As an experienced Tennessee auto accident attorney I can tell you that when a car and a train collide at a crossing, one of two things happened; either the emergency equipment failed or the driver made a bad decision. Either way, the car never wins.

In a recent accident, a truck driver from Memphis, Tennessee is lucky to be alive after his 18-wheeler was struck by a train and dragged more than 200 feet. The driver told police investigators that when he pulled up to the crossing he looked both ways and didn’t see anything coming before he proceeded onto the tracks. The warning lights were activated and the truck driver ignored them.

The train hit the truck and drug it down the tracks for over 200’ before the man was able to get his seat belt off and jump out of the trucks front window. He was miraculously unhurt but he was ticketed for trying to cross the tracks while the lights were flashing. His truck and trailer were totaled.

Many Tennesseans drive over railroad crossings everyday, most not thinking twice about the prospect of an oncoming train making contact with their vehicle. However, upon analyzing the data collected from the entire state, perhaps they should. There is a strong downward trend in the number of injury and property damage crashes.

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

Don't Gamble at a Train Crossing

, 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.

Be Alert - Yield To Emergency Vehicles

Drivers nearing a stopped emergency vehicle that has lights activated (unless otherwise directed by a law enforcement officer) must: Vacate the lane closest to the emergency vehicle, if the highway has two or more lanes traveling in the direction of the emergency vehicle; or slow to a speed not more than 20 mph less than the posted speed limit when the posted speed limit is 25 mph or more; or slow to a speed not more than 5 mph when the posted speed limit is less than 25 mph.

Unfortunately for two Millersville, Tennessee firefighters and a paramedic were not afforded this courtesy as they were rendering aid to an injured motorist on I-65 the other night. A tractor-trailer failed to respond to their emergency lights and crashed into the accident scene. Fortunately for the emergency responders they received only minor injuries. Charges are pending for the truck driver.

As we go about our daily business, we are watched over by law enforcement, fire rescue and emergency medical teams. We need to be aware as drivers what to do when one of these emergency vehicles approaches. The Number One rule is, when you hear or see an emergency vehicle of any type approaching from the rear, pull as far to the right as possible and stop!

When you observe or hear an emergency vehicle approaching, what should you do?

Upon the immediate approach of an emergency vehicle sounding a siren and flashing emergency lights, a driver must yield the right of way and immediately drive to a position parallel to and as close as possible to the nearest edge or curb of the highway clear of any intersection and remain there until the emergency vehicle has passed. Exercise extreme caution around an emergency situation and follow the directions given by a police officer.

If you or a loved one is injured or killed in a Tennessee car accident caused by a tractor-trailer driver who fails to yield the right of way, time is of the essence. Contact the experienced Nashville auto accident lawyers at Phillip Miller & Associates as soon as possible. Call 615-356-2000.

Photo courtesy of the AAA Foundation for Highway Safety

Keep A Lookout Ahead

A three car accident in Union County Tennessee this week gives us a good example of a distracted driver. Picture this, you are driving along a 2-lane highway and there is a Tennessee Highway Patrol car stopped in the highway ahead of you. Any reasonable driver who was paying attention would naturally slow and stop until the car in front of the Trooper had completed his left turn.

Distracted drivers don’t come under the category of reasonable, not by a long shot. The 39-year-old driver wasn’t watching the road in front of him and slammed into the rear-end of the patrol car causing him to hit the vehicle that was stopped in front of him trying to turn.

Nobody in any of the three vehicle was seriously injured but the distracted driver has been charged with vehicular assault and failure to exercise due care. It seems to me, that distracted drivers cause most Tennessee car accidents.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, driver inattention is the leading factor in most crashes and near-crashes. Nearly 80 percent of crashes and 65 percent of near-crashes involved some form of driver inattention within three seconds before the event.

I advise people that before putting the key in the ignition, stop for a moment and remind your self that you are getting behind the wheel of a potentially deadly weapon and that if you want to arrive at your destination alive or without killing others, use common sense and avoid distractions.

If you or a loved one is injured in a Tennessee car accident caused by a distracted driver, call one of our experienced Nashville car accident attorney’s at Phillip Miller & Associates and find out about your rights and remedies. Call 615-356-2000.

When police find you in your crashed truck with a cooler with an open fifth of Jose Quervo, some beer, a pot pipe, some pot, it might not be a good idea to suggest that your blood sugar was a problem. This is the lesson learned by a Tennessee man driving drunk in Ohio.

Police produced a blood sugar tester and determined that the man’s sugar was within normal range. Ooops. Stupid is as stupid does, and getting loaded and then getting behind the wheel of your car requires a whole lot of stupid.

