Dallas Fort Worth Car Accident Lawyer Blog

Every day in the Dallas/ Fort Worth area someone will decide to drink and drive. About a year ago, Mariza Rodriguez Martinez decided to drink and drive with a Blood Alcohol Content of 0.13 percent, above the 0.08 legal limit. Martinez left Gleneagles Country Club in Plano and drove the wrong direction on the freeway, which ended tragically killing Kara Taylor, 16, of Little Elm. Martinez reached speeds of 95 mph as she weaved from one side of the road to the other. Collin County jury found Martinez guilty of intoxication, manslaughter, and intoxication assault. The punishment phase of the trial is scheduled to start this morning, which could face up to 20 years in prison and a $10,000 fine.

I have no sympathy for Martinez. She made choices to drink, she made choices to get intoxicated, and she made choices to get behind the wheel of a car. If you drink and drive, there is a strong chance something bad will happen. In 2007, there were 1,292 fatalities, solely due to drinking and driving. I can’t help, but feel sorry for Kara Taylor, her friends, and her family.

Information and commentary is provided by Dallas/ Fort Worth Drunk Driving Accident Lawyer Mark Anderson. The Anderson Law Firm can be reached in Fort Worth at 817-294-1900 or in Dallas at 214-327-8000. If you have questions about drunk driving accidents, please fill out our contact form online for a free consultation.

Tim Hay, a drag racer from Burleson, TX died Saturday night after a car accident at a racetrack in Iowa, where he was competing in an event he had won last year. Hay, 49 years of age, lost control of his car, on the 1/8th-mile dragway during the finals of the World Fuel Altered Nationals at Eddyville Raceway Park in Eddyville, Iowa. Track co-owner Scott Gardner said Monday. The vehicle hit the safety wall and rolled. Rescue personnel pulled Hay out of the car and stabilized him at the track medical center, but the wreck resulted in his death Hay is survived by his wife of 23 years, Candy, three grown children and two grandchildren. Gardner said Hay's wife and one of their sons were at the track when the crash happened.

Hay had competed at Eddyville the past four years and was a well-known veteran of the sport. Tim Hay been racing since the late '70s or early '80s. The nitro methane altered car is one of the toughest to drive in the sport of drag racing. It's sort of a blend between a top fuel dragster and a nitro funny car. It's similar to a funny car, but it's not a full body.

This sport is pretty safe, but there are occasional accidents that unfourantely happen. This is a tragic circumstance for the Hay family and I send my condolences to their family and friends. I assume that an investigation will follow of what went wrong with the car.

Information and commentary is provided by Dallas/Fort Worth Car Accident Attorney Mark Anderson. The Anderson Law Firm can be reached in Fort Worth at 817-294-1900 or in Dallas at 214-327-8000. If you questions about a car accident resulting in injuries, please fill out our contact form online for a free consultation.

Last week I blogged about a fatal hit and run accident that killed a motorcyclist in Lewisville, Texas. While police have impounded a late-model SUV with front end damage, no arrests have been made yet. This was the second hit-and-run accident the late Ray Torres, 42, according to local news reports.

Ray Torres was struck by a hit-and-run driver a little over a year before this crash, on August 1, 2009. At that time, he was left lying on a street in Arlington with an injured leg that required six months of rehabilitation. Tragically, Mr. Torres did not survive the second hit-and-run crash. He died at the scene, becoming one of nearly 500 people who die every year in Texas in motorcycle accidents.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, or NHTSA, in 2008, 480 motorcycle riders were killed. 62% of those riders weren’t wearing a helmet. Mr. Torres usually didn’t wear a helmet, and he wasn’t wearing one when he died, according to news reports. In 2007, the NHTSA determined that a motorcycle rider was 37 times more likely to die in a crash and nine times more likely to be injured than someone inside a vehicle.

This is such a sad story, and really shows the dangers that motorcycle riders face on our roads. I always emphasize the importance of wearing a helmet, as it is often truly the difference between life and death. The NHTSA statistic that 62% of those riders killed in 2008 doesn’t surprise me at all.

Information provided by Texas Motorcycle Accident Attorney Mark A. Anderson, who can be reached in Dallas at 214-327-8000, in Fort Worth at 817-294-1900, and across Texas at 877-294-1115. Click here to contact a Board Certified Personal Injury Attorney today.

A tragic accident happened yesterday here in Dallas. Terry Glover, 59, died early Thursday morning after a Dallas police cruiser crashed into the back of his Jeep. The Jeep was disabled in the middle of the street, but did have its hazard lights on. After the collision, Glover was taken to Methodist Dallas Medical Center where he died during surgery.

Officer Adam Stucki, the driver, and Officer Archie Benson were on their way to a call at Methodist Charlton Medical Center. The emergency lights and siren were not on as they approached the disabled vehicle around 1 a.m. The patrol car was driving about 45 mph, according to news reports. When the police vehicle struck the Jeep, it pushed the Jeep through a metal fence and into the front yard of a home.

The collision occurred in the 7600 block of South Polk Street near Camp Wisdom Road, where the speed limit is 40 mph, according to police. It is unknown whether or not Stucki braked before crashing into the Jeep. Stucki has been placed on routine restricted duty while Benson remains on regular duty while the investigation continues. Both officers suffered minor injuries in the accident.

I am very interested to hear the outcome of this investigation. Was Officer Stucki distracted? Did he even see the vehicle and have a chance to apply the brakes before the crash? The Dallas Morning News has posted the video from the patrol car’s dashboard camera. You can click here to watch the video. Mr. Glover’s hazard lights are clearly visible in the video quite a long time before the actual collision occurs.

Information provided by Dallas/Fort Worth Car Accident Attorney Mark A. Anderson, who can be reached in Dallas at 214-327-8000, in Fort Worth at 817-294-1900, and toll free across Texas at 877-294-1115. He can also be contacted by clicking here.

Tammy Sue Stegall was sentenced to 30 years in prison yesterday for the death of 57-year-old Billy Stroud. Stroud died tragically on August 11, 2009 when Stegall, driving drunk, struck his motorcycle with her Nissan Maxima. Stegall ran over Stroud and pushed his motorcycle along the ground. He later died at John Peter Smith hospital from his injuries.

Stegall was convicted of murder because she had two previous charges of driving while intoxicated. The last, in August 2008, caused her to lose her driver’s license. She was driving illegally when she struck Stroud.

According to news reports, Stroud had recently purchased a motorcycle with the intention of joining the Patriot Guard motorcycle riders. The Patriot Guard participates in military funerals and protects the grieving family from protestors. Stroud’s son, Marine Lance Cpl. Jonathan Stroud, 20, died in July 2009 in Afghanistan. He was buried three days before his father’s death. Stroud had been so impressed with the Patriot Guard at his son’s funeral that he wanted to join the group.

Stegall must serve 15 years of her 30 year sentence before she will be eligible for parole. According to prosecutor Richard Alpert, “our two goals were to obtain a murder conviction and a sentence that would keep her in prison for the rest of her life. Given her long history of drug abuse and the fact that she is 51, we think the 30 years and her guilty plea to the murder charge achieve both goals."

What a terrible tragedy for the Stroud family to suffer. I think this person deserves to remain behind bars for the rest of her life, but that must offer little solace to the family and friends of Mr. Stroud. Unfortunately, drunk driving is an epidemic in Texas. Drunk driving causes over 1,500 deaths each year in Texas; this makes up 45% of all traffic fatalities. I hope that Stegall does not receive parole. With her history, I don’t think she should ever be allowed on the road again.

Information provided by Texas Board Certified Personal Injury Lawyer Mark A. Anderson, who fights every day for the rights of those injured in drunk driving accidents. He can be contacted in Fort Worth at 817-294-1900, in Dallas at 214-327-8000, and toll free across Texas at 877-294-1115. He can also be reached by clicking here.

