Fatal Accident in 35W Construction Zone Reminder to Use Caution
A tragic accident on 35W in Burnsville is a reminder that drivers need to use extra caution in construction zones.
Today, two electrical workers for Egan Co. were killed by a car that left the road and hit them as they were working alongside northbound Interstate 35W in Burnsville. According to news reports, the men were working on electrical lines buried along the freeway.
The driver of the car was Kirk Daemos, a 21-year-old from Ramore, Missouri, according to the Minnesota State Patrol. He was not injured. The worker who survived, critically injured, was taken to Hennepin County Medical Center.
According to the State Patrol, Daemos lost control and struck the workers partway down the embankment on 35W at McAndrews Road. The State Patrol has not stated whether alcohol played a role in the accident. At this point, the investigation of this fatal accident is only preliminary.
The families of these workers should interview attorneys as soon as possible to determine who to hire to represent them. A good accident attorney will immediately begin an independent investigation of the accident and do the following:
- Visit the scene of the accident
- Inspect the car to determine if there were any defective parts that contributed to the accident
- Determine if the driver had been drinking, and if so, if a bar, restaurant or liquor store had sold him alcohol before the accident
- Determine if safety measures could have been taken to prevent the accident
- Obtain copies of relevant documents, including the accident report, medical records, etc.
- Obtain insurance information.
One of our attorneys can meet you where it is convenient with no obligation. We want you to be comfortable with the attorney you hire, and that often means interviewing a few attorneys to determine who you trust. Contact our attorneys for a free consultation.
Source: http://www.twincities.com/ci_19109622
Minnesota Dram Shop Liability Laws Help Prevent DUI Fatal Accidents
This post was written by Eric Hageman, an accident attorney with the Pritzker law firm in Minneapolis, MN. He represents accident victims throughout Minnesota and has won several settlements and verdicts over $2,000,000. He is available for a free consultation.
In this week’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that alcohol-impaired driving accounts for nearly 11,000 fatalities per year, or about one third of all crash fatalities in the United States.
The CDC estimates that in 2010, there were approximately 112 million alcohol-impaired driving incidents and “binge drinking” played a big role in those incidents:
- 85% of alcohol-impaired driving episodes were reported by persons who also reported binge drinking; and
- The 4.5% of the adult population who reported binge drinking at least four times per month accounted for 55% of all alcohol-impaired driving episodes.
One strategy Minnesota has used to prevent driving under the influence (DUI) and the resulting fatal accidents is dram shop liability laws, which hold alcohol retailers (both on premises and off premises) legally responsible for harms caused by serving alcohol to visibly intoxicated patrons. The Minnesota dram shop law reads as follows:
A spouse, child, parent, guardian, employer, or other person injured in person, property, or means of support, or who incurs other pecuniary loss by an intoxicated person or by the intoxication of another person, has a right of action in the person’s own name for all damages sustained against a person who caused the intoxication of that person by illegally selling alcoholic beverages.
The dram shop laws are an important part of accident prevention, and we have used them to hold bars and other alcohol retailers accountable for their actions.
Minnesota has also initiated an ignition interlock device program to help prevent drinking and driving. An ignition interlock is, in essence, a breathalyzer installed on the dashboard. As of July 1, 2011, first-time alcohol offenders with an alcohol concentration of 0.16 or above and all second-time alcohol offenders have the option of regaining their driving privileges by participating in the program. Drivers whose licenses are canceled and whose privileges are denied as “inimical to public safety” are required to enroll in the ignition interlock device program for a period of three to six years in order to regain full driving privileges.
Our attorneys represent families in DUI wrongful death lawsuits throughout Minnesota: Twin Cities, Minneapolis, St. Paul, Rochester, Duluth, Moorhead, Mankato, Brainerd, Bloomington, Eagan, Eden Prarie, Apple Valley, Maple Grove, Edina, Plymouth, Minnetonka, Stillwater, Thief River Falls, Bemidji, Grand Rapids, Austin, Worthington, Woodbury, Maplewood, Golden Valley, Shoreview, Blaine, Anoka, South St. Paul, White Bear Lake, Roseville, St. Cloud, Arden Hills, Brooklyn Park, Forest Lake.
