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Personal Injury

• James City County bus drivers charged in accident
  Mar 16, 2009

  James City County police are charging two Williamsburg-James City County Schools bus drivers who were involved in a collision that sent 17 students to the hospital. The charges stem from the March 4th collision that injured the Warhill High School students. One of the bus drivers was charged with reckless driving, while the second was given a ticket for following to closely.

  School officials stated that one bus rear-ended the other bus heading to another school. All students were treated for minor injuries and were released from the hospital the same day.

  It is important to understand your legal rights and a parent. If your child is injured on a bus or a motor vehicle accident it is important to contact an attorney. The personal injury attorneys of Rutter Mills will help make sure your child gets the protection they deserve from the insurance company.

  - 11 - 20

Auto Accident

• Chrysler Recalls Jeeps and Minivans for Flaw Raising Risk of a Crash
  Jun 08, 2010

  Chrysler Group LLC is recalling almost 600,000 Jeep sport-utility vehicles and Dodge and Chrysler minivans for brake line and wiring defects that might increase the chance of automobile accidents.

  The company recalled almost 300,000 Jeep Wranglers to repair a defect caused when liners inside the fenders touch right-front and left-rear brake lines, leading to wear that may cause fluid to leak and raising the risk of a automobile crash, reports the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

  Chrysler isn’t aware of accidents or injuries related to the fluid leak, however they want to keep their customers safe. “A brake fluid leak can cause partial loss of service brakes at the affected wheel, increasing the risk of a crash,” NHTSA said in the statement.

  Accidents can happen in the blink of an eye and in many cases the driver is not at fault. Faulty brakes and fluid leaks can lead to an automobile crash resulting in serious injuries. If you or a loved one has been injured in a car accident it is critical to contact a personal injury attorney. The Norfolk injury lawyers at Rutter Mills will do all they can to protect your rights and get you the compensation you deserve.

  - 12 - 20

• $18 million verdict overturned against Ford Motor Co. in a fatal crash
  Mar 16, 2010

  South Carolina's highest court on Monday overturned an $18 million verdict against Ford Motor Co. in a fatal crash, ruling that one expert shouldn't have been allowed to testify about cruise-control problems.

  "Sonya Watson, 17, was paralyzed after losing control of her Ford Explorer in December 1999. Watson's SUV veered off the left side of Interstate 385 in Laurens County, rolling four times.

  One of her passengers, Patricia Carter, was killed. Both women were ejected from the SUV, a 1995 model.

  Attorneys for Watson and Carter's estate sued Ford, arguing during a 2006 trial that the Explorer "took off" after Watson set the cruise control. Watson's father, who testified that the Explorer also had accelerated suddenly two other times while he was driving it, said repair technicians had told him the SUV's new floor mats caused the acceleration problem and needed to be turned over.

  A Greenville County jury awarded Watson $15 million, allocating an additional $3 million for Carter's estate. But in the opinion published Monday, Chief Justice Jean Toal overturned that award, writing that a trial judge shouldn't have allowed testimony from an expert about cruise control problems in Ford Explorers, or examples of other acceleration problems.

  Electrical engineer Antony Anderson testified at trial that electromagnetic radiation had interfered with the cruise control system and caused Watson's sudden acceleration. But Anderson didn't know enough about Ford Explorers or their systems to testify as an expert, Toal wrote.

  "He had no experience in the automobile industry, never studied a cruise control system, and never designed any component of a cruise control system," Toal wrote, adding that Anderson said he had never even operated a vehicle with a cruise control system or published any articles on the subject."

  - 13 - 20

• Jury Awards $15 Million in Accident Case
  Mar 16, 2010

  A Georgia state court jury has held an alleged drunk driver responsible for $15 million in damages to a girl injured in a car accident, but the plaintiff likely will get only a fraction of the award because the driver has few resources and the designer of the girl's seat, which broke during the wreck, was cleared by the jury.

  Complicating matters, according to the plaintiffs lawyers, was the bankruptcy-mandated dismissal of what was then DaimlerChrysler Co. from the case. Jurors faced a verdict form containing a line allocating blame to Chrysler, but no one represented the automaker at trial.