The Lewisville, Texas Police Department is looking for the driver and a passenger of a dark gray or black Chevrolet Tahoe or Suburban that fled the scene of a fatal car/motorcycle accident which occurred early Sunday morning. According to the Lewisville Police, at about 4:00 a.m. Sunday, the SUV collided with a motorcycle at the intersection of State Highway 121 (business) and Bellaire Boulevard in Lewisville. The driver of the motorcycle was pronounced dead at the scene and a passenger on the motorcycle was taken to a local hospital.

According to police, the dark Chevrolet should have significant damage to its front end. The fog light housing that was mounted below the front bumper was torn off and left at the scene of the fatal accident. The housing still contained one fog light. Plus, the Chevrolet “bowtie” logo was also broken off from the grille of the SUV and left at the scene. Anyone with any information on the identity of the driver and the passenger of this Chevrolet, please contact the Lewisville Police Department at 972 219 3600.

I hope these criminals who fled the scene are found and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. It is against Texas law to be involved in an accident and flee the scene. This is such a tragic accident-and one that was definitely preventable. My thoughts and prayers go out to the friends and family of the unidentified motorcyclist. I also hope the passenger of the motorcycle has a speedy recovery.

Information and commentary provided by Mark Anderson, injury attorney. The Anderson law firm can be reached in Dallas at 214-327-8000, in Fort Worth at 817 294 1900 or across Texas at 877 294 1115. They can also be contacted by clicking here.

A tragic car accident last night killed two people when the Dodge Neon they were traveling in struck the back of a 20-foot trailer. The accident occurred around 10:45 p.m. Friday night on LBJ Freeway at Webb Chapel Road in Dallas, Texas.

Pronounced dead at the scene were Tracie Yepez, 26 and Jaime Santibanez, 24. Dallas police department officials who investigated the accident at the scene said the truck pulling the 20-foot trailer may have stalled in the HOV lane, where the accident occurred. If the preliminary results of the accident show that the truck/trailer was indeed stalled, then additional questions will arrive as to why the truck was stalled out and whether the hazard lights or any other identifying cones or flashers were used to alert traffic of the stalled vehicle.

My sincere condolences go out to the families of the two victims. Clearly, they appear to be innocent victims in this motor vehicle accident. When you are travelling in the HOV lane, you do no expect to have stalled vehicles occupying the lane. Hopefully the Dallas Police Department will be able to figure out exactly what happened and what could have been done, if anything, to prevent this accident.

Information and commentary provided by Dallas/Fort Worth Personal Injury Attorney Mark A. Anderson, who can be contacted online by clicking here or calling the Anderson Law Firm at 214-327-8000.

Last December I blogged about a Fort Worth police officer who was twice over the legal limit when he crashed a city truck and killed a Fort Worth mother. Later it was determined that he was drinking with other police officers before the crash. Now an investigation reveals that Jesus Cisneros had started drinking while still on duty.

An internal investigation found four violations against Cisneros: 1) he consumed alcohol on duty without necessary supervisor approval; 2) he drove a city vehicle off duty without authorization; 3) he was intoxicated while off duty; and 4) he drove a city vehicle while impaired in such a manner that resulted in a fatal crash. The investigation shows that Cisneros had up to three beers while on duty as part of an unauthorized undercover bar detail. Then off duty, Cisneros attended a birthday party at The Pour House where he consumed about four more beers and four shots of alcohol. He left the bar around 2 a.m. the next morning when he crashed a city vehicle into Sonia Baker’s PT Cruiser, killing her. He was driving at twice the posted speed limit.

Cisneros resigned on December 21 but the FWPD suspended him indefinitely on February 18 to ensure the suspension would appear in his civil service record. Cisneros, who is currently free on bail, was charged with intoxication manslaughter on February 10.

This is not Cisneros’s first alcohol related offense as a Fort Worth police officer. In March 2006, Cisneros fired a single shot from the sunroof of his own car. He was alone and intoxicated. In April 2006 Cisneros allegedly drove a city vehicle to an Arlington pub then drove an unauthorized female passenger to a home in Mansfield. These two incidents culminated in a 20-day suspension in August 2006, where Cisneros promised to undergo counseling and clean himself up.

This tragic story keeps getting worse. It is absolutely unbelievable that he was drinking while on duty. I am glad the Fort Worth police department is continuing to investigate. But the question remains whether this man should have still been an officer? Weren’t the incidents in 2006 enough?

Information provided by Dallas/Fort Worth Personal Injury Attorney Mark A. Anderson, who can be reached in Dallas at 214-327-8000, in Fort Worth at 817-294-1900, and toll free at 877-294-1115. He can also be contacted by clicking here.

A fatal collision occurred yesterday on Westbound I-20 in Arlington, TX, when a passenger vehicle rear-ended a tractor trailer as it moved slowly from the outside shoulder into a lane of traffic. One of the car’s passengers, Natalie Aguilar, of Garland, was pronounced dead at John Peter Smith Hospital yesterday afternoon. Oscar Zapata was also a passenger in the car and died about an hour after the crash. The driver of the car, whose name has not been released, is in critical condition. Arlington Police Department investigators found open beer cans in the vehicle.

The results of this accident investigation may take a few days. Clearly, alcohol may be a potential issue. It is illegal in Texas to have open containers of beer in a moving vehicle. But this alone does not answer the question of whether the driver was intoxicated. The accident occurred around noon, which is a bit early for DWI accident cases. And the investigators will be looking into the speed of the big rig as it entered the highway. It is always dangerous when a large truck has to enter a busy freeway from the shoulder. It just takes them a long time to get up to the minimum speed. So the truck driver has to make sure that the traffic is clear for him to enter. The trucks hazard lights should have been on as it was getting up to speed. All of this will be looked into by the investigating officers as they try to determine the cause of the tractor trailer accident.

Information and commentary provided by DFW Personal Injury Lawyer Mark A. Anderson, who can be reached in Dallas at 214-327-8000, in Fort Worth at 817-294-1900 and across the State of Texas at 1-877-294-1115. For a quick nswer to your legal question, click here.

On Saturday, two vehicles collided head-on, killing one man and sending a woman to the hospital. Angel Reyna of Fort Worth, TX was pronounced dead at the scene.

The car crash occurred in the 800 block of Longhorn Road near Lottie Lane in Saginaw, TX. The two vehicles were traveling in opposite directions on Longhorn Road when the wreck occurred, according to police. The cause of the accident is still under investigation. The woman in the accident was taken to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

I grew up in Saginaw and am very familiar with this road. It is not curvy at all, in fact it is straight as an arrow. The police reports gave no indication as to the cause of this auto wreck, but my thoughts are that driver distraction or possibly intoxication might have contributed to this accident. Hopefully the Saginaw Police can piece together what happened.

Information provided by Dallas/Fort Worth Car Accident Attorney Mark A. Anderson, who can be reached in Dallas at 214-237-8000, in Fort Worth at 817-294-1900, and toll free across Texas at 877-294-1115. He can also be contacted by clicking here.

Friday 39-year-old Billy Ray Massie, of Grand Prairie, and 28-year-old Keith Anthony Brown, of Arlington, died in a tragic car accident.

The crash occurred in the 800 block of Great Southwest Parkway. According to police, Massie was driving the car, a 1995 Chevrolet Camaro. He was traveling northbound on Great Southwest Parkway at high speeds when he lost control of the car and crashed into a tree. Both men were pronounced dead at the scene.

These are the second and third traffic fatalities in Grand Prairie this year, according to local news sources. I feel bad for the families of these two men. Anytime I see a fatal accident caused by speed I just hate it. It is one of the most common causes of accidents, yet it is so easy to prevent. Just don’t speed!

