2009 July Archive

Pregnant Woman Injured in Phoenix Auto Accident

By Personal Injury Lawyer on July 31, 2009

As Phoenix car accident attorneys, it is our job to prevent people with power from taking advantage of innocent victims. We happen to see a lot of abuse when the government uses its own laws to defend itself from legal responsibility. Many talk about personal accountability and personal responsibility, and there has been a push to ensure that people in our country accept blame when they do wrong. Many people who cannot work due to an injury caused by someone else’s negligent actions too often are accused that they are trying to place the blame on someone else instead of accepting responsibility for their situation.

When government employees are involved in causing serious injuries, it raises a red flag. According to a report, a City of Phoenix Parks and Recreation Department vehicle and a Chevy Malibu collided when, according to witnesses, the city vehicle ran a red light causing a six-car accident. The occupants of the Malibu included a woman eight months pregnant, who along with her boyfriend were transported to the hospital. She later gave birth to the baby, who possibly has brain damage as a result of the accident. If the driver of the Phoenix Parks and Recreation vehicle was indeed at fault, unless the car accident victim immediately hires a lawyer and takes the correct action to protect her rights and her baby’s rights, she could miss her chance to receive compensation.

Even if we assume that the witnesses were correct about the city vehicle running a red light and even if the City of Phoenix admitted fault in this case, there is still a way in which those responsible can escape liability. If a person seriously injured by a negligent government employee does not take the correct steps, they are in danger of losing their ability to file a lawsuit. In order to file a personal injury claim, the injured party must file a proper “notice of claim” within 180 days to the correct person or else they lose all rights.

It is unfortunate that government entities can avoid responsibility in such cases, and that is why we report on accidents that involve city vehicles in Phoenix, Mesa, Tucson, or any other city in Arizona. We know that when someone is seriously injured in an accident that they have more to think about than hiring a personal injury lawyer. Injured parties should be allowed to recover, and to have enough time to find an experienced and knowledgeable lawyer to help them.

That is why we urge anyone who has been involved in a serious motor vehicle accident with any government employee in Arizona to immediately speak to a knowledgeable and skilled Arizona auto accident lawyer to ensure that their rights to file a claim are not lost.

Phoenix Car Accident Results in Serious Injuries

By Personal Injury Lawyer on July 30, 2009

“A little bit of driver negligence has led to serious injuries,” a member of the Arizona Department of Public Safety stated in a report concerning a woman seriously injured when both a truck and an SUV rolled through stop signs, crushing the woman’s car in between their two vehicles. This Phoenix auto accident closed down a section of Loop 303 in the West Valley while an innocent woman sustained severe injuries and six others were sent to the hospital.

We should remember this quote. We all drive, most of us every day. Cars and roads are vital elements in Arizona’s transportation system, and this is why safety issues such as wearing seat belts any time a vehicle is in motion, stopping completely at stop signs, stopping at red lights, and going the speed limit are just as important. One moment of negligence can result in a serious injury or wrongful death.

We have too often seen people’s lives destroyed by “a little bit of driver negligence.” We have seen too many incidents of wrongful death happen because of someone’s momentary carelessness.

Besides lawsuits, personal injury claims and monetary compensation, the driver at fault also has to live with the fact that they have caused someone else extreme pain and hardship due to their own neglect.

For the woman severely injured in this accident, finding the best car accident lawyer in Phoenix for her situation has become a very real issue. She now has to deal with huge medical bills, wage loss, and other financial hardships related to this incident, not to mention the fact that her life changed horribly in an instant due to “a little bit of driver negligence.”

Camelback Near Drowning of 2 Year Old

By Personal Injury Lawyer on July 29, 2009

There are issues far more complex than automobile accidents in which Arizona personal injury attorneys can help. People can be negligent in a number of ways, and each person must be responsible to do everything possible to avoid causing serious injury or wrongful death to others, and particularly when it comes to children’s injuries in Arizona.

Incidents where children drown or nearly drown in backyard swimming pools occur far too often in Arizona. We know that not every such occurrence should lead to prosecution, and we know that there is not always someone to blame when it happens. Yet, we also know that a caregiver or neighbor may sometimes not be paying attention, and gates or fences may not function correctly to keep a child out of a dangerous area. Negligence in these situations may be caused by the manufacturer of the barrier put up to prevent access or with the person responsible for caring for the child.

