San Diego Personal Injury Attorney Alicia Slaughter » admin

San Diego Crosswalk Accident and Pedestrian Accident Lawyer

admin — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 18:53:48 +0000

Crosswalks exist at every intersection, whether they are marked of not. If, however, the crosswalk is in the middle of the block, it must be marked and traffic signs warning drivers of its upcoming existence must be posted. Pedestrians in a crosswalk have the legal right of way, and a motor vehicle must yield the road to him.

If a driver is preoccupied – say, with changing the station on the radio or trying to calm a crying infant in the back seat – the driver may not see the pedestrian in time to stop. If the pedestrian survives the impact, he or she likely will have major injuries. In such a case, you should obtain the services of an experienced San Diego personal injury lawyer as soon as possible, as the driver’s insurance company will assign one of its investigators as soon as the claim is reported to it.

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Slip and Fall at Grocery Store – San Diego Lawyer Trip & Fall

admin — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 16:13:51 +0000

A grocery store has an obligation (“duty”) to make sure that its aisles are clean and safe for shoppers. An inspection, or “sweep,” of the aisles must be made by a store employee on a regular basis. Many injuries occur in the produce department, where a fruit has fallen out of its bin onto the floor. For example, a tomato may fall to the ground and an innocent shopper looking at the produce or display may not see it. The shopper may inadvertently step on the tomato, lose his or her balance, and fall hard to the ground. The injuries may be as severe as a broken pelvis or hip.

If the grocery store keeps a log of who inspected the aisles and when it was last done, this can be crucial evidence. But even if the employee walked the aisles five minutes before the accident happened, he or she may not have seen the tomato. For this reason it is important that the evidence (i.e., the tomato) be kept or pictures taken of it as soon as possible so it can be inspected for signs like dirt or bruising that may indicate the tomato was on the ground for a substantial length of time and the employee either missed seeing the tomato or falsified the log sheet (such as saying he or she inspected the aisles when in fact he or she did not).

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Using Cell Phone While Driving – San Diego Lawyer

admin — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 17:35:33 +0000

In an attempt to reduce the number of automobile accidents, California has banned the use of a hand-held cell phone while driving. Studies show, however that there is little difference in the number of accidents between drivers using a hand-held cell phone and those using a hands-free cell phone, and the driver may be unable to react quickly if the circumstances demand it.

In both situations, the driver’s full attention is diverted from the road in front of him or her. Plus, even with a hands-free cell phone, the driver has to look at the cell phone to dial a number, even one that is pre-programmed. If you deny using your cell phone at the time of the accident, the opposing attorney can subpoena your cell phone records to prove you were in fact using your cell phone when the accident occurred.

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Wrongful Death Cases San Diego, California Lawyer

admin — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 17:35:16 +0000

“Wrongful death” is a legal term that means someone’s death was due to the carelessness (“negligence”) of another person, animal, defective product or other source. For instance, if a person is killed in an automobile accident caused by the other party, the death is referred to as a wrongful death. The amount of monetary compensation (“damages”) the survivors can recover depend on the age of the deceased person, whether he or she was working, medical expenses in trying to safe his or her life, loss of care and comfort, whether the survivor was being supported in full or in part by the deceased person (the “decedent”).

If, say, the husband is killed due to another person’s fault, the widow and children are entitled to any and all medical expenses that may have been incurred in an unsuccessful attempt to save the husband’s life, all of the wages the husband would have expected to earn during his life, loss of advice, care, and comfort, and funeral and burial expenses. The surviving spouse is entitled to loss of society and companionship, including loss of sexual relations (“consortium”).

If you feel like you may have a wrongful death case, call now for a free legal consultation. Protect yourself and your family – 888.207.5321

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Amusement Park Accidents and Injuries in San Diego

admin — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 22:31:13 +0000

Millions of Americans and foreign travelers annually spend a day or two at amusement parks, such as Sea World, LegoLand, Disneyland, Six Flags, and Knott’s Berry Farm riding the numerous rides. Some people even buy year-long passes and it doesn’t seem like they can get enough of an adrenaline rush on the rides. Unfortunately, a thrill ride can turn into a kill ride if it malfunctions. And even if the thrill ride is operating properly, passengers can suffer a severe closed head injury and brain damage by the violent shaking of their heads as the ride makes high-speed twists, turns, drops, and other sudden movements. The brain bounces around in the head, hitting the skull numerous times.

