We don’t think of the fact that answering a text takes away our attention for about five seconds. That is enough time to travel the length of a football field. We don’t think that approximately 86 percent of drivers in a 2011 survey said they ate or drank while driving, and 57 percent said they do so “sometimes” or “often,” according to a report that is quoted in an article on Rodale.com.
According to the same Health Day poll taken in 2011, our minds aren’t focused on the fact that a teen driver riding with one other passenger doubles the risk of being involved in a fatal car crash.
With two or more passengers, the risk increases to five times as likely. We don’t think of the fact that the majority of Americans believe that talking on the phone and texting are two of the most dangerous behaviors that occur behind the wheel. Yet, as many as 81 percent of drivers admit to making phone calls while driving.
Oprah Winfrey became quite active in the fight against distracted driving by offering a “No Phone Zone Pledge.” Log on to this site and have every driving member of your family submit their pledge! This opens up the discussion and the concern and love you have for your family members. Visit the link to pledge by clicking here. (No money is involved!)
Hopefully you or someone you know has never been effected – but if you have give me a call. It is free and I always happy and eager to help.

Officers and medical personnel arrived and located the adult male victim suffering from serious personal injuries. He has been transported to an area hospital and his current condition is not known.
Traffic investigators are in the early stages of gathering information and no determination of what led up to the crash has been made at this time.
At this time there is no determination of whether the driver was negligent. But the story brings up an important point – even where a driver is seemingly not at fault, there may be other contributing factors that clients do not even think about. For example, perhaps there was not sufficient lighting or a cross-walk signal malfunctioned. Or maybe another driver caused the accident. The bottom line is that if you have been injured, before giving up on any claim, you should give a call to discuss it. Often I have helped clients think about a case in a new light – and discovered a negligent party that the client was not even thinking about. Contact me today for a free consultation.

Ninety percent of the clients who walk through my door have never sued anyone before and emphasize that they “normally do not do this sort of thing.” Naturally they see all the bad press about “trial lawyers and their greedy clients” and do not want to be seen in this way. So they proclaim their otherwise non-litigious nature always. But the truth is nobody thinks about filing a lawsuit until they themselves are a victim or personally injured in a car accident. As for the other ten percent, I try to avoid them if they do have a litigious history. Bottom line is if you have been injured in an accident, you should talk to an attorney before signing anything. Feel free to call day or night with questions – it is a free consultation every time.

The case hinged on allegations of battery—the man’s aggressive consummation of the date before the woman could make sure he was wearing a condom—and negligence because of his failure to mention that he had herpes until it was too late. The case was made easier to prove because the woman had received a clean bill of health, indicating she had not developed antibodies to herpes, shortly before the date in question. The two met on eHarmony, an online dating site, and decided to have sex on their fourth date. The woman asked the man to use a condom, and offered him one from her bed stand. “The next thing she knew, he was on top of her,” and not wearing the condom, her lawyer said.
 Very shortly afterward, he said, the man told her he had herpes, though he was not suffering lesions at the time. The woman came down with herpes within 11 days, and suffered not only painful outbreaks, but anxiety and depression.

The case was one of several that have awarded damages or resulted in settlements as a result of herpes infection. Possibly the largest was in California, where a state appeals court in 2011 upheld a $4.3-million award to a Riverside County woman who contracted herpes from a former boyfriend.

According to Trooper Ray Stallsworth, on June 19, 2012 at approximately 3:24 p.m. traffic was stopped eastbound on Highway 20 near milepost 7 for ODOT roadwork. John Olson, age 21, from Sisters, driving a 1996 Dodge pickup towing a flatbed trailer loaded with hay failed to notice stopped traffic, braked hard to try to avoid a collision but didn’t stop in time. The Dodge pickup crashed into the rear of a 1970 Chevrolet pickup, leading to a chain-reaction crash involving 3 other vehicles. After the initial impact, the Chevrolet pickup collided into the back of a 2003 Dodge Caravan. The Chevrolet pickup then careened across the westbound lane and off the roadway into a bordering pond where it became completely submerged.

An alert ODOT worker identified as Troy Elverfeld, age 47, from Lebanon, saw smoke from the crash and went to the scene. He took a metal rod from a backhoe and dove into the water where he saw the submerged pickup and its operator still inside with windows rolled up. Elverfeld broke the driver’s side window with the pipe and tried a couple times to pull the driver out. On the third try, he successfully pulled the driver out to safety.

Olson was cited by OSP for Careless Driving. What happened here is not uncommon – driver’s speed does not take into account the possibility of stopped vehicles ahead. But one of the basic rules of driving is that you leave yourself enough room between yourself and the next car to stop immediately if need be. And if you do not see what lies ahead – whether it be because of weather or a bend in the road – then you slow down. Oregon Revised Statute 811.100 states that a “person commits the offense of violating the basic speed rule if the person drives a vehicle upon a highway at a speed greater than is reasonable and prudent”, having due regard to such things as traffic, weather, visibility or any other conditions existing at the time. Unfortunately, violation of this statute – even if unintended – results in crashes that injure those involved. If you are such a victim, or you know someone who is, feel free to call for a free consultation.

