Richard Kunzler was killed in a crash on July 18, 2006 when he crested a hill and crashed into the back of vehicles stopped on the road.  The vehicles were backed up and stopped on the road because construction was taking place on a bridge some distance further on.  After crashing into the back of another vehicle Mr. Kunzler lingered for 13 days in the hospital before dying.

After an eight day trial in Provo the jury unanimously returned a verdict awarding totaling $4,396,268 - $2,896,268 for economic damages and $375,000 each for Kunzler's wife and three children.  The jury also found Mr. Kunzler 20% at fault decreasing the amount paid by $879,254.  UDOT was found 35% responsible and the contractor Staker & Parson found 45% responsible.  UDOT's share of the verdict will be reduced to about $500,000 under law that restricts the amount of money a governmental entity has to pay.  Essentially the case was about insufficient highway signing or its absence and the failure to adequately warn drivers that there was construction ahead and to be on the lookout for stopped or slowing traffic.

I have written about highway construction issues and the failure to properly sign and warn about highway construction and I am investigating a wrongful death case of a Utah motorcycle rider on I-84.  Motorcycles, because they only have two wheels, are inherently less stable than four-wheeled cars and trucks.  When we go over a bump we feel it, when we enter roto-milled surfaces our bike seems to take on a mind of its own and goes where it wants and fine sand or gravel is particularly hazardous causing increased braking distances and causing us to fall.  It is incumbent upon UDOT and its contractors to make sure that there is adequate and correct signing that is often mandated by their own rules and procedures either at the state level or the federal level.

To prove these cases you need an arsenal of well-trained professionals available to investigate the crash.  The well-trained professionals include of course your lawyer who orchestrates the investigation and foots the bill, crash reconstructionists, mechanical engineers, human factors experts, often medical experts and a forensics team that will do the work of gathering pictures and other evidence.  These types of road defect or inadequate signing cases are often costly not only to the responsible parties but to the injured client or his surviving family.

It is a curious thing to read the comments posted in response to the Salt Lake Tribune article.  One comment talks about this being an outragious verdict - something like the McDonald's coffee case - outrageous they say.  In the coffee case there had been numerous people before the plaintiff that had been scalded with coffee so hot that skin grafting was required to repair the damage.  One expects coffee to be hot but hot enough to boil the skin off of you - I do not think so.  This crash case also documented that there numerous skid marks on the highway showing that others had near misses.  UDOT and Staker knew they were creating a dangerous condition and did nothing to fix it - that is the bottom line.  For those who write on the comments board I ask you one question - what if it were your husband, wife, son or daughter that had been needlessly killed.

The Salt Lake Tribune reports that a motorcycle was part of a four vehicle crash when he was struck hard from behind while stopped at a light.  Apparently there was a chain reaction of a rear-end collision and the motorcycle rider got the worst of it when he was propelled into the vehicle in front of him causing him to crash to the ground.  The motorcycle rider was transported to Intermountain Medical Center for treatment of what was described as minor to moderate injuries.

We often handle crashes where multiple vehicles are involved int he crash and not surprisingly the motorcycle rider often is the person most injured.  When there are other injuries involved sometimes liability is often difficult to allocate.  Take this crash for example and assume all of the vehicles were stopped at a stop light and the vehicle causing the crash ploughed into the back of a car that propelled it into the motorcycle that caused the motorcycle to crash into a truck.  The insurer for the moving vehicle will try to allocate fault to the stopped car claiming that the stopped vehicle was stopped too close to the motorcycle.  The may claim that the stopped car had no brake lights - it is sometimes amazing what they come up with.  They may claim that the motorcycle was stopped too close to the truck in front of him.  This is all claimed in a ploy to decrease the amount of money paid by the insurance company of the car that really caused the crash. It is seldom that an insurance company will not try to allocate blame to others in often the most simple crash.