Information provided by Dallas Injury Lawyer Mark A. Anderson, who can be reached at 214-327-8000 or contacted by clicking here.

I recently blogged here and here about the tragic death of Arlington PD Officer Craig Story, whose motorcycle collided with a school bus on Wednesday. His Harley-Davidson bike burst into flames upon impact and Officer Story was unable to be saved. That motorcycle was scheduled for maintenance as part of a federal recall, according to police.

The recall was ordered because "the tank mounts on the bikes could distort in reaction to severe frame damage from a frontal collision. A fuel leak in the presence of an ignition source may result in a fire, which could lead to injury or death to the rider," according to the National Highway and Traffic Safety Administration. This appears to be exactly what happened, although the Tarrant County medical examiner’s office has not ruled on a cause of Officer Story’s death.

Officer Story’s memorial service will take place on Tuesday, January 19 at 11 a.m. at Crossroads Christian Church in Grand Prairie. The address is 6450 S. Texas 360. He will be buried at Moore Memorial Gardens on North Davis Drive in Arlington. There is a vigil Sunday, January 17 at Arlington Funeral Home at 1221 E. Division Street. There will be a visitation with the family from 6:30-8:30 p.m. Saturday at Arlington Funeral Home.

Here are some places you can make a donation to Officer Story’s memorial fund:
East Arlington police substation, 2001 New York Ave.;
Heroes Park, Southwest Green Oaks Boulevard at Wester Way Drive;
Harold K. Elliott Police Museum at the Police Training Center, 6000 W. Pioneer Parkway;
and Ott Cribbs Public Safety Center, 620 W. Division St., where a patrol car will be in the far northeast parking lot.

Information provided by Dallas/Fort Worth Board Certified Personal Injury Attorney Mark A. Anderson, who can be reached in Dallas at 214-327-8000, in Fort Worth at 817-294-1900, or toll free across Texas at 877-294-1115. He can also be contacted by clicking here.

Officer Craig Gordon Story, courtesy of the Fort Worth Star Telegram

Officer Craig Gordon Story, 34, was tragically killed yesterday in Arlington, TX after the motorcycle he was driving was struck by an AISD school bus. According to local news reports, his lights and siren were on and he was in pursuit of a speeding vehicle going northbound on Cooper Street when the school bus, turning south onto Lynda Lane, crashed into his motorcycle.

Witnesses who saw the collision and Officer Story’s motorcycle burst into flames quickly came to his aid, but the officer tragically died at the scene. The driver of the bus, a 54-year-old man with no reprimands or condemnations on his record, was taken to the police station to talk but was not arrested. No one on the bus was injured.

Officer Story was a decorated seven year veteran of the Arlington police department. He was married with a 2-year-old son and recently found out his wife Danielle was pregnant with a second child.

Information provided by Arlington Personal Injury Attorney Mark A. Anderson, who can be reached at 817-294-1900 or contacted by clicking here.

Emergency personnel comfort each other at the scene, courtesy of the Fort Worth Star Telegram

An absolutely horrible accident occurred today in Arlington TX. According to police and local news reports, an Arlington police department motorcycle officer, whose name has not yet been released, was killed this morning in a collision with an Arlington ISD school bus . The fatal wreck occurred near the intersection of S. Cooper Street and W. Inwood Drive near Arlington High School. Neither the bus driver nor any of the bus’s nine passengers, students at several elementary and middle schools in Arlington, were injured.

Police are investigating the crash and are still unsure of exactly what happened. Witnesses report hearing a loud noise then seeing the officer’s motorcycle in flames. Police are interviewing witnesses at the school to help determine what caused the fatal motorcycle wreck. One student stated that the officer had his lights on, but he didn’t hear a siren.

I am very saddened to hear of this tragic wreck. My thoughts and prayers go out to the family and friends of the fallen officer. Years ago I represented the family of an Arlington PD officer who was killed in the line of duty by a drunk driver. I was amazed at the outpouring of support the police department and the community showed the officer’s family. I am sure that the APD and the Arlington community will again help out the family in this difficult time.

I will post more information as it becomes available.

Information provided by Arlington Injury Lawyer Mark A. Anderson, who can be contacted online by clicking here or by calling 817-294-1900.

Photo from the Fort Worth Star Telegram

12-year-old Liberty Christian school student Ian Kay was killed in a car crash on Tuesday in Flower Mound. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

The crash, which happened near Liberty Christian school, occurred when a car rear-ended a truck, which then crashed into two other vehicles. The driver of the car, Hunter Johnson, is still in the ICU. His brother, Evan Key, was treated at Texas Health Harris Methodist hospital in Fort Worth and then released.

Police continue to investigate the cause of the wreck. I feel very sorry for the family of young Ian. To lose a child is so tragic. I hope the investigation will bring answers to the family.

Information provided by Texas Injury Lawyer Mark A. Anderson, who can be contacted online by clicking here, in Dallas at 214-327-800 or in Fort Worth at 817-294-1900.

Williams Rothlisberger, 17, died in a Fort Worth hospital Tuesday afternoon after a car accident near Krum, outside of Denton. Mr. Rothlisberger was from Denton County.

The car crash happened early Tuesday morning on FM 2450 south of Hopkins Road. Authorities have not released many details from the wreck, but said two vehicles were involved in the crash and Mr. Rothlisberger was thrown from his vehicle.

My deepest condolences go out to the friends and family of this young man. Hopefully, there will be a complete investigation which will provide some answers to the family.

Information provided by Texas Injury Lawyer Mark A. Anderson, offices in Dallas (214-327-8000) and Fort Worth (817-294-1900). Click here to contact online.

A tragic New Year’s Day automobile accident left three teenagers dead and three other teenagers, including the driver, injured and in the hospital. Killed immediately upon impact were Adrian Alvarez, 18, and Fernando Cuevas, 19. Another teen died after being airlifted to Methodist Medical Center of Dallas. Of the injured, a 16 year old girl was ejected from the vehicle and a 17 year old girl suffered a broken leg and is being treated at Denton Regional Medical Center.

According to Denton Police, speed was a major factor in this accident. A policeman had just clocked the car going 78 mph and skid marks indicate the sedan was going close to 100 mph when the driver lost control and hit a barrier on North Loop 288.

To make matters worse, it looks like alcohol may have played a factor, as there were alcoholic beverages in the car and officers noted the smell of alcohol. I don't know if the driver was legally intoxicated but we do know that laws were broken since Texas law requires one to be at least 21 years old to drink alcohol and the driver and all passengers were teenagers. Each year, there are around 1,400 people killed in Texas due to drunk driving.

This is an absolutely horrible wreck. Three teenagers with there entire lives ahead of them--all now victims of another preventable car accident. This wreck had the lethal combination of youth, speed and alcohol. This is a parent’s worst nightmare. My deepest condolences go out to the victims families. I wish them strength during this very trying time.

Information provided by Texas Car Accident Attorney Mark A. Anderson, 1-877-294-1115. With offices in Fort Worth and Dallas, The Anderson Law Firm represents accident victims all over the North Texas area.

On Christmas Eve, 44 year old Timothy Head of Fort Worth died in a chain-reaction car wreck on Western Center Boulevard, just west of I-35W. According to the Fort Worth Police Department, Mr. Head’s 2003 Hyundai was hit in the rear end by a 199 Chevy pickup. The force of the collision caused Mr. Head’s vehicle to run into the back end of a Dodge pickup. Mr. Head was transported to Harris Methodist Downtown where he died.

All fatal car accidents are tragic, and this one is certainly no exception. Mr. Head, a 1984 graduate from Alvarado High School, was married with a daughter. He did nothing wrong and in an instant he lost his life. The driver of the Chevrolet was found to have failed to control his speed. Certainly there was nothing important enough that the pick up driver had to endanger other people’s lives by his reckless driving. This is a wrongful death under the law. My deepest condolences go out to the family and friends of Mr. Head.

