Georgia Personal Injury Lawyer Blog

Beware of Dangers of Battery Consumption by Children

Published on: September 4, 2012 | By Van Sant Law

Household accidents happen every day, but the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission and the Centers for Disease Control are warning parents of small children of the dangers of tiny batteries. In particular, tiny button size batteries, which have been responsible for at least 40,000 emergency room visits of children 13 and under in the last decade. At least 14 small children, ages 7 months to three years, have died from swallowing the batteries.

Battery consumption symptoms involve vomiting, abdominal pain, fever, diarrhea, respiratory distress and dysphagia or difficulty swallowing. This makes it especially hard to diagnose what the problem is, especially if the caregiver didn’t see the child consume the battery.

What makes the small items so dangerous, however, is that in just two hours time they can cause serious burns from the chemical hydroxide. They can also leak a corrosive chemical called alkaline electrolyte. Researchers identified the 3-volt lithium, coin-size batteries that are less than or equal to 20 mm as the most common culprit.

Accidents Take Time to Clear to Ensure Thorough Investigations

Published on: August 30, 2012 | By Van Sant Law

It took nearly four hours to clear the wreckage and complete an investigation into a fatal accident on Highway 285 earlier this week, and that had thousands of stranded motorists sitting frustrated on the highway with nowhere to go.

The accident, which was a one car accident that resulted in the driver being hit by several cars, caused problems on both sides of the freeway, as the driver crashed heading in one direction, jumped the median, and was struck by cars going the other way.

Accidents Involving Fatalities Take Longer To Clean Up

Medical Expenses are Leading Cause of Bankruptcy

Published on: August 29, 2012 | By Van Sant Law

Tough economic times have led to record numbers of bankruptcies in Georgia, but another factor causes thousands every year to fall into financial trouble — car or truck accidents that lead to medical expenses.

The cost of medical treatment has skyrocketed over the last decade, and if you have to make a trip to the emergency room as a result of an auto accident, even for a minor injury, your visit could reach into the thousands in medical expenses.

When you’re in an accident that is no fault of your own, someone has to pay for the medical costs. What if you’re in an accident and members of your family are also in the car? Multiple injuries and mounting medical bills can send just about any household over the brink into financial despair, especially when insurance companies are slow to provide relief.

Inadequate Street Lights and Other Hazards Can Cause Accidents

Published on: August 23, 2012 | By Van Sant Law

This week a Missouri woman was hit by a car and killed just a block from her home and area residents blame inadequate street lighting. A Tampa woman was killed by a tanker truck after her car spun off the road. Witnesses say she had ventured to the side of the highway, presumably to flag down help when she was struck and killed. That accident occurred at 3 a.m. today. And yesterday, a 13-year old boy was killed on his bicycle when a truck turning into a gas station in Fairbanks, Alaska, failed to see him crossing the entrance path.

As these examples show,fatal accidents occur under a variety of different circumstances. No matter how careful you think you are, there is always the chance for something unexpected to occur. In those instances, it is important that you know how to find a good attorney.

In the event of personal injury or a terrible fatal accident like the three listed above, next of kin typically will hire an attorney. In Georgia, you need a personal injury attorney who knows how to work with insurance companies, police, medical care providers, as well as an attorney who has experience in court.

Meditation Reduces Stress and Loneliness and Promotes Healing

Published on: August 22, 2012 | By Van Sant Law

Many people experience severe amounts of stress after a car, truck or motorcycle accident. The stress comes as a result of physical and financial stressors that can take their toll on even the healthiest of people with the biggest support networks.

For those accident victims who live alone, that stress can be compounded by loneliness and isolation.

Researches at UCLA have reported that a simple meditation program lasting just eight weeks can reduce loneliness in older adults. The program focuses on training the mind to simply be attentive to the present and not dwell in the past or project into the future. This sort of meditation was shown to successfully reduce the feelings of loneliness and stress.

