Texas Truck Accident Lawyer Blog

Johnson County Truck Accident Ends Successfully

Wed, 25 Apr 2012 16:58:28 -0600

I went to court this morning to finalize a law suit where my client and his eight year old son, who were driving in a Ford 150, were in a collision when a rock truck outside of Cleburne ran a stop sign about a year ago.

The father and son fortunately only suffered minor injuries. Both were taken to the ER, had

Braking Distances for 18 Wheelers Cause Many Texas Collisions

Mon, 02 Apr 2012 14:32:36 -0600

I have represented a lot people injured when tractor trailer drivers are not able to stop their rigs suddenly, and I recently settled a case for a substantial recovery under these circumstances. My client, a college student, was rear ended by an 18 wheeler driver who I proved was exceeding the speed limit and had engaged his speed control in a construction zone on Interstate 35 in Waco, and that he was not a qualified driver, and I am delighted that she was so pleased with the way her mediation and case turned out (See more client's reviews on my web site under the Testimonials tab at the top.)

We have to figure out a way to stop these from happening -- or at the very least, curtail the number that do.

Yesterday, six people were injured, two seriously, in a nine vehicle chain reaction in the northbound lanes of Interstate 35W near Northeast 28th Street. Several cars had already crashed when two truck tractors hit the pile up from the rear.

The average braking distances for three axle truck-tractors pulling a two axle semitrailer traveling at 60 mph with average brakes is a total of approximately 381 feet -- or more than

DFW Airport Death Caused By Negligence Of Truck Driver

Mon, 19 Mar 2012 13:47:38 -0600

An employee working for LSG Sky Chefs was senselessly killed at the Dallas/Fort Worth Airport on Sunday when he was hit by his own company's truck.

This kind of driving is inexcusable and must be stopped.

The victim, Faustino Delapaz, 53, who lived in Dallas, was pronounced dead at the scene.

The collision occurred about 6:45 a.m. at the loading dock of the LSG Sky Chefs catering facility on the south side of the airport.

Mr. Delapaz was on the south side of the building when he was hit by a large Sky Chefs catering truck.

"It's the kitchen area of the company where they load the trucks with the food," said airport spokesman David Magaña. "The trucks then go to the planes and load them up."

My thoughts and prayers go out to the family of the man who was killed. But collisions like this should not be allowed to happen. I call on LSG Sky Chefs and all companies to hire and train more responsible drivers, monitor traffic at loading docks and on the road, and enforce their safety rules and regulations - or face the consequences.

18-Wheeler runs over man in Fort Worth

Wed, 14 Mar 2012 15:52:46 -0600

An 18-wheeler driver is in jail for running over a Fort Worth wrecker employee.

The truck was towed from a Valero station after being left there unattended. When the driver went to the ABC Wrecker lot to reclaim his truck Wednesday morning truck he was told that fees had to be calculated and paperwork completed.

"He was told to wait, to sit and wait until that was completed, however he disappeared and they looked outside in the storage lot and observed him jump into the 18-wheeler and backing out,"

Two lot employees chased the fleeing truck on foot. "The truck obviously clipped one of the employees, causing him to fall and ran over his legs," a police spokesman said.

A police officer was able to catch up with the fleeing big rig. The officer, initiated a traffic stop and was able to get him pulled over on the side of the freeway, and the driver of the 18-wheeler was taken into custody.

Unfortunately, this is not an isolated incident of violent behavior by an 18-wheeler driver. It seems like spending that much time driving just makes some truck drivers forget basic safety and decency.

I represented a man who was hit by an rock truck where the defendant attempted to flee the scene after the collision. A witness caught up with the truck and forced him to stop. The truck driver then assaulted the witness trying to intimidate him into leaving. Fortunately, he didn't leave, and the police were called to the scene.

I took a deposition of the witness that not only confirmed that the defendant was at fault, but also scared the defense because of the description of the assault. Days before the case was set for trial, the case settled for $750,000.00.