When we see reports about how a 2-year-old boy nearly drowned in a swimming pool in Camelback recently, this brings these issues to the forefront.

We are happy to hear that, according to early information, the 2-year-old is okay. That is the most important thing, though we also know that the hospital bills still need to be paid by someone.

As this happened at a neighbor’s house, and the homeowner may have been negligent, the owner’s insurance could help pay for the child’s medical expenses. This Arizona child’s injury should not lead to the bankruptcy of the family nor should it mean that the boy’s family should accept substandard medical care, as too often happens in many cases.

First and foremost, we would hope that the particular 2 year old, and every child who gets anywhere near water, gets completely better and that tragedies can be avoided. Second, once the worst tragedies are avoided or in any such situation, a skilled Arizona child injury attorney may be able to help the family avoid financial ruin through the homeowner’s insurance of the at fault party.

We hope this 2-year-old boy recovers fully and leads a normal, healthy life after this incident and hope that because of this, worse tragedies can be avoided. For those who have suffered, skilled Arizona child injury attorneys may help families like this one avoid financial ruin.

Arizona Bus Crash Near Hoover Dam Kills And Injures Tourists

By Personal Injury Lawyer on July 28, 2009

The National Transportation Safety Board reported that the bus accident that took the lives of a number of Chinese tourists may have been the bus driver’s fault. There was initial speculation that there may have been something wrong with the door, which distracted the driver, and that “sun glare” also might have blinded the bus driver prior to him losing control. Preliminary investigation found nothing wrong with the door nor did they find any other mechanical problem.

These Chinese tourists were likely enjoying a wonderful occasion and vacation before their bus crashed. It is tragic and extremely unfortunate that lives had to be lost and it is probable that the families of the Chinese tourists involved in this wrongful death accident are unaware of what can be done in terms of seeking compensation for lost wages and other expenses.

As Arizona wrongful death attorneys and personal injury lawyers, we understand that though this case probably does not involve seeking “punitive damages,” the filing of a lawsuit in this situation may very well increase safety for people and perhaps prevent future bus accidents. Since companies are usually in the business to make a profit, the likelihood that the bus company will take safety precautions increases if they are forced to face a lawsuit and they are unlikely to take such measures if there is no threat to their bottom line.

Lives are saved through personal injury lawsuits. Assuming that what happened to this tour bus was preventable, had DW Tour and Charter of San Gabriel, California been exposed to previous lawsuits, they would have been more diligent about safety issues. It is unfortunate but sometimes necessary that companies be threatened with loss of profits in order to safeguard the lives and preclude serious injuries to innocent people.

Should anyone have questions about this bus accident or another serious bus accident, we invite those people to contact us at Breyer Law Offices, P.C. It is necessary that injured parties retain a lawyer from the state in which an accident occurred, or in this case perhaps the state in which the defendant is located, in order for negligent parties to be held responsible for the damages caused.

Peoria Truck Accident Injures Driver in Auto

By Personal Injury Lawyer on July 27, 2009

A common error for those locally who have been in a serious trucking accident is a delay in contacting experienced Phoenix truck accident attorneys. It is understandable, as people who experience a serious injury due to a truck accident generally consider worrying about paperwork as less important than their recovery. Besides which, many are under the impression that there is no rush as they have two years to file a claim after an accident involving a large truck.

Federal trucking regulations, however, favor truck drivers and trucking companies. Some records may be destroyed six months after the accident, and many trucking companies have their own investigators or lawyers looking at the scene of the collision even as the police are investigating. This puts the plaintiff in a serious tractor-trailer accident at a disadvantage.

According to an account by a local ABC affiliate, a compact car collided with a semi-truck on Arizona Route 74 near Castle Hot Springs Road in Peoria, AZ. The driver of the car was critically injured and, though the truck driver was not, the entire truck was consumed by fire. A delay in contacting Arizona auto accident lawyers who deal with serious personal injuries in such a case can mean the difference in collecting compensation for lost wages, medical bills, and other expenses related to a serious truck collision or collecting nothing at all.