Information provided by Fort Worth Car Wreck Lawyer Mark A. Anderson, who can be contacted online by clicking here.

In a tragic accident Tuesday afternoon, 16-year-old Robert Tucker of Richardson died when his friend lost control of the truck he was driving. The truck rolled over and hit a tree, killing Tucker and injuring three other teens.

The driver of the truck was speeding in the 600 block of South Plano Road in Richardson when he lost control. Tucker was pronounced dead at the scene.

More than 5,000 teens die in car accidents every year. Experts say excessive speed, as in this case, and driver distraction and inexperience are often major contributing factors to these deaths. It is so tempting to speed when you are a teenager, but bad things happen when teens speed.

I feel very sorry for the family and friends of Robert Tucker. To lose a child or a friend anytime is just horrible, but especially at this time of year.

Information provided by Dallas Injury Attorney Mark A. Anderson, who can be reached at 214-327-8000 or toll free at 877-294-1115. He can also be contacted by clicking here.

An article in the New York Times today explores the dangers of highway construction zones due to unregulated safety standards. Focusing on pavement edge drop-offs, the un-smoothed edge that occurs when only one side of the road is paved at a time, the article mentions dozens of deaths in Texas due to negligently managed work zones.

Seven people were killed when a car slipped off the edge of one of the pavement drop-offs on 1-20 near Dallas and over-corrected into an oncoming car. In 1998, six people died in nine separate drop-off accidents in Tarrant County due to the repaving of a five mile stretch of 1-35. Justifiably, there were lawsuits filed for these wrongful deaths and court records show that contractors and safety officials knew these pavement drop-offs were dangerous but arguments over the cost of fixing them inhibited any real action being taken. These lawsuits eventually settled for $25 million. In 2005, a motorcycle slipped off the edge of a drop-off along Highway 51 in North Texas and the rider fell off of the bike and was killed by an oncoming car.

These construction zones are dangerous because while the federal government provides safety guidelines, there are few laws and regulations, and these guidelines are enforced differently in different states. Now, with the government’s new stimulus package giving $27 billion in federal funding for statewide highway projects, construction zone accidents may greatly increase.

If you have been injured or lost a loved one as a result of an injury in an accident which occurred in a construction zone and you think that the area was unsafe in any way, you need to contact an experienced injury lawyer as soon as possible. It is important to make sure that the area is properly investigated, photographed, measured and documented. These zones change very quickly after an accident, as the general contractor sometimes sees the faulty design only after a wreck has occurred.

Information provided by Texas Injury Lawyer Mark A. Anderson, who can be reached toll free at 877-294-1115, or contacted by clicking here.

A Dallas County court sentenced Kenneth Brandon Bain to two years in prison and 10 years of probation for hitting and killing two bicyclists with his car after staying up all night drinking and smoking marijuana. He pleaded guilty to one charge of manslaughter.

Bain struck and killed Michael Alfaro and Meredith Hatch with his Lincoln Navigator on June 8, 2008, at 8:20am. They were riding their bicycles near Joe Pool Lake near Grand Prairie, training for a triathlon. Although his blood alcohol level was 0.05 and the legal limit is 0.08, Bain was tested two hours after the crash and it’s estimated that his blood alcohol level was between 0.07 and 0.11 when the crash occurred. He spent all night drinking and had not slept, and admitted to smoking marijuana in his car when the accident occurred.

In seeing this story, and the video, last night on the news, I could definitely see the pain still felt by the families of these two riders. I feel very sorry for them. I realize that only two years in jail probably seems like a slap on the wrist to those who have lost a loved one due to someone lese’s blatant disregard for the law.

An interesting aspect of the sentencing is that as a condition of his probation, Bain must spend 10 days in jail at Christmas and eight days in jail on each victim’s birthday for eight years after he’s released from prison. I have never heard of this type of sentence, but it sounds like a great idea to me.

Information provided by Dallas, Texas Personal Injury Lawyer Mark A. Anderson, phone 214-327-8000, online contact just click here.

Holly Klein and her daughter Deva Szymankiewicz were the only survivors of a tragic crash on Thanksgiving that killed four of their family members on Texas Highway 103 in Lufkin, Texas. The family was traveling from Austin to East Texas when their van collided with a tractor trailer. Apparently the van made a u-turn and was struck by the oncoming truck, according to the Department of Public Safety.

Ms. Klein’s son Dakota, 14, was killed the crash, as well as Ms. Szymankiewicz’s husband Todd and their children, 5-year-old Casimir and 3-year-old Aoibhin. Ms. Klein and Ms. Szymankiewicz were treated at the hospital for their injuries.

This is a tragic accident and my heart goes out to the surviving family members. It sounds like the accident is still under investigation by the DPS. Hopefully, the investigating officers will be able to re-create the accident and determine exactly how it happened. It is possible the driver of the van was not able to appreciate the distance or speed of the 18 wheeler.

Information provided by Texas Board Certified Personal Injury Attorney Mark A. Anderson, who can be reached toll free at 877-294-1115, or contacted by clicking here.

Hurst, Texas resident Ricky Morrison, 32, died at the scene of an accident early Saturday morning in Euless when Cody Worrell, also 32, crashed his car into a utility pole and then into a tree.

Mr. Worrell was driving northbound in the 1200 block of Bear Creek Parkway. According to the Euless Police Department, Mr. Morrison died at the scene and Mr. Worrell was treated at the hospital for his injuries. He was taken to the Euless Jail later Saturday on charges of intoxication manslaughter.

Driving while intoxicated is obviously extremely dangerous. Over 1,400 deaths occur each year in Texas due to drunk driving. While this number has gone down over the years (it is about half of what it was in 1982), we clearly still have a long way to go.

Information provided by Dallas/Fort Worth Personal Injury Attorney Mark A. Anderson, who can be reached in Dallas at 214-327-8000, in Fort Worth at 817-294-1900, or toll free at 877-294-1115, or contacted by clicking here.

30-year-old Jose Cruz of Fort Worth died at Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas on Monday. He was taken to the hospital early Saturday morning after he failed to negotiate a curve near Highway 121 and North West 19th Street in Grand Prairie. Police believe alcohol was a factor in the crash.

This is such a tragic situation that’s seen over and over in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. Each year over 1400 people die in alcohol related accidents here in Texas. My heart goes out to Mr. Cruz's family and friends.

Information provided by Dallas/Fort Worth Can Accident Lawyer Mark A. Anderson, who can be reached toll free at 877-294-1115, or contacted by clicking here.

Recently I wrote about the investigation into the causes of at 2008 deadly bus wreck in Sherman that left 17 dead, which I blogged about here and here. Now, three employees of the inspection company that looked at the bus prior to the deadly accident are being charged with tampering with a government document.

The inspection company, 5 Minute Inspections in Houston, was allegedly issuing hundreds of stickers a month to vehicles that had not been properly inspected, according to investigators. The Texas Department of Public Safety, who filed the charges, did not provide information on whether or not the bus involved in the crash was properly inspected, as the investigation is still ongoing.

This type of conduct is horrible. It puts all of us at risk each time we get in our cars. Without proper inspections, certain companies are going to use trucks and buses that have bad tires, bad brakes….Allowing these dangerous buses on the roads is criminal and I am glad to see that charges have been pursued.

Information provided by Texas Board Certified Personal Injury Lawyer Mark A. Anderson, who can be reached toll free at 877-294-1115, or contacted by clicking here.

In a horrific tragedy on Tuesday, two Dallas-area natives were killed when a tractor-trailer crashed into vehicles stopped in a construction zone on 1-30. The collision set off an explosion that killed four people.

