Stories consistently make the news headlines about people who have lost their lives too soon due to some type of accident. Often, those accidents are caused by drunk driving. A Georgia man who had completed medical school and was looking forward to a career in physical therapy died at the age of 26. The tragedy has been blamed on drunk driving. The University of Georgia graduate was on his way home from a training class when another driver, who police say had been drinking, crashed into him. The victim's car was so badly damaged that the door had to be cut at the hinges so emergency responders could remove him. He was rushed to an area hospital, but he died two days later. Police at the scene reported the other driver was unsteady on his feet, and his speech was slurred. Despite police finding cans of unopened beer in his pickup…

The negligence of one person can have a ripple effect, resulting in adverse consequences for a number of people. One person not paying attention to what he or she is doing while driving can lead to permanent injury, death, and even lawsuits. A Georgia woman has filed a wrongful death lawsuit after her son was seriously injured in a car accident. Just over two years ago, the woman was turning off a highway into a private driveway when a school bus slammed into the rear of the car behind her, pushing that car into the rear of her vehicle. A report did not detail all of the injuries to the woman's son, only that there were several, including traumatic injury to his brain. There was also no mention of the child's present mental and physical condition. The attorney the woman retained has requested a jury trial to determine damages for all…

School buses are an invaluable mode of transportation for parents who, for any reason, are not able to ferry their children to and from school each day. One group of Georgia parents have filed a lawsuit after seven children were injured in a crash allegedly caused by reckless driving. The bus' video recording system showed the driver possibly displayed reckless driving tendencies in a timeline of events just before the crash. According to the video timeline, the bus driver hit a mailbox, swerved into the oncoming traffic lane, and increased his speed, all while driving with one hand, holding a cup between his legs, and not wearing his seat belt -- all in the span of 11 minutes. The video cuts off before the actual crash but does show that, because the driver was not wearing his seat belt, he slid off the seat and was not able to control the…

It may not seem too bad compared to a serious auto collision, but a minor crash is stressful. After a fender-bender, you need to spend several days dealing with the other driver, your insurance company, and repair shops. The last thing you and other Georgia residents may be thinking of after a minor crash is getting checked out by a doctor. However, the week following an accident is the exact time frame you should be paying attention to how your body feels. You might have walked away from the fender-bender without a scratch, but you could be feeling sore as early as the next day. Whiplash is a common injury suffered by countless people after minor collisions, especially rear-end crashes. This type of injury occurs when your head has been thrown back and forth by the impact. Often, you will not feel the effects of whiplash immediately, but you will begin to…

The act of teenagers borrowing the family car can be considered a rite of passage in many American families. Most of the time this happens, the result is harmless. But on occasion, something can go terribly wrong and an accident ensues that harms others. In such instances, the question can come up whether those who actually owned the car were negligent in allowing another person to drive it. This question comes under the legal theory known as "negligent entrustment." In Georgia, courts have defined negligent entrustment of a motor vehicle to be when an automobile owner lends his or her car to another person (it does not have to be a family member) to someone whom he or she knows (that is, has actual knowledge) is incompetent to drive or is otherwise habitually reckless. The negligence on the part of the vehicle owner in lending it to someone who should…

It can be difficult, at times, to determine the cause of a car collision until after the completion of an accident investigation. Although it might appear as though a driver acted responsibly by obeying the traffic laws, a thorough investigation by the police or by an attorney acting on behalf of a victim suffering a serious injury might disclose evidence to prove the person was a negligent driver. A recent auto accident in which three vehicles were involved appears to have been caused by a driver who obeyed a stop sign. Unfortunately, the individual failed to yield to other traffic in the intersection as he drove away from the stop sign. The result was a three-car accident that sent three people requiring medical treatment to the hospital. According to police, one of the drivers pulled away from a stop sign without maintaining a proper lookout for other vehicles in the…

Two Georgia brothers, both members of their high school marching band, were killed in an accident that involved two vehicles. Their vehicle, a small sedan, was traveling north on a local roadway when the driver turned west and collided with a rental truck. The small sedan was struck on the driver's side. Authorities say that the weather might have played a factor in this accident. The driver of the truck, a 44-year-old man, was taken to a local area hospital, as was the oldest brother and driver of the small sedan. That brother, who was 17 years old, died from his injuries the next morning. The younger brother, who was 15, died at the scene of the accident. The wreck occurred within a quarter of a mile from where the boys lived. Both boys were members of the marching band and both were percussionists. They were remembered by friends and…

If you are a parent, one of your nightmare scenarios is likely the possibility of being involved in a car accident while your children are in the car. You can drive as defensively as you can, but that does not mean that every other driver is being as careful as you, and a serious, injury-producing accident can happen that has little or nothing to do with how well you were driving at the time. Your second line of defense when it comes to protecting your children when they travel with you in an automobile is to understand and comply with Georgia's safety laws governing children in cars. Child safety laws depend heavily on the age of the child; the younger the child, the stricter the precautions must be. The threshold age is eight. If your child is not yet eight years old, you are required to have an approved safety seat…

You could lose your right to compensation by waiting too long after a car collision to sue the negligent driver who caused you to suffer serious injuries. Georgia law sets time limits within which you must file a lawsuit or risk having your claim dismissed when you do finally sue. This law is referred to as the statute of limitations. The purpose of the statute of limitations is to prevent car accident victims and others who may suffer a serious injury at the hands of a negligent party from delaying the filing of their claim. Delays could place the defendant at an unfair disadvantage by not being able to investigate the claim while the evidence is fresh. Witnesses may disappear or forget important information as time goes on. Evidence that might have existed following the event might be lost or destroyed with the passage of time. A Macon car accident victim normally…

Car accidents happen every single day in Macon and the rest of Georgia. A lot of them are simple fender benders or low-speed impact collisions. But even a seemingly minor car collision could result in a concussion or other form of brain injury. It’s important to know the symptoms of these types of injuries, as ignoring a concussion could lead to major issues later on. In general, there are four categories of symptoms to look out for. The first is issues with memory and thinking. Someone who has suffered a concussion may not be able to think clearly or concentrate. They may feel like they are thinking slower than usual and may be unable to retain short-term memories. The second category is also mental but involves the victim’s emotions. They may feel irritable or sad. They may also feel nervous, or just more emotional in general than they usually are. Next…