Abels & Annes, P.C. Personal Injury Blog

Phoenix car crash lawyers from Abels & Annes are set to represent a local resident that was injured last week in a Scottsdale auto accident. The collision occurred on October 20, 2010 in the southbound lanes of Scottsdale Road just North of Fifth Avenue. The plaintiff and his 10-year-old daughter were stopped in traffic when another driver in a rental car rear-ended their vehicle. The Scottsdale Police Department responded to the accident. After an investigation they issued the defendant traffic ticket. After the collision our client started suffering from headaches, dizziness, upper neck and upper back pain, low back pain and pain in his left hip and left knee. Due to his injuries, the plaintiff went to see his family physician shortly after the accident. Over the next several days his pain became more intense. He is now seeking treatment with an orthopedic physician. The child the car has been seen by her pediatrician. If you’ve been injured in an Arizona traffic accident, contact the Phoenix injury lawyers at Abels & Annes for free consultation. Call 602-819-5191.

Phoenix injury lawyers have filed a negligence lawsuit on behalf of a Gila Bend resident and against the Buckeye Elementary School District and the Town of Buckeye stemming from an Arizona motorcycle versus car accident. The Arizona Republic is reporting that the crash allegedly occurred about a year ago and caused the 30-year-old motorcyclist to become partially blind. The Gila Bend man was riding his bike when a special education teacher from the Inca Elementary School, driving her personal vehicle, made a left turn from Yuma Road to get onto Durango Road and failed to yield to oncoming traffic. The motorcyclist crashed into the teacher’s driver’s-side door and ended up beneath her vehicle. At the time of the accident, the teacher was working for the school district and was traveling to a training session, therefore within the scope of her employment. The lawsuit alleges the bike rider sustained a severe concussion that has resulted in memory loss and a partial loss of vision. The lawsuit was filed on September 15 in Maricopa County Superior Court. The teacher, school district and town are named as defendants. The plaintiff’s previously filed notice of claim is asking for $28.5 million in damages from the defendants. The motorcyclist’s lost wages and medical bills incurred so far are reportedly in the area of $4 million. The victim’s wife and two children are also named as plaintiffs. The motorcyclist’s attorneys are not named in the Arizona Republic article, and only referred to as “Phoenix lawyers”.

An 11-year-old child is been seriously injured after being involved in an Arizona SUV vs. bicycle accident, according to azfamily.com. The collision took place in Maricopa just after 1 PM on Wednesday in the Rancho El Dorado subdivision. When Maricopa police officers responded to the accident, they located the boy sitting on the side of the road with his bicycle. A witness at the scene saw the child get hit by the SUV as he was crossing the street. Around 10 minutes after police arrived the child started showing signs of trauma and head injuries. He was taken by ambulance to Maricopa Medical Center. Upon arrival at the hospital treating physicians discovered internal bleeding in his head and emergency surgery was performed. The child reportedly is still in critical condition. It was not reported if the bicyclist crossed in the middle of a block or at an intersection. It has also not been reported if a Phoenix bicycle accident attorney is involved in the case yet. With injuries this serious, it is likely that the boy’s family will have an Arizona injury lawyer investigate a possible civil claim.

Phoenix car accident lawyers at Abels & Annes have signed on to represent a local resident that was injured in a Peoria, Arizona rear-end crash. The collision took place at 9100 W. Peoria Ave. on October 18, 2010 around 7:15 PM. The plaintiff was stopped in traffic just east of the intersection of 91st Ave. and Peoria Avenue. At that time the driver of a 2004 Mitsubishi rear-ended our client’s vehicle with great force. Shortly after the accident the plaintiff developed severe back pain, headaches, shoulder pain, numbness, and a burning sensation on the back of his head. He was seen at the Banner Del E. Webb Medical Center emergency room. There he was examined by physicians and x-rays were taken of his neck and back. Over the next couple days his pain only got worse. He is currently planning on following up with an orthopedic physician in the Phoenix area. The crash investigation was handled by the Peoria Police Department. If you’ve been injured in an Arizona auto accident, contact a Phoenix personal injury lawyer at Abels & Annes for a free case evaluation. Call 602-819-9151 speak directly to a lawyer.

