NV-Attorney Blog

The Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) is a government publication issued under the guidance of the U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration.  The manual sets the minimum standards and ensures uniformity throughout Nevada, as well as the United States,  for all traffic control devices.  The document is constantly changing as new technologies, traffic innovations and rules and regulations evolve through the country, but is constantly being incorporated by local law standards, including the Highway Patrol, Sheriffs and other police officers in Nevada.

The first MUTCD was first  published in 1937 after the American Association of State Highway Officials (AASHO) and the National Conference on Street and Highway Safety (NCSHS) combined to form the Joint Committee on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (JC).  While the manual was first produced in 1935, it was only published two years later since demand for the information was so high.  Obviously as the rules of the road changed dramatically over time the document has evolved considerably since its inception.  New traffic devices and other rules for construction and maintenance operations were only addressed with the start of the Interstate Highway System.

Today, the document is still used throughout the country as a guide on both National and State levels.  Due to the constant changing of the documentation, the best place to find the most current version of the MUTCD is on their website, www.mutcd.fhwa.dot.gov.   The publication is constantly evolving and takes suggestions from local and state agencies as well as other quasi governmental traffic agencies; so, if you believe there is a currently problem with the way a device operates or the rules of the road, don’t get mad, get even and contact the MUTCD with your gripe.  Otherwise, if you have been cited for failure to use due care, or other tickets including reckless driving, speeding tickets or warrants, contact the experts at Ticket Power.

Las Vegas, NV – August 10, 2010 – 24 Hour Ticket Power continues to reign supreme in the State of Nevada when it comes to handling traffic tickets online. The company operates a website, open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week dedicated to helping Las Vegas residents as well as out of state guests that befall the eye of the law.

The site adjudicates almost every ticket issued in the Southern Nevada area with an online system that records the violation and other salient information including the citation number, court, appearance date as well as the basic tenants of the violation. The attorneys review the violation, as well as driver’s license and other important fact, contacts the driver to discuss the case and then handles the ticket with the various courts in Southern Nevada.

The result? Typically the firm arranges the best possible outcome for the driver, often with no points, no insurance increase, and for a lower fee then if they’d address the violation in person. All without the driver having to leave his or her domicile.

If you or someone you know has been cited for a traffic ticket violation in Clark County, Henderson or North Las Vegas, turn to the traffic ticket attorneys that understand how to litigate these tickets, turn the attorneys at 24 Hour Ticket Power.

The attorneys at 24 hour ticket power offer a one stop place to handle your traffic ticket violations in Clark County and Southern Nevada. The ticket lawyers handle every traffic violation from red light and speeding tickets to DUI’s, reckless driving and arrest warrants. The site handles the whole ticket fighting process through their website, www.24hourticketpower.com

A Las Vegas Tour Bus carrying tourist from Japan suddenly crashed this week driving from Nevada to Bryce Canyon National Park.  The tragic bus accident between Nevada and Utah occurred when the driver hit a median and rolled the bus 66 miles inside Utah state lines.

The injured passengers were rushed to surrounding medical centers, including the  University of Utah Medical Center, Valley View Medical Center and Intermountain Medical Center to be treated for various wounds suffered during the bus accident.  The Utah Highway Patrol where withholding some of the deceased passengers names until the families of the departed could be rightfully contacted to inform them of their deaths.

The cause of why the driver hit the median is still being investigated.  Although often times bus and other vehicle accidents occur due to circumstances the driver couldn’t prevent, there are many know instances when the accident was caused due to driver negligence and/or the result of being under the influence of drugs/alcohol.

If you or a loved one has been injured in a bus or private transportation vehicle, and believe the cause of the accident may have been prevented with due care, you should seek the advice of legal representation to understand the options available to you.  The law offices of Benson & Bingham have handled several bus accident/injury cases in Las Vegas and surrounding areas of Southern Nevada, and are licensed to practice in both Utah and Nevada.  The Nevada firm understand what to look for in such horrific cases.  Sometimes vehicle accidents are due to unpreventable circumstances, however the firm has experienced other cases where the driver was negligent or even the vehicle  not up to safety standards for the  transportation of people.  If you believe an accident was caused due to negligence or product liability, contact the experts at Benson & Bingham.

