Maine Injury Lawyer Blog

January 22, 2015

Semian v. Ledgemere Transp., Inc. – Maine Supreme Court Weighs Bike Injury

The Maine Supreme Judicial Court recently affirmed a judgment favoring a bicyclist struck and run over by a bus driver, dismissing defendant’s argument that the cyclist’s own actions prevented her from obtaining compensation.

At issue in Semian v. Ledgemere Transportation, Inc. was 29 – A M.R.S. § 2070 (6). This statute allows that a bicyclist may pass a vehicle on the right in certain situations, but does so “at their own risk.”

Because of this provision, defendant bus company argued it could not be held liable for injuries sustained to a bicyclist who was attempting to pass on the right.

January 7, 2015

Icy Roads Cause Many Maine Truck Accidents

by Peter Thompson & Associates

The new year began in Maine with a series of tractor-trailer accidents along icy roads throughout the state.

According to state troopers, crashes on Route 9 and on Interstate 95 shut down traffic for many hours – and in one case, until the next day – while crews worked to clear the wreckage. Amazingly, no serious injuries were reported, though one driver had minor cuts and bruises and 20 other passenger vehicles sustained damage. Additionally, a 30-foot section of guardrail attached to a bridge on Bond Brook overpass was decimated.

While icy, snow conditions are nothing new for Maine drivers, tractor-trailers are known to be less maneuverable. They start more slowly, they take more time to stop and they are especially susceptible to adverse road conditions. Considering the average 18-wheeler commercial truck weighs about 25 times that of a regular car (in some cases, up to 40 times more), the risk of serious injuries and death in tractor-trailer collisions is high. In fact, crashes involving large trucks account for one-eighth of all traffic fatalities.

December 27, 2014

Maine Nursing Home Death Investigated by State Safety Officials

by Peter Thompson & Associates

Falls in nursing homes are not all that uncommon, but they are generally preventable – particularly when they involve a patient falling out of a window.

According to The Bangor Daily News, state health officials in Frenchville launched an investigation into a nursing home in late November, following the death of an elderly female resident who apparently suffered a fall from second-story window of the facility Nov. 14. She died at a nearby hospital.

In following up with the center just five and six days later, state investigators witnessed a series of deficiencies in care that rose to the level of serious, meaning patients at the site were deemed to be in immediate danger.

December 16, 2014

Distracted Driving and Holiday Traffic: A Deadly Combination

by Peter Thompson & Associates

Five people were hospitalized and a sixth injured following Maine car accident recently when the driver of a truck, apparently distracted, rear-ended the truck ahead of it, causing it to be pushed into oncoming traffic, where it was struck by a sport utility vehicle head-on. The driver of the second truck was trapped inside and had to be extracted by firefighters.

None of the injuries are classified as life-threatening, though it’s not yet clear whether the injuries sustained will be debilitating.

Authorities haven’t given great detail about the at-fault drivers actions in the moments before the wreck, but they have said he was “momentarily distracted” just before impact.

December 8, 2014

“Violent” Teen Crash in Maine Attributed to Alcohol, Speed

by Peter Thompson & Associates

The front half of the vehicle could barely be recognized as such, following a recent single-car collision into a utility pole, by a 16-year-old driver police believe was both drunk and speeding.

Phrases like, “lucky to be alive” were exchanged by investigators at the scene, who also described the wreck as “violent.” The impact into a utility pole caused the pole to break and tore the engine from the frame of the car, which overturned multiple times before landing on its wheels.

Amazingly, the teen suffered only minor injuries and was not even treated at the hospital following the Gardiner crash. He reportedly had just dropped off a friend minutes earlier, and no one else was inside the vehicle at the time.

November 22, 2014

Maine’s First Winter Storm Packs Wallop for Drivers

by Peter Thompson & Associates

An early blast of winter dumped more than a foot of snow across Maine recently, effectively ushering out autumn with bitter cold, strong winds and widespread flurries.

