Last December, while driving along the NY Thruway, a 33 year old mother of two had struck a deer and her car was wrecked on the road. She was able to dial 911 for help, but when the ambulance arrived, the caller had been killed. Shortly after the emergency call was placed, a distracted truck driver slammed into the car, killing both the mother and her two children. However, evidence discovered after a police investigation put a bizarre twist on this tragic story. According to New York State Police, the truck driver was not only tired, but, incredibly, was watching a pornographic movie on his lap top at the time of the car-truck accident.
On December 12, 2009 law enforcement officials did not make the connection that day upon their initial investigation. As a part of an investigation of truck drivers involved in accidents, all electronic devices that were within reach are thoroughly searched. In this case, investigators found a laptop in the truck, and performed routine searches checking logbooks to see that times are marked correctly to match all toll tickets, fuel stops, cell phone records, and GPS tracking. Over a more in depth investigation of the lap tap activity, police officers discovered that at the time of the accident the driver was streaming a pornographic movie. There were no other reasons that he would not have been able to avoid the accident as it was clear weather at the time and the road was straight and clear.
Investigators also determined that the truck driver was in violation of federal regulations which prohibit drivers from being on the road longer than eleven hours–then they must have ten hours off of the roads. It was discovered that this particular driver had only had four hours off of the road in the past twenty-seven and was therefore exhausted at the time of the accident.
Texting and driving for truck drivers was officially outlawed on January 26th, 2010. No matter how dangerous texting and driving may be, watching pornography movies while driving is downright egregious and outrageous. And, as seen by this accident, any type of distraction for drivers on the road can cause severe personal injury or death. Truck-auto accidents such as these can be disastrous. An experienced personal injury lawyer can help provide answers to the many questions that an injured individual will undoubtedly have. Sustaining personal injury as a result of truck accidents can qualify you to seek compensation or damages for pain and suffering. For the best legal representation and advice available, seek a hard-working and aggressive personal injury attorney. The Law Offices of Bredell and Bredell have years of experience fighting for the rights of injured persons and are ready to fight for you.
Participation in tough and aggressive athletic sports such as football can result in severe personal injury, including traumatic brain injuries. National Football League Hall of Famer Jack Youngblood has joked that he can not even remember how many concussions he has had since he began playing the sport at the age of twelve. However, he does not disregard the severity of the damage he has absorbed as a result of the game.
The former football star was one of the speakers at the first meeting of the Mackey-White Traumatic Brain Injury Committee last week. The organization was named after two Hall of Fame football players that have been directly affected by brain injury: tight end John Mackey was recently diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease, while defensive lineman Reggie White died at age forty-three because of aggravated injuries. The group was formed by the NFL Players Association and is comprised of a variety of professional athletes, former and current NFL players, as well as numerous doctors and scientific experts. It was formed in order to have open discussion of the brain injuries that many players sustain as a result of playing professional football and has a goal of developing solutions to the safety issues players face in order to keep them safer during practice and games.
Since then, the National Football League has created stricter guidelines for players who are showing concussion symptoms. In order to ensure that players do not return to the field too quickly, each team must enlist the services of an independent neurologist for advice. Additionally, a partnership has been formed with Boston University brain researchers who have been very influential of the league’s rules governing concussions because of tests they conducted on football helmets. It is hoped that the committee will serve as a “superconductor” of information in order to spur decisive progress towards protecting football players from traumatic brain injuries.
Sustaining catastrophic injuries as a result of a recreational accident is life-changing and will likely have permanent consequences. An experienced personal injury attorney can help answer many of the questions that an injured individual will likely have regarding their case. If you have traumatic brain injuries as the result of an accident, you may be entitled to damages for your pain and suffering. A hard-working and aggressive personal injury lawyer can provide the legal advice and legal representation necessary to be successful. The Law Offices of Bredell and Bredell have years of experience fighting for the rights of injured persons, and are ready to do the same for you.
While walking or biking in very populated areas, you take a risk of sustaining severe personal injury and/or death if struck by a motor vehicle. The state of Florida is particularly prone to bicycle-auto accidents and pedestrian-auto accidents as the weather is warm year-round.
Their track record with the injuries and deaths from car accidents is alarming–both national and state data show that there is a very high risk of injury or death for pedestrians and bicyclists in Florida. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Florida has the highest rate in the nation of pedestrian fatalities because of car accidents in 2008, as well as the highest number of bicycle fatalities.
