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26
Oct

10-Year-Old Killed, 2 Injured in California Rollover Crash

October 26, 2011

A 10-year-old girl died in a one-vehicle crash near Salton City, California, on Saturday, and two others — a 43-year-old woman and an 8-year-old girl — were injured in the accident. Now police say they believe the 18-year-old driver was under the influence of alcohol.

KXO Radio reports that the crash occurred when the 18-year-old male driver of a 1998 Ford Expedition lost control of his SUV and hit a metal guardrail, crossing over the roadway and overturning several times.

The 10-year-old victim was ejected from the vehicle and killed, while the 43-year-old woman and 8-year-old girl sustained moderate injuries and were taken to Pioneers Memorial Hospital in Brawley. The driver, from Coachella, was also taken to Pioneers. After being released from the hospital, he was arrested and booked into Imperial County Jail on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol.

The crash is still being investigated.

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What can be done to discourage drunk driving in Southern California?

If you or someone you know has been involved in a California auto accident, the California auto accident lawyers at Walter Clark Legal Group can help.

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18
Oct

Man Stabbed During Fight in Palm Springs

October 18, 2011

A fight early Sunday morning in Palm Springs, California, led to one man being stabbed in the chest.

The incident occurred on the corner of Indian Canyon Drive and Stevens Road around 7:35 a.m. Police say that afterward a man and woman left in the scene in a late 1980s to mid-’90s gray Chevrolet pickup.

The male suspect is described as five foot eleven, weighing 200 pounds; the female who accompanied him is described as five foot four weighing 150 pounds. She has blond hair and was wearing a pink tank top.

“At this point, there is no evidence to indicate this incident is related to Biker Weekend,” Palm Springs Police Sergeant Gus Araiza told The Desert Sun.

American Heat Palm Springs Motorcycle Weekend was held in Palm Springs from October 14 to October 16.

The victim was transported to a local hospital where he was treated for non-life-threatening injuries.

Anyone with information about the case is asked to call the Palm Springs Police Department Detective Bureau at (760) 323-8411 or Valley Crime Stoppers at (760) 341-STOP.

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If you or someone you know has been involved in a California personal injury, the California personal injury lawyers at Walter Clark Legal Group can help.

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14
Oct

Woman Seriously Injured in Big Rig Crash Near Coachella

October 14, 2011

A woman was seriously hurt on Tuesday when her pickup truck collided with a big rig near the Cactus City rest area east of Coachella, California.

The Desert Sun reports that the crash was reported at 3:44 p.m. A report from the California Highway Patrol states that the pickup truck hit the back of the big rig trailer.

Emergency crews freed the driver from her pickup truck and took her to Desert Regional Medical Center. No one else was injured in the wreck.

As of today the victim, who is in her forties, remains in critical condition. Friends are reportedly flocking to her bedside.

A truck driver who witnessed the wreck told The Desert Sun that it looked like the tractor trailer had been attempting to move from the right lane to the left lane, where the pickup truck was trying to pass by the tractor trailer.

“From my view, it looked like [the big rig driver] was trying to head to the median, not realizing how close she was and her not realizing what was going on,” said witness Armando Villalobos.

The victim was driving home to Blythe, California, at the time of the accident.

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Do you feel safe driving on the same highway as tractor trailers?

If you or someone you know has been involved in a California auto accident, the California auto accident lawyers at Walter Clark Legal Group can help.

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5
Oct

1 in 5 Coachella Valley Police Chases Ends in Crash

October 5, 2011

Roughly one in five police chases in California’s Coachella Valley ends in a car crash. The Desert Sun extracted this statistic from local car crash data after launching a six-month investigation inspired by the death of a Cathedral City police officer who died in a high-speed chase earlier this year.

Officer Jermaine Gibson died on March 19 when he lost control of his patrol car as he was pursuing a speeding Mustang driven by a man high on methamphetamine and marijuana. Gibson’s car crashed into a palm tree and burst into flames. Likewise, the driver the officer was chasing crashed; his Mustang also exploded, severely injuring him and his passenger.

