Alabama Injury Attorneys Blog

Tiffany Stabler turned sixteen on May 6, 2004. For Stabler, her life ended all too tragically after she died in a fatal car accident in Alabama on July 4, 2004.

Stabler lost control of her Kia Sephia vehicle, struck a sign, and crashed. During the accident, her seat belt buckle failed and she was ejected from the vehicle. Stabler later died from injuries sustained in the accident.

For her birthday, her father bought her a used 1999 Kia Sephia. He had the car serviced at a local Kia dealership in Alabama and made sure it had had all the proper recall work. In 2002, Kia recalled the seatbelt buckle in the Kia Sephia and Sportage models 1995 through 1998 for having a "false latch" -where the user thinks they have buckled their seatbelt when in reality they have not.

The US Government inquired about the problem in 2002, which prompted Kia to issue a safety recall in December of that same year. The seatbelt buckle in question was known as the A97 seatbelt buckle and it was used in all Kia Sephia and Sportage vehicles from 1995 through 2000. Kia, however, recalled 189,000 vehicles from models 1995-1998 but failed to recall 251,000 vehicle models from 1999 and 2000 with the very same problem.

In April 2004, the US Government again inquired about the problem and specifically why the 1999 and 2000 models were not recalled. The US Government then requested Kia deliver a dozen seatbelt buckles for testing purposes. Kia failed to deliver the seatbelts in question and the federal government expanded the recall in August 2004 to include the 1999 and 2000 models.

Stabler died just one month before the recall was announced. According to the Alabama Personal Injury Attorneys representing Stabler's parents, Randy Vise and Tonya Leytham, Kia knew that the seatbelts were faulty but failed to include the 1999 and 2000 models in their recall.

The Alabama Wrongful Death Lawsuit took over five years of litigation and two appeals to the Alabama Supreme Court before a Mobile County Jury returned a $40 million wrongful death verdict against Kia Motors. It took the jury almost 2 weeks before rendering a verdict in favor of the plaintiff.

Continue reading "Alabama Jury Awards Family with $40 Million Verdict" »

A 3-month-old child is dead after a daycare center left him unattended for a day.

Staff members at a Childfirst 24 Hour Childcare left 3-month-old Darryl Love II alone while they went to lunch on September 15th, 2009. The baby died on the very first day that he attended the DeKalb County Daycare located on Columbia Drive.

After the daycare employee returned from her lunch break, she found Daryl Love unresponsive and blue.

According to the wrongful death lawsuit filed on Monday, the daycare accident could have been prevented had they not left him unattended. Ironically, the personal injury suit was filed the very same day that a 2-year-old child was killed after being left alone inside a van outside of a Clayton County day care.

The Child Daycare Injury Attorneys allege in the wrongful death suit that the staff was negligent in their emergency response efforts and that they failed to immediately contact 911.

Childfirst 24 Hour Childcare denies that they did any wrongdoing.

According to the police incident report, Darryl Love was transported to Children's Healthcare of Atlanta at Egleston. An autopsy report was done and proved to be inconclusive. Other than asphyxiation, they were unable to identify the exact cause of death. However, records show that officials have visited Childfirst seven times since April 2010 and on April 29, 2010 the facility was cited for inadequate staffing. The facility was also cited in May for incomplete records.

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Tragedy struck this past Thursday in Daphne, Alabama when a 14-year-old boy was run over by a garbage truck. Daniel DiNardi was riding his bike home from a summer school programs when a Waste Management garbage truck hit the teenager. The garbage truck ran over the boy after 12 p.m. on Thursday around the intersection of Baldwin County highways 13 and 64.

The Waste Management truck rolled over and crushed the boy's chest. He was conscious after the accident but he is currently on a respiratory system fighting for his life. He has critical injuries including a massive head trauma, shattered pelvis, lacerated liver and ruptured spleen.

