Investigators believe she was crossing Canoas Garden Avenue in an unmarked crosswalk when she was struck by a 99 Ford Taurus. The accident was reported at 6:35am and Barbero was pronounced dead at 10:20am according to the Santa Clara County Medical Examiner. At the time of the published report, authorities were still looking for the driver of the Ford Taurus.

“I’m not trying to get a guilty kid off,” Rude said. “I’ve always had faith in our justice system. I would like to see the truth prevail and I would like Shaun to see that the system works.”

California Highway Patrol Spokesman Bob Rickman explained that the driver “went through the cross arm” when it was down and bent it back. For an unknown reason, he then stopped on the tracks. The ACE train operator saw the truck and sounded his horn as a warning, according to the police report.

ACE spokesman Thomas W. Reeves said the train’s operator and nearly 70 passengers were unharmed. The train was the first of the morning, having left Stockton for San Jose at 4:20am for a nearly two hour trip. By 6:38a.m. the accident was cleared up, Reeves said. Reeves went on to explain that it had been more then a year since a Northern California train accident involving an auto had occurred and that in the 10 years that ACE has been operating, trains have hit cars about three to four times.

San Jose Truck Accidents can result in serious injury and in some instances, even death. Depending on the nature of your injuries, you can find yourself unable to work for an extended period of time and the medical expenses can be exorbitant. Our California train accident attorneys are experienced in holding negligent entities liable for the injuries they cause.

We invite you to call 1-866-218-3776 to speak with an experienced Northern California personal injury attorney at GJEL if you or a loved one has been injured. We provide free consultations, and we're paid only when we win your claim. You'll pay no fees if we don't obtain a verdict or settlement for you.

Daniel Alejandro Arvizu was traveling southbound on the 710 freeway approaching the San Diego freeway at about 3 a.m., according to a California Highway Patrol report. As he approached the overpass at about 70 mph, Arvizu swerved to the right to enter the transition lane and lost control of his automobile. The car careened over a raised concrete divider, down an embankment, and hit a tree. One of the passengers, a 29 year old Garden Grove woman identified as Arvizu’s sister, suffered major injuries in the accident and was transported to Long Beach Memorial Medical Center in critical condition. Arvizu did not suffer any injuries but was allegedly driving under the influence at the time of the crash and was arrested and booked at the Long Beach Police Station.

Car wrecks are an all too common occurrence on bay area highways. Add to the mix driving under the influence of alcohol and an innocent passenger who clearly has a wrongful death claim, and it becomes clear why all the parties involved in this accident need an experienced California Auto Accident or California Wrongful Death attorney to represent them. While car accidents make up a significant portion of California personal injury and wrongful death claims, they cannot be considered routine. Each accident must be investigated individually to establish case specifics.

Our experience in California auto accident litigation is extensive. The lawyers of GJEL are adept at assessing the physical principles of the accident, the medical evidence used to evaluate injuries, and the economic principles required to evaluate losses. We provide the strongest possible representation to assure the best possible result for your particular case.

Please call 1-877-469-5669 to speak with an experienced California auto accident lawyer at GJEL if you or a loved one has been injured. We provide all potential clients with free consultations and answer the many questions that you may have regarding your accident. We are paid only when we win your claim. You pay no fees if we do not obtain a verdict or settlement for you.

“Driving without insurance is illegal, and nearly 20,000 motorists in these counties are uninsured,” Poizner said. “Many drivers simply cannot afford insurance, but uninsured drivers put all travelers at risk. The expansion of this program to these 16 counties means that eligible motorists throughout the state will now have an affordable insurance option.”

The low cost auto insurance program has issued over 35,000 policies since its inception. It is designed to provide low-income good drivers with California auto liability coverage, currently for under $400 a year and as little as under $300 a year in many counties. The policies are issued by California licensed insurers and the self-sustaining program is administered by the California Automobile Assigned Risk Plan.

To be eligible for the program, an applicant must be a “good driver” – no more then one at-fault California auto accident or one point for a moving violation in the past three years; and no at fault accident involving bodily injury or death in the past three years; and no felony or misdemeanor conviction for a violation of the state’s vehicle laws. In addition, family income cannot exceed 250 percent of the federal poverty level ($25,525 for a single person, $34,225 for two persons and $51,625 for a family of four). The value of the insured vehicle must not exceed $20,000.

