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After an Accident: The First 48
There is a saying among police officers, at least the ones on TV, that the first 48 hours after a serious crime is the most critical period of an investigation because the trail quickly becomes cold. Although the window in a personal injury case is not quite as small, but the first few days after a car accident are very important. The more work a lawyer does during this period, the greater your chances of recovering fair compensation later.
The First Call
When you reach for your cell phone after an accident, don’t call the insurance company. Call a lawyer instead. Later, when you call your insurance company, report the accident but do not give details. You may accidentally say something that can be used against you later, or the representative from the insurance company may “remember” the call a bit differently.
If at all possible, go to your attorney’s office that same day. Although no money will change hands, there are important papers for you to review and sign, so your lawyer can properly and effectively represent you. This visit is also an excellent time to give a complete statement, because your memory will still be fresh and the initial shock of the collision will probably have worn off.
Negotiating a Settlement to Resolve a Personal Injury Case
Nearly all civil cases settle out of court, although some cases are resolved within a few weeks of the accident while others do not take place until the trial begins. When it comes to settling your negligence case, the numbers on the clock do not mean nearly as much as the numbers behind the dollar sign.
An attorney has a moral, legal, and ethical responsibility to obtain fair compensation for your injuries, and not settle the case quickly. While accepting less than full value and ending the case early would certainly be in the lawyer’s best interest, such a move is almost never in the client’s best interest.
What Is the Case Worth?
The first step is to determine a case’s approximate settlement value. Though exact methods vary, the settlement value is basically the amount of economic damages plus the amount of non-economic damages divided by the chances of winning at trial.
Deadly Car Crash in Far West San Antonio
Just as a car inched into the intersection after the light turned green, the vehicle was suddenly broadsided by an oncoming SUV that had run the red light. What legal recourse does a family have in these situations?
San Antonio police state that a Honda Civic was traveling eastbound on Highway 151 at the Loop 1604 intersection, when it was struck by a Chevrolet Suburban. First responders had to use the Jaws of Life to free the car’s occupants; one person was pronounced dead at the scene and the other was rushed to University Hospital in critical condition.
This location is known as one of The Alamo City’s most dangerous intersections.
Wrongful Death
When a friend or loved one dies suddenly in a car crash or is otherwise killed due to the negligence of another party, Chapter 71 of the Civil Practice and Remedies Code is the controlling law.
Officer Who Caused Fatal Crash was Under the Influence of Drugs
The Bexar County Medical Examiner confirmed that a Nixon police officer was under the influence of a drug cocktail when he strayed across the double-yellow line and crashed head-on into an oncoming pickup truck. Now, the Nixon Police Department may be faced with a negligence lawsuit.
The wreck took place in April 2015, just west of Jourdanton on Highway 97. 51-year-old Officer Mike Villarreal, of San Antonio, was killed almost instantly. His passenger, an unnamed juvenile detainee, and the driver of the Ford F-150 were both seriously injured and airlifted to San Antonio University Hospital.
An autopsy revealed traces of methamphetamine and naproxen, a powerful over-the-counter painkiller, in his bloodstream. As no narcotics were recovered from the wreckage, investigators speculate that Officer Villarreal may have been under the influence for his entire shift.
Who Is Responsible for a Dangerous Highway Turnaround?
A man and woman were nearly killed in a Northwest Side car crash, and investigators are pointing to a dangerous turnaround lane. Is the state responsible for the couples’ damages?
The incident occurred near the intersection of Huebner and Interstate 10, when a man picked his girlfriend up after work one night. The driver said he never even knew he was in a highway turnaround lane, because the sign was bent backwards in a previous crash and the area is almost completely unlit. Their vehicle skidded off the road and into the ditch, and both vehicle occupants sustained serious injuries. One first responder stated that the turnaround is an accident scene “weekly and almost daily.”
A spokesperson for the Texas Department of Transportation remarked that a new highway sign had been ordered, but delivery can take up to six weeks. Meanwhile, city crews plan to replace the temporary lights with permanent poles in the coming weeks or months.
