On Sunday October 10, 2010 in the early morning hours two pedestrians were struck and killed by a car on Rockville Pike near the White Flint Metro Station. Those killed, Rory Weichbrod and Adam Hosinski, were only 26 years old.

The driver of the car that struck these young men was arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol.

Thoughts and prayers from our personal injury attorneys and support staff go out to the family of those killed.

What is disturbing though, is that news reports suggest that Montgomery County knew that the roadway in that area was unsafe and that they will soon be making changes.

Montgomery County Pedestrian Safety Coordinator Jeff Dunckel says the crash happened on the edge of a known hot spot for pedestrian accidents along Rockville Pike” and that within the next year, drivers will see obvious changes including new signals, medians and other traffic calming devices.

Are you kidding me? If the County knew the roadway was unsafe, the fact is that the roadway should not have been built that way in the first place and the changes should have occurred long ago. Roadway safety is generally governed by standards set forth in the MUTCD-Manual for Uniform Traffic Control Devices. Montgomery County and/or the contractors who designed the unsafe roadway likely contributed to this tragic incident. Legal claims against the County require that notice be provided pursuant to the Local Government Tort Claims Act–and this must be properly done within 180 days of the incident.

Another disturbing aspect of this incident is that the driver who hit the young men may have been drunk. Unfortunately, under Maryland law, even if he was intoxicated, he will not be subject to punitive damages. There has been proposed legislation to change this aspect of Maryland law, but so far it has not passed.