Auto Accidents

TSR Injury Law cares about people. We represent victims of motorcycle accidents, car accidents, and truck accidents from Albert Lea to Aitkin, from Rochester to Duluth, and from St. Peter to International Falls.

There were a number of accidents around the state this weekend.

• There was a fatal motorcycle crash in Rochester, on Sunday. A Ford Windstar and a Honda Goldwing were going south on Hwy 63. The Honda motorcycle rear-ended the minivan, killing the motorcycle driver and passenger. The driver and passenger in the van sustained non life-threatening injuries.
• A Chevy Tahoe was stopped at a stoplight in St. Peter when they were rear-ended by a dump truck. Both drivers were treated and released.
• A Buick and a Yamaha motorcycle were northbound on Hwy 169, near Aitkin. The Buick slowed to make a left turn and was rear-ended by the motorcycle. The driver of the Buick sustained non life-threatening injuries.

Motor vehicle accidents are a tragedy — for those on the motorcycles, for those in the cars or trucks, for eyewitnesses, and for the families involved. If your family has been touched by a motorcycle or motor vehicle crash, we will listen, offer support, and seek justice on your behalf. Our car accident attorneys in Minneapolis have years of experience handling motorcycle crashes and car and truck crashes. Our partners are consistently voted Super Lawyers by Minnesota Law & Politics.

Free Consultation – Ph: (612) TSR-TIME.

Vickie Lynn Kopka, 41, of East Bethel woman, was killed in crash on Hwy. 65. Her vehicle was struck by an SUV as she turned left onto Sims Road. There is a light at that intersection. It is not known which vehicle had the green light.

According to the Anoka county Sheriff’s Office, witnesses reported that Kopka was northbound and tried to turn left when the southbound SUV struck her vehicle. She was killed instantly in the crash. The 44 year-old male driver and 48 year-old female passenger were taken to Mercy Hospital, Coon Rapids. Their injuries appeared to be not life-threatening.

The SUV / car accident will continue to be investigated by the Sheriff’s Department and the Minnesota State Patrol.

Minnesota is no-fault insurance state; but if negligence is involved, the family of a wronged victim may be able to file a wrongful death claim. TSR Injury Law has years of experience representing victims and survivors of serious car crashes. We have recovered millions for accident victims. Our Minneapolis car accident lawyers are skilled, aggressive litigators who know how to fight for you. Call (612) TSR-TIME or submit our free consultation form.

We buy child seats for our children not only because it is the law, but we buy them because we want to keep our children safe. We carefully make these purchases because we do not want to have to worry about whether or not they will be injured by the seat or if it will malfunction during a car accident. Unfortunately, auto accidents are the leading cause of death for children ages 4 to 12, This is a number that could be reduced if child safety seats were manufactured properly and in a way that they are not unintentionally installed improperly by the parents.

Manufacturing Defects

Child seat defects happen too often, however, and it has a lot to do with the manufacturers not putting the necessary time and money into the designs or they simply don’t test the seats the way they should be tested. Many times, the instructions to the seat can be so complicated that nearly 75% of child safety seats are believed to be used incorrectly. If your child has been injured or killed in an accident in which the child seat did not protect them when it should have, it is best to speak to your Minneapolis child seat injury lawyer to evaluate the circumstances and see if you have a case against the manufacturer.

Types Of Defects

Design defects are the most common defects seen in child safety seats. Unfortunately, the manufacturers tend to fail to take responsibility for these defects that, if not present, could have spared the life of a child or spared them severe injuries that could debilitate them for the rest of their life.
Some of the most common defects found in child safety seats include:

• A chest clip that is too far down the child’s body, leading to ejection in an accident
• Poor angle of recline
• A seat that is not labeled properly, resulting in improper use
• Three-point harness that has no pelvic support, leading to possible ejection
• Fracturing of the plastic shell
• A T-shield that can impact the child’s throat
• Booster seats without adequate support

There are so many issues that can result from child safety seat defects. Even if the manufacturer denies responsibility, it doesn’t mean that they aren’t responsible. An experienced Minnesota child seat injury lawyer can determine whether or not the design of the seat is at fault and can take the necessary steps to hold the manufacturer responsible and seek compensation for the financial damages that have resulted from the defect.

Contact A Minneapolis Child Seat Injury Lawyer

If your child has been injured or killed due to a child seat defect, it is your right to seek compensation for the financial damages that have resulted. To do so, let us evaluate your case and work hard in achieving a satisfactory result for you. To get started, call (612) TSR-TIME and speak to a Minneapolis defective product lawyer at our firm, or fill out our contact form to schedule your free case evaluation and let us tell you what we can do in your individual case.

