Kentucky Injury Lawyer Blog

Thousand of America’s finest who were injured on and around 9/11 are engaging in settlement discussions with lawyers for the city. The lawsuits were filed against the city by over 9,000 rescue and cleanup workers and volunteers at ground zero on 9/11. The lawsuits alleged that the workers suffered from illness and sickness due to their proximity to ground zero during the days and weeks after the attack. Most of the suits were filed in 2004 against the city and roughly 90 other government agencies and private companies. Now, with trial dates squarely on the horizon, both sides are looking to resolve many, if not most, of the cases through a settlement talks. Twelve cases are currently set for trial in May. Lawyers for the city had been banking on getting many of the cases and causes of action thrown out on what are known as immunity ground (basically that they cannot be sued for decisions made while acting in a governmental capacity). However, the Judge that the cases are in front of, Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein, rejected that argument as premature. Now that more discovery has taken place, the Court may rule on this issue.

In a landmark decision, the Supreme Court of Illinois has struck down a legislatively enacted “cap” on damages in medical malpractice trials. Verdict or jury “caps” are laws created by the legislature to prevent victims of medical malpractice or other serious injury from being fully compensated by those who injured them. The laws limit the amount of money juries are allowed to order defendants to pay to those people they hurt. The cap in Illinois, $500,000, was actually relatively high compared to some states that have caps as low as $200,000.

Many legislatures enact these caps with the completely mistaken belief that they will somehow help reduce the cost of healthcare or lower doctors insurance premiums, and to combat what the proponents of tort reform call “frivolous” lawsuits. However, many states, like Texas, that have had caps for almost a decade or more still continue to see increases in health costs and medical malpractice premiums despite these artificial caps that do nothing but prevent justice from being given.

Brian D. Cook, medical malpractice attorney with Bahe Cook Cantley & Jones PLC states that “legislative caps on personal injury awards are simply an attempt by the legislature to take the power away from the ordinary citizen in one of the truly democratic institutions that we still have – the jury process. By substituting their own opinion for that of the individual, the juror, legislators overstep their bounds and unreasonably trample the American justice system.”

Alcohol is suspected in a crash Saturday night that injured 43 year old Jonas Powell of Glasgow. The wreck happened around 9:30 Saturday night, five miles west of Gamaliel in Monroe County. Police are reporting that 53 year old Lloyd Britt, Jr. of Glasgow was driving a 2003 Ford Ranger when he lost control of the truck in a curve, overcorrected and hit a tree. His truck caught fire upon impact. Powell, a passenger in the truck, was taken to Monroe County Medical Center with serious injuries.

Reports indicate that both men were wearing seatbelts, but charges are pending against Britt for suspected DUI.

Vanessa Cantley, attorney and partner with Bahe Cook Cantley & Jones PLC, is an experienced trial attorney and has represented dozens of individuals injured in auto collisions caused by drunk drivers. She comments: "Mr. Britt is lucky that he and Mr. Powell are alive. If it turns out that Britt was driving drunk, and his negligence caused this wreck, he must be held accountable to Mr. Powell for his injuries. When are people going to realize that drinking and driving don't mix? As an attorney who represents injured victims, this kind of behavior is simply infuriating. We must demand harsher punishment for drunk drivers in this Commonwealth."

For more information about the rights of victims injured in auto wrecks, feel free to contact Vanessa Cantley directly at (866) 587-0002 or e-mail her by clicking here: vanessa@bccjlaw.com.

A wreck this morning on I-65 sent a Jackson, Tennessee girl to Kosair Children's Hospital with life-threatening injuries. The wreck happened at the 87 mile marker just past Glendale, Kentucky. Police are reporting that the girl was a passenger in a Buick that slowed down and was hit in the rear by a wrecker.

The driver and one of the other passengers in the Buick were transported to University of Louisville Hospital with non-life threatening injuries. The driver of the wrecker was reportedly not injured.

The U.S. Transportation Department (DOT) announced it is launching an investigation into alleged and reported braking issues with the Toyota Prius, specifically the 2010 model. The DOT has received 124 complaints about loss of braking capability for no reason at all, four of which involved crashes. Toyota denies that it will recall Priuses, which could number 160,000 worldwide. Please feel free to contact me directly for more information or to ask questions.

A woman is suing the U.S. and Utah bobsledding associations, because of a bobsled colliding with her leg.

The lawsuit was filed in state court in Salt Lake City, Utah. Holly Ball says in the lawsuit she was "training as a bobsled athlete" when she was asked to volunteer for a Nov. 30, 2007, event at the bobsled track at the Utah Olympic Park in Park City.

Ball's lawsuit says she was standing on the track assisting a bobsledder to get out of his sled when organizers allowed another sled to begin its training run, thereby proceeding at down the track. Ms. Ball said she received no warning of the approaching bobsled and it struck "her leg at a very high rate of speed."

Ball says she suffered injuries to her legs, head, neck, back and shoulders and has post-traumatic stress disorder. Ball is suing the U.S. Bobsled and Skeleton Federation and the Utah Skeleton and Bobsled Association. Representatives of those associations could not immediately be reached for comment. Ball is asking for unspecified damages.

