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Teen Ejected in Car Accident Involving Drunk Driver

Chrissie Cole — Fri, 31 Aug 2007 18:57:13 GMT

The driver of a speeding car suspected of driving while under the influence, veered off the road and struck a sign, causing his 17-year-old passenger, not wearing a seatbelt, to be ejected from the backseat , authorities said.

The passenger sustained serious injury in the car accident, according to California Highway patrol.

The accident occurred on Friday, at 2:45 a.m. when the 23-year-old driver of a 1988 Oldsmobile failed to manipulate a curve in the road. The driver lost control of the vehicle and spun onto the shoulder, hitting a curb and striking a sign.

The driver, who was wearing his seatbelt, was arrested on suspicion of felony driving under the influence. He suffered injuries in the crash but to what extent is unknown.

Please visit our section on Car and Motorcyle Accidents for more information.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Chrissie Cole

Tragic Car Accident Claims the Lives of Three Small Children

Chrissie Cole — Mon, 24 Sep 2007 12:48:59 GMT

Three children were tragically killed in a car accident today, when the Ford Expedition they were driving in crashed with a Chevy Truck, driven by an off-duty Sheriff Deputy, according to the California Highway Patrol (CHP).

The Expedition driven by the mother, 26, of Visalia, was traveling north on Road 172, according to an officer at the scene. The driver of the truck, 27, of Exeter, was traveling west on Avenue 336 when he failed to stop at a stop sign before turning onto Road 172.

The Truck broadsided the Expedition, causing both vehicles to spin out of control and into an orange grove at the northwest corner of the intersection.

The off-duty officer was not wearing a seatbelt, was ejected from the vehicle.

The three small children ages 2, 3 and 5 were riding in the backseat and did have seatbelts on. The child sitting in the middle in a car seat, was ejected from the vehicle due to the force of the crash, according to CHP.

All three children died at the scene. The mother suffered serious injuries and was transported by air helicopter to Regional Medical Center.

For more information on this subject, please visit our section on Car Accidents.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Chrissie Cole

Street-racing crash in Yorba Linda kills 68-year-old woman

IB Contributor — Mon, 26 Mar 2007 22:17:41 GMT

A 68-year-old Orange County woman was fatally injured in an auto accident Sunday when she attempted to make a left turn from a residential neighborhood, The Orange County Register reported Monday. Police officials suspect that street racing may have caused the crash.

Witnesses told Brea Police officials that two cars were seen speeding side-by-side, southbound down the hillside street of Fairmont Boulevard when one of the cars, a black Chevrolet pickup, collided into the victim's white Buick sedan, the article stated.

The accident occurred at 12:47 p.m., at the corner of Fairmont and Oak Meadow Drive.

Joetta May Martinez of Yorba Linda was transported to a hospital, where she was pronounced dead.

The driver of the pickup, Charles William Marquardt III, also from Yorba Linda, was taken to the hospital for minor injuries. The 17-year-old male driver of the car reported to have been driving next to the pickup was questioned by police. No charges have been filed yet and their names were not released.

Residents who live nearby said they came running out of their homes when they heard a loud collision. One neighbor rushed to the woman's aid and tried to check her pulse, but didn't get one on her neck or hand. Another rushed to check on the driver of the pickup, who was reportedly shaken up and kept inquiring about the lady and whether she was alright. Neighbor Paul Noonan said the driver of the pickup "seemed brokenhearted and just devastated."

Several residents cited a growing problem with cars speeding around their neighborhood and the danger of turning from a residential street onto a downhill street with a blind curve. The speed limit on Fairmont is 40 mph; Oak Meadow is 25 mph.

Residents have asked for a traffic light at that intersection, but it hasn't happened so far

If this were indeed a street-racing incident, Marquardt is looking at prison time. He is also looking at a civil lawsuit for wrongful death. In the right circumstances, if Marquardt was driving someone ele's car, whoever allowed him to drive their car could be liable to the family of the deceased accident victim under a theory of "negligent entrustment".

I curious to see how the Orange County District Attorney's office handles this case. The DA has an opportunity here to send a message that street racing will not be tolerated in Orange County and that violators who cause accidents and injury people will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.

