South Carolina Injury Lawyer Blog

Charleston wrongful death lawyers report on serious case. Matthew Lamar Jackson and Tyrone Akeen Gleaton entered an Alford Plea and also plead guilty to armed robbery charges Monday, February 8, 2010. The victim, Marquez Tyler, went missing in November 2008. The nine-teen year old’s body was found under an overturned bathtub in Aiken County in February 2009. The boy was a victim of a South Carolina wrongful death. This was a relief to the Tyler family that their loved one was no longer missing, but not the outcome they had been praying for.

The Alford Plea stems from the United States Supreme Court case North Carolina vs. Alford in 1970. In this case Henry Alford was charged with first-degree murder in 1963. Alford admitted to committing the murder but would not admit to the murder in court. Alford pled guilty to second-degree murder and was sentenced into thirty years in jail. Alford claimed he plead guilty to the second-degree murder charge in order to avoid the death penalty. This was later overturned in court when Henry Alford appealed his case numerous times saying he was forced to plead guilty to the second-degree murder charge out of fear of capital punishment. Supreme Court Justice Byron White ruled that the guilty plea still stands as is, even though Henry Alford was still proclaiming his innocence.

If the accused enters an Alford Plea they are able to maintain their innocence but are admitting that there is enough evidence against them to convince a jury and a judge that they are guilty. An Alford Plea is defined by the Dictionary of Politics: Selected American and Foreign Political and Legal Terms as “a plea under which a defendant may choose to plead guilty, not because of an admission to the crime, but because the prosecutor has sufficient evidence to place a charge and to obtain conviction in court. The plea is commonly used in local and state courts in the United States.”

Matthew Jackson and Tyrone Gleaton both were sentenced to fifteen years in prison after entering their Alford Plea for the voluntary manslaughter of Marquez Tyler. When Tyler’s body was found in February 2009,Tim Carlton, Aiken County Corner, ruled that Tyler died from a gun shot wound in November of 2008.

Source: The Post and Courier- “Two Men Enter Pleas in 2008 death in SC.” February 9, 2010.

South Carolina bus accident attorneys, Howell and Christmas, LLC, want you to know that last year a Texas bus crash killed 17 people and after further examination it seems that the accident was easily preventable. “It was a perfect storm of gross negligence on the part of multiple parties,” Yen-Chi Le, from Huston who lost her mother in the bus crash expressed after attending the hearing. The serious bus accident, one of the worst in U.S. history, occurred in August 2008, when a bus chartered by the Vietnamese Catholic community launched over a bridge 60 miles north of Dallas, Texas. The bus was carrying 55 passengers.

After an investigation the National Transportation Safety Board determined that the front right tire had been punctured before and had been retreaded poorly. Due to the retreading the tire was under inflated and was punctured again. Front axle tire retreading is prohibited by Federal regulations. Bus drivers should check tire pressure before each journey and new buses are to be equipped with tire pressure gages that monitor tire pressure.

How are bus restrictions and guidelines mandated? The Texas Department of Public Safety is responsible of overseeing buses and reissuing licenses to owners/companies after they have passed proper safety inspections. The bus involved in this crash was inspected 8 days before the accident. How did this bus pass the inspection, when retread is prohibited on front axle tires? Someone overlooked it at Five Minute Inspections, the Houston inspection company that preformed the inspection just eight days before the accident.

Obviously Five Minute Inspections, needs to take more than five minutes when inspecting buses that will be carrying large parties because they are not only a time bomb for passengers, they are also an enormous liability for other motorists who can be seriously injured in a bus crash.

Source: The State- “NTSB Probe: Tire Puncture caused Texas Bus Crash.” October 27, 2009.

South Carolina sexual abuse lawyers want you to know that Circuit Judge Roger Young showed now mercy during Robert Brooks sentencing. Brooks was arrested in September 2008, on a third-degree criminal sexual assault charge. The North Charleston native had sex with the woman 2008 and went unreported for some time, until the victim told a staff member of the group home she was residing in about the assault.

The twist in the story is the most disheartening of all. The woman had an IQ of 48; therefore, she is legally unable to consent to having sex. Assistant Solicitor Tyler Whitacker explained that cases like this normally go unreported because the victims have a hard time articulating what occurred and many times do not have the ability to put into words details to incriminate their attacker.

Typically when the accused pleads guilty to a charge they receive a break in their sentencing. Not in this case. Brooks pled guilty to the third-degree criminal sexual conduct charge but did not receive a break. He was sentenced to ten years in jail. Brooks record is also tarnished with a lewd act against a minor in 1995. In ten years from now when Brooks is released he will undergo examination under the Sexually Violent Predators Act, which will determine if he is fit to be released back into society.

