Miami Beach Police Officer Collides into Tree after Multi-Car Accident
The Miami Beach police department is investigating a crash that occurred in North Miami Beach involving a North Miami Beach police officer who crashed into a tree following a collision with another vehicle on June 17th. The accident occurred at the intersection of NE 175th Street and 19th Avenue in North Miami Beach around 8am in the morning. The officer’s cruiser ended up against the tree along Northeast 175th Street and 19th Avenue. Police officials say that the officer first collided with another vehicle before striking the tree. The officer was transported to the hospital but has since been released and is said to be recovering at home. No further details were released. Police officials continue to investigate the cause of the crash.
Car Accidents Involving Fixed or Stationary Objects
About 20 percent of motor vehicle crash deaths result from a vehicle leaving the roadway and hitting a fixed object alongside the road. Trees, utility poles, and traffic barriers are the most common objects struck. Almost half of the deaths in fixed object crashes occur at night. As you can imagine, alcohol is a frequent contributing factor to these types of accidents. Other common causes for these types of accidents involve excessive speeding, falling asleep behind the wheel, inattention, distracted driving or poor visibility. Efforts to reduce these driver errors are only somewhat effective, so it’s important to remove fixed objects or avoid putting them along roads in the first place if feasible, especially on roads where vehicles are more likely to leave the pavement.
This depends largely upon how soon after the accident the attorney arrives at the scene. In any event it is a good plan to size up the entire situation and plan the investigation with a view to proceeding in a logical and orderly manner, doing first things first. If debris is still on the highway, make measurements fixing its exact location, take photographs, if possible, make appropriate notes describing it in a notebook, and, if deemed advisable, remove it from the highway and place it in one of the paper bags, writing on the outside of the bag appropriate identifying statements. Skid marks should be definitely located through measurements. Measurements should also be taken of the width between two parallel marks, of the outside widths, of the width of the individual marks, and of the lengths. Observation should also be made to see if the tire tread is discernible. Measurements of width of tire tread are occasionally important in identifying the automobile responsible for the skid marks. Photographs of all skid marks should be taken. The positions of the vehicles after the accident should be noted. If a theory as to what happened can be established at this time, the investigation should be pointed accordingly.
How Accidents are Investigated
In most cases, accident victims are unaware of the exact sequence of events which caused their accident to occur. Various reasons serve as the cause for these collisions; however, the specific reason is not always known. Thus, it becomes necessary to perform an investigation for the purpose of reconstructing the accident to determine how it occurred. It is advisable to first size up the general situation, to observe the direction of the streets or highway, whether they are narrow or wide, obstructions to visibility, type of pavement, and whether debris from the accident or skid or other marks are present. An observation of the entire area can normally best be made by observing clockwise in ever widening circles. From this initial observation a plan for the most effective investigation of the scene may be devised and a theory concerning how the accident happened often formulated.
Purpose of Investigations
For litigation purposes, accident reconstruction is an important factor because it allows the jury or judge to evaluate the technical aspects of the case. This evidence is generally presented by means of expert testimony or opinion concerning the cause of the accident. Customarily, both the plaintiff and defense will put an expert on the stand to testify with regard to the physical evidence observed in correlation to their analysis of the cause of the accident. Once all of the evidence has been presented by both litigants, it is up to the jury to determine what they believe to be the most reasonable explanation as to why a particular accident occurred.
The ultimate goal in the investigation of accidents is to gather all known facts and deducible conclusions in order to ascertain responsibility and liability. It is fundamental, therefore, to investigate carefully and methodically, the place where the accident happened. The accident scene is therefore the commonsense starting place for any thorough and complete investigation. Careful investigation of the scene as soon as possible after the accident often produces important physical evidence which cannot be contradicted at any potential trial. Since skid marks, tire marks, debris and other physical bits of evidence disappear quickly, speed in reaching the scene is of the utmost importance. An investigator can personally see what happened, make observations, take photographs, make measurements, locate debris, skid marks, etc., and carefully preserve each for later use. The visible results of a vehicular collision, such as: the final position of involved vehicles and vehicle occupants, tire marks, metal scars, debris, damage to fixed objects and signs indicating that the vehicle left the ground, can be observed on the roadway where the accident took place. Accordingly, because accurate measurements (which can be used to calculate a vehicle’s velocity) can be documented from the precise accident location, an uncontrolled final position will give more insight as to how an accident occurred and the vehicle’s path of travel.
The Importance of Taking Pictures of the Accident Scene
Taking photographs or videos can be extremely useful in obtaining valuable vehicle data and analyzing the accident. These photographs should be compared to any photographs previously taken by the police or other accident personnel so that the accident scene is accurately portrayed. Moreover, any roadway objects which may have obstructed the driver’s view should be photographed and documented, in order to determine whether they influenced the vehicle dynamics, visibility, or constituted a contributing factor to the collision.
Contact an Attorney Today
If you were injured due to someone else’s negligence, talk to a personal injury lawyer about your options for recovering for the injuries. The Miami law firm of Suarez & Montero Car Accident Attorneys has years of experience in personal injury cases and can advise you on the best way to hold the other party accountable. Our attorneys are ready to provide proven legal representation in pursuing your claim and stand ready to protect your rights. We are available 24/7 to give you a free, no risk case consultation.
We serve clients throughout Florida including those in the following areas:
Miami-Dade: Aventura, Coral Gables, Doral, Fontainebleau, Hialeah, Homestead, Kendall, Miami, Miami Beach, Miami Lakes, North Miami, Tamiami, and Westchester.
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