Maryland Accident Law Blog

Maryland Senate Passes Speed Camera Bill

April 3, 2009 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

The Maryland Senate has passed a bill that would allow speed cameras in school zones and construction zones. The approval of the legislation, by a 27-20 vote, came one day after the Senate had vetoed the bill authorizing the statewide use of speed cameras to apprehend violators. The House is expected to vote on the measure next week.

A number of Maryland senators had opposed the bill over concerns that the cameras were an invasion of privacy and were being used by local governments to generate revenue. In Montgomery County, where 54 speed cameras are in use, some 500,000 citations have been issued, resulting in over $16 million in fines after costs. However, supporters of the speed cameras are quick to note that they have helped reduced the number of Maryland motor vehicle crashes because they compel people to obey the legal speed limits.

Also, an examination of several locations where speed cameras have been in operation shows that the speeds that motorists operated their vehicles at dropped by 22% after cameras were installed. For example, in Chevy Chase, there are speed cameras installed in a heavily traveled area of Connecticut Avenue. Since the devices were put in place, the number of speeding motorists dropped by 73%, as did the number of auto accidents (from 67 during the last year when there were no cameras to 44). Other Maryland municipalities where speed cameras are already in use include Takoma Park, Gaithersburg, and Rockville.

The Maryland Senate bill calls for making driving 12 miles above the speed limit grounds for a speeding ticket.

In February, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety presented a number of research findings about speeding before the Maryland Senate Committee on Judicial Proceedings on Senate Bill 277. Among the findings:

• In 2007, speeding contributed to over 13,000 motor vehicle deaths.
• 24% of the deadly accidents that happened that year occurred on roads where the speed limit was 35 mph or lower.
• 88% of speeding-related deaths occur on interstate highways.

• Speeding can refer to going faster than the posted speed limit, driving faster than the weather conditions allow, or racing.

Maryland Senate Amends Speed Camera Bill to Include School Zones, WJLA.com, April 1, 2009
Senate Revives Bill to Allow Use of Technology Beyond Montgomery, Washington Post, April 3, 2009

Research on Automated Speed Enforcement, Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, February 24, 2009 (PDF)

Related Web Resources:

Maryland Senate Bill 277

Analysis of Speed Camera Bill (PDF)

Truckers with Sleep Apnea May Cause Maryland Truck Accidents

March 31, 2009 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

The Cambridge Health Alliance is reporting that there could be up to 3.9 million licensed commercial truck drivers who are suffering from obstructive sleep apnea. This condition is the number two cause of fatigue during the daytime, which means that truckers with OSA may be more prone than other drivers to engage in drowsy driving or fall asleep behind the wheel of their trucks—two common causes of Maryland truck accidents.

As a matter of fact, sleep apnea in general reportedly increases the chances of being involved in a motor vehicle accident by up to seven fold. The consequences of falling asleep behind the wheel of a large truck can be catastrophic.

Obstructive Sleep Apnea

A person with this sleeping disorder may have trouble breathing and sleeping well at night, which can lead to excessive sleepiness during typical waking hours, a tendency to fall asleep during the daytime, and psychomotor deficits. While about 20 million people in the US are believed to be afflicted with sleep apnea, many individuals don’t even know they have the disorder.

With long, irregular hours already taking a toll on a truck driver’s health and ability to drive lucidly, OSA further compounds the concern that exhausted and overworked truckers could cause fatal motor vehicle crashes because they’ve fallen asleep while driving. The Cambridge Health Alliance, which conducted a 15-month study, recommends making it mandatory for commercial truckers to test for OSA.

The Cambridge Health Alliance OSA-Trucker Test

456 commercial truck drivers were tested. 17% of them met the criteria for possible OSA. These truckers tended to be older, more obese, and had above average blood pressure. Only 20 of the participants that satisfied the OSA screening criteria took part in the sleep studies, and all of them were diagnosed with OSA. Unfortunately, only one of the truckers followed treatment recommendations. According to Dr. Philip Parks, the study’s lead author, most truckers seemed to underreport or minimize symptoms for OSA, and there could be up to 14 million US truck drivers with untreated or undiagnosed sleep apnea.

