’t see as well as they should because they follow too closely (tailgating). The vehicle ahead of them blocks their view of traffic and road conditions. Rear-end crashes are very common and most of these crashes are caused by drivers who are “tailgating.”

What does this mean to you if you or a family member are the victim of a Tennessee tractor-trailer accident and suffer a serious or life threatening injury?  It means that the trucking company has a huge advantage in investigating the cause of the accident and developing a strategy for its defense to any claim that arises. During one of these situations evidence can disappear and negligent drivers can be coached on what to say to police investigators. The trucking company has the benefit of an expert that was actually at the accident scene. This may not be possible for the victim since injuries are usually severe in nature. Needless to say it is important to act quickly so that an expert can examine the evidence on your behalf.

If you or a loved one is injured in a Tennessee tractor-trailer accident caused by a driver who is distracted or following too close, you owe it to yourself to immediately contact the experienced Tennessee tractor-trailer attorneys at Phillip Miller & Associates.

An Unnecessary Child Fatality

A 20-year-old Obion County Tennessee woman took the time to buckle her seat belt but didn’t bother to secure the 6-year-old boy with her. For some unknown reason she ran off of the road and overcorrected and returned to the roadway and rolled ejecting the child and rolled again before coming to a rest. The Trooper who investigated stated in the report that had the child been properly restrained there would have been a different outcome for this unfortunate child.

Child safety seats reduce fatal injury by 71 percent for infants (less than 1 year old) and by 54 percent for toddlers (1 to 4 years old) in passenger cars. Young children restrained in child safety seats have an 80 percent lower risk of fatal injury than those who are unrestrained.

Tennessee was the first state in the country to pass a Child Passenger Protection Law requiring children to be restrained in child safety seats (car seats and booster seats).

A.  A child under one year old, or any child weighing less than 20 pounds, must be in a child passenger restraint system (car seat) that is facing the rear of the car.

B. Children who are one through three years old, and who weigh more than 20 pounds, must be in a child passenger restraint system that is facing forward.

C. Children who are four through eight years old and whose height is under four feet, nine inches, must be in a belt positioning booster seat system (child booster car seat) and wearing a seatbelt.

These seats should be in the rear seat of the car, if possible. The children can’t make the decision to protect themselves, this is the legal responsibility of the parents. It is also the responsibility of the parents to teach by example.  If you are driving and witness a parent driving without having their child properly restrained it is your duty to notify the authorities. Call 911 is you are in an urban area and *847 in a rural area. Make the call and save a child’s life.

If you or a loved one is injured or killed in a Tennessee highway automobile accident contact the experienced Nashville automobile accident law firm of Phillip Miller & Associates and take advantage of a free consultation to determine your rights and remedies

Teen Driving Accidents Kill Others

As an experienced Nashville automobile accident attorney I have handled more accidents involving teen drivers than a I care to think about. One of the things that I began to notice several years ago is that when teen drivers crash it seems that other parties are impacted more often than in adult accidents. A recent study by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety supports my observation.

The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety analyzed data on fatal motor vehicle crashes from 1998 through 2007 and identified all fatal crashes involving a 15, 16, or 17-year-old drivers of a passenger vehicle. Over the 10 years from 1998 through 2007, there were 24,655 drivers ages 15 through 17 involved in fatal crashes. These crashes killed 28,138 people, of whom 10,388 (36.9%) were the 15, 16, and 17-year-old drivers themselves.

However, the majority of fatalities in those crashes (63.1%) were people other than those drivers, and included 8,829 of their passengers, 6,858 occupants of vehicles operated by drivers aged 18 or older, and 2,063 non-motorists and others. On a positive note, the number of young drivers involved in fatal crashes each year decreased substantially over the years analyzed, with 776 fewer drivers age 15 to 17 involved in fatal crashes in 2007 than in 1998, resulting in the deaths of 311 fewer young drivers and 540 fewer deaths of other people in 2007 than in 1998.

There was also a substantial decrease in the fatal crash involvement of adult drivers over the same period; however, the decrease in the fatal crash involvement of young drivers and people killed in those crashes was significantly larger than what would have been predicted from the decrease in the fatal crash involvement of adults.

If you or a loved one is injured or killed in a Tennessee automobile accident caused by a teen driver you owe it to yourself to retain the experienced Nashville car crash lawyers at Phillip Miller & Associates and maximize your recovery.

Distracted Teen Driver

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.

A recent Tennessee automobile accident involving a teen driver makes the point that lack of experience and inability to avoid distractions is a major problem on our highways. The case from Johnson City involves a 17-year-old girl who was driving a pickup truck accompanied by three dogs. She was stopped at a stop sign and without warning pulled out directly in the path of a fully loaded log truck. According to investigators she was lucky to have avoided being killed. What was she doing within the seconds leading up to her pulling out into traffic? Was she using her cell phone? Was she distracted by the three dogs with her in the truck? Whatever it was, it kept her from looking at the oncoming traffic before making a decision to pull out.

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.

Protect Your Teen Drivers

As an experienced Tennessee automobile accident attorney I have a dread of this time of year. It seems to me that teens making the transition from high school to college become headlines in the news stories relating horrific fatal traffic accidents. Over the many years I have been in practice I have counseled with so many parents I couldn’t possibly count them, whose children have been seriously injured or killed in a Tennessee auto collision caused by a teen driver.

One of the reasons I spend my time writing these blogs is that I want to remind Tennessee drivers of the dangers that we all face as we take a motor vehicle out on the highways and byways of Tennessee. I recently found something from the Allstate Foundation, an independent, private, non-profit organization funded by subsidiaries of The Allstate Corporation, that I think is a must read for every Tennessee parent.

