Suffolk County

Published on: August 22, 2012

At the time of the accident, claimant was 53 years old

by Stephen Bilkis

At the time of the car accident, claimant was 53 years old, with a medical history that included a heart attack, and treatment of high blood pressure. As she was driving at or near highway speed with two of her grandchildren in the back seat, a chunk of concrete measuring approximately 9″ x 12″ x 6″ hit the front hood of her car, penetrated the windshield, hit the steering wheel, and then struck claimant on the left side of her forehead, rendering her unconscious. Claimant’s car drifted off the right side of the roadway, eventually striking a tree beyond the right shoulder of the roadway and coming to rest. At the time of the accident, claimant was wearing a lap belt with a shoulder harness seatbelt.

Claimant regained consciousness while she was still in her car. Her first memory after the accident is of regaining consciousness while lying halfway on her back, seeing a large hole in the windshield, reaching for a tissue because there was blood in her eye, and realizing that she was being attended to by another person. Claimant inquired many times about the safety of her grandchildren before again losing consciousness. Thereafter, claimant was brought in the emergency room at Albany Medical Center (AMC).

A source said that, claimant was admitted to AMC, and was treated by neurosurgeon Dr. John Waldman. Initial CT scans of claimant’s skull taken the day of the accident indicated that she had suffered numerous skull fractures in the area of her left eye socket involving the forehead bone behind her left eyebrow, the bones of the outer upper part of the eye socket, the roof of the eye socket, and the upper part of the eye socket near the temple, as well as fractures of the bones along the left side of her sinuses behind her nose. In addition, the initial CT scans indicated a small epidural hematoma (i.e. a blood clot between her skull and the dura, the fibrous material that covers and protects the brain), a traumatic subarachnoid hemorrhage (blood in the fluid between the brain and the dura), and bloody fluid in the ethmoid sinus. The CT scans also revealed pneumocephalus (air inside the skull cavity), indicating that the dura may have been torn at the time of the head injury. The CT scans also indicated that claimant had sustained trauma in the area of the skull where the olfactory nerve (the nerve that senses odors) is located. In addition, claimant had a deep laceration of approximately two inches on her forehead above her left eyebrow.

Published on: August 11, 2012

This is a case involving a car accident and personal injury claims

by Stephen Bilkis

According to reports received by a New York Car Accident Lawyer, this is a case involving a car accident and personal injury claims. Carlos Roldan and Carmen Torres filed a case against the County of Suffolk police Department. According to their testimony, on January 21, 2004 at about 2:30 in the afternoon, Roldan and Torres from Nassau County were passengers on a vehicle owned and driven by Jose Lopez-Nieves. They were driving along Washington Avenue and Express Drive South. They stopped at a red light at the intersection when the accident happened.

Roldan testified that while their vehicle was at stop along the intersection of Washington Avenue and Express Drive South, they were hit by an oncoming police car owned by Suffolk County Police Department and driven by Theresa Brondtman. It was after found out that the Police Car was also involved in a collision with another vehicle operated by Joseph G. Sorgie, Jr. and owned by Laura A. Sorgie.

Still according to the report, Suffolk County Police Department argued that Brondtman was operating the police car under official duty and was on her way to respond to a distress call. She further told the court that when she received the police radio call about a stabbing on Fifth Avenue, she turned on the siren and full lights and proceeded to the scene of the crime. Upon reaching Washington Avenue, Brondtman slowed down and observed the oncoming traffic. She proceeded when she established that at the moment, one part of the street was one-way-traffic. She drove no more than 20 miles per hour when suddenly a vehicle collided with Brondtman sending her spinning about 180 degrees before finally colliding with the white van where Roldan was a passenger. After the accidents, Brondtman stayed inside her vehicle and called for backup.