Specifically The Desert Sun reports the following findings:

  • “From January 2002 through July 27, 2011, officers from Palm Springs, Indio, Cathedral City, Desert Hot Springs and locally based California Highway Patrol officers reported engaging in 714 chases. That’s about one chase every five days.
  • There have been 152 police-chase crashes in the valley since 2002. At least five people have died.
  • Most chases — nearly 20 percent — start when an officer spots a speeding car. Few chases start because the driver is suspected of committing a serious crime.
  • Though required by state law, chase reports compiled by the CHP contain incomplete totals. At least three fatal crashes, including Gibson’s, were not listed in reports provided to The Desert Sun.
  • Indio, the largest valley city by population and geography, has the most chases.
  • Chases in Cathedral City are more likely to end in a crash than in other cities.
  • In 1 out of 4 pursuits, police don’t catch the person they’re chasing.
  • Local police officers are much less likely to call off a chase than colleagues in other jurisdictions. Only 33 chases out of 714 were called off, about 5 percent. Statewide, 11 percent of chases were called off.
  • Since 2002, pursuits have netted 428 murder suspects statewide, including three in the Coachella Valley.”

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Do you think high-speed police pursuits should be illegal?

If you or someone you know has been involved in a California auto accident, the California auto accident lawyers at Walter Clark Legal Group can help.

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29
Sep

SoCal Mom Charged in DUI Crash That Injured 6 Kids

September 29, 2011

A Lake Los Angeles, California, mom has been charged with more than a dozen felonies after causing a rollover crash in Lacaster that injured six children.

In a Los Angeles courtroom on Tuesday the 31-year-old woman was charged with drunken driving and child abuse, among other felonies, but plead not guilty to all charges. According to The Sacramento Bee, she faces up to 19 years in prison if she’s convicted. Her bail has been set at $1.7 million.

The Los Angeles Times reports that the crash occurred around 5:15 a.m. on Sunday, September 25, when the woman lost control of her 2002 Toyota Sequoia, flipping it four times on East Avenue I.

Inside the vehicle at the time were six children. The woman is biological mom to three of the children, foster mom to two more, and aunt to another child. Injured in the crash were the woman’s four-year-old daughter, who suffered a head trauma and a fractured skull, and her two-year-old foster son, who had to have his left leg and right foot amputated. In addition, four other children—aged 10 months to 11 years—suffered non-life-threatening injuries.

Two children had to be airlifted to Antelope Valley Hospital, while the driver and the other children were taken to the hospital in an ambulance.

The driver had reportedly attended a wedding the night before the crash and was returning home after picking her children up from a caretaker.

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What do you think can be done to discourage the number of drunk driving crashes in Southern California?

If you or someone you know has been involved in a California auto accident, the California auto accident lawyers at Walter Clark Legal Group can help.

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20
Sep

4 Hurt in San Jacinto Crash

September 20, 2011

Four people were hurt during a San Jacinto, California, collision on the morning of Monday, September 19.

Authorities told The Desert Sun that an inattentive driver was likely at fault in this two-vehicle crash.

The crash occurred around 10:45 a.m. at the intersection of Sanderson Avenue and Ramona Boulevard when a 42-year-old La Quinta man who was traveling south in his 2008 Chevrolet Silverado drifted into the left turn lane. The man’s truck then plowed into a 2009 Chrysler 300 that was in the lane to make a turn onto Ramona.

All three people inside the Chrysler 300 suffered minor to moderate injuries—including the 35-year-old male driver, his 29-year-old wife, and their three-year-old son. The family was transported to Moreno Valley’s Riverside County Regional Medical Center.

In addition, the Silverado’s driver was taken to Riverside County Regional to treat a hand injury.

The Riverside County Sheriff’s Department continues to investigate this crash.

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What do you think can be done to lessen distracted driving in Southern California?

If you or someone you know has been involved in a California auto accident, the California auto accident lawyers at Walter Clark Legal Group can help.

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14
Sep

Lake Elsinore 4-Year-Old Injured in Rollover Crash

September 13, 2011

A four-year-old Lake Elsinore, California, boy was injured when he was ejected from a Dodge Caravan very early on the morning of Tuesday, September 12, during a one-car accident on Highway 111.

The California Highway Patrol reports that the boy suffered head lacerations after the Caravan overturned and rolled over on him, pinning him beneath the vehicle moments after the crash.

