On behalf of Law Offices of Anthony Murgatroyd, L.L.C. posted in Car Accidents on Friday, May 18, 2012
Hunterdon County -- "put it down!" A county-wide initiative has been enacted to deter citizens from texting while driving. We live in a fast-paced world and many people have adopted a 'microwave' view of life -- everything must be done now! Multi-tasking is almost universally common these days; unfortunately, multi-tasking can also equate to distraction behind the wheel. Advocates of the newly implemented initiative hope the effort will help prevent a car accident by deterring drivers from reading and sending texts when they should be watching the road.
The program was inspired by an initiative put into place in a neighboring county and aims at educating drivers to the dangers of texting behind the wheel. Offenders who are caught in the act are offered education in exchange for a fine. The video is mandatory and unless the guilty party views the film within fifteen days of the incident, a fine is instituted. The 10-minute flick features a hard-hitting look at the dangers of texting and driving, and highlights the severity of car accidents that have resulted therefrom.
On behalf of Law Offices of Anthony Murgatroyd, L.L.C. posted in Car Accidents on Wednesday, May 9, 2012
Rear-end collisions in Hunterdon County and across New Jersey often bring some of the worst injuries. The reason for this is because as the vehicle is hit from behind, the vehicle's occupants are forced forward quickly and usually without warning. This can cause serious neck and back injuries such as whiplash, injuries that are often not quickly treatable and requiring several weeks or months for recovery. In some instances, the injury sustained from a car accident like this can be so severe that the person may never fully recover.
On the afternoon of April 26, a 16-year-old was a passenger in a vehicle driven by a 17-year-old that was stopped at a stop sign in West Amwell Township. Another vehicle, also operated by a 17-year-old, rear-ended the stopped vehicle in which the 16-year-old was riding.
On behalf of Law Offices of Anthony Murgatroyd, L.L.C. posted in Car Accidents on Tuesday, May 1, 2012
For high school seniors, prom and graduation are two of the most exciting and anticipated events of the year. For teens in New Jersey and all over the nation, these events bring out a lot of get-togethers and parties that bring teenagers onto the roads, often at odd and dangerous hours of the night and very early morning.
Teen driving safety is consistently a concern, but as these times of celebration are drawing near, promoting and protecting teen driving safety is becoming more prevalent in an effort to decrease the potential of even one serious car accident.
On behalf of Law Offices of Anthony Murgatroyd, L.L.C. posted in Car Accidents on Wednesday, April 25, 2012
Whether in New Jersey or anywhere else, car accidents often tragically result in personal injury or even death. Unfortunately, all too often we read about an at-fault driver who flees the scene of a car accident for reasons spanning from intoxication, outstanding warrants or simply trying to avoid responsibility. Many times, the victim is left alone in the roadway to fight for their own survival. One victim lost her life at the hands of a hit-and-run driver in New Brunswick on March 30.
The accident apparently occurred when an SUV driver, said to be speeding and drunk, struck and killed a New Jersey mother as she walked to church. The victim, a mother of four, succumbed to the injuries she sustained in the car accident several hours later. The driver left the scene of the accident, but police were able to locate him after he had his vehicle repaired following the collision. He is now free on $235,000 bail as his case works its way through the criminal court system.
On behalf of Law Offices of Anthony Murgatroyd, L.L.C. posted in Wrongful Death on Friday, April 20, 2012
The odds of being struck by lightning are extremely low for the average person, granted they take appropriate safety measures during a lightning or thunder storm. When these precautions aren't observed, though, the potential for such an incident increases and a fatal accident may be a tragic result. Such may have been the case recently, when a man working on a construction crew that was building a New Jersey casino in Atlantic City was struck and killed by lightning while working on the site.
Accidents of nature, such as lightning strikes, typically cannot be blamed on another party. They can't be prevented; however, common safety procedures are typically involved in any outdoor activity or situation that serves to protect people from the dangers of events like lightning strikes. In this construction site strike, it is said that these precautions were not properly observed.
On behalf of Law Offices of Anthony Murgatroyd, L.L.C. posted in Car Accidents on Monday, April 9, 2012
When kids take the school bus, they are expected to make the trip safely between their home and school without consequence. So when a car accident involving a school bus does happen, and a child ends up in the hospital rather than safely at home, it is understandably upsetting. Such was the case in a recent New Jersey accident involving a school bus, though the accident seems to have been the fault of another vehicle rather than the school bus driver.
The school bus was traveling through an intersection when an SUV apparently ran the red light and the two vehicles collided. Two 13-year-old girls were injured; one sustained an injury to the arm, while the other suffered a neck injury as a result of the accident. Both students were transported to the hospital.
On behalf of Law Offices of Anthony Murgatroyd, L.L.C. posted in Brain Injury on Wednesday, April 4, 2012
Teenagers behind the wheel of a motor vehicle are often seen as a potential danger to others on or near the roadway in New Jersey and elsewhere. Whether or not teenagers are a danger to others on the road, it seems the road may be a danger to them.
A recent study of teenage drivers by The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia reveals shocking statistics concerning the safety, as well as potential for brain injury, of teen drivers who find themselves in car accidents, which applies to teens nationwide.
On behalf of Law Offices of Anthony Murgatroyd, L.L.C. posted in Nursing Home Neglect on Monday, March 26, 2012
Illness can easily spread through places where many people live close together, especially when these people may not be at the top of their health in places like nursing homes not only in New Jersey but across the nation. Nursing home neglect that results in significant passing of a deadly disease is particularly dangerous. Unfortunately, this may be the case in a recent Clostridium difficile infection outbreak in places such as nursing homes, outpatient care, and hospitals.
This bacteria namely causes diarrhea, among other health issues, and is known to cause about 14,000 deaths nationally per year. These deaths occur mostly among people older than 65 who are typically living in nursing homes or other elder care facilities. In fact, 75 percent of these infections are found in nursing home facilities.
On behalf of Law Offices of Anthony Murgatroyd, L.L.C. posted in Car Accidents on Monday, March 19, 2012
New Jersey's Department of Transportation's Complete Streets program seeks to give all of New Jersey's roads complete infrastructure that allows for safe travel for not only drivers of motor vehicles, but for pedestrians and cyclists as well. However, a recent report by the Tri-State Transportation Campaign reveals that a significant number of pedestrian deaths are still occurring on New Jersey's state highways. The TSTC report reveals that 145 pedestrian deaths by car accident occurred in 2011, which is up from the 140 accidents in 2010.
Many of these main highways were not designed with pedestrians in mind. They were created to connect faraway places, but now that malls and restaurants are popping up along these roads, the danger for pedestrians increases. Unfortunately, funding for pedestrian safety programs like Complete Streets is falling behind, so even if future streets are built with pedestrians and cyclists in mind, older roads without these faculties may still be a danger to non-motor-vehicle travelers.
On behalf of Law Offices of Anthony Murgatroyd, L.L.C. posted in Car Accidents on Tuesday, March 13, 2012
Two New Jersey women were listed in critical condition after becoming involved in not one, but two car accidents on the New Jersey Turnpike. The women were both exiting the turnpike when their vehicles collided around noon recently, leading them to pull their vehicles off to the side of the road to await police response to the car accident. As they stood together outside of their cars, another vehicle exited onto the ramp, lost control, and struck the guardrail as well as the two women.
The victims were transported to University Hospital in Newark where they were reported to be in critical condition. It is not said whether the driver that struck them was injured in the collision. The car accident was still under investigation, and no charges were immediately filed as a result of the incident.
