A buck totals a Mercedes Benz limousine on its way back to Clarke County, Virginia.  Winchester injury and animal accident attorney Doug Landau recovered for his client, the limo driver, after careful examination of the evidence necessary to prove the case.  As stated yesterday, Northern Virginia crash injury lawyer Doug Landau advises that in many cases the facts are such that negligence, fault (or “failure to exercise ordinary care under the circumstances”) can not be established after a crash with a deer or other animal in the road.

However, there are two areas to examine: the speed of the striking vehicle and avoidance. Here are examples of how Robson Forensic , an engineering firm that has been retained by ABRAMS LANDAU in past cases, has helped to establish liability in these areas:

1. The front of a car hit a deer. The deer then hit the windshield or roof line of the striking car, vaulted over the roof and came down on the top of a passing pickup, injuring the pickup driver. The roof of the pickup was collapsed down and the columns supporting the roof were buckled. To do that damage to the pickup the deer had to have fallen a few feet onto the pickup roof, and thus was lofted into the air by the striking car. The speed limit was 30 mph. The car had to have been greatly exceeding the speed limit to have lofted the deer into the air. The car exceeding the speed limit caused the injury to the pickup driver.
2. A car hit a deer and the passenger was injured. The point of impact was established by the driver and police at the site. In his deposition, the driver said “I came over the hill crest and saw the deer…” We went to the site, determined the sight distance from the hill crest to the point of impact with the deer. The driver had far more than enough time to have controlled the situation. The driver’s failure to control his approach speed caused the injury to his passenger.

The Crash Reconstruction Practice Group at Robson Forensic is well equipped to investigate all varieties of crashes (Crash Practice Group Leader, Peter Leiss, direct 800.813.6736). Our experts include Vehicle Engineers for cars, trucks, buses, motorcycles and recreational vehicles. Robson Forensic also has experts in highway engineering, human factors, biomechanics, and many other related disciplines and has assisted ABRAMS LANDAU in cases involving scalding burns, premises liability, hotel, motel and resort negligence.  If you or someone you know has been injured in a crash or car accident caused all, or in part, by a deer or other animal, please contact us at ABRAMS LANDAU, Ltd., 703-796-9555