New California Traffic Bill to Suspend Hit-and-Run Drivers’ Licenses

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Occurrences of hit-and-run remain a major traffic safety issue in Los Angeles, California. In fact, statistical data shows that of the approximately 20,000 incidents recorded every year in the county, around 4,000 of them either result in injuries or deaths, mostly to innocent pedestrians, bicyclists, motorcyclists, and other drivers. Despite the efforts of law enforcement agencies to apprehend drivers, these accidents still occur at tremendous levels. Yes, the existing laws are there, but are they enough to lessen, if not totally eradicate, the growing number of hit-and-run incidents?

Assemblyman Michael Anthony “Mike” Gatto, who leads the 43rd State Assembly District of California, thought of ways to solve this recurring issue. He did so by introducing bills that would further enforce the current hit-and-run laws in California. Just last year, he introduced Assembly Bill (AB) 184, which was signed by Governor Edmund “Jerry” Brown and was one of the new traffic laws that were implemented on the first day of 2014.

The bill extends the statute of limitations or time limits for filing charges against alleged hit-and-run offenders to six years from the date of the offense, or one year after law enforcement officers have identified possible suspects. With the passage of the bill and its current implementation, victims of hit-and-run crashes can now hope that they can soon obtain the justice they deserve. Also, the bill would also intensify hit-and-run investigations on the part of law enforcement agencies throughout California.

While AB 184 is a great addition to the current California traffic laws, Gatto wasn’t done with it. Apparently, he recently filed another bill called AB 1532. This second hit-and-run-related bill, which he introduced January 21, 2014, provides that motor vehicle drivers committing hit-and-run offenses and are convicted of such, regardless if the victim was seriously or fatally injured or not, would be suspended of their driver’s licenses for 6 months.

If passed, it would be a new addition to the existing penalties for convicted hit-and-run offenders. Currently, offenders found guilty of leaving the scene of the accident may face county jail sentences of up to six months and/or be asked to pay a fine of no more than $1,000.00. Also, if passed, the California Department of Motor Vehicles would be responsible for enforcing the mandate of suspending drivers’ licenses.

Assemblyman Gatto believes that the new bill is a “sensible fix to the law,” and that it would give hit-and-run victims “solace, knowing that cowards who drive recklessly, and purposefully avoid responsibility for their actions, are no longer driving the streets.” A personal injury lawyer in Los Angeles echoed Gatto’s statements, adding that raising awareness through campaigns and education initiatives from local agencies would further bolster the fight against errant and wayward drivers.

For more info regarding hit and run visit us at http://www.mesrianilaw.com/

About Slip and Fall: Hiring a Lawyer if You Get Injured in Los Angeles

 

Slip and fall Injuries are nothing new in Los Angeles, California, just as motor vehicle accidents are a common occurrence in the city, as well as in the whole state’s roadways. The city’s public places and business establishments are almost always filled with a lot of people, but if a hazard is left unattended in such areas, expect that someone would get injured or even get killed.

Premises accidents are truly devastating. Slip and fall mishaps, which falls under premises accidents, can be actually prevented had property owners made the initiative or effort to fix or correct any condition that poses a risk to people who are within the premises.

Slippery walking surface, poor lighting, unfixed steps on a staircase, and even a water spill left unclean can cause someone to slip or trip and then fall. According to a slip and fall accident attorney in Los Angeles, injuries related to these kinds of mishaps include sprains, concussions, fractures, and other serious, life-threatening ones like injuries to the spinal cord and even brain injury.

The lawyer for slip and fall in Los Angeles understands the immense consequences that injured victims and their families will have to go through because of these accidents. True enough, having the legal services of the said legal counsel will enable them to exercise their rights to seek damages from the liable parties involved. If you have been injured, or your loved one died, because of the accident, then you must immediately consult with an experienced Attorney for slip and fall accident in los angeles who can help you all throughout the complex legal process.

When you do hire a lawyer for your slip and fall claim, you will be able to know if the other party was truly responsible for what happened to you. This is why having a legal counsel to represent you and your claim is imperative; without one, you may be unable to collect compensation for your injuries and other losses you incurred.

By collecting and preserving valuable pieces of evidence to strengthen your claim, your Los Angeles slip and fall lawyer will prove that the negligent party, who can be anyone in-charge of looking after the property where the accident happened, knew of the dangerous condition. Not only that, but it must be known by the liable party for a considerably long time, which could have been discovered within the time period and fixed or corrected before someone else gets injured.

Having a topnotch attorney for your slip and fall case will help enhance your chances of obtaining a reasonable compensation for your incurred damages. Also, you and your family will obtain the justice you deserve from the negligent property owner.

