Bardstown Kentucky Personal Injury Law Blog

Driving a truck comes with a very important responsibility. Since the average truck weighs 20 to 30 times more than a car, the amount of devastation a truck accident can cause is significant. One small mistake or failure to pay attention for a split second can result in substantial property damage, severe injuries and potentially even death.

Every year thousands of people suffer injuries or lose their lives due to truck accidents. The NHTSA reported 4,102 deaths from large truck accidents in 2017, which is an increase of roughly 100 people from 2016. These numbers have improved significantly since the 1980s, but the death toll for trucking accidents still remains high. It is unrealistic to completely eliminate truck accidents overnight but understanding common reasons why they occur can help prevent this issue from growing.

Months after a Grayson County teacher's death in a fatal train accident, the husband has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the company and the staff seeking monetary damages. In the lawsuit, the victim's husband alleges that the company, Paducah & Louisville Railway Inc., had information that the crossing was unsafe and failed to install safety arms or flashing lights. The suit also declares trees alongside the crossing obstructed the victim's sight of the looming train. The suit named the train's conductor and engineer in addition to the company as all guilty for the mishap.

Reportedly, the 63-year-old Grayson County High School teacher's car was hit on the driver's side by a train last September on the railroad crossing of Blackrock Drive in Grayson County. Her car was hurled 30 feet from the tracks, hitting a guide wire from a utility shaft before whirling a further 30 feet where it rested parallel to the tracks. The railway crossing involved with the accident didn't have any caution lights and arms.

Police may now be held liable for damages if their negligent high-speed chases lead to the injury or death of innocent people. This is true due to a landmark judgment recently made by the Kentucky Supreme Court that overruled a 1952 decision granting blanket immunity to police against damages and injuries suffered by someone as a result of a police chase. Victims who suffered injury or the family members of victims that were killed during a police chase can sue the police officer involved or the department.

The judgment came while the court was hearing a 2014 case that involves the death of two people. Both victims were travelling on U.S. 25 in Lexington and were struck head on by a suspected heroin dealer being chased by the Scott County Deputy. The investigation report presented in court revealed the police officer pursued the suspected drug dealer into Fayette County on a rainy night, discovering in the middle of the chase that his sirens were not functioning although his lights on his cruiser were working fine. The law of the state requires police to use both sirens and light during a chase.

Impaired driving can cause permanent disability and even death to the accident victim. It brings extreme pain and suffering for the surviving family members of the accident victim. Impaired driving, you may call it driving under the influence or driving while intoxicated, is considered a serious offence across the United States and the offenders are punished according to the laws of the state. If a person is caught driving under the influence, the authorities may suspend the driving license of the driver, confiscate the vehicle and impose other strict penalties as well.

In a recent two vehicle fatal collision, a man from Kentucky was arrested and charged with first degree driving under the influence along with failure to wear a seatbelt. The unfortunate accident occurred on Saturday night, just six miles east of Burkesville on KY 90. According to preliminary investigation report of Kentucky State Police, the man from Burkesville was driving a 2000 Ford eastbound on KY 90, while crossing into the oncoming westbound lane, he hit head on a 2012 Nissan. The head-on collision was so powerful that the driver of the Nissan and a passenger, were both declared dead at the scene. The driver of the causing vehicle was taken to the nearby hospital and treated for minor injuries.