Postal Workers Most at Risk of Dog Bites
May 29th, 2011 by Rosanne Lim. No Comments »
It probably comes as no surprise for many: some mail carriers face a daily risk of dog bites depending on the area they service. The United Postal Service released the list of US cities where postal workers suffer the most dog bites. Houston ranked first with 62 attacks followed by San Antonio with 39 attacks. In total, 3,000 mail carriers were attacked by dogs in 2010 alone.
Most of the attacks occur when letter carriers deliver mail to a house with an outdoor dog. While they usually carry around a pepper spray to keep the dog at bay, it is not always enough to prevent injuries. Their mail satchel can also be used to defend against dogs although this won’t be sufficient to hinder very aggressive dogs.
Postal workers can refuse to deliver mail to a house where the dogs are not secured properly. The Postal Service urges pet owners to ensure that their dogs are secured when the letter carriers arrive. This is especially important if the dog is large and aggressive. If and when an attack occurs, the victim can file a lawsuit against the dog owner.
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Ford Settles Lawsuit Involving Death of a Police Officer
May 19th, 2011 by Rosanne Lim. No Comments »
On Dec. 30, 2009, the Ford Motor Co. agreed to pay $1,925,000 to settle a suit filed by the family of a police officer who died from injuries sustained in a car accident.
In 2005, Officer Mark Simmons Jr. was a passenger in a 2000 Ford Crown Victoria police car when it was rear-ended by a pickup truck. The victim’s family alleged that the support and anchor mechanisms on Simmons’s seat failed due to design and manufacturing defects. These defects caused him to be violently thrown to the back of the car and seriously injured.
Simmons, a father of two young children, sustained severe brain damage in the accident and died in 2008.
Ford argued the seat, which met all government safety standards, was safe. It also contended that Simmons’s injuries were caused by the severe nature of the accident and his failure to wear a seat belt, but despite these contentions, the company ultimately agreed to the settlement.
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Golfer Injures Eye and Loses the Case
April 23rd, 2011 by Rosanne Lim. No Comments »
How safe is it to play golf these days? One golfer sustained traumatic retinal detachment after getting hit on the eye with a golf ball. The golfer sued his buddy but it was dismissed in court. Gold injuries can be severe and the lawsuits involving golfing have been increasing in recent years. However, commentators, courts, and even think tanks have said that there are only certain situations wherein liability can arise due to misdirected golf shots. This raises many questions such as “Will a golfer’s case be dismissed because he was out of position?
In the case of Anand v. Kapoor, both plaintiff and defendant hit two shots on the first hold. Dr. Anand was 20 feet ahead and was at angle of around 50 degrees away from the hole. Without seeing Dr. Anand, Dr. Kapoor hit the ball. It was a poor shot as it shanked 50-80 degrees and went towards the green 20 feet smack into Dr. Anand’s eye.
In the lawsuit, the injured golfer claimed that Dr. Kapoor should have yelled “fore” to make other golfer’s aware that his shot was out of line. But the defendant said that the plaintiff knew that golfers should wait behind those who are playing to avoid injuries. In addition, the defendant said that the obligation to yell fore only arise when another golfer is in the intended line of sight and is in a position wherein danger to him is anticipated.
At that point in time, Dr. Anand was not in the intended line of sight nor was he in an area that can be perceived as dangerous. The court notes that while golfers have a duty to provide timely warnings, the facts of this case reveal that the plaintiff was at an angle away from the defendant and the intended line of sight. Therefore, he was not within the foreseeable danger zone.
Due to the doctrine of assumption of risk, the court decided in favor of the defendant. The plaintiff is barred from seeking compensation for injuries because he has voluntarily engaged in an activity that he knew or should have known has a risk of injury.
Pit Dog Owner Refuses to Cooperate over Dog Bites
March 15th, 2011 by Rosanne Lim. No Comments »
Fort Worth officials report that a resident who is accused of owning a dangerous pit bull refused to cooperate with authorities. His dog had already attacked an 84-year-old man last July. Aside from this particular attack, four of his dogs attacked a 64-year-old woman in June. One of the dog repeatedly bit her. Steven Woods, the owner, had to go outside and kick one of the dogs to stop it.
