Personal Injury

Road rage incidents mean legal trouble for aggressive drivers

September 4, 2014 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Charlotte Personal Injury Attorney Matthew R. Arnold of Arnold & Smith, PLLC answers the question “What if the accident was my fault?”

Few working Americans can escape the drudgery of commuting to and from work. Fewer still avoid driving altogether, which means that when it comes to American roads, we’re stuck with each other—that means all 200-million licensed American drivers, give or take.

The roads aren’t always wide enough to fit us all in, and as any American driver knows, sometimes things happen on the roadways that slow us down. Sometimes other drivers do things that frustrate or enrage us. And sometimes rage and frustration lead to action.

Our brethren across the pond are not immune to this kind of action, as an incident yesterday in Scotland shows. A 20-year-old man sustained serious facial injuries after he stopped his car in front of a man in a larger car. The man in the larger car got out of his vehicle and assaulted the driver, leaving the young man “badly shaken,” according to the local detective constable.

Closer to home, a Rock Hill, South Carolina man was arrested for leaving the scene of an accident after striking a vehicle and then fleeing onto Interstate 77. The man, Nathan Pait, said the incident started when he honked at the vehicle. Pait said the man in the vehicle “acted like he had a gun,” so Pait got out of his truck and threatened the man with a machete.

Enterprising burglar seeks compensation from pizza joint he robbed

September 2, 2014 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Matthew R. Arnold of Arnold & Smith, PLLC answers the question ” I have been injured on another person’s property. What should I do now?”

Police responding to a burglary at the Radio Shack across from Concord Mills Mall in Concord, North Carolina found smashed-out windows and one suspect, who they removed from the scene in handcuffs. Police tracked down a second suspect a short time later, injured from a possible fall in a wooded area. Rescue crews used a stretcher to extricate the man.

If the injured alleged burglar is as enterprising as Nigel Sykes, he may end up suing Radio Shack and the police for his injuries.

Sykes forced his way through the back door of the Newport, Delaware restaurant Seasons Pizza on November 30, 2010. Sykes held up employees using a handgun; they gave him $140. As Sykes made his way to the front of the store, however, employees wrestled him to the ground and grabbed his handgun.

After that, Sykes alleged, all of the Seasons Pizza employees began punching, kicking and pouring hot soup on his body. He alleged that he suffered “a brutal beating” that ended with him being knocked unconscious. Sykes brought suit in federal court seeking $260,000 in compensation from the restaurant. He also sued two Newport police officers who he said used stun guns on him improperly and denied him access to medical attention.

Lawyer says “hero” security guard’s firing a textbook case of age discrimination

August 28, 2014 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Charlotte Personal Injury Attorney Matthew R. Arnold of Arnold & Smith, PLLC answers the question “What can you sue for in a personal injury case?”

A Pennsylvania high school security guard made headlines in April when he endured a knife in the chest while helping to apprehend a young man who allegedly stabbed twenty students with a pair of eight-inch kitchen knives.

Now the man, John Resetar, is making headlines again, but this time he is not being hailed as a hero. This time he is a victim of age discrimination, his lawyer Tim Dawson said. Dawson said Resetar sustained the stab wound on a Wednesday and was back at school the following Monday. The knife pierced Resetar’s chest cavity to within an inch of his heart. Dawson said Resetar is a former linebacker who is a “young seventy,” young enough, the lawyer said, to keep his job.

Officials with Pittsburgh-based Capital Asset Protection Inc. thought otherwise. They fired Resetar for no good reason, according to Dawson. Resetar received a letter on Aug. 4 from Capital and Franklin Regional High School informing him of his termination. Resetar said he was upset by the way the school handled the termination. “Nobody would sit down and talk to me and tell me to my face,” he told the Daily Mail.

An assistant superintendent with the school district suggested that the decision to terminate Resetar was Capital’s, and the matter was out of the school district’s control. She said she was surprised that the letter Capital sent to Resetar mentioned the school district and said she was working to obtain further information about the firing.

Crashworthiness claims available in NC, as long as you were not at fault

August 26, 2014 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Charlotte Personal Injury Attorney Matthew R. Arnold of Arnold & Smith, PLLC answers the question “What if a loved one dies from the injuries sustained in a serious accident while the case is pending?”

A court battle over legal fees stemming from a deadly 2009 car accident ended last week in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Daniel Lopez Ortiz was killed when his car was struck by a box truck in April 2009. Mr. Ortiz’s widow, Maria Fonseca, filed two separate law suits relating to Mr. Ortiz’s death. Ms. Fonseca engaged at least four different law firms to litigate her deceased husband’s claims—one a negligence claim against the driver of the box truck and the second a so-called “crashworthiness” claim against the automaker.