A St. Paul fire truck hit a Mini Cooper early Friday morning at the intersection of Randolph and Cretin Avenues. The 3 people in the Mini Cooper were taken to Regions Hospital where they were treated and released. The seatbelts and airbags protected the occupants from more serious injury.

The ladder truck was heading west on Randolph shortly after 5 a.m., responding to a call related to an electrical outage in the area. The traffic lights were not working and the fire truck hit the car in the intersection. At the time of the crash, both vehicles were going about 25 mph, according to Dave Galbraith, deputy chief of the St. Paul Fire Department.

The intersection was dark because of a downed wire at Cretin and St. Clair Avenues. 2,500 Xcel Energy customers were without power Friday morning, according to Mary Sandok, a spokesperson for Xcel Energy.

Hurt In A Crash?

This type of accident can be pretty straight forward, but other times there may be extenuating circumstances. When an airbag explodes, it can cause an eye injury called anisocoria or it can damage the ears — hearing loss or tinnitus. Any of these conditions can be permanent, leading to long term medical expenses and possible loss of income.

In any motor vehicle accident, it is good to contact a reputable personal injury lawyer in Bloomington, MN to determine your options and protect your family from financial loss. Call (612) TSR-TIME for assistance or submit our free consultation form.

Eric Mickelson received devastating news that his pregnant sister and her family were killed by a drunk driver. This meant that he had to be the one to break the news to his family, including his son Colton who was only 8 years old.

The young boy knew that Allison Deutscher, his aunt, was expecting a baby. The first words out of the little boy’s mouth were in relation to never getting to meet his new cousin.

Mickelson said he was very proud of his son for the way that he thinks because people who drink and drive do not think that way. He stated what these individuals think more about is not getting caught and being fined or put in jail. He said they do not think about what they are doing to the lives of other people when they get behind the wheel of a car and drive after they have been drinking.

On August 13, Mickelson and the Deutscher family put a face to the tragic consequence of driving under the influence of alcohol as a part of a DUI enforcement campaign that local and state authorities are running. The campaign has been dedicated to the West Fargo family that is now deceased as a result of someone else’s negligence.

Allison Deutscher and Eric Mickelson’s father, Lynn Mickelson, said that the accident was 100% avoidable. It took Allison, 36, along with her husband Aaron, 34, and Brielle, 18 months, on July 6th on Interstate 94.

The national Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over campaign is going to run through Labor Day weekend. Law enforcement agencies are placing extra patrols on the roads in order to catch impaired drivers.

Last year alone, 136 Minnesota residents were killed in alcohol-related crashes, according to the Safe Communities Coalition. In fact 37% of the traffic fatalities in Minnesota were related to alcohol, according to State Patrol Sergeant Jesse Grabow.

During the August 13th event, Lynn Mickelson clutched a photo of his granddaughter, Brielle, calling for stiffer DUI penalties for offenders and more education for bar owners, servers, and bartenders. He said these individuals should know the warning signs and when to say “no” to patrons who are obviously intoxicated.

The driver who crashed head-on into the Deutschers was traveling the wrong-way after drinking at two bars prior to the crash. His BAC was .25, according to the patrol’s report.

“Rather than accepting responsibility for their mistakes, tire manufacturers almost always try to blame the tire’s owner for not maintaining the tire, running it without enough air (underinflated) or blamed the driver for losing control after the tire fails. But research has shown that when tread separates from a tire, even professional drivers have difficulty keeping the vehicle under control.

If you or a loved one have injured or killed because a tire lost its tread or otherwise failed, you may have a case against the tire manufacturer. The experienced Minneapolis car accident attorneys at TSR Injury Law will work hard for you to make sure you receive the compensation you deserve for medical expenses, lost wages, pain and suffering, and other expenses that have been the result of the injuries you sustained in the accident.

Types Of tire Defects

Manufacturing Defects The most common type of dangerous tire defect happens when the manufacturer makes a mistake in the way the tire is built or manufactured so that the tire that comes off the line is different that the intended design. These tire manufacturing defects – or mistakes in “”building”” the tire – can cause tires to fail and tread to separate from the tire. Tire manufacturing plants are notorious for requiring their employees to work long, hard hours in hot and uncomfortable conditions – conditions that lead to mistakes.

Aging Tires

After the Ford/Firestone crisis, Ford conducted an in depth study that determined tires older than 6 years should be taken out of service. This is important because most tire manufacturers do not notify either consumers or retailers that sell tires that the tires can become brittle and fail simply from sitting in a warehouse or on a retail shelf, making the tire weaker and prone to failure. Tragically, “”brand new”” tires that sat on the shelf for years can fail shortly after being put onto a vehicle. In these cases, both the retailer and the tire manufacturer may be responsible for the tire’s failure and resulting harm.

