Here’s what I’m sure will be just the beginning of a rash of lawsuits filed in cases where a driver using a cellphone or texting had an accident.
Here is such a suit filed just last week: A New Jersey man and woman are suing a teenaged driver who was using he cellphone when he hit their motorcycle, an accident that left both victims without a leg.
http://www.nj.com/news/local/index.ssf/2010/06/dover_couple_who_lost_legs_in.html
The lawsuit was filed in Morris County Superior Court by David and Linda Kubert of Dover, N.J., against Kyle Best of Wharton, N.J., and his father, Nickolas Best. The younger Best was 18 at the time of the accident.
The Kuberts were riding on their Harley Davidson in Mine Hill, N.J., on Sept. 21, 2009, when Best hit them with his father’s Chevy pick-up truck, according to The Star-Ledger of Newark, N.J.
Both David and Linda lost their left leg as a result of the accident, with his taken off above the knee and her’s amputated below the knee. They both have prosthetic legs now.
There is currently a bill pending in the New Jersey Legislature that is named after the Kuberts and a woman who was killed by a driver who was using a cellphone. That bill, known as Kulesh and Kubert’s Law, would impose stricter penalties against those who cause an accident because they were distracted by talking on their cellphone while driving.
The Kuberts’ lawsuit, which seeks monetary compensation, says that the couple has undergone severe emotional distress because of the accident and their injuries.
After the accident Best got a summons for driving while using a cellphone, in violation of New Jersey law, as well as careless driving and making an unsafe lane change.