An Arizona bike crash attorney has resolved a case for $3.5 million stemming from a 2008 accident that occurred in Pima County. The claim was resolved at a mediation last week and is expected to be approved by the Pima County Board of Supervisors, according to the Arizona Daily Star. The accident occurred when the bicyclist was riding in El Tour de Tucson on November 22, 2008. At that time a 91-year-old driver turned North onto Westward Look Drive from West Ina Road and struck 10 bicyclists. The victim in this settlement, age 41 at the time, suffered severe brain injuries. Four other bike riders were also injured. The victim’s wife and the four other bicycle riders that were hurt filed suit againt the 91-year-old driver, the organizers of the race, and the sheriffs department (who was handling traffic control at the location). It is being reported that the victim was lucky to survive. He sustained damage to his frontal and temporal lobes, was in a coma for 40 days, and had parts of his brain removed. He also suffers from epilepsy. The 91-year-old driver that caused the injuries initially fled the scene of the accident. He then hired a defense attorney and turned himself in. He later pleaded guilty to attempting to leave the scene of an accident and was placed on probation for three years. The Arizona bicycle accident victim in this case was represented by Stephen I. Leshner, PC of Phoenix. Click here to read the story as reported by azfamily.com.

An Arizona car versus motorcycle accident has resulted in the death of a woman from Buckeye, according to azcentral.com. The motorcycle crash occurred Saturday morning in Goodyear. At the time of the collision, the victim and her husband were both riding on two motorcycles. They stopped for stop sign at the intersection of Indian School Road and Citrus Road at around 12:30 AM. While stopped, the driver of a Chevy Cobalt rear-ended the victim’s motorcycle. The woman’s name has not been reported, and her husband was not injured in the accident. Investigating Goodyear police officers believe the at fault driver may have been drinking, and their investigation is ongoing. Whether a Phoenix area personal injury law firm is involved in the case yet has not been reported. In other bike crash news, the Arizona Republic is reporting that an All-Arizona senior linebacker from Mesa was injured last week in an accident. The 6 foot three, 215 pound player reportedly suffered bad road rash. What caused the motorcycle accident has not been reported. According to ADOT, in 2008 alone there were over 3,500 motorcycle accidents in Arizona. 140 motorcyclists died and over 3,000 were hurt in those collisions. 70% of those accidents took place in urban centers such as Glendale and Mesa.

The Arizona Department of Public Safety is participating in Operation Safe Driver this week (Oct. 17 to 23) by focusing on aggressive driving by both commercial drivers and the drivers of passenger vehicles. Many Phoenix car accidents and trucking accidents in Arizona are caused by some form of aggressive driving, including speeding.As we reported recently on our Phoenix Injury Lawyer Blog, 806 motorists were killed and more than 50,000 injured in Arizona traffic accidents last year. Arizona trucking accidents killed 99 motorists in 2008. Aggressive driving is a significant threat to motorists on the road. While many drivers associate aggressive driving with road rage, they are not the same thing. Road rage is a criminal offense, aggressive driving is a much broader category of driving behaviors that includes speeding, failure to pay attention while driving, tailgating, making frequent lane changes, running read lights, inappropriate passing, cutting drivers off in traffic and not using your turn signals. Those who are prone to driving aggressively should slow down, plan ahead and allow extra time to reach their destination, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. When confronted by an aggressive driver, a motorist should move out of the way, avoid eye contact and should not respond to gestures. Dangerous drivers should also be reported to police. Arizona safety officials hope to combat the dangers of aggressive driving and other poor driving decisions on a number of fronts. The Department of Public Safety’s objectives this week include: -Increased traffic and safety belt enforcement. -More roadside inspections of commercial vehicles. -Increase education among drivers, especially teen drivers, of the dangers of driving around large trucks and buses. -Promote awareness of the dangers of distracted driving. -Implement education and awareness programs for commercial drivers.