Large Verdict in Oregon For Broker's Negligent Hiring of Truck Driver

Tue, 06 Mar 2012 15:25:15 -0600

Yesterday an Oregon jury returned a large verdict against a trucking brokerage company for its negligent hiring of a drug addict. The jury awarded over $5 million, including punitive damages, to the family of a man killed in 2008 because the broker failed to do any due diligence when it hired Washington Transportation to hire drivers to haul goods for bottled water giant Nestle Waters.

The jury was swayed by the fact that the truck driver was coming off a crystal methamphetamine high and fell asleep at the wheel when he crashed his 18 wheeler into the deceased man, who was standing beside his own tractor-trailer inspecting its brakes.

The key evidence was that the trucking broker negligently hired a man who claimed to be operating for Washington Transportation, when it was a company owned by his twin brother. Further, the broker did not carry insurance and had no legal operating authority, statutory violations which had repeatedly occurred in the past. Tje company had no legal authority to transact trucking business due to its repeated and flagrant disregard of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration rules and regulations.

The at fault truck driver served time in prison for negligent homicide and driving under the influence. The trucking broker is no longer in business.

I have handled similar cases where individuals have tragically been killed or seriously injured by commercial truck drivers and have collected damages for the negligent hiring, negligent supervision, and negligent retention against the trucker's company. However it has been difficult to prove negligence against the trucking broker. Here is a new case I will be able to argue, even though it is from an Oregon federal district court.

Government May Stiffen Requirements For Commercial Vehicles Stopping Distances and Brakes

Thu, 16 Feb 2012 09:59:19 -0600

The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration has just indicated that it may change federal guidelines regulating required stopping distances for all vehicles, including buses, automobiles, semi-trucks and tractor trailers, as well as improving heavy duty brake systems for tractor-trailers.

It can require as many as 335 feet to stop an 18 wheeler traveling at 60 miles per hour, depending on the weight of the load, road conditions, brakes, driver reaction, etc. That is more than the length of a football field.

I have handled many trucking accidents involving serious injuries and deaths which presumably would not have happened, or the injuries would not have been as severe, if these two restrictions had already been in place.

Here is a newspaper article from a case I handled a few years ago:

Victims want help inspecting wrecked oil truck

A hearing is set for Friday to see if an oil company should pay extra costs so attorneys representing a couple injured in a wreck in June can inspect the truck that hit them. The truck has been moved near Abilene.

The hearing will be in the 249th District Court of Johnson County in front of visiting Judge Kit Cooke.

Two women in the June 13 accident remain hospitalized at area hospitals, one in intensive care, attorney Bill Berenson said Wednesday.

Berenson is the attorney for Mary and John Reutter of Burleson, who both sustained serious injuries when an oil tanker truck driven by Ismael Villarreal, 41, of Abilene failed to stop in the southbound lane of Interstate 35W near the Briaroaks overpass and collided with two vehicles, creating a wreck with four other vehicles.

A fire from a burning hay truck had slowed traffic that afternoon, but Villarreal, ran over the back of the Reutters' 2002 Ford Mustang convertible, according to a police report compiled by Burleson Cpl. Sean Bolton.

The tanker then struck a 2003 Toyota RAV4 driven by Donna Ferolito, 32, of Austin. The force of that impact forced Ferolito's vehicle into a 2003 Jeep Cherokee driven by Diane Bogart, 50, of Burleson, and the Jeep was forced into a 1993 Ford pickup driven by Salvador Lopez, 23, of Alvarado.

After striking the Reutters' and Ferolito's vehicles, the trucker careened off the highway and drove until he crashed into a tree on the far side of the first crash, Berenson said.

Bolton cited Villarreal for following too closely. Ferolito and Mary Reutter, 60, were both transported by CareFlite to Fort Worth hospitals. John Reutter, 64, was transported by ambulance to the same hospital as his wife. He has been released.