Published on: July 25, 2012

Single Car Accident Litters a Highway and Median

by Stephen Bilkis

Pieces of a sedan involved in a recent car accident were strewn across the highway and into the median as crews attempted to clean up the scene. The single car accident resulted in the death of the woman driving the vehicle and the hospitalization of her husband, who was also in the vehicle at the time, reports a witness.

The woman briefly lost control of her SUV; it is unknown what caused her to swerve to the side of the road and hit the guardrail. After attempting to correct the course of the vehicle, the woman overcorrected and caused the vehicle to roll. Because SUVs are more top heavy than sedans, they are much more likely to the roll when they change direction suddenly.

The woman was thrown from the vehicle as it rolled because she was not wearing her seatbelt at the time. The woman’s husband was also not wearing his seatbelt but he remained with the vehicle as it rolled although his body did partial leave the SUV. This situation exemplifies the importance of wearing seatbelts, explains a policeman.

Published on: July 5, 2012

Events Surrounding Two-Car Accident Being Examined

by Stephen Bilkis

An SUV and a sedan collided on Tuesday when the driver of the SUV ran a stop sign, witnesses report. The driver of the sedan had to be removed from her vehicle by the firefighter who arrived on the scene shortly after the accident. Police are still investigating the witness’s accounts of the events to determine if the SUV really did run through the stop sign, reports a source.

The woman, after being removed from the vehicle, was transported via ambulance to a nearby hospital to receive treatment for her injuries; as she was loaded into the ambulance, the woman complained of injuries throughout the majority of her body. Police have not released any further updates on the woman’s condition and it is unknown whether or not she is still hospitalized.

The driver of the SUV was injured in the accident, but received only minor injuries which did not require hospitalization. The woman driving the sedan was wearing her seatbelt at the time of the incident while the driver of the SUV was not. A Lawyer explains that the relative sizes of the vehicle probably provided greater protection to the SUV driver. The woman’s injuries would have been more severe if she had not been wearing her seatbelt, and, without the seatbelt, she might have been thrown from the car.

Published on: June 26, 2012

Three Survive Severe Car Accident Despite Odds

by Stephen Bilkis

Despite the shattered pieces of three vehicles scattered across the local two-lane road, all three drivers in last week’s accident survived the collision. Police credit the three driver’s survival to the fact that all three were wearing their seatbelts at the time of the accident, says a witness.

One car was overturned and the front of a second vehicle was completely demolished in the accident. At least one of the vehicles had an airbag which was deployed; it is suspected that at least two of the vehicles were totaled in the accident.

The driver who was allegedly the cause of the accident was suspected to be under the influence of alcohol at the time of the incident. Though the driver’s blood alcohol test results were not immediately available, police did release the fact that the driver had a prior history of charges involving alcohol and other intoxicants. The driver swerved into oncoming traffic which set off the chain of events.

Published on: May 20, 2012

Mark Anthony Spano died in a car accident

by Stephen Bilkis

Mark Anthony Spano died in a car accident. He hit a tree with his car and died. In a trial, filed by Leonard Spano as the Administrator of the Goods, Chattels and Credits of Mark Anthony the trial court found that they were not able to establish at initial look the negligence that was supposed to have been committed by Deputy Edward H. McAvoy. In their case, they claimed that spotlight that was used by Deputy McAvoy reflected in the decedent’s rearview mirror and temporarily blinded him, which in turn caused him not to see the tree and hit it and die. A witness said that the court did not find any evidence where they could somewhat infer that the deputy’s spot light can blind a driver.

A case was filed with the Appellate Court to appeal against the decision. The court looked at the evidence presented, said a juror. The only testimony regarding the length of time the spotlight on was from the defendant Deputy McAvoy. He testified and in his sworn statement, that the spotlight was on for about three seconds. He also swears that he did not see Mark Anthony Spano’s car hit the tree. Where evidence shows that he was just about five seconds or about 500 feet behind the decedent’s car. With this distance, he has a clear view if the car before him, and the tree. This creates a doubt about his testimony regarding how long the spotlight was on.

