Category: Blog

Road to Zero Coalition Joins Nat’l Effort to End Truck Underride With Safety Priority Statement

Dear Care for Crash Victims Community Members:
 
One of our members, Marianne Karth, has asked that I share her most recent progress report on stopping the tragedies of Truck Underride crash deaths and injuries.  See attached.
 
Marianne lost two daughters in such a crash and has been doing great work advancing public attention to the need and feasibility of ending such tragedies.  Her life saving work to protect us all is available at: 
Please review and share and help as it may save your life or a loved one’s life.
 
Please help.
 
Sincerely,
Lou Lombardo

 

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: Marianne Karth < … >
Date: Tue, Jul 10, 2018 at 12:31 PM
Subject: Road to Zero Coalition Joins Nat’l Effort to End Truck Underride With Safety Priority Statement
To: “Louis V. Lombardo” < …>
Cc: Lois Durso < … >

Lou,

We wanted to get the word out to you about a couple of new developments in our underride efforts.
  1. The Road to Zero Coalition now has over 740 members. Their vision is to work together to move us toward Zero Traffic Deaths by 2050. Recently they released a Truck Underride Priority Statement, and we are so happy to share it with you: Road to Zero Coalition Truck Underride Priority Statement! Please read & consider adding your voice to this effort.
  2. We were recently privileged to travel to South Carolina to work with Michael Hawkins (Cool Breeze Studio). Mike knows all too well the danger of trucks as he was in a horrific truck crash 14 years ago. He was in a coma for months & his family considers it a miracle that he is alive. He has dedicated his life to learning video production skills and we are excited to have his passion applied to the underride issue. Here’s a short “trailer” he just finished (plans are in the works for a longer documentary). https://youtu.be/eUAhfk8AsU8 Please view & share it.

Thank you for your interest in underride protection as a practical way to Save Lives. We are so very thankful that we are not in this alone. Let us know if you have any questions.

Marianne Karth
432-556-1567
Jerry Karth
432-269-5150
Lois Durso
239-825-2497

 

Emergency Medical Care for Crash Victims

Dear Care for Crash Victims Community Members:
 
On the 4th of July holiday, Legal Reader has published an article I submitted to them pro bono on this subject.
 
 
Historically each and every holiday weekend, hundreds have died and thousands have suffered vehicle injuries.  And all across the country emergency medical teams are activated to save people while often endangering themselves.
 
This article calls attention to GM OnStar’s latest ad campaign, NHTSA’s call for information to improve EMS, and possible upgraded national attention by DOD and HHS to improving trauma care in the U.S.A — which the American people have long needed.
 
It is that need which I, and many others, have worked on for decades and led to the creation of “Care for Crash Victims.”
 
On July 3rd, 2018, NHTSA published its annual report Traffic Safety Facts 2016  copy attached.  The statistics on pp. 16 and 17 show that fatalities and fatality rates per 100,000 people have been rising the past decade.
 
Let’s hope that we are closer to making substantial advances because we can and we must do better and save more lives.
 
Lou Lombardo

Crash Deaths Under Trump Administration as of June 2018

Dear Care for Crash Victims Community Members:
 
How Many Tragedies?
 
After 500 days of the Trump Administration, the Trump Death Clock estimates that more than 50,000 Americans have lost their lives. 
 
Where Do Crash Tragedies Occur?
Red State and Blue State 2015 data show that more crash deaths occur in Red States than in Blue States.  See https://www.fairwarning.org/2017/02/top-traffic-death-states-support-trump/
 
What Do Voters Know?
As we enter the 2018 elections, voters should consider the numbers of crash deaths each year in their congressional districts 2002 through 2015.  See 
 
The regularity in the tragic statistics cries out for action by voters.
 
Here’s hoping more people will become aware of our past and vote to produce a safer America.

NHTSA Fails to Stop Vehicle Deaths by Keyless Ignition Switches

Dear Care for Crash Victims Community Members:

The NY Times reports:

“Senator Richard Blumenthal, Democrat of Connecticut, pressed Ms. King to treat the lack of such features as a design flaw, to complete the rule-making process and to raise awareness about the problem. “It’s potentially fixed very easily, virtually costlessly,” he said.

But Ms. King, the agency’s deputy administrator since late last year, agreed only to call attention to the issue, indicating that she needed more information. She noted that “research performed to date suggests a number of causes” for carbon-monoxide poisoning in homes and that deaths in such cases were generally not reported to her agency….

“The agency later concluded the investigation without taking action. Sean Kane, an auto-safety advocate who has tracked the regulator’s investigations and policies for 25 years, said the failure to pursue the inquiry was a crucial missed opportunity to address hazards linked to keyless-ignition vehicles, including carbon-monoxide poisoning.”

See
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/16/business/carbon-monoxide-keyless-cars.html

How many more preventable deaths and injuries due to vehicle violence must we suffer?

Lou Lombardo

Proposed Loophole Protects Corporations Building Autonomous Vehicles – Not People

Dear Care for Crash Victims Community:

CNN reports:

“People riding in self–driving cars that crash could find themselves unable to hold the manufacturer accountable if legislation currently pending on Capitol Hill is passed, consumer advocates warn.

They caution that the legislation under consideration in the Senate benefits big tech and car companies at the expense of average Americans.”

Nader warns:

“Going back 50 years, I’ve never seen a more brazen attempt to escape the rule of safety law, and the role of the courts to be accessible to their victims,” longtime consumer advocate Ralph Nader told CNN. “With their unproven, secretive technology that’s fully hackable, the autonomous vehicleindustry wants to close the door on federal safety protection and close the door to the court room.”

“The largest players in the self–driving car industry, Waymo, GM’s Cruise, Ford, Zoox, Toyota, Tesla, Uber and Lyft, all declined to comment for this story. The Self–Driving Coalition for Safer Streets, an industry lobbying group, also declined to comment.” 

Five (only 5 so far) U.S. Senators all Democrats have written in favor of safety and justice for people that will be injured in self driving vehicles.

Justice for Burn Death of Child in a Jeep

Dear Care for Crash Victims Community Members:

Legal Reader has published an article that I submitted pro bono on the litigation seeking justice for the death of Remi Walden six years ago , just decided by the Georgia Supreme Court.

The article briefly describes the tragedy followed by efforts of the Center for Auto Safety and a team of Trial Lawyers led by James E. Butler, Jr. to produce Justice for the family and end such vehicle violence for all of us.

See it at https://www.legalreader.com/justice-burn-death-child-jeep/

Not until many more of us know of these tragedies and the legal and political battles won and battles lost will enough of us become active to end such vehicle violence.

An educational and inspirational talk at La Verne University by Ralph Nader gives us the information we need to learn how we can advance our own safety and happiness through Justice.  Watch it on YouTube (in 3 Parts) at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sntBXOFP7Kk