For as long as motorcyclists can recall, the debate over whether motorcycle helmets should be mandatory has flourished.  Forty-seven states, including Nebraska, as well the District of Columbia, Guam, Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, have laws in place requiring the use of a helmet for some riders.  Nineteen states, the District of Columbia, the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands have a universal law, while the other twenty-eight states and Guam require helmets only for specific riders.  Only four states (Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, and New Hampshire) do not have a motorcycle helmet law for any riders.

Still the debate continues and states continually attempt to introduce legislation to repeal helmet laws.  Tennessee’s most recent effort to adjust their law to exempt those over 25 years old with at least $200,000.00 in medical insurance and $100,000.00 in liability coverage, failed in committee this week.  Two years ago, Michigan repealed its motorcycle helmet law.  Nebraska has had a helmet law in place since 1989.  Last year, Nebraska introduced a bill which would have required eye protection in operating a moped, while exempting anyone over 21 years of age from the requirement of wearing a helmet.  The bill now has been removed from the Unicameral’s agenda and has virtually no chance to be reviewed again in this legislative session.  This was the fifth time Nebraska had considered measures to alter the motorcycle helmet laws.  The most recent vote showed the repeal might have reached the 25 votes it needed to pass if the vote to cut off debate on the bill had been successful, which kept the bill from the voting floor.

As an attorney who has focused a good portion of his practice on motorcycle accident litigation, I have seen the massive head trauma that can occur during motorcycle accidents.  If you live in a state which requires you to wear a helmet, be sure to choose one that is DOT-Compliant.  Where do you stand on the helmet law?

On March 6, 2010, a woman dropped off her 2005 Cobalt from the dealership after experiencing a problem with the ignition shutting off while she was driving.  She had lost her power steering and brakes and had to pull over the car to restart it.  Her father insisted she take it to the dealership for repairs.  She picked it up from the dealership on March 9, 2010.  The next day, she was tragically killed when her vehicle spun out of control and sent her into the path of another vehicle.  She had suffered fatal injuries from a broken neck.  An expert examined the “black box” inside the Cobalt and discovered that three seconds prior to the accident, the key had slipped from the “on” position to the “accessory” position, shutting off her power steering and brakes and causing the fatal accident.

Now, four years later, General Motors is recalling 1.6 million cars, including the 2005 Cobalt, for problems with the ignition switch.  This problem has been linked to twelve deaths.  Although General Motors has admitted the company was aware of ignition problems prior to Brooke purchasing her car in 2005 and in fact, nearly a decade prior to issuing a recall, they only proposed an insert as a solution, rather than changing the keys, as recommended by engineers.  The insert was made available only to car owners who came in to complain about ignition shut-offs.  Under the program, fewer than 500 drivers received the inserts.  The Cobalt’s program engineering manager, stated the inserts were an “improvement, it was not a fix to the issue”.

For the victim’s father, the information that General Motors had made a “business decision” not to implement a proposed solution that would stop some ignition shut-off incidents was difficult to hear.  “I was furious that this information was known about and not taken care of before in 2005,” he said. “If it had been, my daughter would still be here and we would not be here talking about this.”  General Motors alleged that if GM had felt that changing the key was a 100 percent fix, it would have spent the money to make the change.  Testimony in the case alleged that the the victim’s car was not “unsafe” and that it “could still be maneuvered to the side of the road”.

General Motors settled the lawsuit by her estate, however would not comment on the lawsuit as a dealer lawsuit is still in progress.  The terms of the settlement with GM are confidential.