Like many other states around the country, Florida law requires all drivers to purchase and keep personal injury protection (PIP) insurance and property damage liability insurance in order to keep their driver’s license and registration current. This insurance covers a variety of things, including the medical costs of pedestrian and bicycle accident injuries or deaths occurring as a result of a car accident. Common injuries sustained in car accidents are concussions, broken bones, traumatic brain injuries, back or neck injuries, or sometimes death. Additionally, pedestrians or bicyclists may be entitled to other damages, such as financial support for pain and suffering or loss of wages. If a fatality occurs, it may be possible to recover payment for funeral expenses and loss of companionship.
Being involved in a bicycle-auto accident or a pedestrian-auto accident is a diffcult process for anyone to go through. An experienced personal injury attorney can help answer many of the questions that an injured person has regarding an accident. Personal injuries sustained in car accidents have the potential to be life-changing. Therefore, it is essential to contact a hard-working and aggressive personal injury lawyer for the representation needed to conduct a successful claim. The Law Offices of Bredell and Bredell have years of experience providing legal advice and help to injured persons, and are available to help you today.
Old fashioned car keys seem to be a thing of the past–automakers around the world are rushing to install wireless systems that allow key-less entry to new vehicles. The engine is started by pushing a button, instead of taking anything out of pockets or purses. These devices were debuted ten years ago on luxury vehicles and are quickly spreading to all sectors of the automobile market. The number of cars manufactured in the past five years with wireless systems, standard or optional, has quadrupled.
However, because many drivers do not know how these safety systems work, there is great potential for safety problems to arise. Motorists have reported that they were unable to shut down their engines during highway emergencies. There were also reports of sudden acceleration when the car was pulled over. In some cases, parked cars accidentally rolled away because the engine was left on for hours without the driver realizing it.
Traditional keys work the same exact way–but automakers have different procedures of installing the wireless systems. Because of this, owners may not know how to handle their own cars in an emergency situation, let alone a borrowed or rented vehicle. Federal regulators and an auto industry trade group believe that the risk is so severe, that they are looking at adopting standard installing procedures.
Auto safety experts say that the car industry needs to do a better job of explaining the advanced technology to motorists, as well as adopt common operating procedures. Industry officials say that these glitches will be fixed over the course of technological improvements as the wireless systems are still a recent development. “As they become more widely adopted, I think we’ll find that they converge in how they operate,” commented Dave Proefke, a vehicle security engineer at General Motors Co.
Glitches in cars can cause devastating accidents resulting in severe personal injury. An experienced personal injury attorney can help provide the best legal representation for the case. Car accidents can result in life-changing personal injuries, for which you may be entitled to compensation. Therefore, it is important to contact a hard-working and aggressive personal injury lawyer for assistance. The Law Offices of Bredell and Bredell has years of experience helping injured people, and are ready to help you.
Vicious attacks by neighborhood dogs can cause severe personal injury, as seen in a recent case of a Louisiana teen who sought medical treatment after being bitten. A fifteen year-old boy was attacked at a Libuse-area home by two pit bull dogs that were off their property.
Around 12:15 p.m. last Monday, the pit bulls attacked the teenager in the 100 block of Holiday Boulevard in the Libuse area. The teen was bitten in the leg by the unrestrained dogs, and was then taken to an area hospital for medical treatment. When a Rapides sheriff deputy tried to restrain the animals, they attempted to attack him instead. In response, the police officer fired his gun at them in order to protect himself. Eventually, the pit bulls were seized and the owner of the dog’s received a citation for owning dangerous animals and allowing them to run unsupervised throughout the neighborhood.
Whether in Michigan or Louisiana, animal control officers encourage all dog owners to keep their pets, properly contained and restrained because this protects others from being attacked and sustaining personal injury. Additionally, doing this will also protect the owner, as they are held responsible for any injuries and/or deaths caused by their pet.
Attacks from unrestrained dogs can cause severe personal injury and/or death. A hard-working personal injury attorney can help provide answers to the many questions that an injured individual would likely have regarding their case. Personal injuries sustained from dog bite accidents can be life-changing, and often hold permanent consequences. Therefore, it is important to contact an experienced and aggressive personal injury lawyer for the best legal representation possible. The Law Offices of Bredell and Bredell have years of experience fighting injured persons to receive the compensation that they deserve. Do not hesitate to contact us immediately for legal advice.
The rise of medical errors in hospitals and other medical facilities have prompted organizations from around the nation to take notice. One of these groups, The American Association for Justice has taken a very active stance against the widespread problem. The trial lawyers group has begun an aggressive grass-roots campaign to spotlight the problem of medicinal errors and how important medical malpractice litigation is.
