Byron I. Unda Killed in Accident in Farmingdale, NY
Farmingdale, NY -- A crash between a passenger vehicle and a semi-truck claimed the life of 28-year-old Byron I. Unda Wednesday, March 8, 2017.
The incident happened around 2:39 p.m. at Fulton & Main Streets.
According to police, the two vehicles collided at the intersection, leaving the Toyota RAV4 crashed into a utility pole, between the semi and a box truck. One passenger in the Toyota, 28-year-old Byron I. Unda, was killed at the scene of the incident.
The exact cause of the incident has not been determined.
Authorities are currently examining the details of the incident.
map of the area
Commentary
All the news reports say the 18-wheeler collided with the Toyota RAV4. That being said, this would hardly be considered and open-and-shut case for the family seeking justice. After litigating hundreds of truck accident cases, I can tell you from experience trucking companies will exploit any angle to slough off guilt.
One argument the trucking company might make is the driver of the RAV4 slammed on their brakes off all a sudden, leaving their driver helpless in avoiding a collision.
The trucking company might also claim the driver of the RAV4 made a turn without the use of the use of a turn signal. I'm sure we've all experienced this annoyance in our daily travels. So, it's not something that's unheard of.
But, one argument that you will never hear from a trucking company is that their driver failed to maintain a safe distance from the vehicle ahead of them.
According to the United States National Safety Council, a good rule of thumb for automobile drivers is the three-second rule. This is meant to suggest that passenger vehicles stay at least three seconds behind the vehicle ahead of them to prevent accidents in situations as those stated above.
That's a good rule for a passenger vehicle. However, that distance means nothing when you're talking about a vehicle that weighs 80,000 pounds. The suggestion for safe distance for trucks falls under the rule of seconds. The rule of seconds suggests that truck drivers should leave a second of space per 10 feet of truck length.
If you look at the photos provided by the report, it's easy to see where a truck might not bother to safely utilize the rule of seconds. We're not talking about the open road here.
No matter how simple a truck accident case may seem, trucking companies will do all they can to put up a good fight to make them appear guiltless. In my experience, they have been known to do everything from offering victims money to sign a release, to outright influencing accident reports at the scene. Trucking companies don't fight fair, they fight to win. This means when trucking companies plant their feet and puff up their chests, victims and their families have to dig in, roll up their sleeves, and fight for justice.
--Grossman Law Offices