Truck drivers must be alert anytime they are behind the wheel of their commercial truck. Not only is their vehicle likely larger and significantly heavier than the other vehicles on the road, but often, trucks may be carrying large loads or toxic substances. Unfortunately, in the rush to meet deadlines and fulfill delivery orders, truckers have been known to drive while exhausted. This can make them drive carelessly or recklessly, resulting in fatal truck crashes.

Obesity Linked To Dangerous Sleep Apnea In Truck Drivers, Science Daily, March 12, 2009
Obstructive Sleep Apnea, Sleep Disorder Channel
New Study Links Obesity to Dangerous Sleep Apnea in Truck Drivers, 24-7 Press Release, March 27, 2009
Related Web Resources:
Hours of Service Regulations, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

Two Maryland School Bus Accidents Lead to Possible Injuries and One Death

March 27, 2009 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

A number of school bus students were rushed to the hospital this week following two separate Maryland motor vehicle accidents involving school transportation vehicles on Wednesday. An elementary school bus and a pickup truck collided in St. Mary’s County when the bus turned in front of an oncoming pickup truck and was struck.

Three of the students who were on the bus were taken to a local hospital, while the pickup truck driver, a Lusby man, was taken to Prince George’s Shock Trauma. Police say the bus driver failed to yield the right of way.

In another Maryland school bus accident, one man died in Garrett County after his vehicle was involved in an auto crash with a school bus. For reasons that are still not clear, the Ford pickup truck of 63-year-old Robert Charles Biers crossed the center line to collide with the bus. All 23 passengers on the bus were taken to Garrett Memorial Hospital so they could be examined for possible injuries.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration:

• There have been 1,389 school transportation-related crashes between 1997 and 2007.
• 1,541 people died in those crashes, which averages to about 140 school transportation-related deaths each year.
• 73% of the people who died were riding in the other vehicles.
• 7% of the those who died were riding in the school transportation vehicles.
• 20% of the people who died were pedalcyclists, pedestrians, and others who weren’t riding in any vehicles when the deadly motor vehicle crashes happened.

• 152 pedestrians younger than age 19 have died in school transportation-related collisions.

School buses are common carrier vehicles which means that the bus driver owes its occupants and other motorists an even greater duty of care than do regular drivers. Many school buses still lack safety belts, which means bus accidents can result in serious injuries—especially for young occupants.

School Bus Accident In St. Mary’s, MyFoxDC.com, March 25, 2009
Collision with Bus Kills Driver, Times-News.com, March 25, 2009
School Transportation-Related Crashes, NHTSA

Increase in Number of Younger and Middle Aged Mentally Ill Patients in US Nursing Homes is Leading to Violent Crimes Against Elderly Residents

March 27, 2009 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

According to the Associated Press, the number of mentally ill patients in US nursing homes increased by 41% between 2002 and 2008. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services says these approximately 125,000 long-term care residents make up 9% of the overall nursing home population.

There are a number of reasons for this. A number of state facilities have shut down and there aren’t enough hospital psychiatric beds. There is also more room in US nursing homes because a lot of older residents are healthier and more independent than those from past generations. As a result, there are less of them requiring long-term care.

Unfortunately, this increase of patients with mental illnesses in nursing homes has resulted in crimes being committed by the younger ones against older nursing home residents. The younger residents tend to be stronger than the older ones, and because they aren’t always aware of or can be responsible for their actions, they may hurt older residents that are too sick or frail to defend themselves. For example:

• An elderly patient, 77, died after his roommate, 72, beat him using the towel bar from the bathroom. His attacker did not go to trial for killing him because he was found incompetent.

• A 23-year-old woman was also found incompetent to go to trial after she was charged with igniting a fire at a nursing home that killed 16 patients.

• A 21-year-old mentally ill resident raped a 69-year-old woman. The nursing home reportedly failed to supervise him despite knowing about his violent history.

• A 77-year-old nursing home resident was in his bed when his much younger roommate, who was mentally ill, slammed a clock radio into his face. The elderly resident died from his injuries.

It is the responsibility of Maryland nursing homes to make sure that all of their residents are housed in a safe environment. This means making sure that older, sick residents are kept separate from younger, stronger patients with mental or behavioral challenges, as well as making sure that these patients with special needs get the care, attention, and supervision they require so that they don’t become a danger to themselves or others. Failure to exercise this duty of care can be grounds for nursing home neglect or wrongful death.

