South Carolina Injury Lawyer Blog

A man working on a vessel owned by the Ensco Offshore Co. has filed a lawsuit against the company after being injured on the job. Allegedly, a pallet that was being lifted fell on him while aboard the Ensco 82. The man, a Mississippi resident, suffered head and spinal injuries.

The original petition claims the Ensco Offshore Co. were negligent in the accident and that the vessel was not seaworthy at the time of the incident. In addition to the physical injuries incurred by the plaintiff there is a claim he has experienced mental anguish and a loss of wages. In total, the lawsuit seeks to claim $75,000 in damages.

The lawsuit was filed on the first of December 2010 in the Galveston Division of the Southern District of Texas. The alleged injury took place back in May 2010.

This incident is particularly relevant to Charleston job injury lawyers because the port of Charleston is large economic force in the area, employing many people. But, while it provides job opportunities, work as a seaman, longshoreman, and harbor work in general is dangerous and often leads to serious injuries and even death.

Continue reading " Injured Seaman Sues and Sparks Discussion " »

Charleston personal injury attorneys know the decision to move disabled or elderly family members into a nursing home is never easy, but once that decision is made, families trust that loved ones will be properly cared for while under the supervision of the home's staff. Unfortunately, the quality of care families expect is not always met. In such cases, much like the following, it is important for families to take legal action against those who are liable for compromising the well being of their loved ones, as this process helps to prevent future similar incidents of injury and wrongful death.

An elderly veteran and retired Philadelphia police officer froze to death after wandering from a state veterans home New Year's Eve 2007 and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania agreed to pay $250,000 to his family and estate, settling a negligence and wrongful death claim. The 75-year-old man ambled away from the Delaware Valley Veterans Home in Northeast Pennsylvania at 5:30 p.m. on December 31, surveillance footage included in court records also showed the elderly gentlemen walk past a security desk unnoticed, while garbed only in his pajamas.

Records also show that several staff members were suspended or admonished for their inattention to the man. One of the aides decided to quit rather than submit to questioning, state officials later learned this particular employee had previously been convicted of stalking. The Pennsylvania Department of Health inspection report specified that the veterans home staff failed to take timely action, which resulted in the residents actual harm and eventual death.

Continue reading " Elderly Man Walks Out of Nursing Home Unnoticed, Freezes to Death " »

Whether its students, shoppers, or professionals rushing back to the office after lunch, the downtown area of Charleston is rampant with jaywalkers, an issue put in print by Post and Courier columnist Ken Burger last week. But without formal laws on the city books to penalize those objecting designated crosswalks there is little in the way of enforcing safe street crossing, limiting the city's ability to try and prevent pedestrian accidents. While there are some state codes against prohibiting unlawful street crossing, officers have a whole lot more on their minds than a shopper hopping from store to store without using a crosswalk.

Unfortunately, and South Carolina auto accident attorneys have noticed, there have been a number of jaywalkers paying an extreme price for not utilizing crosswalks, in the form of serious injuries and deaths. Over the past five years 18 pedestrians have been killed while crossing Holy City streets, there were five deaths in the last year alone, and in none of the incidents were the victims using a crosswalk.

Continue reading " Charleston and Pedestrians: An Un-Lovely Affair " »

A Brooklyn, New York woman has filed a lawsuit against Coney Island Hospital, claiming that hospital staff botched a routine injection to help treat her diabetes. Allegedly, back in April 2008 the 55-year-old woman went to the hospital for treatment, the staff hooked her up to intravenous solutions, but missed her veins in both arms, allowing potassium chloride to rot and eat away the skin around her elbow and underlying tissue. In general, any IV solution that leaks out of the vein can cause irritation or bruising, but the serious injuries and damage done in this incident represent an extremely unusual occurrence.

Since the negligent incident, she has hired an experienced medical malpractice attorney to assist her in claiming the damages she, and her legal representative, feel she is entitled.

The city has offered a settlement, but it is not an amount that seems satisfactory to the woman's lawyer who claims she suffered damages "in the millions." Despite this claim the city is not willing to budge on the unspecified amount offered. The case was heard in Brooklyn Supreme Court in November as part of the court's effort to mediate, this and other, medical malpractice cases. It was at this hearing that the woman's attorney rejected the paltry amount offered by the city. It was reported the injured woman felt insulted by the figure.

Continue reading " Woman With Diabetes Sues Hospital Over Negligent Treatment " »

This is the second of a two part post concerning guns and gun control in the United States. With the recent shooting that caused serious injuries and wrongful deaths in Arizona, gun regulations have come under scrutiny, but as mentioned in Part 1, scrutiny hardly materializes into legislative change. This all happens to come as major American gun manufacturer, Remingtion, has been investigated for defects reported in their 700-series rifle.

South Carolina wrongful death attorneys know the importance Remington has played in history as an iconic American gun manufacturer, they also know South Carolinians enjoy recreational hunting and can be seriously injured or killed by defective firearms.

