Sometimes media reports provide so little information you wonder why they even bother to mention an incident. This happened in the Memphis Commercial-Appeal yesterday when it reported on a pedestrian car accident involving a 2-year-old. All we know is that a 71-year-old woman was leaving an apartment complex when she ran over a 2-year-old boy. The article did mention that the boy had minor injuries and is in stable condition. My prayers go out to the lady and the boy.

The main question I had when I read this article is what is a 2-year-old baby doing outside in an apartment complex without supervision. It is the parents responsibility to protect their children and that failure to supervise when the child is in a dangerous place is negligence on the part of the parent.

When this parent shows up at a personal injury lawyer’s office and wants to sue the driver, the lawyer is in a difficult position. Liability against the driver is contingent on whether she was negligent, but the parent has to understand that any jury is going to decide whether the drivers negligence is responsible for the injuries or the parents failure to supervise the child in a dangerous place like an apartment complex.

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.

Fatal Hit & Run

As an experienced Nashville auto accident lawyer I can tell you that a pedestrian is defined as any person not in or upon a motor vehicle or other vehicle. In 2007, 4,654 pedestrians were killed in traffic crashes in the United States — a decrease of 13 percent from the 5,321 pedestrians killed in 1997. On average, a pedestrian is killed in a traffic crash every 113 minutes and injured in a traf!c crash every 8 minutes.

There were 70,000 pedestrians injured in traf!c crashes in 2007. Most pedestrian fatalities in 2007 occurred in urban areas (73%), at non-intersection locations (77%), in normal weather conditions (90%), and at night (67%). More than two-thirds (70%) of the pedestrians killed in 2007 were males. In 2007, the male pedestrian fatality rate per 100,000 population was 2.19 — more than double the rate for females (0.91 per 100,000 population). In 2007, the male pedestrian injury rate per 100,000 population was 26, compared with 20 for females.

In a local media article this week we find that Tennessee Highway Patrol troopers and Mt. Juliet Police believe that a hit-and-run on Interstate 40 eastbound killed a pedestrian early Wednesday and caused two other accidents. The initial vehicle left the scene of the accident and is being sought by police. Some time during the period 3:30 AM to 5:15 AM a man was hit by a car on I-40 in the East bound lane. Some time later drivers trying to avoid the man’s body in the interstate swerved and ran off of the road.

If have any information about the driver who left the scene or the victim of this collision contact the Tennessee Highway Patrol or the Lebanon PD. For more information about Tennessee highway traffic safety or what to do if you are the victim of a Tennessee automobile accident check out the experienced personal injury lawyers at Philip Miller & Associates and take advantage of a free consultation with a Board Certified Civil Trial Lawyer.

Hit & Run Arrest

As an experienced Nashville auto accident lawyer I have become well acquanted with the Forrest Gump rule of “…stupid is as stupid does.” This guy is a powerful example of that rule.

In order to avoid a possible DUI citation a Campbell County Tennessee man ends up charged with criminally negligent homicide, leaving the scene of an accident involving death and filing a false police report. This is good example of the kind of good thinking you do when you are under the influence, but hey, he didn’t get a DUI.

According to local news articles the 29-year-old man was driving along at about 11PM when he struck a pedestrian who was walking home from work. The other man was also 29-years-old and his body was found lying alongside the road at 7 AM the following morning. According to police investigators they were able to determine the make and color of the truck from debris left at the scene of the crash.

The driver filed a police report the following day saying that his yellow GMC pickup truck had been stolen sometime the evening before. Another stupid move. Police found the vehicle abandoned in a secluded area and arrested the owner-driver a short time later.

Those of you who are regular readers of this blog know how I feel about people who hit and possible kill another human being and resist the normal urge to stop, get out and help that person, but instead drive off and hide, leaving the unfortunate victim to die in an effort to avoid responsibility for their dastardly deed.

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.

