May 8 - Georgia - A 21-year-old woman driving a Nissan Maxima turns left into an oncoming motorcycle police officer (with 14 years as a motorcycle officer), breaking both his ankles, breaking one leg and fracturing a hip.  The woman fled the scene but was later apprehended.

May 9 - Massachusetts - A 21-year-old man driving a Ford Explorer turns left in front of an oncoming motorcyclist, causing serious injuries to the 20-year-old rider on the Yamaha YZF-R6.  Police said speed and alcohol did not appear to be factors in the 9:08 p.m. collision.  The Ford Explorer driver was ticketed for failure to yield.

May 9 - Canada - A 21-year-old man driving a Mazda truck turns left in front of a 47-year-old man on a 2012 BMW motorcycle, killing the motorcyclist.

Virginia's General Assembly this year has streamlined the "no-fault" divorce process. As long as the spouses have been separated, the requisite amount of time (12 months with children; 6 months without children and with a written separation agreement), then the party seeking the divorce may do so by affidavit as long as the other spouse is personally served with the divorce complaint and fails to file an answer to the complaint or otherwise make a formal appearance  in the case.

This affidavit process is similar to the taking of "no-fault" depositions. Unlike depositions, however,  the admissions of the facts to corroborate the divorce may be submitted in the form of a sworn written statement as opposed to an oral deposition which has to be transcribed. In theory, the lawyer may just have his client and witness sign the prepared affidavits in front of a notary and avoid making a trip to the lawyer's office.

Last week I helped my law partner Bryan Slaughter try a case against a Virginia deputy who shot and killed a young man only 22 years old. Neal Seamster had a blunt cigar, filled with marijuana. When a plain clothes member of the local narcotics task force approached his car and said "Hey, we need to talk," Neal tried to drive away. As he backed up his car, the plain clothes officer ran to his SUV to give chase but another task force member ran out of the Sheetz. As the car started forward, the deputy ran into the path of the fleeing car and shot and killed the young driver. In the middle of this trial, I read a news story on the Trayvon Martin shooting and was saddened, but not surprised, to see that the police have taken no action against the shooter, just as the local authorities and Virginia State Police took no action against the shooter in our case. 

The Chrisian Science Monitor and the Miami Herald report that Sanford, Florida, Police Chief Lee says shooter George Zimmerman claims he acted in self-defense and "We just do not have the evidence to disprove what Mr. Zimmerman says." Really?

This shooting didn't happen in Zimmerman's living room after Martin broke into his house.

Zimmerman was out at night. In an SUV. With a 9mm semiautomatic handgun. According to The Monitor, Zimmerman's calls to 911 began with him reporting a "young black male" walking in the Retreat At Twin Lakes gated community. He reports "It's raining. He's just walking around, looking about. . . . Now he's just staring at me." He says (Martin) has his hand in his waistband and that "He's coming to check me out."

Dispatch asks "Are you following him?" "Yeah." Dispatch tells him "We don't need you to do that." Zimmerman does it anyway.

He has not reported any illegal activity to the dispatcher. No peeping into windows. No breaking into houses. No walking up to dark houses and checking doors or windows to see if they are unlocked. No attempts to break into any cars.

Missing from the numerous articles on this shooting are any statements that Zimmerman was driving an SUV that was clearly marked as a neighborhood watch vehicle or marked in any way that would suggest to an African-American teen or adult that he was being followed at night, in the rain, by someone with peaceful intentions.

A fight did occur, according to reports by multiple witnesses, but it did not occur because Martin attacked Zimmerman's SUV or dragged him out of his SUV.

Before he gets out of his SUV to pursue Martin on foot, Zimmerman told 911 "these a**holes always get away." Who is going after who?

Zimmerman then pursues Martin on foot. Zimmerman is not wearing a uniform or any insignia that would identify him as a security officer or neighborhood watch. He was not dressed in a way that would tell Trayvon Martin the person stalking him had a legitimate purpose or peaceful intent in doing so.

