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A Chicago alderman wants to toughen the city’s dangerous dog ordinance after an incident that endangered residents in his Northwest Side ward. A Pit Bull that had been declared dangerous after attacking three people, escaped from a fenced yard and was found wandering near a home where several small children live.

The proposed changes to the dangerous dog ordinance include a five-year ban on dog ownership for any owner found guilty of not obeying the dangerous dog requirements. Dangerous dog owners with multiple violations of ordinance requirements over a five-year period would face a lifetime ban on dog ownership in Chicago.

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The city of Chicago has launched an aggressive campaign to promote bicycle safety to avoid bicycle accidents and to raise awareness of traffic laws geared to bicyclists. As part of the Safe Streets for Chicago program, alderman in five wards, local Police commanders, parking enforcement aides, and Mayor Daley’s Bicycling Ambassadors have partnered to educate motorists and bicyclists regarding old and new city ordinances related to bicycle safety.

Events from May to August will highlight dangerous behaviors that cause injuries to cyclists, such as motorists who park in bike lanes, and motorists who open car doors into a cyclist’s path.

Additionally, Chicago law enforcement staff is receiving special training on enforcing new bicycle safety ordinances that were passed in March of 2008. The Chicago Department of Revenue’s parking enforcement aides have received special training on enforcing the city’s bike lane ordinance, which now carries a $150 fine, up from $100 from last year according to a CDOT press release. All of these activities are aimed at teaching motorists and bicyclists to share the road.

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An Aurora woman has been accused of wrongful death and a suit has been filed against her after a motorcycle accident near Elburn on July 28th. Two motorcyclists were killed in the chain-reaction accident.

Alia Bernard, 24, has been accused of negligence in the death of Denise Thomas, 45. Thomas’ husband, Wade Thomas, was also killed in the accident. The Thomas’ were taking part in a Saturday morning ride with twenty other cyclists.

Apparently, Bernard rear-ended the Honda-Civic in front of her which was stopped at a light and waiting to turn left. The collision caused the Honda-Civic to be forced into the oncoming cycle traffic and the Thomas’ were unable to stop before hitting the Civic.

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An SUV rolled over on Wednesday on the Edens Expressway killing its driver, Michael Kalinski. The SUV Chevrolet Trailblazer vehicle crashed when the driver lost control for unknown reasons. The vehicle then flipped and rolled into a ditch off the Edens Expressway near Skokie.

The driver was apparently not wearing a seat belt and was ejected form the vehicle.

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Every year approximately 5,000 people die and over 100,000 people are injured in large truck crashes according to the Public Citizen website. Despite the fact that large trucks make up just 3 percent of all registered vehicles, large trucks account for 9 percent of all vehicles involved in fatal crashes and are responsible for 12 percent of all crashes involving fatalities.

Congress is currently working on a bill to limit the size of large trucks on our roads. Any such legislation should be supported by anyone concerned about highway safety.

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A Chicago jury awarded plaintiff, Martha Aguado $227,201 in her case against the City of Chicago for a broken patella she suffered as a pedestrian as a result of falling in a pothole in a crosswalk at Western Ave. and Foster Ave. in the City of Chicago. The plaintiff claimed that a puddle covered up the hole. When the jury was asked whether the condition of the City of Chicago’s crosswalk/sidewalk presented an unreasonable risk of harm on the premises, the jury answered “yes”.

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This week Chicago police will begin pulling over drivers who do not yield to pedestrians in a crosswalk. Moving-violation ticket fines range up to $500.00. The city will use plainclothes police officers posing as pedestrians at intersections without stop signs to implement the sting operation.

Additionally, legislation has been introduced in the Illinois Senate that will require Illinois drivers not only to yield but to come to a full stop when pedestrians are in a crosswalk. Violators would face a minimum $150.00 fine.

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration statistics show that there have been more than 6,000 auto-pedestrian crashes in Illinois, with more that 3,000 of these accidents occurring annually in the city of Chicago.

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Nearly 100 Children were killed and 2,000 injured in 2007 when they were backed over, mostly on residential driveways the National Highway Traffic Safety Council reported.

The report found that 221 people were killed and 14,000 were injured by backing vehicles. Ninety-nine of the deaths and 2,000 injuries were children under 14 years old.

Legislation sponsored by former New York Senator Hilary Clinton will require vehicles to offer additional mirrors, sensor devises and cameras to help reduce blind spots with the intention of reducing the number of these tragic accidents.

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