It is a little known fact, but often litigation leads to safer car standards since the process helps identify and hold liable negligent craftsmanship on the part of Auto Manufacturers.  The most recent example, the Toyota Recall due to sudden acceleration and other glitches, is one in a long line of recalls the automobile industry has experienced over the years.  What keeps these corporate behemoth’s in check?  Often, it’s the legal industry that ensures car makers don’t skirt their responsibility of producing safe cars.

Many suggest that auto maker’s first weigh the cost’s of litigation versus the time and expense of recalling a line/s of automobiles.  Historically, that argument seems to carry some weight.  A watershed legal ruling occurred in 1968 when Larsen vs GM held the automaker liable for injuries suffered by a driver of a Corvair.  The ruling placed accountability on the manufacturer for design features that it felt posed a risk to drivers, the first ruling of its kind.  This was followed by the Ford Pinto line of automobiles and the placement of the gas tank in respect to the rest of the car in case of auto accidents, and the greater likelihood of the gas tank exploding on impact due to the position of the tank.  This lead to greater scrutiny on the part of vehicle manufacturers, similar to what is taking place with the Toyota recall, to look for potential safety hazards or defects early to avoid not only costly litigation, but also the prospects of recalling the vehicles.

Prior to the Toyota debacle, the most recent example of note is the Ford Explorer rollover suits that were caused, in part, by tread separation on the Firestone tires that came stock with the Ford Explorer package.  Firestone and Ford each accused the other of the auto accidents, including the 100+ auto fatalities due to the defect, which led to the companies ending their 100+ year relationship.  As the LA Times noted, “…industry analysts note that better tires and electronic stability control – now standard on SUVs – emerged largely because of the Explorer’s problem.”

This problem and subsequent safety changes were a direct result of attorney and legal firms pressuring these institutions with lawsuits as a result of  substandard vehicle conditions and design flaws.

Toyota announced last Thursday January 21st, the latest, and perhaps largest recall in the history of the Automotive industry when coupled with the previous recall to related issues with their cars.  The company is recalling approximately 2.3 million vehicles to correct the problem of the acceleration pedals sticking on selected Toyota models.  This is in addition to the the already 4.2 million Toyota and Lexus vehicles recalled due to various floor mat issues and the sticking of pedals of selected automobiles.  That’s 6.5 million combined recalls due to issues of the acceleration devices, not a minor recall to say the least.

There have reportedly been over 2,100 separate accidents due to the sudden acceleration issue the recall was targeted to correct.  Whether or not an accident has resulted in a fatal injury, similar to the Ford Roll-Over accident recalls of recent history, is unknown.  Why so many individual accelerator accidents had to occur prior to a recall is also an unknown, especially to the victims that had to have experienced, depending on the circumstances of their cases, what must have been quite horrific feelings.  Imagine not only being able to not stop your car, but the ill euphoria of actually speeding up during these occurrences; at the very least, one would think there would be some level of PTSD due to the accident.  There has been speculation that the managements of both Toyota and Nissan, another Japanese  company said to have issues with their throttle systems, knew well before the NHTSA report issued their final conclusions on the acceleration issues in the vehicles.

To date, it is unknown how many crashes in the State of Nevada were due to accelerator issues with the aforementioned vehicles, however with over 2,100 accidents nationally, there is no doubt someone in Las Vegas, Reno or the surrounding areas of Southern NV experienced such an event due to an issue with their pedal causing an  accident or injury.   This is clearly a form of negligence on the behalf of the manufacturer, and injured victims are due compensation due to this oversight, especially since it was understood and could have been prevented prior to the accidents.  If you or a loved one has been injured in an automobile accident in Nevada due to  workmanship or a defect in the manufacturers’ product, contact the Las Vegas Law Offices of Benson & Bingham, experienced product liability attorneys.

For more information on the Toyota Recall in NV:

• Toyota Attorneys and the Toyota Recall in Nevada
• Toyota Motor’s Recall and the Safety Epidemic Created

Although everyone attempts to comply with safety and other every-day logic when boarding an escalator or elevator, sometimes problems or malfunctions occur irrespective of the actions an injured victim would have made.  Consequently, a victim of an accident in Nevada may be forced to contact an attorney that specializes in Elevator and Escalator accidents.

Benson & Bingham have experience dealing with such claims.  Whether it be a Croc or other loose fitting sandal that gets clogged in and escalator, or an elevator malfunction which drops one two floors lower then their desired floor, or a freak accident due to error in the functioning of the device, accidents do happen and injuries are a real concern.

