Wisconsin Truck Accident Law : Wisconsin Truck Accident Lawyer & Attorney : Rozek Law Offices : Milwaukee, Madison, Kenosha, La Crosse

A Random Lake school bus carrying 26 students was involved in a crash Tuesday, October 27, 2009, with a pick-up truck. According to investigators, the school bus driver, 51-year-old Judy Degnitz of Fredonia, proceeded from a stop sign onto Abbott Drive from Lynn Road, into the path of an eastbound Ford F-250 hauling a utility trailer. The pick-up truck slammed into the side of the school bus.

The school bus, owned by Degnitz Bus Service of Fredonia, was transporting 26 Random Lake students. The driver of the bus was cited for failing to yield the right of way to the pick-up truck. The bus driver, Degnitz, claimed she was unable to see the pick-up truck coming due to the extreme fog. She was uninjured.

The driver of the pick-up truck, Nichollas Mueller, 30, of Adell, and his two passengers, 9-year-old Tyler Kies and 7-year-old Owen Kies, were all taken to St. Mary's Hospital in Ozaukee County.  18 of the students on the school bus were treated by the school nurse for minor injuries and 2 were taken to St. Nicholas Hospital in Sheboygan.

Professional bus drivers are required to exercise "extreme caution" in poor weather conditions. The investigation continues.

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Witnesses have been able to confirm that traffic had stopped prior to the semi-truck crashing into the vehicles in the October 8, 2009, Ozaukee County semi-truck crash that resulted in 2 deaths and several injuries. Eyewitnesses observed that the vehicles struck by the tractor trailer had come to a complete stop as traffic was backed up due to road construction.

The semi-truck driver claimed he had been temporarily distracted while reaching down for a snack and when he looked up it was too late for him to avoid the collision. The driver of the tractor trailer, Curtis D. Hawkins, of Dexter, Missouri, was operating under the authority of S & J Potashnick Transportation, Inc., 411 Lynual Sikeston, Missouri 63801. S & J Potashnick Transportation, Inc. operates and does business as PTI Potashnick Transportation, Inc. or simply as PTI.

According to records kept by the Federal Motor Carriers Safety Administration, PTI drivers have received 33 moving violations in the last 30 months, 28 of which were for speeding. During this same period of time, federal records also show that the PTI received 12 federal rule violations, including falsifying log books and violating the hours of service requirements.

PTI has grown from owning and operating 26 tractor trailers in September of 2008 to their current number of 71 power units. Despite this growth, federal records show they only have the minimum required amount of insurance of $750,000, which will be substantially insufficient to adequately compensate the injured parties and the families of those killed.

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Regretfully, last Thursday's, October 8, 2009, Ozaukee County semi-truck accident has now resulted in the death of a Mequon woman that was critically injured in the crash. Mary J. Parker passed away Tuesday at Froedtert Hospital in Wauwatosa. She was a passenger in her 1995 Cadillac Seville, which was being driven by Jimmie D. Juhaz, 64, of Cedar Grove, who had to be extricated from the car after the semitrailer truck slammed into them and an SUV on northbound I- 43 in the Town of Belgium, Ozaukee County, Wisconsin.

The crash also resulted in the death of the driver of the SUV, Donald J. Sherman, 78, of Stickney, Illinois. Mr. Sherman's wife, Roberta, and two others were injured in the collision.

The two vehicles that were struck by the semi-truck had slowed to exit on Highway D because I-43 was closed between Belgium and Cedar Grove for emergency repairs to the shoulder of the freeway.

According to authorities, the semi-truck driver, Curtis D. Hawkins, 36, of Dexter, Missouri, claimed he had been reaching for a snack and when he looked up he realized he was closing in on the Cadillac. At that point it was too late to stop and the semi-truck slammed into the Cadillac and then the SUV driven by Sherman, dragging it over 100 yards before coming to rest in the ditch.

The roads were also wet at the time, as it was raining. Professional truck drivers are required to use extra caution in poor weather conditions.

Authorities say charges have not yet been issued against Hawkins or the trucking company.

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Just after noon today, October 8, 2009, a tragic semi-truck collision in Ozaukee County has left one victim dead and several others injured. Authorities have not yet released the cause of the collision but there is speculation that it may have been due in part to a combination of speed, inattention and the road construction and lane closure, which was just north of the accident scene.

The collision occurred in the northbound lanes of I--43 just south of County Highway D.

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The Obama administration said Thursday it will seek to ban text messaging by interstate bus drivers and truckers and push states to pass their own laws against driving cars while distracted. As a first step, LaHood said President Barack Obama signed an executive order late Wednesday banning all federal workers from texting while driving on government business, driving government vehicles or using government equipment.

The Transportation Department reported that 5,870 people were killed and 515,000 were injured last year in crashes connected to driver distraction, often involving mobile devices or cell phones. Driver distraction was involved in 16 percent of all fatal crashes in 2008 and was more prevalent among young drivers.

Senate Democrats said support was building in Congress to move against text messaging by drivers. The legislation, pushed by Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., would require states to ban texting or e-mailing while operating a moving vehicle or lose 25 percent of their annual federal highway funding.

Eighteen states and the District of Columbia already have passed laws making texting while driving illegal, and seven states and the District have banned driving while talking on a handheld cell phone, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

Bus and truck operators said they would review the plans. Dave Osiecki, vice president of safety for the American Trucking Associations, said his group would work with LaHood "on a comprehensive approach to reducing distractions for all drivers, including professional truck drivers."

American Bus Association President Peter Pantuso said his organization supported the restrictions and most member companies already had policies prohibiting drivers from texting and using cell phones.

Put the cell phone away, and concentrate on driving, before your hurt yourself or others.

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