Fairfax Legal Blog

Think that distracted driving just means using your phone while you drive? Texting and driving is dangerous, and it's good to be aware of that. However, the truth is that distraction goes much deeper than texting alone. Anything that takes your mind off of the road -- a cognitive distraction -- may lead to an accident.

Take, for example, a study that showed daydreaming caused about 61% of distraction-based accidents. Drivers didn't look away from the road, but they still didn't see it. They didn't take their hands off of the wheel, but they still were not in control of their cars. Instead, they let their minds wander, and they caused some serious accidents in the process.

A drunk driver caused a chain-reaction of crashes that took place on the Capital Beltway around 3 a.m. on Thanksgiving Day. The events caused multiple injuries, sending a total of six people to Inova Fairfax Hospital, some with life-threatening injuries.

Police received a report of a Nissan Leaf traveling southbound in the northbound lanes. Literally seconds after that report came in, the Nissan and a BMW SUV collided head-on. The impact sent debris flying across the freeway, causing danger to other drivers. Three other vehicles reported damage from the debris. As the parties involved in that collision got out of their vehicles and were standing nearby, a Honda Civic in the northbound lanes struck their vehicles.

Breathalyzers tests are a piece of evidence that accused drivers can challenge in a variety of different ways. A breathalyzer test may be used as a key piece of evidence against the accused driver which is why it is essential for accused drivers to be familiar with how to challenge a breathalyzer test.

To begin with, it may be possible to challenge the Breathalyzer test on the basis that it is unreliable. Breathalyzer tests must be properly calibrated in order to produce reliable results. If the breathalyzer test was not properly calibrated or maintained at regular and set intervals prior to use, it may be possible to challenge the reliability of the breathalyzer test and the results of that test as part of a DUI defense.

Property division during divorce can feel overwhelming which is why it is important for divorcing couples to keep in mind that the family law process provides legal resources to help guide them through the process of dividing their property. In some circumstances, divorcing couples are dividing a lifetime of property they have acquired together so understanding basic property division principles can help guide them through the property division process.

It is always helpful for divorcing couples to be prepared to negotiate a property settlement agreement between themselves whenever possible. The divorcing couple is in a better position to determine how property should be divided than the family law court, however, the family law court can help divorcing couples who cannot work out their property division concerns with a property division settlement. It can be less costly, acrimonious and time-consuming if the divorcing couple is able to resolve their concerns together which is true of most divorce-related concerns divorcing couples will need to resolve.