A friend of mine was nearly killed 2 weeks ago while driving through Michigan. She is a resident from Illinois. She was struck by a vehicle who crossed over a solid double yellow line and hit her vehicle at 55 mph w/o braking. The driver was cited for crossing a double yellow line.

My friend has already racked up 10k in medical bills, in addition to her car being totalled. She will easilly rack up thousands of dollars more in the next few weeks. She has a reputable insurance company of her own, but she has already met the policy limitations.

Since Michigan is a "no fault" state, she is having nothing but problems trying to get the other party to pay for her medical bills, pain, suffering, and a new car. Considering the other driver was 100% at fault, she is at the end of her rope and is considering hiring an attorney. The other insurance company is saying they are not liable for her medical bills because it is a no fault state (even though the ticket clearly states it was his fault).

What other recourse does she have besides suing him? I thought "no fault" rules only apply if both parties of the accident are residents of that state, thereby they are both covered under the law. However, how does a nonresident get their claims paid for that are due to someone elses negligence?

Second question - for whatever reason, the Michigan state trooper gave her a breathalyzer test. She had a broken arm, broken teeth, broken ribs, and bruises all over her face, and she was forced to take the test by the officer, or told her license would be suspended, and she was the one who was the victim. The offending driver, who claims he "didn't remember the accident at all" and states he "must have passed out some how", who crossed the yellow line and hit her head on, WAS NOT GIVEN A BREATH TEST. Can someone tell me a). How this is even remotely logical? The victim who was obeying all laws and nearly killed is forced to blow, and the guy who by his own admission "blacked out" and crossed a solid line (both signs of intoxication) was not given any sobriety test at all? The victim blew a 0.00 by the way. B). What legal recourse does she have against the Michigan state police for not making the other driver take a breath or blood test which could have proven even further the other driver was at fault? I know in the past, municipal or state law enforcement agencies have been held civilly responsible for failing to follow proper procedures in maintaining evidence, documenting crime scenes, or failing to charge individuals when they should have.

Sorry for the long post and thanks in advance. My friend is in a lot of pain, medically and financially, and so she asked me to find out as much as possible.

Location: Illinois

Whew..where do I start? First off, if the insurance has run out, and the other company claims "no fault", the only real recourse is a civil lawsuit. But keep pestering the other company first. There is no chance of a criminal trial. Most vehicle code violations are "infractions", meaning you pay the fine and that's it, regardless of how bad somebody is hurt. Being killed is different, then you are talking manslaughter. Most states still view crashes as "accidents" unless DUI or some reckless driving can be proven. All the guy that crossed over the double yellows has to do is pay his ticket and that's it. Yea it sucks, but it happens everyday. My question is, how does your friend know that the other guy was never given "any type of sobriety test". Sometimes they can be very subtle and not formal. In serious injury collision investigations, everybody is "tested" in one way or another, be it looking at their eyes, smelling their breath, asking questions, etc. If your friend was hurt as bad as she was, the only real option was to do a breath test, sounds like she couldn't do any other. She blew a .00%, so what's the big deal there??? It's just a test, and it looks even better for her in the long run. I can only speak from California law, and from being a traffic collision investigator for 17 years, so I don't know much about back east law. She should feel lucky the other guy at least got a ticket. Here, we can't even write somebody a ticket for causing a crash unless we witness it, or they don't have a license or insurance. Our City Attorney wont file an "infraction" case based on our collision investigation. In a nut shell, your friend needs to go to "Judge Judy" when she gets better.

One more thing, being DUI doesn't "prove even further" that the guy was at fault. If he crossed over the lines, he is at fault, end of story. I have arrested many people for DUI who were not at fault in the collision. A guy I work with ran a red light on duty and crashed into a guy who was DUI..he was arrested, but the crash wasn't his fault. There really isn't much your friend can do except ask for an explination why the other guy wasn't tested. I always find it amusing how everybody thinks they can tell cops how to do thier job so much better, but very few are willing to step into the shoes and do it for themselves...same goes for the millitary. Be on the receiving end of a bullet passing by your face, then we might talk Sorry Jen, that wasn't ment for you, I just stepped up on my soapbox for a moment.

She should also be looking at legal action against the police...demanding a breath test from a person with fractured ribs and facial/mouth injuries is absolutely not on (in any first world country)and is injurious to the persons condition at the time. A blood alcohol test is the prudent way to go here, that is if IV fluids have not been used.

I can sure think of a lot better places to seek legal advice than on an Internet forum dealing with toy emergency vehicles...like from a lawyer who practices in Michigan.

Location: Woodbridge, VA

I've got agree about seeking help from an experienced professional. Each states law's are different. Your
friend needs to consult with a MI layer, usually no fee for the first consultation, that specializes in auto accident injury recovery. Don't ask a bunch of fire and police cars buffs something this complex, it will hurt our brains, and you could very well get bad advice.

Quote....... and you could very well get bad advice.

And that even when you ask about die-cast.

Location: London UK

Jennifer,

Most states have lawyer helplines (funded by the state/county) that give you the opportunity (for 25 or 30 bucks) to ask the types of questions you are asking (for 30 minutes) of their time.

Another option may be to contact one of the local Universities Law Schools. Sometimes law students work internships where they donate the time to help someone in your friend's situation (but under the premise that they are NOT lawyers, just students--this gets them out of liability should they give you bad advice).

Ultimately your only action would be civil in nature. This is a prime example of how insurance companies like to pass the buck and take your money then find any way to not have to pay out when you truly need them. I absolutely hate the insurance industry!

Best wishes.