Continue reading "Alabama Teen Critically Injured " »

A recent study estimates that over 1,000 Americans are injured in golf cart accidents every month.

Because of the low-cost of these motor vehicles, just as many accidents are occurring off the golf course as well as on. A University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) study released earlier this month found golf carts are routinely involved in crash collisions and rollover accidents. It also found that people are just as likely to be fall off a golf cart as they are to be thrown from the vehicle.

The study, conducted by physicians at UAB Hospital, was published in the Journal of Trauma: Injury, Infections and Critical Care after doctors at UAB treated numerous people who sustained injuries in golf cart related accidents. This is the first study of its kind that has estimated the amount of golf cart-related accidents in the United States.

UAB researchers analyzed a national database of emergency room records from 2002 to 2005. A conservative estimate suggests there were over 48,000 golf cart accidents over the course of the four-year period. That averages out to around 1,000 accidents per month. Ironically, only half the accidents actually occurred on a golf course. The remainder occurred at private homes and on public property.

The study found the most common injuries sustained from golf cart accidents were bone fractures and head traumas. The largest amount of injuries occurred in boys between 10-19 years old and men over the age of 80.

Golf carts, though they appear to be safe, are designed to reach a maximum speed of 15 mph. However, many have been altered to reach much higher speeds. Lacking basic safety features such as turn signals, mirrors and a windshield, a person' use of golf carts on public roads can be a real threat to human life.

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Sandestin, Florida, June 15- Ken Riley, a partner with the law firm Farris, Riley & Pitt, LLP, is scheduled to speak at the upcoming Alabama Association for Justice Annual Convention in Sandestin, Florida. Mr. Riley will hold two break-out seminars during the convention covering Auto Accident Litigation and Efficiency with the Claims Process.

Mr. Riley has been representing clients involved in automobile accidents for over a decade. Having won and settled numerous cases on behalf of his clients, he is extremely knowledgeable with the claims process and has created a systematic approach to ensuring the best outcome for his clients.

Mr. Riley's seminar will focus on efficiency surrounding automobile accident claims. While no two cases are alike, they all have one common denominator: efficiency. Aptitude and overall ability is essential to the injured party, but efficiency affects the whole outcome of the case. Mr. Riley will break down the litigation process and help streamline procedures he uses in his daily practice for other trial lawyers. The two seminars will be held on June 17th at 1:15 p.m. CST and 2:15 p.m. CST.

About Farris, Riley & Pitt, LLP

Farris, Riley & Pitt, LLP is a plaintiff's firm in downtown Birmingham, Alabama. Having represented clients for over 15 years, Farris, Riley & Pitt has established itself as a leader among Alabama's law firms. Handling an array of practice areas, the attorneys at Farris, Riley & Pitt represent clients involved in automobile accidents, tractor trailer accidents, nursing home abuse and neglect, FLSA class actions, FELA litigation, child-related injuries and product defect cases.

A jury recently awarded Niki Bell with a $30 million verdict for injuries she sustained in a horrific boating accident on Lake Oroville.

Twenty-seven year old Niki Bell was left permanently injured after a boating accident almost five years ago. In 2006, Bell and several other friends were riding in the bow of a MasterCraft X45 when the boat slowed to turn and dumped Bell and another woman, Bethany Wallenburg, into the water.

Traveling at a speed of 3-to-5 mph, the 24ft boat slowed to retrieve a fallen wake-boarder that it was pulling. The excessive size of the bow caused it to dump the two women into the lake. Bell suffered a traumatic head injury after the boat propeller sliced through the front lobe of her skull and ripped out her left eye. Bethany Wallenburg, the second injured boat victim, was slashed across the back, arm and leg by the boat propeller.

The boat's driver, Jerry Montz, was arrested after the boating accident and pleaded no contest to recklessness and negligent operation of a watercraft vessel. Evidence during the trial indicated that Montz had been drinking at the time of the accident and registered a blood-alcohol level of 0.04%.