Source: The Post and Courier- “Man Pleads Guilty in Sex Crimes Case.” January 17, 2010.

South Carolina car accident lawyers want you to know that when you are behind the wheel on the interstate it is imperative that you are cautious and alert. Interstate 26 eastbound towards Charleston has been reported to have “hail storms,” of deteriorating asphalt. Drivers need to be aware of this situation and be prepared for any flying loose debris. These storms can cause serious Charleston car accidents that could result in death, but should this really be an added responsibility drivers need to endure?

Rocks and loose gravel cause accidents in South Carolina and damage to cars every year. When a car is traveling around or at the speed limit, a loose rock popping the windshield can startle drivers, especially inexperienced drivers or elderly drivers. Many times loose asphalt cracks windshields and alters or even worse prohibits the drivers ability to see the road.

When leaving the Charleston area the stretch of asphalt on I-26 westbound is around ten years old, which is the “end of its life cycle,” Michael Black, district maintenance engineer for the South Carolina Department of Transportation expressed. So what is going to be done you may ask?

$6.35 million dollars of taxpayer money will be used to resurface these poorly paved and engineered roads. The resurfacing will encompass the area of I-26 between the Summerville exit to the newer concrete sections in North Charleston. Unfortunately, the resurfacing cannot begin until temperatures rise. For many locals this is not soon enough.

Continue reading " Charleston Drivers- Look out for Loose Asphalt on I-26 " »

South Carolina workers compensation lawyers want you to know that after a six month investigation the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) administered its largest fine, 86 million dollars, to BP PLC after finding multiple safety hazards. In 2005 an explosion killed 15 employees and injured 170 others in the Texas City refinery. “An $87 million fine won’t restore those lives, but we can’t let this happen again. Workplace safety is more than a slogan. It’s the law,” Labor Secretary Hilda Solis stated addressing OSHA’s fine.

The second highest fine OSHA has issued, was $21 million dollars and was also issued to BP. It is apparent that OSHA and BP do not see eye to eye and have had numerous disagreements in the past. Currently OSHA and BP PLC have taken their disagreement in workplace conditions before the Occupational Health and Safety Review Commission and their verdict is still pending.

Keith Casey spoke on behalf of BP PLC and expressed his annoyance with OSHA and how they fined them while their disagreements are still under review with the Occupational Health and Safety Review Commission. “We strongly disagree with their conclusions, we will continue to work with the agency to resolve our differences,” Casey stated.

The explosion that injured hundreds and killed 15 was a result to a malfunctioning pressure relief system. Refining oil is a very dangerous process, and because of this equipment needs to be constantly checked and tested. In this case the alarms did not sound to warn workers that the blowdown drum had overfilled. The blowdown drum is a piece of equipment that is part of the refining process that is filled with highly flammable liquid, and is regulated by pressure relief systems.

Continue reading " For Charleston Accident Lawyers: BP fined $87 Million for poor Workplace Conditions " »

South Carolina Brain injury lawyers recently learned that Adrien Gault had played football all of his life, but after suffering numerous concussions and somehow still being awarded clearance to play by the district, Gault slipped into a coma and suffered a subdural hematoma. Gault filed suit against Sequim Chiropractic Clinic owner and operator Dr. Robert D. Bean and his wife, as well as the Sequim School District. Gault filed his suit for damages from his brain injury in 2006 with the Clallam County Superior Court on January 13, 2010.

After suffering numerous concussions one may wonder how Adrien Gault was still allowed to play football and why he was not taken out of the game after a pre-game concussion on October 20, 2006. The district and district doctors never told him he was unfit to play.

Gault was violently hit in a warm up drill before the October 20, 2006, game versus North Mason High School. He played a full quarter of the game and part of the second quarter before complaining of headaches and being taken out of the game. What happened next alarmed coaches, teammates, and fans.

Gault collapsed on the sidelines and was carried off the field. Just hours later, he suffered a subdural hematoma, which is when the brain swells and bleeds as a result to a traumatic brain injury. Gault was then airlifted to a neighboring hospital where they had to remove part of his skull to reduce pressure on the brain. After this horrifying incident the plaintiff does not have full control of his left arm, has constant headaches, and cannot remember things at times.

The plaintiff alleges that the proper medical attention was not sought out after he complained of headaches following the hit he endured in warm-ups. Usually medical attention is required if a player complains of headaches, due to the common nature of concussions in football. Concussions, especially players who have suffered concussions before, are not to be taken lightly.

