Perry County Auto Accident Closes Highway 80
In the evening of November 18, 2022, an auto accident on Highway 80 near the Perry/Knott County line closed Highway 80 until Friday night. There was no information available regarding injuries, but any accident that closes a highway will normally involve significant injuries.
How do police conduct car accident investigations
The level of investigation by a police department depends on several factors the most important of which is the degree of injury or loss of life suffered in the accident. If the accident involves minor property damage, then some police are reluctant to even take a report. If there is loss of life or serious injury and property damage, the police are likely to do a full reconstruction to determine how the accident actually happened. In most investigations, the police are not trying to reconstruct the accident. They will simply record what each party says happened and what any independent witnesses say.
Police, regardless of the severity of the accident, will give their opinion of fault on the accident report. That opinion is recorded in the narrative page of the report where the officer describes the accident as he learns from the participants and witnesses. The opinion of fault is also reflected under the category box called "human factors." You can find the "human factors" box on the left-hand side of the page of the report where your vehicle information is listed. Finally, the opinion of fault is reflected in the unit number given to each driver. Most of the time, unit one is the at-fault driver.
In the more serious accidents, the police will bring several officers to the accident site. They will have one officer who is responsible for the report and will do the interviews of the participants and witnesses. Another officer will take photographs and others will help direct traffic or close the roadway during the investigation. Another officer may be the reconstruction expert that helps determine how the accident happened based upon the physical evidence and testimony of the participants and witnesses. All of the officers will likely have body cameras when they conduct their investigation and they can be very helpful in a case where there is a dispute over who caused the accident.
How to overcome an adverse police report
Over the years, I have had many people contact me about their car accidents and tell me that the police report has incorrectly placed them at fault in the accident and they want to know how to change the report. Generally speaking, police officers are not going to change their reports no matter what information you have for them. Sometimes, if an independent witness contacts them, they will amend the report. My response to them is not not worry about having the police report changed. It is more important to obtain independent witness testimony to overcome the adverse police report. At the end of the day, a police officer cannot testify to his opinion of who may be at fault in an accident and it will be the testimony of independent witnesses that rule the day. If there are no independent witnesses, then physical evidence may help determine fault. If there is neither independent witnesses or physical evidence that helps determine fault, then it will be a swearing contest between the two parties.
Contact Kentucky Car Accident Attorney
The circumstances in the above Perry County car accident will require the services of an experienced Kentucky car accident attorney to investigate and locate all available insurance and to maximize all benefits available to the victims. Matthew Troutman, Kentucky car accident lawyer, of the Troutman Law Office has been handling auto accident claims, almost exclusively, since 1986 and has the experience and talent to obtain the best result for the victims in the above car accident.
If you need legal assistance due to a motor vehicle accident, contact Kentucky car accident attorney Matthew Troutman directly at 502-648-9507 or 859-696-0001 and he will meet with you in the hospital, your home or wherever is convenient for you. He will give you direct access through his cell phone and guide you through the difficult process necessary to obtain the best result possible for you in your car accident claim. To learn more about the Troutman Law Office, click here.