As an experienced car accident lawyer I want to remind you that driving with a BAC of .08 or higher is illegal in every state. If you follow my blog you will see that in Tennessee we continue to see a tragic number of people with debilitating injuries and deaths as a result of impaired driving. This careless disregard for human life must stop.

Drunk driving is one of America’s deadliest crimes. In Tennessee in 2008, 327 people were killed in crashes where the driver or motorcyclist had a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .08 or higher. That is down from 377 people killed in 2007 with a BAC of .08 or higher. Over the 2008 Labor Day holiday, 12 people were killed in 10 fatal crashes on Tennessee roadways, down from 17 people killed on Tennessee roadways in 2007.

If you are a loved one is injured or killed in a Tennessee car accident caused by a drunk driver you owe it to yourself to contact an experienced Nashville auto accident lawyer like those at Phillip Miller & Associates and take advantage of a free consultation to find out about your rights and remedies. Call 615-356-2000.

Don't Drink and Drive

Watch Out for Motorcycles

In traffic following the NASCAR race at Bristol a motorcyclist was injured when a pickyp ruck made an unexpected left turn directly in front of him at the intersection of U.S. Highway 19E and U.S. Highway 321.

The 70-year-old pickup driver made a left turn from Highway 321 into the path of the motorcycle, he was charged with failure to yield. The injured motorcyclist was transported by the Carter County Rescue Squad to the Johnson City Medical Center for treatment.

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.

“Traffic checks” 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.

If you or anyone you know has been injured or killed in a Tennessee car accident, please contact Nashville injury attorney Phillip Miller and the Tennessee personal injury attorneys at Phillip Miller and Associates at (615) 356-2000, or contact our office online here.

One last thing: If you are hurt and have any questions at all, contact our office at (615) 356-2000. Don’t delay. Cases involving personal injury or death in Tennessee must be acted on quickly. Time is running. Call for an appointment, if it’s bad enough that you need to read this far into a website blog, it’s bad enough to get an attorney involved.

Drink and Drive and Pay The Price

A 45-year-old Gainesboro, Tennessee woman who was allegedly intoxicated when she ran a stop sign and caused a traffic crash, in November of 2010, that left one dead and several others injured has been indicted by the Putnam grand jury. She is charged with vehicular homicide and six counts of aggravated assault in the case, according to local media reports

Drunk driving is one of America’s deadliest crimes. In Tennessee in 2008, 327 people were killed in crashes where the driver or motorcyclist had a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .08 or higher. That is down from 377 people killed in 2007 with a BAC of .08 or higher.

If you are a loved one is injured or killed in a Tennessee car accident caused by a drunk driver you owe it to yourself to contact an experienced Nashville auto accident lawyer like those at Phillip Miller & Associates and take advantage of a free consultation to find out about your rights and remedies.

Distracted Driving

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.

The FHWA’s Roadway Departure Safety Program provides important information for transportation practitioners, decision makers, and others to assist them in preventing and reducing the severity of roadway departure crashes, but no matter what steps they take this problem will never be successful if drivers refuse to observe the speed limits, avoid distractions, refuse to drive when sleepy and continue to drink and drive.

The lesson here for Nashville drivers is that you must keep all of your attention on the acting of driving and avoid distractions. You never know when another driver is going to fall asleep, have a medical emergency or get distracted and leave their lane and initiate a deadly collision.

If you or anyone you know has been injured or killed in a Tennessee car accident, please contact Nashville injury attorney Phillip Miller and the Tennessee personal injury attorneys at Phillip Miller and Associates at (615) 356-2000, or contact our office online here.

Asleep At The Wheel

A Tennessee man admitted that he fell asleep moments before his truck crossed the centerline and slammed head-on into a car with 2 people aboard. The 43-year-old mother was critically injured and suffered massive head trauma, a crushed left arm, spinal cord injuries and broken legs, hip, and collarbone, her daughter was treated for a sprained ankle. My prayers go out to the family and friends of these two women.

In addition to the falling a sleep, he admitted he had been drinking and police found an open can of beer. According to local news media the DA will decide on what charges will be brought when he has a chance to review the results of the blood test.

Drunk driving is one of America’s deadliest crimes. In Tennessee in 2008, 327 people were killed in crashes where the driver or motorcyclist had a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .08 or higher.

Sleepiness and driving is a dangerous combination. Most people are aware of the dangers of drinking and driving but don’t realize that drowsy driving can be just as fatal. Like alcohol, sleepiness slows reaction time, decreases awareness, impairs judgment and increases your risk of crashing.

Stay awake and stay alive. If you or anyone you know has been injured or killed in a Tennessee car accident, please contact Nashville injury attorney Phillip Miller and the Tennessee personal injury attorneys at Phillip Miller and Associates at (615) 356-2000, or contact our office online here.

