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We have been practicing law in Boston and throughout Massachusetts since 1985. I have represented clients in District Courts, Superior Courts, the Appeals Court, Housing Court, Probate Courts, Federal Bankruptcy Court and the Federal District Court.
Earlier this summer, an 11-year old Peabody girl was the tragic victim of a head-on collision by a motorist who had been fleeing police. The accident occurred at the intersection of Winthrop and Andover Street in Lawrence.
The girl was with her sister, mother, cousin and mother’s boyfriend who all suffered serious injuries from the accident. The suspect was speeding away from police following a routine traffic stop for a lane violation. The suspect presumably fled in his 2009 Infiniti G37 since he was later found to be driving on a suspended license. Charges against the suspect include vehicular homicide, manslaughter, fleeing a police officer, reckless driving, speeding, and assault with a deadly weapon. The officers who had stopped the suspect had not given chase.
Rollover accidents can be deadly since the vehicle occupants can be violently tossed around within the vehicle, striking objects, windows and other passengers. If seat belts are not worn or are worn but fail to restrain the occupants, passengers can be ejected from the vehicle to the pavement or into any object outside. This was highlighted in a horrific crash early this Summer on I-95 near Exit 3 in Attleboro around 11:00 a.m. A Ford Econoline van transporting 11 persons was struck by a Toyota Rav 4 that was in the adjoining lane. Both vehicles crossed the median after impact. The van rolled over and all 11 occupants were ejected. Two of the passengers suffered fatal injuries. Police reports did not indicate how the accident occurred though it is likely that one motorist made an unsafe lane change or that both attempted to change lanes simultaneously. Other factors could have been fatigue, impairment, distraction, or the possible inexperience of the van driver.
A 17-year old Great Barrington youth was charged with DUI and causing serious bodily injury when his vehicle struck a young woman on the side of the road. The woman had pulled over to the roadside shoulder after striking a guardrail. The accident occurred on Stockbridge Road near Fountain Pond in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. The woman was outside her vehicle and was being assisted by another motorist when they noticed the car approaching them. She told police that she tried to avoid being hit but was struck, nonetheless. She reportedly sustained serious injuries and was taken to Berkshire Medical Center.
A recent lawsuit filing in Hampden County Superior Court brought back memories of the deadly and incomprehensible tragedy this past June in Randolph, New Hampshire where 7 motorcyclists were killed. A young driver in a pickup truck towing a trailer suddenly crossed into the opposite lane of traffic and mowed down the innocent motorcycle riders. None of the first responders or police at the scene could recall an incident or carnage of this magnitude in a single motor vehicle incident. The driver was from Springfield, Massachusetts and had a Massachusetts driver’s license at the time of the incident.
It is generally assumed that the best or safest place to be in a car accident is the back seat. The most serious accidents are head-on collisions followed by T-bone collisions. If you are restrained in the back seat during these collisions, the general belief is that you were likely spared serious or fatal injuries merely because of the distance between the back-seat passenger and the impact location.