Contact the TSR Tire Defect Attorneys

We have stood toe-to-toe with tire manufacturers. We have the resources, the experience and the guts to take on these corporate giants and hold them responsible for tire defects that cause severe injury or even death. When you call us, you will work with a Minneapolis tire defect lawyer who will take the time to evaluate the tire failure and determine if you have a case. To learn more about how we can help you, call us today at (612) TSR-TIME or fill out our online contact form to schedule your free case evaluation. ”

The ATV industry has been exploding for years. Traditional all-terrain vehicles and utility terrain vehicles (UTV), such as the Yamaha Rhino and John Deer Gator, can offer great utility and recreation, but they can also be dangerous. It can be difficult to comprehend why dangerous defects continue to occur within the manufacturing of these vehicles; defects which contribute to the injuries and deaths of riders and passengers.

As of December 31, 2010, the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) calculated that there were 11,001 ATV-related fatalities between 1982 and 2010 in the United States. Over 300 of those accidents occurred in 2010, with 649 of them occurring in 2009, and it is expected that these numbers will continue to increase. However, 2010 alone had 115,000 ATV-related injuries treated in emergency rooms. Approximately 75 percent of those injuries were individuals over the age of 16.

Poor Design

One of the most common issues that Minneapolis ATV defect & accident lawyers see is poor design. This is also true for the UTV, such as the Yamaha Rhino. The Rhino has seen a lot of media attention and lawsuits in the past five years because of its propensity to roll over. Its poor safety design has led to severe injuries and fatalities.

Nonetheless, the perfect example of an ATV with a faulty design is the three-wheeler in the early 1980s. The manufacturers knew that there were risks associated with having only one wheel in the front and two in the back, but they continued to manufacture and sell millions of them. While they haven’t been produced since 1987, there are still some being used today.

Recovering Damages in an ATV or UTV Accident

When involved in an ATV or UTV accident that you feel was the fault of the manufacturer due to faulty parts or design, you need to speak to a Minnesota ATV defect & accident lawyer as soon as possible. You may be able to recover money for medical expenses, lost wages, and much more. Whether or not a defect was involved depends upon past defects that have occurred in that particular model. You need an attorney who knows how to reconstruct an ATV accident and about the mechanics of these vehicles.

When seeking compensation, the source of this compensation is the manufacturer, and it is your right to seek out compensation for all expenses that have resulted from your injuries or the injuries or death of a loved one.

Contact a Minneapolis ATV Defect & Accident Lawyer

If you or a loved one has been injured or killed in an ATV or UTV accident that is believed or known to be due to defective parts, you need to speak to a licensed Minneapolis personal injury attorney as soon as possible. We will evaluate every angle of your case and work hard to get the compensation you deserve awarded to you. To learn more about how we can help you, call us at (612) TSR-TIME, or fill out our online contact form to tell us about your case and schedule your free case evaluation.

While garbage truck accidents and train accidents usually exist on two completely different spectrums, this is one incident in which the two met and, fortunately, the results were not fatal.

Sean Michael, 41, of Conway St. Cloud was traveling westbound on 5th Street Southeast in Rockford Township on September 19 at 6:30 a.m when he come to a railroad crossing.

As Michael was crossing the tracks, the garbage truck had become stuck, but Michael was unsuccessful at freeing himself from the tracks. He then had difficulty getting out of the truck. Unfortunately, he did not get out of the truck before being struck by a Canadian Pacific Train that was heading Southeast on the tracks.

It has currently not been said why the truck was stuck on the tracks or why Michael had difficulty exiting the truck before the train struck. Fortunately, no one on the Canadian Pacific Train was not injured and fast thinking by the train’s engineer slowed the train down just enough to prevent Michael’s injuries from being worse.

Michael was airlifted to Mercy Hospital by Life Link. Life Link, along with Allina Ambulance, the Minnesota State Patrol, and the Buffalo Fire Department responded to the accident.

The accident is currently being investigated.

A 2004 Pontiac Aztek and a 1995 Pontiac Grand Prix were involved in a head-on collision Tuesday about 3 p.m.. The highway had to be closed for several hours. The state patrol said that the car heading north on Hwy 169 crossed into the southbound lanes, causing the car accident.

Eyewitnesses said at least one person was trapped inside one of the vehicles and had to be extracted. Two females and one male were taken to HCMC with serious injuries. A fourth person was pronounced dead at the scene.

In 2005, head-on car crashes accounted for only 2% of the accidents but 10% of the fatalities. The impact of a head-on car crash between two vehicles, each traveling at 50 m.p.h., is equivalent to hitting a stationary car at 100 m.p.h.

