As a trucking safety trial lawyer, based in Atlanta, Georgia,representing people in personal injury and wrongful death cases, I am scheduled to speak on truck driver distraction issues to the Interstate Trucking Litigation Group at Vancouver, British Columbia, in July. I was therefore quite interested in a recent report of…
As a trucking accident trial attorney in Atlanta, Georgia, I often litigate about trucking accidents. As a seminar speakers, I often talk about them at continuing legal education seminars around the country. On this blog, I frequently write about them. But last Sunday, I saw one. While helping my son…
A prominent highway safety organization, Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety, has petitioned the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration to evaluate risks posed by drivers of commercial vehicles using electronic devices and to then issue regulations to limit such distractions. Electronic distractions that cause concern include cell phones, text messaging,…
No matter how often it happens, the useless tragedy is never less shocking. About 4 AM last Friday on I-65 in Indiana, a family of five was killed when a tractor trailer rear-ended their vehicle which had slowed for traffic Several years ago, something similar happened to a family in…
A Florida truck driver admitted that he was on his cell phone yesterday when he slammed into a school bus, killing a 13-year-old student. According to reports, the school bus, which had stopped to let children off , had its warning lights on and stop signs out. The truck failed…
As a “seasoned” Georgia trial lawyer, I’ve seen considerable evolution of thinking about safety issues. When I was a young Assistant District Attorney, we occasionally prosecuted DUI cases but still treated them lightly, still laughing at bad jokes about drunks. Then our consciousness was raised by news stories about carnage…
The inside of a truck cab offers more electronics and gadgets than ever before. A trucker can monitor how his truck and engine are performing, GPS mapping to stay on the right route, email communications with his dispatcher, cell phone conversations with family, and perhaps a reckless few play a…