Chicago Car Accident Attorney Blog

Beginning January 1, 2010 a new Illinois law prohibits texting while operating a motor vehicle, "a person may not operate a motor vehicle on a roadway while using an electronic communication device to compose, send, or read an electronic message. An electronic message is defined as "Including, but not limited to electronic mail, a text messae, an instant message, or a command or request to access an Internet site."

William Poncin, a professor of law enforcement and justice admistration at Western, believes that the law is needed. "There are statistics of lots of accidents when you start getting distracted on the road."

In addition to the restrictions about texting while driving, it is prohibited to use a cell phone while driving in construction areas and school zones, although hands-free is still okay.

If you're caught texting while driving, the fine is set at $75. It will also go on your record. After three citations, your driver's license will be suspended. Eighteen other states have similar laws.

Another law put into effect this year is the punishment for uninsured drivers. If you get into a car accident which causes physical injuries and you do not have insurance, you will be charged iwth a Class A Misdeameanor instead of a moving violation. You may also spend up to a year in prison and be socked with a $2500 fine.

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Ford announced their plans on Tuesday to move production of the new Ford Explorer to its Chicago plant. This will add an additonal 1200 jobs to the Torrence Ave. plant.

The new Ford Explorer is smaller than the original and is expected to be better on gas mileage. The Ford Taurus and Lincoln MKX are both built at the Torrence Ave. plant.

According to industry experts, the new Explored will average 23% better mileage.

Analysts from IHS Global Insight describes the new Explorer, "It will be a high-volume, high profit, car-based crossover.

Although the car industry has lost more than forty thousand jobs in the last few years, auto makers are setting their sights on developing more fuel efficient vehicles. The industry is expecting to add at least 4000 jobs to their payrolls this year.

In the next year and a half, Ford is expecting to launch a redesign of the Ford Edge and Lincoln MKX, a new "Super Duty" pickup truck, a Mustang GT with a V8 engine, a compact Ford Focus in addition to the Explorer.

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Several times weekly, Chicago Police Officer Steve shoups parks his patrol carl at the intersection of Belden and Lincoln Park West waiting for someone to blow a stop sign.

He'll stop the offender and hand them a ticket , but not before applynig a sticker to it that reads "REMEMBER MAYA! Maya was killed by a driver who failed to stop at a stop sign and yield to pedestrians in a crosswalk. STOP AT STOP SIGNS! YIELD TO PEOPLE IN CROSSWALKS!"

It happened on May 20, 2006. Maya, who was just four-years-old, was with her family when they were crossing Lincoln Park West walking westbound from the Zoo, when a Lexus, which was headed northbound, blew the stop sign

Continue reading "Chicago officer keeps memory alive" »

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American cars may not be as popular as they used to be, but according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, they are a lot safer.

The IIHS recently conducted a head-on collision involving a 2009 Chevy Mailbiy and 1959 Chevy Bel Air.

The crash was a "frontal offset" crash that puts stress on the frame of the car. Both cars were moving at 40 miles per hour.

Continue reading "American cars: Safer today than they used to be" »

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Marian Anderson was outraged after learning that her husband was killed this past week by a man who was on parole from a reckless homicide conviction.

For the second time, Brian Dozier, 52, was charged with reckless homicide. He was given a $2,000,000 bond on Sunday.

Anderson was watching TV last Thursday morning when she learned about the accident that killed her husband.

Continue reading "Chicago widow outraged after husband's death" »

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WGN's Tom Negovan suffered serious injuries to his back and his head after being struck on his motorcycle over the weekend.

Negovan, who normally wears a helmet when he rides, decided not to wear his helmet on Sunday. "It was just a nice sunny day. I thought I'd take a quick ride without and, sure enough, that's the day."

Negovan originally planned on taking a short ride on the Kennedy. Traffic was heavy so he decided to exit the expressway and headed south on Harlem Ave.

The car that hit Negovan was headed north on Harlem. The driver made a left hand turn in front of Negovan. Negovan remembers seeing the driver make the turn in front of him but does not recall the moment that the driver hit him.