The most seriously injured, Mary Reutter broke several bones in her upper body, suffered a punctured lung and remains in jeopardy of losing an arm due to nerve damage, Berenson said. She was driving the couple's convertible and the top was down.

The Reutters had just moved from Florida to avoid more hurricanes. They planned to build a home in southern Fort Worth.

Berenson said John Reutter told him the accident has ruined their lives.

The Reutters hired Berenson to represent them. A lawsuit has been filed for damages and pain and suffering as the victims continue to recover, but an emergency hearing has been planned to make sure the rig can be inspected.

In the meantime, the company who owns the tanker, United Petroleum Transports of Houston, moved the rig to near Abilene, out of reach of local accident investigators as they try to investigate the case and discover why Villarreal never applied his brakes as he struck the vehicles, Berenson said.

"The company, for no apparent reason, suddenly and without notice removed the vehicles to a location west of Abilene before such an inspection could proceed," the lawsuit alleged.

The lawsuit includes Villarreal's employers, L&L; Inc., which owned the truck.

The lawsuit argued the Reutters' attorneys have the right to inspect and test the tractor and tanker in Fort Worth, where it was first towed, or Burleson, where the collision occurred. Berenson said he is concerned that before an inspection can occur, the evidence will be repaired, altered or destroyed.

Berenson said United Petroleum has a facility in Euless, which would be close enough.

"Moving the vehicles west of Abilene obviously places a significant and entirely unnecessary financial burden on the Reutters and Ferolito, which may indicate the motivation behind this action," Berenson said.

Berenson said an accident reconstruction expert has warned that he will have to charge significant additional expenses to drive round trip to Abilene for that part of the investigation.

With attorneys for all parties working in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, Berenson said it would have been quicker and cheaper to conduct the inspections locally, similar to costs for the other affected vehicles.

The lawsuit asks the judge to charge United Petroleum the additional expense if the inspection has to be held in near Abilene.

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Please call me for a free no obligation telephone or personal consultation. I am an experienced Texas 18 wheeler accident attorney with over 30 years of experience. My number is 817-885-8000 or toll free at 1-800-801-8585.

New Driver Fatigue Rule Enacted

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 10:00:19 -0600

The U.S. Transportation Department has just revised the hours-of-service requirements to cut down on fatigued 18 wheeler truck drivers.

The new rule reduces by 12 hours the maximum number of hours a truck driver can work within a week. Under the old rule, truck drivers could work on average up to 82 hours within a seven-day period.

In addition, truck drivers cannot drive after working eight hours without first taking a break of at least 30 minutes. .

The regulation retains the current 11-hour daily driving limit.

Truck drivers who maximize their weekly work hours must now take at least two nights' rest when their 24-hour body clock demands sleep the most - from 1:00 a.m. to 5:00 a.m.

Companies and drivers that commit egregious violations of the rule could face the maximum penalties for each offense. Trucking companies that allow drivers to exceed the 11-hour driving limit by 3 or more hours could be fined $11,000 per offense, and the drivers themselves could face civil penalties of up to $2,750 for each offense.

Commercial truck drivers and companies must comply with the rule by July 1, 2013.

Here's the math:

(11 hours) Monday 12a-11a

(11 hours) Monday to Tuesday 9p-8a

(11 hours) Tuesday to Wednesday 6p-5a

(11 hours) Wednesday to Thursday 3p-2a

(34 hour reset) Thursday 2a to Friday 12p

(11 hours) Friday 12p to 11p

(11 hours) Saturday 9a to 10p

(11 hours) Sunday 8a to 9p

(11 hours) Monday 7a to 6p

18 Wheelers Should Be Stopped From Driving And Using Cell Phones: Dallas Morning News Article

Thu, 15 Dec 2011 09:56:37 -0600

Here is an excellent column in today's Dallas Morning News that I wanted to share. Congratulations to my friend, Dallas lawyer Todd Clement, for his hard work fighting to stop truckers from driving while using cell phones and texting.

