District Heights, MD Car Accident Lawyer

Auto accidents might be life-altering for victims, entitling them to compensatory damages from negligent drivers.

Despite being largely residential, District Height’s proximity to popular highways and commuter roads, like Route 4 and MD-458, increases the risk of accidents in the area. When an accident happens, whether on a residential street or a highly trafficked road, you should call the police. Law enforcement can help victims process scenes and collect crucial information from negligent drivers and eyewitnesses. Our attorneys can give incident reports, witness statements, and photographs from the scene to accident reconstruction experts, who can use this information to piece together what happened. This benefits many types of car accident claims, particularly those threatened by Maryland’s pure contributory fault rules.

Call Rice, Murtha & Psoras at (410) 694-7291 to get a free case analysis from our car accident lawyers.

Most Likely Locations for Car Accidents in District Heights, MD

District Heights is a fairly residential area in Maryland, but its proximity to some major roads could increase the risk of serious accidents. Suburban areas present other risks for accidents as well, like road defects or poor visibility.

Popular roads and highways in and around District Heights include Route 4, MD-458, and Kipling Parkway. District Heights Road is the main road in the area, and any of the intersections along that road could pose risks for accidents. Accidents at intersections often happen because a negligent driver runs a stoplight or ignores another driver’s right of way. Intersection accidents are often T-bone collisions, some of the most dangerous for victims. T-bone accidents have a high rate of serious injury, including traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, and fractures.

Local roads do not always have great visibility and are sometimes plagued by potholes or other road defects. These factors, as well as poor weather conditions, could contribute to accidents.

Despite being a mainly residential area, District Heights is home to many businesses that might have surveillance systems in place. Contacting businesses near the accident site might lead our lawyers toward video footage of the crash showing the negligent driver being reckless or otherwise breaching their duty of care. Acting quickly in these situations is necessary to ensure the owner does not unintentionally delete surveillance footage without knowing its relevance to your case.

Using Law Enforcement to Document Car Accident Scenes in District Heights, MD

When car accidents take place, victims should always call 911. Law enforcement officers can record vital information in a police report, which we can refer to throughout your case.

Drivers must report accidents that cause injury or death to the Maryland Motor Vehicle Administration within 15 days unless they have already called the police and law enforcement has investigated the crash, according to Md. Code, Transp. Art., § 20-107(f).

Call 911, even if the accident appears minor or you feel uninjured. Police officers can help victims handle the aftermath of an accident, particularly regarding getting information from a negligent driver. At-fault drivers might be stubborn or difficult to deal with, and law enforcement can collect their insurance and personal information and include it in the police report.

Officers will record other information, such as property damage to vehicles, injuries sustained by involved parties, the final positioning of involved vehicles, and other details, like environmental factors. Incident reports completed by the local police department can be picked up at the District Heights Municipal Center in the following days.

Despite being inadmissible in car accident lawsuits, these reports can give our lawyers a clearer understanding of the crash’s sequence of events. On top of filling out crash reports, police officers might also take photos at the scene, and we can obtain these and any additional materials from law enforcement that might benefit your case.

Contributory Fault Laws and Car Accident Claims in District Heights, MD

States have different rules regarding contributory fault, and Maryland’s are among the strictest. Learning about these rules and anticipating how they could impact your case is crucial, and our lawyers can do this and make a plan to protect your recovery.

Being a pure contributory negligence state, Maryland bars financial recovery for any victim who contributes to an accident. States with less strict rules might only lower a victim’s recovery in proportion to the percentage of negligence, but Maryland blocks it completely. Victims unfamiliar with this rule might see their claims threatened, especially if they misspeak at the scene or unintentionally make contradicting statements. For example, if you apologize for an accident at the scene, the defendant might argue that apologizing means you accepted fault in some capacity. This could benefit their contributory fault defense, and our lawyers can help victims avoid these pitfalls by overseeing all future communications with the negligent party.

Accident reconstruction often helps victims overcome contributory fault defenses. Experts can work in reverse by reviewing evidence left by the collision to determine its cause. To aid with accident reconstruction, victims can take pictures at the scene and preserve evidence like skid marks or glass on the road.

By proving that the defendant had the last clear chance to avoid the accident but failed to, the victim might be able to recover damages despite being partially negligent. For example, suppose a pedestrian was jaywalking across the street, and a driver approached them while speeding. If the speeding driver had ample time to slow down to avoid striking the victim but did not, contributory fault for jaywalking would not bar the victim from recovery, as the defendant had the last clear chance to avoid injury. While preparing your case, we can determine how to approach a contributory fault defense so that the defendant is held liable for your damages.