Maryland Trucking Accident Lawyer Blog

Truck Driver Sentenced to 8 Months Jail Time For Vehicular Manslaughter

October 25, 2013 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Last week a truck driver was sentenced for his role in a tragic traffic accident that killed a 46 year old man during his commute to work. The accident happened in January 2012 as the victim was en route to his job at the Maryland-National Capital Park And Planning Commission, traveling southbound on Route Md 75. The defendant was traveling northbound in his 26,580-pound tractor-trailer at the same time. According to trial testimony, at times the driver reached speeds of up to 67 mph in the 40 mph zone of the road.

A state trooper testified that the accident occurred when the truck driver headed up a hill, and attempted to negotiate a sharp right curve in the road, the trailer portion of the truck, which happened to be empty, swung into the southbound lane, where it struck and crushed the victim’s passenger truck.

Earlier this month, a jury found the driver guilty of criminally negligent vehicular manslaughter, speeding, and failure to remain right of the center line. The driver’s sentence of eight months in prison, with an additional suspended sentence of two years and four months, was the first of this kind reached in Frederick County, following the statute’s 2011 enactment. Following his release, the driver must also complete a three-year term of supervised probation or risk being incarcerated for the suspended sentence.

Port of Oakland Trucker Strike Highlights Factors that can Influence Drivers

October 15, 2013 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

In major trucking news, a group of independent truck drivers shut down a major terminal at the Port of Oakland, and blocked access to several more this week in protest of notorious congestion and other issues, which have left drivers essentially trapped in their big rigs for up to six hours, reportedly unable to even go to the bathroom, while waiting to pick up their next load. Drivers caught outside their vehicles face fines, and are not reimbursed for potentially unreasonable wait times.

Drivers at the port are forbidden from leaving their rigs once they are in line at the terminals, reportedly due to safety concerns. The group of more than 100 truckers shut down five areas, which have suffered some of the longest wait times since they were recently consolidated into a single terminal operated by industry giant SSA Marine.

The issue of long wait times is reportedly a recurring issue at this port, which led to drivers blocking the terminals for the same reasons back in 2004. The long waits at the SSA terminal are reportedly due to a change in the numbering system, which began in July, making it harder for the longshoremen to locate containers. One customer of the relevant terminal reported that he no longer used the port due to the long wait times. In one case, a shipment took almost a month to make it from the port to his San Francisco warehouse. (San Francisco is located just across the Bay Bridge from Oakland.)

Truck en route to Maryland Farm involved in Bridge Collision

October 8, 2013 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

According to officials, late last month, a tractor-trailer carrying a load of corn oil to a farm in Maryland crashed into a bridge over the Conestoga River in Pennsylvania, resulting in a small spill of motor oil into the waterway.

The accident happened mid morning on Route 741. While facts surrounding the collision itself are sparse, it has been reported that the truck driver somehow crashed into the bridge in a single vehicle collision. The driver had to be removed from the truck by emergency crews, who additionally began providing treatment, as the driver drifted in and out of consciousness. The extent of the driver’s injuries were not reported.

The impact from the collision caused the truck’s engine block to leak approximately eight gallons of motor oil onto the roadway, which firefighters, and later a hazmat crew worked to clean up. Surprisingly, the truck’s tank, which was carrying corn oil for a Maryland Farm, was intact following the accident.

Fiery Tractor Trailer Collision in College Park

October 1, 2013 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

A seven mile traffic slowdown was the result of a huge tractor-trailer fire that happened following a collision near the exit to Route 1 by the I-95 merge with the inner loop late last month.

Police reported that the collision was caused as a result of another car somehow entering the tractor-trailer’s path, causing the truck to crash into an unattended car. The tractor-trailer then caught fire almost immediately, as did the disabled car.

Firefighters reportedly struggled for three hours to completely extinguish the flames. The fire completely decimated the tractor-trailer, with its cargo, cardboard, and wooden palettes, apparently having served as fuel for the fire. The unattended vehicle also suffered substantial damage as a result of the fire. Miraculously, the driver of the truck was not injured, and there were no other reported injuries.

Hit & Run Trucking Accident Derails Bicyclists Cross Country Fundraising Trip

September 27, 2013 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

A Maryland man who was in the midst of a more than 10,000-mile cross-country bike trip designed to raise money for hearing loss was halted abruptly when the bicyclist was clipped by a semi-trailer in a hit and run accident.

According to a Sheriff’s spokesperson, the bicyclist was riding in Florida when he was clipped by the mirror of a semi-trailer on Saturday evening. He then fell from his bike onto the shoulder of the roadway. He was transported to a local hospital for treatment, where doctors found that he had sustained a concussion, fractured left cheek bone, a broken nose, road rash, and bruising from his fall.

The deaf man, who was inspired to help others after receiving his cochlear implant, initially set out on a bike trip to visit all of the Major League Baseball stadiums across the country in order to raise money and awareness for cochlear implants. He had only 200 miles remaining in the trip that has so far raised more than $140,000. The Polk County Sheriff’s Office is conducting an investigation into the incident.