Learning to drive is a critical milestone in a teen’s life and one in which parents should play an active role. Here are some suggestions:

• Talk to your teen early and often. Discuss the risks anresponsibilities of driving with your child at a young age and keep talking to your teen before, during and after the licensing process.

• Determine if your teen is ready to drive. Not all teens are ready to drive when the law says they can. Driving is a privilege, not a right.

• Don’t rush the process. Just because teens have a permit or license, doesn’t mean they are ready for every driving condition.

• Maximize driver education experience. Seek tips from parents and teens who have recently participated in driver education programs. Remember, driver education is merely a first step in the process. Parents should provide the bulk of supervised driving practice and discussion before, during and after licensure.

• Understand your state’s laws. Every state has Graduated Driver Licensing laws to help new drivers get their initial on-the-road driving experience under lower-risk conditions. Familiarize yourself and your teen with these requirements, and establish your own rules for when, where, how and with whom your teen may drive.

• Empower your teen. Being a passenger in another teen’s car can put your teen at risk. Peer pressure among teens can be both positive and negative. Reinforce how important it is that your teen speaks up in dangerous situations.

• Exert positive peer pressure. Encourage other parents to set appropriate rules for their teens so you can present a united front.

• Practice what you preach. Your teen is more likely to be a calm and courteous driver, wear a seat belt and follow the rules of the road if they see you do the same.

Take action and visit www.ProtectTeenDrivers.com to find:

• Complete survey findings

• Downloadable parent-teen driving agreement

• State-by-state Graduated Driver Licensing laws

• Tips for:

– Talking to your teen and other parents about this issue

– Determining if your teen is ready to drive

– Teaching your teen to drive

– Selecting and maximizing the driver education experience

– Encouraging your teen’s high school to help create a safe driving culture

If you or a loved one is injured or killed in a Tennessee automobile accident caused by a teen driver contact the experienced Nashville auto accident lawyers at Phillip Miller & Associates and take advantage of a free consultation to learn about your rights and remedies.

Drugged Driver

A recent incident in Lexington Kentucky caught my eye because, as an experienced Nashville auto accident lawyer I can tell you that, it illustrates the same problem that exists here in Nashville. The problem is drugged driving. A woman in an SUV accompanied by her two children was so out of it that she drove her vehicle through the wall of a department store. Toxicology tests are pending but officers say enough evidence to place her under arrest for DUI, wanton endangerment and criminal mischief.

The principal concern regarding drugged driving is that driving under the influence of any drug that acts on the brain could impair one’s motor skills, reaction time, and judgment. Drugged driving is a public health concern because it puts not only the driver at risk, but also passengers and others who share the road.

Despite these acknowledged concerns, drugged driving laws have lagged behind alcohol legislation, in part because of limitations in the current technology for determining drug levels, and resulting impairment. For alcohol, detection of its blood concentration (BAC) is relatively simple and concentrations greater than .08% have been shown to impair driving performance. Thus, 0.08% is the legal limit in this country. For illicit drugs, there is no agreed upon limit for which impairment has been reliably demonstrated. And determining current drug levels can be difficult, since some drugs linger in the body for a period of days or weeks after initial ingestion.

Some states (Arizona, Georgia, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Utah, Virginia, and Wisconsin), have passed “per se” laws—in which it is illegal to operate a motor vehicle if there is any detectable level of a prohibited drug, or its metabolites, in the driver’s blood. Other state laws define “drugged driving” as driving when a drug “renders the driver incapable of driving safely” or “causes the driver to be impaired.”

If you or a loved one is injured or killed in a Tennessee car crash caused by a drugged driver you owe it to yourself to contact the experienced Tennessee automobile accident attorney’s at Phillip Miller & Associates and take advantage of a free consultation to find out about your rights and remedies.

Tennessee Trucking Accident

How and afternoon Nashville tractor-trailer/car accident on an on ramp to I-40 off of Briley Parkway didn’t end in a fatality is a true miracle. On a wide circular two-lane on-ramp  a tractor-trailer started to lose control. The driver of the car was alongside of the trailer and began to take evasive action. Unfortunately he was not able to get out of the way and the trailer, carrying a 70,000 pound cargo, overturned crushing his vehicle. The upside of the story is that the man was only slightly injured and his passengers, his wife and 6-mnth-old son were uninjured.

This accident brings to mind some advice that I would like to share for the families of those who are injured or killed in a Tennessee tractor-trailer accident. For a trucking company whose vehicles travel millions of miles per year, accidents are an everyday occurrence. Trucking companies have gotten this process down to a science and in many cases have specialized accident investigators at the scene of an accident interviewing the truck driver even before he she talks to the police investigation.

What does this mean to you if you or a family member are the victim of a Tennessee tractor-trailer accident and suffer a serious or life threatening injury?  It means that tthe trucking company has a huge advantage in investigating the cause of the accident and developing a strategy for its defense to any claim that arises. During one of these situations evidence can disappear and negligent drivers can be coached on what to say to police investigators. The trucking company has the benefit of an expert that was actually at the accident scene. This may not be possible for the victim since injuries are usually severe in nature. Needless to say it is important to act quickly so that an expert can examine the evidence on your behalf.

Time is of the essence in these kind of  cases. Although most cases can be reconstructed at a later time it is important to have someone looking out for your best interests as soon as possible. That’s why it’s important to contact an experienced Tennessee tractor-trailer accident lawyer like those you will find at Phillip Miller & Associates. If you or a loved one is injured in a car tractor-trailer accident act quickly and take advantage of a no-cost no-obligation consultation and learn about your rights and put our crack team of lawyers and investigators on the case.