Maryland Trucking Accident Lawyer Blog

Could Wal-Mart Be at Fault for the Crash that Injured Tracy Morgan and Killed Another Comedian?

July 22, 2014 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Earlier this year, actor and comedian Tracy Morgan was involved in a serious car accident on the New Jersey Turnpike. The accident, which occurred late at night, critically injured Morgan and killed his good friend and fellow comedian, James McNair.

The driver of the semi truck that hit Morgan’s limousine was an employee of Wal-Mart and was driving a Wal-Mart truck at the time of the accident. A post-accident investigation uncovered that the driver had not slept for the 24 hours prior to the accident and had traveled more than 700 miles over the course of that day. The driver is facing criminal charges for his involvement in the accident.

Recently, some people are wondering if Wal-Mart should share the blame with the driver. In fact, victims of the crash have named both the driver of the truck, as well as Wal-Mart, as defendants that they claim are responsible for their injuries and losses. As one recent article points out, the National Transportation Safety Bureau is conducting an investigation into the accident, but has not announced the result yet. Until then, people are speculating on how Wal-Mart could have prevented such a tragic accident.

Maryland Man Dies After Rear-Ending Broken Down Truck

July 15, 2014 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Earlier this week in an accident in Howard County, a Cooksville man was killed when he rear-ended a broken-down box truck that had been partially pulled off the road. According to a report by the Baltimore Sun, the accident occurred around 9 in the morning on I-70, near the Route 32 intersection.

Evidently, the victim was traveling eastbound in the left lane of I-70 when he struck the broken-down box truck from behind. Police told reporters that the truck had only partially been pulled off the side of the road, and that part of the truck was protruding into the leftmost lane of traffic.

The driver of the car was pronounced dead by Howard County Department of Fire and Rescue as soon as they arrived on the scene. The driver of the box truck was not injured. Police have not yet issued a citation to the box-truck driver and are in the middle of an investigation into the cause of the accident.

Frederick Dump Truck Accident Sends Five to the Hospital

July 8, 2014 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Earlier this week, a Thurmont family was sent to the hospital after being involved in a serious accident with a dump truck. According to a report by Your4State.com, the accident occurred on Route 15, near the intersection with Route 26 in Frederick County, Maryland. Evidently, around 2 a.m., the family was traveling down Route 15 when they slammed into the rear end of a dump truck that had stopped in the middle of the road. The dump truck had stopped at a construction site.

All four members of the family were taken to the hospital, three by helicopter and one by ambulance. The driver of the dump truck was also taken to the hospital, but only with minor injuries.

Police are still investigating the cause of the accident, and have not yet determined who was at fault for this serious dump truck accident. However, it is known that the part of Route 15 where the accident happened is experiencing some road closures. What is unclear, however, is whether a closed road was unmarked.

Truck Driver Side Swipes Police Cruiser on Capital Beltway

June 27, 2014 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Last week, in a frightening accident that occurred on the Capital Beltway just outside Washington DC, a semi-truck driver side-swiped a police cruiser as the officer was writing another motorist a ticket. According to a report by WUSA 9, the accident occurred in the early morning hours on the outer loop, near Colesville Road.

Evidently, the semi-truck came up upon the police cruiser and the other vehicle, crashed into them, and then continued to travel down the highway for another 100 or so yards before it jack-knifed across several lanes. The massive force involved in the accident ruptured one of the truck’s fuel tanks, sending diesel fuel all over the highway, causing additional concern.

Both the police officer and the motorist he had pulled over were taken to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries and are expected to recover fully from their injuries. The Outer Loop was closed for about 5 hours as police and emergency crews clean up the scene and conducted the accident reconstruction.

Lack of Sleep Cited as Potential Cause of Accident that Critically Injured Comedian Tracy Morgan and Killed Another Comedian

June 20, 2014 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

If you have been paying attention to the news media in the past few weeks, you have certainly heard about a fatal truck accident in New Jersey that claimed the life of one comedian and sent several others to the hospital. Comedian Tracy Morgan was with several of his friends heading north on the New Jersey Turnpike late at night when the limo they were riding in slowed down due to slowing traffic ahead.

As the limo began to slow, the truck that was behind the limo failed to do the same. Eventually, the truck slammed into the rear end of the limo. The crash killed one man and sent four others to the hospital. Four other cars were also involved, but none of their occupants was seriously injured.

According to a recent report by the LOHUD, the truck driver may have been on the road without sleep for the past 24 hours. The driver of the truck has been charged with several criminal offenses for his role in the tragic accident, including assault by automobile and vehicular homicide. Just last week, the driver of the truck—a Wal-mart employee—entered a not guilty plea to all charges. He has posted $50,000 bond and is currently out of custody.