According to the personal injury attorneys representing Bell, a flaw in the boat's design caused it to dip into the lake. The plaintiff lawyers alleged MasterCraft combined two existing boats and never engineered it. By enlarging the size of the bow of the MasterCraft X45 it allowed more people to fit on the bow of the boat though if it dipped, as it did in this case, water would pour in. There were a total of 19 people on the boat at the time of the accident, however, Montz (the driver) allowed 12 people to sit on the bow of the boat.

The California jury returned a $30 million verdict in favor of Bell and a $500,000 to Wallenburg. The jury cited MasterCraft with 80% responsibility for the damages and Montz, now 33, with 20% responsibility.

According to Bell's mother, Niki is living independently and working part time but will require a lifetime of treatment.

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Alabama's Shelby County emergency assistance received a 911 call at approximately 11:08 a.m. today requesting medical aid to a local residence. Paramedics were called in reference to an injured person on Shelby County Road 77 near the Kingdom community. Upon arrival, paramedics found Mr. Alfred Donald Horton, a resident of Columbiana, deceased. Mr. Horton suffered fatal injuries after getting pinned between two fallen trees. According to reports, Horton was performing tree maintenance at the residence. The death is believed to be accidental.

The mother of a child killed in a two-car crash in Harris County has sued CenterPoint Energy and Joslin Construction Co., alleging both failed to repair a malfunctioning traffic light. Alma Crus-Reyes lost her 8-month-old daughter in the crash on May 29 after a traffic light was not working due to maintenance. Another child, 3-year-old Valeria Mendoza, was also killed in the crash.

The two-car accident occurred around 1:40 p.m. after a 1997 Chevrolet Suburban collided with a 2005 Chevrolet pick-up truck. A total of 16 occupants were in the two vehicles and neither child was restrained in a child safety seat. State law requires children of a certain age to be secured in a safety seat.

The personal injury lawsuit alleges that the signal at the intersection of Garrett and Beltway 8 was under maintenance and not working properly. The wrongful death suit contends that the two companies, CenterPoint and Joslin Construction Co., should have provided warning signs to alert motorists of this hazard.

The personal injury attorney representing Alma Crus-Reyes said "the sole reason this accident happened was because they didn't advise anyone nor did they take steps to control the traffic once they turned off the lights."

The attorney for Joslin Construction has denied all liability stating that they had no involvement with the signal. CenterPoint Energy has yet to comment.

According to the sheriff's investigators who examined this fatal crash, all safety belts were occupied in the Chevrolet Suburban. A Harris County Sergeant said proper restraint would have saved these two children's lives. Both vehicles failed to stop at the signal and neither automobile stopped to treat it as a four-way stop. The fatal car accident remains under investigation.

Continue reading "Two Children Killed in Auto Accident- Traffic Light Malfunctioned" »

The family of motorcyclist Kenneth Sully settles a wrongful death lawsuit against the city of San Diego after his untimely death in April 2009.

The wrongful death lawsuit alleged that the city had repeatedly dismissed complaints about the accident-prone intersection for over a decade. And had the city installed a $3000 traffic signal, the accident ultimately would have been prevented.

Now the city of San Diego will have to pay the Sully family a $1.8 million settlement for their claim.

Sully, 58, was killed in a motorcycle accident at the intersection of Pacific Highway and Cedar Street after his bike collided with a Toyota Corolla. The car was driven by a 17-year-old female who was heading in the opposite direction. The Corolla turned left onto Cedar Street in front of him. As Sully attempted to move out of the way, he hit the Corolla on the rear passenger side and later died from head injuries sustained in the accident.

The personal injury lawsuit claimed that the "Turn lane's position combined with the position of the then-existing traffic signals gave drivers the confusing illusion they had the right-of-way on a green signal to turn left onto Cedar Street." The lawsuit also stated, "The city further failed to install or maintain any signs warning southbound traffic they were required to yield to northbound Pacific Highway traffic when turning onto Cedar Street. No warning or signals were present to safely guide traffic using this intersection with due care."