I just settled a large case where an 18 wheeler crashed into my client's vehicle which was at a complete stop on an interstate, because the trucker was on his cell phone and not paying attention to the road conditions ahead of him. This is a picture of her SUV.

by Steve Blow

It was more like an explosion than a collision. The work truck's cruise control was set at 71 miles an hour and the driver never touched the brake.

A car ahead of him was stopped in the highway, waiting to make a left turn. A 30-year-old woman and her 82-year-old grandmother were killed in an instant.

"The driver said, 'I never saw them.' And though he would dispute it later, in the aftermath of the accident, he told an EMS driver that he was texting prior to the wreck," said Dallas lawyer Todd Clement.

Clement represented the family of the women killed last year outside Sherman. He won a confidential settlement for them from the other driver's company. And Clement has been on a national campaign ever since to ban cellphone use in moving vehicles.

"This case affected me more than any other in my life," the 49-year-old lawyer said. "A 3-year-old and a 9-year-old lost their mom. A husband lost his wife of 62 years and had to go into a nursing home immediately after the accident."

On Tuesday, the National Transportation Safety Board unanimously recommended that states outlaw cellphone use while driving. And Clement supports that move. But he travels the country urging a step that would have a huge and much more immediate impact.

"Businesses have to ban this activity. That's the only way they can protect themselves," he said.

That goes against the tide, of course. More and more of us use our vehicles as mobile offices. The driver who hit Clement's clients worked for Cable ONE, a major provider of cable, phone and Internet service. He drove a pickup owned by the company.

But whether involving a company vehicle or not, the law is clear that a business is liable when an employee on the job causes an accident, Clement said. And cellphone use not only makes a crash far more likely, it also increases the likelihood of being found at fault, he said.

And this is an area where juries seem especially eager to issue "send-a-message verdicts," he said -- turning their displeasure over cellphones into huge monetary awards.

A 2009 Virginia Tech study concluded that cellphone users are at least six times more likely to be involved in a fatal crash.

A Texas Transportation Institute study released in October found that texting drivers were 11 times more likely to miss visual cues.

New Sleep Apnea Rules Could Curb Collisions

Mon, 12 Dec 2011 11:58:21 -0600

The FMCSA's Motor Carrier Safety Advisory Committee and Medical
Review Board again met last week in Washington, D. C. and issued new guidelines which -- in enacted -- might prevent a few 18 wheeler drivers who suffer from sleep apnea from driving.

The panel of doctors found that "Untreated sleep apnea causes excessive daytime sleepiness, which impairs judgment, causes attention deficits, slows reaction times, and decreases alertness ... and greatly increases a driver's risk for being involved in a fatigue-related motor vehicle crash."

Really?

All drivers with a BMI over 35 might have to be tested to determine whether they suffer from sleep apnea. Or might not have to. It would be up to the examiner. And the final recommendations won't be ready until March, and it is not clear if they will ever be adopted. This process has been going on for 30 years.

A BMI of 35 would include a 5 foot 9 inch male who weighs 237 pounds. One half of commercial truck drivers have a BMI over 30.

The crash risk for a person with sleep apnea is 242 percent greater than a person without the disorder, said Charles Czeisler, professor of sleep medicine at Harvard Medical School.

I have handled several cases involving drivers who we believe had fallen asleep driving tractor trailers, although that has been notoriously hard to prove in the past. I just settled one where a commercial trucker, whose BMI was 36, rear ended my client's vehicle on Interstate 35, seriously hurting her and other drivers. And in another I-35 case, a severely overweight, older driver drove onto the shoulder and crashed into a parked rig that my client was underneath as he was about to have it towed away, killing him.

AC -- need link to Walters case
The FMCSA reports that 1/3 of truck drivers suffer from this condition and the trucking industry recognizes that a driver with a BMI over 30 probably has it.