43-year-old Vaughn Gentry was originally from Sherman, and 51-year-old Albert Pruitt was from Addison. Mr. Gentry and Mr. Sherman were in a car stopped in the work zone on the highway. Arkansas residents Walter Carpenter, 77, and Victory Barker, 64, were also killed in the explosion.

My heart goes out to the families of those killed in this tragedy. It seems like every month or so we read about an 18 wheeler running into cars, killing the occupants, in a construction zone. There have been two similar accidents in Gainesville recently. Truckers make mistakes like the rest of us, but their mistakes in not seeing or reacting properly have terrible consequences. These truckers have a higher duty to be careful. Again, I feel sorry for the friends and families for their losses.

Information provided by Texas Board Certified Personal Injury Attorney Mark A. Anderson who can be reached toll free at 877-294-1115 or contacted by clicking here.

A man faces charges this morning of driving while intoxicated and reckless driving after traveling north in the southbound lane near the Northwest Highway exit of the Dallas North Tollway. While driving the wrong way, 39-year-old Dick Eastin struck a light pole and his truck stopped near the center median. Mr. Eastin was injured and taken to Parkland Memorial Hospital.

This driver was lucky no one else was involved in the accident. This is certainly not the first wrong-way incident on the Tollway; click here and here to read about some of the other wrong-way crashes I’ve blogged about. Four people have died this year in accidents caused by wrong-way drivers on the Tollway. The North Texas Tollway Authority is trying to come up with ways to prevent these types of crashes, including more “Wrong Way” and “Do Not Enter” signs as well as making these signs more visible to drivers. I applaud these efforts to prevent wrong way accidents, and I hope no more people have to die before these changes go into effect.

Information provided by Dallas Accident and Injury Attorney Mark A. Anderson who can be reached toll free at 877-294-1115, or contacted by clicking here.

A hit and run accident happened this past Sunday evening in Dallas in the 5100 block of South Marsalis Avenue, just south of Loop 12. According to the Dallas Police Department, a speeding vehicle struck another vehicle shortly before 6:00 p.m. The accident caused the second vehicle to hit a tree, killing 35-year-old Kedrick Rattler and injuring Mr. Rattler’s passenger, who was taken to Methodist Dallas Medical Center. The driver of the speeding vehicle fled the scene and, according to the DPD, has not been located.

This is a terrible accident and I feel very sorry for Mr. Rattler’s family and friends. I wonder if the person who caused this accident even knows the results of their actions. I’m sure they know they caused a wreck, but I wonder if they know that their reckless action ended another man’s life. I hope the Dallas Police Department can use all available evidence in their accident investigation and find the speeding driver. Should they be able to find the driver, serious charges, and hopefully prison time, will result.

On the civil side, I hope Mr. Rattler, or the owner of the car, carried uninsured motorist protection to compensate the family for this premature death. In a case like this, uninsured motorist coverage is usually the only available insurance to compensate the family.

Information and commentary provided by Dallas Injury Lawyer Mark A. Anderson who can be contacted at 214-327-8000 or at www.maafirm.com.

In what I consider to be a justified corporate reprimand, Fort Worth based Burlington Northern Sante Fe was penalized by a judge in Minneapolis, Minnesota for hiding and lying about evidence. The penalty, called a sanction, was issued by the presiding judge who heard evidence in a case involving the death of four young people whose car collided with a BNSF train at a crossing. The judge found compelling evidence that Burlington Northern lost or fabricated evidence, interfered with the family’s investigation of the accident and lied or misrepresented facts to conceal the truth. Basically, all of the allegations of lying involve whether the crossing gate was working. Apparently at the trial, Burlington Northern tried to use fabricated evidence that the crossing gate was indeed working, when all other evidence pointed to the fact that the crossing gate was not working.

The amount of the sanction issued by the presiding judge was $4 million. That sanction will definitely be appealed by BNSF. However, I hope that the appellate courts will uphold the sanction because this kind of conduct is despicable. I hope that this new story is making the national news, even though it might only appear in our local papers as BNSF it is located here in Fort Worth. When corporate defendants do this type of shenanigans, they need to be punished. Our wonderful trial system only works if our jury can make decisions based upon the real truth. When companies start fabricating evidence, they should be punished. And they should be punished severely.

Information and commentary provided by Fort Worth Dallas Accident Attorney Mark A. Anderson, who can be contacted at 877 294 1115 or at www.maafirm.com.

The city of Dallas is expected to pay a settlement to the family of Cole Berardi, a 10-year-old boy who was tragically killed while riding his bike when a Dallas Police Officer struck him with his squad car. If the settlement is approved by the Dallas City Council, the city will pay the family $250,000-the maximum allowed under Texas law.

The fatal accident occurred at night on October 17, 2008 on Belt Line Road in Dallas. Senior Cpl. Michael Vaughn was racing to a call without his lights and siren on when he struck Berardi on his bicycle. Speed was a factor in the crash, according to police. Vaughn was driving around 70 mph in a 40 mph zone. In July of this year, Vaughn received a one-day suspension for driving over the speed limit without the lights and siren on. Within days of Berardi’s death, Police Chief David Kunkle issued new driving rules for Dallas police.

The value of a human life is worth way more than this settlement. But our laws protect our governments and this is the most the law allows one to recover against our cities. I feel so sorry for the family of this young boy. While it is necessary for police to speed on occasion, it is wrong to speed without the lights and sirens on. If the officer had been using the lights and sirens, then this accident probably would not have happened.

Information provided by Dallas/Fort Worth Injury Lawyer Mark A. Anderson who can be reached toll free at 877-294-1115, or contacted by clicking here.

A passenger in a single car crash which occurred early Saturday morning in Watauga died Tuesday at a hospital in Fort Worth, Texas. The passenger, Kent Powell, was only 27 years old. The accident occurred in the 6200 block of Chapman road when a man driving a Corvette lost control of the car and hit a telephone pole. Mr. Powell was ejected from the car. The driver was taken to the hospital as well and he was already released.

I have no idea how this unfortunate accident happened. I don’t know if speed, alcohol or other vehicles were involved. Investigating a single car accident is very difficult. Hopefully the driver is not seriously hurt, and hopefully he can provide the investigators at the Watauga Police department the information they need to complete their investigation. I feel sorry for Mr. Powell’s family. They lost a man way too young.

Information provided by Dallas Fort Worth Injury Lawyer Mark A. Anderson, who can be reached toll free at 877-294-3113, or contacted by clicking here.

A woman died Tuesday after a collision with a dump truck on North Main Street in Fort Worth.

41-year-old Fuguria “Renee” Reed was tragically pronounced dead at the scene after the van she was riding in struck the side of a dump truck. The dump truck turned left onto Main Street from Auto Court in front of the van. As a result of the crash, Ms. Reed was thrown from her wheelchair inside the van. The driver of the van, Ms. Reed’s mother, was injured and taken to Texas Health Harris Methodist in Fort Worth. The dump truck driver was not hurt.

There are many questions surrounding this terrible accident. Was the dump truck at fault for turning in front of the van? Was Ms. Reed’s wheelchair properly secured? Hopefully these questions and more will be answered during the course of the investigation.

Information provided by Dallas/Fort Worth Accident Injury Lawyer Mark A. Anderson, who can be reached at 817-294-1900, or contacted by clicking here.

A school bus driver died yesterday morning in a collision with an 18-wheeler that ripped off the front of the bus. Thankfully, no children were on board at the time.

The accident happened on FM 439 just outside of Belton, a town near Waco, Texas. The driver was pronounced dead at the scene of the accident with the big rig.

Luckily no children were hurt in this terrible accident. So far there are no details about who was at fault as the crash is still being investigated. The driver of the tractor trailer seemed to be fine.