  "The jury wanted to attribute some portion of the liability to Chrysler, given that Chrysler had designed the vehicle," said Law & Moran partner E. Michael Moran, who spoke to the panel after the Feb. 17 verdict (pdf) was released. "But as they were working through that, they had concerns about the fairness issue, because Chrysler didn't have a lawyer there defending them."

  Chrysler went into bankruptcy protection last year, and the bankruptcy court approved its sale to Italian automaker Fiat last June; its new incarnation, Chrysler Group LLC, is protected from liability for cars manufactured prior to its bankruptcy declaration. But, in accordance with Georgia's 2005 tort reform law, Chrysler was still listed as a non-party defendant on the verdict form, which provided a space for apportioned damages.

  "Under the law, Chrysler would not have had to pay anyway," said Moran. "We attempted to explain to the jury how it worked, but it's a bit complicated, and I guess we didn't do a good enough job explaining it."

  The case began Jan. 1, 2007, when a Honda Accord driven by Joseph J. Covert ran a red light in Alpharetta, Ga., and hit the right side of a 2000 Jeep Grand Cherokee carrying Michael and Jacqueline Maybaum and their daughters, Jennifer, then 5, and Erica, then 11.

  Erica was in the rear left-hand seat and wearing her seatbelt, according to the pretrial order. The impact caused a hinge pin at the base of her seat to pop out and she was pitched backward into the cargo compartment.

  
  

  by Greg Land
  Fulton County Daily Report
  March 16, 2010

  - 14 - 20

• More Drivers Reporting Acceleration Problems
  Feb 16, 2010

  Federal safety regulators announced Monday that they had received an additional 13 reports of fatalities allegedly caused by uncontrolled acceleration of Toyota vehicles since the automaker ceased sales and production of certain vehicles last month. The report brings the number of unintended acceleration-related fatalities reported to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to 34. Most of the reported incidents occurred between 2003 and 2009, according to reports.
  
  "At least 34 people have died in accidents involving Toyota Motor Corp. vehicles that allegedly accelerated out of control in the past decade, federal safety regulators said Monday, reflecting a sharp jump in the number of motorist complaints being filed in the three weeks since the automaker announced its latest recalls.
  
  The new count from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration includes 13 fatalities reported since Jan. 27, the day after Toyota ordered a sales and production halt of eight models in the U.S. to fix gas pedals that it said can stick and cause unintended acceleration.
  
  An analysis of the data by The Times shows that all but one of the deaths reported to NHTSA by motorists in 2010 actually occurred in prior years -- as far back as 1992 -- suggesting that recent public attention to the issue spurred people to file complaints regarding past incidents. Most of the incidents occurred between 2003 and 2009.
  
  According to accounts filed with NHTSA, Toyota and Lexus vehicles suddenly raced forward, smashing into other cars, buildings and pedestrians.
  
  In addition to the fatalities, federal regulators said 22 people reported injuries from unintended acceleration accidents involving Toyota vehicles, which ranged from cuts and bruises to a woman left in a coma." - 15 - 20

• Hampton Roads is the Most Likely Place in Virginia for an Accident
  Feb 04, 2010

  The Virginian Pilot reports that "on average, there’s a traffic accident in Hampton Roads every 19 minutes. Every 2½ days, someone dies from one of those crashes."    According to a report released Wednesday, Hampton Roads had the highest crash rate among Virginia metro areas from 2006 to 2008. Yet, the number of accidents has dropped every year since 2004 – an overall decline of 17 percent – and there were fewer crashes in 2008 (27,600) than in any year in the past decade.

  Regional fatalities are up with 153 traffic deaths in 2008, a 19 percent increase since 2003. Statewide, the number of fatalities  fell 13 percent during the same period. Nationally, Hampton Roads ranks 17th among 26 similar-size  U.S. metro areas in traffic fatality rates.

  The drop in crashes is said to correlate with a decline in driving in Hampton Roads since the recession and high gas prices suppressed travel by  as much as 3.5 percent last year.

  Additional Virginia Crash related findings:

  -- Hampton Roads’ crash rate is 4 percent higher than Richmond's and Roanoke's and 10 percent higher than Northern Virginia's. The crash rate measures accidents per amount of travel.