Ms. Fonseca’s counsel obtained significant awards on behalf of the Estate of Mr. Lopez, short of trial. Before the settlements cleared, however, the lawyers and law firms that represented Ms. Fonseca and Mr. Lopez’s estate brought a series of legal actions against each other seeking a cut of the contingency fees earned in the cases. The law firms ended their actions against each other before jury selection began on Aug. 13.

While negligence lawsuits stemming from automobile accidents are common, so-called “crashworthiness” lawsuits may be less familiar to plaintiffs in North Carolina. The “crashworthiness” doctrine was first recognized some 40 years ago.

Public policy ends suit brought by man against skydive-sponsoring Smiling Moose owner

August 21, 2014 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Charlotte Personal Injury Attorney Matthew R. Arnold of Arnold & Smith, PLLC answers the question “What if the accident was my fault?”

Public policy has ended a man’s lawsuit against a bar owner for injuries the man sustained in a skydiving incident.

The man, Stephen Scheuren, was a spectator at The Smiling Moose Saloon & Grill’s 2009 Moosefest, a charity event organized by Smiling Moose owner Cheryl Vogel. At the event, paper plates with numbers written on them were scattered throughout a skydiving landing zone. Skydivers were to pick up plates on landing. Those whose numbers were written on the selected plates won raffle prizes.

Two tandem skydivers, including Manitowoc Mayor Justin Nickel, landed in the landing zone but then slid between two tents into the group of spectators, striking Scheuren and an eight-year-old boy. Scheuren suffered unspecified leg injuries that required surgery.

Mayor Nickel was ultimately dismissed from Scheuren’s lawsuit, but Scheuren obtained a default judgment against one defendant and settled with several others. Only Scheuren’s claims against Vogel remained. She argued that Wisconsin’s so-called “recreational immunity statute” shielded her and The Smiling Moose from liability. A circuit court ruled against Scheuren, so Scheuren appealed.

Government trampling on people’s right to know under Freedom of Information Act

August 19, 2014 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Charlotte Personal Injury Attorney Matthew R. Arnold of Arnold & Smith, PLLC answers the question ” If an incident report was filled out, do I have a right to receive a copy?”

What are “White House equities?” No one seems to know. The Obama administration has never defined the term, but it uses it in order to delay “the ability of federal agencies to timely respond to FOIA requests,” according to the Washington Post.

What are FOIA requests? FOIA is an acronym that stands for the Freedom of Information Act. The Act was enacted by Congress in 1966 to, according to the government, “give the American public greater access to the federal government’s records.” In general, the United States was founded as a government by and for the people; FOIA is a means by which the people of the United States can stay “in the know about their government.”

Individual citizens may request information from government agencies, citing FOIA. Many legal and public interest groups use FOIA requests to uncover information that they believe further their causes or prove that their suspicions about government agencies are up to are true.

Some information cannot be disclosed. Information regarding ongoing criminal investigations, criminal informants and the existence of foreign intelligence or counterintelligence are excluded from production pursuant to FOIA. In addition, a range of other types of information is exempted or privileged from production under the Act.

Woman who died waiting for malpractice trial has former Gov. Easley in her corner

August 14, 2014 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Matthew R. Arnold of Arnold & Smith, PLLC answers the question “What should I do if I have been injured by another party but I can’t afford a lawyer?”

How long does it take to get a medical malpractice case into the hands of a jury? Eleven years and counting, at least for one North Carolina plaintiff. Sadly, Pamela Justus did not live to see her claims against neurosurgeon Michael Rosner, Park Ridge Health and Adventist Health litigated in a court of law.

Jurors in Henderson County Superior Court viewed Ms. Justus’ video testimony on Monday. The testimony was recorded more than two years ago—before Justus’ death. Justus said she hoped her lawsuit would keep what happened to her from happening to anyone else.

Mrs. Justus has alleged that Dr. Rosner performed unnecessary spinal procedures which failed to correct her medical problems of pain and fatigue and created additional medical problems, including neck and back pain, severe headaches, nausea and a paralyzed vocal cord. Dr. Rosner performed the surgeries in 2000 and 2001. Mrs. Justus died on Sept. 20, 2012.

