Atlanta Injury Attorneys Blog

The Georgia Department of Transportation has confirmed the death of a pedestrian earlier this morning in Dekalb County. This occurred at about 4:30 a.m. and is currently under investigation. I have handled many pedestrian death and injury cases in my practice as an Atlanta catastrophic injury lawyer and in each case various factors converge to cause these tragic situations.

In this matter, we do not know the state of mind of the pedestrian. Perhaps he was in shock after the initial accident and did not realize what he was doing in entering the Interstate as a pedestrian or perhaps he was under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

We do know a few key facts. According to the early reports, after being involved in a crash on the westbound side of Interstate 285 in DeKalb County, the driver exited his vehicle and jumped over the median wall. Investigators believe that he hit another car and then came to a stop. After jumping the median wall, he entered the eastbound lanes of traffic on foot and was tragically hit by several vehicles. Authorities do not appear to intend to file any charges against the drivers that hit the man.

Pedestrian injuries and deaths are very prevalent across the country. The statistics are moving in the wrong direction.

According to a report last year in USA TODAY, in the first half of 2011 Americans saw a trend that increased pedestrian fatalities after several years in which traffic deaths were on the decline by about 8% overall.

There is some speculation that the increase in pedestrian deaths could be due to "talking and texting, or walking while intoxicated, and more exposure as people pursue active lifestyles that emphasize walk-able communities." A spokesperson for the Governors Highway Safety Association has noted that " '[j}ust as drivers need to focus on driving safety, pedestrians need to focus on walking safely.' "

An example of how pedestrians might be putting themselves at risk comes out of statistics in Oregon. There, pedestrian deaths climbed in early 2010 after they had declined to a six decade low. Sadly, alcohol and drugs were involved in over half the deaths in that state during that period of time. But at the same time, we can assume that distracted drivers also must have something to do with the uptick in pedestrian accidents.

Transportation for America has noted that many pedestrian deaths occur on roads that are high speed and that surround neighborhoods. These arterial roads can be very dangerous to pedestrians as speed is a significant factor in pedestrian accidents and deaths.

The Law Offices of P. Charles Scholle, P.C., has represented accident victims and their families for nearly two decades. We have built our reputation by representing our clients with care and compassion. Please contact us for a free consultation. We represent clients in the Atlanta metro area and throughout Georgia.

This past Saturday, nearly all lanes of Interstate 75 in Cobb County were closed after an accident involving several vehicles. The accident occurred on Allgood Road and the Atlanta-Journal Constitution reports that northbound traffic was stopped for hours. Multiple vehicle accidents are not uncommon, and as a Gwinnett County accident lawyer I have represented many clients over the years who have been involved in this type of accident.

The accident occurred in the afternoon and involved multiple vehicles. According to reports, what happened on the Interstate was a scenario that involved a landscaping truck traveling north. Unfortunately, the truck blew a tire which can end up causing an accident and in this case did. After the truck blew its tire. the vehicles behind that truck had only seconds to deal with the emergency and they swerved to avoid hitting the truck. The first vehicle was a pick-up truck and the second was a motorcycle.

In swerving, the motorcyclist lost control of his motorcycle and ended up wiping out and injured. Amazingly, another truck hit the motorcycle, but the rider had already been separated from his bike at the time. The rider, a Jasper resident, was taken to a nearby hospital for treatment for what were described as very serious injuries. Reportedly, he needed surgery for his injuries. We sincerely hope that he recovers quickly from his injuries.

When vehicles lose a tire, they can often cause a serious accident. It is difficult to avoid events like this, but the reason why Georgia's Department of Driver Services Driver's Manual suggests that driving too closely when following another vehicle is a dangerous practice. Motorists need to maintain enough distance between vehicles to ensure that they can stop safely in the case of emergency such as a tire blow out. They recommend that one way to determine this is to "measure the amount of time between when the vehicle in front of you passes a reference point and when your vehicle passes the same reference point." You should be able to count "one-thousand-one, one-thousand-two" before getting to the same point as the vehicle in front of you. This is really a minimal distance for safety. When the weather is not good, more distance is important for stopping distance.

The Law Offices of Charles Scholle specializes in serious injury and accident cases. Motor vehicle accidents can be devastating, especially those involving trucks and motorcycle crashes. My law practice specializes in these cases. These accidents require expertise and experience to build a legal case. Please contact my Gwinnett County and Atlanta area law offices if you have been injured in an accident in the Atlanta, Georgia area. I will consult with you at no charge to evaluate your vehicle accident rights and remedies.

A Fulton County State Court judge has issued an order that effectively closes the case involving the death of a Georgia Department of Transportation HERO driver that occurred last year. As a Gwinnett County truck injury and wrongful death lawyer, I have been following this tragic case and wanted to share with readers the outcome for the offending driver.

The judge in the tragic deadly accident ordered the truck driver to a year of probation, loss of commercial driver's license for a year and other penalties. The closure of the matter is the result of a plea bargain reached earlier this week.

The accused truck driver caused the "HERO" operator's death while he worked on Interstate-85. The driver had been charged with second-degree vehicular homicide in the death of the HERO operator who was hit while assisting an Atlanta driver. He was the first such operator to lose his life in the line of duty.

The charged truck driver was towing a trailer behind his pick up truck. The family of the deceased HERO operator was hoping for the offending driver to spend time in jail. The offense carries a one-year maximum prison sentence. But that was not to be.

The Official Code of Georgia Annotated section § 40-6-393 (c) provides that "Any person who causes the death of another person, without an intention to do so ... commits the offense of homicide by vehicle in the second degree when such violation is the cause of said death and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished as provided in Code Section 17-10-3." This would have allowed a prison sentence for the truck driver in this case.

Even in Gwinnett County, we have seen injury to HERO workers while they do their work. The GDOT has asked drivers to slow down and help keep these workers safe while they help us and our community.

As a Gwinnett County, Georgia truck crash lawyer with offices throughout the Atlanta area, I represent victims involved in truck accidents who have sustained injuries in all surrounding cities and counties, including Duluth, Fulton County, Grayson, Gwinnett County and more. Please contact our law firm for a free confidential consultation at our main Gwinnett County law office, or at our offices in Decatur, the Perimeter and Buckhead.