Auto Accident
by admin@gotechark.com | November 14th, 2011
November 14, 2011
A crash along Interstate 85 near Petersburg, Virginia, involving a tractor-trailer, a pickup truck, and a passenger bus has claimed the lives of three people. According to reports from News Channel 12, the accident occurred at about 11:30 AM.
Virginia State Police investigators say the crashes happened in a chain reaction after the pickup truck plowed into the rear of the tractor-trailer. The collision caused logs the tractor-trailer was hauling to spill down on top of the pickup–crushing the four individuals inside. Moments later, a bus carrying 49 students from North Carolina A&T State University smashed into the rear of the pickup.
Three of the four passengers in the pickup truck died, while one survived and was airlifted to a local hospital. The driver of the bus also sustained injuries that were treated at the hospital. Luckily, the students and the truck driver walked away from the crash unscathed. Officials with the state police say that they will continue to investigate the cause of the crash.
The Virginia Auto Accident Lawyers with Lowell “The Hammer” Stanley encourage drivers to to prevent accidents like this by simply following the two-second rule: Watch the car in front of you pass a landmark near the road, such as a sign. After they pass, it should take your vehicle two seconds or longer to reach the same landmark.
by admin@gotechark.com | November 7th, 2011
November 7, 2011
A 55-year-old Hampton, Virginia, woman is dead as the result of a three car accident that occurred Friday afternoon. According to Channel 13 News, the accident happened at 2:15 in the afternoon on West Pembroke Avenue.
Spokesman for the Hampton Police Department, Cpl. Jason Price, stated that the woman was a passenger in a teal, 2000 Dodge Caravan that was traveling east when it collided head-on with a black, westbound 1999 Chevrolet S-10 pickup truck. The impact caused the vehicles to spin and hit a Ford Taurus that was on the road as well. Investigators stated that two women and a man who was riding in the S-10 were all transported to local hospitals to be treated for injuries. The 55-year-old passenger of the van died upon arriving at the hospital, just after 3:30 PM. The other two were treated and for non-life threatening injuries and were released.
Investigators are still working to determine the cause of the crash.
Statistics from the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration (NHTSA) show that in 2005, head-on crashes only made up two percent of all crashes, yet accounted for 10.1 percent of US fatal crashes.
The Virginia Auto Accident Attorneys with Lowell “ The Hammer” Stanley and his team often handle cases for victims who were hurt in car accidents at no fault of their own. Contact Lowell Stanley today by filling out a free online consultation form to answer have any questions regarding your case answered.
by admin@gotechark.com | October 26th, 2011
October 26, 2011
The trial began this week for a Norfolk, Virginia, man who got drunk and crashed his friend’s car in August 2010, killing three passengers.
The Virginian-Pilot reports that the 32-year-old man went to trial on Monday on three counts of aggravated involuntary manslaughter, for the deaths of an 18-year-old, 19-year-old, and 29-year-old. The crash, which occurred in the 1800 block of East Indian Road on August 11, 2010, also injured three people when the car ripped through a guardrail and into a group of trees.
Prosecutor Patricia O’Boyle told jurors on Monday that the driver reached speeds of up to 110 miles per hour as passengers yelled for him to slow down. His blood alcohol content level was later shown to be three times the legal limit.
In connection with the crash, the man also faces charges of driving while intoxicated, driving with a revoked license, purchasing alcohol for a minor, and possession of cocaine with intent to distribute. These charges will be addressed in separate trials.
The driver’s defense attorney told jurors that a front-seat passenger jerked his wheel, causing the accident. O’Boyle said the car was so badly wrecked that rescue crews “could hardly tell it was a car.”
Read more.
If you or someone you know has been the victim of a Virginia auto accident, the injury lawyers at Lowell Stanley can help.
by admin@gotechark.com | October 20th, 2011
October 19, 2011
A 24-year-old Navy sailor from Danville, Virginia, was killed on Tuesday in a motorcycle accident on Norfolk’s Terminal Boulevard, which roughly defines the southern edge of the Naval Station Norfolk complex.
According to The Navy Times, the man was traveling eastbound on Terminal Boulevard on his 2007 Suzuki GSXR 600 motorcycle when he lost control, hit a curb and was thrown into a guardrail around 1:50 p.m.
