Arkansas Injury Lawyer Blog

The Arkansas Legislature passed a bill in 2009 that would amend current law and requires law enforcers to conduct testing for the presence of drugs and alcohol in drivers who were involved in fatal or potentially fatal car accidents.

Act 423 requires that law enforcers subject a driver involved in an accident “in which death has occurred or is likely to occur” to a “chemical test of the blood, breath or urine”. The results of the test may be used for prosecution purposes and are to be conducted regardless of whether the surviving driver appears to be under the influence of intoxicating or illegal substances or not. A test will also need to be conducted regardless of whether the suspected erring driver is critically injured or not.

Unfortunately, driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol leads to very serious car accidents. If you or a loved one has been injured in a car accident or truck accident involving alcohol or drugs it is important to contact an experienced Arkansas personal injury lawyer to discuss your rights.

Motorcycle deaths in Arkansas increased 300 percent from 1997 to 2007. According to government statistics, there were 19 deadly motorcycle accidents in Arkansas in 1997, and the number increased to 76 in 2007. In fact, one in every nine car fatalities involves motorcycle riders.

The month of May has been designated motorcycle safety awareness month. In fact, the full U.S. House of Representatives voted unanimously to pass a resolution (H. Res. 269) supporting the goals of May is Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month. The measure encourages all road users to be more aware of motorcycles, all riders to get trained and ride responsibly, and recognizes the contribution that motorcycles make to our nation's transportation mix.

Motorcycle riders enjoy Arkansas highways and roads. It is imperative that riders and non-riders mutually respect the other's right to the road. Usually, inattention is the reason why motorcycle accidents happen in Arkansas. If you or a family member has been injured in a Arkansas motorcycle accident, please consult an experienced motorcycle accident lawyer as soon as possible to make sure your rights are protected.

A recent study by the Benton, Arkansas police is being used to make the roads safer. According to an article published by the Benton Courier, police are using accident reports to focus on high traffic accident areas to determine the causes.

According to the study, areas of Military Road from Carpenter Street to Northshore Drive have the most number of accidents. The main contributing factors were failure to yield (12 of the collisions), following too closely (nine of the collisions), careless driving (six of the collisions), not stopping at a red light (four of the collisions), driving too fast (two of the collisions) and improper lane changes (two of the collisions). The other area with high car accident rates include parts of Alcoa road in Benton Arkansas.

This is a proactive approach to reducing car accidents in Arkansas. People should be aware of the areas that produce a high percentage of car accidents so that they can avoid suffering an injury or property damage from a car or truck accident. If you would like to speak with an Arkansas car accident lawyer, please contact me today.

A recent tragic event occurred in Benton Arkansas. An inspector for the Arkansas Highway and Transportation Department died after he was hit by a crane at a construction site in central Arkansas. According to the news report, the inspector was walking a platform behind a crane when it turned and hit him. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is investigating the accident.

Unfortunately, industrial accidents are all too common in Arkansas. This incident reminds me of a case in which I represented two men who were hit by a crane and suffered serious personal injuries. We were able to prove that the crane operator and the company he worked for were negligent and did not use the necessary safety protocols to prevent this type of accident. We were able to recover a substantial verdict in this case.

When such dangerous equipment is being used, it is vital that operators make safety their number one priority. If an accident occurs, it is important that an investigation take place as soon as possible to discover what happened and why the personal injury accident occurred. If you or a family member has suffered a personal injury in an industrial accident, it is important that an experienced Arkansas accident lawyer be contacted as quickly as possible to help.