Here is an interesting link to a nonprofit group called Street S.M.A.R.T.S. (Sports Machines Against Racing on the Street), which aims to educate people about the dangers of street-racing. Their Web site is http://www.streetsmartsusa.org/. The Web site has memorials to victims of street-racing as well, which serves as a tragic reminder. I like their motto, which is, "If you must race, remember, TAKE IT TO THE TRACK!"

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by IB Contributor

Parents Sued For Babysitter's Auto Accident

John Bisnar — Sun, 11 Feb 2007 03:45:24 GMT

Most of us have hired a babysitter to watch our children at one time or another. Even one of the neighborhood kids, right? But, what happens when the babysitter causes an automobile accident? You could be liable, according to a recent decision by the 3rd District Court of Appeals.

Babysitter, eighteen year-old Michael Ruhland, driving his father's car, had just picked up William and Lori Kumbalek's youngest child from day care when he drove through a stop sign while talking on his cell phone. The 18 year-old

teenager hit another car, killing Scott Bergene of Newton, Wisconsin. Mr. Bergene's widow sued Michael. However, Mr. Bergene's widow also sued William and Lori Kumbalek and their insurance company as well. Mr. Bergene's widow claimed that Michael was in the employ of the Kumbalek's at the time he killed her husband. As a matter of law, many times an employer can and will be sued when the employee commits the wrongful act, even if the employer did not know or approve of what the employee actually did.

If you hire a babysitter you might want to ask them what training they have and check to see if they are really licensed and insured to drive a car.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by John Bisnar

New Law Restricting Cell Phone Use in Automobiles

IB Contributor — Fri, 15 Dec 2006 00:00:00 GMT

With the stated intended purpose of reducing automobile accidents caused by driver distraction, California Governor Schwarzenegger signed into law The California Wireless Telephone Automobile Safety Act of 2006. Generally the Act prohibits drivers from using a wireless phone while operating a vehicle, unless the phone is specifically designed and configured to allow hands-free operation and is used in that manner.

Specifically the Act:
* Prohibits the use of cell phones by drivers unless the driver is using a hands-free device starting July 1, 2008.
* Allows drivers of commercial vehicles to use push-to-talk phones until July 1, 2011.
* Allows drivers to make emergency phone calls without using a hands-free device.
* Allows drivers of emergency response vehicles to use cell phone without a hands-free device.
* Prescribes that a violation of the act is an infraction and conviction is punishable by a base fine of $20 for a first offense and $50 for each subsequent offenses.

Is it any wonder that Verizon Wireless, the nations largest wireless communications provider, who sells millions of dollars worth of hands-free devices for cell pones, had its lobbyist out in force in support of Senate Bill 1613 that became the Act. According to the 2003 study by the AAA;s Foundation for Traffic Safety and the University of North Caroline, cell phone usage was only the eighth most common driver distraction.

The California Highway Patrol reported that of 441,334 traffic accidents in 2004, the investigating officer cited the driver's cellular phone as a factor contributing to the traffic accident in 931 of the accidents. That's 0.21% of the time.

With those statistic, was this a "Safety Act" or a revenue generator for campaign contributors and lobbyists clients?

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by IB Contributor

Three Killed in Tragic Car Accident after Crashing into Light Pole

Christina Cole — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 17:48:34 GMT

Three men, in their 20s, were killed in a tragic car accident when their Lincoln Town Car rear-ended a vehicle, bounced off another and crashed into a light pole. A fourth passenger was hospitalized, police said.

One of the victims was decapitated in the accident that occurred on Victoria Street near Canyon Drive at 8:45 p.m.

Two of the men were thrown from the vehicle and killed, as was a backseat passenger. The driver was taken to Western Medical Center. The crash is under investigation. At this time it is unclear if alcohol was involved.

Witnesses report the driver was speeding and attempted to pass a slow moving vehicle, setting off the chain of events that led to the deadly crash.

The accident ripped off one of the Lincoln's doors, caved in ther oof and crumpled the car beyond recognition. Glass and metal were strewn across the road.

"This is one of the worst accidents I have ever seen," said Costa Mesa Police Sgt.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Christina Cole

Teen Age Driver Accidents

IB Contributor — Mon, 29 Jan 2007 19:45:36 GMT

How can we prevent the carnage?

