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Virginia (VA) Mass Transit Accident Injury Lawyers
Offices in VA Beach, Hampton & Elizabeth City, NC 


Blog Category:

Mass Transit (Airline, Train, Bus)

3/17/2010
Richard N. Shapiro
Comments (0)

Distracted, Fatigued School Bus Driver Charged With Causing Fatal Accident in Pennsylvania

"Between a sleepless night at his second job, conversation on his cell-phone headset, and fiddling with the iPod at his side, Frederick R. Poust III appeared to save little concentration for the job he was supposed to be doing on Feb. 17: driving a school bus loaded with 45 children to Perkiomen Valley Middle School West."

This is the first paragraph of a March 16, 2010, Philadelphia Inquirer article reporting the filing of vehicular homicide and reckless endangerment charges against a school bus driver who, prosecutors allege, caused the death of a car's driver one month earlier. The bus driver was apparently caught on camera running 10 stop signs before making an unsafe left turn into the path of an oncoming car. No children on the bus suffered serious injuries.





My colleagues and I have written often about the dangers of both drowsy driving and distracted driving, which are not isolated to school bus drivers in Pennsylvania, Virginia or anywhere else. Study after study has shown that driving while using handheld electronic devices such as cell phones and iPods is at least as dangerous as driving drunk. At the same time, people who drive cars, trucks or busses when they should be sleeping cause thousands of serious injuries, and even deaths, in car and truck accidents each year.

The idea that a school bus driver would drive while both fatigued and distracted is almost unthinkable. In mid-February, the unthinkable not only became real, it became tragic. School bus drivers hold the lives of children in their hands. They also have a duty to drive safely so that other people in other cars and trucks are not put at risk. The accident north of Philadelphia shows what happens when bus drivers do not live up to their responsibilities.

EJL

Labels: accident car Crash Death distracted driving drowsy driving fatality fatigue injuries injury lawyer left turn loss of life Pennsylvania safety school bus stop signs


About the Editors: Shapiro, Lewis & Appleton is a Viriginia injury law firm whose attorneys focus on personal injury and accident law and have experience handling cases for victims of mass transit accidents such as airplane, train and bus crashes. In fact, our law firm published a free consumer safety guide on what to do if you are hurt in a plane wreck.

We have offices in Virginia Beach and Hampton, Virginia but we're ready to come to you anywhere in VA including Suffolk, Portsmouth, Chesapeake, Newport News and Norfolk, VA, if you've been seriously hurt by someone else's carelessness.

Rick Shapiro and James Lewis have been included among the Best Lawyers in America since 2008, and have been named Virginia Super Lawyers for Personal Injury Law since 2010, an honor fewer than 5 percent of lawyers receive.

Shapiro and Lewis have also been selected for inclusion in the National Million Dollar Advocates Forum since 2009. In addition, ours was the first injury law firm in Virginia to join Primerus, a select group of highly ethical and respected law firms. Our VA mass transit injury law firm has the highest rating of AV from Martindale-Hubbell, a national lawyer ranking organization, which means we have a reputation for preeminent legal skill.

While not every injury case meets our criteria, we offer free initial confidential injury case consultations. Call us toll free at (800) 752-0042. If you cannot get through due to high call volume, please leave a voicemail so we can respond directly to you.

 

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Virginia Beach, VA Personal Injury Attorneys
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Specializing in Virginia Wrongful Death & Injury Law 


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