Essential Evidence for Building a Strong Truck Accident Case

Truck accidents rank among some of the most devastating motor vehicle accidents—and some of the most complex to litigate. Experienced lawyers must navigate complicated layers of liability, various government regulations, and, perhaps most crucially, the collection, preservation, and analysis of evidence. Some evidence, like video footage, enables attorneys to piece together clear depictions of the accident. Other evidence, such as black box data and light cycling data, is more difficult to parse, requiring the assistance of experienced attorneys and seasoned experts.

In the aftermath of a major truck collision, an experienced lawyer recognizes the type of evidence that is critical to establishing liability and getting justice for the victims. That same lawyer will know what approach to take in order to obtain essential evidence. But if you don’t know what you’re looking for or how to get it, that evidence can be hard to notice and even harder to obtain. This article will highlight the key pieces of evidence a skilled personal injury attorney will seek in a truck accident, showing how that evidence builds a path to a successful result for the victim.

Need to Know:

• All vehicles involved in the accident can be key pieces of evidence. Inspecting the truck, along with any other vehicles that may be involved, helps to establish the force and speed of impact, as well as crucial information such as the “sight lines” of the drivers.
• One of the most valuable sources of data your attorney can obtain is video footage, whether from the truck itself, another vehicle involved, or security cameras from nearby restaurants and businesses.
• Another particularly valuable source of evidence is the “black box” that contains the truck’s EDR (Event Data Recorder). Securing black box data potentially offers your attorney an in-depth understanding of driver behavior—including speeding, slowing, braking, turning, and other actions—at the time of the accident.

In This Article:

• Early Investigation at the Accident Scene
• Examining Lines of Sight
• Accident Footage
• Black Box Data
• Case Study: How Careful Investigation Showed a Truck Driver’s Responsibility for a Traumatic Brain Injury

Early Investigation at the Accident Scene

Early and thorough investigation is key to our practice at Block O’Toole & Murphy. This means that we begin investigating the accident scene as soon as possible, often on the same day that we sign a case.

While we retain expert investigators who know exactly what to look for at an accident scene, we also make a point of traveling to the scene ourselves. While this process requires special effort, our attorneys know the value of fully grasping each client’s situation, rather than relying on secondhand evidence.

Personally traveling to the scene also allows us to navigate legal proceedings from a stronger vantage point. In one case that our firm handled, a 78-year-old woman was riding an electric scooter in a bicycle lane when she was hit by a truck owned by the New York City Parks Department. Our client, who cherished her independence and health, was on her way to the gym when her accident occurred, but would now require live-in nursing assistance for the remainder of her life. When partners Daniel O’Toole and Frederick Aranki traveled to the scene, one of the first things they saw was a sign at the bicycle lane entrance reading “NO TRUCKS.”

When O’Toole conducted depositions, he was able to confirm that the driver, too, had seen the sign and had understood its meaning. Despite knowing better, this driver had chosen to use the bicycle lane because it gave him easier access to an adjacent park from which he needed to conduct a garbage pickup. Establishing this negligence was an important step in settling the case for $3,000,000.

In truck accident cases, immediate investigation also includes taking rapid steps to preserve the vehicle(s) involved in the accident. Examining the vehicle is critical when it comes to understanding the perspective of the driver, and data from the vehicle—such as footage from onboard cameras and “black box” data obtained from EDR (Event Data Recorder) devices on board—has been key to many effective truck accident resolutions.

Examining a Driver’s Lines of Sight

As the previously-mentioned case goes to show, determining what a driver can or cannot see—the “sight line” of the driver—is critical in investigations, particularly in accidents involving heavy trucks. These massive trucks position their drivers far above street level, creating a dangerously large blind spot close to the street. When mirrors or cameras—essential tools for detecting pedestrians or cyclists in these no-visibility zones—are obstructed, the risk of a devastating accident skyrockets.

The defendant driver in the previously-mentioned case was negligent in another way: when he went out to complete his route that day, he knew that one of the side mirrors was broken. Had the mirror been working as intended, the driver would have been able to see the blind spot. We were able to question him on this matter because we swiftly issued a preservation letter, asking that the vehicle be preserved for expert examination.

When a heavy truck operator cannot see the blind spot, people who are shorter in stature, such as our elderly client, are put at risk. Children are especially vulnerable. In one case we handled, a 10-year-old girl, crossing the street with her younger brother, was hit by an 18-wheeler after she bravely pushed her brother out of its path. Though she may well have saved her brother’s life, the price she paid for her courage was steep: she suffered from numerous fractures, underwent three surgeries, and dealt with persistent chronic pain. 