Officer Chris Amos told The Navy Times that the victim was “weaving in and out of traffic at a high speed.”
The motorcycle continued to slide eastbound along the road.
Amos also told The Virginian-Pilot that no other vehicles were involved in the crash.
The victim was transported to Norfolk General Hospital where he was pronounced dead.
The details of this crash remain under investigation.
The victim was serving in the Navy and was assigned to the carrier Harry S. Truman, to which he’d reported in September 2007, according to Navy Personnel Command.
The Navy reports that this was the third off-duty motorcycle mishap fatality in fiscal year 2012, which began on October 1. In fiscal year 2011, 12 sailors died in similar accidents involving lightweight, high-speed sport bikes.
Read more.
If you or someone you know has been the victim of a Virginia auto accident, the injury lawyers at Lowell Stanley can help.
by admin@gotechark.com | October 4th, 2011
October 4, 2011
A 23-year-old Virginia Beach, Virginia, driver who’s awaiting trial for the 2008 drunken driving death of his friend will remain free on bond despite acquiring a more recent charge of obstructing justice and using profane language over a public airway.
The Virginian-Pilot reports that the determination was made by Circuit Court judge Frederick B. Lowe despite prosecutors’ request that the offender’s bond be revoked in light of his new charges.
The man is accused of leaving a threatening phone message for a witness who’s subpoenaed to testify in his retrial. A prosecutor has said that the witness feels the man intended harm, but the man’s attorney argued that he made a mistake by leaving the message but never meant to hurt anyone. The judge ruled that he didn’t have sufficient evidence to revoke bond but said he’ll rehear the matter if prosecutors can cough up more evidence.
The man is currently charged with involuntary manslaughter and drunken driving in connection with the December 28, 2008, death of his 20-year-old male friend, a former high school volleyball star. He has since been out on bond for 33 months.
A May 2011 trial regarding the matter went awry after Lowe declared it a mistrial when jurors couldn’t agree on a sentence. The man’s new trial is scheduled for November 1.
Read more.
Do you think that this Virginia drunk driver should have had his bond revoked?
If you or someone you know has been the victim of a Virginia auto accident, the injury lawyers at Lowell Stanley can help.
by admin@gotechark.com | September 22nd, 2011
September 22, 2011
A Virginia man who was legally drunk when he blew through a stop sign and caused a fatal Easter Sunday collision was sentenced this week to seven to 21 years in prison.
The sentencing, in an Oneida County courtroom, was an emotional one, according to the Utica Observer-Dispatch.
“[My father] survived a horrible war in Bosnia, was wounded, spent days in a concentration camp,” said the victim’s daughter. “Finally, when he could enjoy his life again and enjoy his grandkids, his life was cut short by a total stranger who made the worst possible choice: to get in a car and drive after he had been drinking.”
The woman spoke to the 46-year-old man who caused the fatal crash in Utica, New York, on April 24 at the intersection of South Street and Webster Avenue. The crash also seriously injured the victim’s 47-year-old wife, whose condition prevented her from coming to court.
“I can’t imagine her suffering,” said a district attorney. “How she goes on every day, I don’t know … [She] will never have her [husband] back.”
The man earlier plead guilty to aggravated vehicular homicide, aggravated vehicular assault, and aggravated driving while intoxicated. Injured himself in the crash, the driver has taken issue with having had his blood drawn by authorities while unconscious.
Read more.
What do you think can be done to deter Virginia drunk drivers?
If you or someone you know has been the victim of a Virginia auto accident, the injury lawyers at Lowell Stanley can help.
by admin@gotechark.com | September 14th, 2011
September 13, 2011
A retired Henrico County police officer was sentenced to three years in prison after being convicted of maiming and driving under the influence stemming from a crash on Interstate 25 14 months ago.
The drunken-driving crash on July 1, 2010, left a 42-year-old male victim with 13 broken ribs, collapsed lungs, an unrecognizable face, and multiple fractures that protruded through his skin. His injuries have required multiple surgeries, and doctors believe that the man will suffer permanent problems as a result of the crash.
The horrific accident occurred in a highway safety zone at midnight that July night. The man’s blood alcohol level may have been as high as three times the legal limit, reports The Richmond Times-Dispatch. His lawyer had contended that a temporary merge lane wasn’t up to standards and was too short, but the victim’s lawyer countered that “that had nothing to do with what happened.”