Truck Driver Killed When Trailer Detaches from Truck

June 13, 2014 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Earlier this month in Arbutus, Maryland, a truck driver was killed when the trailer he was towing inexplicably detached from the truck and sent the truck careening over a bridge embankment. According to a report by WBALTV 11, the truck driver was heading south on Interstate 95 near the Patapsco River bridge around 11:30 in the morning when the trailer he was towing became detached from the truck.

The truck driver lost control of the truck and crashed into the side of the bridge embankment, going right over it. The truck fell to the ground and landed in a park below before it caught fire. The truck driver was pronounced dead at the scene of the accident. He was the only person in the truck, and no other people were injured in the accident.

Police are not sure what caused the trailer to separate from the truck, and they are investigating the accident in hopes of finding out more information. Investigators are unsure how fast the truck was traveling when the trailer separated from the truck.

Trucker Gets into DUI Accident on 301, Another Trucker Gets Hit on the Detour

June 6, 2014 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

The early morning hours of May 28 was not a good time to be traveling southbound on 301. According to a report by the Star Democrat, a truck driver was involved in an accident at around four in the morning that blocked all three southbound lanes near Millington.

Evidently, the truck driver got into an accident that resulted in the truck overturning in the middle of the highway. Responding officers cited the driver for driving under the influence. Due to the blockage of all three lanes of southbound traffic, traffic authorities had to come up with a detour. They chose to reroute drivers down Route 544.

A few minutes later, a truck driver stopped to ask police for directions because he was unfamiliar with the area. Police directed the driver to head west onto Route 544. However, as he did so, he was struck by another semi-truck. This accident blocked the intersection of Route 544 and 301, so a second detour than had to be arranged.

Tractor-Trailer Crashes in Delaware, Spilling Millions of Bees onto the Highway

May 25, 2014 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

In one of the odder accident stories we have seen in a while, a tractor-trailer carrying millions of bees crashed on a Delaware highway last week. According to a report by a local ABC affiliate, the truck driver was heading north from Florida when he lost control of the truck while negotiating the ramp from Route 896 to I-95.

Apparently, as the truck driver took the turn onto the on-ramp, the boxes housing the bees shifted, causing the truck to overturn and slam into the guardrail. As the truck toppled over, the crates containing the honey bees fell off the flat-bed truck and onto the ground, bursting open and spilling the bees into the air.

It is estimated that 16-20 million European honey bees escaped after the accident. The driver of the truck and one of his passengers were each stung between 50 and 100 times. They were taken to the hospital for treatment of their injuries. The driver was also cited for carrying dangerous cargo without the proper permits.

Semi-Truck Accident in Florida Leaves Critically Injured

May 18, 2014 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Earlier this week in Deland, Florida, a semi-truck rear-ended a car that was coming to a stop in front of the truck, pushing the car into traffic and ultimately severely injuring the driver. According to a report by a local news affiliate, the accident also involved a school bus. Three vehicles in all were involved.

Evidently, the driver of a Toyota pick-up truck was driving southbound and was slowing down for a school bus that was traveling westbound and was dropping children off. A semi-truck driver approached from the rear end of the Toyota. Apparently, he did not come to a complete stop before he ran into the back of the Toyota. The truck was then pushed across several lanes of traffic into the path of the school bus. The right side of the Toyota collided with the front of the bus.

Of the 14 students who were aboard the bus, two were treated for minor injuries. The driver of the Toyota truck was taken to the hospital with serious injuries but is expected to recover. The Florida Highway Patrol commented that it may charge the driver of the semi-truck with a moving violation for his role in the serious truck accident.

Maryland Residents Forced to Evacuate After Propane Tanker Accident

May 9, 2014 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Earlier last month in Garret County, a propane tanker was involved in an accident that resulted in it toppling over on the side of the road. In an abundance of caution, officials in the city of Oakland decided to reroute school bus service and evacuate a part of the town. According to a report by a local ABC affiliate, that accident occurred in the small town of Oakland, which is about 60 miles south of Somerset. Evidently, the accident occurred shortly after 10 a.m.

The local hazmat team was called in to investigate and clean up the accident. Luckily, there were no lives lost, and injuries were kept to a minimum. In addition to rerouting school bus routes, the county jail and 911 center were also evacuated. It is not clear at the moment how the accident occurred, and who was at fault for it. However, an investigation is underway. Currently, police do not believe that drugs or alcohol were involved in the tanker accident.

Truck and Tanker Spills

On occasion, trucks and tankers carry dangerous chemicals, gases, or other cargo. When these trucks and tankers get into an accident, there is an additional danger, namely that the hazardous cargo will cause harm above and beyond the physical harm caused by the accident.