West Palm Beach Personal Injury Lawyer - Wrongful Death

Fiery Train Crash in Kentucky

John Hopkins — Tue, 16 Jan 2007 15:40:40 GMT

Reports of several train cars crashing in Kentucky have apparently closed highways and forced mass evacuations of schools, businesses and homes in Bullitt County, Kentucky.

It appears that several of the derailing train cars were carrying flammable liquids, which resulted in explosions and flaming liquid flowing along ditches at the train crash site. CBS reports that the wreck involved (4) locomotives and 80 rail cars. CBS also siad that this was the second crash in two days:

It was the second fiery train crash in Kentucky in two days. On Monday, four runaway rail cars struck two parked locomotives in central Kentucky, catching fire and spilling a chemical that prompted a limited evacuation.

Apparently the previous train wreck involved four runaway rail cars somehow struck a parked locomotive, according to AP reports. Supposedly, the cars contained butyl acetate. That train wreck resulted in explosions as well.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by John Hopkins

Physician First Do No Harm; but if you do its OK to coerce patients

John Hopkins — Fri, 29 Sep 2006 11:08:39 GMT

The St. Petersburg Times reports a startling event. Physicians who, through less than candid means, convinced voters to limit the damages that victims of medical malpractice can collect; are now going to "convince" their patients to forgive them for their malpractice.

The Times reports that the waiver, which physicians will ask their patients to sign, will limit non-economic damages to $250,000. So, I guess the way it happens is that sick patients go in to see their "healer" and the doctor explains that he/she will be glad to "heal" them if they will simply sign this "little form". The sick patient does not want to sign the waiver; the healer apologizes for their inability to treat them without the agreement to limit the "healer's" liability to the sick patient in the event something goes wrong.

Physicians and the health care industry bemoaned that if the last round of tort reform was not passed by the public, they would all have to move out of Florida because malpractice insurance would not be affordable. Physicians' groups told the public that caps on damages were a good thing and they better pass them, if patients wanted to keep their doctors.

The insurance industry, though, stood before the legislature and testified that tort reform would have no effect on medical malpractice premiums and that Florida was not in the midst of a malpractice crisis. Study after study reveals the same thing: few malpractice cases are ever filed that lack merit and those that are filed against physicians are usually well deserved.

The fact is that the cost for a plaintiff's attorney to support the investigation and prosecution of a medical malpractice case is significant; sometimes into the hundreds of thousands of dollars. The average case takes years to get to trial and the plaintiff attorney is typically carrying all those costs for all those years. Since doctors statistically win in front of juries more often than plaintiffs; many attorneys end up "eating" all those costs in the event of a defense verdict.

The healthcare industry has done a dreadful and shameful job of policing itself. The medical boards are slow to ever discipline doctors and the "peter principle" is alive and well in the healthcare industry. Physicians have adopted the corporate health care mentality; where a patient is more a statistical profit margin than a "sick patient". Patients are treated to ten minutes and a cloud of dust from their physicians; rather than a caring, interested, healer.

Certainly, there are good doctors, just as there are good trial attorneys. I suspect patients will not see this waiver form thrust in front of them by good doctors.

And doctors whine about being sued; it has been the only thing keeping them in check...until now anyway.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by John Hopkins

Family of Cadet Files Wrongful Death Lawsuit

Staff Writer — Wed, 23 Aug 2006 11:57:33 GMT

The family of a fire academy cadet who collapsed and died while participating in physical training at the fire academy in Jacksonville has filed a wrongful death suit against the city and the college who supplied the PT instructors.

Karl Kramer died at the hospital nine days after he collapsed. He was attending the fire academy with the hopes of following in his father's footsteps by becoming a fireman.

The notice of intent to sue comes less than two weeks after the Human Rights Commission released a scathing report on JFRD, saying the department is filled with racism and discrimination.
"We still have a culture that is hanging onto things in the past ... a fraternity atmosphere (of) intimidation and harassment on the one hand, and on the other hand, a lack of professionalism," the family's attorney, Steve Pajcic, said.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Staff Writer