Information provided by Texas Board Certified Personal Injury Attorney Mark A. Anderson, who can be reached toll free at 877-294-1115, or who can be contacted by clicking here.

A Dallas woman is fighting for tougher legislation regarding cell phone use while driving and will meet with industry executives, legislators, and White House officials in Washington, DC later this month. Jennifer Smith lost her mother in a car crash a year ago after a driver talking on his cell phone struck Ms. Smith’s mother’s vehicle in Oklahoma City.

I recently blogged about one of the new laws passed in the most recent Texas Legislative Session regarding cell phone use in school zones. As of September 1, it is illegal to use a hand-held device for any reason in a school zone. It is also illegal for anyone under the age of 18 to use a cell phone while driving anywhere.

The ban came after increasing numbers of car wrecks and deaths caused by cell phone use while driving, such as the accident with Ms. Smith’s mother. Some experts claim that texting while driving is even more dangerous than drunk driving. This information may have contributed to lawmaker’s ban of cell phones for teens since they are the age group that engages in the most texting.

Although banned for teens and anyone in a school zone, cell phone use while driving remains legal in Texas despite efforts for a statewide ban. Hopefully these new restrictions on cell phone use will prevent tragedies like the one Jennifer Smith had to go through.

Information provided by Dallas/Fort Worth Accident Injury Lawyer Mark A. Anderson, who can be reached toll free at 877-294-1115 or by clicking here.

A man driving the wrong way on Highway 121 in Haltom City, Texas died when he crashed into an 18-wheel truck around 2 am this morning.

Police were investigating a call about a driver going the wrong way on the highway when they caught up to the purple Chevrolet Cavalier going southbound near the Loop 820 split. When they approached the vehicle, however, the driver sped off again and headed straight for an oncoming tractor trailer. The driver of the big rig turned to miss the Cavalier, and the driver of the Cavalier crashed into the rear axle of the truck and died on impact. The truck driver was not injured.

This was such a senseless death. Of course one cannot assume the man driving the wrong way was drunk or on drugs, but these are common causes of this type of accident. If only he had stopped and talked to police instead of trying to flee, he might still be alive today.

Information provided by Texas Board Certified Injury Attorney Mark A. Anderson, who can be reached toll free at 1-877-294-1115, or by clicking here.

A Texas woman who recently started a new business in Florida died Monday in a tragic accident at her hot dog stand in Tampa.

40-year-old Catalina Allmon was outside the stand when the accident occurred. An unsecured trailer carrying a large riding lawnmower detached from a passing truck and entered the parking lot. The trailer struck Allmon and her business partner Vicente Hernande Quintero. The mower crushed and killed Allmon while the trailer ran over and injured Quintero.

According to investigators, the trailer became unhitched from 16-year-old Dennis Tintle’s truck as he drove over a dip in the road. Tintle was cited for failing to secure his trailer. Unfortunately, Tintle’s negligence caused a wrongful death.

This is such an unfortunate and avoidable accident. Drivers pulling anything behind their vehicle have a responsibility to make sure it is properly secured. In this case, properly securing that trailer could have prevented the death of a mother who was trying to provide a better life for her children.

Information can be provided by Texas Board Certified Injury Attorney Mark A. Anderson, who can be contacted toll free at 1-877-294-1115 or by clicking here.

David Kelton, a 19-year-old resident of Arlington, Texas, was killed early Tuesday morning August 4, 2009, after he crashed into the back of an 18-wheeler in the 1200 block of West North Carrier Parkway in Grand Prairie. He was pronounced dead at the scene. Mr. Kelton was driving his 1997 Ford pickup truck on West North Carrier. According to Grand Prairie police, the 18-wheeler had just exited a warehouse driveway and pulled out in front of Mr. Kelton’s truck onto West North Carrier, blocking the lanes. The crash left the roof of David Kelton’s pickup truck sheared off. The truck driver was not injured. The crash is still under investigation.

David Kelton recently graduated from Arlington Martin High School in June.

This is Grand Prairie's ninth traffic fatality this year.

Commentary: At this point, we still don't know what caused this tragic wreck. But having handled many trucking accident cases in the past, I would guess that the truck entered the roadway directly in front of the pick up truck and the young driver could do nothing to avoid the accident. Another accident which could have been avoided.

Mark A. Anderson is can be reached at 817-294-1900 or online by clicking here.

In another deadly accident involving alcohol, Fabian Nicholas Perez, 24 years old, was killed in an accident in the 9700 block of Harry Hines Boulevard near Webb Chapel extension. Mr. Perez was a passenger in an Isuzu Rodeo sport utility vehicle driven by 22 year old Aguilar Perez. According to police reports, the Rodeo was driving at a high rate of speed and ran into the back of a flatbed wrecker truck. The driver of the Isuzu Rodeo survived the crash and fled the scene on foot. He was captured a short time later. Police suspect that the driver was intoxicated and he will be charged with intoxication manslaughter.

This is yet another preventable accident. As we all know, drinking and driving is a serious and sometimes deadly offense. In Texas, there are over 1,500 fatalities each year as a result of drunk driving. For additional information on the dangers of driving while intoxicated, please click here.

Information and commentary provided by Texas Board Certified Personal Injury Attorney Mark A. Anderson, who can be contacted at (817) 294 1900 or online.

In another tragic car accident involving a driver going the wrong way on a local highway, three died early this morning when a black Infiniti headed eastbound in the westbound lanes of I-20 and ran head on into a dark colored SUV. The accident occurred about 12:30 am near Polk Street, in the red Bird area of South Dallas. All three occupants of the two vehicles died at the scene.

The Infiniti was being driven by Ramiro Moreno of Dallas, a 29 year old auto technician and the father of two young children. His passenger was 21 year old Ian Edward Pierson. The innocent victim driving her SUV was 45 year old Karla Rivers of Cedar Hill, who was a dispatcher at Baylor university medical center at Dallas.

Was alcohol a factor in this accident? Most likely. The officers found alcohol in the men’s car. As everyone knows, it is illegal to drive a car while intoxicated, but people do it every day. There is no way anyone in their right mind would go the wrong way on the interstate. I am pretty sure we will be hearing later that toxicology tests will come back showing a high Blood Alcohol Content of the driver of the wrong way vehicle.

Alcohol contributes to over 1500 deaths on Texas roads each year. And there have been four deaths alone this year on the Dallas Tollway from two separate wrong way driver accidents. For more information on drunk driving wrecks and the rights of injury victims or their families, please click here.

Information and commentary provided by Mark A. Anderson, Dallas Fort Worth Accident Lawyer, who can be contacted at 877-294-1115 or ONLINE.

This past Friday, a 51 year old Bedford, Texas man, Theo Richardson, died from injuries he received when his motorcycle collided with a car. The accident occurred at the 300 block of East Pipeline Road in Hurst, Texas. Mr. Richardson was transported to Harris Methodist Hospital in downtown Fort Worth, where he was pronounced dead as a result of blunt trauma to the head and chest.

The news reports do not say how the accident occurred. But I have represented many families of motorcycle riders and based on that experience, my guess is that the driver of the car did not see the motorcyclist and either turned in front of him or pulled out in front of him. The failure to see a motorcyclist is the No. 1 cause of wrecks involving motorcycles. That is not to say that the motorcycle riders are never at fault, as they sometimes are, but the odds are that the vehicle driver just plain did not notice the motorcycle.

This information and commentary is provided by Texas Motorcycle Attorney Mark A. Anderson, who can be reached at 817-294-1900 or Contacted Online.

Three people were killed and three were injured when a pickup truck hit motorcycle riders head-on during a charity ride in Corsicana Saturday.

The ride was held on a rural highway outside Corsicana, which is 65 miles south of Dallas. Apparently the driver of the pickup truck swerved into the oncoming lane of parading cyclists, striking two motorcycles before it flipped and hit two more.