The Facts About Sleep Apnea and Commercial Drivers (from the FMCSA):Commercial drivers are at an increased risk of having sleep apnea. According to a Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration study, almost one-third of commercial drivers have some degree of sleep apnea.

Untreated sleep apnea causes excessive daytime sleepiness, which impairs judgment, causes attention deficits, slows reaction times, and decreases alertness.
Untreated sleep apnea greatly increases a driver's risk for being involved in a fatigue-related motor vehicle crash.

Sleep apnea is a highly treatable disorder. Drivers who are treated should be able to do their job as safely as those who do not have sleep apnea.

Risk Factors for Sleep Apnea Sleep apnea occurs in all age groups and both sexes, but there are a number of factors that may put you at higher risk:

A family history of sleep apnea
Having a small upper airway
Being overweight
Having a recessed chin, small jaw, or a large overbite
A large neck size (17 inches or greater for men, 16 inches or greater for women)
Smoking and alcohol use
Being age 40 or older
Ethnicity

Symptoms of Sleep Apnea

Loud snoring
Morning headaches and nausea
Gasping or choking while sleeping
Loss of sex drive/impotence
Excessive daytime sleepiness
Irritability and/or feelings of depression
Disturbed sleep
Concentration and memory problems
Frequent nighttime urination

Diagnosing Sleep Apnea

In order to diagnose sleep apnea, your doctor will probably send you to a sleep disorders center for testing. You may be asked to spend a night or two at the center, where experts will monitor your sleep. A sleep study test (polysomnography) will determine if you have sleep apnea and how severe it is. If you are diagnosed with sleep apnea, you may benefit from both lifestyle changes and specific medical treatment.

Lifestyle Changes

Lose weight -- Overweight persons can help treat their sleep apnea with even moderate weight loss. For instance, a 200-pound man can lose 20 pounds and greatly reduce the number of breathing pauses.

Avoid alcohol and sleeping pills -- Both alcohol and sleeping pills slow down breathing and make sleep apnea symptoms worse.

Sleep on your side or stomach -- Some people suffer from sleep apnea only when lying on their backs. Try using pillows to avoid sleeping on your back.

Quit smoking -- Cigarette smoking increases both the risk and the severity of sleep apnea, by causing swelling and excess mucus in the airways and by damaging the lungs.
Medical Treatment

Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) -- This is a highly effective form of treatment. CPAP treatment involves wearing a mask over the nose during sleep while gentle air pressure from a blower prevents the throat from collapsing during sleep. A CPAP device is portable, so you can take it on the road.

Oral appliances -- Some sleep apnea patients are helped by devices that open the airway by bringing the lower jaw or tongue forward.

Surgery -- Some patients may choose surgery for their sleep apnea. Although several procedures are used to increase the size of the airway, none of them are completely successful in all patients or without risks. More than one procedure may need to be tried before the patient realizes any benefits.

18 Wheeler Drivers Cell Phone Use Will Be Banned

Fri, 02 Dec 2011 12:19:48 -0600

Hallelulah!

The FMCSA and PHMSA are amending the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations and the Hazardous Materials Regulations to restrict the use of hand-held mobile telephones by drivers of commercial motor vehicles.

By preventing tractor-trailer drivers from using hand-held cellular phones, these new rules will obviously improve safety on the nation's highways by reducing the prevalence of distracted drivers. Distracted drivers are the number one cause of crashes, fatalities, and injuries caused by drivers of commercial vehicles.

The agencies are also implement new driver disqualification sanctions for drivers of vehicles who do not to comply with this restriction and new driver sanctions for holders of commerical driver's licenses who have multiple convictions for violating a State or local laws that restricts the use of hand-held mobile telephones while driving.

Motor carriers are now also prohibited from requiring or allowing drivers of CMVs to use hand-held mobile telephones.

