Jacksonville car accidents caused by drunk driving: Is it the same as texting while driving? The NY Times reports on legislation in Utah which harshly penalizes people who cause fatal car accidents while texting. Instead of merely facing a fine, offenders may now get up to 15 years in jail — the same as drunk drivers.
“In effect, a crash caused by such a multitasking motorist is no longer considered an ‘accident’ like one caused by a driver who, say, runs into another car because he nodded off at the wheel. Instead, such a crash would now be considered inherently reckless. ‘It’s a willful act,’ said Lyle Hillyard, a Republican state senator and a big supporter of the new measure. ‘If you choose to drink and drive or if you choose to text and drive, you’re assuming the same risk.’ The Utah law represents a concrete new response in an evolving debate among legislators around the country about how to reduce the widespread practice of multitasking behind the wheel — a topic to be discussed at a national conference about the dangers of distracted driving that is being organized by the Transportation Department for this fall.” As a Jacksonville car accident attorney I agree that it is time for Florida to also get tougher on texting drivers. If you or a loved one has been injured in a Jacksonville car accident be sure to call an experienced Jacksonville car accident attorney.
Archive for the ‘Automobile Accidents’ Category
Jacksonville car accidents caused by drunk drivers: Is it the same as texting while driving?
Sunday, August 30th, 2009Changes to renewing Florida driver’s licenses
Saturday, August 15th, 2009
Jacksonville drivers renewing their driver’s license are going to find it much more complicated.
Starting in January, Floridians will be required to show valid identification, a Social Security card and two separate documents proving they have a Florida address to get a driver’s license.
The new requirements are part of a controversial change from state driver’s licenses to a nationally compliant card. The licenses will look essentially the same as they do now, but with these changes a license will become compliant with federal government provisions.
This week the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles launched an education campaign to assist Floridians about what is changing.
People who already have a Florida driver’s license will need to present proof of identification (like a birth certificate), a Social Security number and proof of their residential address when they renew their license. Current driver’s licenses will remain valid until their expiration date, which means everyone will not need to do this in 2010.
New residents to Florida have been required to provide this information since October 2008. A current driver’s license will not be accepted as proof of identification, or proof of residential address.
Why is this being done?
The federal government believes the new regulations will make identity theft harder for criminals and terrorists. I hope it also cuts down on the number of Jacksonville car accidents.
Jacksonville drivers who cause multiple crashes must retake test
Sunday, August 9th, 2009
As a Jacksonville car accident attorney representing victims who suffer personal injuries in Florida, I applaud the Florida Legislature for enacting a new law which mandates that any driver who is convicted of three car accident related moving violations over a three-year time frame will have to pass a driving test, just like when they first received their license.
The new law will take into consideration all car accidents and tickets issued since January of 2009, as prior car accidents will not be counted. Regardless, AAA believes the change necessary.
Although public perception is that elderly drivers are the most likely to cause car accidents, according to the State of Florida, those most likely to be affected by the new law are white men, younger than 40, in and around major cities.
We too hope that this new law will act as a strong deterrent to prevent future Jacksonville car accidents.
Jacksonville car accidents caused by texting drivers
Tuesday, August 4th, 2009
Jacksonville car accidents caused by texting drivers continue to rise. Some state lawmakers want to send a message of their own: Stop driving under the influence of your cellphone or BlackBerry – or be prepared to pay.
“It is impossible for you to drive with your head down and your thumbs on a cellphone,” said Sen. Ted Deutch, D-Boca Raton, who will push for a prohibition on texting while driving for the third consecutive year when the legislature convenes in March.
The issue has earned a national profile, with news reports of text-related accidents varying from the tragic (25 people died in a California commuter train crash when the engineer sent a text message) to the troubling (a Hillsborough County teenager playing hooky from high school in May rear-ended a police cruiser as she looked down to type).
And the Florida Legislature has taken notice.
After no bills were offered to rein in texting and driving in 2006, five were filed in 2007.
This year, 11 bills were sponsored by Republicans and Democrats in the House and Senate. The bills varied from prohibiting texting for all drivers to banning only minors from using the mobile devices. Fines would have ranged from $30 to $500 for repeated violations.
One of the bills, known as Heather’s Law, is named after Heather Hurd, one of two Polk County women who died in an eight-car pileup caused by a tractor-trailer driver who was texting.
In 2008, 15 people were killed in Florida and 1,400 injured because of distracted drivers. The state does not track how many accidents specifically involve texting, although Florida Highway Patrol crash reports are being reformatted to include that information.
“We know crashes are occurring due to this problem,” FHP Lt. Tim Frith said. “However, getting a driver to acknowledge it during the crash investigation is the problem.”
But despite the flood of bills this year, Florida remains one of 36 states with no law against texting and driving. While lawmakers have debated taking cellphones away from minors behind the wheel, the issue of texting from behind the wheel has not received a legislative hearing. As a Jacksonville car accident attorney I continue to investigate accidents caused by texting drivers. Our lawmakers must pass a bill to stop these accidents from happening. If you or a loved one has been the victim of a Jacksonville car crash call The Law Office of Henry Gare at (904) 387-6101
More teenage drivers die in Jacksonville car accidents on July 4th than any other day
Sunday, July 5th, 2009
Jacksonville car accidents involving teenagers dying happen more often on July 4th than any other holiday. A study by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety showed more teenagers die on the July 4 holiday than on any other day of the year, Allstate spokeswoman Amy Moore said.
According to Allstate, vehicle crashes involving teen drivers increase during the summer, from Memorial Day to Labor Day. It is often called the 100 deadliest days for young drivers.
“Safety is important at any time in the year, but especially now when teens are out on the roads more frequently,” Moore said.
Marion County was also found to be at the center of the three most dangerous metropolitan areas for teen driving in the nation. An Allstate study last year concluded that the Tampa Bay, Orlando and Jacksonville areas ranked highest for teen driving deaths among the 50 largest metro areas in the country.
A similar Allstate study, looking at 361 metropolitan areas between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day, ranked Ocala as the 16th most dangerous city in the nation for teen driving.
These studies come together to show this weekend could be a deadly one for teen drivers here.
While it may seem surprising that the most dangerous spots for teen driving are concentrated in Florida, Moore says there are some explanations for the data. The lack of a public transportation system inherent to many other large cities forces teens to rely on cars to travel the long stretches of highway from city to city. Rural roads may also encourage faster driving, Moore said.
Driving distractions like eating on the go or finishing makeup in the car have now been replaced by texting and scanning the Web on mobile phones. Lt. Michael Thomas of the Florida Highway Patrol said people of all ages are becoming increasingly distracted behind the wheel.
Though FHP doesn’t correlate age with the prevalence of traffic accidents, the danger for teen drivers is still apparent.
“With age comes experience,” Thomas said. “When you take a young teen and shove a cell phone and some other passengers at them, that lack of experience and distraction will add to the possibility of a crash.”
An average of 5,000 teens die in vehicle wrecks each year, with another 300,000 injured. These are preventable deaths, Moore said, with driver error contributing to 77 percent of the fatalities.
Several programs dealing with teen driving safety are offered in the area as an effort to combat the statistics.
At high school presentations, Florida Highway Patrol members tell students about the grisly collisions they’ve seen firsthand. Mock DUIs put on by community traffic safety teams go through everything – from a collision and funeral to an arrest and prosecution – to show the dangers of impaired driving. The Law Offices of Henry E. Gareencourages all teenager drivers to put down that cell phone while driving.