The young girl and her brother had been walking in the crosswalk when the light turned green, and the defendant driver insisted that he had not been able to see either of them. After reviewing the results of the expert examination we made upon preserving the truck, we could easily believe this. A side mirror which would have enabled the driver to see his blind spot was pointed downward, rendering it useless. The driver admitted that the mirror had been in this position when he was driving, and that he had overlooked this when he inspected the mirrors. This evidence helped us settle the case for $7,000,000 on behalf of our young client, who would require medical treatment for the remainder of her life.

Accident Footage

Many modern trucks have onboard cameras, such as dash cameras, and our attorneys always seek to preserve this footage as quickly as possible, as well as any footage taken from the plaintiff’s vehicle after a collision. How? We promptly send a letter demanding that the footage be preserved by the defendant. Failing to then preserve it can result in dire consequences for the defense when and if the case goes to trial.

We also seek out footage from security cameras associated with nearby restaurants and businesses. Because this footage may be automatically overwritten or erased within a time frame as short as two weeks, it’s important to act quickly.

Black Box Data

Perhaps the most unsung source of truck accident evidence is black box data. Virtually all modern vehicles contain EDR (Event Data Recorder) devices which record precise information about the vehicle and its movements—slowing and speeding, braking and turning, airbag deployment, and other precise mechanics. Black box data is not only an invaluable source of information by itself but can also be used in conjunction with accident footage, witness testimony, and other data to tell a complete and accurate story of the accident.

Retaining black box data, however, can be challenging. Your attorney may need to seek the permission of the vehicle manufacturers, who may be resistant to revealing information about an accident involving one of their vehicles. Experts need to be hired who can properly extract and interpret the data. Because of these expenses and complications, some personal injury firms do not seek out black box data.

However, we firmly believe that lawyers should make every effort to obtain black box data in significant accident cases whenever possible. We owe it to our clients to ensure that such a crucial and precise source of evidence is not overlooked.

In one of many cases where black box data proved invaluable, an 80-ton tractor trainer rear-ended a car belonging to a family of three, tragically killing two of its passengers—a mother and her three-year-old son. Partner Daniel O’Toole, who handled the case on behalf of the surviving spouse and parent, made a demand for the preservation of the tractor trailer’s black box data. This data clearly revealed that the tractor trailer had been speeding, despite snow and ice on the roadway, and that the driver had failed to maintain a safe distance from our clients’ vehicle. This data helped us to settle the case for $13,000,000, within one year of the accident.

Case Study: How Careful Investigation Showed a Truck Driver’s Responsibility for a Traumatic Brain Injury

Unless accidental erasure or deliberate tampering has occurred, our attorneys can typically count on black box data as a valuable source of evidence in a truck collision. This hasn’t always been the case. It’s only within the past decade that EDR devices became a ubiquitous feature of vehicle manufacture. 

A case we resolved before that point, involving a truck with no black box, illustrates many of the sources we draw on when evidence is scarce. 

Our client was pulling out of the parking lot of a coffee shop when an oncoming truck struck her car. The collision left our client—a successful police officer—with a traumatic brain injury that brought her career, and her life as she knew it, to a sudden halt.

A surface-level analysis of this case might have put our client at fault because she backed into the path of the truck driver. However, partner Joseph Donahue obtained testimony from multiple witnesses who alleged that the driver of the truck had been speeding. 

With no black box and no accident footage, Donahue had no hard data to confirm the witnesses’ statements. Instead, he began to build his case by working with an accident reconstruction expert. By examining the scene and the vehicles involved, this expert was able to use impact damage on the vehicles and the skid marks of the tires on the road to make an estimate of the defendant driver’s speed. 

Armed with this information, Donahue took a careful deposition of the defendant driver using the same cross-examination tactics he uses during trial. This enabled him to demonstrate that the defendant’s initial story did not hold up, and the driver admitted that he had exceeded the speed limit by 30 miles per hour.

Block O’Toole & Murphy: Truck Accident Attorneys with Experience

The attorneys at Block O’Toole & Murphy have decades of experience in handling truck accident cases, and their expertise and commitment to thorough investigation has led to unmatched truck accident results, including a $14,000,000 jury verdict for a motorcyclist who required a below-the-knee amputation after he was hit by a truck.

Our seasoned attorneys offer free legal consultations. If you have any questions about litigating truck accident lawsuits, schedule your free legal consultation by calling 212-736-5300, or by filling out our online contact form. We serve New York and New Jersey.