A 10-month investigation by news source CNBC recently uncovered thousands of complaints and over 75 lawsuits against Remington for alleged unintentional discharges from the 700-series rifle. The Remington 700 is an extremely popular model with over 5 million units sold, yielding America's oldest company still producing its original products hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue over the last 60 years. Remington tags the Model 700-series as the "firearm of choice" for America's military and law enforcement communities.

Continue reading " Howell and Christmas, LLC On Guns: Part 2 of 2 " »

In lieu of recent tragic events in Arizona, large arms manufacturer Remington coming "Underfire," and the reevaluation of gun laws in the United States, Charleston personal injury attorneys have decided to take a look at the "gun issue."

In regards to the Arizona shootings that caused serious brain injuries to democratic congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords after her being shot in the head, there is much debate as to whether tighter gun control will prevent similar incidents to the Tucson shooting that took six lives of the 19 shot by crazed, indicted gunman Jared Loughner. Now, two weeks after the shooting, Gifford is able to stand, but her rehabilitation is just starting. She will have to relearn to think and to plan, and it is uncertain at this point if she able to speak or how well she can see.

The shooting has left legislators ill at ease, some are concerned for their own safety and some are calling into question the relatively easy process of obtaining powerful assault rifles in the U.S. But, there are those on Capitol Hill who maintain their position that individuals are entitled to bear arms, as the second amendment puts it, and would describe mass shootings like the one in Tucson as an "isolated incident."

Continue reading " Howell and Christmas, LLC On Guns: Part 1 of 2 " »

This post is the conclusion of a three part post discussing a fatal auto accident in which the poor condition of an Alabama interstate played a central role. Part one can be accessed by clicking here, and part two can be found here.

South Carolina auto accident lawyers mentioned in the last remarks of Part 2, both drivers in the incident were not found at fault because it was determined by an investigation conducted by Alabama state troopers that both drivers were observing the speed limit and driving in a safe manner. It was also determined, and noted in the official report, that the defective highway conditions were a contributor to the serious auto accident that killed a wife and mother of two pre-schoolers.

Unfortunately, the federal government does not keep statistics on how many auto accidents and deaths are caused by poor road maintenance. So it is difficult to determine the frequency of such sad incidents that occur similar to that of the Goose Creek family that has been discussed over the past two posts. However, it is known that of the 123,470 wrecks involving motor vehicles last year in Alabama, 33 of those were on roads with ruts, potholes, bumps, and crumbles, according to state trooper reports and study done for the Associated Press by the Center for Advanced Public Safety at the University of Alabama. The study concluded that none of the injuries incurred in those 33 wrecks were directly blamed for the condition of the road, nor were there any deaths. Interesting results as they somewhat suggest the event discussed over the last two posts was some sort of freak accident.

Continue reading " Highway's Defects Cause Wrongful Death: Part 3 of 3 " »

Following is the second of the three part post concerning dangerous highway defects. Click here to view the first installment.

An investigation by Alabama state troopers established that the Camry’s right rear tire struck the pothole projecting the fatal fragment into the air and eventually into the South Carolina family’s pickup. The young woman driving the Camry was not ticketed and claims she did have the chance to avoid the rocky depression in the road and couldn’t have stopped in time to miss the pothole.

Under an open records request by the Associated Press, photos released by the Alabama Department of Transportation show the investigated pothole had been repaired at least once prior to the accident. Indications of this repair were differences in color between new concrete and the older road, as well as evidence that both the repair and the old pavement were crumbling.

Continue reading " Highway's Defects Cause Wrongful Death: Part 2 of 3 " »

Over the holidays South Carolina Auto Accident Lawyers came across an article in the Post and Courier that outlines an unfortunate incident that resulted in a beloved wife and mother's death. Due to the length of the article and seriousness of the incident, involving highly unsafe highway defects, this entry will be divided into three parts.

Last March while returning to their home in Goose Creek, a family of four, traveling in a green Ford pickup suffered a fatal blow, but not from another vehicle traveling on the interstate, but from a piece of the interstate itself. The couple was sitting in the front of the truck, husband driving and wife riding, with their two young children in safety seats behind them when an Alabama fragment of Interstate 20 came through the windshield striking the wife, causing serious head injuries, narrowly missing the pre-schoolers, and flying out the truck’s cab.

The fatal fragment came from a recently repaired pothole; a pocket of jagged bits of concrete covering half of the slow lane, and was flung into the air by a 1995 Toyota Camry. The driver of the Camry was a single mother who was simply giving a friend a ride to the other side of the Georgia line. Although the 23 year-old driver knows she was not at fault in the accident, it is reported she is still haunted by the incident, especially since her only form of transportation remains her blue 1995 Camry.

Continue reading " Highway's Defects Cause Wrongful Death: Part 1 of 3 " »

Charleston Workers' Compensation Attorneys know in most workers' comp suits there is a serious need for the injured party to be compensated in order to pay medical bills, household utilities, receive the wages they are entitled, and generally take care of themselves and their family. However, there are those out there who act deviently and try to take advantage of the system through fraudulent claims.

