Washington DUI Lawyer

The End of Daylight Savings Time Increases Road Hazards

Every year at this time, we see an increase in auto accidents. The reason is simple ? with the end of daylight savings time comes an increase of darkness around the time of rush hour, when traffic is at a peak. Drivers aren?t used to the decreased visibility ? and neither for that matter are pedestrians, who might take chances crossing roads when they shouldn?t. Wrongful death cases as a result of auto accidents are a strong possibility when you have all these elements working together.

The National Road Safety Foundation has done studies proving that auto accidents increase after the clocks fall back an hour. Besides the lack of visibility, the NRSF notes that commuting in the dark can also make drivers drowsier than usual.

?Drowsy driving is a significant factor in traffic crashes. The risk increases as daylight savings time ends and we spend more time driving at night,? says the NRSF?s David Reich. “Drowsy driving is as dangerous as drunk driving.?

Studies show 60 percent of U.S. motorists have driven while fatigued ? resulting in many personal injury and wrongful death situations. A CNN report estimated that pedestrians walking at dusk after the time switch are three times more likely to be hit by a car.

Obviously, daylight savings time is not going to be abolished ? and obviously, even if it were, there would still be hours less of daylight due to the approach of winter. Therefore, it?s important for both drivers and pedestrians to be aware of the heightened danger that more darkness creates for all parties ? and to be extra-cautious at this time of the year to avoid motorcycle and auto accidents.

The NRSF also offers warning signs for drowsy drivers so they can avoid falling asleep at the wheel and causing auto accidents. These include:

? Difficulty focusing, rubbing eyes, frequent blinking ? Daydreaming or not remembering driving the last few miles ? Head snaps, yawning ? Drifting out of your lane, tailgating or hitting rumble strips

Should you find yourself with any of these warning signs, the NRSF advises you to pull over and take a break, have a caffeinated beverage or snack, or even take a nap. Of course, you should avoid alcohol before getting behind the wheel, as that also encourages sleepiness.

Always remember, if you do happen to be involved in an auto or motorcycle accident where personal injury or wrongful death occurs, consult with an attorney immediately. You may not need a lawyer?s services, but it?s important to be sure before you agree to anything with insurance companies.

Originally published here.

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Jason Epstein

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Law Firm Price Benowitz LLP Expands Its Washington DC Offices
Washington, DC based Price Benowitz LLP has expanded its offices to include 122 C Street NW.

Published Jun 13, 2011.
Read more: PRWeb via Yahoo! News

DUI criminal records may be a valuable source of criminal background history information about a person for someone like a prospective or current employer, insurance companies, universities, professional licensing entities, or whoever wishes to look up specific facts on DWI convictions or may be running a criminal background check against the DUI offender. Even if criminal information on someone has long been sealed or erased from other types of public records since long time ago, a DUI record may still contain it. Forever. The point is too many people fail to realize a DUI conviction will not clear from their criminal record automatically after a certain number of the years, be it even misdemeanor DUI charge, for DUI expungement is a civil action requiring plaintiff’s petition. DUI is the kind of record that can keep to appear on a person’s criminal record forever unless proper and required steps are taken towards its expungement. Moreover, not all states allow clearing record of driving under the influence, and some will have it done if certain requirement met only.

The general advice for the offenders is to consult their lawyer and get instructions on how it is possible to work proactively trying to clear your DUI conviction record. If you discover it’s impossible, you should at least make a bit of your own investigation to have an idea what exactly your prospective employer or landlord or someone else could discover when you consent to submit to a background check.

Another useful thing to know is that normally both DMV and the court will have a DUI public criminal records on file. Many people fail to realize that deleting the record from court files doesn’t mean automatic expungement from the police DUI record maintained by DMV, and vice versa.

Again, if you are an offender wishing to have your DUI record expunged, you should do that only with the help of a qualified lawyer specializing in the matter. Contact your DIU lawyer still before spending your time and money what possibly can’t be done. For the moment of writing this review, DUI records expungement was 100% possible in California and Utah, as well as there were chances for DUI record sealing in Nevada; certain expungements were possible in Minnesota. In Florida, New York, Washington and Texas, DUI expungement is possible if the case is dismissed, vacated, set aside or terminated in any other way. The DUI related legislature changes quickly, so don’t get into despair if your state is not on the list. The things may change.

Even if DUI regulations and laws, as well as DUI records expungement standards differ from state to state, the requirements determining whether offender’s DUI record can be cleared or not, are very similar and normally they take into account the following:

The time that passed since the conviction before expungement application was filed;
Any incidents while driving after the conviction took place;
Type of the offense, gravity of the consequences etc.
Compliance with the terms of sentence.

If you have a DUI history, it’s time to see if you have a DUI record you may wish to expunge or seal.

Originally published here.

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C. Dyson

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