When Zimmerman goes after Martin on foot, how did Martin see that? Zimmerman's stalking behavior coupled with his getting out of his SUV to confront Martin face to face could reasonably be seen by Martin as an intentional threat of physical harm, also known as an assault. (Under Florida law, an assault is intentional threat by word or act that seeks to physically harm another, coupled with an apparent ability to do so, which creates a well-founded fear in such other person that such violence is imminent.) The only person here who should have felt legitimately threatened was Trayvon Martin.

Martin had the right to defend himself against a white or Hispanic man stalking him at night. He had the right to be in that neighborhood. He had no duty to retreat when he was approached by Zimmerman. On the other hand, it was Zimmerman who provoked this whole matter by stalking Martin, by following him in disregard of the dispatch officer's instructions, and by getting out of his SUV to confront Martin face to face. He felt that "these a**holes always get away" and he wasn't going to let that happen again. Zimmerman wasn't the victim here, he was the aggressor.

All these facts are available to Chief Lee to disprove what Zimmerman claims. Zimmerman has no right to create a situation like this and then plead self-defense. Otherwise, anyone in Florida could provoke a fight, wait for their opponent to fight back, shoot them, plead self-defense and walk away from the homicide as free as a bird.

It's been nearly 30 days since the February 26 shooting occurred. It took over three-and-a-half years for the family of our shooting victim to hear a jury find that the deputy was wrong in shooting their son. Let's pray that justice comes sooner for the family of Trayvon Martin.

###

Off the coast of Italy on January 14, Captain Schettino runs his cruise ship aground, "trips" into a lifeboat and refuses to get back aboard his sinking ship to assist in the rescue despite the repeated commands of Chief De Falco of the Italian Coast Guard. That same day, The Tampa Bay Times reports that a man who pleaded guilty to DUI manslaughter for rear-ending a Chevy Tahoe at a traffic light has filed a lawsuit against the Tahoe driver. Like Captain Schettino, David Belniak has some explaining to do, and it better be good.

Winston Churchill once said, "I'm just preparing my impromptu remarks." A bit of planning can help make the most of opportunities.

Before going out to a holiday event or party where alcohol will be served, plan a safe way home before you take that first drink. Designate a sober driver. Add the telephone number for a taxi service to the contacts list in your cell phone. Arrange a ride home with a friend or family member who will be there and be sober.

Wear a red ribbon when you go out to remind others of the danger of drinking and driving.

If you plan on drinking, know that if you drink on an empty stomach the alcohol will enter your bloodstream faster and you may become impaired more quickly than you expected and get caught up in festivities and lose track of how much you have had to drink. While the best course of action is don't drink and drive, if you are planning to have some alcohol and drive yourself home, then limit yourself to a drink or two, switch to non-alcoholic beverages after that and don't drive for two or three hours after your second and last drink. It takes time for your body to process the alcohol out of your system. Drinking coffee or an energy drink like Red Bull or Rockstar will not shorten that time. Be sure to know not only what you are drinking but also how much alcohol is in your drink. An egg-nog or punch can have more alcohol than a beer, glass of wine or cocktail. If you still feel a buzz when you plan to leave, get someone to drive you home instead or call a taxi.

If you are hosting a party, offer to provide a ride home for guests who drink or offer them a place to sleep.

Be sure to offer your guests non-alcoholic drinks, both sweet and non-sweet. One option is cranberry and soda on ice. A low calorie option is sparkling water, either unflavored or flavored with lemon/lime, tangerine or strawberry. There are also sparkling fruit juices and berry juices, including apple, pear, grape, blueberry, cranberry and strawberry. In addition to regular sodas, there are GuS (Grown-up Sodas) sodas containing less sugar and in flavors including lemon, lime, ginger ale, black currant, orange, grapefruit, pomegranate and cola. Other options include a holiday iced tea with cloves and cinnamon, warm apple cider with cinnamon sticks, non-alcoholic egg nog, sparkling teas, and non-alcoholic beers like O'Doul's and Sharp's and some excellent imports including Beck's NA, St. Pauli Girl, Buckler and Kaliber.

Make it easy for your guests to choose a non-alcoholic beverage by having a variety of non-alcoholic drinks available and easily accessible. Let them know when they arrive that you have non-alcoholic drinks before you point them to the bar or put an alcoholic beverage in their hand.