At TSR Injury Law our compassionate, skilled personal injury lawyers have years of experience in car crashes, including head-on collisions, truck and motorcycle accidents, and brain and spinal injuries. Our partners are Super Lawyers, Top Lawyers, and Chuck Slane has recently been named one of the Top 40 Personal Injury Lawyers in the state of Minnesota. Call (612) TSR-TIME or submit our free consultation form.

Nationwide, the number of traffic deaths has spiked. While the number of traffic deaths due to DWI has decreased in Minnesota, the number of deaths for other reasons has increased although the overall number of deaths has seen a decline.

The spike has been seen among drivers that are texting while driving or they are distracted for other reasons.

Years ago, personal injury attorneys wondered what technology would do to their careers. Of course, the goal is for there to be fewer deaths, especially with the implementation of air bags, anti-lock brakes, and other technological advances to decrease the odds of accidents. Unfortunately, where technology was expected to reduce these things, it also increased it in other ways.

Cell phones, iPods, and other such devices that individuals use on a daily basis have made their way into the car and behind the wheel where they don’t belong. If driving was not already an activity where distraction was easy, it is even easier now and is proving to be deadly.

The National Safety Council (NSC) has expressed a great deal of concern over the number of accidents occurring, especially since the safety features in vehicles have been improved.

The NSC has gone on to state that the cost of these accidents have been rather high. Everything from lost wages and productivity and medical expenses to property damage and administrative expenses has led to an estimated cost of motor vehicle injuries and deaths to be calculated at over $276 a billion in 2012, which was a 5 percent increase over 2011.

Driving faster and more distractions have been declared the cause. Even if a person is traveling more than 10 miles below the speed limit because they are distracted, other drivers will become angry and an accident can be caused. When passing a slower driver, the reason tends to be the individual behind the wheel texting or talking on a cell phone.

Another fatal crash involving a semi truck in Minnesota. This accident happened on MN Hwy 212 at CR 51, near Norwood Young America, Carver County.

The accident involved a semi truck and 2 other vehicles. A car was turning left and was rear-ended by a semi truck. The car was forced into the oncoming traffic, broadsiding a pick-up truck from Texas. The driver of the car was pronounced dead at the scene and the driver of the truck died en route to the hospital. Four other people were critically injured. The driver of the semi truck was not injured.

The names of the victims have been released. The driver of the car was Sandra Babatz, 45, of Norwood Young America. The driver of the pick-up truck was Juan Olvera, 35, of Sullivan, Texas. The four injured are Nancy Castillo, 29, Narely Olvera, 9, Andira Olvera, 8, and Galylea, Olvera, 7, all of Bird Island.

You cannot take back a negligent, inattentive moment of driving. Life is forever changed for many people, many families, many communities. The ripple effect is extensive. This is the second fatal semi truck accident in Minnesota this weekend. Both accidents happened when vehicles were turning left and each time a semi truck crashed into them, killing the drivers instantly.

There are many laws that govern the semi truck industry. If you have been involved in a semi truck accident, you need knowledgeable representation in order to protect your rights and recover adequate compensation. Call 612-TSR-TIME to speak to a Bloomington truck accident lawyer, or submit our free contact form and a member from our team will contact you shortly.

Free Consultation. Ph: (612) TSR-TIME.

The first snow of the year tends to lead to a number of accidents in Minnesota. While many states cancel school when conditions are slick, Minnesota schools go on in the state that is known for its snowy winters. The same rule of thumb applies even when winter shows up a little early.

On October 25th, a total of six students were checked out at the hospital for injuries after a school bus accident that occurred on their way to school. The accident occurred in the Little Falls area.

The initial investigation has revealed that the bus was northbound on Iris Road when the driver approached a sharp curve and lost control. Slippery conditions made the curve very hard to manage and this caused the bus to tip on its side. The investigation thus far has not revealed whether or not the driver took the curve too fast.

There were fifteen students on the bus at the time. Their ages ranged from middle school age and younger and all are from the Little Falls area. Fortunately, no major injuries resulted from the accident, but four students were immediately taken to a Little Falls medical facility to be checked out. Two more students joined them later to be checked for injuries.

At the hospital, the students met up with their parents and with district personnel so that personnel could speak with the parents. Some of the students involved in the accident went ahead to school and stayed all day, while others went home.

Palmer Bus Service owns the bus and serves a total of 20 school districts in Minnesota. The accident was reconstructed to determine exactly what happened. As of now, it has been said that it appears the driver was not under the influence of alcohol or drugs. The driver also did not sustain severe injuries.

Hurt in a crash? Contact a Bloomington injury lawyer at TSR Injury Law for a free consultation. There are no upfront fees if we take on your case and we only get paid when we obtain a recovery on your behalf.

Free Consultation. Ph: (612) TSR-TIME.