2009 September Archive

The Mercury News recently reported in an article that a 16-year-old female student from Palo Alto High School was struck by a vehicle as she attempted to cross six lanes of traffic in order to catch her bus. The driver of the vehicle, a 75-year-old woman from San Jose, was apparently unaware that she had struck a person. The driver was only aware only that she had possibly hit something, but didn’t know what it was.  The accident occurred on El Camino Real, and was not the fault of the driver. However, it is still being determined whether or not the woman will have to face hit-and-run charges because she did in fact leave the scene of the crime.

While the 16-year-old did break a traffic law, pedestrians are still afforded the right-of-way in all instances involving vehicles. Whether or not the elderly woman failed to even see the teenage girl is unknown at this time. One officer’s opinion of the driver’s state-of-mind was that she seemed “disoriented” and “confused.”  In many auto accidents involving pedestrians, driver inattention often plays a significant role in pedestrian injury.  Failing to observe all rules of the road, particularly those that protect pedestrians, puts unsuspecting pedestrians at risk of injury.  In instances where driver inattention or other negligent behavior plays a determining factor in causing pedestrian injury, it is the responsibility of the negligent motorist to accept accountability.

At Van Der Walde & Associates, our experienced San Jose pedestrian accident lawyers will examine the details of your pedestrian incident to determine if negligence played any sort of role, and will hold all parties responsible for their negligence actions. We have assisted many pedestrian accident victims receive compensatory damages to help with recovery. If you have recently been injured, don’t hesitate to contact a skilled personal injury attorney to ensure that your rights are protected in a court of law. Please call Van Der Walde & Associates today at 877-862-6288 for a free consultation.

Source Article: http://www.mercurynews.com/peninsula/ci_13221109?nclick_check=1

San Francisco’s local ABC affiliate KGO-TV recently reported that a woman and her 20-month-old child were involved in a fatal crash that occurred during a police pursuit in Oakland.  The woman’s black Hyundai Accent was struck by the suspect’s Acura Integra after the suspect ran through an intersection, failing to yield to a stop sign.  The woman sustained major injuries, and was later pronounced dead at a local hospital.  Her child was critically injured, underwent surgery at the hospital, and is recovering.

In this tragedy, traffic rules were disregarded, and the end result was wrongful death and serious injury.  However, another issue has also come into consideration in the wake of the tragedy.  That is, it is being investigated as to whether or not protocol was properly followed during the pursuit, particularly whether officers followed police pursuit policy guidelines established by the Oakland Police Department.  While it was argued that the whole accident could have been avoided had the suspect simply pulled his vehicle to the side of the road as instructed to do so by law enforcement officials, it also needs to be questioned as to whether or not police action could have prevented this incident from escalating into the tragedy that it did.  In any event, the rules of the road are critical in ensuring motorist safety.  Disregard for those rules can be characterized as nothing more than negligence and disregard for the safety of others.

If you or a loved one has recently been involved in a San Francisco auto accident, please don’t hesitate to contact the skilled San Francisco auto accident lawyers at Van Der Walde & Associates. Accident victims have valid rights, and all circumstances surrounding an accident need to be taken into close consideration in order to determine exactly who was at fault for creating the accident in the first place.  We will help you hold negligible parties accountable for their actions, and see to it that your rights are not infringed upon.  Please contact us today for a free consultation at 877-862-6288.

Source Article:http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=news/local/east_bay&id=6985162

The Mercury News recently reported about the aftermath of a 2008 traffic accident involving a fire truck and a police cruiser.  While no one was injured during the accident, the circumstances of the collision have been brought into question as the result of a suspension handed down to the driver of the fire truck for being declared responsible for the crash.  This story brings to light the issue of emergency vehicles, and whether or not accidents caused by those vehicles are considered the same as accidents involving all other motorists on the road.

Both vehicles were responding to an emergency involving a 9-year-old boy who had stopped breathing.  While the driver of the fire truck did slow down as he approached the intersection of Lincoln Street and East Lake Avenue, the fire truck nevertheless collided with a police cruiser that was also responding to the emergency.  Though the fire truck had both its lights and sirens turned on, the police department declared that the fire truck was at fault for the accident because it ran a red light.  Reasoning for the fire truck being at fault, as given by the police department, was speculation as to “what if the police car had been a minivan filled with people” and there had been injuries.  This scenario seems relatively cut and dry according to an objective viewpoint of the law.

