Car Accidents in Boca Raton: When Officers are Involved

A recent car accident in Boca Raton near Palmetto Park Road and Boca Rio Road left a woman in critical condition. According to the Palm Beach Sheriff’s Office, she was involved in an accident with one of their off duty officers. Officers report that she was heading eastbound on Palmetto when she lost control of her vehicle, crossed over the road’s median and drove into the detective’s vehicle, which was heading westbound on Palmetto Park.

The woman was ejected from her vehicle and was transported by emergency response teams to Delray Medical Center. She was last listed in critical condition, according to News Channel 5. The detective was not seriously injured in the accident. For precautionary reasons, he was taken to the West Boca Medical Center. The road was shut down in both directions so that officers could investigate.

Our Boca Raton car accident lawyers understand that car accidents, claims and recoveries need to be handled with care. There’s a strict process in getting the compensation that you deserve when you’ve been involved in an accident. Unfortunately, this process can get a little bit tricky when a law enforcement official is involved.

Typically, it’s the official’s own office that is investigating the accident that both you and they have been involved in. You want to make sure that you’ve got a fair fight in the claim and that you’re not being treated unfairly. If you or someone you love has been involved in a traffic accident with a police officer or with any other government vehicle, it is critical for you to contact an experienced attorney to help you to make sure that you’re being treated fairly and receiving the compensation that you deserve.

Each and every day, there are about 20 Florida police cars that crash into something, whether it’s a utility pole, another vehicle or even a person. Every year, these accidents kill about 20 people, injure another 2,500 and cost roughly $25 million in property damage.

Researchers looked through roughly 5 years of Florida car accident data and concluded that officers were involved in about one out of every 44 car accidents. In about 25 percent of these accidents they were partially to blame. They are not oftentimes ticketed in these accidents.

As a matter of fact, drivers who are found at fault in an accident are ticketed more than 60 percent of the time. Officers in the same scenarios get ticketed only about 10 percent of the time.

Many of these accidents were preventable, said researchers. They were most oftentimes the result of officers driving too fast, looking at the computers in their cars or just driving carelessly.

Of Florida crashes from 2006 to 2010:

-One out of every 44 accidents in the state of Florida involved a law enforcement officer’s vehicle.

-Most accidents happen while police are merely driving, meaning they aren’t currently involved in any chases and their sirens and lights are not on.

-Many officers crash more than once. In fact, 26 officers had tallied four or more accidents in the time period.

“It’s more dangerous to give an officer a car than a gun,” said Chuck Miller, FBI analyst.

Contact Our Car Accident Law Firm in South Florida

If you’ve been injured in an accident, please contact our experienced personal injury lawyers in Florida at Hollander Law Firm Accident Injury Lawyers to schedule a free consultation today. We have three convenient locations in Boca Raton, Fort Lauderdale, and West Palm Beach.

We proudly serve Palm Beach County, Broward County, and its surrounding areas:

Hollander Law Firm Accident Injury Lawyers – Boca Raton Law Office
7000 W Palmetto Park Rd #500
Boca Raton, FL 33433
(561) 347-7770

Hollander Law Firm Accident Injury Lawyers – Fort Lauderdale Law Office
200 S.E. 6th Street #203
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301
(954) 287-0566

Hollander Law Firm Accident Injury Lawyers – West Palm Beach Law Office
319 Clematis St #203
West Palm Beach, FL 33401
(561) 556-7873