Under Tennessee law, a driver of a motorcycle can proceed through a red light under certain circumstances. T.C.A. § 55-8-110 (b) provides as follows: (b) Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, the driver of a motorcycle approaching an intersection that is controlled by a traffic-control signal utilizing a vehicle detection…
Tennessee Injury Law Center
Lane Splitting Illegal for Tennessee Motorcyclists
John and Joy Day both love motorcycles. In fact, their first date was a 17-hour motorcycle ride and hiking expedition. Joy on a 100th Anniversary Edition Harley Sportster and John on a BMW 1200CLC. So it is not surprising that at The Law Offices of John Day, P.C., we are…
More Questions Surround Uber, Lyft, Sidecar and Other Transportation Networking Companies
Drivers who participate in transportation networking companies (TNC) may have a significant gap in coverage. Some insurance carriers are taking the position that the TNC driver is engaged in a commercial service any time they are logged into a ridesharing app and just looking for a passenger. Under such circumstances,…
Drug-Impaired Driving
Drivers involved in fatal accidents are more likely to test positive for prescription drugs and street drugs then in the past. Here are some staggering statistics from some recent reports. · From 1993 to 2010, for fatal crashes, the number of drugged drivers with three or more drugs in their…
Funeral Processions and Car Accidents: Who Has The Right of Way?
A Tennessee statute provides that a funeral procession has the right-of-way when the lead vehicle properly identifies the funeral procession by using a flashing amber light or is identified as a police escort or other “properly identified” escort. A funeral escort may also use a siren and flags to identify…
Some Older Drivers Present Risk on Tennessee Roads
With age comes invaluable driving experience, but after a certain point it can also bring declining physical abilities which makes driving more dangerous. Case in point: 78% of seniors drive regularly despite reporting slow reaction times and tiring easily behind the wheel. 13% of senior drivers reported difficulty hearing or…
Fight Underway Over Trucking Regulations Designed to Prevent Fatigued Truck Drivers From Being on the Road
You may have heard about the trucking accident that seriously injured actor and comedian Tracy Morgan and killed comedian Jimmy McNair. The truck driver who crashed into their limousine van is alleged to have been sleepless for 24 hours before the crash. Fatigued drivers are less attentive and often fall asleep…
For Kids, the Drunk Driver That Is Likely To Injure or Kill Them Is In Their Own Car
From 2000 to 2010, 2,344 children under the age of 15 were killed in drunk driving accidents. In a whopping two-thirds of those fatal accidents, the children were actually riding with the drunk driver as opposed to the drunk driver being a stranger in another vehicle. Unfortunately, drunk driving was not the…
Food Poisoning: Restaurants Present Greater Risk
According to a recent report, you are twice as likely to get food poisoning from a restaurant than you are from food prepared at home. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, food borne illness outbreaks sicken more than 48 million people annually. Of that number, 128,000 require hospitalization and…
Tennessee’s Drunk Driving Laws under Scrutiny
Under Tennessee law, a first time DUI offender must spend 48 hours in jail. But a drunk driver convicted of vehicular homicide may receive probation and avoid jail time. Memphis’ Commercial Appeal newspaper has reported three such incidents in which someone under the influence of alcohol who caused a fatal accident spent…