While motorcycle riding is about as awesome experience as it gets, it does come with it’s drawbacks, risks and liabilities – especially when other drivers are involved. One of the most egregious, and common, accidents happens when a car or truck makes a left hand turn without the driver/operator properly looking to see if the space they are occupying is free and clear. What these drivers don’t do – and in a lot of cases is negligent driving – is give themselves enough time to safely maneuver before they make the turn. Some just whip into the turn without looking, without turning on their turn signal. They make themselves completely blind – especially to motorcycles that may be legally and appropriately driving right next to them. One of the primary causes of all motorcycle accidents here in Southern California is when vehicles make these turns and are blind to 2-wheelers that come up on the left side of their vehicle. Some reports indicate that more than 40% of all accidents between motorcycle and drivers. There have been many, many lawsuits filed over negligent left-hand turn accidents where 4-wheel (or more) vehicles strike a 2-wheeler during a turn at an intersection or highway on- or off-ramp.

If one of these accidents is caused by negligence on behalf of the primary driver – the auto or truck driver that has not made themselves ware of a motorcycle being right next to them as they turn – the result can be catastrophic property and personal injury to the motorcycle rider. If you or a loved one has been injured in a motorcycle accident, you should know that while a personal injury attorney will be able to help, a motorcycle accident personal injury lawyer, with the experience and track record you need to produce results, will most likely be able to give you the assistance you need to maximize your legal and financial rights.

While a majority if personal injury lawsuits are the result of an accident – a car accident, injuries caused by a product malfunction, a slip and fall, etc. – there are some instances when the injuries suffered by the victim are not due to an accident, or even carelessness. They are from willful violence. They are the result of an intentional and oftentimes violent act. Around here, and in some of the court rooms and hospital rooms our legal professionals spend their time in, these intentional and violent acts are referred to as assault and battery.

In a fairly typical case, for example, the victim of an assault and/or battery would sue the person(s) that inflicted the harm, the pain, the violence, and seek compensation like they would in any other personal injury lawsuit – they would seek legal and financial justice for pain suffered, medical bills, lost wages, companionship, suffering and any myriad of applicable issues. Intentional or willing violence against another is a complicated area of personal injury law. There are a large variety of legal or even criminal charges stemming from the incident. The nature of the assault and/or battery, the severity of the damage done and the extent of the criminal charges will all factor into how much financial compensation the victim and their attorney(s) will pursue.

Quickly, here are some definitions as they pertain to assault and battery cases.
– Assault
– Assault with a deadly weapon
– Battery
– Assault & battery
– Domestic assault & battery
– Aggravated battery

If you or a loved one has been the victim of an intentionally violent act (an assault and/or battery) it is important that you know you have certain legal rights. Of course, if you have any additional questions, please don’t hesitate to contact our offices for a complimentary, confidential conversation with one of our personal injury lawyers.

Along those same lines, sometimes drivers get into small accidents – fender benders in a parking lot, 5 MPH accidents at a stop light, etc. – and they wind up thinking nothing of it. They get into a seemingly inconsequential accident, review their own vehicles, find no damage to speak of, don’t feel any pain, and go on with their day, really not even thinking that they got into an accident in the first place.

This is one of the things that medical professionals and legal professionals are constantly trying to impart on all motor vehicle operator – “if you get into an accident, any accident, make sure that you treat it, the accident, your body and your property, as if you had gotten into a major accident. How are we, how is anyone, to know whether or not they are hurt immediately after an accident,. It really doesn’t matter how much impact or damage is done, there is always the chance that something

There have been a lot of research, analysis and published studies that dispel our common belief that small accidents cause no damage. One such study found that lack of damage to the vehicle itself does not mean that there will be no physical damage to the occupants. Just because a car hits another at 5-10MPH does not mean that there is not internal body damage that the driver just does not feel, or even worse, internal damage that may show up in a few days after the accident itself. If this is the case, and the driver does not follow the proper steps to protect themselves – by seeing a doctor and talking to a lawyer – there may be very little legal or financial justice to be had, if opportunities to protect the driver/passenger are not taken immediately after the accident.