Mr. Woods has already been issued nine tickets for three pit bulls that were running loose on his neighborhood. According to the city’s director of code compliance, Brandon Bennett, “over a three-month period, his dogs terrorized a neighborhood.” Currently, Mr. Woods already owes thousands of dollars in outstanding tickets. The city has tried to prevent future attacks. But the Animal Care and Control division revealed that the owner refused to cooperate with their demand to quarantine the uncontrollable pit bulls.
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Dog Bites: Pet Owners Get Arrested
January 30th, 2011 by Rosanne Lim. No Comments »
Pet owners have the responsibility to train their dogs properly in order to keep their communities safe. In a case involving dog bites, a 52-year-old woman was seriously injured as she was walking down December 29, 2010. Two dogs, a Rottweiler and a Rottweiler-pit bull mix lunged at her, biting her on different parts of the body including the arms, legs, and chest. Police have since arrested the pet owners of the two dogs.
The victim’s neighbor, Laura Hamilton witnessed the dog attack and came to her rescue. She was able to scare off the dogs and rescue the victim driving her pickup truck. Police say that the woman would have died had she not been rescued. Police officers shot at the two dogs when they tried to at them. One of the dogs died but the other one was able to run away. The victim is still recovering from her injuries. The dog owners have been identified as Ronald Ferrell, 55, and April Hearn,38. They are both facing felony charges.
Dog Bite Statistics
The information from Dogsbite.org (website for dog attack victims around the US) reveals that there had been 88 fatal dog attacks in the United States in a three-year period between January 1, 2006 and December 31, 2008. Around 59% of these attacks involved pit bulls and another 14% involved Rottweiler. These two breeds are the same dog breeds that were involved in this particular attack. The US Centers for Disease Control also shows that pit bulls and Rottweiler together account for 60 percent of all fatal dog attacks.
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Disneyland Dog Bite Victim Sues Park
December 27th, 2010 by Rosanne Lim. No Comments »
The family of Lena Dickerson is suing Disneyland claiming that the toddler was attacked by a dog in the park’s petting zoo on October 3, 2006. The Fox News reports that the child was bitten several times on the face, leaving her permanently scarred.
Court documents allege that a Disneyland employee brought her 6-year-old German Shepherd cross Labrador Retriever dog to the theme park. The dog was placed on a box in the Big Thunder petting zoo. The park employee invited children to pet the animal, while they held its leash. Lena had just finished petting the dog and was just about to leave when the dog attacked her, causing serious injury to her face.
Apparently, the shelter from which the dog had been adopted had referred to the dog as “not very social” and had even stated that the animal had a history of being aggressive. The lawsuit seeks compensation for the family’s medical costs and emotional trauma as well as punitive damages. Disney officials have not commented yet on this specific case.
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More Organizations You Can Approach For Help
December 11th, 2010 by Fairlane Raymundo. No Comments »
Here are more organizations that tort victims, medical practitioners, brokers and others can approach for free advice, training and even help on policy change in relation to their rights on medical and legal assistance.
The American Spinal Injury Association takes care of individuals with spinal cord injury. Their activities include promotion and establishing of health care standards, education of healthcare professionals, patients and their families as well as the public on all aspects of spinal cord injury and its consequences, to research how to prevent spinal cord injury, improve care, reduce consequent disability, and find a cure for both acute and chronic SCI, and facilitation of communication between members and other physicians.
The Library of Congress is the most comprehensive source of US law, cases, books, maps and manuscripts. It is the nation’s oldest federal cultural institution and serves as the research arm of Congress. They make these resources available and useful to the Congress and the American people and sustain and preserve a universal collection of knowledge and creativity for future generations.