Among those who died were 34-year-old Leslie McCluney, a teacher at Corsicana High School who was riding on the back of a motorcycle with her father, 61-year-old Terry Nelson, who was also killed. David Coley, 54, was the third motorcyclist who died at the scene. The three were among the first two motorcycles hit by the truck and all were residents of Corsicana.

Two other drivers were taken to Dallas hospitals and were last known to be in fair condition. The driver of the pickup who caused the crash was William Lindsey Jr, 54, who was taken to the hospital, treated and released.

The cause of the motorcycle accident is unkown at this time as an investigation is being conducted.

The ride was a charity event to benefit the Corsicana High School's drill team.

Information provided by Dallas Fort Worth Accident Attorney Mark A. Anderson 817-294-1900.

A 13-year-old boy and his grandfather died Sunday from injuries they received in a multi-vehicle car accident just south of Gainsville, Texas.

Gervious Hinkle and his grandson Casey Hinkle, both of Fort Worth, were traveling northbound on Insterstate 35 around 2:30 p.m. when they were forced to slow for traffic and road construction in front of them. All of a sudden, an 18-wheeler came barreling up at a high rate of speed and crashed into the slowed cars, causing a 9-vehicle chain reaction auto accident.

Hinkle and his grandson were driving a Ford Explorer when they were hit. Hinkle died at the scene. Casey was taken to JPS Hospital in downtown Fort Worth where he was pronounced dead an hour later from his serious injuries.

Casey's mother and sister were also in the SUV and were hospitalized for injuries, but their conditions are unknown at this time.

The driver of the big-rig, Randy Crume, was from Harrah, Oklahoma. He was issued a citation by highway patrol for failing to control his speed.

If you or a loved one has been seriously injured or killed in a vehicle crash, please contact the Anderson Law Firm to learn your rights by calling 817-294-1900.

An Oklahoma Turnpike accident has claimed 10 lives--some of which were residents of North Texas. The crash happened Friday and is still under investigation by the Oklahoma Highway Patrol.

Cars were stopped on the turnpike due to another accident up ahead when an 18-wheeler crashed into the vehicles in front of it, causing a chain-reaction wreck involving several cars.

Among those killed were the Hayes family of Frisco, Texas--Randall Hayes, 38, Ethan Hayes, 7 and the most-recent person to die from her serious head injuries, 35-year-old Shelby Hayes.

Others who died were residents of Oklahoma including: Oklahoma City residents Oral Hooks, 69, Earlene Hooks, 63, Antonio Hooks, 42, and Dione Hooks, 41 and Crossroads Oklahama resident Cynthia Olson, 55.

The driver of the big-rig was 76-year-old Donald Creed of Willard Missouri, who is reportedly in good condition after being treated for head injuries in a Missouri hospital.

Reports say some of the victims were trapped in the accident wreckage for almost 9 hours before they were able to get out.

This tragic case of several wrongful deaths is so devastating because with a little better driver attention, this crash might have been easily preventable. My heart goes out to the families effected by this huge accident.

If one of your loved ones has died due to the negligence of another person or company, please contact Board Certified Texas Wrongful Death Attorney Mark A. Anderson for a free consultation by calling 817-294-1900.

Dalton Thomas Hardaway, 17, of Arlington was killed early Saturday when he lost control of his 1985 Ford Tempo as he was driving north on Texas 360 near Arkansas Lane. He struck the concrete barrier and died at the scene. Hardaway had a 19-year-old passenger who luckily only received minor injuries.

No other information is available publicly at this time. Was speed or alcohol a factor in this tragic car accident? More information will be available soon.

In an unrelated motorcycle accident, motorcycle rider Oscar Carmichael of Dalworthington Gardens (DWG) died late Saturday when a driver going in the opposite direction turned in front of Carmichael, who had to lay his bike down in an attempt to avoid the collision. The accident occurred at Pioneer Parkway and Great Southwest Parkway. At this point, it is unknown if speed played a part in this tragic accident.

A scene investigation will be important to determine who was at fault in this accident. Cars pulling in front of motorcycles are a very common cause of vehicle collisions. Whether the motorcyclist was speeding will have an impact on the determination of liability. Also, any witnesses will help the investigators determine who was at fault.

Information provided by Texas Wrongful Death Lawyer Mark A. Anderson, 817-294-1900

Southbound traffic on Interstate 35 in Carrollton, Texas was shut down for the afternoon, continuing through the evening rush hour after a multi-vehicle wreck around 1 p.m. involving a tractor trailer and two cars.

The two cars were parked on the shoulder of the southbound lanes near the George Bush Turnpike when an 18-wheeler crashed into the cars, jackknifed, rolled over and then burst into flames.

A woman in one of the parked cars died from her injuries. She was 52, but her name has not been released.

The cab of the semi-truck immediately caught fire while its 64-year-old male driver was trapped inside. Another motorist stopped and pulled the truck driver out of the burning cab. Both of those men were rushed to Parkland Memorial Hospital in Dallas and the big rig driver was reportedly in critical condition.

Apparently three police officers were treated for heat exhaustion.

If you have suffered serious injuries in a vehicle wreck, please contact Texas 18-Wheeler Accident Attorney Mark Anderson for a free consultation.

Photograph from wfaa.com.

A construction worker died yesterday when he was run over and dragged by the truck he was repairing.

The vehicle accident happened at 9:30 in the morning at a city pump station on 4100 Main Street in The Colony, Texas. The victim, who remains unidentified, was underneath a truck working on it when another worker got in the truck and drove off.

It appears the worker who drove the truck did not know anyone was underneath it and the incident is being investigated as an accident. No charges have been filed and The Colony Police Department does not anticipate filing any.

The worker who was killed was not employed by the city who owned the pumping station, but instead, contracted out by a construction company to add more lines to the pump station.

Many times, when people call my office, they are confused when I tell them I cannot take their “worker’s comp case” because I don’t go after the employer or co-employees who are liable for accidents. In this instance however, the construction worker’s wrongful death was caused by the negligence of another person (employed by the city).

It can seem very complicated, but the point is, this man’s death was caused by the negligence of a third party and therefore his family has the right to bring a claim for damages on his behalf based on the negligence of the driver. As the driver was employed by the city, the doctrine of Sovereign Immunity will come into play, which limits the amount of compensation one can recover against a governmental entity.

If you have questions about wrongful death claims or making a claim for injuries sustained in a car wreck, please contact the Anderson Law Firm by calling 817-294-1900.

Two 23-year-old women were seriously injured when a man who was driving the wrong way on the Dallas North Tollway crashed into their car early Sunday morning.

Ryan Matthew, 27, of Dallas was driving south in the northbound lanes of the Tollway for nearly 10 miles before colliding with the car carrying the two women. He started driving the wrong way at Cotton Gin Road up in Frisco.

Before crashing into the women, Matthew narrowly missed striking a police cruiser head-on. Shortly after, around 1:45 a.m. he slammed into Hannah Jung and Hannah Hong of Plano and Richardson. The car wreck happened near the exit for the George Bush Turnpike.

Matthew, Hong and Jung were all rushed to Parkland Memorial Hospital in Dallas and treated for serious injuries. Hong was released, but Jung remained in the intensive-care unit and Matthew was in fair condition as of yesterday.

What caused Matthew to drive the wrong was is under investigation; it is unknown whether alcohol or drugs were a factor.

Strangely, three people called 9-1-1 between 11:16 and 11:22 p.m. Saturday night to report a separate driver going the wrong way on the Tollway. This motorist was driving the opposite direction as Matthews between Lovers Lane and Wycliff Avenue, but fortunately no accidents were reported and no one was caught.

