Utah Department of Transportation’s Zero Fatalities campaign brought together the 25 families who lost a child in a car accident, reports Fox13 News. For those who have lost an child in a car accident, it can undoubtedly be a heart wrenching experience, and these family connected in hopes of alerting and educating Utahans be more alert to the dangers of inattentive driving.

My thoughts and prayers are with these families in dealing with their devastating loss.

Although many states have previously required a medical examiner to be at the scene of a fatal vehicle accident, Utah has previously not required one, which is likely to change reports KSL News. “The cause of death is not always apparent,” tell Utah Highway Patrol Maj. Michael Rapich.

Having a medical examiner on the scene of the accident helps Utahns in more than one way. First, they can help put the correct causation to the death, i.e. a toxicology report can help pinpoint whether the death was caused by chemical or natural causes. Second, it can help the family and relatives speed up the legal process. Getting a death certificate and an insurance payout can be a cumbersome process, especially if trying to get the necessary paperwork from a hospital emergency room, which are usually too busy with patients who have not already passed. Having a medical examiner present helps prevent the “legal limbo” that is created with a situation where the proper documentation wasn’t done soon enough, and also helps free up “time and resources at the hospital.”

A 15-year-old girl was hit at the crosswalk by Heartland Elementary School at 1500 West and 7000 South in West Jordan, where she suffered a serious head injury reports The Salt Lake Tribune. The lights at this intersection had not yet been activated for the morning school, but traffic was heavy and the girl was wearing dark clothing. This West Jordan pedestrian accident is still under investigation.

I offer my best wishes for this young woman and her family as she recovers.  With serious head injuries in a developing, young teenager, the full impact of such an accident may not be known for years to come. Although not required, the family may wish to consider consulting with an West Jordan accident attorney to find out what remedies may be available in this situation. An experienced Utah attorney will be able to investigate all angles of this pedestrian accident to determine if there is a claim here or not.

Utah accident Victims can now order their accident reports online. Utahans, who have a history of being tech-savvy, have kept with this trend reports the Standard-Examiner. Utah Highway Patrol reports over 56,000 accidents annually, and are “very excited to offer this valuable service to our citizens,” said Commissioner Davenport of the Utah Department of Public Safety.

In the past, an accident victim has had to personally visit the law enforcement station in order to get a copy of their accident report. Now, after a few simple verifying steps, it can easily be accessed and printed online. Currently, all state-level accident reports are available at http://crashreport.utah.gov, but U.H.P. is hoping (and encouraging) county-level law enforcement agencies to join.

Kramer Law Group, is a personal injury firm who specializes in helping accident victims receive a fair amount of compensation from insurance companies. We offer free consultations to anyone with questions about their accident, and have also made available a free copy of The Utah Accident Book.

Lonnie Walker Brady, a 6-year-old girl from Duchesne, was stuck in the intersection of 100 West and U.S. Highway 40 by a man in a pickup truck. The driver of the truck is being charged with driving under the influence of methamphetamine, along with other related charges, reports KSL News.

The young girl, Utah Highway Patrol trooper Matt Pratt describes, was thrown about 43 feet. Mr. Pratt, who also witnessed the accident, recalls the driver was not speeding at the time, and also appeared to apply the brakes before cashing into the girl.

Originally Lonnie was taken to a local medical center, but soon after was flown to Primary Children’s in critical condition. Even with such a serious crash, “The doctors have a very optimistic outcome for her,” says UHP Cpl. Rex Olsen.

With this being one of many car accident traumas in the family, we offer our sympathy to the family for going through such a heart-wrenching tragedy of a young loved one.

With the UTA TRAX growing throughout the Wasatch front, Utahans need to be more cautious than ever before. Shariah Casper, a 15 year old girl from West Jordan, passed away after being hit by a train near 3200 West and 8600 South.

As KSL reports, Casper, along with a friend climbed past the safety arms and warning lights after the first train passed, unaware of the second train passing in the opposite direction, just seconds after the first.  The friend was able to avoid the second train. Casper, tragically was not.

Although the incident is still under investigation, it isn’t likely this situation was caused from an equipment malfunction. These trains can travel up to 65 mph, and is much harder to stop than people would like to assume. The safest bet, is to always obey the gates and lights, regardless if there seems to be merit in them. “Once those gates come down,” Gerry Carpenter, UTA spokesman warn, “there really isn’t time to cross.”

Our condolences go out to her family for having to go through such a devastating tragedy. Hopefully an accident like this can be prevented in the future by staying alert and following the rules with the growing TRAX system.

Two young girls were able to escape serious injury after their stroller was hit by a driver who admits he was using his cell phone at the time of the accident. This Utah Pedestrian accident happened on Tuesday, May 4, 2010 in Provo, Utah. In a report given by KSL news, the little girls were knocked out of their stroller while their mom was pushing them across the street near 300 South and 400 West. The mom realized the car wasn’t slowing down so she pushed the stroller out of the way. The mom said she was halfway through the intersection when she realized she did not have time to push them back so she jumped back herself and pushed her girls forward. The driver looked up just before hitting the stroller and slammed on his breaks. The car still hit the stroller and the collision threw the girls out of the stroller onto the pavement.