Head On Collision Wrongful Death
Rural highways, mostly two-lane highways, are dangerous. According to the Federal Highway Administration, rural roads have more that 50% of Minnesota’s fatalities with only 25% of the population.
If you have been injured in a head on collision or a loved one has been killed in an accident on one of Minnesota’s dangerous highways (Highway 8, U.S. 14), you need legal representation to obtain a measure of justice and maximize your compensation. Pritzker Olsen car accident personal injury and wrongful death lawyers have won tens of millions for accident victims and their families. Call today: 1-888-377-8900 (toll free).
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Head On Collision Wrongful Death Compensation
When someone dies in a Minnesota head on collision due to the negligence of another, the family can recover monetary damages for the head-on collision wrongful death under Minnesota no-fault law and Minnesota’s wrongful death statute, Minnesota Statutes, Section 573.02. Under the MN wrongful death statute, damages are limited to financial loss resulting from the death. Damages may include:
- Reasonable funeral expenses
- Medical expenses
- Loss of potential earnings
- Loss of advice, assistance, comfort, counsel, protection and society
In Minnesota, damages for pain and suffering and emotional stress are not available in a car accident wrongful death case. However, with an experienced attorney, this will not prevent just compensation for the spouse and next of kin.
Head-On Collisions on Rural Two-Lane Highways
Many variables may contribute to rural highway dangers and head on collisions. As rural population and traffic increases, there are usually very few safety improvements made to rural highways to accommodate the additional flow of traffic (e.g., traffic lights, left turn lanes, right turn lanes). Other factors that may contribute to rural highway dangers and head on collisions include:
- speeding
- alcohol use
- more teens and seniors on two-lane roads
- complacent drivers (Drivers may feel safer closer to home and drive inattentively or without a seat belt.)
- road rage (Impatient drivers may attempt to pass slow-moving traffic in an unsafe manner and cause a head on collision and death.)
- blind intersections
- growing congestion
Highway 14, between New Ulm and Rochester, may be the deadliest rural highway in Minnesota. Over the last 20 years, more than 125 people have died on Highway 14.¹ In 2008 the University of Minnesota launched a new interactive website where people can find and view the deadliest roads in Minnesota and the United States.
Highway 8, from Forest Lake to Taylors Falls is another death trap, especially in the Lindstrom area which has over-capacity traffic levels.² Although the number of accidents have dropped in recent years on Highway 8, due to the addition of traffic signals and dedicated right and left turn lanes, every year there several serious and/or fatal accidents.
Minnesota Attorney for Head On Collision Wrongful Death
Minnesota car accident attorneys Fred Pritzker, Elliot Olsen and Eric Hageman were named Minnesota Super Lawyers by Minnesota Law & Politics magazine. Our attorneys are actively involved in the legal community, frequently speaking on car accident issues, including traumatic brain injury, use of expert witnesses, pain and suffering compensation, presentation of evidence in court and other matters. Attorney Fred Pritzker has also been named a Top 100 Minnesota Super Lawyer and is listed in The Best Lawyers in America. Put our expertise to work for you. Call our toll free number, 1-888-377-8900, or submit our online contact form.
¹ ushighway14.com/
² www.dot.state.mn.us/
MN Lawyer for Rear Ended by Semitrailer Truck
PritzkerOlsen, P.A. is a nationally-recognized Minnesota law firm and represents clients throughout Minnesota and the United States. Minnesota car accident lawyers Fred Pritzker, Elliot Olsen and Eric Hageman have been voted Super Lawyers by their peers. Fred Pritzker has also been selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America. To contact one of our lawyers for a free consultation about a car accident injury or death, please call toll-free at 1-888-377-8900 or submit the firm’s online consultation form.