The American Association for Justice (AAJ) promotes a fair and effective justice system by supporting the work of attorneys in their efforts to ensure that any person who is injured by the misconduct or negligence of others can obtain justice in America’s courtrooms, even when taking on the most powerful interests. AAJ is the world’s largest trial bar. With more than 56,000 members worldwide, and a network of U.S. and Canadian affiliates involved in diverse areas of trial advocacy, AAJ provides lawyers with the information and professional assistance needed to serve clients successfully and protect the democratic values inherent in the civil justice system.
The Life Expectancy is a research group that specializes in life expectancy calculations based on standard actuarial and biostatistical procedures. They apply these scientific methods to data on children born with cerebral palsy (CP), persons in the vegetative state (VS), and to those who have suffered spinal cord (SCI) or traumatic brain (TBI) injuries. They have published extensively on life expectancy, and consulted on life expectancy in Canada, England, Australia and the United States.
The Toxic Mold Website is a comprehensive guide to many aspects of mold and the potentially fatal dangers that it poses to infants and individuals with weak immune systems. In addition, they provide important legal rights and information for those who have been adversely affected by Toxic Mold in their home, workplace, and elsewhere. Their site also provides toxic mold litigation information for those who have been adversely affected by symptoms of Toxic Mold and exposure in their home, workplace, and elsewhere.
Organizations You Can Approach For Help
December 10th, 2010 by Fairlane Raymundo. 2 Comments »
There are many organizations in the US you can approach if you need help in your annuity, structured settlements and insrance. Some are connected to the government and others non-government organizations whose sole purpose is to provide assistance to people who have no knowledge on how to protect their future.
Most of these organizations offer free services.
The American Association of People with Disabilities or AAPD is a non-profit membership organization who seeks political and economic empowerment for people with disabilities. They offer leadership development training, mentoring and career exploration, and help in seeking employment for people with disabilities. They also seek changes in public policies to continuously take care of the interest of people with disabilities.
The American Association of State Compensation Insurance Funds or AASCIF, is an association of workers’ compensation insurance companies from 26 different states, plus 10 workers’ compensation boards in Canada. AASCIF helps in fostering a market for employers to secure workers’ compensation coverage, adequate, prompt, and equitable benefits to injured workers and their dependents, the best medical care and rehabilitation with the goal of the earliest possible return to work and total restoration of the injured employee, service and assistance in the prevention of accidents and occupational disease, and work for the improvement, refinement, and preservation of state workers’ compensation systems.
The American Society for Healthcare Risk Management or ASHRAM ASHRM promotes effective and innovative risk management strategies and professional leadership through education, recognition, advocacy, publications, networking and interactions with leading health care organizations and government agencies. ASHRM focuses on developing and implementing safe and effective patient care practices, the preservation of financial resources and the maintenance of safe working environments.
The National Law Journal provides free legal information of national importance to attorneys including
Federal Circuit court decisions, verdicts, practitioner’s columns, coverage of legislative issues, and legal news from the business and private sectors
The Government Printing Office or GPO produces, procures, and disseminates printed and electronic publications of the Congress as well as the executive departments and establishments of the Federal Government.
The American Medical Association speaks out on issues important to patients and the nation’s health to push forward national level policy change that will take care of the interest of both medical practitioners and patients.
We’ll be printing more organizations tomorrow.
What You Need to Know About Dog Bite Injuries
October 30th, 2010 by Rosanne Lim. No Comments »
Dog bites are a common type of injury among children and adults. Depending on the severity of the attack, the dog bite can leave minor to deadly injuries. Victims can experience psychological trauma and permanent physical disfigurement. Though it’s impossible to determine whether a dog will attach in advance, there are precautions that must always be taken especially when you’re dealing with a dog that don’t know you. Remember that even a seemingly gentle dog is capable of attacking when “provoked”.
States have varying laws when it comes to dog ownership. Most create liabilities for dog owners who are aware how dangerous their dogs can be. There are also dog bites statutes that provide limited defense options for owners. In a state like Michigan, for example, victims of unprovoked dog attack in a public place always establishes a certain level of liability for the dog owner – even if their dog never bit anyone before.
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