Road Maintenance: An Important Way To Keep Roads Accident-free

The government is still battling ways on how to put a stop to accidents once and for all. However, despite the ton of efforts, the number of accidents involving motor vehicles continues to surge. While driver factor remains to be the biggest contributor to these incidents, the condition of the roads also plays a huge role in lessening them. The same goes with the condition of the vehicles. And so, the government is implementing ways on how to cut down if not totally prevent these accidents from happening.

The importance of maintaining these roads

As mentioned earlier, the condition of the road plays a huge factor in the occurrence of accidents. A well-maintained road is safer to drive in than one that has puddles of water or crater-like potholes. Ever heard about hydroplaning? Have you saw cars get broken because of suddenly hitting large potholes? These things can affect one’s driving and cause accidents. That is why roads always have to be maintained well. Rightfully so, the government is spending a huge sum of money to keep these roads in their top condition.

Fixing those broken roads

The government has been checking roads lately and starting to fix these broken roads or structures for the benefit of the people. For example, Olympic Boulevard in Los Angeles was closed to undergo rehabilitation. Not too long ago, eastbound and westbound lanes of the west side of the road, between south Beloit Avenue and Cotner Avenue were closed. To protect motorists and pedestrians alike, curbs are demolished and replaced with a sidewalk. This way, people will be protected better from wayward vehicles from hitting them. Also, this will help drivers avoid pedestrians as they would be using the sidewalks now than walking on roads which is a very dangerous act. A lawyer that handles auto accident in los angeles believes that such thing would help make road accidents happen less than it used to.

Yes, there are many reasons as to why road accidents happen. Yes, human error still plays a huge part as to why accidents do happen. However, at the end of the day, this measure to curb accidents is still a good way to save lives on the road. And every life saved is worth every penny that the government spends.

7-year-old Kid’s Life End Because of “Ice Cream”

 

 R.I.P Diyarbek Uzakbaev

Another young, promising life suddenly ends. This is what happened to a 7-year-old boy as he was killed after being struck by a vehicle. According to reports Diyarbek Uzakbaev was trying to cross the street to reach an ice cream truck was hit by a speeding vehicle around the crossing of the 29000 block of Pujol Road in Temecula, California.

The police identified the driver who struck the kid with his car, 25-year-old Bradley Megginson. He was arrested for gross vehicular manslaughter. Authorities added that they believe Megginson was drinking alcohol leading to the accident.

In the fifth issue of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s (NHTSA) Safety in Numbers campaign released last August 2013, the agency highlighted the great effect of impaired driving and hot it contributes to accidents. The same issue said that impaired driving, where you are the one drinking or not can affect you and get you involved in an accident.

In 2011, 9878 people have died because of drunk driving. This means that 31 percent of all road fatalities caused by motor vehicle crashes are related to impaired driving. While the number of the people who die because of accidents have generally decreased, the number of people died because of impaired driving remains at the same level.

According to NHTSA studies, in all of the alcohol-related crashes, 1,612 individuals have been passengers of a driver with Blood Alcohol levels of 0.08 percent or higher. Additionally 1,049 people were occupants of other vehicles, 710 were pedestrians or bicyclists, and finally 91 of it were very young child passengers of motorists with BAC levels 0.08.

If you’d sum those numbers up, it means that for the past years, around 3,500 people get involved in accidents just because of drunk drivers. The same number of people are put into danger because of some irresponsible motorists.

That is why a lawyer for car accident remind everyone of the consequences that comes with drunk driving. One needs not to be through difficult times because of accidents to know the dangers that alcohol and impaired driving brings. He says that drivers should be responsible enough to know the possible bad effects of their negligence and insensitivity.

How Distracted Driving Can Get Things All Screwed Up

 
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), distracted driving is any activity that diverts a person’s attention away from driving. Sending or reading text messages, fiddling with a cell phone or smartphone, eating and drinking causing the driver to let go of the steering wheel, excessive talking to passengers, grooming or putting on make-up, reading including maps, fiddling with a navigation system, watching a video, even the excessive adjusting of a radio, CD player or MP3 player all count as distractions when driving.

Facts about distracted driving

Most people don’t recognize the ill effects of distracted driving. In fact, a lot of people believe that distractions can really affect one’s skills, preventing them from being successful in avoiding accidents as hazards suddenly pop out of the road.  In fact, the number of those involved in accidents got lower at 387,000 in 2011 compared to the 416,000 involved in accidents back in 2010. However, the number of people who died increased to 3,311 in 2011, 64 deaths higher than the recorded 3,267 deaths because of crashes brought about by distractions to the driver, 64 cases higher than the number of casualties for the same period in 2010. These staggering numbers prove the point that distracted driving can really get one person into serious trouble.

The aftermath of an accident caused by distracted driving

Beyond the numbers mentioned in the statistics, the damage caused by such accidents can be devastating. For one, crashes bring about damage to property. Accidents can cause damages to the car of both parties, as well as other structures on and off the road. These accidents can also cause bodily injuries which hurt or leave a victim temporarily and permanently disabled.