Housing Mentally Ill in Nursing Homes Sometimes Leads to Violence, NewsInferno.com, March 24, 2009
Nursing Homes Called ‘Dumping Grounds’ for Mentally Ill, MedPage, March 23, 2009
Related Web Resources:

Welcome to the Maryland Nursing Home Guide, Maryland Gov.

Caring for the Mentally Ill, Newsday.gov

Baltimore County Wrongful Death Lawsuit Claiming SWAT Team Fatally Shot Mother Without Provocation in 2005 Goes to Trial

March 25, 2009 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Four years after a SWAT team fatally shot Cheryl Lynn Noel during a drug raid of her Dundalk home, the ensuing wrongful death lawsuit filed in Baltimore County has finally gone to trial. Attorneys for both sides gave opening statements last week.

During the wrongful death trial, a jury will determine whether law enforcement officers were justified in shooting Noel or if the deadly incident was an example of police abuse of power and her family should be compensated for her loss.

According to the Maryland wrongful death lawsuit filed by her husband Charles, he and Noel, a 44-year-old mother, were in bed on January 1, 2005, when at around 4:30 am members of the Baltimore County SWAT team barged into their residence using a battering ram and a flash-bang grenade because they suspected it was a narcotics den housing cocaine and marijuana. The officers, who were heavily armed, claimed to have found traces of drugs in garbage cans outside the residence.

Natasha Richardson Did Not Receive Medical Attention Until Four Hours After Ski Fall Accident that Resulted in Fatal Traumatic Brain Injury

March 20, 2009 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

As close friends and family members continue to mourn movie star Natasha Richardson, questions are beginning to arise as to whether her life could have been saved if she had received medical attention for her traumatic brain injury sooner.

Richardson, 45, passed away on Wednesday—two days after she fell and hit her head while taking a beginner’s ski lesson at a Canadian ski resort. While initial reports indicated that she had been laughing and walking after the accident, new information has surfaced indicating that this may not have been the case.

Paramedics who arrived at the scene to check on her were reportedly turned away. They say, however, that the movie star wasn’t laughing and walking after the accident as was initially reported, but that she was sitting on a stretcher.

It wasn’t until Richardson began complaining of a headache that a second group of paramedics arrived at the scene to take the movie star to a local hospital. While the resort says the ambulance took Richardson away no more than an hour after the first ambulance had driven off, ambulance records indicate that this may have occurred at an even later time and that the actress was not admitted to the hospital until about four hours after she fell. Autopsy results indicate that Richardson died of an epidural hematoma, which involves brain bleeding between the skull and the cover of the brain.

Traumatic Brain Injuries

While some head injuries may seem minor, Richardson’s tragic death is a reminder of how it is so important to get medical attention as soon as possible—especially as some people who hit their heads may appear to be fine at first and then within hours their condition rapidly deteriorates to the point of death.

Symptoms of a possible TBI may include dizziness, nausea, vision problems, balance problems headaches, balance difficulties, sensitivity to light, headaches, problems communicating, and appearing “out of it.”

Richardson’s fall accident on a beginner’s ski slope is also raising the issue of whether it is important for skiers and snowboarders to use helmets.

The movie star leaves behind her husband, film star Liam Neeson, her two sons, Michael, 13, and Daniel, 12, her mother, the legendary actress Vanessa Redgrave, and her sister, actress Joely Richardson.

Richardson Saw Doctors Several Hours After Fall, New York Times, March 20, 2009
Autopsy: Natasha Richardson Died From Bleeding Near Brain, SeattlePI.com, March 19, 2009
Related Web Resources:
Natasha Richardson: A death in the fullness of life, Roger Ebert, March 20, 2009
Epidural Hematoma, MUHealth.org

Maryland Senate Votes for Text Messaging While Driving Ban

March 19, 2009 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

This week, the Maryland Senate approved by a 43 to 4 vote a bill banning drivers from text messaging whenever they are operating their motor vehicles. If the bill becomes law, it would make reading, composing, sending, or receiving text messages a misdemeanor crime punishable by a $500 fine. Maryland would also join a growing list of states and jurisdictions, including Virginia and Washington DC, that are banning text messaging—whether on a cell phone, PDA, or IPod Touch or another device—while operating a motor vehicle.