Hit & Run Driver

As an experienced Tennessee auto accident lawyer I’d like to add my voice to that of the Hamilton County Tennessee Sheriff’s Department and ask anyone with information on a heavy-set woman with short hair driving a Mercury to please contact the Sheriff’s Department and identify the woman. It appears that witnesses to a Hit & Run fatality gave that description of a driver who hit 48-year-old Terry Bailey was hit as he crossed Cummings Highway. The driver didn’t stop.

Hit & Run drivers are, in my consideration, the worst kind of human being. Most H&R drivers are under the influence of alcohol, others have already run afoul of the law and have lost their driving privileges, yet they continue to get behind the wheel and ignore the rules. Many H&R drivers are trying to avoid detection because they don’t have insurance and they don’t want to face the responsibility for their actions. No matter which category they fall into they are the very worst type of person, someone who will leave an injured or dying pedestrian lying in the street.

If you or a loved one is injured or killed by a drunk hit & run driver recovering damages for your loss can be a tricky proposition and you will need an experienced Nashville automobile accident attorney to help you protect your rights. At Phillip Miller & Associates we can help you.

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.

Hit & Run

Hit & Run drivers are, in my consideration, the worst kind of human being. Most H&R drivers are under the influence of alcohol, others have already run afoul of the law and have lost their driving privileges, yet they continue to get behind the wheel and ignore the rules.

Many H&R drivers are trying to avoid detection because they don’t have insurance and they don’t want to face the responsibility for their actions. No matter which category they fall into they are the very worst type of person, someone who will leave an injured or dying pedestrian lying in the street.

Reference a recent H&R in Clarksville, and the driver, you guessed it, didn’t have a driver’s valid license, ran out of control and hit the porch of a home knocking a 2-year-old boy to the ground. The young man is going to recover. After hitting the porch the woman raced away from the scene, striking a pickup truck and another trailer before speeding away from the scene. The driver was arrested a short time later for leaving the scene of an accident, both property damage and personal injury; driving on a suspended license; and failure to show proof of insurance.

If you or a loved one is injured or killed in a Tennessee automobile collision by a drunk hit & run driver recovering damages for your loss can be a tricky proposition and you will need an experienced Nashville automobile accident attorney to help you protect your rights. At Phillip Miller & Associates we can help you.

Good Samaritan Pedestrian Killed

Only the most selfish, cold-hearted kind of person would drive by the scene of a Tennessee automobile accident and refuse to offer help. Providing aide could be as small a thing as calling 911 emergency and staying in your vehicle at the scene until help arrives. The Tennessee Rules of the Road suggests that if we stop to aide another driver that  we pull to the shoulder and activate our emergency signals. If we exit our vehicle to provide further assistance we should make every effort to be mindful of oncoming traffic.

On the other hand, as a driver we need to pay particular attention to vehicle flashing their emergency blinkers. We should slow immediately and engage our emergency blinkers as we slowly proceed upon the scene. Reference a terrible accident in McMinn County Tennessee in the early morning hours. It appears that Jeep had rolled over in the lane and another driver, a 25-year-old woman stopped to lend assistance. Enter a teenage driver driving a Camaro at a high rate of speed and hitting our Good Samaritan and killing her.

Speeding is one of the most prevalent factors contributing to traffic crashes. The economic cost of speeding-related crashes is estimated to be in excess of 40.4 billion dollars per year. In 2007, speeding was a contributing factor in 31 percent of all fatal crashes, and 13,040 lives were lost in speeding-related crashes. The total economic cost of crashes was estimated at $230.6 billion in 2000.

If you or a loved is seriously injured or killed in a Tennessee motor vehicle accident caused by a speeding driver you ought to contact the experienced Tennessee automobile accident attorneys at Phillip Miller & Associates and take advantage of a free consultation to find out about your rights and remedies.

Why do suppose that it is so hard for Tennesseans to get the message about how seatbelts save lives? I have great news to report regarding the 4^th of July, Tennessee’s most dangerous holiday season.

Thank You THP

The Tennessee Department of Safety announced today that preliminary figures indicate nine people were killed in traffic crashes on Tennessee roadways during the 78-hour Fourth of July holiday period, which ran from 6 p.m., Friday, July 2 through 11:59 p.m., Monday, July 5.