Running after irresponsible drivers
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              
If the negligence of a driver has caused an accident that resulted to damage to one’s property or worse, caused one to get injured or dead, the driver can be held liable for personal injury. By filing a personal injury claim through the help of a car accident attorney in Los Angeles, one victim can avenge what has happened to him or her. This will help them get compensation to have the damaged properties fixed. More importantly though, such repayments can be used by one to get the treatment, medication, and rehabilitation that they need, while also being paid of the earning they should have received while they are unable to work because of these disabilities. This will help these poor victims rebuild their good life that they’ve almost lost when this accident happened.

So when you’re out on the road, keep those distractions away and focus on what you should really be doing; driving—nothing more, nothing less.

Mistakes That Parents, Caregivers Make When Dealing with Child Safety Seats

The use of safety devices for children is one of the most basic driving laws in the U.S. As it is, every parent, caregiver, or any supervising adult must be aware of the right restraint for his or her child relative to the latter’s age and size. More importantly, children must be seated at back of the car.

Basically, California law dictates that children under the age of 8 must be secured in a car seat or booster seat in the back seat of the vehicle. If they are under 8 years old but are 4’9” or taller, they may be secured by a safety, still in the back seat of the vehicle. When they reach 8 years old and over, they must be secured with a child passenger restraint system or safety belt.

Indeed, there is no doubt that when it comes to crashes, children today are a lot safer now, and that is thanks to the implementation of child safety seat laws. In fact, since 1975, the rate at which children die as passenger vehicle occupants has significantly declined by 59 percent. Despite this, there are still a lot of vehicle crashes which involved children who are either seriously injured or killed.

One factor as to why they happen is due to the mistakes that parents, caregivers, and supervising adults make when dealing with child safety devices. Some of these mistakes may seem irrelevant, but then, even the smallest of errors can result in serious consequences, rendering such devices as ineffective if not installed and secured on a child completely.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), one of its surveys revealed that one in five parents, caregivers, or any supervising adults fail to read the instruction manuals that come with the child safety devices. Aside from this, here’s a list of some of the other mistakes, as detailed by the AAA:

•    Moving a child out of a booster seat to the safety belt before he or she reaches the age wherein he or she is allowed to wear a seat belt.

•    Adding toys, padding or mirrors to a child or booster seat.

•    Having a child wear coats or sweaters while secured in a car seat.

•    Loose harness straps.

•    Retainer clip too low.

•    Loosely installing the car seat.

Meanwhile, a Los Angeles personal injury lawyer always tell drivers to exercise safety at all times, especially when they carry children as passengers inside their vehicles. Aside from making sure that they drive with ease, the attorney also reminds them to avoid the abovementioned mistakes, ensuring that their children are secured in their appropriate child safety devices so that they may prevent any injuries.

The Dangers of Drunk Driving that You Cannot Ignore

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Every year, hundreds of thousands of road accidents are recorded. With these accidents, hundreds of thousands of people get injured, thousands die, and millions of the lives of people are challenged because of these unfortunate incidents. That is why, the government, through the Department of Transportation is making a campaign to help lessen the instances of these accidents. Through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) the government is coming up with ways on how to minimize if not completely avoid these accidents from happening. That is why the NHTSA has been coming up with campaigns, left and right, to help curb the number of accidents, if not to completely prevent them from happening.

Safety in Numbers
One of the programs that the NHTSA started is its “Safety in Numbers” awareness campaign series. This campaign is centered in providing numbers from various statistics to help remind drivers of their role in keeping all of the country’s roads safer. In its recent installment, the campaign focused on the dangers brought about by drunk driving. Over the years, impaired driving has caused thousands of accidents that left thousands dead, and some others injured.

The dangers of impaired driving
According to the latest installment of the Safety in Numbers campaign by the NHTSA, the agency revealed that 9,878 people died because of drunk driving in 2011. This accounts for 31 percent of all the motor vehicle crash deaths. These numbers show that while the overall number of deaths recorded because of motor vehicle accidents have steadily declined over the years, the number of deaths because of drunk driving has been growing lately.

Other more interesting figures reveal that:

• 1,612 of the people who died in impaired driving accidents were passengers whose drivers have BACs of .08 or more; additionally, 91 of those who died were child passengers
• 1,049 of those who died were occupants of the other vehicles
• 710 pedestrians or bicyclists died after they got involved in a crash

A car accident attorney in Los Angeles says that these alarming numbers are the best proof that drunk and impaired driving should once and for all be stopped. That is why this Los Angeles lawyer called on all road users to keep safety in mind to prevent these to help lessen, if not to completely prevent these accidents from happening again.