Articles Tagged with Boston Drunk driving accident lawyer

Every one in three traffic deaths in the U.S. is caused by a drunk driver, according to national statistics. In Massachusetts, 2.2 percent of drivers report driving after drinking too much at some point in the last 30 days – which is higher than the national average of 1.9 percent. The actual number is likely much higher, given self-reporting errors.drunk driving injury

Drunk driving crashes cost Massachusetts millions of dollars each year in emergency services, medical services, property damage and loss of productivity – not to mention the devastating personal and financial burden of individual victims and families. In terms of recovering some of those losses, civil litigation is usually the best recourse victims have. Although some criminal cases will conclude with a restitution order, a drunk driving accident lawsuit often results in higher compensation – a necessity for those whose lives are forever altered.

But drunk drivers aren’t the only possible defendants in these cases. MGL ch. 138 section 69 prohibits the sale or delivery of alcohol to an intoxicated person on any licensed premises. Although this is a Massachusetts statute aims to establish grounds for criminal justice action, courts have also held violation can be used to establish civil liability of restaurants, bars, nightclubs and other venues after an impaired driving crash. These cases are not simple or easy, but they can be an important means of damage recovery and a way to help prevent future drunk driving crashes by holding these businesses accountable. Continue reading

Boston drunk driving car accidents sometimes involve a driver who attempts to flee the scene following the accident.  In some cases, the at-fault driver’s car is still running and able to move and they will try to get away in the vehicle.  In other cases, the defendant’s car will be totaled from the Boston drunk driving car crash and he or she will try to flee the scene on foot.  Even if they are eventually caught, the thinking process appears to be that they will no longer be intoxicated so it will be harder to prove a drunk driving criminal case.  When a driver leaves on foot, it is not too difficult for the police to catch them if the car is registered in their name.

drunk driving accidentIn some Boston drunk driving crashes where the driver flees the scene, he or she will never be caught.  When this occurs, car accident victims may have to find other sources of recovery than the at-fault driver’s car insurance company.  When the diver flees the scene and is not found, we typically call this a John Doe driver case. Continue reading

There is no doubt that drunk driving and drunk driving accidents are a major problem in the U.S. Drunk driving is the leading cause of fatal traffic accidents, and there are many law enforcement agencies and non-profit organizations like Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) that are constantly looking for new ways to get their message across.  While there has clearly been some progress, there is still quite a lot of work to be done.

A recent column from the Los Angeles Daily News offers the opinion that in order to actually curb drunk driving, the focus needs to be on changing the culture. The article looks at the fact that many people do not think of drunk driving as a crime, as they do with many other crimes, even though those crimes are much less likely to result in physical harm. dui attorney Continue reading

Two years worth of alcohol breathalyzer tests central to tens of thousands of Massachusetts drunk driving cases are being tossed by a judge who ruled prosecutors failed to prove a state crime lab was properly testing the machines. beer

Concord District Court Judge Robert Brennan ruled last month that the Commonwealth’s Office of Alcohol Testing didn’t abide the proper scientifically reliable protocols for calibration of some 350 breathalyzer machines used by law enforcement officers from June 2012 to September 2014. There were also reportedly no clear, written standards for how these devices were supposed to be set up. Absent those kinds of standards, the results can’t be used in a courtroom, the judge ruled.

The public defender in charge of filing the challenge argued prosecutors were using the machines in a manner that resulted in unjust outcomes. Defense attorneys said their concern is to ensure that such tests are both fair and accurate and that those whose actions were not clearly in violation of state OUI statutes aren’t convicted wrongly.  Continue reading

Last summer, a 12-year-old girl was struck and killed by a drunk driver. That 49-year-old man reportedly had a blood-alcohol concentration of more than three times the legal limit. He also had 12 prior DUI convictions. drive

That is a DUI conviction for every year of this child’s life, which was taken far too soon.

