South Florida Injury Lawyer Blog

In our second blog on Teen Safe Driver Week (Oct. 17-24) we will focus on the dangers of drinking and driving among teenagers as the homecoming season and the upcoming holiday's rapidly approach.

It is a parents responsibility to make sure your teen is aware of the dangers of drunk driving and how they can steer clear of the many other distractions that could cause a horrifyingly, possibly fatal Fort Lauderdale car accident.

Mother's Against Drunk Driving reports that they help a victim of drinking and driving every ten minutes. No parent wants to believe that their teen is drinking but it has been reported that one in five teens participates in dangerous binge drinking. Not only is drinking amongst teens still a problem in this day and age, teens are also susceptible to many other distractions while driving.

In 2009, the National Safety Council reported that text messaging and cell phone use alone caused approximately 1.6 million car accidents in 2008. It has also been determined that your chances of having a car accident increases four times by using a cell phone while driving.

Thankfully, there is a slew of information out there for parents to share with their teens to assure that each and every driving experience is the safest. As a parent there are also things that you can do to ensure your teen is making good choices. As homecoming approaches, teens will inevitably be excited and receiving many phone calls and text messages from friends. Some of these friends may also have alcohol readily accessible to them. Talking to them now can prevent a tragedy in the future.

As parents you must be sure your teen understands that driving is a privilege and when rules are broken privileges are lost. It may make it easier for them to understand that this applies to their parents just as much as it applies to them. Make the rules and stick to them. Drinking is an absolute no, no. Not only are teens not old enough to drink, their bodies are still much too immature than an adults in order to handle alcohol. Cell phone use should not be allowed. Some adults are not even coordinated enough to use a cell phone while driving let alone a beginning teen driver. The fact that many states have banned text messaging and many are considering banning hand held cell phones is a clear indicator of this. For more information on keeping your teen safe while driving NHTSA's website.

Continue reading "Teenage drunk driving too frequently a cause of South Florida car accidents" »

More than 540 people a day die from an infectious complication often linked to medical malpractice yet few have every heard of sepsis, the New York Times reported.

Whether medical malpractice in Fort Lauderdale or nursing home neglect in Boca Raton, sepsis is a killer -- it develops when the body's immune system spins out of control in response to infection and it is responsible for more than 200,000 deaths a year.

That's six time more than the 34,000 people a year that die in car accidents, yet 3 of 5 Americans were unfamiliar with the term when polled for a recent study. Among older adults, who are at the greatest risk, even fewer were familiar with this often fatal medical complication.

Sepsis is often the result of a lack of sterility in medical equipment or poor hygiene among patients or hospital or nursing home environments. It can quickly become life-threatening if not identified early and treated aggressively, something that is also the responsibility of medical staff and hospital staff.

Early symptoms include confusion, abnormal body temperature, chills, low blood pressure, rash and rapid heart rate. Health and safety advocates say raising awareness of the early warning signs is critical so that patients can do a better job of self-diagnosing, in much the same way many are able to do when it comes to the early warning signs of a heart attack.

We would like to count on hospitals and nursing homes to do a better job of preventing infections. But unfortunately, as we reported earlier this year, hospital infections in South Florida are a leading cause of injury and death. Nationwide, hospital-acquired infections are blamed for more than 100,000 deaths per year

Continue reading "Sepsis a common sign of medical malpractice and nursing home neglect in South Florida" »

It's National Teen Driver Safety Week this week (October 17-24), which couldn't come soon enough with homecoming right around the corner. This is the perfect opportunity to sit down with your teenager and discuss the importance of driving safely.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in 2006, 12.9 percent of all fatal accidents involved teenage drivers. In 2008 it was reported that 3,490 teenagers between the ages of 15 and 20 were killed in car accidents across the U.S. Sadly, it is the number one killer of teenagers today. You can protect you teen now from having a Fort Myers car accidents.

Because teen drivers are less experienced and sometimes immature they are going to be easily distracted behind the wheel. There are many things parents can do to assure that your teen has as few distractions while driving as possible. Have rules in place. Tell your teen they are only allowed to have one or two passengers in their vehicle at most and that they are not to get into anyone's vehicle with more than two other people. An important one that all parents should implement is no cell phone use whatsoever. Understandably with the onset of homecoming, your teen is more than likely going to be around someone who has access to alcohol; explain to them the importance of abstaining. You would be surprised how well they heed your advice.

Give them the facts but also be willing to listen to their concerns. Teenagers tend to listen and really pay attention to what you have to say when they know that they have a voice too and you're not just talking at them. Sit down with them and visit NHTSA's website. There are many helpful resources to help the both of you make sure your teen has a safe and responsible driving experience each and every time they hit the road.