The 57-year-old convicted officer, who faced for the first time the man whose life he almost took, was taken from the courtroom in handcuffs after he read the victim a long letter expressing regret and sympathy.
The former office now faces a $20.35 million injury lawsuit.
Read more.
Do you think the sentencing was fair in this Virginia auto accident?
If you or someone you know has been the victim of a Virginia auto accident, the injury lawyers at Lowell Stanley can help.
by admin@gotechark.com | September 5th, 2011
September 5, 2011
A 59-year-old Charlottesville, Virginia man was sentenced to three years in prison stemming from an October 4 drunken-driving accident that killed a local winemaker.
In April the man plead guilty to involuntary manslaughter and DUI after causing a wreck that killed a 31-year-old Crozet man who worked at White Hall Vineyards and Sugarleaf Vineyards.
Judge John E. Kloch doled out more than the recommended six-month jail sentence, The Richmond Times-Dispatch reports, because he was dubious that it was the first time that the accused had driven drunk.
“This is a tough case, because no matter what the court does, [the victim] is never coming back,” said Kloch in a courtroom on Tuesday. “He’s gone. It’s especially traumatic for this family in the way that [the victim] died because they never got to say goodbye.”
The Virginia drunk driver—whose blood alcohol content was .111 percent after the crash—was sentenced to 11 years in prison, of which eight were suspended. He was also sentenced to supervised probation and will be required to attend Alcoholics Anonymous meetings and not allowed to drive for a year after his release.
Read more.
Do you think the sentencing was fair in this Virginia auto accident?
If you or someone you know has been the victim of a Virginia auto accident, the injury lawyers at Lowell Stanley can help.
by admin@gotechark.com | September 1st, 2011
September 1, 2011
A 17-year-old Chesterfield, Virginia, boy who drank as many as seven shots of tequila and then drove the wrong way down a highway, killing two people, has been convicted of aggravated involuntary manslaughter and now faces up to 41 years in prison.
The Richmond Times-Dispatch reports that the fatal collision occurred in March 2011 when the high school junior, who had a learner’s permit but not a license, got on the road around 2:30 a.m. and drove the wrong way through a Powhite Parkway Extension toll plaza at Courthouse Road. He then accelerated and began traveling north in the southbound lanes at up to 90 miles per hour.
The boy traveled the wrong way for a mile, during which time he almost collided with two cars being operated by police officers, before slamming into a BMW and killing both a 32-year-old male and 29-year-old male. One man died instantly, while the other died before paramedics arrived on the scene.
“I think the most aggravating factor was that he didn’t even realize he was involved in a (fatal) accident,” said Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney B.J. McGee. “He thought it was a single-car accident … and didn’t realize that he had hit, and unfortunately killed, two other individuals.”
In addition to the manslaughter charge, the teen was charged with drunk driving and will be sentenced on December 5. He will serve a minimum of a year in jail on each manslaughter count, but could be imprisoned for as long as four decades.
Read more.
What do you think can be done to deter drunk driving in Virginia?
If you or someone you know has been the victim of a Virginia auto accident, the injury lawyers at Lowell Stanley can help.
by admin@gotechark.com | August 23rd, 2011
August 23, 2011
Speed and alcohol contributed to a two-vehicle crash that badly injured six people early on the morning of Tuesday, August 23, on I-64 in Norfolk, Virginia.
WVEC reports that the crash occurred around 2:10 a.m. when a speeding 2005 Volkswagen GYTI veered into the left lane and rear-ended a VDOT contractor’s truck.
Virginia State Police Spokeswoman Michelle Anaya says the truck’s driver and two other VDOT employees had been dispatched to clean drains and do other maintenance. They had completed that work and were picking up cones from the work zone, preparing to reopen a closed lane.
The three people in the Volkswagen were hurt in the crash, along with the three VDOT employees, who were thrown from the truck.
The crash closed the westbound lanes of Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel for five hours, reopening around 7:30 a.m.
Anaya has confirmed that both speed and alcohol played a role in the crash, for which charges are pending.
Read more.
What do you think can be done to deter drunk driving in Norfolk?
If you or someone you know has been the victim of a Virginia auto accident, the injury lawyers at Lowell Stanley can help.