Congratulation to Joe Slaon for winning the Utah Highway Safety Office's "Drive Aware.  Ride Aware" motorcycle safety video contest.  Joe wan $1,000 for his four-hour effort.  If you page down on the HSO facebook page you can find the motorcycle safety awareness video. Joe looks like a new driver but he has some sage words of advice and references statistics to bolster his point.  He says that one out of nine highway fatalities are those riding a motorcycle and that number is rising.  Here are some other interesting statistics:

• Motorcycle crashes most often occur in Utah between 4 and 6 p.m.
• Most motorcycle crashes in Utah occur on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
• Motorcycle riders ages 20 to 24 are most involved in motorcycle crashes in Utah.
• Most motorcycle crashes in Utah occur between 30 to 39 mph.
• The number of motorcycle crashes in Utah per miles travel are increasing.
• The number of motorcycle deaths in Utah per miles travelled are static.
• The number of crashes per registered motorcycles in Utah are dropping.

• The number of motorcycle deaths per registered motorcycles in Utah are dropping.
• Of all vehicle crashes in Utah motorcycle crashes are increasing and account for about 12% of all crashes.
• Most motorcycle crashes in Utah occur in Salt Lake County, followed by Utah, Weber and Davis counties.
• If you are in a motorcycle crash in Utah you are 2.4% likely to be killed.
• If you are in a motorcycle crash in Utah you are 7 times more likely to be killed than in a car crash.
• Males are involved in about 83% of motorcycle crashes in Utah.
• About half of those involved in a motorcycle crash in Utah were wearing helmets.
• Most motorcycle crashes in Utah involve collision with another vehicle.
• When motorcycle crashes in Utah involve another vehicle the other vehicle most likely failed to yield the right of way.
• When the motorcyclist is at fault most often they performed an improper lane change or were following too close.

On Friday August 21, 2009 a West Valley City motorcycle officer was chasing a traffic violator - he pulled into the center lane of traffic and turned on his lights to pass an uninvolved car and as they enter an intersection the uninvolved car suddenly made a left-hand turn crashing into the officer.  The motorcycle stayed upright but was propelled into oncoming traffic where another crash sent the officer to the pavement.  Lt. Bill Merritt said the officer's helmet had a "good gouge" out of the back side and immediately after the crash the officer was on his feet and talking, but he was disoriented and unsure what had happened when Merritt arrived five minutes later.  "He's fine, but he had pretty good road rash on the right side of his body,"Merritt said.

This officer was very lucky that he was wearing a helmet and the injury could have been much worse.  The officer might have sustained a traumatic brain injury or sustained a severe laceration at best.  It is speculation whether the helmet saved his life but what is certain is that the injuries could have been much worse.

The statement by Lt. Merritt that the injured officer "He's fine" is premature because brain injury caused by a motorcycle crash can be latent not presenting obvious injury until hours, days or even months later.  Even a mild concussion may eventually cost this officer his ability to be a motorcycle officer in the future interfering with his vestibular apparatus and causing balance problems for example.  Because someone stands up after a crash we can not assume they are "fine" and I believe that all but the most minor crash victims should seek medical care to make sure they are not injured.

On August 13, 2009 Utah Highway Troopers, motorcycle instructors and health experts met at the Salt Lake Harley Davidson dealer to discuss a recent surge in motorcycle deaths. 

The Salt Lake Tribune reported that out of 22 fatal motorcycle fatalities so far this year, 19 involved riders older than 40 -- a cue that experienced riders should consider a "tune-up" on their skills, said Dale Bell, owner of Utah Motorcycle Education, which offers motorcycle safety classes. Such a class -- also offered by most dealers and community colleges -- would refresh riders' ability to maneuver their bikes and adjust to new technology.At this time last year 27 people had died in motorcycle crashes in Utah.

The Deseret News reported that Yeaton, a 31-year-old clinical nurse at University Hospital, sees motorcyclists in and out of her emergency room on a regular basis. Most wound up there due to driving under the influence. But the deadly cases have something else in common — the driver not knowing their limits, or the bike's, because of a lack of safety training. Most, she says, also weren't wearing a helmet.  Trooper Roden says that at least 10 of the victims so far this year were wearing helmets.  All of the participants at the discussion urged the use of helmets, leathers and to take a safety riding class.

