Des Moines Personal Injury Law Blog

While schools in Iowa have taken an active role in discouraging teens from drinking and driving, many teenage drivers still believe they are invincible and decide to get behind the wheel after drinking or using marijuana. Some of these teens even believe they are better drivers while under the influence. Of course, these type of behaviors and attitudes can greatly increase the chances of getting into a drunk driving accident.

Recently the results of a survey conducted by Liberty Mutual and Students Against Destructive Decisions, commonly known as SADD, was released. In that survey, 23 percent of teens admitted to driving under the influence of alcohol, marijuana or prescription drugs. In these cases the prescription drugs were not taken legally.

It is common sense, but those hit by cars or trucks while walking do not have as many protections as the driver inside of the vehicle. These pedestrians who are hit by cars tend to run the risk of suffering from very serious injuries that can even be fatal. When this happens, a pedestrian accident can end up leading not only to criminal charges against the driver responsible for the crash, but it can also mean a wrongful death lawsuit against that driver.

At this point, a Des Moines woman is facing criminal charges in relation to a pedestrian accident where she is accused of striking a man who was crossing the street. The pedestrian, a 58-year-old, died the day after being struck.

A 62-year-old recently pleaded guilty to one count of vehicular operation and one count of vehicular homicide in relation to a December 2011 accident that claimed the life of an Iowa State student. The 62-year-old was reportedly under the influence at the time of the crash and did not even initially realize he had struck three people.

In looking at what happened, the night of the fatal crash there were actually two accidents. In the first one, the Iowa State student was driving a pickup truck and merging onto an interstate when the truck collided with another car. This caused the second car to rollover.

Evidence pointing to the long-term effects of concussions has resulted in more attention being paid to athletes, especially younger middle school and high school athletes. In an effort to try and reduce the long-lasting effects of concussions, the American Academy of Neurology just updated its guideline for the first time since 1997. These new guideline will replace the outdated ones put together 16 years ago.

Among the guideline, information related to those most at risk is included. Overall, those playing football and rugby have the highest risk of concussion, while female athletes playing soccer and basketball run the highest concussion risks. Those who have a history of one or more concussions are also more likely to end up being diagnosed with yet another one.