Continue reading "Fort Myers injury lawyers encourage parents to get involved in Teen Safe Driver Week" »

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports that 5,474 motorists were killed and 448,000 were injured in distracted driving accidents on the nation's roads last year.

Our West Palm Beach car accident lawyers continue to report on the dangers of distracted driving, especially text messaging or the use of hand-held cell phones while behind the wheel. The Governor's Highway Safety Association reports that Florida is one of just 12 states that does not yet have a law banning drivers from text messaging.

Only drunk driving and speed are blamed for more traffic deaths. The government reports that distracted driving car accidents are now responsible for 16 percent -- or about 1 in every 6 of the nation's fatal crashes. "These numbers show that distracted driving remains an epidemic in America, and they are just the tip of the iceberg," said U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. Authorities fear the problem is likely much worse because many states do not have adequate measures in place to track distraction as a cause of accidents during reporting at the scene.

And, while we reported recently on our South Florida Injury Lawyer Blog that the overall number of traffic accidents had declined nationwide to a level not seen since 1950, the number of serious and fatal crashes blamed on distracted driving continues to rise.

Other findings included:

- 24,000 accidents reported the involvement of a cell phone last year.

- 16 percent of all fatal crashes involved distracted driving.

-20 percent of all injury crashes involved fatal accidents.

-Drivers under 20 had the greatest proportion of distracted driving accidents.

- Drivers ages 30 to 39 were most likely to be using a cell phone when involved in a fatal accident.

In the last five years, the number of fatal accidents nationwide has declined, from 43,510 in 2005 to 33,808 last year, even as the number of fatal crashes blamed on distracted driving has increased by nearly 25 percent, from 4,472 in 2005 to 5,474 in 2009.

Continue reading "From Fort Lauderdale to Fort Myers, the risk of distracted driving car accidents continues to rise" »

Thanks to a many days of sunshine and consistent tropical weather, South Florida enjoys one of the longest landscaping growth season in the country. The hum of lawn service equipment is nearly constant between March and November. Because of this, our Naples, Boca Raton and Fort Myers defective product attorneys are closely monitoring the recall of about 160,000 Black & Decker and Craftsmen cordless electric lawnmowers.

For the third time in eight years, the Consumer Product Safety Commission has issued a voluntary recall for both brands after receiving 34 reports of a potential laceration hazard caused by the motor and blade unexpectedly turning on despite the removal of a safety key designed to prevent this from happening. Black & Decker is offering a free repairs or credit toward the purchase of another mower.

Model numbers include Black & Decker CMM1000 and CMM1000R and Craftsman 900.370520. Aside from model numbers, the Black & Decker model has a black motor cover and an orange or green deck. The Craftsman model has a black motor cover and green deck. Both brands of mower were sold for about $450 nationwide and in Mexico and Canada, with the Black & Decker model sold between September 1995-December 2006 and the Craftsman brand from January 1998-December 2000.

The previous recall - which began in September 2002 and was expanded in August 2006 - addressed fire hazard concerns caused by electrical components overheating.

Continue reading "South Florida defect product recall notice: Black & Decker, Craftsman cordless push lawn mowers " »

The nationwide campaign against text messaging and the use of cell phones while driving omits many forms of distracted driving that are just as dangerous, USA Today reported.

Car accidents in Boca Raton and Cape Coral are frequently caused by some form of distracted driving, but not necessarily text messaging or cell phone use. Eating, drinking, using in-car electronics, grooming, applying makeup, talking to passengers, riding with pets in the vehicle and looking at external distractions are all common causes of serious and fatal car accidents in South Florida.

"I don't think we've made nearly as much progress in those other areas of distracted driving," says Peter Kissinger, president and CEO of AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety.

In fact, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety has been recently critical of the government's focus on distracted driving and text messaging, which the organization contends comes at the expense of highlighting other safety issues. "They're focusing on a single manifestation of distracted driving and banning it," said Adrian Lund, the organization's president. "This ignores the endless sources of distraction and relies on banning one source or another to solve the whole problem."

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reported last month that 5,474 fatalities and 448,000 injuries were caused by distracted driving last year. The USA Today reports that the NHTSA blames just 18 percent of the fatalities and 5 percent of the injuries on cell phone use.

However, the Chicago Tribune recently reported that researchers from the University of North Texas recently found that texting behind the wheel accounted for 16,141 deaths between 2002 and 2007. And that, without text messaging, there would have been 1,925 deaths a year due to distracted driving in 2007. Instead, there were 5,988.

Part of the challenge is many state and local law enforcement agencies do not track distracted driving as a cause of accidents at the scene and there is no standard for nationwide reporting.

