Georgia Injury Law Blog

Published on: March 12, 2010

Woman Charged in Fatal Gwinnett County DUI Accident

The female motorist, who was driving a car in Gwinnett County during a fatal drunk driving car accident that killed a three-year-old child, has now been officially charged.

Twenty-six-year-old Alicia Tubman was allegedly driving intoxicated on January 11^th, when she lost control of her car, and it struck a fire hydrant and a tree. The car burst into flames. Emergency response officers were able to pull the woman out of the car. However, they could do nothing to rescue three-year-old Jayla Cook, who was in the backseat.

Tubman has spent the weeks since the accident recovering from burn injuries at the Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta. She has now been charged with driving under the influence, homicide by vehicle, cruelty to children, reckless driving and other charges. After the accident, Tubman‘s blood-alcohol levels were found to be more than three times the legally allowed limit of .08.

Published on: March 11, 2010

Child Criticallly Injured in Dog Attack in DeKalb County

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

An eight-year-old girl has suffered critical injuries in an attack involving two dogs outside her home in DeKalb County.

According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Erin Ingraham was playing outside her home on Tuesday afternoon when she was approached by two Staffordshire Terriers. The dogs attacked her, and officers who responded to the scene had to use batons to pry the animals off the little child. The two dogs then attacked the officer, upon which the dog was shot and killed. The second dog ran away from the scene and was later captured by animal control officers.

The owner of the dog has been located and is likely to face charges. Erin suffered serious injuries that required vascular and plastic surgery. This has been a horrific attack by any standards, and we wish Erin a speedy and complete recovery. Unfortunately, it looks like Erin has a long recuperation period ahead of her. The next few weeks, or even months, are not going to be easy.

Published on: March 10, 2010

Three Injured in Street-Racing Accident in DeKalb County

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

At least three people have been injured in an accident apparently caused by two cars street racing in DeKalb County.

The two cars set off a chain reaction accident on Interstate 285 that involved several vehicles. At least three people had to be taken to the hospital for treatment of moderate injuries. The two persons who were racing fled the scene of the accident.

Accidents involving speeding racing cars can result in serious injuries or fatalities. It’s extremely fortunate that the three people here survived this crash.

Published on: March 9, 2010

Food Poisoning Costs US Economy $157 Billion Per Year

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

For years, conservative estimates of losses from food borne illnesses in the US have placed the figure as low as $6.9 billion, and as high as $35 billion every year. As a new report into food safety in the country shows, those figures are barely the tip of the iceberg. The report by the Produce Safety Project says that the actual cost of food borne illnesses annually amounts to a staggering $157 billion every year.

Injury lawyers in Atlanta have a close connection with the food safety issue. After all, it was the appalling hygiene and safety conditions at a peanut processing plant in our own Georgia that caused nuts to be contaminated with the Salmonella bacteria, and led to a nationwide epidemic that killed several people, and injured hundreds of Americans. The peanut butter salmonella epidemic was just one among several that have come out since then, and which continue to crop up at nauseating intervals.

Every year, according to research conducted by the Produce Safety Project, more than 76 million Americans suffer from a food borne illness. The researchers calculated the costs of these illnesses by adding not just the medical and hospital costs that the patient incurred, but also the lost quality of life as a result of the illness.They arrived at the total figure of $157 billion every year from these illnesses.

Published on: March 5, 2010

Auto Defect Blamed In Fayette County Child’s Death

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

Auto Defect Blamed in Fayette County Child’s Death

It’s too soon to tell for sure, but investigators seem to believe that a mechanical defect was to blame for the tragic death of a 6-year-old child in Fayette County last week. The accident occurred when the Chrysler Sebring 1999 which was apparently in park mode, began rolling down the driveway, and struck the boy. He died instantly.The Fayette County sheriff’s office is blaming a defective ignition park interlock device for the accident.

Auto defects have been heavily in the news over the past couple of months. Aconspiracy of silence is currently unraveling at Toyota. Auto defects are being blamed for uncontrolled acceleration in several Toyota vehicles. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has already confirmed 34 reports of deaths or severe injuries as a result of accidents caused by the acceleration.