If you or a loved one has injured in an Arizona truck accident or any other kind of auto accident, our experienced Arizona truck accident lawyers are available to help. Do not throw away your chance to see if you have a claim to collect compensation. Contact Breyer Law Offices, P.C. as soon as possible to get your questions answered so that you can make the best decision relating to your specific case.

How the Arizona State Bar Aids in Distinguishing Attorneys

By Personal Injury Lawyer on July 24, 2009

How can someone find an experienced, trustworthy car accident lawyer in Arizona or any other kind of personal injury attorney among so many lawyers in Arizona? With all the marketing and advertisements, how can one tell the difference between them?

All lawyers licensed in Arizona are members of the State Bar of Arizona. A person cannot be a lawyer in Arizona unless they are admitted to the State Bar. The State Bar of Arizona set out to then certify specialists in personal injury and wrongful death litigation in the State of Arizona to distinguish those with the expertise and knowledge in this area of the law.

Less than one in fifty lawyers in Arizona qualify as certified specialists of personal injury and wrongful death. We at Breyer Law Offices are proud to have an attorney to hold this characteristic, but we are even more satisfied by the people we have helped through personal injury claims through the years. Yet just because someone is not a certified specialist in wrongful death or personal injury law does not mean they are not a skilled Phoenix personal injury lawyer, and in the same vein, just because someone is a certified specialist does not mean they will be the right lawyer for a particular client. We know, however, that as certified specialists in this area we have a level of training, experience, and success when it comes to answering our clients’ questions.

It is important for those looking for a personal injury attorney in Arizona to know that it isn’t just about choosing a great lawyer, but is about seeking legal counsel from an attorney who is truthful about the possible weaknesses in your claim in addition to its strengths. You deserve to find the right lawyer for you and your particular claim. For more information, please contact our attorneys at Breyer Law Offices, P.C.

How Arizona Radar Cameras Assist Car Accident Prevention

By Personal Injury Lawyer on July 23, 2009

The most important thing is that Arizona roadways are made as safe as possible. Auto accidents disrupt lives and too often result in tragedies from which families never fully recover. That is why we feel we should speak up after reading this report concerning the uproar over use of photo radar on Arizona highways. We understand there are valid concerns about privacy, but we feel that it is more important that lives are saved.

As the lawyers who wrote the book Master Guide on Arizona Injury Claims, some people may be surprised at our stance. For us, it makes perfect sense, as we see too many wrongful death cases in Phoenix due to automobile accidents. Exceeding the speed limit is the cause of many road accidents, and initially it seems that the introduction of photo radar has led to a significant drop in the number of people seriously injured and killed in Arizona road accidents. Whether it is to reduce car accidents or motorcycle accidents, anything that can be done to reduce or eliminate the causes of these accidents is a good thing.

We completely support the idea of almost any measure that can have a drastic reduction – or any real reduction – in the amount of pain and suffering and loss that takes place because of Arizona car accidents. Far too many of these incidents that ruin lives happen because of excessive speed on our freeways. While we would support some changes to the method with which the photo radar is being implemented, we cannot support any effort to eliminate these cameras.

We support measures that can reduce the number of Arizona car accidents along with the pain, suffering and financial loss that goes along with them. As personal injury accident attorneys in Phoenix, we know the role speeding plays in many auto accidents and because of this, we cannot support an effort to eliminate these cameras, though we do support some changes in how the photo radar is applied.

If the use of photo radar results in fewer personal injury victims, even if the ulterior motive is to raise money for the government, it is a victory for all Arizonans.

Arizona Car Accident Tragedy Kills Three Children

By Personal Injury Lawyer on July 22, 2009

Car accident lawyers in Arizona often deal with the worst kind of tragedies a family can imagine, and sometimes the loss is so great that it affects even the best personal injury lawyers.

Near Wikiup, AZ on US route 93, such a tragedy occurred as three children, an eight-year-old boy and two sixteen-year-olds, were killed in a horrific automobile accident. All those that died were in a Ford Explorer, which according to reports blew a tire, hit another vehicle, and then rolled over.

