Wrong Way Taconic Crash Horrifies Even the Toughest New York Auto Accident Lawyers

Thursday, 06 August 2009

Auto accident lawyers see and hear some terrible stories, working with auto accident victims of all types. Some incidents, like the one that killed 8, including 4 children, on the Taconic State Parkway, even stunned New York auto accident lawyers who have been fighting for the rights of victims, getting them the compensation they deserve, for over 30 years, like David Perecman.

NEW YORK, NEW YORK-- August 3, 2009 - Eight people - four children and four adults - died in a three-vehicle auto accident on a parkway in suburban New York, on Sunday July 26, according to state police. The driver was a 36-year old mother and her passengers, the four children who died, were all members of her family. One of the victims was the driver's 2-year old daughter and the other children were cousins.

"This was a horrifying tragedy," said New York auto accident lawyer, David Perecman of Manhattan. "Accidents of this magnitude are ones we rarely ever encounter. And I'm thankful for that."

The crash happened when the minivan, driven by Diane Schuler, headed the wrong way on a northbound lane of the Taconic State Parkway. It crashed head-on into an SUV carrying three adults. State police said the minivan then swerved into a third vehicle, a smaller SUV, before it rolled over onto a grassy embankment between the lanes of the parkway and burst into flames.

One of the first officials on the scene, Chief Joe LaGrippo of the Hawthorne Fire Department, said, "This is the toughest scene I've ever had to cover."

State police also report that half an hour before the crash, Schuler pulled over and made a call from a Tappan Zee Bridge stopover. She reportedly called her brother to say she was having vision problems and was experiencing disorientation.

The first reports of the accident lead many auto accident lawyers to speculate that, perhaps, the driver was distracted. Most people would notice if they were going the wrong way on a road in the middle of the day. However, her phone call to her brother leads New York auto accident lawyer, David Perecman, to believe that maybe the cause was more complex than simple inattentiveness.

However, autopsy results revealed no clues as to why Schuler drove the wrong-way on the Taconic State Parkway, a road she had taken many times before. The preliminary autopsy ruled out health conditions such as a heart attack, stroke or aneurysm which could have disabled Schuler as she drove home with the children after their camping trip.

An investigator with the New York State Police said, "The preliminary results show that there is nothing medical contributing to the crash." Further toxicology test reports will be available in 4 to 6 weeks.

Approximately, twelve hours earlier, five people were injured in another wrong-way accident on the Taconic, 20 miles north of where the minivan crashed. No one was killed in that auto accident.

A police investigator says that there was no connection between the crashes.

Of interest to New York auto accident lawyers who are following the incident closely, most of the entry points onto the Taconic State Parkway have ramps that drivers use to merge into traffic, but some sections of the road simply have have crossroads with traffic lights or stop signs where drivers can turn into the moving lanes.

"The Tacomic is one of the roads in New York I have driven before," auto accident lawyer, Perecman says, "it's horrifying to know that this happened not once, but twice in the same day."

About David Perecman and The Perecman Firm, PLLC:

For the past 25 years, the New York auto accident lawyers, personal injury, construction accident and medical malpractice lawyers at The Perecman Firm, PLLC have championed all types of cases for auto accidents. David Perecman, founder of the Firm, is the past Secretary and Treasurer of the New York State Trial Lawyers Association (NYSTLA) and a chair of its Labor Law Committee. Mr. Perecman's achievements have brought him recognition as an Honoree in the National Law Journal's Hall of Fame, in New York Magazine's "The Best Lawyers in America" and The New York Times Magazine "New York Super Lawyers, Metro Edition".

The Firm has recovered millions of dollars for its clients. Among the more recent victories, Mr. Perecman won a $15 million verdict* for a construction accident, a $5.35 million dollar verdict** for an automobile accident, and a $40 million dollar structured settlement for medical malpractice.

*later settled while on appeal for $7.940 million
** later settled for $3.5 million
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