The personal injury law firm representing the Sully family sought $5 million for the motorcycle accident. The plaintiff attorney later called it a "foreseeable and preventable accident."

Sully is survived by his wife, Dianne, and their daughter, Nicole.

Continue reading "Family of Motorcycle Accident Victim Settles for $1.8 Million " »

A jury awarded a 2.1 million dollar wrongful death verdict to the family of a man who died after being run over by a city worker's truck in 2008. Armando Morataya was asleep on the grass in a city park when the truck ran over him and crushed his chest. He died a week later in the hospital surrounded by family members. He was 54 years old.

After listening to several days of emotional testimony, it took jurors less than two days to return a wrongful death verdict to the Morataya family. The wrongful death award was divided among his two daughters, Erika, 32, and Cindy, 24, who each received $400,000, and his mother, Maria Ramirez, who received $1.3 million.

The city admitted that the man who was killed was at no fault in the accident, which left the jury to determine only damages. The Park employee, Timothy Ornelas, was named in the lawsuit as well as the city. Ornelas, 45, was driving an F-150 pick up truck over a rise when he struck Morataya.

After the verdict was awarded, the man's daughter Cindy told reporters, "Because of what we've just been through, we hope it means there's less chance that this will ever happen again to anyone else."

Continue reading "$2.1 Million Awarded to Family in City Park Wrongful Death Case" »

On February 11, 2009, Donald A. Meyer was driving early one morning in the Sodo neighborhood of Seattle, when an on-duty police office stuck and hit Meyer's vehicle in a head-on crash.

Officer John Welch, 26, was driving around 40 mph when he lost control of his vehicle after it slipped on a patch of ice causing him to strike 51-year-old Meyer.
Meyer's head-on collision resulted in serious injuries to his neck, chest, abdomen and back. According to the personal injury lawyer representing Meyer, he has since returned to work at the Sodo bottle-making factory, but he continues to suffer from headaches and other ailments.

The personal injury lawsuit initially sought more than $1 million in damages against the Seattle Police Department. The auto-accident settled last month for $650,000 and will help pay past and future medical expenses as well as his pain and suffering.

Meyer's personal injury attorney later commented that he was pleased the city took responsibility for the car wreck that left his clients injured.

Continue reading " Police Settle Auto Accident for $650,000" »

A Wilson County jury recently awarded 23-year-old Sam Rollings with $1.6 million verdict after he sustained a serious on-the-job injury.

Rolling was working for the Fredonia Cooperative Association in Fredonia, Kansas back in January, 2007. While cleaning out a grain bin, Rollings slipped and fell which caused his right foot and ankle to get caught in the drag chain of a conveyor system, designed by Ken Babcock Sales, Inc. Rollings suffered a serious personal injury and ultimately lost his leg.

The personal injury lawsuit alleged that the conveyor system, designed by Ken Babcock Sales, failed to protect workers responsible for cleaning the grain bin. According to the personal injury attorneys representing Rollings, "The defective unguarded drag chain conveyor was just six inches away from the large sump hole... an accident just waiting to happen."

Rollings' Accident and Injury Lawyers claimed the conveyor system ultimately caused Rollings to loose his leg. They also alleged the design of the conveyor belt was flawed and created a dangerous condition for workers.

The defense team argued that Rollings employer, Fredonia Cooperative Association, Inc., was negligent by allowing workers into the grain bin when the conveyor was turned on and moving. They later alleged that the system was designed by Ken Babcock, Inc. was unsafe.

It took a Wilson County jury over seven hours to deliberate and to return a verdict in favor of the plaintiff Rollings, who was awarded $1.6 million. The award covered medical expenses, lost wages and future medical costs. The jury found Babcock to be 46% at fault, Fredonia Co-op 44% at fault and Rollings 10% at fault.

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