i was hit by a transamerica semi inearly may on hiway I-25 and i was following a combi infront of me that was going 45-50 miles an hour for a half a mile on the slow lane , the right lane when a semi hit my santa fe 2006 straight on the back my car humped once and then i felt he hit me again and my car jumped 2 more times i almost hit the car in front on me and the accident happened at 1:30 in the afternoon on a wednesday and they want to blame me for the accident when i think the semi was asleep pr distracted and woke up when he hit me on the first hit, i beleive he was distracted or asleep, i followed the truck in front of me for half a mile and i think that semi had plenty of time if he had been alert to see me and the other truck that we were going slower and he could of moved to the left lane, they were some cars passing me at that time and when i was hit i was able to move the car to the right shoulder i almost hit the car in front of me the trucker should know how much time he needs to use his brakes and how much time he needs to prevent hitting the cars in front of him ?
Optional Information: Country relating to Question: United States State (if USA): New Mexico Already Tried: i have contacted some lawyers in albuquerque for the whiplash injury i had and the fact i hit my head with left stirring wheel i had some mild head concussion and neck pain and back pain
Thank you for posting your question to JA/Pearl. Legal questions often take time for research or I may be offline so please be patient, I will reply.Who is trying to claim at you were at fault? Did you receive a ticket? As I Understand it, you were hit in the rear? What is the total of your medicals?Did you go to the emergency room?
the sheriff here in bernalillo is trying to blame me, i got a citation and i need to go to court on july the 25th, yes i was hit on the rear my car was totalled, i went to the emergency room at presbyterian and i got an MRI of the head and also xr of the cervical spine and i have gone to a chiropracter for neck adjustments for one month that i was recommended by the lawyers firm so far the bill is 2500.00
I am a former police officer. Based on your post, it is highly unusual for you to have received a ticket. The July court date is just an Arraignment. You or your attorney can usually submit a written plea of not guilty and ask for a trial. Waiverof Arraignment and Entry of Plea of Not Guilty. See Forms 9-405 and 405A (these formsmay need some modification to take into account nonjury trial offenses). This is a documentin which the defendant states that she is aware of her right to appear, aware of the chargesagainst her, and aware of her constitutional rights, but waives her right to appear in court andenters a not guilty plea. This waiver must be filed “no later than forty-eight (48) hours priorto the scheduled arraignment.” Rules 6-501(C), 7-501(C) and 8-501(D).http://jec.unm.edu/manuals-resources/manuals/NMTrafficCitationsManual.pdfYou would normally want to ask for a Jury Trial.The trucker will probably not show for court, especially if he is a long haul driver and not local. In addition, the officer's Testimony can be limited since he did not actually see the Accident. Further, the traffic violation usually will not be admissible if this goes to a civil trial. The problem is that the trucking company's insurance will probably try to deny liability since you received the ticket. However, that is an issue for your attorney to handle. Good luck.
Experience: Actively practicing trial attorney
i understand your answer and they are saying that i should have some hazard lights on but i was waiting to pass that truck and i was going to use my left signal to go to the left lane to pass the slow car in front of me
i do not feel i needed to have any lights since i was not having an emergency , are there any laws concerning hazard lights or red lights when you are going 50 miles per hour on the slow lane or what is the minimum speed you can go on the slow lane in a hiway?
So you did not have your hazard lights on, so what. That does not make you responsible for the accident. At 50mph you are not required to have on your hazard lights. If you plead not guilty and request a jury trial they will usually drop the charges eventually.
what if the car in front of me was going 45 mph that is what she told the sheriff
That still does not make any difference. Did she have her hazard lights on?
i remember she had some dim red lower lights on not the hazard lights
Then she really can't say anything about you not having yours own and then she would be responsible and should have received a ticket. I would want the officer to answer that question if it ever got that far.