Regardless of whether you have had any alcohol at all to drink, avoid driving late at night and in the hours after midnight when many drunk-driving crashes occur.

Wear your seat belt at all times, and have your passengers wear their seatbelts.

If you see a drunk driver on the road, don't hesitate to call local law enforcement. Don't think of it as turning in a driver who, but for the grace of God, could be you. Think of the child, the mother or father who might be killed down the road by a driver who should not be behind the wheel of that car. We all know we should not be driving when we've been drinking. Drunk or not, impaired driving is no way to celebrate the Holidays.

Let's help each other get home safely.

Last week, I was talking with Jane and Rick on WINA about motorcycle laws and Jane asked about Pocket Rockets. I thought she meant Crotch Rockets, the 600cc and 1000cc sport bikes you sometimes see cutting around cars and speeding off bearing riders in shorts and t-shirts flapping in the wind. She asked a second time and I remained clueless. Thirty minutes later, I had a moment of clarity, followed by memories of Homer Simpson yelling, "Doh! Doh! Doh!"

Pocket Rockets, also known as Pocket Bikes, are tiny, motorcycle replica mini-bikes with seats fewer than 24 inches high and engines often 50ccs or less. Some ads for certain brands suggest that these bikes are legal in all 50 states. Meeting EPA emission standards does not make a Pocket Bike street legal in Virginia. Pocket Bikes or Pocket Rocket motorcycles are not legal to ride on the public roads and highways in Virginia.

Under the Code of Virginia, if a "motor-driven cycle" has an engine smaller than 150cc, a seat height fewer than 24 inches and no manufacturer issued vehicle ID number, that cycle shall not be operated over any public highway in the Commonwealth. That includes streets, roads, and interstate highways. Section 46.2-100 and 46.2-911.1.

Jane asked if it was legal for kids to be riding Pocket Rockets up and down the streets in Belmont. Not in Virginia.

Even if the bikes meet EPA emission standards, riders need to take these motor-driven cycles to parking lots, private roads, driving ranges, tracks and similar places where they are allowed. On the public roads, the vehicle mix runs from scooters to SUVs and tractor-trailers. The small size, low height and speed of Pocket Bikes make them and their riders extremely vulnerable when mixed in with the larger vehicles on public roads and highways.

With the cold winter behind us, motorcycles are back on the road.  Lots of motorcycles. With May approaching, I talked with Sgt. Hackney of the Albemarle County Police Department, Sgt. Ronnie Roberts of the Charlottesville Police Department, and Anthony Riddle, a local motorcycle safety instructor, about the factors causing motorcycle accidents and serious injuries. 

1.  Following Too Closely.  A frequent cause of motorcycle accidents on Route 29 and Route 250 is following too closely.  Either a bike was following a car too closely or a car was following a bike too closely.  Either way, the biker usually suffers the most in such collisions. When following another vehicle, stay two seconds back from the car ahead to give yourself time and space in which to react if  the car slows or stops unexpectedly. 

2.   Speed.  On rural roads, speed is a common factor in motorcycle crashes.  Bad things happen faster at higher speeds. Speed reduces the time in which to perceive and react. If you need to brake, it is important to have practiced emergency braking procedures.  Braking hard without having the bike vertical can cause a crash due to loss of traction.  Going over a rise at higher speeds can cause the bike to lift up or off the pavement and take away the traction you may need to make a turn.  During hard braking, the weight of the bike shifts forward onto the front tire.  This  effect is exaggerated at higher speeds.  Hard braking at higher speed can cause your front wheel to lock up and skid, causing loss of steering.  More and more bikes are being equipped with anti-lock brakes to make bikes easier to control during hard braking.

3.    Visibility.  You hear it all the time from drivers of cars and four-wheel vehicles.  "I didn't see him" or "he came out of nowhere!"  The biker was there, in plain sight, but car drivers don't see the bike because the mind filters out non-relevant information  and the car driver is looking for vehicles that pose a danger to the car driver. While the car driver would yield the right of way to a Mack trash truck coming down the same lane at the same speed as a biker, he will pull out or make a left turn in front of a motorcycle without a second thought. 

