Stop For Police

With narrow rural roads, hills, curves, driving the speed limit can be dangerous if you are in anyway distracted. If you are raging as the result of a domestic dispute and trying to flee from police, they become downright deadly.

A high-speed chase in Dickson County turned deadly Saturday morning when a 27-year-old Dickson man tried to get away from Dickson Police. The chase lasted 30 minutes over a distance of 20 miles.

Police tried to use spike strips to stop the man’s car and when he swerved to avoid them he lost control, left the road and slammed into a tree. He was not wearing his seat belt. According to a local media report police said that had he stopped he would have been able to bond out of jail within an hour after his arrest.

This is a good example of my regular warning to my readers to keep alert and stay vigilant because you never know when someone like this guy and going to make the roads deadly.

If you or a loved one are injured or killed in an accident following a police chase, there are many important factors to consider. Liability is not simply related to the fleeing driver but could well include the action of the police officers. As an experienced Nashville auto accident lawyer that could well be the case here had any other people been victimized.

Call Phillip Miller & Associates for a free consultation at 615-356-2000.

It all started with an attempted traffic stop, a stop that might have ended in a ticket or a couple of days in jail and a fine for driving on a suspended drivers license, but it ended up with the driver charged with three serious felonies and a $25,000 bond.

According to an article in the Johnson City Press the 25-year-old man was being pulled over for rolling a stop sign. We don’t know why he tried to flee, but if I had to guess, I’d say he had previous run-ins with the authorities and had his license suspended. I‘d also bet that he didn’t have proof of insurance.  The same good thinking probably convinced him that he could get away from the police. I for one am glad this guy is off the street.

Instead of traffic offense he is now charged with aggravated assault, reckless endangerment and felony evading arrest, charges that could mean a substantial number of years behind bars. My hat is off to the Police officers in Johnson City who got this man off of the streets.

Police vehicles attempting to stop drivers will do so by means of a visual, flashing blue or flashing blue and red lights, and/or an audible signal. Remember, a police officer never knows what to expect when stopping a driver. Do not let your emotions or sudden unexplained movements (or those of your passengers) raise tensions or anxiety in the situation.

A police officer may be more likely to listen to what you have to say and less likely to feel threatened by you (or your passengers) if you follow these guidelines:

• Drive as closely as is safely practical to the right-hand edge or curb of the road, clear of any intersection, stop and park.

• Limit the movements of the driver and/or passengers while stopping your vehicle.

• Drivers should keep their hands on the steering wheel and passengers should keep their hands in plain view. Drivers should advise officers if they have a handgun permit and if they are armed.

• Provide your driver license and/or vehicle registration when requested.

• Keep all vehicle doors closed and remain in the vehicle unless asked to get out.

• If the stop is made after dark, turn on the vehicle’s interior light before the officer approaches

• If enforcement action is taken against you that you disagree with, do not argue with the officer at the scene. Traffic violations and traffic crimes charged against you are decided in court.

• If you find yourself being directed to pull over and stop by someone in an UNMARKED police car, you may drive slowly a short distance to the nearest area where there are other people, such as the next business parking lot or the next exit, if on the interstate. This may be important if traveling at night and/or alone.

If you are injured or killed in a Tennessee automobile accident caused by a fleeing driver and wish to get compensation for your losses, the law in this area is very complicated and would be in your best interet to contact the Phillip Miller & Associates and find out about your rights and remedies. For more information of highway safety go to the web page of the experienced Tennessee automobile accident attorneys at Phillip Miller & Associates.

Get These Bad Drivers Off The Road

It seems that lately I’ve been blogging more about incidents involving people who need to be taken off of the road for the safety of the driving public. For the most part the people involved in these incidents have already had a number of  run-ins with the law leading to the suspension of their driving privileges. In a recent article in the Kingsport Times-News we are introduced to another of these driving menaces. Reference Anthony Lee Davis, 27, 126 N. Shepard Drive, Kingsport, who has previously had his drivers license suspended, and who, after deep thought and consideration, gets behind the wheel of a car with a loud muffler, a police magnet if you will, and ventures out for a ride to cool off after arguing with his wife, onto the streets of Kingport, Tennessee.

An event occurs, totally unforeseen by the deep thinking Mr. Davis, in which a police officer attempts to stop his vehicle because of the loud muffler. After further deep thinking Mr. Davis pitchs his cigarette out at the feet of the officer, rolls up his window and speeds away. The officer begins the pursuit of Davis’ vehicle but makes the decision to call off the chase on the basis of public safety when the fleeing vehicle reaches speeds in excess of 80 m.p.h.

Other local police agencies were on the lookout for Mr. Davis and within ten minutes the original officer gets word that the subject of his chase had wrecked his car outside the city limits. When questioned he admitted he fled the scene and pled the fact that he was upset with his wife as the reason he made the decision to put the lives of others in jeopardy. Kingsport Police filed an affidavit charging Davis with a violation of the muffler law, reckless endangerment,  reckless driving, felony evading arrest, and driving on a revoked license.

It’s people like Davis and the thousands of other Tennessee drivers like him who have lost their privileges to drive a motor vehicle because they make bad choices and who flaunt the law that our insurance rates in Tennessee are what they are. If you as an individual citizen want to get involved to keep people like this off the road there are two things we can do. The first thing is to learn the Tennessee Rules of The Road and obey them. If you are following the rules and stopping at red lights and driving the speed limit, local and state police officers are free to deal with the Mr. Davis’ of the world. The second thing that we can do is to talk to your neighbors about this problem and make sure your public officials, such as your local District Attorney General, feel anger over this kind of business and seek serious penalties and other remedies that will keep them from getting behind the wheel of a car.

If you are a loved one are injured in a Tennessee car accident by someone like Mr. Davis contact our experienced Nashville accident lawyers

and find out about your rights and remedies.