Roadway Departure Crash

Experienced Tennessee automobile accident lawyers agree that 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 signi!cant, 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.

We may never learn the reason Jeffrey Knight, age, 40, became distracted and left the road, crossed the median and crashed head-on with another vehicle causing the death of 21-year-old Brittany Thomas and her 10-month-old son. Whatever the distraction, finding out will be little consolation to the family and friends of this young mother and her child. My prayers go out to the loved ones who have sustained such and indescribable loss.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration 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. Each of these accidents had the potential to have taken numerous other lives but somehow that didn’t happen

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.