Car and Auto Accidents

The Great Divide: Understanding Criminal and Civil Law in California Drunk Driving Cases

January 5, 2016 | Gregory J. Brod

We want 2016 to be a healthy and safe year for all of our readers and all of our neighbors here in Northern California. We also want to remind people that our personal injury law firm in San Francisco, Oakland, and Santa Rosa is here to help if you or a loved one is injured in 2016 due to someone else’s negligence, carelessness, or wrongful acts. In this spirit, this blog post looks at a recent drunk driving accident and reviews the difference between criminal and civil drunk driving cases in California.

Charges Filed Against Suspected Drunk Driver Following Hit-and-Run Crashes

According to CBS SF, police have arrested a 22-year-old man and charged him with suspected felony drunk duikeys driving and hit-and-run causing injury after a series of crashes in Petaluma. The series of incidents started around 12:30 AM Saturday when a pickup truck hit a parked vehicle on Mary Street near Petaluma Boulevard North. A woman who had been placing items in the parked vehicle’s rear seat was knocked over by the impact and suffered minor injuries. Reportedly, the driver fled the scene and then stopped at a nearby parking lot to examine his own vehicle. As he attempted to leave again, he backed into the store building damaging the establishment’s door and window before hitting a crosswalk sign on his way out of the lot. Officers later caught up with the man they believe was the driver and a test allegedly put his BAC at 0.13.

To a Happy (and Safe!) Holiday Season: A Reminder About the Danger of Holiday Drunk Driving

December 25, 2015 | Gregory J. Brod

We gave serious thought to what to put in this blog post, scheduled to go live on Christmas morning. We already talked about some holiday home dangers earlier this week. Some suggested trying to find a happy topic for today’s post. What it came down is this: Nothing makes for a happier holiday than having those you love gathered round, safe and sound. So, our San Francisco personal injury law firm turns instead to a story about at least one family that won’t be whole this Christmas, a sad story we hope serves as a reminder of the danger of holiday drunk driving. Drunk driving crashes are preventable and it is up to each of us to choose not to drink and drive and to implore others to do the same.

Suspected Drunk Driver Hits Two Cars, Claims One Life

car in beer CBS’s San Francisco affiliate reports that police suspect alcohol was a factor in a multi-vehicle accident that claimed one life in San Jose. Police received reports of a two-car accident near Senter and Singleton roads, close to the Capitol Expressway, at approximately 10:45 PM on Monday. A police spokesman told CBS that a

Roadway Safety Reminders from Your Oakland Accident Attorney as Families Give Thanks that No One is Seriously Injured in Horrific Pile-Up

December 22, 2015 | Gregory J. Brod

With Christmas just days away, it seems like even more of a miracle that there was not a single serious injury from a terrifying multi-vehicle accident near the Bay Bridge late last week. We have no doubt that many area families feel they have already received the best possible gift – the well-being of their loved ones. As an Oakland accident law firm, we see the tragedy that can result from a car accident. In addition to helping accident victims, we believe in accident prevention. Today’s post looks at the recent Oakland story and provides advice for avoiding car accidents and keeping you, your loved ones, and those around you safe in the holiday season and all year long.

No Serious Injuries in Twelve Car Pile-Up Near Bay Bridge

According to ABC7, a twelve-vehicle crash occurred on I-880 near the approach to the Bay Bridge around 9:30 AM last Friday. Looking at the pictures on ABC’s website, including horrific images of a big-rig resting on a red pickup truck and a picture of the red pickup after the big rig was finally moved, it is hard to believe that the pile-up did not cause a single serious injury. The driver of that red pickup was trapped for a time and was checked out by doctors, but was back at home by Friday evening. Overall, only two drivers incurred minor injuries in the pile-up. Many of those involved shared stories that made the lack of serious injuries even more amazing, such as a father who originally planned to have his preschool-aged daughter in his vehicle but changed plans at the last minute, perhaps saving her life.

San Francisco Injury Lawyer Examines Hydroplaning Amid Wet Weather in the Bay Area

December 18, 2015 | Gregory J. Brod

It has been an unusually rainy couple of weeks here in the Bay Area. According to SFGate.com, the rain is likely to continue this weekend and all next week with the forecast including a soggy Christmas Day. While we all know that we need the rain, that doesn’t make it easy to get through a long stretch of wet weather. The frequent rains also make for difficult driving and, because prevention is always the best option, our San Francisco car accident law firm wants people to stay alert for the possibility of hydroplaning and related accidents.

