As the spring weather heats up, more and more Modesto and Stockton families and ‘weekend warriors’ will be ‘hitting the road’ to their respective recreational destinations. Unfortunately, some of these families will be injured in an car accident. As traffic increases along with the seasonal temperatures, so too does the risk of being involved in vehicle collisions which may cause personal injury. These circumstances necessitate enhanced vigilance with regard to road safety by those behind the wheel or otherwise on the road. Driving defensively and maintaining constant awareness of one’s surroundings while driving greatly decreases the risk of being involved in an accident. The following tips should prove helpful:

• Maintaining an appropriate distance from the car ahead
• Ensuring that lane changes and turns are made only when it is completely safe
• Avoiding driving while under the influence of alcohol, drugs or heavy medication
• No driving when suffering from exhaustion or fatigue
• Eliminating driving distractions such as eating smoking and cell phone use.

Tips like these and more can be found at the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration (NHTSA)

Your Rights as a Victim of Negligence

However, in the event that a person does find themselves in such an unfortunate circumstance, they may have means of recourse in a Personal Injury Attorney (through Civil Litigation). In vehicle collisions, as well as other accidents (incidents) involving negligence, wrongdoers and negligent parties may be held accountable through the Civil Justice System. Negligence involves the breach of a duty which causes damages or injuries to innocent parties. In the following case, The Modesto Bee reports that a 31 year old Murphy’s Woman crashed head-on into a tree in an attempt to avoid a deer. At a glance, any negligence would appear to be absent from the case, yet, upon further investigation or discovery as it is called in Civil Litigation, facts may be revealed to show not only that the driver was not at fault, but that another entity (aside from the deer, of course) may be at fault.

Hypothetically, the area surrounding French Gulch Road in Sonora, a rural and moderately forested area, may have a dense deer population, which arguably presents a hazard to drivers. Such a hazard could be considered a dangerous condition, and a failure to warn drivers on the part of the entity with domain over it, could impute liability.

Governmental Liability

In all likelihood, the road in the case mentioned above is maintained by a government entity, an issue which presents its own legal hurdles. There is a possibility that the road was not maintained correctly or the government failed to warn drivers of known hazards. For example a deer crossing waring sign is an example of when the government properly warns drivers of dangerous conditions.A person with a potential civil claim against a local government entity, for instance, must comply with the California Government Tort Claims Act (Government Code §814, et Seq.) or The Federal Tort Claims Act. The time limits and procedural requirements under which a lawsuit subject to these regulations are very strict. For example, in order to sue Stanislaus County or Modesto, or one of their employees, the complainant must first file a claim with the local government entity concerned. Under California Law, such local claims must be filed within 6 months of the harm to the complainant, without fail. In the event the claim is not filed under these deadlines, the injured party may not proceed to file a civil lawsuit. Once the government entity has received the claim, it has 45 days to either honor or deny the claim, and in the event of a denial the injured party must adhere to another 6 month time constraint within which the civil claim must be filed with the Superior Court. Again, failure to adhere to the time limitations at this juncture eliminates the complainant’s ability to recover through litigation.

Loyal Advocacy

Unforeseen circumstances and legal intricacies’ with which most laypersons are unfamiliar make consultation with a personal injury attorney a prudent decision. Nearly all personal injury attorneys, including the author of this article, offer free personal injury consultations, and upon an agreement to render legal services, will take such cases on a contingency fee basis. This means the injured party, or plaintiff as such a person is called in civil litigation, pays nothing up front, leaving the attorney without compensation until he is successful in obtaining a settlement or judgment in his client’s favor.

As an advocate for individual and consumer rights, I take pride in helping injured persons recover their losses by holding responsible parties accountable.

If you or a loved one has been injured or killed in an incident where negligence may have been a factor, please do not hesitate to contact the The Bogan Law Firm, A Professional Corporation for a free consultation.

The name of the child was not released nor would it be blogged here anyhow. In any event, local news outlets such as the Stockton Record and News 10 in Sacramento have reported two children were in the back seat of a Ford Fusion which was hit from behind by a two truck traveling the same direction on Eastbound Highway 4. Once child, a toddler was killed and the other was placed in critical condition as of Friday night. The California Highway Patrol has also reported that the tow truck driver was not under the influence of drugs or alcohol. The tow truck company is out of Manteca, California, which is located between Modesto and Stockton.

This accident will surely lead to a civil liability on behalf of the two truck driver and the company for whom he works. In light of this tragic event, it is still important to review the legal principles behind accidents such as this.

Negligence

Again as written in previous blog entries, negligence is the failure to exercise the care that a reasonably person would under the same circumstances. The question is whether the driver of the tow truck acted as other drivers would under the same circumstances. To prove the tow truck driver civilly liable under a negligence theory the plaintiff must prove (1) The driver owed a duty to other drivers (2) The driver breached this duty (3) The case of the accident was the driver’s breach of this duty and (4) The plaintiff sustained injury.

Under the facts known here, there was some type of traffic jam on Highway 4 in Stockton. The tow truck driver although traveling under the speed limit, still ran into the back of the Ford Fusion, containing the two children. An ordinary prudent driver would have slowed in time to avoid a collision. This is especially true since the driver was from a local company and should have been away of the frequent traffic jams on this particular stretch of highway. Even if he or she was unaware of the usual traffic jams on this highway, a prudent driver would not hit someone from the rear anyhow. The driver of a car who hits another car from behind is almost certainly held civilly liable for damages. This theory of rear end collisions is almost common knowledge.

Vicarious Liability

If readers remember from previous blog entries, then they will remember that vicarious liability is when one person is held civilly liable for the wrongs that are done by people who they direct or control. The most common example of vicarious liability is with the employer-employee relationship.

Under this theory of liability, employers can be held liable for their employee’s wrongdoing when the employee is acting “within the scope of employment.” There are several questions the law tries to answer when determining whether the person acting was acting as an employee or as an individual. (1) Did the conduct occur during the time limits of the employment? (2) Did the conduct occur within the space limits of the employment? (3) Was the individual serving the needs of the employer? (4) Was the conduct which caused the harm something that the employer hired the employee to do?.

Here, the tow truck driver was driving a tow truck on a highway near the location of his company. It would be assumed that Manteca tow trucks would be driving in this area as it is within a 10 minute drive of Manteca. In addition, the driver was driving during the day time on a highway, which suggests the driver was doing exactly what he was hired for. Although the company may have a different version of events, it is going to be difficult for them to wiggle out of being liable for their employees action.

News Sources
Stockton Record
News 10 – Sacramento

For any questions or comments contact The Bogan Law Firm, A Professional Corporation