The case began in June 2001 when 76-year-old Betty Jo Walker of Los Angeles injured her neighbor, Juanita Wasson, by closing her garage door apparently without seeing Wasson standing underneath. Because the condominium where the injury occurred was part of a complex, Wasson then filed a lawsuit against both the homeowner’s association and the homeowners (Walker and co-owner Linda Williams). Upon notification of the suit, Farmers Insurance, who represented the association, refused to defend the homeowners, claiming Walker’s careless use of the garage door was negligent and independent of home ownership. Consequently, Walker and Williams were forced to hire another law firm for their defense, and before eventually settling with Wasson for $6,500, the women racked up over $45,000 in legal fees.

Unfortunately, even in the absence of aggressive driving, Patterson Pass Road still poses a serious risk to those who drive it. The most dangerous portion of the road runs over the Altamont Pass between Livermore and I-5 and is a favorite shortcut for a handful of Central Valley commuters who use the Pass to skirt the heavy traffic on Interstate 580. As a result, the road’s traffic is predominantly westbound in the morning and eastbound in the evening. The danger is that, for about three miles, the road narrows to one lane wide and includes several completely blind corners. Additionally, for a short distance the road is bordered by a steep wall on one side and a cliff on the other, limiting oncoming drivers to either a head-on collision or a 40-foot tumble. There are sections of the Pass where, if two cars happen to be coming from opposite directions, they will not see each other until their bumpers are fifteen feet apart.

A number of extended East Bay drivers have contacted us about accidents that occurred on this road—the twenty minutes saved by taking the Pass home do not outweigh the risk of serious injury. If you must drive this road, please use extreme caution and remain alert for speeding or aggressive drivers.

For more information, contact our office.

While the New Jersey story is perhaps a comically extreme example, the reality is that many similar “panicked reaction” accidents occur on a regular basis. In fact, not even one week after the New Jersey crash, here in the Bay Area, a 25-year-old man was driving southbound on Interstate 880 in Fremont when he swerved to avoid a two-car accident ahead. Unfortunately, his car careened right into the path of a big rig in the next lane. According to Fremont firefighter Jim Martin, although the driver remained conscious as rescue workers extracted him, he was being treated in San Jose for major head injuries at last report.

In accidents like these, it’s often hard to point fingers at either party involved. Although drivers should maintain awareness of what is happening on the roadway ahead, many times—for example, in the case of falling debris mentioned in one of our earlier blog posts —obstacles are legitimately unavoidable. In such cases, we can certainly empathize with those drivers who panic and lose control, and we obviously can’t blame a cautious driver who hits an erratic, out-of-control vehicle. However, we can all take steps to minimize, as much as humanly possible, the risk of such accidents. Most importantly, keep in mind those tips we all learned in drivers’ education: keep a safe distance between yourself and those in front of you, check your rearview mirror, and drive at a 'slow and steady' speed.

For more information on our firm, please contact us at 800-840-2111.

1. Morning drive on westbound I-80 from Highway 4 to the Bay Bridge metering lights;

2. Evening drive on eastbound I-580 from I-680 to El Charro Road east of Dublin;

3. Morning drive on westbound I-580 from around North Flynn Road to Airway Boulevard in Livermore;

On Saturday, 8-year-old Isias Munoz was killed when he was hit by a car at the intersection of Branham Lane East and Lyric Lane in San Jose. Isias was riding his bicycle when he was struck by the car in what appears to have been a careless mistake, as the driver was not under the influence and is not being charged with a crime.
http://www.mercurynews.com/localnewsheadlines/ci_6167830?nclick_check=1

The next day, near Greenfield, a 4-year-old and a 6-year-old were flown to the hospital with serious injuries after the car they were riding in tumbled 250 feet down a cliff. The driver, John Eric Velasquez of Soledad, was intoxicated when the crash occurred and was arrested before being taken to the hospital.
http://thecalifornian.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070618/NEWS01/70618010/1002

The truck accident occurred at approximately 7:50 a.m. on Bridgeway Street in Sausalito as Mr. Gonzalez was crossing the street on his way to work at a nearby restaurant. In this case, the facts so far offer no evidence that either party was overtly breaking the law—according to the investigating police officer, the truck appears to have been in full compliance with state safety regulations, and Mr. Gonzalez was not crossing the street illegally. Rather, the accident seems to have been the result of those factors which no safety law can eliminate: misapprehension of risk and simple human carelessness.

