Maryland Accident Law Blog

Westminster Bicyclist Dies After Being Struck By A Car Near Windsor, Maryland

August 24, 2006 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

A 38-year-old female bicyclist was pronounced dead after a Saturn car hit the bicycle she was riding on Clear Ridge Road on August 17. Jennifer Michele Clayton died of her injuries at Baltimore’s Maryland Shock Trauma Center later that night.

The surviving loved ones of a cyclist who has been killed in vehicle-related accident may be able to file a personal injury/wrongful death lawsuit for their loss. A personal injury attorney can assist you in determining whether you are eligible to make a claim.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, here are some common situations that often lead to vehicle-related bicycle accidents. The crash types were determined by evaluating more than 3,000 bicycle-motor vehicle accidents that took place in Maryland, California, Florida, Minnesota, North Carolina, and Utah.

Berlin, Maryland Mother And Daughter Killed After Ford Truck Hits Their Car On Holly Grove Road In Baltimore

August 23, 2006 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Maryland State Police have been investigating a fatal car accident that took the lives of Christine Marie Bruno, 44, and her 14-year-old daughter Kristen on August 17.

Bruno was pulling out onto Holly Grove Road from the Glen Ridge development when she neglected to yield to traffic on Route 50 and was hit by a Ford truck being driven by Dagsboro resident Howard L. Lynch III, 35.

Bruno was killed on impact. Her daughter, Kristen, was flown to Peninsula Regional Medical Center where she was pronounced dead. Another juvenile, a 13-year-old girl, who had been sitting in the front passenger seat of Bruno’s car, was taken to Johns Hopkins Hospital and treated for critical injuries. She is expected to recover fully.

Baltimore Police Shooting Victim’s Mother Hires Attorney for Wrongful Death Case

August 21, 2006 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

In Maryland, the mother of a 14-year-old boy who was shot and killed by police on August 12 has hired an attorney and is claiming that his death was a wrongful death situation.

Baltimore police say that Officer Roderick Mitter shot and killed Kevin Cooper outside his home in Southwest Baltimore after Cooper hit him and threatened him with a jagged, broken broom handle. Police say that Cooper’s mother, a state correctional officer, had called police, told them that her son was assaulting her, and asked police to come to her home on Font Avenue.

Officer Mitter says that he first tried apprehending Cooper, who was assaulting him, with Mace. He alleges that the boy then moved toward him with the broom handle, so he shot Cooper on the shoulder.

Maryland Route 32 Five-Car Accident Involving Carroll County Dump Truck Sends Four People to Hospitals

August 17, 2006 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

In Maryland, four people were taken to hospitals last week after a Butler Ambulance and a Carroll County government dump truck were involved in a five-vehicle accident on Route 32 outside Sykesville.

The accident took place south of Springfield Avenue when the ambulance hit a compact car, the dump truck, and a small SUV. The ambulance was also hit by another SUV.

Two of the ambulance medics were taken to the Maryland Shock Trauma Center in Baltimore where they were treated for injuries. Another medic was taken by ambulance to Carroll County Hospital Center. The driver of the small SUV had to be cut out of his car and taken to Howard County General Hospital for treatment.

Car Accident sends Maryland Lieutenant Governor Michael Steele to the Hospital

August 16, 2006 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Maryland Lieutenant Governor Michael Steele was treated and released at a local hospital last week after he was involved in a car accident. Maryland State Police say the Chevrolet Suburban that Steele was traveling in was hit by a Chevrolet Cavalier at an intersection of Dorsey Road and Ridge Road in Hanover near the Baltimore Washington International Airport. The driver of the Cavelier was 19-year-old Baltimore resident Brittany Laporte. Preliminary reports are citing driver error.

Paramedics drove Steele and the two troopers who were riding with him to the Baltimore Washington Medical Center in Glen Burnie where they were treated and released. Steele reportedly went home to rest afterward.

If you are injured in a car accident, you should act quickly to find witnesses and preserve the evidence to prove your case to an insurance company.