I have talked about the need for more education and motorcycle riding classes going so far as to make the taking of motorcycle classes a prerequisite to obtaining a motorcycle license.  But more needs to be done - drivers need to be educated as well about the need to watch out for motorcycles and scooters.  Maybe watching a short video about how lives are changed in an instant when not seeing a motorcycle.

The Salt Lake Tribune reported that Leland Lloyd, 53, of Lancaster was riding south on Greensprings Drive in Washington City when a northbound green Ford Explorer made a left-hand turn in front of Lloyd.  The head-on crash occurred at about 9:15 a.m. Sunday morning August 6, 2009 and despite wearing a helmet Mr. Lloyd was killed at the scene when his head hit the SUV.  The driver of the Ford Explorer was 54-year-old John Hanson of St. George.  Hanson was arrested for suspicion of automobile homicide, driving under the influence, open container and improper left turn.

This is another drunk driver causing the death of another motorcycle rider.  Regardless whether the surviving family wants to forgive and forget the drunk driver we need to start taking these cases seriously and make it known that if you drink and drive in Utah you will be prosecuted fully.

There was a recent article on CBS 60 Minutes that profiled a New York district attorney Kathleen Rice that recently charged a drunk driver, not with manslaughter, but with murder.  She charged the drunk driver with murder because "The statute under which he was charged required us to prove that through his actions, he had a completely depraved indifference to human life." Rice says she is pushing for tough sentences because nothing else is working. In spite of sobriety checkpoints, a recent study by the federal government showed that 15 percent of adult drivers actually admitted to driving under the influence at least once in the past year.The outcome of the charge was a conviction of second degree murder and the drunk was sentenced to 18 years to life.

Model years 2006 through 2008 of the BMW R1200 GS motorcycle are being recalled for problems with their fuel system because the fuel pump control unit housing might be insufficient and water could get into the control unit creating a humid atmosphere causing it to corrode and fail unexpectedly.

You can contact BMW at 1-800-831-1117 or the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration at 1-888-327-4236 for more information.

Getting sued is not fun - you would think that a caveman even knows that.  However, if you have Geico Insurance - be it vehicle or motorcycle insurance you might get sued more that others who have different insurance.  Here is a reprint of an article from Moore & Wolfe, personal injury lawyers in Mobile, Alabama who after conducting a poll of personal injury lawyers across America found that attorneys who represent injury victims hit by people who have Geico coverage need to file cases against the Geico insured more often.

On August 6, 2009 a man lost control of his motorcycle on Interstate 15 near Washington City in Utah when it appears that his rear tire failed and separated from the wheel according to the Utah Highway Patrol.  "Witnesses said they heard a small bang. After that, the vehicle lost control," said Utah Highway Patrol Sgt. Jacob Hicks.

When you are riding a motorcycle few things are more important than your tires.  You must check your tires before and after every ride to make sure they have not been damaged by road debris or the road itself.  Tire ware is also a danger and it is easy to say you will replace the tire tomorrow, next week, next month but time has a way of disappearing and if you are in doubt about the safety of your tires get them checked out.

There is also a lot of construction of Utah roads and you know that uneven road surfaces can easily damage a wheel that can cause the tire to become separated from the wheel at worst or create a horrible wobble and cause you to lose control.  We have to make sure our bikes are in excellent condition to keep us safe!

Bruce Rossmeyer who owned 15 Harley Davidson dealerships was killed July 30, 2009 in a motorcycle crash in Wyoming on his way to Sturgis Motorcycle Rally.  According to the Wyoming Highway Patrol Rossmeyer was passing a truck pulling a trailer that was trying to turn left on Highway 28 in Sweetwater County Wyoming.  The truck apparently signaled and started to turn left off the highway while Rossmeyer was attempting to pass.

Rossmyer was a charitable and likable character who opened his first dealership in 1994 and was a big promoter of Daytona Bike Week.  According to Motorcycle USA his crowning achievement is Destination Daytona in Ormond Beach. Rossmeyer built it to be the complete biker experience. Not only is it a motorcycle dealership, but it’s also a full-blown resort complete with restaurants and bars, a tattoo shop, stores, condos, and a hotel.  Rossmeyer who was 66 is survived by his wife and 5 children.  Our thoughts are with his friends and family.