Car accidents are the number one killer of teenagers in the United States. Promising and precious lives can be lost, or forever changed, when our teenagers take the wheel. Speeding while distracted seems to be more common among teenage drivers, and this behavior often results in permanent disfigurement, or even worse, a fatal car crash.

Consider the case of Rianna Woolsey. Rianna had everything to live for. She was 16 and on the varsity song squad at Tesoro High School. Today, she might have been in college if it hadn't been for the accident. Rianna was speeding along a major street in her Coto de Caza neighborhood when she lost control of her Volkswagen Jetta, crashed into a tree, and then died at the hospital a few hours later.

Ironically, Rianna was on her way to a song squad Christmas party when she lost control of her car. Could she have been distracted while talking on her cell phone? Or even worse, could she have been text messaging on her phone when she lost control? No one knows the answer, but a very promising life was extinguished that day in December of 2005. Now Rianna's MySpace site sits frozen in time, but her friends and family have continued to monitor the site where Rianna has received over 700 messages since her death from all over the country as memorial to this smiling and vibrant young lady.

Then there is Nikki Kunkle, a 16-year-old Campbell High School student from Atlanta, Georgia. "I remember it just being silent", Nikki said, about her near fatal traffic accident. Then Nikki remembered, "When we rolled, my window was shattered, and I realized that my arm had been severed". Nikki was a passenger in a car driver by a fellow student, who was speeding down the back road to the high school trying to avoid being late to class. Nikki just got her new prosthetic arm .

So what can we do?

I propose that we change our laws granting driving privileges to: 1) The minimum age of drivers to 17 for driving alone or with an adult over 25; 2) Minimum one year of being licensed or 21 before driving with anyone unless accompanied by an adult over 25; and 3) The adult over 25 be equally legally responsible as the driver for any "driving with a measurable amount of alcohol", excessive speeding or reckless driving violations and damages.

What are you suggestions as to what we can do to improve the driving safety record of our teenage drivers?

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by IB Contributor

Driver Killed in Fiery Carquinez Bridge Crash

Chrissie Cole — Mon, 02 Jul 2007 21:35:37 GMT

A motorist was killed in a fatal car accident, Monday, at 4:36 p.m. on the Carquinez Bridge, when the car became engulfed in flames, California Highway Patrol said.

A Ford Crown Victoria traveling westbound on Interstate 80, swerved from the far left lane to the right shoulder, when witnesses noticed the car was smoking from the rear wheels. The car crashied into the right-side guardrail twice before coming to rest and catching on fire. Debris was strewn across 700 feet of highway.

The driver, the only occupant of the vehicle, was killed at the scene. Alcohol is not believed to be a factor and the driver did have a seat belt on.

As of Monday evening, the investigation is ongoing. California Highway Patrol is asking that anyone with information please contact them at 707-551-4100.

For more information on this subject, please refer to our section on Car and Motorcycle Accidents.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Chrissie Cole

Soldier involved in deadly crash arrested

IB Contributor — Sat, 31 Mar 2007 23:34:10 GMT

He's charged with two counts of vehicular manslaugher.

A man who triggered a January car crash in Rialto that claimed the lives of two teen girls was captured in Kentucky and is expected to be returned to California soon, according to an article in the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin (http://www.dailybulletin.com/search/ci_5553373)

David Ponce Ledezma, 21, of Colton, who is in the U.S. Army and was scheduled to return to Iraq several days after the crash, has been charged with two counts of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence, the article stated. The San Bernardino County District Attorney's Office issued a warrant for his arrest March 21, according to court records.

While officers said a strong odor of alcohol came from people inside the car that Ledezma was driving, investigators would not reveal whether blood tests showed Ledezma was intoxicated at the time of the crash. He was not immediately arrested because he did not show obvious signs of inebriation, officials said, adding that they wanted to rule out other potential causes of the crash first, such as mechanical problems with Ledezma's vehicle

Ledezma was driving on a downhill slope on Sycamore Avenue near Wilson Street at 4:10 a.m. Jan. 4 when he struck an upturn in the road and his 2002 GMC Yukon became airborne, officials said. The vehicle flipped, throwing Rachel Lujan of Bloomington and Adriadne Benavides of Rialto, both 17, out of the vehicle. The girls were not wearing seat belts. Both were pronounced dead at the scene. Three other people were injured in the crash.