When this happens, you may feel woozy and disoriented and find it difficult to walk and move your arms. You may not be able to think clearly and rationally. In such event, you should seek first-aid treatment immediately and consult a neurologist if the symptoms persist. Sometimes the brakes fail on the car that is finishing its round, causing it to rear-end at high speed the cars in front of it that are stopped to let passengers on and off, causing severe injuries, even death. A day of fun and excitement can quickly turn into a day of tragedy when an amusement park ride fails and in some cases, even when the ride is operating as designed.

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San Diego Bicycle Accident Lawyer – Protect Yourself

admin — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 01:03:05 +0000

Millions of Americans ride bicycles each day. Some ride for the commute from home to work and back home again. Some ride occasionally just for sheer pleasure. Many ride seriously to keep fit and healthy, and some ride bicycles competitively. The two main enemies of the bicycle rider are careless automobile drivers and potholes. The auto driver may drive too close to the shoulder, forcing the bicyclist off the road, where he or she falls and is injured.

Another danger for the bicyclist is that the occupant of a car parked on the side of the road will fling his or her door open without first looking back to see if any bicyclists are approaching. Potholes and poorly maintained roads are the bicyclist’s other main nemesis. When a pothole is the cause of the accident, many cities and counties require that, for them to be financially responsible (“liable”) for the bicyclist’s injuries, they must have received written notice of the pothole’s existence a sufficient time before the accident to give the city or county sufficient time to fix it.

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San Diego Dog Bite – Dog Bite Statistics

admin — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 04:21:20 +0000

Approximately 4.5 million Americans are bitten by dogs each year. Of those, 1 out of five – a whopping 885,000 – are bitten severely enough to require medical attention. Each year more than 30,000 bite victims will need reconstructive surgery. Among children, those aged 5 to 9 years old are more likely to get medical care for their injuries than adults who have been bitten by a dog. Although we usually think of pit bulls and Rottweilers as most likely to bite, the fact is that any dog has the propensity to bite under the right circumstances. Even a small ferocious dog can inflict serious injury. For instance, a Chihuahua can bite off a child’s ear in a matter of seconds. Never leave a baby or child alone with a dog. That is a sure recipe for disaster. Visit our San Diego Dog Bite Lawyer information page for more.

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Your Rights as a Passenger – If you’ve been involved in an accident San Diego

admin — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 14:58:55 +0000

If you are riding as a passenger in a car that is hit by another driver, you have the right to go after the at fault driver to have him or her pay for your medical injuries, lost wages, pain and suffering, disfigurement, and any other damages you may suffer as the result of the accident. But what if the driver of the car you were riding in was at fault? Can you sue him or her? Yes.

A driver is obligated to drive safely not only to avoid injuring people outside of the car, but also to protect his or her own passengers from injury or death. An injured passenger initially may not want to sue the friend who was driving, but as ambulance bills, medical expenses, and other costs start coming in, coupled with the pain and suffering the person experiences, the injured person will think twice about suing his or her friend for causing the accident. And in reality, the person is really suing the insurance company, and the friend had the policy to provide a fund to pay for injuries and property damage he or she causes, including to friends riding as passengers.

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San Diego Car Accident with Uninsured Car – What Can be Worse?

admin — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 17:56:38 +0000

What can be worse than being rear-ended at a stop sign or red light and having somebody plow into your rear end, causing you serious injuries? The fact that the person who hits you has no insurance or the bare minimum limits, which are not nearly sufficient to cover all of the treatment you’ll need for your injuries, time lost from work, and other expenses. For this reason, you should have adequate uninsured/underinsured coverage on your own insurance policy. Uninsured/underinsured coverage is not overly expensive and is a “must have” when you’re considering what things you need covered when you’re sitting down with your insurance agent. At a bare minimum, we recommend that you have at least 100/300 thousand unsinured/underinsured coverage. That means that no one person can receive more than $100,000, and the total payout for all persons injured does not exceed $300,000.

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San Diego Spinal Cord Injury and Depression

admin — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 16:19:21 +0000

Most people who suffer a spinal cord injury that results in quadriplegia, paraplegia, or other serious injury sooner or later will go through a period of major depression. The victim may be frustrated at how his or life has been changed and he or she cannot perform even the simplest tasks. In most spinal cord injuries, the victim does not suffer any mental damage and will feel trapped in a nonfunctioning body. At the first signs that a spinal cord victim may be experiencing depression, you should contact the victim’s prime caregiver, express your concerns, and ask that the victim be set up with a psychiatrist or psychologist for a consultation as soon as possible. The earlier depression is diagnosed and treatment started—which may consist of antidepressants, individual and/or group psychotherapy, or a combination of the two—the better the chances that the depression can be managed appropriately.

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