Auto Accidents

August 21, 2009

Michael Lewis, 16, killed in crash in Tremont, Maine

Michael Lewis of Bass Harbor was killed in the crash that occurred near the Rumill Road intersection. Lewis was driving a pickup truck that crashed head-on with another pick-up truck. The other truck was operated by Dacota Dow, 19, of Bar Harbor. Authorities reported that the two vehicles collided in the center of the road.

Two passengers in Lewis’ vehicle, Erin Hanley, a teenager from Tremont, and her brother Patrick, 10, were taken by ambulance to MDI Hospital in Bar Harbor with injuries that were not life-threatening.

Troopers from the Maine State Police remained on the scene into the evening investigating the accident.

August 10, 2009

Driver Accused in Fatal Accident Had Seven License Suspensions in Fewer Than Three Years

by Peter Thompson & Associates

A driver accused of fatally hitting a pedestrian had an extensive list of past traffic infractions, the Lewiston Sun-Journal reported Aug. 7. Brandon Earl Pelletier, 19, of Turner, is accused of hitting Sharon B. Call, 65, of Turner as she walked to a relative’s mailbox. According to an accident report by the Androscoggin County Sheriff’s Department, Call was walking to the mailbox at 9:45 a.m. when Pelletier approached at an unsafe rate of speed. He is accused of hitting Call, then skidding down an embankment and into a field.

Research by the Sun-Journal shows that Pelletier has been in trouble for traffic offenses many times in his short driving career. Since he received his license in December of 2006, it has been suspended seven times — it was restored most recently in April. His record also includes three convictions for speeding; two for running a stop sign; and one for illegal transport of liquor. He has also been convicted twice for operating with a suspended license and once for failing to produce evidence of insurance, along with more minor offenses. No charges are currently pending in connection with the current accident, but the accident report said unsafe speed was a primary contributor to the accident, along with tire failure as a secondary contributor.

Of course, a spotted past doesn’t guarantee that a driver will be involved in a serious accident later. But as a Bangor, Maine car crash lawyer, I know that such drivers are statistically correlated with fatal accidents. According to statistics from the federal Department of Transportation, 40% of those involved in fatal accidents with speeding in 2007 were also legally drunk (with a blood-alcohol concentration of 0.08% or higher). In the same year, about 40% of drivers involved in fatal crashes had previous license suspensions, crashes or convictions for OUI/DUI, speeding or another serious moving violation. When a driver has multiple previous offenses, it’s not hard to guess that he or she might be an unsafe driver. These offenses could be powerful evidence for the driver’s liability in any Maine car wreck lawsuit that victims and their loved ones choose to file.

August 6, 2009

Update on boy injured while trying to jump off Salmon Falls Bridge

by Peter Thompson & Associates

Jack Vincent, a 12-year-old Scarborough boy who was hit by a pickup truck last week is reportedly improving, although it is still unknown what permanent limitations he will have from his injuries.

York County Sheriff Maurice Ouellette acknowledged that the bridge is too narrow to accommodate cars and pedestrians at the same time. The driver is claiming that he didn’t have enough time to react before hitting Vincent.

In our opinion, an investigation into this matter should carefully consider the truck driver’s speed and knowledge of the children’s use of the bridge, and should analyze whether law enforcement officials should have done more to prevent this accident from occurring. In our opinion, there should also be additional investigation whether the State failed to do enough to accommodate the use of the bridge by pedestrians and children.

August 5, 2009

Update on accident that killed camp counselor walking on roadside

by Peter Thompson & Associates

The Kennebec Couty Sheriff’s Department reported that the results of the blood test conducted on Joseph Rouleau, 35, of Fayette, following the crash that claimed the life of 21-year-old Corrie Lazar showed Rouleau had a blood-alcohol content of 0.23, almost three times the legal limit. Charges will likely be filed against Mr. Rouleau.

In this type of situation, it is highly likely that it will be established that Mr. Rouleau’s level of intoxication prevented him from seeing Lazar in the road or, if he did see her, impaired his reaction time to the point where he was not able to avoid an otherwise avoidable collision with the pedestrian.

August 4, 2009

Accident in Newport involving rescue vehicle

by Peter Thompson & Associates

A rescue vehicle collided head-on with a truck causing injuries to the operator of the truck and his passenger.

Newport Rescue had been dispatched to a restaurant on Route 2, Angler’s Restaurant. As the vehicle approached the Ridge Road intersection, a vehicle reportedly slowed causing a truck behind it operated by Chistopher Hajek to swerve into the path of the rescue vehicle.

Hajek suffered leg injuries and was transported to Sebasticook Valley Hospital, then was moved to Eastern Maine Medical Center.

July 29, 2009

Child hit by truck at Salmon Falls Bridge

by Peter Thompson & Associates

A 12-year-old boy was hospitalized in serious condition when a pickup truck hit him on the Salmon Falls Bridge. The boy, according to news accounts, was getting ready to jump off the bridge. The bridge is very well known in the area as a place where children come in the summer for the excitement of leaping from a height of over 20 feet into the water. The town has issued citations, but has not created any type of obstruction to prevent children from jumping from the bridge.

An investigation into this matter will likely occur to determine whether the driver of the truck was exercising adequate caution. One issue that will need to be addressed is whether the driver knew the area was frequented by children and, if so, whether he was exercising extra caution. Maine law requires that if a driver is aware that children are playing in an area near a road he exercise reasonable caution by, among other things, reducing his speed and/or keeping a vigilant lookout for children. This situation is similar to drivers seeing children riding bicycles along a road. Under these circumstances, reasonable care would require the driver to proceed at reduced speeds that would permit the driver to avoid a collision if the child were to accidentally swerve out into the road.

Another issue that will likely be investigated is whether the State did enough to prevent children from being injured by what was clearly known to be a potentially dangerous attraction. Maine law requires owners of property to exercise reasonable care to prevent harm to children by having something on the property that would attract the children and cause potentially serious injuries. Although this particular bridge was used for generations as a popular place to jump, it would need to be determined whether modifications to the bridge design could have enabled this past-time to occur while, at the same time, reducing the possibility of children being hit by oncoming vehicles.