“I was just looking down at my cell phone to see what number I was returning a call with, and I looked up and there was those cute little children with the mom behind them,” the driver, Lars, said.

The girls were taken to the hospital to make sure there is no permanent damage, reports the girl’s father, Nathan Murray. The driver said the experience cured him from ever wanting to use a cell phone while driving, and he hopes that others will learn from his mistake. The driver was given a ticket for improper lookout.

I wish these two little girls well as they recover. How fortunate this accident wasn’t worse and the girls appear to be on their way to a full recovery.

The same fire fighters that responded to this accident came into my office for a fire inspection just hours after it happened. They told me the girls were knocked out for a short time from the impact of hitting the street from the stroller. They told me the driver admitted right away that he was looking down at his cell phone and didn’t even see the stroller or the mom until the very last second. We are often reminded of the dangers of cell phone use while driving. Using a cell phone while driving delays a driver’s reaction time as much as having a blood alcohol level of .08 percent. In this instance, that’s all it took.

I recommend that the family of these two girls contact an experienced Provo personal injury attorney who will help them explore all available legal avenues.

The Kramer Law Group does not currently represent any of the parties referenced in the article at the time it was written. We have cited and linked to the source of our information. If you were involved in the above incident, or one like it, and have questions about your rights and possible remedies, you may call us or another reputable Provo,Utah personal injury law firm. Do not act based on the above information without getting a consultation. The best personal injury attorneys will offer a free consultation. We offer a free and confidential consultation to those (and their family members) not substantially at fault in causing their accident. The information and opinions expressed above are provided as a public service and should not be used in place of legal advice from a qualified Utah personal injury attorney.

A judge in Salt Lake City, Utah agreed to dismiss a negligent homicide charge against Paul Riddle, 18 months after he pleaded guilty in the death of a school crossing guard whom he struck during a snowstorm in December of 2008. Jim Smith was struck by Mr. Riddle’s vehicle in a crosswalk outside of Bennion Junior High School on December 16, 2008. He died about two weeks after being hit. Third District Court Judge Royal Hansen sentenced 52-year-old Hansen from Taylorsville, Utah to community service after he plead guilty to the lesser, misdemeanor charge, in the death of 77-year-old, Smith. KSL news reports the “failure to yield” charge and speeding in a school zone were dropped.

Ron Kramer is a Utah personal injury attorney with offices in Bountiful, Draper and Provo, Utah

A young pedestrian crossing the street with his mother in West Jordan, Utah at Grizzly Way was struck by a Nissan Altima driven by Cody Ray McCormick, age 24 last week. Just today, August 18, 2009, he was released from the hospital according to the Salt Lake Tribune. The 4-year old boy had been crossing the street with his mother and two other young ones in the stroller when he was hit. The mom and siblings were also injured in this Utah pedestrian accident. The driver was arrested after police suspected the driver was under the influence. He was arrested on suspicion of a 3rd-degree felony DUI and a misdemeanor for improper lane travel.

Best wishes to this young boy as he struggles to recover. According to reports, he received a fairly serious brain injury from what sounds like a totally preventable pedestrian accident. Utah brain injuries obviously come in different severity levels, but can have devastating effects if they are considered “traumatic.” Some seriously injured children need around-the-clock care for their profound brain injuries. Others need special schooling and assistance to deal with the deficiencies stemming from their injury. The parents may wish to get in touch with the Utah Brain Injury Association http://www.biau.org/ as a resource as they deal with the aftereffects of this crash.

A young pedestrian crossing the street with his mother in West Jordan, Utah at Grizzly Way was struck by a Nissan Altima driven by Cody Ray McCormick, age 24 last week. Just today, August 18, 2009, he was released from the hospital according to the Salt Lake Tribune. The 4-year old boy had been crossing the street with his mother and two other young ones in the stroller when he was hit. The mom and siblings were also injured in this Utah pedestrian accident. The driver was arrested after police suspected the driver was under the influence. He was arrested on suspicion of a 3rd-degree felony DUI and a misdemeanor for improper lane travel.

Best wishes to this young boy as he struggles to recover. According to reports, he received a fairly serious brain injury from what sounds like a totally preventable pedestrian accident. Utah brain injuries obviously come in different severity levels, but can have devastating effects if they are considered “traumatic.” Some seriously injured children need around-the-clock care for their profound brain injuries. Others need special schooling and assistance to deal with the deficiencies stemming from their injury. The parents may wish to get in touch with the Utah Brain Injury Association http://www.biau.org/ as a resource as they deal with the aftereffects of this crash.