4.   "Drive like everybody is trying to hit you."  Because of the tendency of many car drivers to ignore or fail to see and react to bike riders, it pays to be paranoid when you are on a bike.  Stay alert for the driver who is in a dream, on the phone, so caught up in a conversation that he lags behind other cars in traffic, or is otherwise not driving with the flow of traffic.  Stay alert for drivers on side roads ready to pounce into your lane of travel.  Left turning drivers in the oncoming lane should always get your attention, because you may not have gotten theirs.

5.   Sometimes you just need to get away.  Some drivers are overly aggressive and others are slow or inattentive, making one bad move after another.  If someone is driving badly, get away from them.

6.  Pushing Red Lights.   When traffic lights are changing from amber to red, there is a tendency to try to beat the light and get through the intersection.  On a bike, check the traffic behind you when you know you'll have a light change coming up.  You may have to run through the intersection to avoid being run down by an aggressive driver behind you who is going too fast to stop.  On the other hand, if you push a red light, you may find yourself colliding with a last second, left-turning driver or with a driver who  cannot wait to make that right turn into your lane immediately in front of you.

7.  Strap On Your Helmet.   Believe it or not, police officers arrive at crash scenes and find that the biker had not fastened the strap on his helmet, and his helmet came off in the crash. 

8.   DUI.  Like sticking your hand into a garbage disposal or poking a knife into an electrical outlet, this is one of those things that can be done but it is never ever recommended.  Perception is impaired. Reaction time is impaired. Reactions are impaired.  Energy drinks won't undo the damage of alcohol or drugs.  If you can't be sharp and alert on the bike, keep the key out of the ignition.

9.  Riding Gear.  Helmets. Gloves. Boots. Leather jackets.  Eye protection from sun, glare, insects, rocks, dust, and debris.  These are the things you put on, like a second skin, before you crash so you don't need a real second skin after the crash.  People in four-wheel vehicles have car bodies, padded seats and padded interiors to protect them in the event of a crash.  Their risk of skidding bodily along the pavement is far less than what a biker faces in a crash.

10.  Cornering.  Local motorcycle safety instructor Anthony Riddle says one study found that 68% of single vehicle motorcycle crashes involved cornering.  Slow down before the turn, look as far as possible through the turn, lean the bike into the corner, roll on the throttle or keep the throttle steady to stabilize the bike and maintain good traction, and watch out for gravel, wet leaves, holes in the pavement, and other road conditions that can affect your control of the bike in the curve.

11.  Lack of training.  Inexperience and lack of training is often a factor in motorcycle crashes.  Take a Basic Rider Course from Albemarle County Community Education, Blue Ridge Community College, or Shenandoah Harley-Davidson. Experienced rider classes are also available locally and around the country.

12.  Courtesy at Stop Signs and Traffic Lights.  A lot of bikers tend to roll on the throttle while stopped for a traffic light, waiting impatiently for the light to turn green.  While a recent article in Cycle World on the Triumph Street Triple R said that this engine deserves the Grammy, such appreciation for motorcycle engines and exhaust notes is not shared by many homeowners who live near traffic lights.  When sitting at a red light and the desire to go is tempting you to roll on the throttle, be a good neighbor and keep the engine sound to a minimum at the light and when you take off.      

An irritated homeowner may end up being the irritated driver getting ready to pull out in front of you or riding your tail in a sudden rain storm.

May is Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month but on a bike, every month is a time for motorcycle safety.

Injuries are part of the game in some sports. Football and hockey are like combat where the players fight over a single ball or puck. In spite of pads, helmets, and rules, we expect players in these sports will get injured. Golf is different. The players don't wear pads or helmets but sport comfortable pants and shirts, and maybe a cap. There's no fighting over the same ball or passing it around to keep it away from other players. Each player has his own ball. There's no pushing in golf. No tackling. No throwing elbows or slamming into another player. Not even any chatter to distract an opponent during his swing.

