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Aug 15, 2011 - Car Accidents by Cross & Smith

The Alabama Highway Patrol reported a busy weekend — responding to at least three injury accidents on Sunday afternoon. Our Tuscaloosa personal injury lawyers remind motorists that August is traditionally the deadliest month of the year. Accidents in Etowah and DeKalb counties were reported on Sunday, including an Alabama trucking accident on I-59 near mile marker 176. That accident occurred about 1:30 a.m. The 57-year-old driver was injured. Two teens from Boaz were injured on Alabama Highway 179. That accident involved a 16- and 17-year-old in a Mitsubishi. A third accident involved a 1995 Ford on County Road 163. MSN reports that August is the deadliest month on the road. Nearly 3,000 motorists died on the nation’s roads in August of 2009, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Statistics for last year are due out later this summer.

Aug 3, 2011 - Personal Injury by Cross & Smith

Pedestrian accidents in Alabama involving children happen all too often and there’s a new group of children on this high-risk list that are especially prone to these types of accidents — children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD-C ). Recent research, provided by the University of Alabama at Birmingham, concludes that these individuals chose to cross roads and intersections in riskier situations than other children. “Future efforts may focus on remediating executive deficits, which may, in turn, prevent pedestrian injuries in this at-risk population,” the researchers reported online ahead of the August issue of Pediatrics.

Jul 25, 2011 - Car Accidents by Cross & Smith

Technology is being used to help keep older drivers safe on the road. Senior driving safety is among the fastest growing health and safety issues in the nation as the 70 million baby boomers begin hitting the doors to retirement. Our Tuscaloosa personal injury lawyers know many families struggle with the issue of helping parents or older loved ones determine when the time has come to hand over the keys. Such conversations can be difficult, even contentious; yet it is a critical step in the aging process and can prevent a family member from being involved in a serious or fatal Alabama car accident. In Florida, the Silver Alert program uses digital highway signs to locate lost or confused seniors; in the three years since the program’s inception, 44 older drivers have been helped.

Jul 20, 2011 - Car Accidents by Cross & Smith

The feds are making a major push to outlaw cell phone use by drivers nationwide in an effort to reduce to risk of car accidents in Tuscaloosa and elsewhere caused by drivers distracted by cell phones and text messaging behind the wheel. Our Tuscaloosa car accidents lawyers are frequently called to represent victims who are injured or killed in an accident caused by a driver who was not paying attention; cell phones continue to be a leading cause of distraction. Carolyn McCarthy, a Democratic Congresswoman from New York, has introduced the Safe Drivers Act of 2011 in Congress, which would make using a cell phone illegal while behind the wheel, except in cases of emergency. Alabama is one of a dwindling number of states with a distracted driving law aimed only at young drivers under the age of 18, according to the Governors Highway Safety Association. A few states — including Ohio and Florida — still have no laws at all. Some 38 states have passed some form of a text messaging ban. The jigsaw of laws — combined with some resistance to act at all — has Congress pushing a nationwide solution to the issue.

Jul 11, 2011 - Car Accidents by Cross & Smith

The National Transportation Safety Board’s (NTSB) list of the “most wanted” drivers in the United States has been released. On this list are a number of drivers that are most likely to cause a car accident in Alabama and elsewhere. You bet drunk drivers in Alabama are on the list. These are drivers that cause serious and fatal accidents with alarming regularity — nationwide, more than one-third of all fatal crashes involve a drunk driver. Alabama is currently targeting drunk drivers. Governor Robert Bentley recently signed Senate Bill 361 into law. This law provides stricter penalties for those who have been convicted of a DUI in Alabama, according to WAFF 48 News. The new law requires that some convicted drunk drivers install ignition interlocks on their cars.