INSURANCE COMPANIES LOVE SMALL ACCIDENTS
They do. Why? Because they usually don’t pay very much, if anything at all, if there is minimal damage to the vehicle itself. Imagine if you got into an accident that did $1000 worth of damage to your car, but cost you $60,000 in medical bills. An insurance company will most likely want to settle as quickly as possible for the $1000, and have you sign a document waiving their responsibility for your medical bills. The best way to protect yourself against that possibility is to speak to an attorney prior to signing anything, regardless of the size of the accident,.

CHILDREN GET INJURED MORE OFTEN
For many, many reasons – the amount of time they spend in injury prone situations, undeveloped motor skills, lesser reaction times, less honed coordination – children are at a higher risk than adults for injuries. Of course, kids acting like kids – playing hard, roughhousing, being adventurous – will result in scraped knees, broken bones and all the bumps and bruises that go along with being a child. However, when a child is seriously injured on a bicycles, skateboards, roller skates, scooter or the like, and it is due to faulty manufacturing or the negligence of another, this can lead to legal issues, and broaches the subject of what legal rights, legal remedies, are due the injured party, and their family. Perhaps those injuries cause school days, weeks or months to be missed, stacks of medical bills, parental schedules to be disrupted, families, lives that change for the worst.

WHO IS TO BLAME WHEN A KID GETS INTO AN ACCIDENT?
A majority of personal injuries and accidents associated with the outdoor, sporting or recreational activities of kids is in fact the responsibility of the child themselves. Most young people that get hurt here in Southern California have no one else to blame but themselves. It’s probably not a surprise to anyone that children act carelessly and get hurt. However, there are times when a child gets injured while they are at play, and it is not their fault. There are times when an accident was avoidable. There are times when a child is not at fault. There are times when it is entirely appropriate to involve an attorney, to make sure that a child’s legal rights are protected.

“18-wheeler Loses Control, Kills 2”…
“Big Rig Accidents On The Rise”…
“Brakes Fail, Child Loses Life”…
“Trucks Run Off Road, Injure 5”…

We hear about stories like these every single day. Every year, there are more than 500,000 truck accidents in the United States. The property damage, physical injuries and fatalities that are a consequence of these accidents causes untold damage on the friends and families of those that were injured or perished, and billions and billions of dollars of damage. Are some of the accidents avoidable, the result of carelessness and negligence? Yes, they are!

Most common reasons for 18-wheeler accidents:
– Blind spots
– Lack of proper brake maintenance
– Road trash, debris
– Tired driver
– Truck traveling at excessive speeds
– Tires fail
– Shipments move in the trailer itself
– Driver negligence

According to The Large Truck Crash Causation Study, tired drivers, drunk or chemically impaired drivers, and excessive speeds are the major factors in motor vehicle crashes overall. This is in and of itself incredibly alarming – that there are big rig drivers on the road, probably right now, that are impaired by alcohol, drugs or just plain tired. Any impairment at all, when these guys and gals are operating trucks that weigh 10′s of 1000′s of pounds and travel in excess of 100MPH, can and does cause accidents on our roads. According to this same report, while the presence of tired, drunk or speeding drivers does not always result in an accident, it can increase the likelihood. Also, other driver, vehicle, and environmental factors like weather, wear and tear on the vehicle, faulty parts or road conditions can increase the risk of a crash.

In areas like Orange County, Los Angeles and San Diego it may only rain a few times a year. For that reason most of the drivers on the road in Southern California have no experience driving in the rain, and thus can be quite dangerous if/when they get tangled up and cause an accident.

CALIFORNIA DRIVERS CAN’T DRIVE IN THE RAIN
In poor weather conditions there are two specific kinds of motorists who exponentially raise the danger factor on the roads – the first group are nervous or shy driver and the second group are unsafe or
foolish drivers.