According to the law, if an emergency vehicle is responding to an emergency, then all other motorists on the road are required to yield to that vehicle. In this case, with two emergency vehicles involved, the question arises as to who was truly at fault.  Had there been injuries, both the fire department and the police department would have each undoubtedly denied responsibility, and would have done everything in their power to blame each other, disregarding their actions by focusing solely on the resulting consequences.  While the police department posing the hypothetical situation of what would have happened if innocent motorists were injured is somewhat hypocritical, given the notion, the same could have been said in regard to the police cruiser’s actions.  Regardless, emergency personnel are not immune from accidents and injuries they create simply because they are responding to other accidents and injury victims.

Accident victims do have rights, and all circumstances surrounding an accident need to be taken into close consideration in order to determine exactly who was at fault for creating the accident in the first place.  If you or a loved one has recently been involved in a traffic accident, please don’t hesitate to contact the auto accident lawyers in Santa Cruz at Van Der Walde & Associates. We will hold negligible parties responsible for their actions, and will seek monetary damages on your behalf that can be used to help cover the costs incurred by your accident, such as medical bills and physical therapy fees.  Please contact us today for a free consultation at 877-862-6288.

Source Article:http://www.mercurynews.com/california/ci_13197563?nclick_check=1&forced=true

A story in The Mercury News reported about a San Jose man that plead guilty to both hit-and-run and reckless driving charges after striking an 8-year-old boy and his father with his vehicle. The accident occurred on Story Road as the father of the young boy was walking his son to school. While the extent of the father’s injuries were not discussed, the boy fell into a coma, and remained in the hospital for two months before being allowed to return home.

The judge sentenced the San Jose man to pay restitution to the boy’s family. As is with most auto accidents, one party is held negligible for the accident, and is therefore responsible for damages associated with the accident, including medical bills for those injured, physical therapy fees, and costs related to property damage repair. Auto accidents can occur for a variety of reasons, but at the root of them all is negligence.  Motorist inattention while driving, driving while under the influence of drugs or alcohol, and reckless driving practices, such as traveling faster than the posted speed limit and disobeying other traffic laws, all can contribute towards an accident. In addition, conditions such as unevenly paved roads, obscured traffic signage, or debris left over from road work can also lead to an accident, and are the responsibility of local municipalities that have an obligation to maintain safe driving conditions on our roads and highways.

Being in an auto accident can impose many physical, emotional, and financial challenges for an individual and their family to endure. If you or a loved one has recently been involved in a traffic accident, please don’t hesitate to contact the skilled San Jose car accident attorneys at Van Der Walde & Associates. Our knowledgeable lawyers will examine the details surrounding your accident, will hold those responsible for your accident accountable for their actions, and will seek monetary damages on your behalf that can be used to help cover the costs associated with your accident, such as medical bills and physical therapy fees. Please contact us today for a free consultation at 877-862-6288.

Source Article:http://www.mercurynews.com/localnewsheadlines/ci_13015847?nclick_check=1

According to The Mercury News, a pickup truck and a commuter train struck each other while the train was on its way to the Manteca station.  The pickup truck was on the tracks as the train approached.  The train was traveling at 72 mph, a full 7mph slower than the posted speed of 79 mph for trains in that area.  The truck driver was killed.  No passengers on the commuter train were injured.

Investigation into the matter has not concluded as to why the pickup truck was stopped on the tracks.  According to investigators, the guard arms positioned near the accident site appeared to be functioning properly.  However, if the guard arms were in fact operating as they should, then the question of how the pickup truck was able to navigate around them comes into play.  All intersections that cross with railroad tracks need to be closely examined to ensure that all possible safety measures have been put into place, including those safety measures that serve to prevent motorists from entering into the path of oncoming trains.

While it has not yet been determined whether or not the driver intentionally left his vehicle parked on the tracks as he awaited a train, investigation into the matter will undoubtedly determine the most likely cause of this deadly crash.  Once that cause is determined, it may reveal that negligence played some sort of role in the accident, and that negligence will have to be attributed to one party or another.  In any event, accidents of all kinds need to be carefully scrutinized to determine why they occurred in the first place, and a skilled Northern California personal injury attorney should be the first resource you seek assistance from.

If you or a loved one has recently been involved in a traffic accident in Northern California, please don’t hesitate to contact the experienced San Jose auto accident lawyers at Van Der Walde & Associates. Our knowledgeable attorneys will examine the details surrounding your accident, will hold those negligible parties accountable for their actions, and will seek monetary damages on your behalf that can be used to help cover the costs associated with your accident, such as medical bills, physical therapy fees, and even lost wages.  Please contact us today for a free consultation at 877-862-6288.

Source Article:http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_12923050