Tractor Trailer Hit and Run on Interstate 81

September 20, 2013 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

According to reports from state police, the driver of a tractor trailer who was involved in a fatal crash in East Hanover Township earlier this month on Interstate 81 reportedly fled the scene after he realized that he had run over a motorcyclist.

A 46 year old motorcyclist was operating a Kawasaki Vulcan motorcycle in the right lane of I-81 traveling north. For some reason, he then lost control of his motorcycle and veered off the roadway. According to police, the motorcycle then fell over on its side and slid back into the right lane of the highway. It was then that the tractor trailer ran over the motorcyclist. According to reports, the driver did stop briefly, but then quickly fled the scene after realizing what had happened.

The motorcycle rider, who was wearing a helmet at the time of the collision, was pronounced dead at the scene by the Lebanon County Coroner’s office.

8 Vehicle Accident in Anne Arundel Results in at Least 3 Deaths

September 13, 2013 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Late last month, Anne Arundel County Police responded to a multiple vehicle crash at MD Route 3 South near the MD Route 32 overpass. The crash involved seven passenger vehicles and one commercial vehicle. It resulted in the deaths of three people, with an additional six people being to area hospitals for treatment of injuries. Two of the six injured subjects suffered possibly life-threatening injuries.

An investigation by the Anne Arundel County Police Traffic Safety Section revealed that all of vehicles involved in the crash were traveling southbound on Route 3. As the vehicles neared the MD Route 32 overpass, traffic began to slow down due local traffic conditions. The commercial truck failed to reduce its speed properly, and struck a Toyota Camry from the rear. The initial collision caused a chain reaction with the other vehicles.

The driver of the Camry was transported with with critical injuries to Shock Trauma. The Camry’s front seat passenger a 15 year old boy, was also transported to Shock Trauma in stable condition. An adult female, and 7 and 14 year old girls, all of whom were sitting in the back seat, were killed in the collision.

Driver Pleads Guilty in Tragic Truck Accident Collision Deaths

September 6, 2013 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

An Illinois trucker recently pleaded guilty to charges stemming from the accident he was involved in which left a pregnant mother, her husband, and their two children dead.

The tractor-trailer driver slammed into the back of stopped traffic on a major highway in Nebraska, instantly killing a Maryland family who was in the process of moving to California.

According to paperwork filed by the relevant County Attorney’s office, the driver agreed to a deal with prosecutors, whereby he will plead guilty to four counts of motor vehicle homicide and one count of motor vehicle homicide of an unborn fetus in exchange for prosecutors recommending an aggregate sentence of no more than 20 years.

The accident occurred when the driver failed to slow down in an area where crews were tending to an earlier fatal accident, and traffic was completely stopped. His truck plowed into the back of a Ford Mustang, which was driven by the father of the young children. The Mustang then forced the Corolla in front of him, driven by his wife, forward and then underneath the trailer of a truck that was stopped in front of her car. Both cars then burst into flames. The mother was approximately 30 weeks pregnant, and died with her husband and their two and three-year-old sons.

Tractor Trailer Collision and Fire on I-95

August 28, 2013 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Drivers traveling on Interstate 95 near the Baltimore Beltway last week may have encountered serious traffic delays in the area just south of Interstate 695, when lanes were closed due to a tractor-trailer crashing and erupting into flames.

Maryland State Police say the blaze started around three in the morning last Tuesday, after a tractor-trailer hit a disabled tow truck, which was being towed away by a second tow truck. Luckily, the driver of the tractor-trailer driver was able to get out of his vehicle before it became engulfed in flames, and no injuries were reported.

A cleanup crew from the Maryland Department of Environment Hazardous Materials responded to the scene in order to clean up some gas that had spilled on the highway. An investigation into the collision is ongoing.

National Report Released Regarding Chesapeake Bay Bridge Accident

August 21, 2013 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) released a report earlier this month regarding its findings in the investigation of the July 19 collision in which a tractor-trailer pushed another vehicle over the railing of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge. The most surprising conclusion of the report was that the driver of the tractor-trailer was on his first solo drive within the United States.

At the time of the collision, the tractor-trailer collided with a young woman’s car, sending it into another vehicle, and then over a railing. The woman’s car fell about 27 feet into 6 to 8 feet of water. The woman somehow managed to escape vehicle and swim to shore. According to reports, she was subsequently hospitalized for non-life-threatening injuries.

The report further indicated that the driver of the tractor-trailer was licensed in Canada and was a recent immigrant from Hungary to Canada. The driver emigrated as part of Canada’s Temporary Foreign worker pilot program, and was on his first drive in the United States without being paired with a more experienced driver. The report indicated that the driver had already made a delivery in Virginia and was on his way to pick up a load in Maryland when the accident occurred.