Published on: March 4, 2010

Killer Whale in SeaWorld Attack Killed Before

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

Wildlife lovers have been citing last week’s fatal orca attack at SeaWorld in Orlando as a prime example of the fact that wild animals deserve to be free, and not forced to be performing monkeys. However, as Atlanta injury lawyers who represent victims of dog bites, we have been more concerned about the fact that the killer whale in the attack here had been cited in at least two previous deaths

If you’ve missed the story, here’s the background.Tilikum, a killer whale at Orlando’s SeaWorld, dragged its trainer Dawn Brancheau into the water, killing her. The 40- year-old trainer was rubbing the whale down after the show when it apparently grabbed her in its mouth, and thrashed her from side to side. Brancheau was dead before anyone else could get into the water. It’s not clear if she drowned or died from the thrashing.

Tilikum had been involved in at least two previous deaths at water parks.The first death occurred at a facility in British Columbia, when a trainer fell into the tank and was attacked by three whales, including Tilikum.The other tragedy involved a man who was found dead and draped around the whale’s back in the tank.He had either sneaked into the tank or fallen in.

Published on: March 3, 2010

Trial Lawyers Keep Consumers Safe

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

The Wall Street Journal has published an opinion piece by a trial lawyer making the case for product liability trial attorneys who help keep manufacturers of defective products on their toes.

In the wake of the Toyota scandal, this much is clear. American consumers can expect little protection from agencies charged with the responsibility of keeping them safe. These agencies including the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the Consumer Product Safety Commission and the Food And Drug Administration are supposed to monitor defective products, and pressure companies to pull them off the market as soon as manufacturers become aware of such defects.

All that is in theory. In reality, these agencies battle a wide range of problems that include funding shortages, staffing crunches, agency infighting and disagreement, allegations of corruption, conflict of interest and other symptoms of malaise that limit their abilities to protect the American consumer.

Published on: February 25, 2010

Elderly Woman Escapes Injuries in Dog Attack in Marietta

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

Elderly Woman Escapes Injuries in Dog Attack in Marietta

An elderly woman, who was chased by a pair of pit bulls as she walked her dog outside her Marietta apartment building, was lucky enough to escape without any serious bites. The dogs are currently in the possession of Cobb County animal control officers.

According to the Atlanta Journal Constitution, the woman was walking her dog in the breezeway of her apartment complex when the two dogs began to chase her Jack Russell terrier. The woman tried to fight off the two dogs and in the process, sustained injuries to her nose and hands. The owner of the two dogs has handed them over to Cobb County animal control officers, and they are being tested for rabies. The owner will likely be cited for failure to control his animals, having a vicious animal and for failure to have current rabies vaccination.

Published on: February 24, 2010

Atlanta Researchers to Study Brain Injury Treatment

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

Atlanta Researchers to Test Effects of Progesterone Hormone in Brain Injury Treatment

As car accident lawyers in Atlanta, we often come across patients with serious brain injuries after an automobile or motorcycle accident. These injuries are some of the most severe a person can suffer, and also some of the most difficult to treat. In fact, there has been no significant progress in the treatment of brain injury for many years now.

That may be about to change, and in our very own Atlanta at that. Researchers at Emory Hospital will soon begin clinical trials into the effects of a female sex hormone that could limit the effects of a brain injury.Progesterone is a hormone that helps support pregnancy. Researchers believe that this hormone if injected soon after a brain injury could help limit the extent of the injury and prevent disability or death. This new trial will be lead by Doctor David Wright at Atlanta’s Emory hospital. According to Dr. Wright, Traumatic Brain Injury involves swelling, inflammation and destruction of neuron cells, and progesterone seems to have beneficial effects on all of these.

Published on: February 19, 2010

DOT Proposes New Rules for Drug Testing

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

Atlanta accident lawyers will be pleased to know that the Department of Transportation has posted a Notice of Proposed Rule Making, which deals with stricter testing for drug use.

The NPRM proposes a number of measures that are designed to prevent commercial motor vehicle drivers abusing drugs from slipping through the cracks.The NPRM proposes initial testing for 6-acetylmorphines, and lowering the cut off for cocaine and amphetamines. The idea is to align testing standards with the testing standards of Health and Human services. According to the HHS, such testing would help identify approximately 10% of drug users in the commercial driver population, who currently remain unidentified.

Truck drivers are at a higher risk of amphetamine abuse. These drugs are used to induce alertness, helping truckers stay awake for longer periods of time. Use of stimulants like methamphetamines can have serious side effects. The person may begin to feel extremely drowsy as the drug’s effects begin to wear off, with serious consequences. Employers can now identify drivers who had been using these drugs, but had remained unidentified because of the higher cut off points.