About the Editors: Shapiro, Cooper Lewis & Appleton is a law firm which focuses on injury and accident law and our attorneys have experience handling truck accident cases. Check out our case results to see for yourself. Though not every case meets our criteria, we offer free, initial consultations so give us a call at 1-800-752-0042. If you can’t get through due to high call volume, please leave a message and we will return your call promptly. Our primary office in based in Virginia Beach, Virginia (VA) although our lawyers hold licenses in NC, SC, WV, KY, FL and DC. Our injury attorneys also host an extensive injury law video library on Youtube . Furthermore, our lawyers proudly edit the Virginia Beach Injuryboard and Norfolk Injuryboard as a pro bono public information service.

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If there was any doubt about the level of risk we all face while sharing the highway with big rigs and other large commercial trucks, the recent accident in Henrico County, Virginia (VA) illustrates what can happen when something goes wrong with a large commercial truck.

A big rig traveling down Interstate 64 (I-64) suddenly had a wheel base break off causing the massive truck tire to bounce across the highway eventually slamming into a minivan driven by Stephanie Bender, a resident of Colonial Heights, VA. She died at the scene on May 14, 2010 as a result, according to wtkr.com.  The truck was  owned by J.E. Liesfeld Contractor Inc. of Rockville, MD, State Police spokesman Sgt. Thomas J. Molnar said.  A company spokesman said that the wreck “very tragic” and said the cause appeared to be equipment failure — a tire seal ruptured, and friction caused the 200-pound tire set to come off the axle.  Under Department of Transportation (DOT) regulations governing commercial trucks, there are inspections required of such vehicles.  It is unclear at this time whether any failure of maintenance or inspection duties apply here.

Here is a news report about this fatal truck accident:
 
 
“The company is very upset this happened, it’s a tragic accident, and the company will do everything it can to assist the family in its time of need,” said Charles Ayers, corporate counsel to Liesfeld.  As a trucking injury attorney often working against trucking company’s, it is unclear to me what the attorney’s comment means in the context of any civil injury lawsuit that may be brought by her family members.

Stephanie Bender was survived by her husband, Terry Lee Bender, Jr, two daughters, her parents, and many brothers and sisters.  Her family has roots in the Macon/Dodge County, GA area.  Many of her co-workers at Capitol One, where she had previously worked, were stunned, and talked about her beautiful smile and the pride she took in her daughters and her family.

The disparity in size and weight between a commercial truck and compact cars, SUVs, and minivans is so great that even when the slightest error or malfunction occurs with a big rig or 18-wheeler, the damage can be catastrophic, especially for the driver and/or passenger(s) in those compact vehicles.

The VA Commercial Motor Vehicle Inspection Team is investigating what caused the tire to break off from the big rig, according to wtvr.com. They will determine if traffic/criminal charges should be filed against the truck driver since there’s a chance the big rig may have had mechanical defects which were overlooked or neglected leading to a death.  This is completely separate from any “wrongful death” civil lawsuit that may be available to the surviving family members.

It  was reported that over 200,000 trucks violate federal safety regulations, but are still operating on roads and highways all across the country. We’ll have to wait and see what the Inspection Team reports.

Regardless of the cause, I want to send my deepest sympathies to the Bender family. The pain of losing someone you love is always gut-wrenching, but it has to be even worse when the loss is so sudden. Mrs. Bender was only 36 years old.

About the Editors: Shapiro, Cooper Lewis & Appleton is a law firm which focuses on injury and accident law and our attorneys have experience handling truck accident cases. Check out our case results to see for yourself. Our primary office in based in Virginia Beach, Virginia (VA) although our lawyers hold licenses in NC, SC, WV, KY, FL and DC. We are ready to talk to you by phone right now—we provide free initial confidential injury case consultations, so call us toll free at 1-800-752-0042. Our injury attorneys also host an extensive injury law video library on Youtube . Furthermore, our lawyers proudly edit the Virginia Beach Injuryboard and Norfolk Injuryboard as a pro bono public information service.