Family To File Wrongful Death Suit In Shooting Of Unarmed Man By Baltimore Police

August 14, 2006 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

The family of a Brooklyn man who was shot and killed by a police officer in Baltimore earlier this month say that they plan to file a wrongful death suit.

Ernest Oliver, 39, was shot in the 600 block of Roundview Road in Cherry Hill on August 5 after he allegedly fled the scene of a suspected drug deal. Oliver was shot multiple times by Police Officer David Diener. Police say that Diener saw Oliver reach for his pockets and thought that his life was in danger. Oliver was pronounced dead after he was taken to the Maryland Shock Trauma Center. Drugs, but no weapon, were found on him. Police are continuing to search for a weapon in the area where he was apprehended.

Oliver’s relatives say that police used excessive force to apprehend him. He leaves behind four children and a fiancé. Oliver had been arrested previously on drug charges, robbery charges, possession of a deadly weapon, and battery.

28-Year-Old La Plata Woman Arrested In Hit And Run Accident

August 9, 2006 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

A 28-year-old La Plata woman was arrested on August 1, 2006, for driving while intoxicated, driving while impaired, negligent driving, fleeing and eluding, hit and run, and failure to drive on right side of the road.

Sabrina Rae Cutlip was apprehended by police who followed her after she became involved in a hit and run accident in the parking lot of the CVS Pharmacy on Crain Highway in La Plata.

A hit and run incident is a failure by a driver involved in an vehicle-related accident to stop and remain at the scene of the accident.

Sample Of Interrogatories Form Filed In Nursing Home Negligence Case

August 8, 2006 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Interrogatories are written questions sent to the opposing party in a personal injury lawsuit. Like a deposition, an interrogatory gives each side the opportunity to pose questions to the opposing party. Although the party who is served the interrogatory does not have to appear in court to respond, they are required to respond to the questions in writing as if they were under oath and under penalty of perjury.

In the state of Maryland, each party in a personal injury lawsuit can serve up to thirty interrogatories to the opposing side.

Below is a sample of an interrogatory that we, the personal injury law firm of Lebowitz and Mzhen, filed in the Circuit Court for Baltimore County on behalf of our client, the plaintiff, who fell down a stairwell while staying at a nursing home facility. We have redacted the names of those involved for purposes of confidentiality.

12-Year-Old Frederick Boy Dies After His Bicycle Crashes Into A Moving Car

August 3, 2006 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

In Frederick, Maryland, a 12-year-old boy died on Sunday after his bicycle crashed into a moving car. Thomas Cline was riding his bike near the intersection of old Middletown Road and Route 180 when he crashed into the front passenger side of a car being driven by a 16-year-old Middletown girl. Cline was taken to Frederick Memorial Hospital where he was pronounced dead. Police are investigating the accident.

The Insurance Institute For Highway Safety Offers The Following Statistics Related To Bicycle Fatalities That Took Place From 1975-2002:

– 660 bicyclists were killed in crashes with motor vehicles in 2002. This is 9 percent fewer than in 2001 and down 34 percent since 1975.

In Anne Arundel County, Parents File $20 Wrongful Death Suit After 5-Year-Old Drowns In Pool At Crofton Country Club

August 2, 2006 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

The parents of Connor Freed, a 5-year-old Davidsonville boy who drowned at the Crofton Country Club, are suing the club and DRD Pool Service, Inc, the Hunt Valley-based company that trains the club’s pool staff, for $20 million. The wrongful death lawsuit claims that there was not enough properly trained staff at the pool when their son drowned on June 22.

The complaint says that there was only one lifeguard at the pool that day and that this person allegedly froze when an unidentified woman pointed out that a boy was floating facedown in the water. After the boy was pulled out of the water, two different lifeguards are said to have improperly performed CPR on him. They also neglected to use the club’s defibrillator to revive him. During a 911-recorded phone call, a lifeguard can be heard telling the 911 operator that they are not allowed to use the club’s electronic device.

Freed was taken to Anne Arundel County Hospital where he was pronounced dead. The lawsuit, filed in Anne Arundel County Circuit Court, alleges gross negligence and claims that the boy would not have died if there had been enough properly trained people at the pool that day.