  -- The region’s crash fatality rate is lower than Roanoke’s and Richmond’s but is 68 percent higher than Northern Virginia’s.

  -- Nearly 8 percent of all crashes in Hampton Roads involved alcohol. About 41 percent of fatal crashes involved alcohol. The number of crashes involving alcohol has dropped every year since 2004.

  -- About 64 percent of people killed in local accidents were not wearing seat belts or sitting in a child safety seat..

  -- The leading causes of accidents here include following too closely, distracted driving and failure to yield. The leading causes of fatal accidents were distracted driving and speeding.

  -- The number of injuries resulting from traffic accidents in Hampton Roads has decreased every year since 2003, in part  because of safer cars and fewer miles driven. Still, the region had the highest injury rate among the state’s metro areas.

  - 16 - 20

• Toyota knew of sticky-throttle problem late last year
  Jan 25, 2010
  Toyota claims it knew there were problems with accelerator-pedal assemblies from supplier CTS late last year, but not enough to warrant a recall. Toyota "says it has no direct reports of injuries or deaths," but an ABC report has linked "the problem to four deaths." These reports have cause the automaker to recall 2.3 million Toyotas. This is a different recell than the gas pedals which got stuck under floor mats and caused accidents.
  
  Auto accidents can happen at any time and with product defects those accidents are not the drivers fault. If you have been involved in an auto accident that was not your fault or the result of a product defect you need to contact a personal injury attorney. The personal injury lawyers of Rutter Mills have extensive accident experience in all areas of Virginia.
  - 17 - 20

• Fatal head-on car accident after automobile plows through HOV gates
  Dec 31, 2009

  On Wednesday, a driver of a BMW ran through the barriers to a reverisble HOV ramp. The barriers were down to prevent drivers from enterong oncoming traffic with red and yellow lights flashed their warning, and the overhead sign barred entry.
  
  Still the driver ran through six barrier gates and preceeded the wrong way down the interstate when he crashed head-on into another vehicle. The force of the impact ignited the two vehicles and killed both drivers. There were no other injuries related to this car crash.
  
  This is not the first time cars have been going driving the wrong direction down the HOV lanes. Auto accidents are often tragic and fatal. It is the innocent person traveling down the road unaware of the coming events that make accidents like this a tragedy. If you have been injured in an auto accident you need to contact a personal injury attorney. Rutter Mills personal injury lawyers handle cashes through out Virginia Beach, Norfolk, Portsmouth, Chesapeake, and so forth. An injury attorney can help get you and you family the compensation you deserve after a tragic accident.  

  - 18 - 20

• Ex-Toyota Attorney Ordered Into Arbitration Over Destroyed Evidence Claims
  Nov 19, 2009

  Biller, an ex-employee of Toyota, filed suit on July 24 alleging claims of wrongful termination, emotional distress, defamation and violations of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) against Toyota Motor Sales USA, its parent corporation, Toyota Motor Corp., and several of its in-house lawyers.
  
  Biller's suit, which Toyota failed to get sealed, had threatened to reopen personal injury cases against Toyota on behalf of victims of rollover accidents. In recent months, plaintiffs in previous personal injury cases have filed court documents in Texas and California against Toyota and its in-house counsel, citing Biller's allegations. - 19 - 20

• Ford Recalls 4.5 Million Automobiles for Defective Switch
  Oct 14, 2009

  Ford is recalling 4.5 million automobiles because a defective cruise control switch could cause a fire. The Ford Windsat minivans were amoung the automobiles recalled due to the risk of fire from an internal leak in the switches. The vehilcles covered by the recall are from 1992 to 2003 model years because they contained the same swtiches.
  
  "A small number of injuries have also been linked to the problem, though none were reported in the latest recall. Previous recalls included some of Ford's most popular brands, like the popular F-series of pickup trucks."
  
  The safety of the automobiles we drive is important because accidents and injuries can happen anytime. If you or someone you know has been injured in an automobile accident or from product liability it is critical to contact a personal injury attorney. The personal injury lawyers at Rutter Mills work with people involved in auto accidents in and around Virginia Beach, Norfolk, Newport News, and Hampton. 

  - 20 - 20

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