While no one looks to get injured in a casino or hotel transportation mechanism, unfortunately these cases do arise.  Knowing and trusting a firm that understand the problems associated with such devices and how best to prove that the error was due to no fault of ones own, but the mechanism itself is an important part of determining how to pursue such claims.  The Law Offices of Benson & Bingham are one such entity that understands the risks associated with using an elevator, escalator or other public mode of transportation.  Experts need to be contacted, and tests proof of such error needs to be provided to better help the tenants of the case.

If you or a loved one has been injured in a hotel, mall, airport or casino accident involving such a device, contact the Las Vegas experts at handling premise liability claims.

A Shuttle bus driving on I-80 through the Sierra Nevada Pass crashed yesterday, resulting in another horrific bus accident in Nevada.  The shuttle bus, provided by the Resort at Squaw Creek, careened off the freeway hitting a guardrail and the bus rolled several times, coming to rest in ditch along Interstate-80, about twenty miles west of Reno, NV.

There were approximately30 passengers on the shuttle bus when the accident occurred, several of which were thrown from the bus while it rolled resulting in the death of one man.  In addition, 27 of the passengers were taken to hospitals throughout Northern Nevada shortly after the accident, with the majority at Renown Regional Medical Center in Reno.

The bus was ferrying employees from Reno to resorts in the Sierra Nevada’s when the accident happened.  The bus driver suffered injuries during the bus accident and were being questioned by officers after the accident.  According to Reno Police, the driver had a clean record and there were no mechanical issues with the shuttle bus.

Many of the passengers suffered broken bones, head injuries and assortment of other ailments after the accident.  While this is a tragic accident, there are some cases where the accident never should have occurred in the first place.  If you believe you have been an accident in public or private commuter transportation vehicle, contact the Law Office of Benson & Bingham, experienced ground transportation accidents/injury attorneys.

A tanker truck hit and killed a man today at the intersection of Lake Mead Boulevard and Civic Center in North Las Vegas.

According to witnesses, the man allegedly walked between to 18-wheel semis and was struck and killed by the tanker truck.  Witnesses who observed the semi accident were horrified.

Investigators were on the scene taking pictures of the accident and noted the would disclose the finding at a later date.  It appears the driver was not at fault, however often times 18-wheel semi accidents are a result of negligence or physical impairment of the driver due to alcohol or other drugs.

If you have  a loved one who has been wrongfully killed due to circumstances that could have been avoided, contact the Semi Accident specialists in Las Vegs, Benson & Bingham.

The first industrial death of an employee in it’s fifty-three year history, the main treatment plant in Las Vegas Valley identified him as Mason Reyes, a 33-year old man from Henderson.

The Coroner’s Office noted the cause of the man’s death had not been determined, but Clark County officials are investigating the death.  The accident occurred around 10 A.M. as the man was doing emergency repair work on an eight-inch reclaimed water line.

The treatment facility is the largest sewage treatment center, located off Eastern Flamingo in Henderson.  The Clark County Water Reclamation District was opened in 1954, and employees confirmed it was the first accident related death in the Las Vegas plant’s fifty-five year history.

While these types of accidents are tragic, that sometimes are a result of negligence or improper safety conditions.  If there are questions as to the cause of death, contact an experienced Las Vegas Injury Attorney, with knowledge of how to  handle wrongful death matters, contact  Benson & Bingham, experienced personal injury and accident attorneys.

Last night a Las Vegas man suffered severe injuries when he was struck in his pickup truck by another truck carrying a backhoe.  The accident occurred in Ripley, an area southwest of Las Vegas.

Officers at the scene stated the tractor trailer accident occurred at approximately 9:00 p.m. Friday night resulting in the injury to John McCauliffe.  The victim was airlifted to University Medical Center and the injuries are said to be life threatening.

The Toyota Tacoma pickup truck driven by McCauliffe struck the rear left tire of the backhoe, according police, which sent his vehicle into the other lane where is struck a Ford pickup truck carrying a trailer.  The accident is under investigation.

There are all to many tractor trailer, backhoe and other carriage device accidents in Southern Nevada and sometimes the accident could have been avoided the proper precautions were heeded.  If you or a loved one has been involved in a serious tractor trailer or backhoe accident, contact Benson and Bingham for compassionate and caring legal advice.