Tennessee: Dangerous Roads and Drivers

The Centers for Disease Control, a federal agency aimed at addressing public health concerns, released a report Wednesday revealing tragically high figures with respect to nationwide car accident injuries and fatalities. Despite a commitment to improvement on state roadways, California tops the list as being the largest contributor to nationwide vehicle fatality and injury statistics.

For starters, vehicle crashes cost the U.S. $41 billion annually in medical and work loss costs. Out of all fifty states, ten states account for half of this figure. In other words, 20% of U.S. states account for 50% of the loss. Of these top losers, California is accompanied by Florida, Texas, Georgia, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, New York, Illinois, Ohio and Tennessee.

California reportedly lost or expended $4.6 billion dollars in 2005 for medical injuries, fatalities and lost work time due to traffic accidents. The CDC reiterates that nearly all traffic fatalities are preventable and urges all Americans to adamantly insist upon seat-belt use for them and their families 100% of the time. Up-to-date child safety seats and nationwide motorcycle helmet use could also reduce the injurious impact of vehicle accidents as well.

The United Nations has actually dubbed 2011-2020 the Decade of Action for Road Safety. The CDC’s report is in cooperation with the global initiative to dramatically lessen fatalities and injuries and keep costs down at the same time. The CDC strongly encourages states the maintain or enact graduated driver licensing laws to ease teens into the responsibilities and duties of becoming a driver.

Many states still allow teens on the roadway will full drivers’ licenses after just weeks with a learner’s permit. The CDC urges that granting driving privileges in stages as opposed to all at once gives teens just the right amount of responsibility congruent with a lowered amount of risk as many graduated licensing programs do not permit driving after dark or after certain nighttime hours.

“We think any added safety measures or precautions that will prevent traffic fatalities and roadway injuries are great and should be implemented in California” stated attorney Emery Brett Ledger of Ledger Law and Associates. Ledger Law is an Orange County personal injury firm dedicated to advocating for accident victims and their families.

4,478 Californians lost their lives in 2005 from fatal car accidents. This staggering number is the direct result of increased driver distraction and the influx of handheld devices controlling drivers’ every thought and turning their eyes and attention away from the roadways. Ledger Law urges drivers to never utilize a cell phone while driving. No text message or phone call is worth your life.

If you or anyone you know has been injured or killed in a Tennessee car accident, please contact Nashville injury attorney Phillip Miller and the Tennessee personal injury attorneys at Phillip Miller and Associates at (615) 356-2000, or contact our office online here.

One last thing: If you are hurt and have any questions at all, contact our office at (615) 356-2000. Don’t delay. Cases involving personal injury or death in Tennessee must be acted on quickly. Time is running. Call for an appointment, if it’s bad enough that you need to read this far into a website blog, it’s bad enough to get an attorney involved.

Bad Decisions Are Costly

This past Sunday a Bowling Green man, made a series of bad decisions, the least of which was getting drunk and taking to the highways, and was indicted Wednesday by a Warren County grand jury on numerous charges stemming from a police chase and car crash.

The thirty-three-year-old man, was indicted on charges of second-degree assault, first-degree possession of a controlled substance (second offense), first-degree fleeing or evading police, first-degree criminal mischief, tampering with physical evidence, first-degree wanton endangerment (police officer), driving on a license suspended for DUI while under the influence of intoxicants (aggravating circumstances), operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of intoxicants (second offense within five years, aggravating circumstances), third-degree possession of a controlled substance, second-degree fleeing or evading police, possession of drug paraphernalia, reckless driving, speeding, failure to produce insurance card and first-degree persistent felony offender.

The probability of a fatal crash rises significantly after 0.05 percent blood alcohol concentration (BAC) and even more rapidly after 0.08 percent.1 Drivers with very high BACs (at or above 0.15 percent) have a very high risk of dying in a crash or getting severely injured.1,2 All states have enacted a law defining impairment as driving with a BAC at or above 0.08 percent.

As an experienced Tennessee car accident lawyer , I want to remind you that driving with a BAC of .08 or higher is illegal in every state. If you follow my blog you will see that in Tennessee we continue to see a tragic number of people with debilitating injuries and deaths as a result of impaired driving. This careless disregard for human life must stop.

Drunk driving is one of America’s deadliest crimes. In Tennessee in 2008, 327 people were killed in crashes where the driver or motorcyclist had a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .08 or higher. That is down from 377 people killed in 2007 with a BAC of .08 or higher. Over the 2008 Labor Day holiday, 12 people were killed in 10 fatal crashes on Tennessee roadways, down from 17 people killed on Tennessee roadways in 2007.

If you are a loved one is injured or killed in a Tennessee car accident caused by a drunk driver you owe it to yourself to contact an experienced Nashville auto accident lawyer like those at Phillip Miller & Associates and take advantage of a free consultation to find out about your rights and remedies.