Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can be as debilitating and life-altering a consequence of an accident as any physical injury. According to a study of PTSD in motor vehicle crash patients, nearly 30 percent of traffic accident survivors suffer crash-related PTSD. Symptoms include flashbacks of the collision, distressing thoughts and emotions,…
A deadly collision on July 20, 2024, in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, claimed the lives of three people after a FedEx truck overturned on a Honda Accord. 43-year-old father Donnell Hickson, his son Decir Hickson, 18, and daughter Kyla Hickson, 11, were driving on the PA Turnpike in Penn Township around…
If you are in an accident with a FedEx truck, the truck’s driver and, by extension, FedEx are the parties most likely to be liable for your injuries. However, other parties could also share legal responsibility. These include the manufacturer of the truck or its parts, the company that maintained…
As frustrating as it is to be tailgated, it is illegal in Virginia to respond by brake checking. If you do, you could face a reckless driving charge, usually a Class 1 misdemeanor, with penalties including license points, fines, and jail time. You could also be liable for an ensuing…
Virginia’s right-of-way laws govern traffic flow and help minimize accidents by defining who has the right to proceed in a given situation. When drivers, pedestrians, or cyclists fail to follow right-of-way laws, they can disrupt the traffic flow nearby, which can cause an accident. Make sure you know the rules…
When a loved one dies because of another’s actions, your family might be entitled to pursue a wrongful death lawsuit and a survival action. A wrongful death suit pursues money for the family’s losses. Survival actions seek compensation for the harm the deceased suffered before they died, with the money…
Virginia law generally holds people responsible for their own actions, and parents are not liable for the traffic accidents their children cause under most circumstances. However, there are exceptions, such as when parents negligently entrust a vehicle to an unsafe child. That said, while parents typically are not personally liable for…
Most personal injury cases are based on the defendant’s negligence. The legal standard requires establishing that the defendant owed the plaintiff a duty of care which they breached. In cases relying on general negligence, the test is whether the defendant behaved like a reasonable person would in a similar situation. In contrast, negligence per se…
Under Virginia law, pedestrians must use crosswalks when they are available, and motorists must yield to pedestrians in any marked or unmarked crosswalk. Due to this law, many people think that pedestrians always have the right-of-way, and when a driver hits someone on foot, the motorist is always to blame….
If you are involved in a car accident of any kind in Virginia, you should call the police immediately. Don’t let the other driver convince you that “we don’t need to get the police involved.” When you call 911, a law enforcement officer should respond to your crash within a…