Dr. Rosner’s medical license has been suspended repeatedly by the N.C. Medical Board. The board found in 2003 that Dr. Rosner had performed unnecessary surgeries on at least eight patients, including Mrs. Justus. In his spinal decompression surgeries, Dr. Rosner would carve away portions of the spine and the back of patients’ skulls in order to treat chronic pain conditions such as fibromyalgia. More than 20 lawsuits have been filed against Dr. Rosner alleging medical malpractice and professional negligence. Mrs. Justus filed her lawsuit in 2003.

Car racer death tragic; contributory negligence rule would rule out death lawsuit in N.C.

August 12, 2014 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Charlotte Personal Injury Attorney Matthew R. Arnold of Arnold & Smith, PLLC answers the question “What exactly is a wrongful death claim?”

No one who has been hurt in an accident wants to hear their suffering was their own fault. No family member wants to hear the death of a loved one was caused by their loved one’s own negligence.

This was exactly the sentiment many car racing fans felt this weekend as they came to terms with the sport’s latest on-track fatality. It was, to be sure, a preventable death. During a race on a dirt track in Canadaigua, New York, something caused 20-year-old racer Kevin Ward’s racecar to spinout. Early reports suggested racer Tony Stewart’s car bumped Ward’s car, causing the spinout; subsequent reports and a review of video of the incident make that conclusion unclear.

What is clear is that after his car spun out, Ward climbed out of his vehicle and walked onto the raceway, appearing to gesture at oncoming racecars, including Stewart’s. In a scene straight out of a horror show, Stewart’s car appeared to collide with Ward, either running him over or sucking him under the car. Ward was then seen lying motionless on the track. The race was immediately called, and emergency technicians could be seen tending to Ward within seconds of the collision, but it was too late. Ward died of his injuries.

The Ontario County Sheriff’s Office continues to investigate the incident. Investigators said a “visibly shaken” Stewart was questioned twice after the incident and fully cooperated with authorities. Sheriff Philip Povero told reporters on Sunday that investigators had no information showing criminal intent, although charges had not yet been ruled out.

Care.com sued by parents of infants killed while under care of nannies

August 7, 2014 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Charlotte Personal Injury Attorney Matthew R. Arnold of Arnold & Smith, PLLC answers the question “What if a loved one dies from the injuries sustained in a serious accident while the case is pending?”

A website that links consumers with caregivers for children, seniors and pets has been sued by a Wisconsin couple who used the website to hire a nanny to care for their infant daughter. The infant—Rylan Koopmeiner—died in 2012 of a head injury. Police have charged the nanny that the Koopmeiners hired through Care.com with murder.

The nanny—Sarah Gumm of Waukegan, Illinois—was caring for infant Rylan at her home when the child “suffered a skull fracture and cranial hemorrhaging and died on July 27, 2012.” The cause of the child’s death, according to an autopsy, was blunt force trauma to the head.

Ms. Gumm had been cited twice for drunken driving and once for battery before the Koopmeiners hired her. They paid for the highest-level background check available on Care.com, but the site failed to reveal Ms. Gumm’s criminal record. The Koopmeiners say they would not have hired Gumm if they had known about her criminal history. They say Care.com was negligent.

Care.com has responded that while it is deeply saddened by Rylan’s death, the company cannot comment on ongoing litigation. Ms. Gumm’s attorney has said that she did not kill Rylan intentionally.

Elder abuse and neglect a growing concern for families and society

August 5, 2014 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Charlotte Personal Injury Attorney Matthew R. Arnold of Arnold & Smith, PLLC answers the question “What will happen after I file my nursing home complaint?”

The population of the United States is getting older, literally. While in general the modern elderly are more active, independent and healthy than at any time in recorded history, the sheer number of elderly persons needing basic and extraordinary care is growing. As the so-called Baby-Boomer generation nears and enters retirement, the number of persons needing basic and extraordinary care is expected to continue to increase.

Many elderly persons are outliving their retirement. Many have few opportunities for gainful employment, even if they can work, and face struggles to generate enough income to cover basic expenses, not to mention soaring medical costs. Inevitably these persons turn to their families for help. Families are faced with footing the bills for nursing homes or finding people to care for loved ones.

Unfortunately, many families are unequipped to deal with the expenses associated with caring for elderly loved ones. The American Psychological Association estimates that some 4 million older Americans fall victim to abuse or neglect every year. Observers report, however, that for every reported case of abuse or neglect, as many as 23 go unreported. Most instances of elder abuse or neglect do not occur in nursing homes. Sadly, most instances of elder abuse and neglect occur at home. Most often, family members, household members or paid caregivers are the abusers. Continue Reading