News reports indicated winds reached speeds of up to 50-miles-per-hour, while more than 135,000 households were without power. The Portland Press Herald reported numerous roads were impassable, which slowed recovery efforts in some areas. In some instances, Canadian crews were even called upon to come help as Gov. Paul LePage declared a limited emergency. This allowed utility crews to work overtime.

Throughout the state, roads were slick and treacherous. Reports were numerous vehicles careened off the road in Freeport and Brunswick. Trees fell on thoroughfares in Scarborough. There were also several crashes with injuries, including a collision between a sport-utility vehicle and a minivan in Falmouth that led to seven people hospitalized. Authorities would later say the SUV driver was traveling the speed limit, but it was too fast for road conditions.

November 15, 2014

Alcohol + Texting + Teens + Driving = Tragedy

by Peter Thompson & Associates

Nearly three years ago, two Paris teens were killed and two others injured after the driver (one of those hurt) had been drunk and texting behind the wheel when she lost control of the vehicle and crashed into a cluster of trees.

Now, that driver has been convicted of two counts of manslaughter and leaving the scene of a crash and sentenced to 18 months in prison. Now 21 and the mother of a 1-year-old, she faced 30 years of incarceration on the manslaughter charges.

At trial, witnesses testified the driver was drunk when she arrived at the party. She continued to drink. She laughed off a crash that happened just a few hours earlier, when she was turning her car in circles in the driveway and slammed into a tree stump. She was drinking up until a half hour before the fatal crash. She refused to let anyone else drive the vehicle.

November 3, 2014

Two Die in Fatal Maine Crash, Distraction Blamed

by Peter Thompson & Associates

There is perhaps nothing more devastating than losing a child.

Another mother in Maine now knows that pain, as well as the guilt of knowing she might have prevented the crash that killed her son, a high school football player, if only she’d been paying attention behind the wheel.

Authorities say the mother was driving in Bridgton when she reportedly drifted left of center because she was distracted in an exchange with her son in the back seat. When she realized she drifted, she swerved right and slammed on the brakes, causing her to lose control of the car, which careened off the road and into a patch of trees. Not only did her 16-year-old son die, but her 35-year-old boyfriend was killed.

October 25, 2014

Bangor Student School Bus Injury Reported After Child Struck by Car

by Peter Thompson & Associates

An elementary school student was struck and seriously injured by a vehicle while boarding a bus in Sedgwick recently. The child was later transported to Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor. Coincidentally, the accident occurred just days before National School Bus Safety Week, Oct. 20-24.

According to the Maine State Police, the crash occurred as the child was boarding the bus to school around 7:30 a.m. The bus slowed with its yellow flashing lights to indicate it was preparing to stop to pick up the girl. However, she was not standing outside as usual, so the driver pulled to the side of the road and turned off the yellow flashing lights, an indicator that through traffic was allowed to pass. As a 64-year-old driver was passing the bus, the girl raced out into the street, thinking the bus was stopped for her. (It was, but the absence of yellow flashing lights meant it wasn’t safe for her to cross.)

The private busing company that provides service to the school district declined to comment.

October 20, 2014

Maine Hayride Goes Horribly Wrong, 1 Killed, 22 Injured

by Peter Thompson & Associates

What began as a fun way to kick off the fall festivities ended in tragedy recently when those aboard a haunted hayride in Maine were dragged by an out-of-control Jeep towing a trailer with nearly two dozen passengers down a steep hill.

All 22 injured passengers and the driver were thrown when the Jeep struck a tree. A 17-year-old girl was killed. Although police in Mechanic Falls are still investigating the exact cause, they suspect brake problems with the 1979 Jeep are to blame.

From a personal injury and wrongful death standpoint, there are numerous individuals and entities that are likely to find themselves named as defendants. The driver would be one. The owner of the vehicle, if different than the driver, would likely also be named, as would the event organizers. The land owner or possessor also may face premises liability claims if there is reason to believe the property was in an unsafe condition and there was no warning.