New Jersey Accident and Injury Law Blog : New Jersey Injury Lawyer & Attorney : The Grossman Law Firm : Serving Monmouth County, Bergen County

Motorists in New Jersey are most likely to die in an accident between the hours of 5 and 6 pm on a warm Saturday in August, if you go by nationwide statistics by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). This report in Forbes, offers a startling look into how people are dying in accidents in America. For instance, Saturday is the most dangerous day of the week to be out and about, and August the most dangerous month of the year. However, the worst time you could be on the road is on the Fourth of July. In 2007, the accident death toll on this one day alone touched 926. Not surprisingly, the country's biggest traveling holiday, Thanksgiving, is also its most dangerous weekend to be on the roads. At least 32 percent of those who died in accidents were speeding at the time of the crash, and 55 percent of them were not wearing seatbelts at the time.

In Monmouth County we have very busy roads and highways including Route 9, the Garden State Parkway, and the NJ turnpike.  In Bergen County we have of course route 17, route 4, route 80 and route 46 to name a few of the major traveled roadways. 

So much for the bad news. So, is there any time you are safe on the road? Sure - if you restrict all your driving to Tuesdays or Wednesdays, and only get behind the wheel between 4 and 5 am. If that's not practical, there are other ways that you can to try to ensure that you don't end up as part of accident statistics, and they are all pretty simple. 

• Buckle up. Every time.
• Switch off the cell phone.
• Stay within speed limits.
• Never, but never, drink and drive.

Thankfully, the report shows that an overwhelming number of accidents – close to 95 percent - occur because of human error, and not because of mechanical malfunction. It just proves what Monmouth County car accident lawyers knew all along – that accidents can be prevented if all motorists focus their attention on the road, and the other motorists who might be around them.

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A Hawaii man who was in Monroe Township, New Jersey on a holiday died after a car accident, apparently caused when the driver  fell asleep at the wheel. The accident took place early in the morning of the 2^nd of January. Reginald Streater was in a 2008 Toyota Avalon, and traveling on a Williamstown road when his brother Russell who was driving, allegedly dozed off at the wheel. As Russell drifted off to sleep, the car veered off the road and crashed into a utility pole. The passenger side took the full impact of the crash, and Reginald was ejected from his seat. He was airlifted to a Camden hospital, but died soon after from his injuries. Russell was not injured in the accident.

Ironically enough, Reginald was the one who was supposed to drive the car, but ended up telling his brother to drive because he was too drowsy! Driving while sleepy or fatigued is regarded by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration as a major cause of accidents and fatalities in the country, and the National Sleep Foundation frequently raises the issue of sleepy drivers and the dangers they pose on the roads. Yet, most states don't treat this issue with the seriousness it deserves. New Jersey is the only state that considers driving fatigued or sleepy, as reckless driving. Just last week, the Washington Post had a report about a Maryland drowsy driving accident that killed a truck driver. The motorist in that crash, a 19-year-old woman had not had sufficient sleep the previous night, and had dozed off at the wheel. She careened into the path of an incoming truck, driving it off the Chesapeake Bay Bridge.   No criminal charges were filed, and the conclusion was that drivers, who caused an accident because of fatigue, were not negligent. 

Elsewhere in the country, convictions of vehicular homicide have been successfully brought against drivers who drive when they know they are too sleepy or too fatigued to drive. However, applications of such statutes are quite inconsistent. Maryland, for instance, has had prior convictions for such motorists, but in the Chesapeake Bay Bridge case, no charges were filed. This ambiguity about whether drowsy driving does constitute negligence exists in most states, but fortunately not in New Jersey where Maggie's Law allows courts to consider a motorist's state of fatigue at the time of the accident as the cause of the accident.  New Jersey personal accident lawyers can also use this in a liability claim in the event of an accident.

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Denver Nuggets star J.R. Smith  won't have to face a grand jury indictment for his role in a fatal Millstone car accident that killed his passenger – a Monmouth County jury has decided not to indict the basketball star, who continues to be as reckless on the streets as he was before the fatal crash of June 2007.

The accident occurred when Smith allegedly ignored a stop sign, and drove around a car that was stopped, and into the path of an incoming vehicle. Both Smith and his passenger Andre Bell were ejected from the car, and Bell sustained serious head injuries. He died a couple of days later at the hospital. Smith received citations for improper passing and failure to stop at a stop sign.

This wasn't a man who was a stranger to runs ins with the law when it came to his driving skills, or lack of them. At the time of the accident that killed Bell, Smith had a grand total of 27 points as well as 5 suspensions on his record. These related to reckless and careless driving, as well as speeding. All of these were accumulated in less than 12 months of driving. In fact, his license had been suspended for 150 days as recently as four months before the accident.

The basketball star promised after the accident that he would clean up his act and take more care on the roads. That doesn't seem to have happened at all. Since the crash, Smith has gone on to collect at least three more suspensions and two more tickets for speeding. In July of 2008, he had his license suspended again, this time for a period of two years. With a grand jury indictment out of Smith's immediate future, he doesn’t have to worry about facing any prison time for his role in the accident, although he will continue to face motor vehicle summonses. 

You can't accuse Smith of not having his priorities right. When asked about his reaction to the decision of the grand jury, he was nonchalant -  

"It was a relief that I get to keep playing basketball"

One of his best friends is dead in a car accident that was caused due to Smith's own rash driving, and wanton disregard for traffic laws, and all he cares about is shooting hoops? Such disdain for the life of others is not only troubling, but I suspect it must also be infuriating to the family of Andre Bell, who've had to ensure a terrible tragedy. 

Unfortunately, all too often, criminal courts may not deliver the kind of justice victims' families need, which is exactly where civil courts and Monmouth County accident lawyers come in.   

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