What Happens When Driver's Provide False Testimony About Their Responsibility For An Accident
By: J. Hernandez
Submitted: 2010-08-23 12:09:25 | Word Count: 795
Many people are hurt every year in motor vehicle accidents. The largest classification of those hurt are drivers. Sometimes there are no independent witnesses to the accident. One might expect that the driver who caused the accident would take responsibility, especially when the other person was severely hurt. This is not always what occurs. If the defendant driver disputes fault and possibly even blames the victim, a lawyer with the experience and skill to properly investigate and position the claim may make all the difference.
This article examines a lawsuit where the defense tried to blame the plaintiff. The defendant was a driver of a truck turning left turn into an intersection and struck the plaintiff's car. The driver of the car, who was badly hurt in the accident, claimed his light was yellow as he entered the intersection. He admitted to speeding up to make the light. After the accident the driver of the truck claimed that he had a green left turn signal and that the driver of the car sped into the intersection against a red light. The way the intersection lights were programmed a yellow light for the plaintiff would have meant a red turn arrow for the defendant.
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This was not an accident involving just minor injuries. In fact, the plaintiff suffered several injuries. He suffered fractures to his left forearm. He suffered a laceration on his head. He had surgery for the forearm fracture. The surgery required internal fixation. He needed some 20 staples to close the head injury. The victim was forty at the time of the accident.
The law firm that took the case on behalf of the victim examined the scene of the accident. First, the attorney became familiar with the scene of the accident (the intersection) and then learned that even if the plaintiff victim's light had already turned red before he entered the intersection, the defendant truck driver's left turn arrow would also have been red. The next green would have been for traffic coming from the left of the truck. The defendant truck driver would not have the right of way until that traffic (the driver waiting to the defendant's left) had a chance to go through the intersection.
After learning about the way lights were programmed the next thing was to demonstrate the sequence. This was accomplished by having a Department of Transportation representative testify as to the timing and sequencing of the lights at the intersection. Combining this with the testimony of a witness who was waiting at a red light to exit the facility at the left of the truck driver that his light was still redwhen the accident happened , the law firm was able to prove that the truck ran a red left turn arrow.
The law firm took the lawsuit to trial. Despite the fact that the jury found that the victim was 15% at fault for the accident, they apportioned 85% of the fault on the driver of the truck. Given the percentage of fault allocation by the jury the law firm achieved a recovery of $467,000 on behalf of the victim. The day before trial the insurance company refused to settle for a demand of $300,000.
As this matter shows a thorough investigation of the accident scene, one that uncovers the evidence that will establish that the accident could not have occurred how the defendant claims. This requires the experience and the common sense to know what to look for, and the resources to carry on the investigation the right way. Then it becomes a matter of putting the details together in the correct sequence.
The case also illustrates how, even given convincing evidence that the driver of the truck went through a red left turn arrow and given the nature and extent of the victim's injuries, the insurance company would not settle the case for what turned out to be a very reasonable demand. This can happen even when they risk having to pay out substantially more by going to trial than they would need to pay the plaintiff to settle the case.
When presented with such circumstances the attorney representing the plaintiff does best by thoroughly preparing the case for trial and recover as much as possible for the plaintiff by a jury award.
Author Resource:-
Joseph Hernandez is an Attorney accepting motor vehicle accident cases. To learn more about how a truck accident attorney may be able to assit you and about other vehicle accident matters including motor vehicle accident matters visit the websites