An Arizona bus crash has resulted in the death of two people in serious injuries to several others, according to CNN. The accident occurred in Kingman, Arizona which is part of Mohave County. It was a single vehicle bus crash that took place just after 8 AM on Sunday. A commercial tour bus reportedly drove off the road and rolled over several times on Pierce Ferry Road near milepost 23, according to NBC news. There were a total of 11 passengers and the driver on board. Two of the bus passengers died at the accident site, and several other passengers were seriously injured and either helicoptered or taken by ambulance to to area hospitals. Some were taken to Kingman Regional Medical Center. The bus may have been carrying a group of Chinese tourists. The tour bus was traveling from Las Vegas to the Grand Canyon. The bus driver is said to incurred minor injuries and is cooperating with investigating officers. The Mohave County Sheriff’s Department is handling the crash investigation. No reason has yet been given as to why the bus drove off the highway. It is not been reported if there are any Arizona injury attorneys involved in the case. Fox news in Arizona is reporting that there is been two other fatal bus crashes in this region over the past two years. One bus crash in January of 2009 killed seven people and injured 10 others. A bus traveling with Chinese tourists coming from the Grand Canyon were in an accident on US 93. Then in August, 2010 a bus crash on Interstate 15 in southwestern Utah resulted in the death of three Japanese tourists. The bus was doing a four-day national Park tour that included the Grand Canyon.

The Arizona Republic is reporting that a driver that was involved in a deadly bicycle accident in Tempe Arizona has pleaded guilty in court to failing to drive at a speed to exercise reasonable care for others. The accident happened back on May 17, 2010 when a 36-year-old Tempe bicycle rider was headed home from work when he was hit by a car at the intersection of Alameda Drive and McClintock Drive. The Arizona bicycle rider died later the same evening. The driver claimed in the police report that as he went through the intersection he had a green light, however a witness at the scene (who was also riding a bicycle) stated that the bike rider had the green light. The victim’s family has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the at fault driver. The newspaper report did not name the Phoenix bicycle accident attorney that is working on the case.

A total of 29,282 Phoenix car accidents claimed 142 lives and injured 9,714 in 2009, according to statistics being released by the Arizona Department of Transportation. Maricopa County car accidents accounted for $1.4 billion in losses, or more than half of the $2.7 billion traffic accidents cost Arizona statewide in 2009. More than half of all Arizona drunk driving accidents also occurred in Maricopa County, accounting for 3,601 of the state’s 5,854 traffic crashes. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration recently reported the fewest traffic accidents since 1950. A total of 33,808 motorists were killed on the nation’s roads in 2009, compared to the 37,423 deaths reported in 2008. Arizona car accidents by county: Maricopa: 68,653 accidents/280 fatalities/21,410 injuries Pima: 15,669 accidents/83 fatalities/5,292 injuries Coconino: 3,768 accidents/39 fatalities/903 injuries Pinal: 3,541 accidents/62 fatalities/1,079 injuries Yavapai: 3,313 accidents/42 fatalities/1,003 injuries Yuma: 2,825 accidents/24 fatalities/968 injuries Mohave: 2,940 accidents/34 fatalities/974 injuries Cochise: 1,876 accidents/30 fatalities/486 injuries Navajo: 1,241 accidents/38 fatalities/360 injuries Gila: 984 accidents/17fatalities/303 injuries Apache: 591 accidents/29 fatalities/203 injuries Santa Cruz: 591 accidents/6 fatalities/149 injuries La Paz: 421 accidents/15 fatalities/131 injuries Graham: 287 accidents/8 fatalities/ 94 injuries Greenlee: 67 accidents/2 fatalities/25 injuries Arizona pickup truck accidents accounted for nearly 20 percent of all Arizona accidents. Crashes by vehicle type Cars: 98,888 Pickup Trucks: 38,674 Station Wagons: 35,990 Tractor-Trailer Accidents: 2,457 Concrete Mixers: 31 Dump Truck Accidents: 164 Garbage Truck Accidents: 121 Tanker Truck Accidents: 42 Tow Truck Accidents: 143 School Bus Accidents: 238 Commercial Bus Accidents: 1,086 Motorcycle Accidents: 3,029 ATV Accidents: 169 Moped Accidents: 21 RV Accidents: 153 Top 5 Most Common Causes of Accidents (non-alcohol): Speed too fast for conditions: 33,845 Failure to Yield Right of Way: 18,531 Inattention/Distraction: 11,117 Following too Closely: 5,502 Unsafe Lane Change: 5,557