Gainesville, Ocala, Lake City & Inverness, Florida Accident Attorney and Alachua County DUI Lawyer Blogs

Floridians, Protect your Cars from Theft - Local Accident Attorney Explains Ways

Florida ranks second nationwide for auto theft, trailing California and ahead of Texas. Gainesville accident attorney explains ways to protect yourself.

Reminder: Buckle up or you will get ticketed.

Tomorrow, Tuesday June 30^th, if you do not fasten your seat belt you can be stopped and ticketed by the police in Florida.  The new ruling which makes not buckling up a primary offense, goes into effect tomorrow.

In short, this means that tomorrow, you can be stopped by the police just for not wearing your seat belt, there does not need to be any other traffic violation for the stop.  In the past, the officer could only ticket you if they had stopped you for another violation such as speeding.

The law states that every passenger under 18 must be properly restrained with a seat belt or age relevant child safety restraint.  Front seat passengers over 18 are required to buckle up. As an experienced accident attorney serving Gainesville and the surrounding areas, I recommend back seat adult passengers, though not required by law to buckle up, to buckle up as well! 

The facts are clear, seat belts save lives.

Here is more information on the subject:

Great news, seat belt use now a primary offense in Florida

 Seat Belt use now a primary offense in Florida

 

 

 

 

 

Aggressive Driving Special Patrol Alert

On Wednesday, June 17, deputies from the Alachua County Sheriff's Office and troopers from the Florida Highway Patrol will be conducting intensive patrols along I-75 to ticket aggressive drivers.  The patrols are scheduled during the work day between the hours of 7 a.m. and 3 p.m. As an accident attorney with over thirty years of experience representing victims of accidents in Gainesville and the surrounding areas, I recommend that drivers use extreme caution while traveling on I-75, today, tomorrow and every day!  

I-75 in Alachua County has been the scene of many accidents and the emphasis by law enforcement to crack down on aggressive driving in this area is easy to understand and I applaud them in their efforts to make our roads a safer place for residents and our visitors.

Florida Statute 316.1923 describes Aggressive Driving as committing two or more of the following acts at the same time or one after the other:

• 1) Exceeding the speed limit by 15 m.p.h. or more
• 2) Unsafely or improperly changing lanes
• 3) Following too closely behind another vehicle
• 4) Not yielding the right-of-way
• 5) Improperly passing a vehicle
• 6) Violating traffic control and signal devices

Be safe out there - aggressive driving has been shown to be responsible for up to four times as many deaths on the roads and highways as driving under the influence (DUI), 2/3rds of all vehicle fatalities each year!  

For more information on aggressive driving.

Heads up - Give Yourself Some Time and Space.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Florida Emergency Contact Information (ECI) Initiative – I urge all Floridians to sign up.

This is a great system that just came to my attention. In 2006 the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, due to the efforts of Christine Olson whose daughter was killed in a traffic accident in 2005 and State Representative from Bradenton District 68, Bill Galvano, implemented an Emergency Contact Information system (ECI). ECI allows those holding a Florida driver's license or Florida identification card to input their emergency contact information online or when applying for a driver's license or an identification card. The law enforcement can then access this information, if a person suffers serious injuries or dies in a traffic crash or a non-traffic related accident and notify the emergency contacts listed in their license. Through ECI, families, friends and loved ones of the injured or a victim can be contacted more quickly at times when every minute is crucial.

I urge you to take advantage of this great service and sign up today by inputing your emergency contact information online today at https://www6.hsmv.state.fl.us/dlcheck/findcustomer. Give yourself piece of mind that you, a family member, or a loved one will be notified if ever involved in a traffic crash or a non-traffic incident that involves a serious injury or possibly death. You can enter two emergency contacts per person. In addition, alert, educate and encourage others to do the same. Spread a word to your family members, friends, and coworkers, send an email with the link to everyone in your address book, and input the information for your teenage children.

For more information, please see:

 http://www.flhsmv.gov/EmerContInfoHistory1.html

http://www.toinformfamiliesfirst.org