Wondering How Much Your Renton Personal Injury Claim is Worth?
No one can tell you exactly what your case is worth without fully evaluating all the facts. In most cases, an evaluation cannot be performed until your medical condition has stabilized and you have reached maximum medical improvement. At that point in time, your claim may be ready to be evaluated. An investigation will be performed and your doctor or other experts will need to provide final reports. We shall need to obtain all medical records and relevant documents to determine how a pre-existing condition may or may not have been impacted by your injury.
Visit Renton Personal Injury Lawyer to learn more or schedule a free consultation.
Questions About Wrongful Death
Q. What is a wrongful death?
A. Whenever someone dies as the result of negligence, a defective product or a deliberate act, a wrongful death has occurred.
Q. What is the difference between a wrongful death and a murder?
A. Wrongful death is a civil claim in which a person, loved one or family member seeks to recover a judgment as compensation for the passing of a loved one. Murder is a criminal judgment which seeks to compensate loved ones by punishing the perpetrator through time in prison. In some cases, while proof beyond a reasonable doubt cannot be proven, civil liability can still be secured.
If a family member of yours has died financial compensation is problably the last thing on your mind. However, your deceased loved one may have wanted you to pursue a settlement and time is sensitive for these types of claims. To learn more visit our Renton Wrongful Death Lawyers.
Police Seek Witnesses in Two Accidents
Detectives from the Washington State Patrol are seeking witnesses in two recent serious injury accidents involving commercial vehicles.
The first crash occurred just before 10 p.m. on Feb. 4 on northbound I-5 at the 88th Street NE. overpass. The crash involved two tractor-trailer trucks and two passenger cars. One truck was slowing down for slower traffic ahead when the second truck struck it from the back. One of the truck drivers was seriously hurt and airlifted to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle.
The other wreck happened Monday afternoon on eastbound Highway 522 east of Highway 9. A dump truck crashed into the back of a passenger car, injuring three people, including two children. All three were rushed to Harborview, one of the victims with critical injuries. The car may have been stopped in the slow lane when it was struck by the truck, trooper Keith Leary said.
He said seeking additional witnesses is standard procedure when the patrol’s Major Accident Investigation Team is involved.
If you saw either of the collisions or know someone who did, please call detective Sgt. Jerry Cooper at 360-805-1192 or detective Curt Ladines at 360-805-1160.
Email Renton Truck accident lawyer Rob Kornfeld at Rob@Kornfeldlaw.com or call 1 (800) 282-4878 for scheduling a free consultation or case evaluation over the telephone, by e-mail or in person at a convenient location for you, either at our main office, a satellite meeting location, or at your home or in the hospital.
Afton woman charged with criminal vehicular homicide
A 19-year-old Afton woman was charged today with criminal vehicular homicide in connection with the death of a Stillwater woman in a car crash last week.
Alicia Rae Haupert appeared in court this morning and bail was set at $40,000, according to the Washington County Attorney’s office. She is being held at the Washington County Jail.
Killed in the crash was Andrea Barbara Zimmerman, 20, who was a passenger in a car driven by Haupert.
Police say Haupert was driving a 2006 Pontiac G6 south on Minnesota 95 in May Township about 8:30 a.m. Friday when she lost control of the car and slid sideways off the road. The car rolled over and struck an electric pole near 144th Street.
The other passenger in the vehicle was the owner of the car — Trisha L. Hughes, 20, of Lake Elmo. Hughes, who was sitting in the front seat, and Haupert had minor injuries.
All three had been drinking and were not wearing seat belts, according to the State Patrol.
Haupert told police she was going 55 mph when she hit some black ice, according to the criminal complaint filed in Washington County District Court. When she tried to correct the car’s movement, the car “fish-tailed” and spun out of control, the complaint states. There were no other vehicles in the area.
Haupert told police she had been drinking vodka mixed with Full Throttle — an energy drink — the night before the accident. She said she stopped drinking about midnight and “went to another house and fell asleep around 4 a.m.,” according to the complaint. Haupert said she and her friends left about 8 a.m. so she could go to work.
According to the criminal complaint, Hughes said she had seven or eight shots of vodka the previous evening and that Haupert “drank more than she did.”
Haupert told police she “did not remember how much she had to drink the night before … and did not feel that what she had to drink affected her ability to drive.” A preliminary breath test at the scene of the accident indicated that she had an alcohol concentration of 0.108; the legal limit is 0.08.
The funeral service for Zimmerman, who was a 2008 graduate of Stillwater Area High School, will be at 11 a.m. Tuesday at Our Savior’s Lutheran Church in Stillwater. Visitation will be from 4 to 7 tonight at Simonet Funeral Home, 6429 Osgood Ave. N., and one hour before the service at the church.
Washington County Attorney Doug Johnson said his office is also reviewing police reports indicating who furnished the liquor to the women, who were all underage. He said criminal charges against the individual who furnished the liquor may be forthcoming.
Mary Divine can be reached at 651-228-5443.
Rob Kornfeld represents clients who have suffered major personal injuries caused by motor vehicle collisions which can result in wrongful death. There are many types of accidents which can cause serious personal injuries that can last a……..more on Washington Car Accident Lawsuits