Sadness fills our hearts whenever we hear about such incidents, even as veteran wrongful death lawyers. We understand too that a family can never be compensated enough monetarily for the loss of a child. It is very rarely the passengers that are at fault in any car accident, but they are often the ones who suffer personal injury or wrongful death. Almost always it is the fault of one driver, or a combination of drivers, who were negligent. We know, as Arizona wrongful death lawyers, that no amount of money can heal the pain of such a tragedy. Yet we also know that there are ultimately expenses and bills that are incurred when someone dies prematurely, and if the driver who was at fault has insurance, they should at least be required to pay according to the limits of the insurance policy.

A skilled personal injury attorney will very often hire experts to reconstruct the accident in order to determine fault, especially when there is a serious automobile accident in Arizona like the one above. In this way, there may be at least some measure of justice when the families are relieved of a portion of the financial burden that comes with the premature loss of loved ones.

Our hearts truly, truly go out to this family. We all see so many tragedies on our Arizona roads regularly, that it is easy to forget the tremendous loss caused by car accidents. We hope for nothing but the best for this family and for all others touched by similar tragedies.

Chandler Arizona Motorcycle Crash Kills Woman

By Personal Injury Lawyer on July 21, 2009

A 30-year-old woman from Eloy died after a motorcycle accident in Arizona on Interstate 10, when the driver on the Harley Davidson on which she was riding struck a tarp that, according to reports, then became ensnared in the rear wheel of the motorcycle. Motorcycle accidents and car accidents are too often caused by the negligence of those who dump trash or other debris on the freeway.

We have no idea from where the tarp came or how it ended up on the freeway, but to the family of the woman who died in this motorcycle crash it makes no difference.

Financial considerations after the loss of a loved one may not seem so important to some people, yet often the loss of a family member brings on dire economic hardships for the surviving family members. Too often we find as experienced personal injury attorneys that the family depended on the income the lost family member provided.

From what has been said in the news, we cannot determine if the tarp was left on the freeway negligently, but we do know that it should be investigated. Debris on roadways causes unnecessary deaths to motorcyclists in Arizona every year.

Not every motorcycle or other motor vehicle accident requires a lawsuit, but an honest and skilled Chandler motorcycle accident attorney will answer questions that will allow people to make the best decision for their families. It is not so much about whether a lawsuit should be filed in response to a motorcycle crash in Arizona like this, but so that the survivors of such tragedies can go on with their lives with as little additional hardship as possible.

An experienced personal injury lawyer can answer questions for someone who has been in a motorcycle accident such as this one. This is why we encourage people to contact us if they have been in any kind of a motor vehicle accident.

Yuma Woman’s Death From Drunk Driving Accident Accounted For

By Personal Injury Lawyer on July 20, 2009

In September, an article reported that a Yuma woman was killed in a single vehicle car accident. A small bit of justice in this Yuma resident’s wrongful death came in the form of a one year sentence handed down to the driver. The driver, who had previously been arrested for driving under the influence but who had been allowed to keep his driver’s license, was reportedly driving drunk at the time the car accident occurred.

Stories such as this show that more must be done to prevent drunk driving accidents in Arizona.

Personal injury lawyers in Yuma, Scottsdale, Tucson, Phoenix and elsewhere in Arizona know the pain caused by victims of drunk drivers. Not only should drunk drivers be prosecuted in criminal court, but when serious injury or wrongful death occurs as a result of someone driving under the influence, personal injury lawyers should be brought in to ensure that those hurt by their actions are compensated. This can both benefit the survivors and their families and serve as a deterrent for any further drunk driving.

Deciding to bring a wrongful death claim can be difficult and, while we think it is important for families who have lost a loved one to pursue legal means to get compensated in cases like these, we know each family must make a decision based on what is right for them. It is not always necessary nor always in the victim’s best interest to pursue a claim to the fullest extent of the law. Sometimes a lawsuit can add to the grief. That is why it is important for lawyers in drunk driving cases to answer questions and otherwise provide the best information so that the family may decide if it is best for them to pursue a wrongful death or personal injury claim.

We embrace our role as experienced personal injury trial lawyers not just in successfully pursuing defendants on behalf of our clients, but also in helping the families who have lost a loved one in an Arizona wrongful death car accident get their questions answered so they can decide whether or not they wish to pursue any type of lawsuit or personal injury claim.

At Breyer Law Offices, we are here not only to effectively pursue compensation after an Arizona wrongful death car accident, but also to help the families decide whether any type of lawsuit or personal injury claim is right for them.