Distracted Driving Kills

The source of the distraction that caused a Giles County, Tennessee man to take his eyes off the road long enough for his vehicle to veer across the center line into oncoming traffic and then leave the road and end up in a creek, will be the focus of the police investigation into the death of the man’s wife and injury to an infant in the car.

Whenever you see an accident, usually involving one car that leaves the road, an experienced automobile accident starts thinking about driver distractions. Just what was the driver doing moments before the crash that caused his/her vehicle to go off the highway? What caused the driver to change focus from driving to other things?

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.

Ladies and gentlemen, we have to avoid distractions while we are behind the wheel or we are going to die or kill someone else. If you or a loved one is injured or killed in a Tennessee auto accident caused by a distracted driver contact the experienced Nashville automobile accident attorneys at Phillip Miller & Associates and take advantage of a free consultation. Call 615-356-2000.

Drunk Teen Driver

An 18-year-old Johnson City teen driver will have to stand trial as an adult on charges that he injured two passengers in a crash while driving drunk. The teen was charged with two counts of vehicular assault, DUI, underage consumption of alcohol, and failure to show proof of insurance.

The crash, according to local media reports, occurred about 4 a.m. Sunday. The teen driver was injured in the crash and taken to Johnson City Medical Center, so police were unable to perform field sobriety tests. Police reported a strong odor of alcohol on the man at the crash scene, found a half empty bottle of Vodka in the vehicle and a nurse at the emergency room found a half empty bottle in his pants pocket.

The teen consented to a blood alcohol test and the results are pending. Impaired driving is a serious issue, and it affects many more than only those involved in drunk driving crashes. The misuse or abuse of alcohol greatly increases the chance of injuries in the workplace and beyond, and American businesses bear much of the costs in higher insurance premiums for employer-based health insurance tied to alcohol problems.

Whether it’s referred to as drunk driving, driving while intoxicated or driving under the influence, impaired driving simply means a person’s ability to safely operate a motor vehicle is compromised by alcohol and other drugs that change the function of the brain and body.

The experienced Nashville automobile accident attorneys at Phillip Miller & Associates have handled hundreds of cases involving drunk drivers and can help you if you are unfortunate enough to be involved in such an accident. Contact us for the free consultation and find out about your rights. Call 615-356-2000.

I’m sure the 21-year-old Clarksville Tennessee man who crossed the centerline, almost hit a marked police car and slammed head-on into a pickup truck following directly behind the police car, will spend time thinking about whatever he was doing besides driving for many years to come. The driver of the pickup truck who died will never have a chance to consider anything ever again. Alcohol use has not yet been ruled out but if the trend holds, this driver was distracted by someone or something, as he drove down the street.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) distraction is anything that diverts the driver’s attention from the primary tasks of navigating the vehicle and responding to critical events. To put it another way, a distraction is anything that takes your eyes off the road (visual distraction), your mind off the road (cognitive distraction), or your hands off the wheel (manual distraction). So when you think about tasks that can be a driving distraction, you can see that they often fit into more than one category: eating is visual and manual, whereas using a navigation system is all three.

There are two basic components of the distraction safety problem: The attentional demands of the distracting task and the frequency with which drivers choose to multitask.  Task demands relate to the amount of resources (visual, cognitive, manual) required to perform the task.  The other issue is exposure, which is how often drivers engage in the task.  Putting those two concepts together, even an easy task can be a bigger safety problem if the person does the task 50% of their driving time.

If you or a loved one is injured or killed in a Nashville automobile accident by a distracted driver contact the experienced Tennessee car crash lawyers at Phillip Miller & Associates and find out about your rights and remedies. Call 615-356-2000.

Avoid Distractions

Seat Belts Make A Difference

In Tennessee, seat belts, child safety seats and child booster seats, are required by law. Seat belts can help save lives in the event of a traffic crash. One of the main benefits of using seat belts is that, during a crash, they prevent ejection. Ejection greatly increases the chance of death or serious injury.  The chance of being killed in a crash by being ejected from a vehicle is one in eight.  Safety belts virtually eliminate ejection.  The belted driver stays inside the car and is better protected from injury.