Parents Killed, Young Children Injured, Police Suspect Vehicle Hydroplaned

For at least one family, the threat of a wet weather accident became all too real recently. NBC Bay Area reports that an accident on eastbound Interstate 580 near West Grant Line Road claimed two lives on Sunday December 13. Officials suspect that the single-car accident, which occurred in the vicinity of the Altamont Pass, began when the vehicle hydroplaned on a pool of water. The vehicle then rolled repeatedly before coming to a stop down an embankment. The two adults in the car were pronounced dead at the scene while their children, ages 5 and 6, were taken to an area hospital with one reportedly suffering traumatic injuries.

When Beams, Logs, and Similar Pieces of Truck Cargo Careen Into Vehicles

December 15, 2015 | Gregory J. Brod

About a month ago, we wrote about the problem of trucks spilling their cargo endangering everyone on the road including travelers who drive by later and encounter a missed piece of debris. Today, following a story with a truly miraculous ending, we look more specifically at accidents where items such as logs or beams from trucks impale windshields or otherwise endanger bystanders or even the truck driver himself. As a truck accident law firm in Santa Rosa, San Francisco, and Oakland, we help people injured when cargo pierces a window or other barrier and we can also represent grieving families when these accidents lead to tragic death.

Miraculous Survival When Metal Beam Pierces Windshield

ABC7 reports that a male driver was travelling south on I-280 in San Jose on Thursday December 10^th. He was following behind a truck when he saw a metal beam come loose from the cargo load. The beam pierced the man’s windshield. While surrounding vehicles prevented the driver from veering to avoid the collision, the driver ducked to avoid getting hit by the metal piece. Despite the fact that a metal beam was sticking right through the front windshield, the driver walked away with only a scratch. Police have thus far issues a ticket to the truck driver for spilling a load.

Structural Bridge Accidents: Fears and Realities

December 4, 2015 | Gregory J. Brod

According to Medicinet (a part of WebMD), gephyrophobia is relatively common although few sufferers know the precise term. In layman’s terms, gephyrophobia is an irrational fear of bridges. While we do not intend to make light of a real psychological condition, a recent report on bridge safety in the Bay Area and nationwide has our San Francisco bridge accident lawyer wondering whether fear of bridges is always so irrational.

NBC and GAO Report on State of Bridges

Earlier this year, NBC Bay Area’s Investigative Unit (“the Unit”) looked into the state of area bridges and, as discussed in an updated article published this week, the news station’s concerns are now being echoed in a report from the U.S. Government Accountability Office (“GAO”). In April, the Unit found that 472 of the nearly 4,000 bridges in the Bay Area were rated “structurally deficient” by expert engineers, meaning some part of the core bridgecollapse structure needs either repair or replacement. Although NBC reports that this number has improved a bit to 405 based on the GAO’s latest numbers, a disturbing 10% of the bridges in the nine county region remain in need of important work. Another 17% of the region’s bridges are functionally obsolete. Notably, functionally obsolete means the bridge is no longer adequate for its purpose but it does not mean the bridge is out of service or that there is a specific defect. As USA Today reported, the bridge that collapsed on I-10 in Southern California back in July had been labeled functionally obsolete in a 2014 National Bridge Inventory.

Driving Driverless Cars: Researchers Look for the Best Balance Between Humans and Technology

December 2, 2015 | Gregory J. Brod

It is a topic that can spark quite a bit of discussion around the watercooler at our San Francisco injury law firm – Are driverless cars the future of safe driving or a dangerous detour? We put our trust in computers every day and human error is certainly at the root of many car accidents, but can a computer ever respond the same way a driver can? What balance between human and computer would provide the safest solution?

Stanford Researchers Find Distraction May Be Key to Driver Readiness in Automated Vehicles

The San Francisco Chronicle recently reported on ongoing research into the safety of driverless cars at Stanford University. Specifically, researchers are looking at how automated vehicles can best alert drivers and hand off control when the software and/or sensors become overwhelmed. There are already cars on the market that can be programmed to stay in a lane or maintain a safe distance between vehicles, but there is still a need for a human driver at times and handing off control is a major issue. Automation, for all its many benefits, can lull people into a false sense of security. The Chronicle sums up this issue well: “One riddle automakers must solve: How to get owners to trust the technology so that they’ll use it — but not trust it so much that they’ll be lulled into a false security that makes them slow to react when the car needs them.”