Who Can You Sue in a Rear Ended by Semitrailer Crash
Being rear ended by a semitrailer is a violent crash. Very often these accidents are caused by inattentive drivers. Recently, there was a rear end collision near St. Cloud, Minnesota that involved 5 vehicles and resulted in 2 fatalities, 2 people were hospitalized in critical condition and 3 people sustained non life-threatening injuries.
The question then becomes, “Who can you sue if you are rear ended by a semi truck?” That is where experienced legal representation becomes critical. A skilled attorney will sort out who the liable parties (parties that can be sued) are in order to obtain the deserved compensation for you and your family. The liable parties in a truck accident lawsuit may include:
- the owner of the truck cab
- the owner of the truck trailer
- the owner of the freight
- the driver of the truck
- the driver’s employer
- if there is a parent company, they may be held liable
- the manufacturer of the truck (includes cab, trailer or any part)
- a third part maintenance company, if applicable
- in multi-vehicle accidents, the driver and owner of another vehicle
Semi truck and trucking accident liability is complex. It involves extensive investigation and analysis by the truck accident lawyer. Our law firm has experience sorting out these liability issues and we have the necessary resources to get the job done.
To contact a PritzkerOlsen attorney for a free consultation, please call 1-888-377-8900 (toll-free) or submit our online form for review by one of our attorneys. We have a proven track record and the resources needed to get you the compensation you deserve.
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Driver Using Cell Phone Rear Ended a Car and Killed a Baby in a Columbia Heights Accident
On March 18, a woman was speeding down Central Avenue in Columbia Heights and looking for the cell phone she had just dropped. She rear-ended a car stopped at an intersection and killed a baby, a 14-month-old. The baby was properly strapped into his car seat, but the force of the impact (remember she was speeding) caused fatal head injuries.
The woman, Jessica Howe, was charged today with criminal vehicular homicide in Anoka County.
A reconstruction of the accident determined that Howe was driving 55 miles per hour when the speed limit was 40. According to the accident report, Howe’s car left no skid marks, meaning she did not even try to stop, which makes sense since she said she was looking for her cell phone.
According to the Minnesota Department of Public Safety:
Each year in Minnesota, distracted or inattentive driving is a factor in one in four crashes, resulting in at least 70 deaths and 9,000 serious injuries. The Office of Traffic Safety estimates these numbers are vastly underreported due to law enforcement’s challenge in determining distraction as a crash factor.
Talking on a cell phone while driving is an especially dangerous form of driver distraction. A few states have made it illegal to use a cell phone while driving. In Minnesota, texting while driving is prohibited but talking on a cell phone while driving is still not illegal with a few exceptions. It is time to ban cell phone use while driving.
For more information, please see “Accident Caused by a Cell Phone.”
Trailer Hit SUV and Killed Father and Daughter in Minnesota
A recent trailer accident in Minnesota resulted the deaths of a father and his three-year-old daugher. The father was driving his Honda SUV westbound on Highway 16 near Rushford, MN in Houston County. A Dodge Ram pickup truck pulling a trailer was heading eastbound. The trailer detached and hit the SUV.
Dead are Jeremy M. Cox, 32, of Houston, Minn., and his daughter, Isabel Cox, 3. His baby son was also in the SUV and suffered what the state patrol classified as “minor injuries.”
As a father of young children, I know the mother is living every parent’s nightmare. Sadly, there are a number of legal issues that need to be addressed quickly in wrongful death cases. State and federal forms need to be filed, property needs to be transferred, and a personal injury attorney has to be hired to gather and preserve evidence.
I have represented many families who lost loved ones in accidents. Please feel lfree to call me for help at 1-888-377-8900 (toll free). Because our law firm has had numerous multi-million-dollar recoveries for our clients, we have the resources to take on insurance companies in wrongful death cases.