Reference a recent Tennessee highway fatality in which a Elizabethton woman was killed on Highway 19E, near mile marker 16. The family and friends of the 38-year-old woman will probably never know what she was doing in the seconds prior to her vehicle leaving the road, but whatever it was, it distracted her.

She left the road, crossed the median, the other lane and as she hit the ditch her vehicle rolled, ejecting her. The investigating Trooper, according to local media reports, said that he believed that had she taken the time to secure her seat belt, the outcome of the accident would have been different. Seat belts save lives. Take a second before you turn the ignition key and buckle up.

Have you or a loved one been injured in a Nashville motorcycle accident or auto accident as a result of distracted driving or other negligent driving?  If so, you should call the experienced Nashville personal injury lawyers at Phillip Miller & Associates, a Nashville personal injury accident lawyer from our law firm will fight to help you win. We will treat you with the utmost compassion and respect. Call us today and speak with an experienced Nashville personal injury lawyer to discuss the details of your case. Call (615) 356-2000.

We received a follow-up call from a family member about a fatal accident  we wrote about that occurred May 13. 2010 on I-40 near the Demonbreun exit in Nashville. At the time of the initial reports (and from accident reconstruction) it appeared that a 57-year-old woman swerved to the left, ran off the road and smashed into a guardrail. Unfortunately she died at the scene.

Family members have contacted us to let us know that it appears that a unknown black SUV (perhaps a Range Rover) hit this lady from behind, which would explain her losing control and leaving the roadway.

If anyone saw this event, and can provide further information about this black SUV please contact us (or Metro Police) and we will forward the information to family members.

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.

Head-On Interstate Collision

As an experienced Nashville car accident lawyer I have seen just about every kind of dangerous behavior by drivers. Considering the number of deaths and serious injuries that occur on our highways every year one could easily come to the conclusion that our highways are many times more dangerous than a war zone.

Reference a recent fatal highway collision involving a United States Marine who had finished his tour in Iraq and was driving from Atlanta to his home in Huntsville Alabama, just south of the Tennessee line. The victim was accompanied by his wife as they were traveling west on Interstate 20. They were struck head-on by an east-bound driver in the wrong lane.

The young Marine was killed and his wife is in critical condition in a local hospital. My prayers and sympathy go out to the family and friends of both of these young Americans, victims of  just another highway tragedy. The 71-year-old driver of the other car was injured and is in stable condition and may face criminal charges after the investigation is complete.

I can only imagine what the conversation was like between these two young people. A tough chapter in their lives was behind them and they had their whole life ahead of them. Like an enemy sniper this other driver took all of that away.

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.

Illegal Tennessee Passing Fatality

A Tennessee man was in a hurry, unsatisfied by the pace of the cars in front of him he decided to pass the three vehicles in a no passing zone. Moments later he hit, head on, another vehicle coming at him. The other driver died at the scene. Where ever it was that our hurried driver was going, he won’t get there, at least for a number of years.

Passing another vehicle is a normal part of driving, but it can be very dangerous. Collisions resulting from improper passing, like this one, are often fatal, since the impact is greater in this type of crash. Before you attempt a pass, be sure you have enough room to complete the maneuver. If you have to cut back to your lane too soon, you risk sideswiping the vehicle you are passing. If you do not cut back to your lane soon enough, you risk a head-on collision.

It is equally important to know when not to pass, as well as when to pass. The decision of whether or not to pass is influenced by the knowledge, judgment, attitude and behavior of the driver. BE PATIENT. Study and learn the following passing rules well and practice them each time you pass another vehicle.

As an experienced Tennessee automobile accident attorney my experience tells me that upon completion of the investigation, there will be serious criminal charges following behind this selfish action.