Such is the case of a Los Angeles police detective who has been charged with more than half a dozen felony counts in connection with a workers' compensation fraud investigation, recently announced by the Los Angeles County District Attorney's office. The charges stem from a joint investigation by the Los Angeles Police Department's Workers' Compensation Fraud Unit and the District Attorney's Healthcare Fraud Division.

Prosecutors officially charged the 15-year LAPD veteran with four counts of insurance fraud and one count each of perjury by declaration, attempted perjury under oath, and attempted grand theft. The detective was released after posting $120,000 bond.

Continue reading " Workers' Compensation Fraud and the LAPD " »

Not too long ago a Pennsylvania jury awarded two melters working at Ametek Special Metal Products $12.7 million. Back in 2003 the two men were working in the North Strabane, PA plant overseeing melting operations when the specialty metals furnace exploded, spraying the 44-and 45-year-old men with molten metal causing severe burn injuries. The lawsuit names the manufacturer of the furnace as defendants, including Inductotherm Group, Allied Minerals, and Vesuvius USA Corp.

The furnace exploded due to a lining failure, allowing the molten metal to come into contact with a copper coil filled with ethylene-glycol and water, resulting in a chemical reaction and explosion, which ejected hot, liquid metal across the workplace. Defective products and machinery such as this furnace pose a serious threat to their operators and workers around them. In the United States burn injuries similar to those incurred by the aforementioned melters are responsible for approximately 2.4 million injuries a year and can be debilitating and keep you away from work.

Continue reading " South Carolina Work Injury Attorneys Look At Huge Industrial Accident Verdict " »

The family of a truck driver have filed a suit against the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) and several companies in an effort to receive damages for the wrongful death of the 56-year-old driver. The plaintiffs allege negligence on the loading dock and at the Bay Bridge's dangerous S-curve . The driver was killed after his pear carrying semi toppled off the bridge, plunging 200 feet.

The suit against Caltrans claims the S-curve, introduced to drivers as part of the rebuilding of the Bay Bridge, did not have adequate warning signs to inform drivers to the then new curve. The suit was filed in the San Francisco Superior Court by experienced wrongful death lawyers and asserts that the public was not aware of the sharp curves nor to the extent at which drivers should reduce their to safely navigate them, without the opportunity to take the necessary precautions. In a sense the new route was a "concealed surprise."

Continue reading " Charleston Truck Accident Attorneys Focus on Wrongful Death Case " »

While reading an out of state paper on the job accident attorneys in South Carolina came across a case where a city worker received workers' compensation benefits injuries incurred while being drunk on the job. The Albuquerque Journal reported that the New Mexico state Court of Appeals ruled in favor of a Las Cruces truck driver who fell off his garbage truck while working back in 2006. He has been awarded 90 percent of his benefits, the full amount less a 10 percent penalty for his being inebriated at the time of the slip and fall. The city now owes the man more than $100,000.

Allegedly the man had been drinking the night before with a friend and later in the evening at a bar. His measured blood-alcohol level was at 0.12 three and a half hours after the 5:45 a.m. slip and fall, well over New Mexico's presumed level of intoxication. In most states a blood-alcohol percentage of .08 is considered the legal limit for individuals being capable of operating a motor vehicle.

In the court's decision it is noted that the truck driver failed to clock in the morning of the accident, possibly in an attempt to avoid supervisors, personnel at the hospital smelled alcohol on the man's breath, that his co-workers had not noticed any impairment, and that he had been driving the garbage truck for at least an hour before his fall, which caused serious injuries to his wrist, hip, and head.

Continue reading " Charleston Workers' Compensation Lawyers Find Interesting Case Over Holidays " »

Considering there are many owners and drivers of BMW vehicles in the Charleston area, South Carolina auto accident attorneys wanted to pass on the announcement of two recalls in the German designed vehicles. The recall affects 150,800 autos and BMW of North America has notified government officials of the potential fuel pump failures in some of their models.

The defective product recall directly affects 130,000 of its 2007-2010 models that use their twin-turbo inline six-cylinder engines for the potential of their high-pressure fuel pump to fail. Separately the auto maker has recalled 20,800 of the 2008 model of their popular X5 crossover with the normally-aspirated inline six-cylinder to replace the low-pressure fuel pump.

According to BMW the high-pressure fuel pump issue can be simply fixed with a software update, but 40,000 of the vehicles are expected to need an entirely new pump. The specific models affected are the 2007-2010 335i, 2008-2010 135i, 535i, and X6, and the 2009-2010 Z4.

In the case of the 2008 X5 the problem can be more serious, if the fuel pump fails, the engine will stop running and the driver will lose power steering and power assistance for the brakes, although both will remain operational. The power steering and power brakes are still functional, but drivers do not have as much power as they are accustomed and that can be startling for some people.

Continue reading " Attention South Carolina BMW Owners, Recall for 150,800 Vehicles " »