Another question about his statement was that it was given three hours after. It was given to an investigator whom the sheriff hired. The statement itself showed that the defendant reviewed it very thoroughly before he signed it as there were corrections that he initialed by hand. It was mentioned by a source that it narrated Deputy McAvoy turning on his spotlight and focused it on the rear window of the pursued vehicle. There was no mention of when he turned off the spotlight, if he did. The records also showed that within four days from the accident, the investigator did a follow-up investigation to clarify Deputy McAvoy’s statement. In the additional report, it is said that Deputy McAvoy turned off the spotlight as the decedent’s car crossed the intersection. He said that it was because it was hard to drive and control the spotlight at the same time. Nassau and Suffolk have the same problems.

Published on: May 10, 2012

One Injured in Pileup on Interstate 20

by Stephen Bilkis

A man was involved in a serious car accident which involved many different cars on the Interstate 20. He suffered from injuries which were life threatening and required medical treatment. However, a source has learned that his condition is expected to be ok and he should be discharged.

The accident happened during the early morning along the Interstate 20. The accident was close to the Bert Kouns Industrial Loop.

The local police force attended the scene of the accident. They discovered that two cars and a large 18 wheeler truck was involved in the accident, explained the source.

Published on: April 14, 2012

Ill Woman Causes Crash involving 6 Cars

by Stephen Bilkis

A car accident involving six vehicles on Route 101 is thought to of been caused by a medical condition of one of the drivers. The car accident happened on Saturday morning. The lady suffered from her illness which quickly developed into a pretty serious six car pileup according to police.

There were no fatalities caused by the crash and nobody was seriously injured as a result of the accident. Police said that it’s lucky that this accident wasn’t much more serious than it actually was.

Police have also explained that the woman will not face any criminal charges because of the accident. The accident was not her fault, and she didn’t know that she would cause the accident if she drove. The police still haven’t released the name of the woman, but it’s unlikely this information will ever be passed into the public domain.

Published on: March 16, 2012

Mystery car wreck kills one

by Stephen Bilkis

Mystery car accidents are frustrating for the police, particularly when it involves children, as in this case, commented the police. The 15-year old was ejected from the car she was riding in when it veered off the road and went into a roll over. She was dead on impact with the ground.

The vehicle in which she was riding had been headed to the nearest town and was being driven by an 18-year old young man, who didn’t have that much experience driving. Ambulance crews took him to the hospital, where he was treated for minor injuries and discharged. As soon as he was discharged, he was arrested. Another 21-year old man was arrested at the scene of the accident, outlined the reporter.

Police aren’t certain yet as to what happened to cause the first car that the young girl was riding in to go off the road, but they have suspicions that the two cars that were traveling together, were speeding and racing one another. The police are asking for any eye witnesses to come forward and help them with the investigation, explained the source. They particularly want to talk to anyone who saw the blue Corsa before it flipped or a white Ford Fiesta. They’re hoping they can get to the bottom of what caused this fatality. This could very easily be a case of distracted driving on the part of the offending car in the accident. Police in Nassau and Suffolk Counties are on the lookout for distracted driving because this causes the most personal injury in car accident cases.

Published on: February 18, 2012

Four Students Dead After Car Accident

by Stephen Bilkis

Several young people were killed in a car accident last weekend when their vehicle crossed into oncoming traffic. Their car was then struck by an oncoming truck which resulted in the death of four passengers and severe injuries to the driver of the vehicle, explains a witness. The accident occurred only days after two of the passengers had finished their graduate degrees and were planning on returning home.

The accident occurred late Saturday evening after the group of students was out celebrating the end of the school year. The driver of the vehicle, the sole survivor amongst the group of students, was in critical condition and under the care of medical professionals at the time of this article.

Police had not yet released any information as to what cause the driver to swerve across the center line. Possible causes include alcohol or distraction by one of the passengers. The police will have more information as the driver recovers and recounts the events of the evening, states a source with the police department..