Continue reading "Cell phones not the only cause of distracted driving car accidents in South Florida " »

The 22-year-old driver involved in a hit-and-run accident between her 1997 BMW and a motorized scooter was located and charged with DUI with serious injury, leaving the scene of a crash with injuries and driving on a suspend license after deputies located her vehicle with the scooter still lodged under her car, WTSP-10 reports.

The driver of the BMW was unhurt, but the 20-year-old scooter driver remains at Bayfront Medical Center in critical condition. According to investigators, the scooter was struck when the car driver made a wide right turn.

As our South Florida car accident lawyers have noted in several recent posts to our South Florida Injury Lawyer blog, Florida roads can be particularly hazardous for pedestrians and two-wheeled vehicle drivers and passengers. Our car accident attorneys have posted a list of tips to keep pedestrians, cyclists, motor scooter and motorcycle drivers and their passengers safe on South Florida roads.

In 2009, the Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles reported that 18.8 percent of all traffic fatalities statewide involved pedestrians, 3.9 percent involved bicycles and 15.7 percent involved motorized two-wheeled vehicles (motorcycles, motor scooters). Together these groups were involved in more than 21,000 crashes, causing 19,487 injuries and 957 fatalities. For moped/motor scooter drivers alone, Florida reported 11 fatalities and 829 injuries caused by a car striking a scooter.

The driver of the passenger car is one of 1,284,861 million registered Florida drivers aged 20-24. This age group was responsible for 44,788 car accidents in 2009 and represents the highest rate of DUI-related car crashes and fatalities across all age groups.

Overall, alcohol played a role in more than 39 percent of all fatal car accidents and 8.5 percent of all traffic crashes, claiming 1,004 lives and causing 14,130 injuries.

Continue reading "Scooter leads investigators to driver's home in South Florida hit-and-run car accident" »

The American Academy of Pediatrics has joined with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Consumer Product Safety Commission in banning infant sleep positioners. The agencies are also ask retailers to stop selling the devices and request manufacturers to stop making them. Our South Florida defective product attorneys and child injury lawyers believe products marketed to small children should meet the most rigid safety standards. Sadly, they are often among the most frequently recalled because of the risk of serious or fatal injury.

Both the CPSC and the FDA have released alerts indicating they have received 12 infant death notices and dozens of reports that children aged 1 to 4 months have become trapped or faced suffocation after becoming pinned between a sleep positioner and the side of a crib or bassinette.

"The deaths and dangerous situations resulting from the use of infant sleep positioners are a serious concern to CPSC," said CPSC Chairman Inez Tenenbaum. "We urge parents and caregivers to take our warning seriously and stop using these sleep positioners, so that children can have a safer sleep."

FDA pediatric expert Susan Cummins, M.D., M.P.H, says parents and caregivers can create a safe sleep environment for babies if they leave the crib free of pillows, comforters, quilts, toys, and other items. "The safest crib is a bare crib," she said. "Always put your baby on his or her back to sleep. An easy way to remember this is to follow the ABC's of safe sleep--Alone on the Back in a bare Crib."

A pediatrician and the FDA principal deputy commissioner Dr. Joshua Sharfstein told the Los Angeles Times his office has tagged many of these nursery sleep aides as "illegal devices" because the manufacturers claim they are FDA approved to reduce the risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome. To date, the FDA has never cleared any sleep device or product to reduce the risk of SIDS.

The Juvenile Product Manufacturers Association - the trade organization that represents the manufacturers of the sleep positioners - has refused to stop making them or selling them without a government recall.

Continue reading "Fatalities linked to infant sleep positioner raise concerns of South Florida defective product hazards" »

South Florida motorcycle accident attorneys know that as Florida continues to blossom as destination for motorcycle enthusiasts, it is also growing in popularity for home-grown riders. In fact, nationwide as interest in motorcycling increases, so have the number of accidents, injuries and fatalities. Motorcycle accidents accounted for 5 percent of all traffic crashes in 1997, compared nearly 18 percent in 2008. This trend is mirrored across Florida as well.

The Florida Department of Transportation reports that from 2006 to 2008, about 94 percent of motorcyclists fatally injured in Florida motorcycle crashes were state residents. In 2008, Palm Beach, Miami-Dade and Broward counties were among the highest for reported motorcycle fatalities.

An early September two-motorcycle crash on U.S. 1 illustrates the dangers faced by Florida motorcycle enthusiasts. A Harley rider was killed after sustaining a head injury when her bike struck the back of a Victory as the pair attempted to change lanes at the same time, Florida Today reports.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, there are 6.2 million registered motorcycles nationwide. Because of their open construction, and because they are less stable and less visible, 8 in 10 motorcycle crashes result in injury or death. In contrast, just 20 percent of car accidents result in injury or death. The NHTSA offers a few common-sense suggestions that can help motorcycles stay safe and uninjured:

~ Before hitting the open road, motorcyclists should take a rider-safety training course and obtain whatever State license is required.