I applaud these agencies for their commitment to protecting the welfare of innocent drivers everywhere. I have represented too many people who have been injured as a result of truck drivers either talking on cell phones or texting while driving -- while hurling down our roads in big rigs.

When I file suit in these 18 wheeler cases, I subpoena the driver's call logs from the cell phone carrier to prove that he was talking instead of caring about what he was doing.

I recently concluded a case where I was able to prove that the trucker had been calling on his cell phone immediately before he crashed into the rear of my client's pick up truck, seriously hurting him and his wife.

If you've been hurt in a wreck, call my office at 817-885-8000 or fill out this form for a free evaluation. The sooner I start working on your case, the sooner I can start collecting time-sensitive information to help you get the maximum amount of money possible.

Spoliation letters and why they matter.

Mon, 28 Nov 2011 11:02:48 -0600

Whenever I get hired on a case involving a commercial vehicle, I send a spoliation letter to the defendant immediately. A spoliation letter is a letter telling the trucking company to save evidence so I can be sure that all investigation that needs to be done can be done without the truck, documents and other materials being tampered with.

On a recent case, I was able to prove that a defendant driver was not only speeding, but speeding with cruise control on while driving through a construction zone when he rear ended my client.

By law, once a spoliation letter is received, none of the evidence discussed in the letter may be destroyed or changed without approval of the plaintiff and the plaintiff's attorney. Valuable evidence such as maintenance records, driving logs, the contents of the vehicles, and even items such as beer bottles or cell phones with may have contributed to cause the wreck are often cleaned before the attorney can properly investigate. If any evidence is destroyed after a spoliation letter is received, the defendant can face huge penalties if the evidence tampering is discovered.

A copy of my most recent spoliation letter, with personal information removed, is available for download by clicking here.

If you have been hurt in a crash with an 18-wheeler, you need a lawyer who will immediately begin working for you and perform all necessary investigation. Please call me today at 817-885-8000 for a free case evaluation.

Truckers: Prevent Crashes - Get Into Shape!

Mon, 21 Nov 2011 15:07:01 -0600

The New York Times just printed the following article that I wanted you to read. There are far too many collisions caused by 18 wheeler drivers. I know, because I represent people like you who get crashed into by big rigs. In 2010, they caused 13% of all fatal occupational injuries.

And I have become something of a fitness fanatic. Every one should exercise and eat better food so they can live healthier, more productive lives.

from the New York TImes:

After driving hundreds of miles, the last thing Roy Williams, a truck driver from Denton, Tex., wanted to do was exercise. After a day trapped in the cab, stopping only to gorge on greasy fare at truck stops, who could think of working out?

But once he ballooned to 405 pounds, he knew he had to make a change. So last year, Mr. Williams, 58, did something all too rare for someone in his profession: He embarked on a diet and exercise program.

The six-pack of Coca-Cola he drank each day? Gone. The hamburgers, chips and chocolate he relished? No more. Today, he drinks a protein shake mixed with ice water or soy milk for breakfast, nibbles cantaloupe and red grapes, and makes "sandwiches" with thinly sliced meat and cheese but no bread. He keeps a fold-up bike in his truck and zips around rest areas on his breaks.

His weight is down to 335 pounds, and he's managed to reduce the amount of blood pressure medication he takes. "I rarely, maybe once a week, even go into a truck stop," said Mr. Williams, who has been navigating an 18-wheeler for the last 30 years.

Mr. Williams's predicament is hardly unique. On the road for weeks on end, with the sorts of diets that make nutritionists apoplectic, the nation's truckers are in pretty bad shape. Now, beset by rising insurance costs and desperate to ensure their drivers pass government health tests, trucking companies and industry groups are working hard to persuade road warriors to change their habits.

It's a long haul, so to speak. Eighty-six percent of the estimated 3.2 million truck drivers in the United States are overweight or obese, according to a 2007 study in The Journal of the American Dietetic Association.