The nine fatalities is a drop from the 16 deaths that occurred during last year’s July 4th weekend. Of the nine fatalities this year, six were vehicle occupants; two were motorcyclists; and one was a pedestrian.  One of the fatalities was alcohol-related compared to two alcohol-related fatalities in 2009.

“While the preliminary numbers have declined, it is important to also point out that five of the people who died over the Fourth of July weekend were not wearing seat belts,” stated Tennessee Highway Patrol Colonel Mike Walker. “We always stress the importance of wearing safety restraints. It could make a difference between life and death.”

The Tennessee Highway Patrol conducted more than 80 driver license and sobriety checkpoints throughout the state during this past holiday weekend. The THP also teamed up with local law enforcement to conduct simultaneous saturation patrols on interstates and highways.

Year-to-date preliminary statistics indicate 492 people have died on Tennessee roadways in 2010 compared to 494 fatalities in 2009. Please note that the statistical data for the July 4th holiday weekend and 2010 data are preliminary and are subject to change due to some delays in reporting.

If you or a loved one is injured or killed in a Tennessee automobile accident caused by a negligent driver you owe it to yourself to contact the experienced Nashville auto accident lawyers at Phillip Miller & Associates and learn about your rights and remedies.

Tennessee Pedestrian Fatality

As an experienced Nashville auto accident lawyer I have to ask myself was the driver involved in a roadway departure crash stunned when he got out of his wrecked vehicle? He was able to call a family member and report that he had been involved in an accident, so why didn’t he call 911? It was 2AM, had he been drinking? These are some of the questions investigators and family members will have to answer as they sort out the facts of this fatal pedestrian accident.

As a Nashville auto accident lawyer all I know about the facts of this case is what I read on the website of Knoxville TV station WBIR. It appears that the deceased had, for some reason, left the roadway, struck a concrete barrier and came to a stop. At this stage investigators think that he was not seriously injured. After making the call the man made a fatal mistake. He stepped out into the roadway and was struck by another vehicle going the same direction. The driver of the other vehicle said that the man just stepped out in front of him and that he had taken evasive action but to no avail. My prayers go out to the family and friends of the deceased.

According to the Tennessee Rules of the Road if you have vehicle trouble, move to the right shoulder or emergency stopping area as soon as you can. Turn on your emergency flashers to warn other traffic. If you need help raise your hood and tie a white cloth to the hood or radio antenna. If possible, it is better to stay in or near your vehicle on the side away from traffic. Walking along the interstate is dangerous.

If you want to learn more about the Tennessee Rules of the Road or other issues related to Tennessee highway safety go to the website of the experienced Tennessee automobile accident lawyers at Phillip Miller & Associates for answers.

2-Yea-Old Pedestrian

As an experienced Tennessee auto accident lawyer I regularly write about child safety. The main topics are usually safety seats and school zone safety. Today I want to talk about another important topic under the heading of child safety, and that is unattended children playing near public streets and highways.

In 2008, an estimated 69,000 pedestrians were injured, 13,000 of those injured were age 14 and younger, and males accounted for 52 percent (7,000) of those 13,000 injured.

Reference a story from the web site of WBIR TV in Knoxville Tennessee in which a 2-year-old girl was crossing the street when she was hit by a car. The girl was treated at a local hospital and suffers from non-life threatening injuries to her head and foot. The driver and passenger of the car were questioned by investigators and released. Investigators say that the investigation is ongoing.

Now I don’t know anything more than I read in the article but it occurs to me that 2-year-olds playing outside in a non-fenced area where traffic is present should have parental supervision.

The stories and situations mentioned on this blog are for informational purposes only. Phillip Miller & Associates does not claim to represent any party referenced in this post. This blog exists to raise public awareness of the very real dangers we face every day and to serve as a central location where information and opinions can be exchanged with regard to the way that the incidents described in these Blogs are impacted by Tennessee law.