Fortunately I did not hit anyone. But that is not always the case. A woman who was hit by a teenager she believes was driving and using his cell phone has started an Internet campaign to bring attention to the issue of distracted drivers. Moti Melchizedek has posted a video on YouTube in which she shares her thoughts on distracted driving. She also posted pictures of her injuries. Six months ago, Melchizedek was walking her two dogs in her neighborhood when she began crossing the street. That was when she saw a 17-year-old driver look down at his cell phone as he barreled down the street toward her.

Unfortunately distracted driving is on the rise and although more states are passing legislation to curb use of cell phones while driving, such legislation does not completely erase the problem. Nor does it deal with the many other forms of distracted driving – like eating a hamburger with one hand and steering with the other. Hopefully, you or your loved ones have not been effected by a distracted driver, but if you have, feel free to call me for a free consultation.

I have blogged about truck accidents before in my personal injury blog, but usually in the context of a truck hitting someone else. But what about those trucks that carry loads that they improperly secure or tie down? Those are just as much a hazard to life and limb. Kyle David Brown, 40, was killed on Dec. 14, 2011 when his SUV hit logging equipment that toppled from a truck driven by Kenneth L. Davis, of Pleasant Hill, Illinois, on a two-lane bridge (Read more: http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/family-of-lake-saint-louis-man-killed-in-crash-files/article_2bdbe4d0-7e7d-11e1-849a-0019bb30f31a.html#ixzz1s3Kt5BJd).

Just as there are strict rules about when, where and how long commercial truck drivers can drive a big rig, the same is true about how they load their cargo, whatever the cargo may be. The reason for such regulation is obvious – to protect other drivers from hitting foreign objects when driving on the road. Sadly, not all truck drivers or their companies follow these regulations, and personal injuries, sometimes catastrophic injuries or wrongful deaths, ensue. If you or a loved one has been injured in a truck accident, do not hesitate to call Paul Galm, attorney at law, for a free consultation

http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/family-of-lake-saint-louis-man-killed-in-crash-files/article_2bdbe4d0-7e7d-11e1-849a-0019bb30f31a.html

Specifically, the Oregon Department of Human Services released its first report tracking abuse of the elderly and adults with physical disabilities. A snapshot of the findings for 2010:

Totals: More than 27,000 reports received, 11,998 investigated, 2,608 confirmed victims.

Place of abuse: 85 percent of victims were abused in their homes; 15 percent in state-licensed care settings, such as nursing homes.

The victims: Women were nearly twice as likely to be reported victims as males; elderly more often than disabled adults.

The abusers: In care settings, the direct caregiver was the most common abuser. At home, it was relatives.

Financial abuse: More than 850 cases of financial exploitation were confirmed.

Other abuse: Investigators confirmed 1,619 cases of neglect, 411 reports of physical abuse and 32 cases of sexual abuse.

If you or someone close to you has been a victim of elder or nursing home neglect or abuse, feel free to call me for a free consultation.

However, recently in the news has been the story of Sidney Crosby, a professional hockey player in the NHL, has been diagnosed with a soft tissue injury that has kept him out o a lot of games. star said Tuesday he’s been diagnosed with a soft-tissue injury in his neck that mimics the symptoms of a concussion.

Crosby and Penguins owner Mario Lemieux met with spinal trauma expert Dr. Alexander Vaccaro in Philadelphia on Monday to review a series of recent tests on the 2009 NHL MVP. Vaccaro determined an MRI and CAT scan indicated no evidence of a fracture in Crosby’s neck — as had been rumored during All-Star weekend — instead confirming a California doctor’s diagnosis that Crosby is dealing with a soft-tissue injury. He missed more than 10 months last year after taking head shots in consecutive games in January, 2011. He returned on Nov. 21 and scored 12 points in eight games before going back on the injured list.

Frustrated by his slow progress, Crosby traveled to Los Angeles last week to visit noted spine specialist Dr. Robert S. Bray, who examined Crosby and treated him with an injection to alleviate swelling in the neck.  Crosby also met with chiropractic neurologist Dr. Ted Carrick in Atlanta earlier this month to deal with lingering motion issues, saying he was “happy” with his response to Carrick’s treatment.

Your normal NHL hockey player, like Crosby, is big, tough and used to physical bone-jarring hits everyday.  So to hear that Crosby ­ like so many of my motor vehicle accident clients ­ has been completely debilitated by a soft tissue injury gives me hope that perhaps the public will see soft tissue injuries for what they really are ­ life altering injuries that can effect all aspects of a persons life indefinitely.  If you or a loved one has been victim of a car crash, feel free to call for a free consultation today.