North Carolina Personal Injury Lawyer Blog

A drunk driving car accident in Raleigh left one teen dead, another teen facing multiple criminal charges, and charges against the man who provided the alcohol that caused the wreck.

The accident occurred when 16 year old Garrett Prince rounded a curve in a residential neighborhood at a speed of 75mph and lost control of the vehicle, crashing into a tree. His 17 year old passenger, Elizabeth Molloy, died as the result of this crash. Neither Prince nor Garrett were wearing seatbelts.

Our North Carolina drunk driving car accident lawyers have learned that Prince has been charged with Felony Death by Motor Vehicle, Possession of Marijuana, Open Container of Alcohol, Driving While Impaired, and Driving After Consuming Alcohol While Anderage.

Also charged in connection with this fatal accident is Anthony Du Juan Geter, who has been charged with three counts of Aiding and Abetting Persons Under 21 in Possessing or Purchasing Alcohol. Police report that Geter supplied Prince, Molloy and 2 other teens with two (2) 1.75 liter bottles of rum. North Carolina Alcohol Law Enforcement agents are considering more charges.

Continue reading "Man Charged For Giving Alcohol To Minors Involved In Deadly Collision" »

In effort to reduce the number of North Carolina car accidents that involve newly licensed teenage drivers, a new law recently went into effect which requires that a driving log with evidence of at least 60 hours of driving be presented by teens between the ages of 16 and 18 when applying for their provisional license.

The new provision requires that all teens who obtain their limited learner's permit on or after October 1, 2011, maintain a logbook detailing at least 60 hours driving, with at least 10 of those hours being nighttime driving. The supervising driver is required to sign the log, and the log book must be presented to the Division of Motor Vehicles at the time of the applicants road test. But beware-if the clerk thinks you have falsified your log book, you will not be permitted to take your road test, and will have another 6 months in which to complete a legitimate logbook.

Additionally, teens between the ages 16 and 18 who obtain their limited provisional license on or after October 1, 2011 will be required to keep a logbook detailing at least 12 hours, with at least 6 of those hours being at night, and must be signed by the supervising driver for the nighttime hours. As with the limited provisional license requirements, if the Division of Motor Vehicle thinks your logbook has been falsified, you will not be eligible for your full provisional license for another 6 months, during which you must complete a legitimate logbook.

Continue reading "New Law Aims To Reduce North Carolina Car Accidents Involving Teen Drivers" »

Car wrecks occur in Charlotte every day. Most will not involve catastrophic injury, but those that do often involve unrestrained drivers. Drivers who refuse seatbelts always have an excuse-pregnancy, discomfort, or the presence of airbags . The car accident attorneys at Auger & Auger want you to know that pregnant women are advised to wear seatbelts, the "discomfort" of a seatbelt is far less than the discomfort of a catastrophic injury or death, and airbags are intended to work with seatbelts, not instead of seatbelts.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) recommends that pregnant women use a seatbelt in the normal fashion, with the shoulder belt across the chest, not across the neck and NEVER under the arm or behind the back. Do not disable your airbag Rather, position the front seat as far from the steering wheel as possible while still able to comfortably use the pedals, keeping a minimum of 10 inches between your chest/abdomen and the steering wheel.

Airbags are designed to work with seatbelts, not instead of seatbelts. Are bags are not designed to deploy in all types of accidents. They are equipped with sensors that measure the location of the crash and the rate at which the vehicle is slowing down. Accordingly, the speed and amount of physical damage present is NOT an appropriate measure of whether an airbag should deploy. There is no guarantee that the accident you may be involved in will meet the criteria that would cause your airbag to deploy. Further, airbags can only be deployed once, and they rapidly deflate. So if there are multiple impacts, they will be useless in a subsequent impact. The seatbelt, however, ensures the vehicle occupant is in the best position to maximize the benefit of the airbag.

Continue reading "Seatbelts, Airbags, And Pregnancy" »

2012 literally started off with a bang--dozens of North Carolina car accidents. Until this cold snap, we had been spoiled with above average temperatures until the New Year freeze reminded us it really is winter. From 5pm Monday, January 2, 2012, through 5pm Tuesday, January 3, 2012, North Carolina Highway Patrol answered 267 calls for help in the counties of Yancey, Transylvania, Swain, Rutherford, Polk, Mitchell, McDowell, Madison, Macon, Jackson, Henderson, Haywood, Graham, Clay, Cherokee, Buncombe, and Avery.

The Charlotte car accident lawyers at Auger & Auger wish to remind you to exercise caution when driving in winter conditions. The most frequent cause of weather related accidents is driving too fast for conditions. In Charlotte, black ice is a particular problems on freezing mornings. With that in mind, we would like to share these safe driving tips:

Prepare Your Vehicle:
-Assess tires for excessive wear
-Check battery levels
-Check level of antifreeze
-Equip vehicle with spare tire, lug wrench, and jack
-Keep a shovel/ice scraper
-Jumper cables
-Bag of salt or kitty litter for traction if stuck in ice
-Blanket, water bottle, non perishable snack bars
-Flashlight with spare batteries
-Extra windshield washer fluid

Continue reading "First Winter Blast of 2012 Causes Dozens of Wrecks" »

Car accidents in Charlotte are a daily fact of life. For most people, buckling their seatbelt is like brushing your teeth--it's something you naturally do before you leave home. For others, there is a litany of excuses of why they don't wear seatbelts, but these are the people who are at the greatest risk of serious injury or death. The personal injury attorneys at Auger & Auger remind you to please buckle up, and make sure all vehicle occupants, especially children, are properly restrained.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), car accidents are the leading cause of death in the 3 to 14 year old age group. A 2008 study found that of the 5,598 children under the age of 14 that were killed in car accidents in the year 2008. 46% were unrestrained. The study further revealed that proper use of child safety seats reduced fatalities in the under 1 year old age group by 71%, and by 54% in children between 1 and 4.

In June, a 10 month old girl from Raleigh died when the car she was in crashed. North Carolina Highway Patrol reported that the baby, Sophia Peetc, was not properly restrained when her mother, Heather Lucas, lost control of her vehicle and overcorrected, causing the SUV to flip twice and strike a tree. Baby Sophia was ejected from the vehicle, which landed on top of her.

Continue reading "Car Accidents The Leading Cause Of Death For 3-14 Year Olds" »