Source: Peninsula Daily News- “Former Sequim Football Player Sues District, Chiropractor over Brain Injury.” January 22, 2010.

South Carolina injured Veterans need to know that the Associated Press reported on January 25, 2010, that the military is going to open a review of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) cases due to veteran claims that they were denied benefits. The military has requested that the records of veterans discharged with PTSD be expedited and placed under review, after a case was filed by seven veterans who allege that the military denied them benefits after being discharged with the disorder. The veterans that are capable of having their records reviewed would have been discharged for PTSD in a six year period, ending in October of 2008.

The military is required to rate veterans that are discharged on a rating scale to determine the benefits and medical reimbursement they will receive. The seven PTSD discharge veterans who originated the case received a rating of 10 percent or less. This violates the law because the law requires the military to give veterans discharged for PTSD a rating of 50 percent or greater. The higher rating grants veterans lifelong disability payments and free health care for the veteran and their family.

Veterans that were discharged during this six year period are urged to request the review of their records, because the military could be held liable to pay veterans millions and hundreds of more dollars in monthly benefits. Legal notices have been sent out to veterans, around 4,300 to be exact, letting them know they can join the lawsuit until July 24, 2010.

“I’m glad that they are finally moving forward and reevaluating the soldiers that need to be reevaluated and doing the right thing. It’s been kind of a struggle not only for myself but a lot of individuals that didn’t get what they were supposed to get in the first place,” Army Sergeant Juan Perez, 36, told the press when describing his hardships as a result of PTSD.

Source: CBS News- “Vets With PTSD Could Get Benefits Upgrade.” January 25, 2010.

South Carolina Drug Injury Lawyers ask: do you take Tylenol PM to help you sleep, do you give your child Children’s Motrin to reduce fever or pain, or have you taken Tylenol arthritis lately? Examine your medicine bottles now because Johnson and Johnson has now expanded their over the counter South Carolina medication recall, due to the medications moldy smell, which has made some users sick.

The recall now includes the following popular medications: regular and extra-strength Tylenol, Children’s Tylenol, eight-hour Tylenol, Tylenol arthritis, Tylenol PM, Motrin IB, Children’s Motrin, Rolaids, Benadryl, Simply Sleep, and St. Joseph’s aspirin.

This extended recall covers all forms of pills that were sold in the United States, United Arab Emirates, and Fiji. Reported side effects from the smell of the medication include nausea, stomach pain, vomiting, and diarrhea. For complete recall list visit mcneilproductrecall.com.

Federal regulators at the Food and Drug Administration are not pleased with how Johnson and Johnson’s McNeil Consumer Heathcare Products have handled this situation, claiming that the manufacturer should have made the recall in a more timely manner. Deborah Autor, the director of the FDA’s Office, expressed her concern with the company’s lack of immediate response and also stated that “when something smells bad, literally or figuratively, companies must aggressively investigate and take all necessary action to solve the problem.”

Medication recalls are common but are not to be taken lightly. You and your loved ones should not suffer from undisclosed side effects. If you think you have taken a prescription or over the counter medication that has been recalled and have experienced any bizarre side effects please call a drug injury lawyer.

Source: The Post and Courier- “Johnson & Johnson Expands Medication Recall.”January 16, 2010

Four people were killed after a car was hit by an Amtrack train in Hardeeville, South Carolina. Three adults and a 12-year-old child were in the car when it collided with the train. All of the car's passengers were killed on impact, but none of the 20 passengers and five crew members aboard the Amtrack train were hurt.

The southbound train was on its way to Savannah, Georgia from Charleston. The train versus car wreck occurred when the driver of the car tried to steer around a crossing arm to beat the train. The train pushed the car about a mile down the tracks before it was able to stop.

This train accident is one that could easily have been avoided if the driver of the car had simply obeyed common traffic laws. Because the driver was driving aggressively and recklessly, four lives were unnecessarily lost. It is important to consider the consequences of your actions when you are behind the wheel and to follow all traffic laws in order to ensure the safety of other drivers and passengers.

Source: Associated Press- "4 dead in car-train crash near SC-GA state line"- November 17, 2009.

A head-on car accident in western Pennsylvania recently killed three students from Edinboro University. The crash occurred when one car tried to pass another vehicle at the top of a hill and hit an oncoming car.

18-year-old Domenico Crea was driving the car with that attempted the pass. Neither she nor the 18-year-old passenger, John Eyrolles were wearing their seat belts and both were killed on impact. The driver of the other vehicle, 21-year-old Sheldon Harmon, was also killed in the crash.

Source: Associated Press- "Head-on crash kills 3 college students in Pa."- November 12, 2009.