Police said the group had been drinking in Lytle Creek with other friends before returning to Rialto. Ledezma had been hospitalized with injuries he received in the crash. But after receiving treatment at Arrowhead Regional Medical Center in Colton, he was released and returned to military service. The arrest warrant popped up when Kentucky police pulled over Ledezma for a traffic infraction, according to the article.

If Ledezma was over the legal limit of blood/alchol and his state of intoxication caused or contributed to the accident and deaths, he deserves whatever he has coming, as does anyone else who may be responsible.

Call me if you need assistance holding a drunken driver responsible for the injuries they have caused.

Seat belt use probably would have saved the lives of those two girls.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by IB Contributor

Two wrecks on the 5 Freeway leave one dead

IB Contributor — Fri, 16 Mar 2007 18:11:20 GMT

Lagnua Niguel man charged with vehicular manslaughter.

Two Orange County auto accidents, occurring nearly simultaneously about 11:15 p.m. Thursday, left one woman dead and four others injured - two critically - on the southbound San Diego (I-5) Freeway near the Alicia Parkway exit., the Orange County Register reported Friday.

The collisions, which the CHP is treating as unrelated, also led to the arrest of three of the drivers of the four vehicles. All are suspected of driving under the influence of alcohol. Two of the arrestees face felony charges.

Catherine Malloy, 72, of Philadelphia, died in the collision, the report said. She was pronounced dead at the scene by Orange County Fire Authority paramedics.

The blue Volvo in which Malloy was a passenger stopped along the freeway for unknown reasons, and then was hit from the rear by a Ford F-150 pickup in the same lane, CHP officials said. The driver of the pickup, Trevor Coffman, was taken to Mission Hospital in Mission Viejo for treatment of major injuries, according CHP reports.

Coffman, 35, of Laguna Niguel, was later arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol and vehicular manslaughter. The driver of the Volvo, Sally Howd, 76, of Dana Point, is reportedly in serious condition at Mission Hospital with major injuries. Her husband, Frank Howd, 82, got out of the rear passenger side of the Volvo shortly before the collision and was struck by the car while he was standing in the traffic lane. He is in critical condition.

Almost at the same moment, a white Infiniti driven by Eric Fuentes, 30, hit the right side of a black Toyota, deflecting the Toyota into the center divider, were it came to rest. Fuentes, of Laguna Beach, fled the scene of the accident and was later arrested at his residence under suspicion of felony hit-and-run and felony driving under the influence of alcohol, CHP reports said.

Fuentes is also held in the Intake and Release Center in Santa Ana in lieu of $100,000 bail. The driver of the Toyota, Michael Medina, 58, was taken to Mission Hospital for treatment of major injuries. He is listed in critical condition. Medina, of Rancho Santa Margarita, was also arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol.

Traffic backed up for nearly three miles following the crash after CHP officials shut down all lanes of traffic for over 40 minutes following the crash, starting at 11:35 p.m., CHP officer Katrina Lundgren said.

And it's not even St. Patrick's Day yet! This is a horrible tragedy for the victim and her family. It was probably a rare coincidence that two simultaneous crashes involved so many suspected drunk drivers. It's shameful.

People who drive under the influence pose a significant hazard on our roadways. According to Mothers Against Drunk Driving, about 40 percent of all traffic collisions in this state are alcohol-related. In Orange County there are at least six DUI-related injury traffic collisions every day.

I have no doubts in my mind that driving under the influence of alcohol and drugs is one of the worst forms of negligence. If you are impaired, take a cab.

Have a fun Saint Patrick's Day celebration tomorrow. Please do not drink and then drive.

The three gentlemen arrested last night probably thought they were "OK" to drive. One of them is responsible for killing one person and seriously injuring two others. I'll bet all three of them wish they had taken a cab home. If the three of them had taken cabs, one other person would still be alive and two others would not be injured. Drinking and driving isn't worth it. Saving the cab money isn't worth it.

I am sure when Mr. Coffman left wherever it was that he was drinking, he never thought he'd be arrested for manslaughter before the sun came up. Don't drink and drive.

Maybe the Toyota and Nissan "anti-driving under the influence" auto equipment should be mandatory on all new automobiles. See my March 12th blog entitled "Cars Against Drunk Driving" for more information.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by IB Contributor