Georgia Personal Injury Law Blog

Police in Georgia are investigating a Feb. 25 car accident that resulted in the deaths of two people and sent a third to the hospital. The accident occurred at about 4:30 p.m. on Old Clyattville Road in Valdosta. A Ford Mustang driven by a 22-year-old woman from Florida was traveling southbound on Old Clyattville Road at the time of the accident. A Ford F-150 traveling in the northbound lane attempted to pass a northbound school bus and collided head-on with the Mustang about two miles away from Interstate 75. The 22-year-old woman and her passenger, a 23-year-old Valdosta man, died as a result of their injuries. Emergency crews took the F-150's driver, a 34-year-old Valdosta man, to South Georgia Medical Center in Valdosta in serious condition. No passengers were aboard the school bus, and no one else suffered any injuries in the accident. A reconstruction team continued to investigate the…

A Georgia man is dead after a vehicle crashed into a building in Fulton County on Feb. 14. The driver of the vehicle left the scene but was apprehended later. Sandy Springs police reported the suspect in the fatal accident is facing charges of vehicular homicide in the first degree. In addition, the man is charged with felony leaving the scene of an accident. According to a representative of the police in Sandy Springs, the man who died, a resident of Jonesboro, was in a building that was described as a local car wash in the 6000 block of Roswell Road when he was struck. A Ford Mustang that went out of control hit the building. The driver of the Ford Mustang allegedly left the accident site. He was later found at an apartment complex where police apprehended him. The individual in the building was taken to an Atlanta hospital.…

A motorcycle rider who is involved in an accident on a Georgia road is much more likely to suffer serious personal injury or to die than are those who are occupants in other types of motor vehicles. Motorcyclists simply do not have the same protection as do other vehicle occupants. According to data provided by the Insurance Information Institute, 4,688 people died and approximately 88,000 were injured in motorcycle accidents around the country during 2013. A 2012 study demonstrated that for every vehicle mile traveled in the U.S. that year, motorcyclists were far more likely to be involved in a fatal collision or to be seriously injured in a crash than were other occupants of passenger cars. In many cases, drivers simply fail to see motorcyclists who have the right of way. In two-thirds of collisions, the fault lies with other motorists who are turning left onto a roadway, crossing…

When people in Georgia are involved in motor vehicle collisions, especially those that occur at high speed, they are in danger of suffering shoulder fractures as one of their possible injuries. Shoulder fractures can occur in accidents as a result of a significant blow to the chest, leading to breaks to any of the three main bones that comprise the shoulder. Shoulder fractures may occur to the clavicle, the scapula, or the proximal humerus, which is the top portion of the humerus or upper-arm bone. The fractures can range in severity, and the resulting treatment needed will vary from surgery and metal plates to immobilization and physical therapy. It is generally hard to break the scapula, as it is fairly well-protected by the surrounding muscles and the chest wall. High-speed collisions can provide the force necessary to cause such a fracture, usually through also causing chest injuries. Scapular fractures may…

Safety on Georgia roads can be negatively impacted by the actions of just one drunk driver, and the problem of impaired driving continues to be a concern on a national level. Statistics indicate that individuals in the United States perish at a rate of one person every 51 minutes in car accidents that involve a drunk driver. Although a combination of increased education and stiffer penalties has been used nationwide in an effort to reduce DUI accidents, the problem with impaired individuals getting behind the wheel remains a significant one. A large percentage of drunk driving accidents are attributed to younger drivers. More than 80 percent of DUI fatalities in 2012 involved impaired drivers who were 44 years old or younger. Among this group, the greatest concentration of incidents involved those between the ages of 21 and 24, while the percentages declined for those between the ages of 35 and 44. However,…

Georgia motorcycle enthusiasts might be interested to learn about a coming technology that has the potential to greatly reduce the number of both small-vehicle as well as motorcycle crashes. The technology, which is currently undergoing the final administrative steps for its release, allows vehicles to communicate safety data with one another, alerting drivers to the presence of other vehicles or slowing traffic. While the vehicle-to-vehicle communication technology is currently under study for release as a technology for cars and light trucks, its potential to also reduce motorcycle crashes is promising. In a safety pilot study conducted by the Department of Transportation in 2012, nearly 3,000 cars and light trucks in Ann Arbor, Michigan, were fitted with the technology. The study demonstrated that the systems worked well across manufacturers. Many motorcycle accidents occur when a car fails to notice an oncoming motorcycle, turning left in front of it and causing a…

Every year, large truck accidents happen on highways in Georgia and throughout the U.S. These accidents often result in catastrophic injuries or deaths. An accident may happen if a driver of a passenger vehicle fails to take extra caution when driving near a large truck or if certain circumstances cause the truck driver to lose control of the vehicle. Repercussions of large truck-related wrecks may be more severe in nature than consequences of a wreck between two passenger cars due to the large, heavy structure of trucks. Even minor errors made on the roadway could cause major damage to an individual who collides with a commercial vehicle. A division of the U.S. Department of Transportation has indicated that large truck accidents may take place more frequently than people might realize. There were 333,000 traffic accidents that involved a commercial vehicle in 2012. That same year, large truck accidents resulted in…

Drivers in Georgia and the rest of the United States face the same roadway risks associated with distracted drivers. Mobile tablet or smartphone use by someone behind the wheel creates a serious distraction that has been linked to car accidents. Data reviewed by the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reveal facts about the hazards of driver distractions. From 2011 to 2012, the number of people injured in distracted driver accidents increased by 9 percent from 387,000 to 421,000. The year 2012 also saw 3,328 deaths in similar crashes. In 2011, distracted driving caused 17 percent of car accidents in which a person was injured. The CDC defines sources of distraction in three ways: visual, manual, or cognitive. Texting and driving are especially dangerous because the activity causes all three types of distraction. Texting makes the driver take his or her eyes off the road, remove one or both…

Whiplash occurs when the neck is thrust one way and then jerked violently or suddenly the other way. Although whiplash can occur in sports, at work or from falling, road users in Georgia might not realize that traffic collisions are the primary cause. In a whiplash, the head rises up from the spine, creating a sprain or strain at the bottom of the skull. A sprain occurs when the ligaments in the neck become torn, while a strain occurs when the tendons and muscles of the neck are overstretched. The facet joints and capsules in the neck appear to be the most susceptible. Although rare, whiplash could dislocate or fracture vertebrae. Stiffness and pain at the bottom of the skull, in the back of the neck or at the front of the neck are the most commonly experienced symptoms. However, the stiffness and pain might extend through the shoulders, arms,…

Three people were injured in a collision in Mitchell County on December 25. The driver of one of the vehicles involved in the crash was charged with driving under the influence in relation to the incident. According to the Georgia State Patrol, the car accident occurred at about 12 p.m. at the intersection of GA 112 and GA 262 near the Grady-Mitchell County line. A vehicle driven by a 40-year-old woman, traveling south on GA 112, stopped to yield to oncoming traffic while attempting to make a left turn onto 262. Another vehicle, driven by a 27-year-old man traveling north on GA 112, crossed the center line and collided head-on with the woman's vehicle. The female driver and her 81-year-old female passenger were transported to a local Thomasville hospital for treatment of serious injuries. The male driver suffered only minor injuries. He was transported to a hospital in Camilla for treatment. Besides…