Bicycle accidents, laws, protests, trails are all Michael Dresser seems to write about. This guy and Mike Preston are my two least favorite Baltimore Sun journalist but I read their articles the most. Mike Dresser recently wrote an article about the creation of a new class of misdemeanor offense tailored specifically to protect bike riders and pedestrians. My last blog discussed the recent tragedy involving a Johns Hopkins student who was struck by a car while riding his bike and left in a coma. The General Assembly's approval of this new law comes on the heels of that incident. In fact, bicyclists' groups, energized by a series of fatal crashes involving motor vehicles and bikes and the recent Johns Hopkins accident, rode from Baltimore to Annapolis in support of the new law on April 6th. One of the organizers of the ride was a woman whose husband was killed while bicycling in Baltimore County one year ago.
April 2011 Archives
Recently the Baltimore area bicycling community has been united by tragedy on the campus of Johns Hopkins University. A 20 year old student at Johns Hopkins was riding his bicycle down University Parkway in Baltimore City this February when he was struck by an elderly motorist. The Johns Hopkins student is not expected to recover brain function and his family believes there is no hope for any meaningful recovery. The brain damage caused by the accident appears to be permanent. The brain injury resulted from a lack of oxygen due to the fact that the young bicyclists was pinned underneath the vehicle that struck him. The accident occurred when an 83 year-old woman made a right turn into a driveway. In addition to being run over and pinned beneath the automobile, the young man also suffered third and fourth degree burns on his face and torso along with bone fractures, cuts and bruises.
Road workers throughout the United States are often struck during the course of their jobs. Additionally, they often cause other cars to strike each other because the work area is not properly designated or marked. Many of these automobile accidents often lead to tragedies. However, they can be avoided if the road workers are more familiar with, and follow safety procedures. In addition to State highway workers, companies that contract for road work are given copies of the safety rules.
A contractor was killed on Eastbound Rt. 50 when he was either deploying or retrieving traffic counting equipment. The employee was wearing reflective clothing. Safety rules require a spotter to assist the worker in these situations. No spotter was used. Further, State highway needs to be notified ahead of time before contractors begin work. They can often lend support. In this instance, they were not called. In addition, to aid drivers, and workers, the rules state the shoulder should be marked off with a tapered line of orange cones blocking off the crew's vehicle, along with a sign warning of shoulder work. Neither was done in this case.
In appears that the State Highway Administration rules for traffic work are routinely broken. As a result, serious accidents occur. If you are involved in any accident and believe it occurred due to the negligence of a highway worker call a Maryland accident attorney at Portner & Shure for a free consultation.
Cavalier and reckless police officers pose a serious threat to the safety of citizens. Simply because a person possesses a badge and a gun does not give that person the right to place citizens in danger for no reason. When a police officer is reckless the consequences can be disastrous. Last year a twenty-seven year old motorcyclist was killed during a high-speed police chase. Wednesday the mother of the motorcyclist filed a $40-million lawsuit against Baltimore City and the officer who struck her son. The lawsuit alleges that the police officer ignored orders and lied about how the crash occurred. I live in Baltimore City and appreciate the police officers and understand that their job is both indispensable and dangerous. With that being said I cannot overlook what I have witnessed with my own eyes. Some police officers think they are above the law, impervious to the rules and regulations that all of us must follow. Of course police officers are placed in situations where they must engage in activities that are otherwise prohibited. When confronted with extraordinary circumstances police officers still must follow specific codes of conduct. Further, when a police officer is not engaged in some type of pursuit or off duty placing others in danger is unacceptable.