If you or a loved one is injured or killed in a Tennessee automobile accident caused by a selfish, thoughtless driver, you owe it to yourself and your family to contact the experienced Tennessee car crash lawyers at Phillip Miller & Associates and take advantage of a free consultation to find out where you stand.

A Medical Emergency?

Police investigators suggest that a medical emergency was the cause of a single car roadway departure accident that took the life of a 60-year-old Bristol Tennessee man. This suggestion is made based on the fact that as the car entered a curve it continued straight ahead and left no skid marks or other evidence. The man failed to negotiate a turn, left the road and hit an above-ground sewer and flipped over.

As an experienced Tennessee automobile accident lawyer I can tell you that the cause of accidents like these are very hard to determine. An autopsy will disclose if the cause was medical incapacitation. Another investigative area is to check out the electronic devices that were in the vehicle. Was the driver adjusting a radio, CD player or a GPS? Was the man using the cell phone or was he texting?

Whatever the cause, this is another in a growing epidemic of Tennessee roadway departure crashes. This was the second RDC on the same day in Bristol Tennessee. (See this morning’s blog for information on the other one)

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 personal injury 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.

One Second Of Distraction Can Mean Death

I don’t know the 53-year-old Spring Hill, Tennessee man who died when his pickup truck crossed into an oncoming lane and smashed head-on into a dump truck, so I’ll have to make some assumptions about what causes a presumably sane person, to take such an action. As a Tennessee automobile accident attorney I am finding it hard to believe, but the fact is, that distracted driving accidents like this have become almost a daily occurrence in The Volunteer State.

When we examine the usual cause of these types of collisions the leading factor is distraction. The driver was doing something that caused him to take his eyes off of the road ahead and allowed him to drift into oncoming traffic.

Distraction from the primary task of driving could present a serious and potentially deadly danger. There has been increased attention on the danger of distracted driving recently, specifically on the dangers of cell phone use and texting while driving.

Other secondary task involvement includes eating, drinking, conversing with passengers, as well as interaction with invehicle technologies and portable electronic devices. Greater sophistication in these technologies may present greater physical and cognitive challenges for drivers than traditional information sources.

Less obvious forms of cognitive distractions such as daydreaming or dealing with strong emotions also present potentially dangerous situations for drivers. The lesson here for all Tennessee drivers is that we must avoid distractions. It only takes a moment of inattention to take a vehicle across the center-line and into oncoming traffic.

If you or a loved one is injured or killed in a Tennessee automobile accident by a distracted driver, contact the experienced Nashville automobile accident lawyers at Phillip Miller & Associates and find out about your rights and remedies.

In a bizarre Tennessee automobile fatality a 22-year-old Knoxville woman was found dead in a ditch alongside her wrecked Mitsubishi Eclipse. Police believe that she was involved in a high speed chase with Tennessee State Troopers just after midnight. Troopers said that after speeds during the chase reached 100 MPH they broke off the pursuit.

According to investigators, an initial reconstruction shows that she was driving south when she lost control of her vehicle, crossed both North bound lanes hit a billboard and flipped over. The driver was most probably not wearing her seat belt and that led to her being ejected and killed.

As an experienced Tennessee automobile accident attorney it’s difficult to decide where to start when discussing an accident of this sort. Should we talk about the driver’s responsibility to respond appropriately to a law enforcement officer’s attempt to pull them over? How about the danger that a high speed chase creates for innocent drivers and pedestrians? Maybe we could talk about the benefits of wearing seat belts that just might have saved her young life?

The investigation is on-going and more answers will come in time. An autopsy will reveal whether or not this young lady was under the influence of alcohol or drugs which might have been the precipitating factor in her initial decision to get into the high speed chase.

If you or a loved one is injured or killed in a Tennessee automobile accident caused by a fleeing driver you owe it to your self to contact the experienced Nashville automobile accident attorneys at Phillip Miller & Associates

Evading Police Fatality

and find out about your rights and remedies.