Authorities say the man’s driver’s license had been revoked since 1990, and his convictions date back to 1986. As the local town police chief told a local television reporter in Detroit, where this tragedy unfolded, society was in a sense lucky for two decades when it came to this man. Repeatedly, he showed over and over again his willingness to flout the law – and the safety of those with whom he (illegally) shared the road.  Continue reading

Judges often say during sentencing that drunk driving is not like a lot of other crimes.  The reason for this is because it is a serious crime that can, and often does, result in the death of innocent victims that is often not taken seriously and often committed by a person who is otherwise not a typical criminal.  Not only that, it is one of the few crimes that a person who otherwise has no issues in their life will commit multiple times, even though it is costing them everything they have worked for.

mf1GjqGThere are a variety of reasons for this.  In many cases, especially with younger people, it is often seen as not a big deal, and something that everyone does.  In some cases, a drunk driver is someone who makes bad decisions, but not necessarily someone who made a bad choice, and was negligent, but is not what we would typically describe as an alcoholic.  However, in other cases, the drunk driver is an alcoholic and drives drunk on a regular basis, despite the tremendous risk to themselves and others. Continue reading

A sports bar in Rockville, Maryland is slated to surrender its license and permanently shutter its doors after it allegedly over-served a customer who then got in a vehicle and crashed it, killing an on-duty police officer from Montgomery County. beergarden

Twenty-four-year-old Officer Noah Leotta had volunteered that night to work for a special holiday drunk driving patrol. He suffered severe injuries when the driver, Luis Gustavo Reluzco, side-swiped the cruiser on December 3, 2016 as he was in the middle of conducting a traffic stop. Leotta died a week later of his injuries. Reluzco, 47, has admitted he was downing beers and bourbon for approximately three hours before the crash. He later pleaded guilty to a single charge of vehicular manslaughter, and is awaiting sentencing. He could receive up to three years.

Now, according to NBC-4 Washington, business administrators for the establishment that served Reluzco alcohol that night, a Hooters franchise, have agreed to close their doors and forfeit their liquor license. As it stood, the Department of Liquor Control’s Board of License Commissioners had scheduled a hearing for this month to weigh evidence in consideration of revoking the license. The restaurant simply beat the board to the punch, as the case against it was strong.  Continue reading

A few miles from downtown Boston lies Revere Beach, which was the first public beach in America.  As most people who live in Boston or the surrounding area know, while you probably wouldn’t want to go swimming there, and the beach actually has dirt with grass growing on it, many people like to go to Kelly’s Roast Beef in the early morning hours after hitting the bars.  For this reason and many others, Revere Beach is often the scene of drunk driving arrests and drunk driving car accidents.

sig-40-and-badge-158060-m-300x225Another reason that there are so many drunk driving arrests is that many alleged drunk drivers drive right past the Massachusetts State Police (MSP) barracks on Revere Beach Parkway while clearly intoxicated.  According to a recent news article from CBS Boston, a man was just arrested for drunk driving and other charges after he allegedly crashed into a MSP trooper who was outside of his cruiser to effectuate a traffic stop on another vehicle.  Continue reading

According to a recent news feature from the Natick Patch, the Massachusetts State Senate is trying once again to pass a bill that would require an ignition interlock device for anyone convicted of drunk driving, and this includes first time offenders. While this sounds like an easy thing to accomplish, there is a lot more to it than one might initially think.

driving9There is currently legislation for repeat offenders to get ignition interlock devices, but this is a plan to greatly expand the current requirements.   First, it would probably be helpful to discuss what the device is before discussing the recent bills.  The device involves the installation of a breath-testing instrument near the steering wheel of the car.  In order to start the car, the driver must blow into the tube and have a score of zero before the car will turn on.  If the driver fails the test, his or her probation officer will likely be notified of the failure, and this can result in jail. Continue reading

There is no question that a person who is under the influence of intoxicating liquor or drugs cannot safely operate a motor vehicle.  The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has performed extensive research and testing beginning mostly in the 1970s, and after decades of work, they have a fairly accurate idea of the physical and mental effects alcohol has on the human body.

mmsIFfoFor example, at certain levels of intoxication, a person will have blurred or double vision, difficulty concentrating, loss of motor control, poor decision-making, and many other symptoms.  When a person has enough alcohol in his or her bloodstream, there will be a loss of major functions and death can result.  However, while a person may be experiencing the effects of intoxication, they will generally lack the mental capacity to fully appreciate these effects due to the alcohol. Continue reading

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