Bay Area Lawyer on the Danger of Big-Rig Crashes

November 4, 2015 | Gregory J. Brod

Over the years, vehicles seem to have grown with SUVs and crossover vehicles making traditional passenger cars seem almost petite. Still, even not-so-mini-vans look almost like the Matchbook cars when they pull alongside a big-rig truck. Despite all the advances in technology, the transportation of goods remains essential and big-rig trucks are a major part of that supply chain. Many commercial drivers are committed to safety, but the sheer size of these vehicles make even a moment of inattention dangerous. Big-rig accidents can be big-time catastrophes and our San Francisco big-rig crash lawyer is committed to helping the victims recover compensation from any and all parties at fault.

Big-Rig Crashes Litter Highways on Monday and Tuesday

As we write this post, CBS SF Bay Area is reporting on a multi-vehicle accident involving a big-rig truck that snarled traffic during Tuesday morning’s commute on Highway 880 near Brokaw Road in San Jose. Few details were available in the early report, but the crash followed a rain-soaked Monday morning marked by at least two early morning accidents involving big-rigs. CBS reported that at 2:19 AM on Monday California Highway Patrol (“CHP”) personnel responded to a call regarding a big-rig accident in the westbound lanes of Highway 580 just east of Greenville Road near Livermore. CHP officials told reporters that the accident left the big-rig on its side across three lanes of traffic and they eventually shut down all westbound lanes to clean up the debris. Less than half an hour after the first crash, a report came in about a second accident involving a big-rig on Highway 580, this time in the eastbound lanes. CHP officials say that crash involved a big-rig colliding with an SUV; CHP also had to close the eastbound lanes for a period to address that incident. The report does not say whether anyone was injured in either of Monday’s big-rig collisions.

Car Accidents and Daylight Savings Time: The Dangers After We Fall Back

November 3, 2015 | Gregory J. Brod

The end of Daylight Savings Time is a yearly occurrence that many of us eagerly anticipate and dread in equal measures. Many people reveled in an extra hour of rest this past weekend (at least those without young children whose sleep cycles don’t change simply because we adjusted our clocks!). However, that extra hour of sleep comes at cost: lost daylight. While many people worry about the impact on afternoon activities and even on people’s moods, at our Oakland injury law firm we worry about another danger – the tie between car accidents and daylight savings time.

Increased Risk of Car Accidents When Daylight Saving Time Ends

sunset Last year, Time Magazine delved into the twice-yearly debate about changing the clocks, focusing on the impact of Daylight Savings Time (“DST”) on road safety. The article suggests that losing an hour of afternoon sunlight, as we do each fall when DST ends, may result in an increased number of traffic accidents. According to a 2004 study, the lives of some 170 pedestrians and 200 motorists could be saved each year by maintaining DST all year.

Understanding Wrongful Death Law in California

October 28, 2015 | Gregory J. Brod

Wrongful death cases are always emotional, even for a law firm that deals with them on a regular basis, however, this work can be incredibly rewarding. When our Oakland wrongful death law firm helps a grieving family recover compensation, we allow a family to begin to move forward from a terrible tragedy alleviating some of their most pressing financial concerns and also providing a sense of justice. Whether it is a deadly auto accident such as the accident that claimed 5 lives in the Sierra foothills on Saturday, a dangerously defective product, or any other danger created by someone else’s negligence, California wrongful death law and the Brod Law Firm can help.

Deadly Accident Involved Santa Rosa Vehicle

The Oakland Tribune reports that a vehicle registered in Santa Rosa was one of two cars involved in a deadly collision near Sonora on Saturday. Calling it one of the worst accidents the area has seen in a while, California Highway Patrol (“CHP”) officials say that an SUV and a sedan collided in a head-on crash on Highway 120 near Smith Station Road around 6:30 Saturday evening. Four people travelling in the SUV died at the scene while one was airlifted to a Modesto hospital. The driver of the sedan also perished while his sole passenger was taken to the same hospital for treatment of major injuries.