For more information about the rights of individuals seriously injured due to the negligence of otherst, please call John A. Bahe, Jr. directly at (866) 587-0002 or e-mail him at john@bccjlaw.com.

It has recently come to light that ever since the year 2003 Toyota has seen hundreds of drivers' complaints about unwanted acceleration of their Toyotas, six inconclusive federal investigations, multiple reports of deaths and repeated denials from the automaker that it had a major problem on its hands.

It was only in early February of 2010 that Toyota owners learned federal regulators, concerned that the company was not taking apparently dangerous defects seriously enough, traveled to Japan in December to light a fire under corporate executives.

Meanwhile, millions of Toyotas continued to be driven by drivers unaware of the potential scope of the problem. Consumers also made Toyota one of the best selling brands in many different markets.

Toyota's string of recalls burst into the open in late September, leaving may of the brand’s most loyal customers to wonder if their vehicles were safe to drive. These actions from a company that had built a legacy on “safety” and “reliability” for many decades. The months ahead will hopefully provide answers to the question that many have; how long did Toyota know there was a problem? If the answer spans many years a second question must be asked; what, if anything, did Toyota do to keep this information from consumers?

For more information about the rights of individuals seriously injured due to dangerous consumer products, please call John A. Bahe, Jr. directly at (866) 587-0002 or e-mail him at john@bccjlaw.com.

The Food and Drug Administration asked the manufacturer of Meridia, Abbott Laboratories, to place a stronger warning on its label due to the results of a study indicating that people prescribed the drug experienced higher rates of heart attacks, strokes and other cardiovascular problems than those on a placebo. The FDA advised that people with a history of heart attacks, strokes or high blood pressure should be warned against taking Meridia.

The European equivalent of the FDA went one step further and advised doctors and pharmacists to stop prescribing and dispensing Reductil and Ectiva, the European equivalents of Meridia. Abbott reacted by suspending sales in Europe.

Meridia is a diet drug that contains an ingredient called sibutramine. Sibutramine causes a person to feel full after eating, which in turn, should lead to reduced food intake. The data came from the Scout trial, which was comprised of a six-year study of about 10,000 people. The patients were overweight or obese and had a history of heart disease, diabetes, or both.

This is very serious. Anyone who is taking these drugs or knows someone who is needs to make sure whether they can remain on them or should stop taking them. Please feel free to contact me directly for more information or to ask questions.

Advocates and families who have witnessed first hand Kentucky nursing home neglect are hoping Kentucky will follow 37 other states in the U.S. and enact a law that requires a minimum level of staffing in Kentucky nursing homes.

Families who are pushing for passage of House Bill 157, a state law that would impose minimum staffing levels at all Kentucky nursing homes. If passed, the law would require dayshift staffing minimums of at least one nurse's aide for every nine nursing home residents, one nurse for every 21 residents and a registered nurse supervisor for facilities with at least 75 beds. There would also be minimum staffing levels, which would be a little less stringent, for evening and night shifts. Nursing homes that didn't comply would face limits on taking new patients and fines of up to $1,000 a day.

However, even though 37 other states have such a law, the supporters of the bill are afraid that it will not even be brought up for a vote in the Kentucky General Assembly because of lobbying and money from the nursing home industry.

According to Shawn Cantley, a Kentucky attorney who advocates on behalf of families and victims of nursing home neglect: This is extremely unfortunate, because nursing home safety advocates and lawyers who represent victims of nursing home neglect and abuse--along with many families of nursing home neglect--know all to well the problems in Kentucky's nursing homes related to under staffing. Reform advocates argue that Kentucky's nursing homes are rife with problems related to low staffing.

A study commissioned by the Louisville Courier-Journal of federal nursing home data showed that in nearly half of Louisville, Kentucky's 47 nursing homes staffing is considered “very poor” or “poor” and “well above average” at only three.

Anyone interested in speaking with Shawn Cantley about nursing home neglect can email him by clicking this link: email_shawn.

Residents of the Beechmont neighborhood in southern Louisville neighborhood have been complaining of strong smelling chemical vapors in their homes, as well as headaches, nausea and other complaints. The company allegedly responsible for the vapor leak and city officials knew about the problem but the company reportedly did nothing and the city failed to activate the telephone alert system for four days, according the the Louisville Courier-Journal.

Beechmont residents complained that information about the incident, linked to the Nuplex Resins plant on Crittenden Drive, was too slow in coming. They have declared that there is no imminent health threat, despite the complaints of the ill. Wednesday night, a 13-year-old boy was treated at Kosair Children’s Hospital for “chemical exposure” and released, according to the paper.

"There is a lot that's troubling about this situation," according to Shawn Cantley, a Louisville attorney who handles toxic exposure cases, "but what troubles me most is the report that officials are looking at possible long-term groundwater contamination as well as a reported spill on Monday as the source of the problem. Soil and ground water contamination can be a serious health-risk for children and adults alike."

Anyone interested in speaking with Shawn Cantley about this topic can email him by clicking this link: email_shawn.