In golf, each player takes his turn while the others stand at a safe distance. It's a gentleman's game. Polite, courteous. How many sports have their own etiquette? For many, it's about making and maintaining social contacts in a non-contact sport. But every once in a while, in the course of events, there is a breach of order and/or etiquette that results in a serious injury.

Take the case of the Long Island golfer who hit his third fairway shot and failed to call "Fore!" (According to Wikipedia, "'Fore!' is shouted as a warning during a golf game when it appears possible that a golf ball may hit other players or spectators.") The shot did not go well. The doctor who hit the ball badly struck one of his golf partners, another doctor, in the head. The testimony by the first doctor and his two golf partners differed as to whether the ball traveled 15 - 20 feet or farther before striking the second doctor. The testimony also differed as to whether the injured doctor was standing at an angle of 50 degrees away from the intended line of flight or whether the angle was in the 60 - 80 degree range. The second doctor was looking for his ball on the fairway when he was struck. He suffered a detached retina which left him blinded in his left eye.

The injured doctor filed a personal injury suit, claiming that his golf partner should have called "Fore!" The trial court dismissed the suit, stating that the injured golfer was not in the foreseeable zone of danger and that the injured doctor, as a golfer, had consented to the inherent risks of the sport. The lawyer for the plaintiff argued that the foreseeable zone of danger varies according to the skill of the golfer and that the first doctor should not have hit the ball without giving warning to his golf partners.

On December 21, 2010, the New York Court of Appeals issued its decision in the case. For now, at least in New York, it appears that no matter how badly the slice, hook, or errant shot may fly, the rule is golfer beware. The court ruled that bad shots are a common hazard and a golfer can't expect to get a warning shout of "Fore!" every time a ball comes his way. "A person who chooses to participate in a sport or recreational activity consents to certain risks" inherent to that activity. Getting hit without warning by a shanked shot was a commonly appreciated risk. Based on this decision, although golf etiquette may require such a warning, the law in New York does not.

Lest golfers believe they are free game, utterly unprotected by the law, the judges stated that "a plaintiff will not be deemed to have assumed the risks of reckless or intentional conduct or concealed or unreasonably increased risks." This begs the question, how bad must a golfer be before the law requires that he give a warning shout. While intentionally driving a shot into a fellow golfer in your line of fire is prohibited, what if your swing frequently produces errant shots veering 50 to 80 degrees off course? Is it reckless, when someone is within such a sweep to your right or left, to take a shot without calling "Fore!"? Golf etiquette would seem to demand it, but the court's decision suggests that such conduct would not be reckless, regardless of the golfers skill, or lack thereof. Is it reckless if the golfer hitting the shot is also Driving While Intoxicated? Some might consider intoxicated golfers a commonly appreciated risk of the sport.

In Virginia, a different type of accident occurred when a golfer made a practice swing after hitting two balls into the woods. The club came out of his hands and struck one of his golf partners 20 feet to his rear. The injured golfer lost his right eye as a result of being hit by the 2-iron. The Virginia Supreme Court stated that "The basic rule of law applicable to golfers is that a player upon a golf course must exercise reasonable care in playing the game to prevent injury to others." Thurston Metals & Supply v. Taylor, 230 Va. 475, 339 S.E.2d 538 (1986). Whether he has done so is "measured by the surrounding facts and circumstances of each case." In the Virginia mishap, the court stated that the swinging golfer "violated the customary requirement that a golfer maintain control of the club throughout the swing." The court added that the statement "Oops, it slipped," was not enough to keep the negligence claim from going to the jury. The Virginia Supreme Court also concluded that the injured golfer was "at an appropriate and apparently safe distance to the rear" and there was no evidence he had negligently caused his injury or assumed a risk of injury. The $200,000.00 jury verdict was upheld.

While it is not clear whether the law in Virginia would have afforded relief to the injured doctor in New York, it is hoped that golfers in New York would be protected from rearward-flying clubs, regardless of whether they were let loose due to recklessness or negligence. In either state, however, it appears that golf etiquette is superior to the law in providing greater safety and protection against unwanted contact with errant balls, loosed clubs, or lawyers.