Another Big Win for Defective Products Victims
A Delaware woman recently won a $100 million jury verdict, after her lawyers convinced a jury that Boston Scientific’s faulty pelvic mesh implant was responsible for her injuries. The case may cause other medical device manufacturers to settle defective product cases more quickly.
Pelvic mesh implants were once hailed as a cure for incontinence in females. But the devices can deteriorate over time, leading to a host of medical problems, including severe pain during sexual intercourse. These problems can trigger a series of expensive corrective surgical procedures. The month before the verdict was announced, Boston Scientific agreed to pay $119 million to settle some 3,000 similar claims, including a $35 million verdict from a Dallas County jury. Last year, another Texas woman won $73 million in a case stemming from a defective Boston Scientific pelvic swing, a similar device.
Boston Scientific and two other pelvic mesh manufacturers are actively settling individual cases before the juries hear about the severe injuries these victims suffered.
Runaway Tractor Trailer Near Highland Park
An operator who lost control of his vehicle careened into the center barrier before flipping over and slamming into another car.
The crash took place near the intersection of Interstate 10 and Hackberry. Police state that the force of the collision launched the second car into the air. They speculated that the injuries would have been much worse had the support beams on the side of the interstate not caught the vehicle before it hit the ground.
As it was, a woman inside the car shattered the bones in her foot, but doctors are optimistic that she will be able to walk again.
Damages Available in Large Truck Accidents
These types of collisions are very common in the San Antonio area, because there are so many complicated freeway interchanges that drivers who are just passing through may not know how to navigate. And with the average large truck weighing well over 80,000 pounds, there is very little margin for error. These massive vehicles are nearly impossible to stop or slow down quickly, even if an experienced driver is behind the wheel.
Serious High Speed Wreck in West San Antonio
A conflux of factors, including aggressive driving, were to blame for an early morning car crash at Lackland Air Force Base that killed one person and seriously injured two others.
The collision took place on Military between Selfridge and Luke, not far from the Parade Grounds. According to the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office, two vehicles were southbound on Military when one driver lost control, struck a curb and then a fence. When the vehicle flipped, all three occupants were ejected. They were rushed to a nearby hospital where two remain; a third victim, a 32-year-old man, was pronounced dead shortly after arrival.
Although there were no witnesses, as the crash took place about 5:30 a.m. on a Sunday morning, officials speculate that a combination of excessive speed, alcohol, and road rage may have caused the collision. Two people were taken into custody facing unspecified charges.
Road Rage
Whose Fault Is It?
A pair of pileup accidents that involved several big rigs, a number of passenger cars, and a garbage truck occurred almost simultaneously on Interstate 10. The drivers involved may wind up pointing fingers at one another in court.
The first crash occurred on westbound Interstate 10 near Fair Oaks. A man driving a Corvette in an aggressive fashion slammed into the back of an SUV, which then toppled into the median. That SUV then collided with a garbage truck on the service road. Meanwhile, the Corvette skidded out of control and landed across the highway.
A few moments later, perhaps because the drivers were distracted by the chain-reaction crash on the main highway, three large trucks collided into one another on the service road. Some injured victims were transported to local hospitals, but all were expected to survive.
Serious Wreck Raises Liability Questions
Recently, two people were hospitalized in a near-fatal rear-end collision on Highway 281. Although these matters may seem like open-and-shut cases, there are several defenses that insurance companies can use to either reduce the amount of damages that victims can receive, or perhaps even deny them compensation altogether.
Police state that the crash occurred near Redland Road, not far from Hollywood Park. According to witnesses, one driver was weaving in and out of traffic. After the crash, both people were transported to area hospitals with serious injuries.
One motorist was charged with driving while intoxicated and reckless driving.
Possible Defenses
Although liability is fairly certain in this collision, other such instances are not nearly as clear cut.
Texas courts recognize the last clear chance doctrine, meaning that, in some cases, responsibility for a rear-end crash can be flipped. If Driver A hits Driver B from behind, Driver A is not legally responsible, if:
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