"Obesity is a terrible problem in the trucking industry," said Brett Blowers, director of marketing and development for the Healthy Trucking Association of America, an industry organization in Montgomery, Ala.

Texas Truck Collisions: Importance of Immediate Investigation

Fri, 11 Nov 2011 14:43:34 -0600

I was just retained to represent a man injured by an 18 wheeler and have initiated a thorough investigation of the scene, vehicles, and other evidence that will be critical in obtaining the largest possible recovery of money.

I spoke to attorneys in the Texas Trial Lawyers Association about this topic and have attached the first part of the paper I gave which discusses how to conduct such an investigation.

Police officers, eyewitnesses and drivers

You and/or your accident reconstructionist must get to the scene as soon as possible. Various personnel may have already photographed the scene and the vehicles, preserving evidence of speed, skid marks, degree of crush, yaw marks, debris, directional movements, etc. The investigating officer(s) may have seized all paperwork relating to the load being transported, including the often damning driver's logs. The local PD or DPS sometimes dispatches special safety compliance officers to the scene as well. Furthermore, local newspapers and news media may have covered the wreck. Find out if they interviewed witnesses.

Trucker Cell Phone ban Proposed by Federal Safety Board

Fri, 16 Sep 2011 11:35:12 -0600

The National Transportation Safety Board has recommended that our country's 2.8 million commercial truck and bus drivers be banned from all cell phone use on the road.

The recommendation comes after investigators determined a trucker in Kentucky was using his phone immediately before he lost control of his vehicle in a crash that killed him and ten other people. Records indicate that the trucker had used his phone 69 times in the 24 hours before the crash occurred, and had made four calls in the minutes leading up to the crash.

Currently truck drivers are prohibited from texting and can face a fine up to $2,750 if they violate the rule.

While the NTSB doesn't have legal jurisdiction, their recommendations often carry over into federal legislation.

The ban would include both handheld devices as well as hands-free devices, with emergencies being the exception.

As a collision attorney in North Texas, I hope that federal legislation will pass this into law, especially considering the cause of the 11-person fatality in Kentucky.

In my experience representing people like you who are injured by commercial vehicle drivers, I have seen distracted driving continually on the rise as a cause of accidents, have sued drivers and their companies for causing needless suffering, and I think it's time that the law protects us from distracted drivers.

This ban is already in effecdt for operators of air plans and ships.

Note that the American Trucking Association, an industry lobbying group, supports such a ban on hand-held phones and texting.

Tractor trailer Dangled over I-20 Ramp for Hours Crushing Car

Fri, 25 Mar 2011 14:29:50 -0600

A 25-year-old Fort Worth man who was drunk pulled his Honda out in front of a Shale Tank truck at 4:00 o'clock this morning at the I-20/820 interchange and caused the tanker to crash through a retaining wall and dangle 100 feel off of the ground.

The story was so dramatic that it made the national news.

Nicholas Colon, 25, and his wife Amy Howell, 26, were pinned beneath the empty water truck in their car for three hours before firefighters could extricate them.

It is a miracle the tanker did not fall onto vehicles below and cause catastrophic injuries.

Colon was taken into custody at JPS Hospital on suspicion of DWI and unlawfully carrying a weapon. Scary, huh?

Willard, also 25, was in the cab for about an hour until firefighters could rig a harness on a ladder truck to reach him.

Fort Worth police and firefighters performed heroic measures to save the three people.
They used hydraulic cutters to open the passenger side and pulled Colon and Howell to safety.

The tanker caused a 13 foot hole in the wall, but the Texas Department of Public Safety investigated it and found it to be structurally sound.

"Given the situation, I was relatively surprised that everyone was in good shape," Officer Hatch of the Fort Worth Police Department said.

The ramp will be closed from 6:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Sunday to repair the wall, Lopez said.

Think it's time to crack down on drunk drivers? In August 2006, Colon was convicted of driving while intoxicated in Dallas County and received 18 months probation.