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Shapiro,  Cooper, Lewis, & Appleton

Maria Ann Combs was driving to work early in the morning when tragedy struck in the form of a pickup truck. Combs accidentally hit a deer on Interstate 81 (I-81) in Harrisonburg, Virginia (VA) and a tractor trailer smashed into her pickup truck as a result.

My deepest condolences go out to Maria’s friends and family. Her son, Matthew, works for the Harrisonburg Police Department.

“She was just a fantastic lady,” said Col. Don Harper, the Harrisonburg Police Chief, according to DNRonlne.com. “She was great to work with. She was always smiling. I never saw her when she wasn’t smiling.”

There have been numerous traffic accidents on I-81 and many of them involving trucks. This could be attributed to the ever-increasing number of trucks utilizing I-81 as a route or it could linked to the fact that a myriad of trucks are on the road with defective brakes and other safety violations.

An investigation needs to be conducted with this accident to see how much distance was between Maria’s pickup truck and the tractor trailer. If the tractor trailer was driving too close, that may have contributed to the accident.

About the Editors: Shapiro, Cooper Lewis & Appleton is a law firm which focuses on injury and accident law and our attorneys have experience handling truck accident cases. Check out our case results to see for yourself. Our primary office in based in Virginia Beach, Virginia (VA) although our lawyers hold licenses in NC, SC, WV, KY and DC. We are ready to talk to you by phone right now—we provide free initial confidential injury case consultations, so call us toll free at 1-800-752-0042. Our injury attorneys also host an extensive injury law video library on Youtube . Furthermore, our lawyers proudly edit the Virginia Beach Injuryboard and Norfolk Injuryboard as a pro bono public information service.

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Shapiro, Cooper, Lewis, & Appleton

A report by the American Association for Justice revealed that more than 28,000 motor carrier companies and more than 211,000 trucks violated federal safety regulations and were still operating on our roads.

A majority of these trucks received a “conditional” grade which means they are operating with one or more safety violations. Many truck companies are based in Texas, but there are plenty in Virginia (VA) and the companies based in the Commonwealth also violate federal safety standards.

The most common violation was defective brakes. Obviously, having functional brakes is essential for safety, but trucking companies simply ignore this requirement and send their employees out on the road with malfunctioning brake systems.

Other violations include:

• Balding tires, retreaded tires
• Truck loads exceeding weight limits
• Inexperienced and untrained drivers
• Drivers working excessive hours
• Drivers with drug or alcohol dependencies
• Falsified trucking logs and other records

In 2007, more than 86,000 people in the United States were seriously hurt after being involved in a trucking accident and over 4800 people died as a result. These statistics are unacceptable and something needs to be done. All of the violations listed above can be corrected with simple responsibility and ethical business practices. It’s shocking that truck companies remain in business even after it’s been discovered they falsify trucking logs and send their employees out untrained or poorly trained to handle such dangerous equipment.

As an injury lawyer who works for a firm that regularly represents people whose lives were changed forever after bring involved in a truck accident, I’ve seen firsthand the devastation these vehicles can inflict. There needs to be a full-scale investigation into the trucking industry and harsh punishments need to be levied in order to send a clear message that safety comes first, not last.

About the Editors: Shapiro, Cooper Lewis & Appleton is a law firm which focuses on injury and accident law and our attorneys have experience handling truck accident cases. Check out our case results to see for yourself. Our primary office in based in Virginia Beach, Virginia (VA) although our lawyers hold licenses in NC, SC, WV, KY and DC. We are ready to talk to you by phone right now—we provide free initial confidential injury case consultations, so call us toll free at 1-800-752-0042. Our injury attorneys also host an extensive injury law video library on Youtube . Furthermore, our lawyers proudly edit the Virginia Beach Injuryboard and Norfolk Injuryboard as a pro bono public information service.

