Jul 13, 2012 | Brain Injury/Head Trauma, Uncategorized
Bicycling accounts for a surprising number of injuries and deaths, many of them caused by traumatic brain and head injuries. About 90% of bicycling fatalities are cyclists over the age of 16. About 85% of the deaths were individuals who were not wearing helmets. The estimated number of bicycling head injuries that require a hospital visit exceed the total of all head injury cases related to baseball, football, skateboards, kick scooters, horseback riding, snowboarding, ice hockey, in-line skating and lacrosse.
- 618 bicyclists died on US roads in 2010 (630 in 2009. 1,003 back in 1975)
- Bicyclists 15 and under killed: 67. (11%) Injured: 12,000 (23%)
- Bicyclist deaths represented 2 per cent of all 2010 traffic fatalities.
- 52,000 bicyclists were injured in traffic 1n 2010 (51,000 in 2009)
- Average age of a bicyclist killed on US roads: 41
- Average age of a bicyclist injured on US roads: 31
- Alcohol involvement (car driver or bike rider) was reported in 34% of 2010 deaths.
- More than one fifth (23%) of the cyclists killed were drunk. (Blood alcohol concentration over .08 g/dl)
- Fatal crashes typically were urban (72%) and not at intersections (67%).
The Personal Injury Attorneys of Reeves, Aiken & Hightower
If you or a loved one has been injured or killed in an accident, you need an experienced personal injury attorney like those at Reeves, Aiken & Hightower. Review our credentials, make sure that we are right for you, and call us at 877-374-5999, or contact us here, for a free private consultation. Let us help you evaluate your claim.
Jul 13, 2012 | Trucking/Tractor-Trailer Accidents, Uncategorized
Cargo shifting is a common cause of tractor trailer accident, but there was a dramatic illustration of that fact week before last.
The police investigation in a Rhode Island tractor trailer crash determined the semi crash was caused by improperly loading the cargo of bananas. The box trailer had been loaded full of bananas by Chiquita, apparently improperly. They were issued a citation for improper loading of cargo.
The truck driver apparently was driving completely safely, wasn’t speeding, and wasn’t, when out of no where, the cargo of bananas shifted in the trailer of the truck and caused the truck to crash into a gas main, injuring the driver and starting a fire that burnt down a historic building.
In cases cargo shifting, if the tractor trailer had injured an individual, that individual would have a good personal injury claim against whatever entity was responsible for loading the box trailer, but not the carrier and probably not the driver.
The Trucking Attorneys of Reeves, Aiken & Hightower
If you or someone you know has been injured or killed in a trucking accident, you need the help of a serious trucking attorney like those at Reeves, Aiken & Hightower. Review our credentials, make sure we are right for you, and then call us at 877-374-5999, or contact us at this link, to schedule a free, private consultation. We can help you evaluate your claim and get you the recovery you deserve.
Jul 13, 2012 | Premises Liability, Uncategorized
We have all heard about slip and fall cases, but there is another huge source of premises liability, and that is negligence in security.
When you are a patron of a business, you are entitled not only to assume that the floors are nice and dry providing good traction, but also to assume that your safety will be provided for to a certain extent. This is partially the reason why malls have security guards and the whole reason why clubs have bouncers. Club owners know that they are serving the clubbers alcohol and that folks with alcohol are rowdy. Thus, club owners are required to make some efforts to keep patrons safe.
The usual rule that individuals are never liable for the criminal conduct of others is bent in negligent security cases resulting in personal injury because the law treats business owner’s tort against a business invitee differently than a tort between two unrelated individuals. If the business owner could have reasonably expected that the personal injury would occur or actually knew about the security problem and failed to fix the problem, they will be liable under the negligent security theory for damages caused by personal injury.
The Personal Injury Lawyers at Reeves, Aiken & Hightower
If you or someone you know have been injured or killed at a business, seek help from an experienced personal injury attorney like those at Reeves, Aiken & Hightower. Review our credentials, make sure we are right for you, and call us at 877-374-5999, or contact us at this link, to schedule a free, private consultation. We can help you evaluate your claim and get you the recovery you deserve.
Jul 13, 2012 | Car Accidents, Uncategorized
According to the Accident Claim Company of England, claims for car accident injuries and whiplash claims are increasing, even though actual car accidents are decreasing in number as British roads become safer. Apparently, the press there is beginning to believe that the litigation culture is worse there than in the US.
In the UK, becoming a lawyer requires far less schooling than in the US. In addition, the US was historically more progressive when it came to recognizing tort claims for personal injury.
Others are characterize the UK trend in car accident claims in other terms. They believe that even though auto accidents have become fewer, that as British citizens become more tech savvy and are surrounded by more information, they have become more knowledgeable about what is owed to them. Few are willing to argue that individuals who are injured should bear cost of their injury when they have been severely injured, even in an ordinary auto accident.
The Car Accident Attorneys of Reeves, Aiken & Hightower
If you or a loved one has been injured or killed in a car accident, you need a serious car accident attorney like those at Reeves, Aiken & Hightower. Review our credentials, make sure that we are right for you, and call us at 877-374-5999, or contact us here, for a private consultation.
Jul 13, 2012 | Brain Injury/Head Trauma, Uncategorized
The American Orthopedic Society for Sports Medicine now reports that college football players are receiving brain injuries at similar rates to high school players. Until recently, the focus on brain injury in sports has rested solidly on high school football injuries. Now a study by this orthopedic society shows that concussions are increasing amongst the service academies players.
This information is all the more shocking due to the nature of the game played by the service academies. Recently, the service academies tend to play schedules dominated by teams that would seem to allow the schools less severe collisions between helmets. The severity of injury must be expected to be greater in the power conferences where the collisions between helmets would be more forceful causing greater injuries.
It may however be that the service academies face a greater risk of head injury due to the schedules they play. The schedules tend to be split between games where they are heavily overmatched by power conference teams and games where they are on a level playing field with their conference colleagues. The result may be that being unprepared for rougher play they are more apt to receive severe head injury.
Luckily, most head injuries in college football are not very severe, mostly concussions. The number of reports of brain injury at the services academies was 23 in the 2009 season and 42 in the 2010 season, which should be alarming given the total number of players involved was around 450.
The Brain Injury Attorneys of Reeves, Aiken & Hightower
If you or someone you know have been injured or killed by a traumatic brain injury, seek help from an experienced brain injury attorney like those at Reeves, Aiken & Hightower. Review our credentials, make sure we are right for you, and call us at 877-374-5999, or contact us at this link, to schedule a free, private consultation. We can help you evaluate your claim and get you the recovery you deserve.
Jul 12, 2012 | DUI & DWI, Uncategorized
The number 0.08% is important in South Carolina DUI (driving under the influence) prosecution. That is true. However, the state of South Carolina can and will aggressively prosecute a DUI against an individual who had less than a 0.08% blood alcohol content (BAC).
The state will do this because DUI requires, not a 0.08% BAC, but
- presence of alcohol or other intoxicating substance in the body, and
- impairment of ability to drive safely.
If an individual is physically impaired at the time of arrest, as evidenced in the police car video, the audio recording, or the officer’s testimony, a jury can, and some juries will, convict individuals who blow far less than a 0.08%.
The SC DUI Attorneys of Reeves, Aiken & Hightower
No matter what your blood alcohol concentration was, if you have been charged with DUI, you need experienced DUI representation. At Reeves, Aiken & Hightower, you can trust that you will get the representation you deserve from attorneys with extensive DUI experience. When you need help, call us at 877-374-5999, or contact us at this link, for a free, private consultation.
