2 High School Students Struck by Amtrak Train

Two students were struck by an Amtrak train as they were on their way to Springfield High School in Holland this morning.

According to reports, the two teenagers tried to beat the train at a crossing next to the school.

One of the students, 15-yer-old Cody Brown, was killed while 16-year-old Briana Mullinger was critically injured after the train accident.

The family of the students should consult with a car accident attorney to have their case evaluated prior to the filing of a wrongful death and a personal injury claim against the railroad company.

Since trains are considered common carriers, they are expected to exercise higher level of care compared to other vehicles.

This applies not only to the engineer but to the railroad company as well.

It may be true that the students may have been negligent in trying to outrun a train, however, since the railroad crossing is near a high school, these situations can be and should be expected.

Additional safety features could have been placed to make sure that reckless minors will not be placed in danger.

In that context, the families of the victim may have a chance to hold the railroad company civilly liable for their loss.

Car Crashes into a Home in Simi Valley, Injures Mother and Narrowly Misses Baby

A nine-week old baby narrowly missed injury and death while her mom broke her leg after a car plowed through their house in Simi Valley.

According to reports, the car crashed, rolled over and slid into the house.

The mother and child were brought to the hospital for medical evaluation and treatment.

The cause of the crash was not clear but the police ruled out alcohol and drugs as factors for the car accident.

Obviously, the mother can file a personal injury and property damage lawsuit against the driver of the car.

Unless there are other contributory factors in the accident (like another car, a road defect or debris, or a car defect) the driver will most likely be found liable for the injuries.

It does not matter if the driver did not mean to crash into the house; personal injury and property damage lawsuits are not criminal charges but civil lawsuits.

The main point is that if proven that he caused a car accident that caused injury and damages; he and his insurance company should compensate the victims.

The police and the prosecutors will decide whether criminal charges should be filed against the driver.

Then again, it will all depend upon the results of the investigation.

School Bus Driver Scoops Lost Boy from Traffic

Sometimes the chances to be a hero stares you right in the face and still not see it.

That is exactly what ten or so drivers did when they drove past a lost 4-year-old boy wandering on Beach Boulevard traffic and ignored what they saw.

However most of them did not see a lost kid, they just saw a little boy who was blocking traffic.

It took a school bus driver to realize the danger the boy was in and finally scooped him up to safety.

Valerie Flanagan, who has been a bus driver for 23 years, noticed the traffic moving slowly near Beach Boulevard and Westminster Avenue with the cars in front swerving in the street.

She assumed that there might be a dog stuck on the road but was surprised to see a small boy wandering in the far right lane of the six lane road.

Flanagan stopped, parked her bus and put her hazards on amid the annoying horns of the vehicles behind her.

She then went out of the bus knelt down and coaxed the boy to come to her for fear that if she comes too close the boy might run off.

The boy went to the driver and she picked him up. He tucked his head on her shoulder as Flanagan brought her inside the bus.

Flanagan said that there were no adults near the boy.

The police then received a 911 call reporting that the bus driver had the boy, and after 10 minutes a mother called to report a missing child, said Westminster police Sgt Dan Schoonmaker.

Within minutes everyone was reunited in a happy ending that could have ended otherwise.

Flanagan was outraged that none of the vehicles before her stopped to get the boy and said that she does not want to get credit for what everyone should be doing.

But we all know that she should get recognition. Had Flanagan ignored the child, who knows what could have happened to him.

It could have ended in a car accident where a lost boy ends up being seriously injured or worse.

A mother could be grieving for her little boy right now.

Although there was no accident, it is our duty to stop and provide assistance to those who are in need. This is not only our duty to the law but also a moral obligation as a human being.

Speeding Driver Speeds off before Killing Santee Woman

Before crashing into a blue Ford explorer driven by a 57-year-old Santee woman, a 17-year-old speeding driver was involved in a hit and run accident.

Tanya Chase was pulling her Chevrolet Cavalier out of the driveway when the same speeding driver rear ended her car. Due to the impact, the Cavalier was forced off the road, crashed into three utility boxes before it slammed through a fence and ended up back on the road. Chase was able to get the car’s license plate while another driver followed the speeding car.

The speeding driver left off and proceeded to I-8 and north on state Route 125 where the fatal collision between the blue Ford explorer driven by Pamela Sue Marabeas happened.

Authorities confirmed that the truck involved in the hit and run was the same truck involved in Santee’s collision.

Authorities have yet to reveal whether drugs or alcohol attended the fatal crash.

The speeding driver had pile of charges against her. Not only she was liable for hit and run but also for a wrongful death case not to mention the property damage caused by her recklessness. On her part, she has to hire an experience car accident attorney to lessen, if the consequences allow, her charges.