The accident occurred around 4:30 a.m. on Highway 111 north of Keystone Road. Police believe that the rollover was caused when the tread on the right rear tire came off the tire and caused the driver to lose control of her Caravan.

Imperial Valley Press reports that the Caravan also contained four other children and two adults. No word on whether or not they sustained injuries or whether or not the boy was properly restrained in the vehicle.

The injured boy was flown to a hospital in San Diego.

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What can be done to reduce the number of California auto accidents?

If you or someone you know has been involved in a California auto accident, the California auto accident lawyers at Walter Clark Legal Group can help.

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5
Sep

British Man Dies After California Parachuting Accident

September 5, 2011

A 22-year-old cadet with the British military died southeast of Los Angeles, California, last week after a parachuting accident at the Lake Elsinore parachuting center, reports National Post. Another cadet was badly injured and remains in serious condition.

A member of the London University Officer Training Corps, the victim had been doing adventure training exercises at the center on Friday, August 26, when the accident occurred. He died from his injuries on Monday.

The exact circumstances of the accident are unclear. The Ministry of Defence is investigating the cause of the accident.

A statement from Katharine Keith of the British consulate-general in L.A. reads, “Two officer cadets were involved in a parachuting accident during adventure training exercises at the Lake Elsinore parachuting center. Both were left in critical condition, but on Monday unfortunately one of the officer cadets died of his injuries. The other officer cadet is in serious condition in the hospital. His family are with him, and we of course have offered our support. The cause of the accident is still under investigation.”

Lake Elsinore has been used as a location to train groups from the U.S. Air Force, the Navy Seals, the U.S. Army, the British army, and the Royal Air Force.

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What do you think might have gone wrong in this California accident?

If you lost a loved one to a California wrongful death, the California wrongful death lawyers at Walter Clark Legal Group can help.

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30
Aug

Car Crash Injuries Up 50 Percent in Riverside County

August 30, 2011

Residents of Southern California’s Riverside County are more likely to be injured in a car accident than from any other type of accident, according to a public health report released yesterday, August 29. In fact, 70 percent of people who were killed or injured in Riverside County received their injuries in a crash.

The Desert Sun reports that vehicle-related injuries are 50 percent higher than they were in the decade previous.

The report also found that 59 percent of those injured in crashes are women, and that most crashes happen between 2 p.m. and 6 p.m.

However, it’s not all bad news. The Riverside County Department of Health took a long look at these discouraging stats in order to formulate some recommendations for safer driving in Riverside County. Riverside County Health Officer Dr. Eric Frykman said the report will “help us determine areas where we may need to re-focus our efforts when it comes to trauma care.”

One of the main problems, the study reveals, is that 55 percent of children who are hurt in car crashes weren’t restrained with a safety belt or car seat. Likewise, 53 percent of children hurt in bicycle accidents were not wearing a helmet.

The biggest surprise to the department, according to Riverside County Public Health Deputy Director Michael Osur, was that the majority of suicides in the county are committed by those aged 65 to 74.

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Do you think this study might help to lessen the number of injuries in Riverside County?

If you or someone you know has been involved in a California auto accident, the California auto accident lawyers at Walter Clark Legal Group can help.

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26
Aug

Bobtail Truck Overturns on Southern California’s I-10, Injures 5

August 26, 2011

An accident on Interstate 10 in Banning, California, on Thursday morning involved an open-bed bobtail truck and two passenger vehicles and left five people injured. The crash also caused an oil spill on I-10 that shut down all three westbound lanes for two hours.

The Desert Sun reports that the crash occurred at 9:23 a.m. just past 22nd Street when a motorist changed lanes and collided with an open-bed bobtail truck, which overturned. Two passenger vehicles then slammed into the overturned truck.

Two people were hospitalized with moderate injuries and three more suffered minor injuries. The crash also caused an oil spill and scattered pallets all over the roadway, leaving a slick mess that reportedly caused several passenger vehicles to spin out.

Traffic backed up at least a mile past the nearest exit, Eighth Street, before all lanes reopened at 11:30 a.m.

California Highway Patrol spokesman Darren Meyer told The Desert Sun that it doesn’t appear as though any of the drivers were under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

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Do you think someone should face charges in this California auto accident?

If you or someone you know has been involved in a California auto accident, the California auto accident lawyers at Walter Clark Legal Group can help.

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