~ Motorcyclists need to make sure they are outfitted with bike that properly fits their ability, and rely upon gear, like gloves, goggles, a helmet and boots to provide additional protection in the event of a crash.

~ Motorcyclists need to pay extra attention at intersections, which is where most motorcycle and car accidents happen.

~ Motorcyclists need to ride thinking they are invisible to their four-wheeled counterparts and avoid riding in a car driver's blind spot.

~ Given the more supple maneuverability of a bike, riders need to be more cautious of road conditions in inclement weather.

Continue reading "South Brevard fatal motorcycle crash spotlights highway hazards for Florida bikers" »

Immokalee sees more pedestrian and bicycle crashes than any other town in Collier County, and community leaders are pushing for ways to make the streets safer for foot, bicycle and vehicle traffic, the Naples Daily News reports.

South Florida pedestrian accident lawyers know that Florida is second only to California for pedestrian-related traffic fatalities - that in 2008, 490 pedestrians were killed walking alongside Florida roads. From 2007-2010, the Immokalee Fire Control responded to 87 calls involving vehicle-pedestrian accidents. Since last December, the Naples Daily News has covered five traffic accident involving pedestrians in Immokalee, one fatal.

Thanks to a $129,000 Florida Department of Transportation pedestrian traffic safety project, the community just completed a sidewalk and crosswalk addition near Main Street that leaders hope will offset the number of pedestrian-related traffic accidents in that area. Meanwhile, community officials have submitted a grant application seeking funding to install motion-sensitive flashing light-guards at nine crosswalks around town.

According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, there are a handful of simple tips and precautions walkers and drivers can follow to make their time on the road safer:

FOR PEDESTRIANS:
~ Make yourself visible: wear bright colors during the day and carry a flashlight and wear reflective gear when walking at dusk and dawn and during the night.
~ Be alert: don't rely on crosswalks, traffic signals or the attention of drivers to protect you. Make eye contact with drivers before entering any roadway and look before entering a crosswalk. Ditch the cell phone and the ear buds, pay attention to your surroundings.
~ Be a safe walker: if there is a sidewalk, use it; if not, walk facing traffic.
~ Obey traffic laws: in short, don't jaywalk.

FOR DRIVERS:
~ Look beyond the road and expect the unexpected: make it a habit to scan sidewalks and shoulders. When making a turn, look for foot-traffic as well as fellow drivers.
~ Respect crosswalks: yield to pedestrians when signage and signaling indicate they have the right-of-way. When in parking lots, drive slowly and anticipate that both kids and adults are likely to pop out from behind a vehicle unexpectedly.
~ Drive responsibly: follow the speed limit, traffic laws and don't drive distracted or impaired. Be especially on alert at or near school-zones and public parks where children are likely to gather.

Continue reading "Study aims to reduce Immokalee pedestrian accidents" »

The 22-year-old, his girlfriend and a 17-year-old friend were returning home from swimming and some pizza when the June 11 Del Prado Boulevard accident occurred. The driver, arguing about wet seats, accelerated into the curve and lost control of his 1992 Nissan. The car then skidded off the road and struck a tree, the Fort Myers News-Press reports.

The 20-year-old front-seat passenger was killed instantly and both the driver a second passenger were seriously injured in the alcohol-related Fort Myers car accident. The driver, who faces 20 years in prison if convicted, has been charged with DUI manslaughter, vehicular homicide, DUI with serious bodily injury and DUI with property damage. Police reports indicate the driver was also under the influence of marijuana at the time of the crash.

For the family of the deceased, the loss didn't stop with their daughter. Shortly after the accident, the victim's mother disappeared and has yet to return. Friends told the News-Press she was suicidal after the accident.

According to the Center for Disease Control, every 45 minutes a person in the U.S. is killed due to an alcohol-related car accident. In 2008, alcohol and narcotics use were factors in 1.4 million driver arrests and drugs other than alcohol were linked to 18 percent of all motor vehicle deaths. Drivers and passengers aged 21-24 accounted 34 percent of all alcohol-related fatal crash victims, making this age group the most likely to suffer loss of life behind the wheel in a DUI-related crash.

That trends is consistent in Florida as well, where, in 2009, drivers aged 20-24 had the highest rate of fatal car accidents and represented the highest number of alcohol-related car accidents and fatal crashes involving alcohol, the Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles reports.

Continue reading "North Fort Myers man faces charges of DUI manslaughter and vehicular homicide in drunk driving accident" »