One of the ways The American Association for Justice has broadcasted their cause is through a web site that they created. (www.98000reasons.org) This site encourages all visitors to contact their representatives encouraging them to keep patients their top priority. Additionally, there is a lot of information on the web site informing the public of how serious the coneseuqences of medical malpractice errors are. Each year, 98,000 people die from preventable medical mishaps–that is equivilent to two 737 airplanes crashing every day.
The organization of trial lawyers attests to their first-hand experience as witnesses to the devastating effects of medical malpractice–errors in the emergency room has consequences not only for the injured, but for the injured’s family as well. The blame is placed upon negligent doctors, physicians, surgeons, and nurses that made serious errors during procedures that caused personal injury. According to the web site, “The best way to have fewer medical malpractice cases is to reduce the number of medical errors.”
The American Association for Justice is petitioning regarding the creation of “medical tribunals” or special courts to hear the medical malpractice lawsuits. By designating specific courts for these cases, it deprives the plaintiff of their seventh-amendment right to a trial by jury. The petition states, “Any attempt to limit an injured patients’ right to their day in court should be voted down.” Additionally, the organization suggests that safety measures for patients should be the focus of legislation–not simply tort reform.
Medical malpractice incidents are especially tragic because they violate the trust-based relationship between doctors and patients. A hard-working personal injury attorney can help answer many of the questions that an injured individual likely has regarding their case. Sustaining personal injury as a result of medical errors can be life-changing. For these injuries, you could be entitled to compensation. An experienced and aggressive personal injury lawyer can help provide the best legal representation for your suffering. The Law Offices of Bredell and Bredell have years of experience fighting to the rights of injured persons, and is ready and waiting to fight for you as well.
This week, the Miami-Dade County commissioners spent a considerable amount of time investigating the death of a Florida cyclist who was struck by a car while riding on the Rickenbacker Causeway. The commissioners debated what caused the accident and what can be done in order to make Miami streets safer for all those who take to the road.
Bicyclist Christopher Lecanne, 44, was riding his bicycle Sunday morning when he was struck by a car on the Rickenbacker Causeway near Key Biscayne. The bicycle was dragged almost the entire length of the village. The driver of the vehicle, Carlos Bertonatti, 28, was arrested the next day by Miami police and charged with an entire list of charges including: vehicular manslaughter, DUI manslaughter, not having a valid driver’s license, and leaving the scene of the accident. And, he certainly was no stranger to traffic violations either–his driving record boasts forty-two citations in the past twelve years.
Unfortunately, at the time of the accident the closest fire-rescue team was closed. Therefore, an emergency team from South Miami, ten miles away, was sent instead. Because they had to travel so far to get to the scene of the accident, the medical team arrived after Lecanne had died.
County Manager George Burgess was questioned by the commissioners about the station’s part-time hours. During the spring budget session, it was explicitly stated that no public safety concerns would be slashed. To combat this problem, the toll has been raised at the Key Biscayne entrance in order to fund the station and keep them open full time. Additionally, a variety of safety measures were discussed, including lowering the speed limit and having more officers on patrol. It was also suggested that the local police departments unify their radio systems in order to better respond to accidents. Yet the problem essentially remains the same–it has been increasingly difficult to find funding for all of the necessary changes.
Because bicycles, motorcycles, and automobiles share the roadways, it is increasingly important that they watch out for one another. As seen by the example of Christopher Lecanne, bicycle-auto accidents can cause severe personal injury and/or death. An experienced personal injury lawyer can help provide answers to the many questions that an injured individual would likely have regarding their case. If you have been injured in an accident, you may be entitled to damages–and an aggressive personal injury attorney can help you retrieve your deserved compensation. The Law Offices of Bredell and Bredell have years of experience representing individuals who have sustained personal injury in accidents, and are ready to help you as well.
In 2008, a massive train collision occurred when a Union Pacific freight train crashed head-on with a Los Angeles commuter train while driving in the Chatsworth district. As a result of the accident, one hundred and thirty five passengers sustained personal injury, including forty-six critically injured passengers. Unfortunately, also because of the train accidents twenty-five people lost their lives.
Since the accident, the National Transportation and Safety Board has been investigating the devastating and tragic collision. Originally, two witnesses testified that the light was green when the Metrolink commuter change went through the intersection. However, these witnesses were determined unreliable, as they were located approximately one-mile from the traffic light. Police also took into consideration weather and lighting conditions, as well as human capabilities to the finding.
Further investigation has shown a very different story. Testing and records from different signals, as well as video from the Pacific Union freight train show that the final traffic signal that the commuter train last went through before impact was red. The Metrolink operator was text messaging and using his wireless phone–a prohibited activity for all commuter train engineers. His ability to “observe and appropriately respond” to the red traffic signal was compromised.