Alarmingly, four people have been killed since April in wrong-way crashes on the 33-mile Dallas Tollway; I wrote about a man who worked for the Dallas Morning News who died driving the wrong way. Due to the astounding number of wrong-way incidences, there’s been a cry to do more to alert drivers of going the wrong way, instead of just posting signs on entrance and exit ramps. There’s even been talk of adding road spikes by the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT).

Whether these are drunk-driving related accidents, or due to confusion late at night, something needs to be done to prevent more from dying in these tragic crashes.

If you’ve been seriously injured in a vehicle-related wreck, please call the Anderson Law Firm for a free consultation at 817-294-1900.

Two Fort Worth residents were killed and seven more Fort Worth residents injured early this morning in a southwest Missouri auto accident. The car crash which happened on Interstate 44 in Stotts City (near Springfield) happened around 5:30 a.m. when a driver of an SUV lost control. The vehicle went over the median and overcorrected before flipping several times. Two passengers were ejected.

The two who were killed were 31-year-old Anna Leal and a Jamie Rodriguez, Sr., both of Fort Worth. The seven other victims were all taken to the hospital with moderate injuries. They were: Jamie Rodriguez, Jr., Brian Ramirez, Sandra Lupercio, 26, Luis E. Nunez, 31, Luis R. Nunez, 10, Jacqueline Nunez, 5 and David Nunez, 10.

Since the accident occurred in Missouri, the laws for making claims for personal injuries will be different than those in Texas. For instance, if any of those involved in the wreck decide to make an injury claim, the Statute of Limitations in Missouri is 5 years, unlike Texas, in which they would only have 2 years to assert a claim.

If you have been injured in any kind of vehicle accident which was caused by another person’s negligence, contact Texas Injury Lawyer Mark A. Anderson for a free consultation by calling 817-294-1900.

A new book has just been released which informs all types of victims in their personal injury claims. The book, 15 Mistakes That Will Wreck Your Texas Accident Case, is written by Mark A. Anderson, a Board Certified Personal Injury Specialist from Fort Worth, Texas.

The book, which focuses largely on car accidents, discusses all the different ways that injury victims can harm their own claims and offers practical pointers on how injured parties can avoid these common pitfalls. But that's not all the book covers. It also discusses what constitutes valid injury claims, what goes into valuing an injury claim, how the injury claims process works (from the accident all the way through trial) and what to look for, as well as what to be wary of when hiring an accident attorney. 15 Mistakes also points out and describes various types of available insurance which come into play during the claims process and common myths about insurance companies and settlements.

15 Mistakes is a must-read for accident victims in Texas. It's written in plain English--not filled with typical legal jargon. The book is most-helpful if it's read after an accident and before a decision is made to hire an attorney, but everyone can benefit from its useful tips.

Mark Anderson's book is available for FREE to Texas residents, who can order the book by visiting www.DontWreckYourCase.com, or by calling the Anderson Law Firm at 817-294-1900. Non-Texas residents can purchase the book online for $16.95 at www.amazon.com.

An Azle man died Tuesday night after his car slid out of control in the rain and into oncoming traffic. 20-year-old Jeffrey Albright had been driving his Honda Sedan in the westbound lanes of Jacksborough Highway in Fort Worth when he lost control and spun out into the eastbound lanes, crashing into Buick in the 7600 block of the highway.

The auto wreck happened around 7:40 p.m. and Albright was pronounced dead at the scene by the Tarrant County Medical Examiner's Office. The driver of the Buick, an unidentified woman, was CareFlighted to a nearby hospital with critical injuries.

Heavy rains and large hail swept through North Texas Tuesday night causing many accidents and lots of damage to trees and properties.

To learn more about your rights when making a personal injury claim, contact the Anderson Law Firm at 817-294-1900 for a free consultation.

A Fort Worth woman was killed this morning when her vehicle was t-boned by a Hummer. Robin Hagen, 50, was driving eastbound in the 7000 block of Lake Country Drive in Northwest Fort Worth when a man in a southbound Hummer ran a red light and struck Hagen's Nissan.

The car accident happened around 8 a.m. and Hagen was pronounced dead at the scene. The man in the Hummer did not suffer any injuries. An accident investigation will determine whether or not charges will be filed.

If you have been injured in a car crash which was caused by another person's negligence, please contact Texas Board Certified Injury Attorney Mark A. Anderson at 817-294-1900.

The House and Senate are working on presenting a bill to Gov. Rick Perry which, if passed, would require children to ride in car-seats until they are at least 4-foot-9 or 8 years old.

Currently, the law requires children to be 5 years old and/or more than 3 feet tall. The number of deaths and injuries to children from car wrecks are a huge problem in Texas. In fact, lawmakers say motor-vehicle accidents are one of the main causes of child fatalities.

At first glance, the bill seems like a no-brainer, but it does present problems for those with many children. People with multiple children under 8-years-old may have to go out and buy more booster seats because their 6 or 7-year-olds have grown out of their chairs and passed them on to younger siblings. This is another expense in a tough economy.

Another problem the potential law presents is in carpooling instances. The new law would require every child in a vehicle under age 8 or under the height requirement to be strapped into a booster chair and circumstances don’t always allow for that—especially in emergency situations or when mothers give other children rides home from school.

Luckily, if the bill passes, there will be a 1-year warning period where tickets will not be administered. Then after June 1, 2010, the fine for violating the law will be 25 dollars.
Seatbelts are made for adults and requiring young children to stay in a car-seat longer is a much safer option. Lap belts ride up and shoulder belts can cut into a child’s neck and face in a car crash. Booster seats elevate small kids so that their stronger bones (like the collarbone and pelvis) are the ones the seatbelt targets in an accident.

If your child has suffered injuries in an auto-accident or other type of injury incident, please contact the Anderson Law Firm to learn how you can act as an advocate for a child.

Michel Cowan, 30, of Fort Worth died yesterday in Arlington after the motorcycle he was driving crashed into a car on Mayfield Road.

A 21-year-old woman pulled out of an apartment complex at Mayfield Avenue, just west of New York Avenue, onto the 1900 block of Mayfield Road, right in the path of Cowan. Cowan’s motorcycle crashed right into the driver side of the woman’s Honda Civic. He had been going eastbound on Mayfield.

Cowan had been wearing a helmet but died at the scene of the accident. The woman was CareFlighted to Dallas Methodist Hospital where she remains being treated for her injuries.

The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports that this is Arlington’s 16th traffic-related fatality already in 2009.

The police report will determine who was liable for this accident—whether Cowan was speeding or the woman failed to yield the right of way by pulling out in front of him. Either way, it was a tragic accident which resulted in a wrongful death.

If you or a loved one has been injured or killed in a vehicle-related accident, please contact the Anderson Law Firm at 817-294-1900 to learn your rights.

A 16-year-old Little Elm High Schooler was killed early Sunday morning when a woman drove the wrong way on the Dallas North Tollway and crashed into her vehicle. 24-year-old Mariza Martinez of Dallas was driving her pickup truck south in the northbound lanes of the tollway just after midnight when she crashed into Kara Taylor’s SUV by the Main Street exit. Taylor was taken to Frisco’s Centennial Medical Center where she was pronounced dead immediately following the car crash.

A 15-year-old girl who was riding passenger in Taylor’s car was also taken to the hospital, but released with minor injuries. Martinez was taken to the Medical Center of Plano with unknown injuries. She was not killed in the crash, though.

A pending accident investigation will reveal whether or not charges will be filed. Results from toxicology testing and scene investigation will determine whether or not Martinez will be cited.
The lanes on the tollway were closed until 4 a.m. Sunday due to the wreck.

If someone you love suffered a wrongful death in a car wreck, or sustained serious injuries, please contact the Anderson Law Firm for a free consultation at 817-294-1900.