Davis Law Group, P.S.

Jefferson County Officer uninjured in collision

Story Highlights:
None injured in Forks accident
Motor vehicle collision caused by speeding
Snow and slush on the roads at time of collision



Date: April 27, 2011, 04/27/2011
Location: Forks, Clallam County, Washington
Type: Car accident, Motor vehicle collision
Outcome: None injured

A Jefferson County Sheriff's Office patrol SUV crashed on Highway 101 on Wednesday night.

Around 8:40 p.m. 23-year-old Deputy Brandon Pryzgocki was headed southbound on US 101 when he lost control and crossed the northbound lane before entering a ditch. The SUV traveled over 150 feet in the ditch before coming to a stop against an embankment.

Pryzgocki was not injured and was wearing his seat belt.

Snow and slush were on the roadways at the time of the crash but Troopers have contributed the cause of the collision to Pryzgocki's speeding too fast for conditions.

Basic Speed Rules
No person shall drive a vehicle on a highway at a speed greater than is reasonable and prudent under the conditions and having regard to the actual and potential hazards then existing. In every event speed shall be so controlled as may be necessary to avoid colliding with any person, vehicle or other conveyance on or entering the highway in compliance with legal requirements and the duty of all persons to use due care.Except when a special hazard exists that requires lower speed for compliance with subsection (1) of this section, the limits specified in this section or established as hereinafter authorized shall be maximum lawful speeds, and no person shall drive a vehicle on a highway at a speed in excess of such maximum limits.
(a) Twenty-five miles per hour on city and town streets;
(b) Fifty miles per hour on county roads;
(c) Sixty miles per hour on state highways.

Washington State Speed-Related Accident Statistics

• Speeding-related fatalities have been increasing over the past ten years. The number of speed-related deaths from 1997 to 2001 was 237.8, while the average from 2002 to 2006 was 244, a 2.6% increase.
• In 2006, Washington experienced the second highest number of speed-related fatalities since 1997, with 253, second only to 2002’s number of 260. The speed-related fatality rate per 100 million vehicle-miles-traveled has decreased slightly, from .47 in 1997 to .45 in 2006, a 4.3% decrease.
• 59.6% of all speed-related deaths occurred on rural roads- for vehicle-occupants alone the percentage was 62.3%. However, a larger majority of motorcyclist, bicyclist, and pedestrian deaths occurred on urban roads, with 57.5%.
• On average, from 1997 to 2006, the speed-related fatality rate per vehicle-miles-traveled on rural roads was 2-4 times higher than the respective urban road rate.
• Rural county roads experienced the largest percentage of speed-related deaths, with 30.7%, followed by rural highways, with 20%, and urban city streets, with 19.6%. County roads have the highest speed-related fatality rate, with 1.04 deaths per 100 million vehicle-miles-traveled. This is almost six times higher than the interstate rate of .18, and almost three times higher than the city street rate of .36.

Seattle Motor Vehicle Accident Attorneys
A motor vehicle accident is when a road vehicle collides with another vehicle, pedestrian, road debris, or man-made object. These collisions can result in personal injury, property damage, or death. Motor vehicle accidents can involve automobiles, trucks, semi or tractor trailer trucks, delivery vehicles, passenger vans, motorcycles, etc. If you or a family member has suffered as the result of a car accident in Washington state, Seattle motor vehicle accident attorney Chris Davis and the Davis Law Group, P.S. can help you. We are committed to helping car accident, trucking accident, DUI accident, and motorcycle accident victims recover the just and fair compensation they are entitled to receive under the law.