January 4, 2010
MADD
Victim/Survivor Helpline
Call 1-877-MADD-HELP (877-623-3435) to speak with a Victim Advocate
On average someone is killed by a drunk driver every 45 minutes. In 2008, an estimated 11,773 people died in drunk driving related crashes—a decline of 9.8 percent from the 13,041 drunk driving related fatalities of 2007.
Download MADDadvocate, a digital magazine on-line http://tinyurl.com/ygupd5x
If you have been involved in an accident caused by a drunk driver.
Call 1-800-299-8878 today.
October 12, 2009
A Lesson in Why Uninsured Motorist Coverage Matters
According to the 2008 Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, alcohol-related fatalities, crashes and injuries have decreased in the past few years, but Port St. Lucie resident Matthew Rudow wasn’t that lucky. His car was violently struck on the driver’s side by an uninsured, drunk driver. Rudow often thought about dropping his uninsured motorist coverage, but his accident taught him how important that coverage is.
Stuart attorney Philip DeBerard hopes that other drivers can learn from Rudow’s experience and that it will encourage them to be sure they always have uninsured motorist coverage on their vehicles.
In the accident, Rudow suffered serious neck and back injuries that caused severe pain and headaches and left him unable to work any longer. According to his physician, surgery will be required in the future and, due to the problematic location of his spinal disc herniation, he must travel to a specialty hospital. Rudow’s has his life, but it has been changed forever.
Fortunately, Rudow made a smart decision and purchased Uninsured Motorist coverage on his own auto insurance policy. “Unfortunately, his own insurance company refused to fairly evaluate his claim, despite repeated efforts to negotiate on his behalf, and we had to take his case to trial to be heard by a jury,” DeBerard explains. After a four-day trial, the jury awarded Rudow $342,700.
Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist Coverage was initiated in 1961, enabling consumers to obtain coverage insuring themselves against injuries caused by other drivers. Florida law requires that insurance companies offer Uninsured Motorist coverage in equal limits to the amount of bodily injury coverage afforded under the policy, but the minor extra cost – and it is usually a very minor cost – is rejected by many drivers in order to save money on their insurance bill.
In Rudow’s situation, Uninsured Motorist coverage will help pay for his future treatment. “All drivers should contact their insurance agent and include Uninsured Motorist coverage on their auto policy to protect them against the uninsured drivers on the road,” attorney DeBerard recommends.
Driving Under the Influence is responsible for 41% of total traffic deaths in Florida!
Tips on How to Spot a Drunk Driver
From the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (www.flhsmv.gov/html/safety.html)
– Turns with a wide radius.
– Straddles the center of the road or lane marker.
– Appears to be drunk (i.e., eye fixation, face close to windshield, drinking in the vehicle).
– Almost strikes an object or other vehicle.
– Drives slower than 10 mph below speed limit.
– Stops without cause in a traffic lane.
– Stops inappropriately (other than in the traffic lane).
– Follows others too closely.
– Weaves or zigzags across the road.
– Drives on other than a designated roadway.
– Swerves or abruptly turns away from a generally straight course.
– Turns abruptly or illegally.
– Drifts or moves in a straight-line at a slight angle to the roadway.
– Brakes erratically.
– Drives into opposing or crossing traffic.
– Makes signals that are inconsistent with driving actions.
– Has slow response to traffic signals, such as sudden stop or delayed start.
– Drives with headlights off.
October 8, 2009
New tactic From Law Enforcement Agencies Nabs Unlicensed Drivers
Courthouse stings catch illegal drivers in the act as they try to drive from
parking lots
By C. Ron Allen South Florida Sun-Sentinel
Teams of state troopers and deputies have been ordered to stake out courthouses to catch drivers pulling out of the parking lot after they’ve lost their license.
The move is part of an aggressive crackdown by the Florida Highway Patrol and Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office on unlicensed drivers who repeatedly get behind the wheel.
The focus on these drivers is part of a plan to put the brakes on what authoritiest call an epidemic infecting the roadways. A 2003 study by the American Automobile Association found that motorists without a valid driver’s license are five times more likely to be involved in a fatal crash than those properly licensed.
Under the new tactic, ordered by Maj. Luis Ramil, FHP’s Troop L commander, and Sheriff Ric Bradshaw, law enforcement officers lay in wait in and around courthouses, some in plainclothes to blend in with spectators at the hearings.
When the judge suspends a driver’s license, the troopers or deputies then alert their colleagues outside who nab the drivers. Additional operations are planned for Broward and Miami-Dade counties but officials would not disclose the dates.
This aggressive new approach is atypical because law enforcement agencies don’t usually actively pursue these drivers, authorities said.
“It upsets anyone that reads in the paper or sees online where a driver who should not even be behind the wheel of a car has a crash, hurts someone or kills someone,” said Lt. Tim Frith, spokesman for the Highway Patrol, which has about 1,500 troopers. “That strikes a nerve with anyone. What are they doing in the car in the first place? It’s the first thing we hear: ‘They shouldn’t even been driving.’ Absolutely right, they shouldn’t.”
Not everyone likes the tactic.
Marshall Geyser, a Fort Lauderdale defense attorney who represents motorists with traffic tickets, said he is troubled by the courthouse stings because he thinks it is a poor use of taxpayers’ dollars.
“I don’t agree with what they do,” said Geyser, who has been practicing for 22 years. “I think that our tax dollars could be spent policing more important things. We have a boatload of violent crimes going on in both counties and throughout South Florida and they’re spending their time catching people who may not be licensed.”
Last year, law enforcement officers statewide wrote 379,976 tickets for driving under one or more of five categories: no license, expired license, improper license, and a suspended or revoked licenses, according to the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. The county-by-county breakdown was unavailable.
Since the courthouse crackdown started last month, 22 drivers whose licenses were suspended by a judge have been arrested and their cars and a motorcycle were towed, officials said.
In 2008, the latest numbers available, the state suspended or revoked about 2.4 million driver’s licenses, Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles records show. There are nearly 16 million licensed drivers in Florida.
First-time offenders are charged with a second-degree misdemeanor and face up to 60 days in jail and a $500 fine, while a second offense can lead to a year in jail and a $1,000 fine. The third offense results in a third-degree felony and up to five years in prison and a $ 5,000 fine. But those penalties are at a judge’s discretion.
Drivers can lose licenses for many reasons: failing to pay a traffic fine, failing to pay child support, and getting convicted of drug crimes or underage alcohol possession, to name a few.
The Florida Legislature has tried unsuccessfully at least four times to stiffen penalties and impound cars of unlicensed drivers. Rep. Ari Porth, D- Coral Springs, said he plans to reintroduce a bill to address the issue.
“We’re not planning to increase jail time. I think [the bill] meets the needs of getting people off the road and answers the criticism that it’s been perhaps too Draconian in the past,” Porth said. “I do want to take people’s cars away from them until they have cleaned up their licenses but this is a somewhat softer approach.”
Although authorities are focusing on courthouse blitzes, they still plan to conduct checkpoints.
“I don’t know what more can we do,” Frith said. “Are people finding it inconvenient and irritating at times? Absolutely, but there is a greater portion of the public that feels they are necessary. They love the fact that we are removing drivers that shouldn’t be out there and possibly could hurt or even kill their loved ones.”
C. Ron Allen can be reached at crallen@SunSentinel.com or 561-243-6611.
