Wilsonville, in Oregon’s Clackamas County, began its existence as a simple ferry crossing on the Willamette River. The crossing, known as Boone’s Ferry (named for Alphonso Boone – a grandson of Daniel Boone), was a key transportation link in Oregon’s early history and existed in one form or another for over a century, until the construction of Interstate 5 in the 1950s rendered it obsolete. Boone’s Ferry, in turn, gave its name to Boone’s Landing, which formally became “Wilsonville” in 1880. Though the community traces its history to Oregon’s pioneer days, Wilsonville’s growth in more recent times has been nothing short of spectacular. As recently as 1969 there were only about 1000 people living in Wilsonville. Forty years later the number is around twenty times that. The Law Office of Matthew D. Kaplan, headquartered at 50 SW Pine St #302, Portland, Oregon, serves Wilsonville and its surrounding communities and is available to offer Oregonians advice on how best to protect their rights, and how to use our courts to achieve justice, as difficult as that may sometimes seem.
Wilsonville’s proximity to Portland has long made the city an attractive place to live and work – hence the city’s extraordinary growth rate over the last 15 years. Fast growth, however, can bring new problems in its wake. In 2010 Wilsonville, despite its small size, witnessed 164 car crashes, according to Oregon Department of transportation figures. These break down as follows:
| Fatal Crashes: | 1 |
| Non-Fatal Crashes: | 75 |
| Property Damage Only Crashes | 88 |
Of those 164 incidents 114 took place during daytime hours and the remaining 50 at night. Though there was only one fatality on the city’s roads that year, the 164 crashes did result in 99 injuries.
In recent years, a particular concern throughout Oregon has been distracted driving. This problem merits special attention in cities, such as Wilsonville, that include a high proportion of longer-distance commuters (in this case, headed mainly to and from Portland).
Under the distracted driving law that went into force in Oregon in 2010, distracted driving is a Class D traffic violation subject to primary enforcement (meaning a motorist can be pulled over just for violating the distracted driving law). It is worth remembering, however, that some forms of distraction may fall within what is allowable by law, while still qualifying as reckless and/or negligent driving.
Matthew D. Kaplan is a tireless advocate for ordinary Oregonians who have suffered from distracted or otherwise negligent and reckless drivers. His office specializes in the relatively new, but rapidly growing field of distracted driving law and is an excellent resource for families unsure what remedies the legal system may offer in the wake of a distracted driving accident on Wilsonville’s roads, or elsewhere in Oregon.
The Law Office of Matthew D. Kaplan is conveniently located at 50 SW Pine St #302, Portland, OR 97204. The office telephone number is (503) 226-3844.