Jul 5, 2011 - Car Accidents by Cross & Smith

Red-light cameras will be installed in another city to reduce the risks of Alabama car accidents. Late last week, the Midfield City Council adopted a new ordinance that will allow for photographic traffic signal enforcement systems, or red-light cameras, to be installed at a number of intersections that have been deemed dangerous throughout city, according to Alabama Live. This ordinance could allow the city to be the first in Jefferson County to use red-light cameras to enforce traffic laws and to charge motorists a pretty penny for disobeying traffic signals. The ordinance was approved shortly after the state Legislature approved a bill, presented by Rep. Merika Coleman, D-Hueytown, which allows the city to use these red-light cameras. The bill was recently signed into law by Gov. Robert Bentley. Our Tuscaloosa car accident attorneys understand the dangers of intersection accidents and hope these cameras deter red-light runners. Once they’re installed, if you’re busted speeding through a red light the city can fine owners of vehicles $100 for the offense. Officials say that red-light runners are a big problem in Midfield, especially along stretches of the Bessemer Superhighway in the city.

Jun 27, 2011 - Car Accidents by Cross & Smith

Our Alabama Personal Injury & Wrongful Death Attorneys wish each of you a safe and enjoyable Fourth of July. Please celebrate responsibly, don’t drink and drive, and stay safe around water, whether it’s in the pool or on the boat. Summer is officially upon us, and many people will be out on the roads driving during the weekend, while others may enjoy boating on the state’s many lakes or on the Gulf of Mexico. Some may choose to stay close to home and enjoy barbecues, swimming and personal fireworks. Vehicle accidents: AAA estimates that about 39 million Americans will travel 50 miles or more from their home over the long weekend, USA Today reports. That’s actually down from 40 million last year, and the national auto group attributes that to the nearly $1 increase in gas from this time last year.

Jun 24, 2011 - Personal Injury by Cross & Smith

The National Safety Council is using the entire month of June to raise awareness of preventable injuries. They will be using June 19th through the 25th to raise awareness about the danger and the common occurrence of slips, trips and falls. These accidents are among some of the top causes of unintentional personal injuries in Alabama and elsewhere. It has been reported that nearly 9 million people visit an emergency department each year because of these accidents. Our Tuscaloosa personal injury lawyers would like to speak directly to those that are 55 and older as this is the age group that is most likely to be the victim of one of these falls. When a resident of this age experiences a fall, they are likely to suffer from a number of injuries that can hinder their ability to lead an independent and active life. Many times it is the fault of property owners for not properly caring for their facilities. These owners can be held responsible for damages in these instances. It is important to contact an attorney immediately if you experience a fall in a public area.

Jun 22, 2011 - Car Accidents by Cross & Smith

The summer season is finally here. That means school has let and out teens have their mind on everything but school work as they’ll be setting out to hang out with friends and soak in the beautiful weather. Unfortunately, these upcoming months are some of the deadliest for our teen drivers as these young drivers typically experience an increased risk for a fatal car accidents in Alabama between now and Labor Day. According to Mothers Against Drunk Driving, May, June, July and August hold 9 of the 10 deadliest days of the year for teens on our road. This season also kicks off the start of the 100 deadliest days for our teenage drivers. More teens are expected to die during these months than the average of any other time period throughout the year.

Jun 16, 2011 - Car Accidents by Cross & Smith

Huntsville police recently announced the kickoff of a new pedestrian awareness campaign, according to the Huntsville Times. And with good reason – pedestrian accidents continue to be a leading cause of serious and fatal injuries statewide and across the nation. A new report by Transportation For America takes a look at all of the pedestrian accidents that have occurred nationwide in the last decade. During this time there were approximately 47,000 pedestrian deaths and roughly 688,000 pedestrian injuries that occurred on roadways across the U.S. Now, Dangerous by Design 2011 will look at the pedestrian accidents in Alabama and elsewhere in the United States in an attempt to construct solutions to fix this deadly problem that is too often overlooked. Our Alabama personal injury attorneys understand that one of the most beneficial ways to avoid these serious accidents is to examine and fix poor driving habits. Most of these accidents occur because of driver inattention.