Maryland Motorcycle Accident Lawyer Blog
Personal responsibility is one of the important cornerstones of a civilized society, yet it appears that many people choose to shirk this most basic of civic duties for their own personal gain, and to the detriment of their neighbors and fellow citizens. For those who injure or kill another person as a result of their own negligence, the law is strict and relatively unyielding. But still, many of those people who inflict pain and suffering through negligence or just plain thoughtlessness apparently decide that they are better served by avoiding the law and deferring justice. Frankly, their respite typically lasts only a short period of time.
As Maryland injury lawyers, I and my legal staff and colleagues put our energies into representing individuals who have suffered in one way or another following an injury-related motorcycle, car or commercial trucking accident. No two car accidents, truck crashes or bike wrecks are quite the same, which is why police and personal injury attorneys like ourselves must investigate the facts, gather evidence and present these elements in a courtroom to establish negligence on the part of one or more individuals or parties.
Naturally, in any civilized society those accused of wrongdoing are expected to face their accusers and present their own evidence to defend themselves against accusations or formal criminal charges. However, some individuals attempt to prolong the process by failing to show up for scheduled court hearings. We were reminded of this kind of situation when reading a recent news article about an man who was accused of hitting a young bicycle rider with his vehicle and then leaving the scene of the bicycle-automobile accident.
According to news reports, the suspect was a Mansfield, MD, resident who was allegedly traveling in the vicinity of Jeanette Ave. and Greenlawn on a Saturday in late May, sending the 10-year-old victim to the hospital. Police reports indicated that the alleged hit-and-run driver is a resident of Greenlawn Ave. Police stated that the driver left the scene of the crash and apparently parked his vehicle and went into a residence on Greenlawn, not far from the accident site.
Police were apparently alerted to the situation and tracked the man down to the home. Officers reportedly had to force their way into the residence, where they found the suspect seated in a chair and having a cigarette. All the while, a crowd of angry neighbors, adults and children, was gathering at the intersection where the crash had occurred.
Identified as Travis Webb, the driver was arrested and charged with a number of offenses, including leaving the scene of an injury accident, failure to yield, driving without an operator’s license and obstructing official business. It was also revealed that Webb had a history of failing to appear in court to answer for previous and unrelated charges. Although Webb was allowed to post bond for the latest hit-and-run incident, as well as ($138, failure to yield; $2,500, no license; and $1,000, obstructing official business), the law did not provide for bond on the four failure to appear charges. Hence he had to remain in jail until his hearing.
The young boy, Geonni Holt, who was injured in the accident was reportedly taken to
MedCentral/Mansfield Hospital. His injuries were not disclosed, but he was apparently well enough to be discharged not long after being admitted. Considering the opportunity for serious injury, such as closed-head trauma, this youngster was apparenlty very lucky.
Hit-skip suspect to stay in jail, MansfieldNewsJournal.com, May. 22, 2012