Avoid Distractions Save Lives

As an experienced Nashville automobile accident lawyer I hear a report like the one on Jackson, Tennessee station WBBJ TV yesterday and I just have to shake my head and sigh. A mother and father driving with their two year old in the backseat of their vehicle and the driver fails to yield the stop sign at an intersection and rams into a police car that had the right of way.  For those familiar with my blog topics you know that I have warned continually about the dangers posed by intersections. 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-approximately 40-45 percent of all crashes. This is significant to say the least.

I have to ask myself why did this driver, with a baby in the vehicle ignore the stop sign and drive directly out into the path of oncoming traffic? My first thought is that the driver was obviously not paying attention to what he/she was doing and must have been distracted. 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.

We will probably never know the reason that this driver was distracted but we hope and pray that s/he will learn the lesson of due care– always focus on the road in the future. The two adults and the police officer were taken by ambulance to a local hospital for treatment of minor injuries and the 2 year old, who was safely buckled into a car safety seat was unhurt.

If you or a loved on is injured in a Nashville car accident by a distracted driver call on the experienced Nashville auto accident lawyers at Phillip Miller & Associates and find out about your rights and remedies.

http://www.wbbjtv.com/localnews.html