Family Wins $13 Million in Birth Injury Lawsuit

Published on: August 17, 2012 | By Van Sant Law

Birth injuries can be one of the hardest things for new parents to deal with, especially in the event that it could have been prevented. Birth injuries are often caused as a result of negligence on behalf of the medical professional during the birthing process. Children all over the country are being mishandled during the birth and it is resulting in life long damages. A family in Chicago unfortunately had to suffer the hardship of hearing that when their little baby was born with cerebral palsy. This condition is one that affects the brain and nervous system which then hurts the bodies’ ability to control muscle movement and can affect many other areas of the body as well.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, children who have cerebral palsy by the age of 8, 33% of them have no ability to walk, 11% use walking devices, and 56% can walk independently. Each case is unique and the severity can clearly vary, though the effects will likely affect the children for the remainder of their life. This family decided that what had happened to their precious child could have been prevented. In their lawsuit, the family describes that when the wife went into labor their certified physician wasn’t present so a house doctor oversaw her.

This house doctor had no formal training in obstetrics, the care for the woman’s reproductive parts and the child during the pregnancy throughout the postnatal period, and therefore was uncertified to perform the child labor. Unfortunately for the family, once the certified physician arrived the baby already had extreme damage due to not receiving oxygen; the baby was diagnosed with cerebral palsy soon after. The family took this to a personal injury attorney and filed a claim against the hospital and they were awarded $13 million dollars as a result. Suffering from the medical malpractice or neglect during the labor process is a terrible thing to go through, and now because of this the Chicago family’s baby will forever suffer from cerebral palsy.

Bad Road Design Leads to Terrible Accident

Published on: August 17, 2012 | By Van Sant Law

A recent case we have been following here at the involves a fellow attorney from California who now requires 24 hour care as the result of a tragic motorcycle accident.

David Evans, 66, was a career deputy district attorney in Los Angeles who suffered severe brain and spinal cord injuries when another driver in the lane next to his ended up directily in front of him while compensating for a treacherous turn. A jury in San Bernardino awarded $31 million to him, assigning 15 percent of the blame to CalTrans.

According to evidence in the trial, for years residents had tried to have the road’s dangerous 130 degree left hand turns straightened, widened, or otherwise leveled out to make the road safer. Residents say it was not hard to end up in the other lane because the turns are so severe and the speeds are too fast.

Teen Drivers Need Training and Experience Before Hitting the Road

Published on: August 9, 2012 | By Van Sant Law

Teaching a young person to drive is a serious endeavor. In Georgia, in order to get your driver’s license at 16, you have to complete an approved driver’s education program that includes 40 hours of behind the wheel driving and six hours of night driving with a designated instructor (a parent or guardian).

Driver’s ed used to be taught in the public school system, but over the last few decades private driving schools and online curricula for parent-taught programs have become the norm in most states in this country.

The problem arises when a parent or the designated “teacher” doesn’t take the role seriously. No matter how capable a young person, if you put him or her behind the wheel of a car, you are basically handing over a lethal weapon.

Rising Number of Bike Accidents Lead Some to Record Rides

Published on: August 7, 2012 | By Van Sant Law

Riding a bike can be a lot of fun, but on busy city streets and rural roads, bicycling can be a very dangerous sport. Since only chidlren ages 12 and younger can legally ride on sidewalks, it’s important that motorists and bicyclists learn to share the road.

In some major cities where getting around on a bike can be faster than a car, some cyclists have started wearing helmet cameras. This is particularly true in New York City where bicycle messengers take their lives in their hands every single day. The theory is that, if a motorist thinks he or she is being watched, he or she will be more cautious when passing or turning in front of a cyclist. More importantly, in the event of an accident, evidence is readily available when a helmet cam is being used.

Some bicyclists say that wearing a helmet cam has caused motorists to slow down when driving past them. Others say it encourages drivers to move over farther away from the bike.

Safe Driving is the Key to An Accident Free Summer

Published on: July 25, 2012 | By Van Sant Law

At Van Sant Law, we work with lots of accident victims — people just like you and I who were sometimes viciously injured in an automobile or truck accident. The word accident certainly implies “not anyone’s fault,” but the reality is that most car accidents are the result of mistakes made on the road. To keep yourself safe as you drive this summer, you need to be on the look out for mistakes other drivers may make that could cause you harm. For example:

It’s pretty easy to tell when someone is texting and driving. You see the person staring down instead of ahead. He or she may have slowed to a lesser pace and could be veering to one side of the lane or another. If you see someone exhibiting this behavior, steer clear. Distracted driving causes more accidents than alcohol. It’s become an epidemic cause of accidents, so watch for behavior that indicates someone is distracted with a cell phone, navigation system or other device.

Speeding Is Especially Dangerous During Rain