Furthermore, the board determined that field testing to ensure compliance with the rules by all employees was insufficient. A suggestion made by the board is that video cameras be installed in the train control cabs to monitor the activites of operators at all times. Members of the board commented, “We know this behavior is widespread and it’s getting more widespread.” It is clear that something needs to be done to prevent this type of prohibited behavior from happening.
As seen by the Chatsworth catastrophic collision, negligence of train operators who fail to pay complete attention to the tracks can cause widespread personal injury, death and misery. An experienced personal injury lawyer can help answer all of the questions an injured person would undoubtedly have regarding their case. Because personal injuries sustained from train accidents can have life-changing repercussions, injured persons may be entitled to compensation for damages. An aggressive and hard-working personal injury attorney can provide the legal representation necessary to succeed in the court room. The Law Offices of Bredell and Bredell have years of experience representing injured persons, and are ready to help you.
Walking across railroad tracks, and other places of heavy transportation is to take a large risk. If struck by any motorized vehicle, severe personal injury can ensue. Such is the example of the two Maryland teenagers who were struck and killed by a light rail train outside of Lutherville.
In July 2009, Jarrett Peterson and Kyle Wankmiller, 17, were walking across railroad tracks that are generally used for southbound trains. However, the Maryland Transit Administration had moved northbound traffic onto the southbound tracks because of vandalism. The driver of the train did not see the boys on the tracks and because of that, did not stop the train. The bodies of the two teenage boys were discovered by a fare inspector that was on the scene.
Although the Maryland Transit Administration began an investigation, the families of the deceased boys requested that the Baltimore County Police Department handle the case. MTA nonetheless, conducted their own investigation eventually firing two operators and took disciplinary action against six other employees. The personal injury lawyer representing the victim’s families has also filed legal notice with the state, informing them of their intent to sue. The maintain that the train operator was negligent because he took his attention off of the tracks in the last few seconds before impact. Additionally, the plaintiffs hold that the MTA operators not only didn’t report the sighting of the boys on the tracks, but the agency also had no procedure for notifying operators to take extra precaution when operating on different tracks.
However, since filing the claim, the case has been settled before a trial began. The families of the two teenagers will receive $1.5 million in damages. Additionally, the Maryland Transit Administration has since made changes to their procedure, adopting new policies regarding walking on tracks, and single-track operations. According to Miller, “The families are very pleased with the outcome and they are pleased that the MTA has made changes that they think will help prevent an accident like this in the future.”
Train-pedestrian accidents are devastating and will cause severe injury and/or death. It is vital to avoid walking around or on railroad tracks, as examples such as these show how easily an accident can occur. An experienced personal injury lawyer can help answer many of the questions that an injured individual would likely have. These injuries can be life-changing and permanent, and you may be entitled to collect damages. An aggressive and hard-working personal injury attorney can provide the best legal representation for your case. The Law Offices of Bredell and Bredell have years of experience representing injured people, and are ready to help you.
In an effort to maintain golden tan skin, many people across the country spend a countless amount time in tanning beds. Although this may obtain the desired result of a golden glow, the tanning beds put the user in direct contact with harmful radiation that is known to cause skin and other serious health problems. Therefore, many well-known organizations advise against the practice.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration concurs. Recently, they have announced that they will begin discussions in March regarding tougher policies governing the use of tanning beds. Their concerns are shared by many other organizations such as the World Health Organization, who last year announced that tanning beds are a direct cause of skin cancer. Statistics show that people who used tanning beds in their teenage years and during their 20s have a 75% increased chance of getting melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer.
UV radiation specialist Sharon Miller and her group recommend complete avoidance of tanning beds. However, Miller recognizes the public demand, despite the risks. “We don’t recommend using them at all, but we know people do use them so we want to make them as low-risk as possible.” A potential suggestion that the FDA is entertaining is requiring that all tanning salons have prominent warning labels around the building. Additionally, these explicit notices will be on the machines themselves–hopefully making a prominent impact.
The Law Offices of Bredell and Bredell encourages everyone to listen to the advice of the Food and Drug Administration as well as the World Health Organization. Personal injury can be sustained as a result of partaking in popular, but dangerous recreational activities. If you or a loved one has been injured in a recreational accident, please do not hesitate to contact an experienced personal injury lawyer. Accidents can have life changing consequences, and you may be entitled to compensation for injuries sustained. An aggressive and hard-working personal injury attorney can help provide the legal representation for your case.
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