California Bus Accident Lawyers

If you or yours have been injured by a bus accident, let us help you. You are not alone. Due to the ever increasing congestion on our roadways and highways and the cost of maintaining a vehicle, more commuters than ever are using rapid transit and public transportation. In accordance with the growing number of people using buses as their main source of transportation, the number of injuries and deaths resulting from bus accidents is also rising. Take a look at a couple of recent incidents in Breaking News.

Three young women in a dark-blue Chevrolet Trailblazer struck a rail and overturned; then a Greyhound bus traveling down California Highway 99 in the dark struck the overturned SUV. In the SUV, Stephenie Cordoba, 20, and Vanessa Gonzalez, 19, both of Fresno, and Sylvia Lopez Garay, 18, of Dinuba, were killed, as was James Jewett, 57, of Sacramento, the Greyhound bus driver. Two bus passengers, Epifania Solis, 60, of Madera, Calif., and Tomas Ponce, 79, of Winton, Calif., also died in the crash. Read more...

• 42 people on spring break vacation were aboard an Americano USA bus headed for Matamoros Mexico when apparently its drive shaft fell off, causing it to spin 180 degrees before sliding into a ditch and toppling onto its passenger side in southern Texas. Two people were killed, and at least 30 people were hospitalized. It was raining, but the bus left no evidence of hydroplaning. Although bus underwent a full maintenance check Monday, the cause may have been faulty equipment. 11 injured were taken to San Antonio hospitals, 27 people to the South Texas Regional Medical Center in Jourdanton. Efrai Dominguez-Valenzuela, 27, of Brownsville was killed, as well as an unidentified woman from Lewisville, who was ejected from the bus. The number of individuals on the bus may be in question since small children are not listed on the manifest. Read More...


• A Tierra Santa Tourbus carrying 21 passengers rear-ended a car and rolled on Interstate 10 south of Phoenix, killing two men and four women. Rescuers broke out the bus windows to retrieve ten of the injured who were taken by ambulance and helicopter to area hospitals. The roof of the bus was crushed in the accident. National Continental Insurance Co., a division of Progressive, confirmed that Tierra Santa's $5 million insurance policies were canceled last year. Two vehicles, a pickup truck and an Infiniti, also crashed. Read More


• LAS VEGAS--2/14/2009 - Attorney James Vititoe of the firm Masry & Vititoe is representing the passengers and their families in legal issues that involve two countries and two states, and addressing mounting health care bills. One of the crash victims is still in critical condition; two others are...Read More


• LAS VEGAS--1/30/2009 -6:15 p.m. (3:56 p.m)-Friday afternoon on 4 p.m. local time on southbound US 93, south of Lake Mead, a bus transporting Chinese tourists overturned on U.S. Route 93 near Hoover Dam. At least seven people were killed, and at least 15 others injured, including the bus driver. One person died later today. Rescue was hampered by the language barrier, as all of the tourists were Chinese. The injured were taken to University Medical Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, and Kingman Regional Medical Center in Kingman, Arizona. THE Southern California-based DW Tour bus was coming from Grand Canyon West. Three Chinese interpreters from Tzu-chi Foundation of Las Vegas have been secured to talk to the patients.


• HOUSTON-110/20/2008 -10:20 AM CDT Around ten pm, at Gulf Freeway and Woodridge, the Grand Casino Coushatta tour bus turned left on its way to Louisiana, and hit 55-year-old Santos Velasquez crossing the street at a run. The bus driver--reputed not to be speeding or under the influence of alcohol--never saw the victim, and only noted that he felt a "bump in the roadway."


• WISCONSIN--Friday, October 24, 2008. Though acquitted of state charges, Michael J. Kozlowski, truck driver of the 2005 Chippewa Falls High School bus crash that killed five and injured dozens, faces federal charges that he falsely logged sleep hours a dozen times in the months before collision. He could get 60-years in prison if convicted on the 12 charges. The National Transportation Safety Board ruled that his rig overturned when he swerved because Kozlowski fell asleep at the wheel before the crash.
  
  
• SACRAMENTO--10/05/2008 -6:15 p.m. (9:15 p.m. ET) Outside Williams, California, about 60 miles north of Sacramento, California-- A bus crash killed at least ten and injured dozens more. The chartered bus was heading to Colusa Casino Resort in Northern California when the driver lost control and veered off the road, spun out, rolled completely over end to end and landed on its wheels in a ditch as the passengers were tossed about inside. Thirty-seven passengers plus the driver were taken to local hospitals. There were reportedly 46 on the bus. The vehicle is a former Greyhound, but according to the Greyhound spokesperson, was sold two years ago. The Texas license plate on the bus is not valid. Bus driver Quinton J. Watts is in critical condition at Woodland Hospital but on release goes into custody because of his blood level alcohol at the time of the crash. Many of the injured survivors are Laotian and subsequently there is some difficulty communicating the exact details.

23.5 million elementary and secondary school children ride school buses daily throughout the United States. Many of these school buses do not have restraint systems or seatbelts. 12,000 of these children are injured each year in school bus accidents. Although the majority of the injuries are minor, some are catastrophic and as many as 11 children a year die as a result of school bus accidents.

Bus accidents and school bus accidents often result in serious injuries or death. Bus accidents can be caused by such contributing factors as driver negligence, inadequate security, dangerous roadways, weather conditions, defective products and improper maintenance, among others.

If you have been injured as the result of a bus accident either as a passenger, pedestrian or driver, you may be able to file a claim against the bus company. If you were a passenger on a bus that was involved in an accident, the bus company, whether public or private, owes you the "utmost duty of care" associated with being a common carrier. This “duty of utmost care” is higher than the negligence duty owed by the bus company to drivers of other vehicles and pedestrians.

If you have been seriously injured in an accident involving a bus or school bus, you need the advice of an experienced bus accident lawyer. Claims for damages against a public or governmental entity are complex and have strict time limitations. The laws are intricate and vary greatly depending on the circumstances surrounding the accident.

For several decades, Masry & Vititoe has represented those who have been seriously injured. Through experience and education, our firm is able to expertly evaluate medical injuries and pursue personal injury claims on behalf of the injured plaintiff. Masry & Vititoe provides sophisticated legal services for almost any type of injury, both emotional and physical.

If you or a loved one has suffered injuries as a result of a bus accident contact a California bus collision lawyer today at Masry & Vititoe.