Altura, Minnesota car accident: Three teenage girls died on County Rd. 27 on April 23 and a fourth was injured. The girls were found in a ditch where their pickup truck had overturned.  Authorities told local news sources that it did not seem as if the girls were wearing seat belts.

Onamia, Minnesota car accident: A teenage girl was killed at the intersection of Hwy 27 and Hwy 169 Saturday night when her vehicle crossed Highway 169 while she was traveling eastbound on 27. She had stopped at a stopsign and proceeded into the intersection when a Jeep Grand Cherokee struck her Chevrolet Lumina broadside.

Cambridge, Minnesota car accident: In the deadliest car wreck of the three-day period, six people died near County Road 70 on Highway 95 early Sunday morning. The driver, a 16-year-old girl who reportedly had just gotten her license weeks prior, was the only survivor. The four passengers in the Pontiac Grand Am were killed when the car struck an oncoming SUV head-on. The two men in the SUV were killed in the head-on collision. News sources report alcohol was involved.

Bloomington, Minnesota car accident: A 23-year-old Burnsville woman was killed when her Honda hit a bridge pillar at high speed near the intersection of Interstate 494 and Interstate 35W.

Minnesota car accident attorneys at Pritzker Olsen law firm investigate the circumstances surrounding fatal car accidents and car accident injuries on behalf of victims and their families. Our attorneys learn as much as they can about their clients’ cases so they can obtain the maximum car crash settlement possible. A car accident settlement in a fatal accident case could include:

• Funeral expenses
• Medical expenses
• Potential earnings
• Loss of advice, comfort, assistance, protection, counsel and society
• Punitive damages against the defendant if the defendants actions show deliberate disregard of others’ rights or safety.

News sources:

http://www.winonadailynews.com/news/local/article_31e11456-501a-11df-a00d-001cc4c002e0.html

http://www.brainerddispatch.com/stories/042610/new_20100426023.shtml

http://www.startribune.com/local/north/92041709.html?page=2&c=y

The injured party can ask for punitive damages, which, depending on the circumstances, can be significant.  For example, our Minnesota car accident lawyers won $6,000,000 on behalf of a 26 year-old female passenger whose right leg was amputated when the motorcycle on which she was a passenger was struck by a drunk driver.  Contact Attorney Fred Pritzker about this and other settlements and verdicts for victims of drunk driving accidents.

Even though there are severe criminal and civil consequences, drunk driving continues to be a problem in Minnesota.

According to the Minnesota Department of Public Safety, July Operation NightCAP (nighttime concentrated alcohol patrol) DWI enforcement campaigns resulted in 196 DWI arrests — the highest monthly total for DWI arrests in 2009. NightCAP is funded by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and is coordinated by the Minnesota Department of Public Safety.

NightCAP targets the 13 deadliest counties for impaired driving: Anoka, Blue Earth, Crow Wing, Dakota, Hennepin, Itasca, Ramsey, Rice, St. Louis, Sherburne, Stearns, Washington and Wright. During 2005–2007, these counties accounted for more than half of the state’s alcohol-related deaths (272) and serious injuries (663).

NightCAP efforts have generated 1,284 DWI arrests since enhanced DWI patrols began in fall 2008: Anoka (372), Blue Earth (89), Crow Wing (26), Dakota (61), Hennepin (270), Itasca (36), Ramsey (165), Rice (43), St. Louis (61), Sherburne (66), Stearns (36), Washington (36) and Wright (23).

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Carter Newell, 2, of Rochester, died Friday. He was the son of 19-year-old Heidi Newell, who died in the crash last Saturday, May 23. That leaves only one survivor from the mini-van that was broadsided in an intersection by a vehicle driven by Steven Frisch, 25, of Winona. The survivor is Heidi’s mother, Rita Seha, who remained hospitalized Friday in Rochester.

Police have said Frisch had a blood-alcohol content of 1.9 percent, more than twice the legal limit. Frisch told investigators that he had fallen asleep when he drove through a stop sign at the intersection of  highways 30 and 63 in Olmsted County. He has been charged with 16 counts of criminal vehicular homicide and 8 counts of criminal vehicular operation and is being held in the Olmsted County Jail under $250,000 bail.

A touching story in the Star Tribune written by reporter Abby Simmons says Heidi Newell had achieved a joyful milestone on the day she died: the director of her alternative high school in Rochester had presented her with her graduation diploma. It was much later that day — 11:36 p.m. — when the crash occurred.

Minnesota is a no-fault insurance state, but when a tragic accident like this results from the horrible negligence of drunkenness – special laws apply that make large recoveries possible. There is Minnesota’s wrongful death law and provisions for punitive damages when the accident is caused by a drunk driver.

The Minnesota fatal car accident lawyers at Pritzker Olsen Attorneys have years of experience representing victims and survivors of serious motor vehicle crashes. When alcohol is involved in a crash, the firm investigates for possible dram shop claims against bars and other retailers who may have supplied alcohol to the drunken driver.  Our lawyers know how to fight for fair compensation from all responsible parties, including money to cover a client’s pain and suffering. Over the years, Pritzker Olsen has collected tens of millions of dollars for crash victims and their next of kin.

For more information, contact the firm by calling 1-888-377-8900 (Toll Free) or write to us online for a free case consultation.

In law enforcement circles, St. Patrick’s Day has its own set of statistics that a good car accident lawyer knows from experience.

Statewide on St. Patrick’s Day, alcohol-related car accidents accounted for seven of 13 traffic deaths over the three most recent years for which statistics are available: 2005-2007.

During that same period, 1,575 impaired drivers were arrested for DWI.
With that in mind, State Troopers, city police departments and sheriff’s deputies are encouraging St. Patrick’ Day pub-goers and partiers to plan ahead for a sober ride home.

Officers in many municipalities and counties across the state will increase patrols in search of unlucky leprechauns who choose to drink and drive on St. Patrick’s Day.

Under Minnesota Statute, Section 169A, it is a violation of Minnesota law to drive with an alcohol concentration of .08 or more. If someone violates this law, it is prima facie evidence of negligence in a civil case (Minnesota Statutes, Section 169.96 (2006). In a civil action against a drunk driver, the injured party can ask for punitive damages, which, depending on the circumstances, can be significant.

The car accident lawyers at PritzkerOlsen Attorneys are deeply experienced in representing car accident victims and their survivors. Very often, our investigators find a dram shop claim is part of an auto accident case. When a dram shop claim is part of a fatal car accident case, our lawyers know how to fight for fair compensation.