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Shapiro, Cooper, Lewis, & Appleton

Truck accidents are terrible, but tanker truck accidents can be even worse. The size and velocity these massive vehicles possess can inflict incredible damage when involved in a trucking accident. This is especially true in rollover accidents.

This scenario unfortunately came to fruition when a tanker truck rolled over on U.S. Highway 40 in Colorado and spilled over 6,000 gallons of fuel on the road. Fortunately, no other vehicles were involved in the incident and the driver of the tanker truck survived.

Truck accidents are not relegated to the Colorado area. There have been numerous truck accidents in the western portions of Virginia (VA) including I-81 (Virginia’s most dangerous road) and U.S. Highway 11. There have also been accidents on I-64 around Cabell County in West Virginia. One of these accidents involved a tractor trailer containing fuel. Sadly, this accident had a tragic ending. The fuel tank ruptured and caused a fire leading to the death of a driver in a vehicle involved in the accident.

In the Colorado accident, the driver, named Robert Windecker, is facing a careless driving charge. Why?Because Robert was driving too fast. This is completely unacceptable behavior, especially for a trained driver handling a tanker truck. Robert failed to responsibly drive this vehicle and the devastation he could have inflicted would have been enormous considering the amount of fuel that spilled out   from the tanker.

As an injury lawyer who works for a firm that’s represented people in trucking accidents, I understand the damage they can inflict on people when involved in an accident.

Hopefully, tanker truck drivers can learn from Robert’s mistake and exercise responsibility when driving such hazardous vehicles on major roadways.

About the Editors: The trucking injury attorneys with Shapiro, Cooper Lewis & Appleton personal injury law firm are based in Virginia (VA), with an office also in Elizabeth City, in Northeast North Carolina (NC), practicing primarily in the southeastern U.S. and handles only injury law, including car, truck, railroad, and medical negligence cases and more. Our Virginia injury law website is www.HSInjurylaw.com and our Carolina injury law website is: http://carolina.hsinjurylaw.com, the firm edits the injury law blogs Virginia Beach Injuryboard, Norfolk Injuryboard, as well as the Northeast North Carolina Injuryboard and also hosts a YouTube injury law video library with over 50 videos covering many FAQ’s on personal injury subjects. Lawyers licensed in: VA, NC, SC, WV, DC, KY.

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James Koehler Jr. and James Keller were driving home after just leaving a Gold Star Chili restaurant after enjoying a meal together. Suddenly, the pickup truck they were in lost control, flipped over and struck a tree. Both were killed. Both were just 23 years old.

My deepest condolences go out to Mr. Koehler and Mr. Keller’s friends and family. It’s so tragic when young people, who have their whole lives ahead of them, are taken from us prematurely.

As an injury lawyer who’s represented people seriously hurt in car and truck accidents, it’s always troubling to hear about these tragic incidences.

This accident is eerily similar to the truck accident which occurred in Roanoke, Virginia (VA) back in March. Six men were in a fire truck when it flipped over multiple times and hit a tree on Route 685, near the intersection with Route 794 which is just south of Pearisburg. Fortunately, they survived suffering only minor injuries.

Advice on What You Should Do if Involved in a Truck Accident

About the Editors: The trucking injury attorneys with Shapiro, Cooper Lewis & Appleton personal injury law firm are based in Virginia (VA), with an office also in Elizabeth City, in Northeast North Carolina (NC), practicing primarily in the southeastern U.S. and handles only injury law, including car, truck, railroad, and medical negligence cases and more. Our Virginia injury law website is www.HSInjurylaw.com and our Carolina injury law website is: http://carolina.hsinjurylaw.com, the firm edits the injury law blogs Virginia Beach Injuryboard, Norfolk Injuryboard, as well as the Northeast North Carolina Injuryboard and also hosts a YouTube injury law video library with over 50 videos covering many FAQ’s on personal injury subjects. Lawyers licensed in: VA, NC, SC, WV, DC, KY.

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