Sending short messages via cell phone or other electronic devices is a bad habit that has grown more popular in recent years—especially among younger, more inexperienced drivers. According to the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, one of its studies last year found that about 50% of young drivers, ages 18 – 24, text message while driving. The study found that among drivers ages 45 and older, less than 5% engaged in text messaging while operating a motor vehicle.

Text messaging is a type of distracted driving, and like all other forms of distracted driving, including talking on a handheld cellular phone, applying making, or reading the newspaper, can lead to deadly auto accidents. ABC News says that a 2006 study showed that 65% of near-motor vehicle collisions and 80% of auto crashes occur because of distracted driving.

For example, one Maryland child lost her right forearm in a catastrophic bus accident that occurred while the bus driver was texting on his cell phone. 30 people were injured in this Maryland motor vehicle accident. In another traffic accident, a 26-year-old woman died last year in a truck accident when she was struck by a tractor-trailer while the truck driver had been texting.

These kinds of catastrophic motor vehicle collisions could have been avoided if the drivers had not been engaged in distracted driving.

Md. Is Latest State to Target Text Messaging by Drivers, Washington Post, March 18, 2009
Texting While Driving Could Spell Trouble, ABC News, May 8, 2007
Driving and Dialing Bus Drivers May Case Accidents, ABC News, Feb 7, 2007
Related Web Resources:

Examination of Maryland Senate Bill 98 (PDF)

Cell Phone Driving Laws, Governors Highway Safety Association

$50 Million Personal Injury Lawsuit Filed Against Owner of Chimp that Mauled Woman

March 17, 2009 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

The family of Charla Nash, the woman who was mauled by a chimpanzee, is suing the owner of the pet primate for personal injury. In their $50 million personal injury lawsuit, the plaintiffs are accusing Sandra Herold of recklessness and negligence due to her inability to control her 200-pound pet and subdue it if necessary. They also accuse Herold, 70, of inviting Nash to her home while knowing that the chimp, Travis, was agitated.

Nash, 55, had come to Herold’s home to help her lure the primate back into the residence. Their plan, however, went awry when Travis began mauling Nash. Travis also attacked one of the police officers who came to the scene. He eventually shot Travis dead. The officer was treated for trauma. Herold, who was also injured while trying to get Travis off Nash, was hospitalized for her injuries.

The 12-minute attack left Nash without her nose, eyelids, hands, and lips, crushed a number of her facial bones, and left her with brain damage and possible blindness. One month after the attack, she remains in critical condition.

Baltimore County Jury Awards Over $150 Million to Victims of Jacksonville Exxon Gas Spill

March 13, 2009 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

In Maryland, a Baltimore County jury has awarded the victims of a 2006 Exxon gas spill over $150 million. Some 90 Jacksonville residents experienced personal injury, property damage, and emotional trauma after a leaking pipe at a neighborhood gas station caused 26,000 gallons of gasoline to enter the groundwater.

As part of its compensatory damages, Exxon Mobile Corp is paying the plaintiffs for the full appraised value of their properties, as well as for emotional trauma and the annual testing for four kinds of cancer for the rest of the victims’ lives. However, the jury members, who found that Exxon was not guilty of fraud, did not rule in favor of awarding the punitive damages to the plaintiffs, who had sought billions of dollars in recovery.

Their personal injury team had argued that Exxon was aware it was using inadequate leak detection tools yet ignored that this could result in personal injuries. Meantime, while Exxon has accepted responsibility for the spill and apologized to the victim, the company maintains that it never acted with intentional malice or negligence.

Salisbury Man Still Waiting to Find Out if $45 Million Maryland Brutality Lawsuit Can Go To Court

March 10, 2009 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

In Maryland, a Salisbury man is waiting to find out whether a judge will allow his $45 million police brutality lawsuit to go to court. Ceasar Savage says that a number of police officers beat him unconscious when apprehending him outside his mother’s Newton Terrace home in January 2007.

Savage, 37, says that he did not regain consciousness until he was in the emergency room at the Peninsula Regional Medical Center. Upon his release, police took him into custody and charged him with resisting arrest, assaulting a police officer, and a number of drug charges.

According to Savage’s Maryland police brutality complaint, two of the police officers that approached Savage said they were probing a reported burglary in the area. They asked for his registration and license information and asked him to step out of the car.