Nervous/shy drivers, during bad road conditions or heavy weather, will cause problems for themselves and other drivers by overcompensating for the weather, usually this manifests with them operating their vehicle at dangerously low speeds. We’ve all seen, and perhaps know, people like this who, while they think they are being cautious and helping the situation, are actually causing more trouble than good by being overly nervous. They cause accidents, and even though they think they may be safe drivers, there can be negligence if/when they are involved in a car accident.

The second group – unsafe or foolish drivers – are even more dangerous. These drivers never slow down, never take their foot off the gas and rarely drive like others do. They are hellbent on getting from Point A to Point B as fast as humanly possible and whether it’s raining or not, they will drive as fast and unsafe and foolish as they want to, regardless of road conditions or others on the road. These drivers weave in and out of traffic, ride our bumpers, change lanes whenever they want and are generally a massive liability, an accident waiting to happen.

There are 1000′s of car, motorcycle, truck, bus and pedestrians involved in accidents every single day in California. Whether it sunshine or raining cats & dogs, it’s important to know your legal rights. The worst thing anyone can do after they get into an accident is just assume that it was caused by one thing or the other – in this case, that it was caused by the rain or by slippery roads and that no one is at fault. That’s a mistake. If you or a loved one were in an accident, and you suspect that it was caused by a negligent driver, give us a call for a complimentary, confidential intake call.

Arpaio is outspoken against illegal immigration and has been sued for racial profiling. He is also known for his investigation of President Obama’s allegedly forged birth certificate.

In addition, some of his controversial tactics include housing inmates in tent cities during the hottest days of summer and dressing them in pink underwear. Arpaio has described Tent City as a concentration camp and said to complaining inmates, “It’s 120 degrees in Iraq and the soldiers are living in tents, have to wear full body armor, and they didn’t commit any crimes, so shut your mouths!”

Love ‘em or hate ‘em… This guy is tough! Email me any questions you’d like me to have Sheriff Joe answer live ON AIR.

MOST COMMON CAUSES OF TBI:
– A person falls
- A person is involved in a moving vehicle accident
- A person is hit or struck by a hard object, like during a crime or a fight
- A person is assaulted and knocked into something hard, like a curb or a wall
- An explosive blast of some kind, like some of our active military experience

TYPES OF TBI
Any injury at all – from a simple fall in a restaurant to a train accident – to the skull may result in traumatic brain injury. Following are the two general types of TBI:

- Penetrating TBI: A penetrating TBI injury is when some thing (object) has penetrated the skull – a metal pole, a bullet or a knife, etc. This is when an object literally goes into the brain cavity and inflicts damage on various parts of a persons brain. The damage occurred depends almost solely on the object, where it penetrates and what specific parts of the brain it contacts.

- Closed Head TBI: Unlike penetrating TBI injuries, these are what happens when the individual receives a sudden injury to the skull – hitting their head during a moving vehicle accident, being struck with something, etc. – that does not penetrate the skull, but does cause brain damage. These types of TBI’s can result in damage to tissue and blood vessels, but no visible injury to the skull itself. However, due to the trauma and force involved, there can be significant brain damage.

While the causes of and types of TBI’s are important, what is even more important is that traumatic brain injuries can and do have a profound affect on the victims life. Nd the lives of their loved ones.
Lives change immediately after brain injuries.

According to reports, errors such as removing the wrong kidney on one victim, failing to assist another bleeding patient, and leaving behind surgical tools have amounted in fines of over $780,000 for several hospitals throughout the state. Most incidents occurred during 2010 and 2011.

Four of the ten hospitals facing fines are Kaiser facilities. One one occasion, a patient died after being given a blood thinner instead of the appropriate medication. In another instance, a patient died during laser surgery.

Medical Centers have begun to re-train staff members in an attempt to ensure incidents such as these don’t happen again in the future. However, since 2007, California hospitals have been charged with $9.6 million in penalties.

If you’ve been a victim of a personal injury accident, an experienced California personal injury lawyer can assist you. At Ledger & Associates, our leading California personal injury lawyers have helped numerous clients win the damages they deserve. Give us a call today for a free consultation.

Source: http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-hospital-fines-20121221,0,453024.story