As the summer months approach and many of you begin traveling, please keep in mind that many disasters on the road can be averted by careful attentiveness to the vehicles around you.

For more information on our firm, please contact us at 800-840-2111.

A jackknifed big-rig struck the center median on Highway 101 in Redwood City created a shower of concrete upon impact prior to catching fire. Several chunks flew through the windshield of an SUV, severely injuring the driver. A young woman in the passenger seat was also taken to the hospital.

The big-rig was only traveling at about 55 mph, and was in the slow lane, but its driver lost control and jackknifed for reasons that the CHP has yet to ascertain. Both the truck driver and his passenger did not suffer any injuries. The front portion and about half of the big-rig, which caught on fire, burned for several hours after the crash, according to the Mercury News report.

The truck apparently belonged to Travis Berry Transportation of Gilroy. The company’s owner said this was the worst accident in the trucking company’s history, and confirmed that the driver who caused the accident had only been with the company for a month. The accident led to complete gridlock, shutting down both sides of 101 for hours. CHP officials remarked that it has been several years since even one direction of the highway has been shut down for such a lengthy period.

Despite the fact that the driver appeared to be obeying the speed limit and displaying courtesy to other drivers by using the far right-hand lane, this accident serves as a reminder to give plenty of leeway to big-rigs at all times when you’re driving on freeways or other high-speed roadways.

A community that mourned the death of a high school student and significant injuries to ten others still knows that “the S curve” in Irvine Avenue is to be approached with caution.

The crash, which happened a three weeks before graduation, killed one student, voted “Life of the Party” in his senior yearbook, and left a cheerleader in a coma with a severe brain injury.

The study, led by emergency medicine physicians with the Center for Trauma and Injury Prevention Research at the UC I Medical Center, reports an increase in the risky behavior among women between 1995 and 2004. While seatbelt use increased for both young men and women, strangely enough, the increase among women was smaller.

Meanwhile, auto accidents remain the leading cause of death for adolescents and young adults, a fact compounded by the effects of alcohol and failure to use seatbelts, the study states.

The UC-I team reviewed accident data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (www.nhtsa.gov) from 1995-2004. They found that about 139,000 fatal crashes in the age groups 16 to 24 occurred during the time of the study, and that the increase in alcohol-related crashes was more pronounced in the older age group—those between ages 21 and 24.

This study is significant because it somewhat dispels the myth that women are far safer drivers than men. DUI crashes and incidents are typically considered a male domain, as is lack of seat belt use. Driving under the influence and not buckling up are two of least safe driving practices, which can lead to tragedy for the driver – man or woman -- and other motorists and pedestrians who may be in the path of his/her vehicle.

The suspect, Adrian Gomez, was arrested after he lost control, ran into a center median and slammed his 1997 Honda into a tree. The accident killed his passenger, also a 22-year-old Huntington Beach man. The incident happened about 5 a.m. Gomez himself suffered a few minor injuries and was booked on suspicion of DUI after he was treated at UCI Medical Center.

The Register article also states that this was not Gomez’s first encounter with the law. In January 2006, he pleaded guilty to possession of a controlled substance, a felony, as well as being under the influence of a controlled substance and unauthorized possession of a hypodermic needle, both misdemeanors.

We read these stories every day. Not many drivers realize that if they drink and drive, they are putting their passengers in grave danger. Most often, as in this case, the person who is driving under the influence will be held liable, as well as criminally charged if his or her passenger dies in the crash.

If you know someone has been drinking, do not accept a ride in his or her vehicle. The danger of severe injury or even death is overwhelmingly high, as this news report reminds us.