Chicago Personal Injury Lawyer Blog

Taking a trip? You may want t be aware of cell phone laws if you plan on driving while out of state, or while out of the country. The Chicago Sun-Times recently published an article giving a list of cell phone laws throughout the United States and several other parts of the world.

Here's what you need to know:

First, if you live in the Chicago area, you cannot use a hand-held cell phone while driving in the City of Chicago. (I learned this the hard way last year when I received a ticket.) However, you can use a hands free phone in the city.

Six states have laws against hand-held cell phone use: New Jersey, New York, Utah, Washington, California, Connecticut, and the District of Columbia.

Ten cities do not allow any cell phone use while driving: Brookline, Mass., Santa Fe, N.M., Brooklyn, North Olmstead, and Walton Hills, Ohio, Conshohocken, Lebanon, and West Conshohocken, Pa., Detroit, MI, and Waupaca County, WI.

Seventeen states have restrictions on cell phone use for newer drivers, and Louisiana has restrictions for cell phone use by teen drivers.

The following seven states ban texting while driving: Alaska, California, Connecticut, Louisiana, Minnesota, New Jersey, Washington, and the District of Columbia.

Nine states have outlawed texting for new drivers: Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Nebraska, North Carolina, Oregon, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia.

Cell phone calls while driving a school bus is against the law in seventeen states and the District of Columbia.

Eight states reportedly prohibit local government from banning cell phone use: Florida, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Nevada, Oklahoma, Oregon, Utah.

Here is what's going on in other parts of the world:

In Europe, hand-held cell phone calls are banned in most countries.

In Australia, hand-held phone use is against the law in all states.

In Cananda, hand-held phone calls are against the law in Newfoundland, Labrador, Nova Scotia and Quebec.

In Japan, all hand-held cell phone use is against the law.

Note: The City of Chicago will soon be considering a ban on texting while driving. The law should pass, as typing a text is much more distracting than talking on a cell phone. Further, WGN News is reporting that the National Safety Council is pushing for a total ban on cell phone calls while driving, including hands-free phones.

From a Chicago car accident lawyer's viewpoint, if involved in a crash and the other driver was on a cell phone or appeared to be using a hand held device for texting, it would be a good idea to report such information to the investigating police officer at the scene. Such information could be helpful in determining who was at fault in the accident.

If injured in an Illinois Auto Accident, contact us for a free consultation.

A Chicago area resident has been killed in a pedestrian vs. auto accident that occurred this past Saturday, according to the Chicago Tribune. The collision took place at 87th Street and Cicero Avenue in Oak Lawn, a suburb just south of the Chicago city limits.

It has not been reported how the accident took place, however an arrest has been made by the investigating police department. This strongly indicates that the driver was at fault.

Every year there are thousands of traffic accidents involving pedestrians in the State of Illinois. For example, the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) reports that in 2004 there were 5,694 pedestrian accidents throughout the State, and that 155 fatalities resulted from those collisions.

IDOT states that pedestrians involved in accidents (as opposed to vehicle occupants) are much more likely to be injured or killed. Pedestrians are 8.7 times more likely to be injured and 23.1 times more likely to be killed as compared to people riding in vehicles. And, while pedestrians are only involved in 1.3% of the accidents in Illinois, they account for 12.7% of the fatalities.

Pedestrian accidents also occur more often in congested areas. Of the 5,694 pedestrian accidents in 2004, 77% occurred in Cook County, and 97% happened on roads that have been classified as urban.

If you have been involved in a pedestrian accident, contact our office for a free consultation. Our law firm often handles these types of claims, and we just settled a case against Allstate Insurance this past week.

A Chicago motorist that was involved in two separate auto accidents last Wednesday night has been charged with driving under the influence of alcohol, according to Chicago Breaking News. The first car accident occurred on the Edens Expressway and the second crash was on Touhy Avenue a short time later.

The driver, a 53 year old Chicago resident, hit a car on I-94 near Gross Point Road in Skokie as he was turning his vehicle around to drive the wrong way down the interstate. The defendant then fled the scene of the accident moving southbound in the northbound lanes.

The driver then was in a second car accident on Touhy and his car was disabled at that time. He was arrested by Illinois State Police and a breath test was refused.

The article indicates the driver was also charged with leaving the scene of an injury accident. State police reported that the injuries were not serious or life-threatening.

The victims have a good civil case for their injuries and damages against the alleged DUI driver. They will be able to recover for their property damage, personal injuries, medical expenses, lost wages (if they miss work due to the accident) and loss of normal life.

Also, in a case like this, the fact that the police believe the victims were not seriously injured does not make it so. Often our law firm handles cases for plaintiffs that first appear to have minor injuries, and later the pain is not going away or the pain gets worse, and doctors diagnose serious injuries that require surgery.

If injured in an Illinois car crash, contact Abels & Annes for a free consultation at 312-924-7575.

A car accident in the Chicago area has resulted in the death of a 43 year old woman, according to the Southtown Star. The woman's husband was driving the vehicle at the time of the December 23, 2008 accident.

The car crash occurred when the driver lost control of a 1994 Pontiac Bonneville, spun the car, came to a stop perpendicular to traffic in the northbound lanes, and was then hit by a passing semi truck.

The Southtown Star is reporting that there are DUI charges pending against the husband, but no charges have yet been filed. The husband was treated for minor injuries at the scene.

The deadly auto accident is being investigated by the Illinois State Police.

In this accident, the estate of the wife will be able to make a claim against the husband's auto insurance policy for his negligence. While many people assume otherwise, this type of claim is not barred by Illinois law. Our law firm recently represented an Illinois family in a similar case.

It has not been reported if there is any liability on the part of the semi truck driver. The accident reconstruction done by the state police could possibly show that the truck driver was speeding, or that the accident was avoidable for some other reason.

If you or a loved on has been injured in an Illinois car crash or truck accident, call Abels & Annes for a free consultation.