Continue reading "Chicago's Tom Negovan feeling lucky to be alive after motorcycle accident" »

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A multi car accident on Monday night resulted in injury to five people.

The accident involved three vehicles including two SUVs. The accident happened near Pulaski and Archer on the Chicago's southwest side.

Three of the victims were listed in critical condition and two were listed in fair condition. All were taken to nearby area hospitals.

No details about the accident were available.

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Chicago police are back conducting their crosswalk stings, this time at night.

According to authorities, officers conducted their first night time sting in the Lakeview neighborhood at Belmont and Orchard at 8pm. The purpose of the sting is to reduce after dark accidents between pedestrians and drivers.

Officers will use several different strategies to catch drivers who endanger pedestrians including under cover officers posing as pedestrians. If a driver doesn't yield to the pedestrian, the car will be pulled over and ticketed. The fine for failing to yield to a pedestrian in a crosswalk range from $50 to $500.

Police will continue their crosswalk sting through the fall. To find out where the stinges will be conducted visit www.cityofchicago.org/transportation.

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On April 28, 2001, John Scully was training for the Chicago Triathlon along the city's Lakefront Trail.

Scully was on an early morning ride on his road bike. He had just biked over the Chicago River bridge, following another cyclist as he headed south off the bridge. Just then a woman suddenly walked in front of them.

From what Scully was told, the cyclist in front of him swerved and then he swerved. The front tire on his bike struck the back tire of rider in front of him sending Scully flying head first into the ground.

Scully was wearing a helmet. However, after the accident, Scully was in a coma for a week. The accident caused paralysis on his right side and amnesia for which Scully underwent treatment for several months. Doctors say that if he had not been wearing a helmet he would have died.

Continue reading "Chicago's lakefront trail: It is dangerous?" »

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Chicago Transit Authority officials are getting tougher on public transportation operators who are using electronic devices while on duty.

CTA President Richard Rodriguez said that as of today, train operators, rail maintenance workers and rail station customer assistants are banned from using any type of electronic device including cell phones, MP3 players, wireless headsets and cell phones. These employees will not be allowed from having them in their possession while they are on duty.

The CTA is banning the use and possession of these devices after recent accidents were caused by operators who were using these devices while working.

The ban on these devices applies to bus drivers as well unless the driver is using it to contact the CTA control center. Because bus drivers are not issued company radios or cell phones, a bus driver can have a phone or other device in their possession, but it must be stored away in a backpack or purse while they are operating the bus.

According to CTA officials, over 200 complaints were lodged against bus drivers during the first half of 2009. These dirvers were using their cell phones while driving.

Under the new rules, any CTA employee using these devices while operating a moving vehicle, can be terminated immediately.

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According to investigators the scheme to defraud area insurance companies was simple. Most accidents involved only three people. One person would spill liquid on the floor of a store. Then another person would come along and pretend to slip and fall on the liquid. Sometimes it was paper.

Another person, acting as the lookout, made sure that no one was witness to the accident. The fall would then be reported to store management. Investigators say that the claim would be paid by the insurance company and the claims would cost between $4000 and $8000.

The fraud took place at "big-box" stores in Illinois and Wisconsin. Before insurance officials realized that something was suspect, almost sixty claims had been paid.

Continue reading "Phony insurance scam in Illinois and Wisconsin being investigated" »

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The Chicago Sun-times recently published a report which revealed that there has been an increase in the number of motorycle related accidents.

According to the article the reason the number of accidents has increased is that there are more people riding motorycles. The increase in gas prices is a motivating factor in why people are choosing to ride motorcycles instead of driving cars.

Other studies reveal that of motorcycle riders who have been involved accidents, ninety-two percent have had no formal motorcyle training.

Riders who make too wide turns are the cause of most single vehicle motorycle accidents.

In Illinois, almost 50% of the motorcycle accident that resulted in deaths, were caused by riders who had been drinking.

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