Alabama Injury Attorneys Blog

A Florida jury recently awarded the family of Elvira Nunziata with a $200 million verdict after she fell and died in a local nursing home. Nunziata began living at the Pinellas Park nursing home in 2003. In October 2004, Nunziata, 92, was found strapped to her wheelchair at the bottom of 10 stairs. Paramedics were immediately called in; however, Nunziata died shortly after their arrival. Prone to wonder, Nunziata was with a group of residents at the Florida retirement home when employees noticed she was missing. About an hour later, Nunziata was found at the bottom of an emergency exit.

At the time of the accident, Trans Health Management managed the nursing home. Nunziata's son sued Trans Health Management for his mother's wrongful death in 2005.

It took the jury less than one hour to return a verdict in favor of the plaintiff. The jury returned a $60 million verdict in compensatory damages and $140 million in punitive damages. According to the personal injury attorney representing the case, this is one of the largest nursing home neglect verdicts in the state. The personal injury lawyer representing the family asked the jury to return a verdict that would send a message to the nursing home that neglect and bad healthcare would not be tolerated.

During the nursing home abuse trial, former caregivers testified that the nursing home was understaffed and that prior to her death Nunziata had suffered several falls and injuries. Nunziata also had early onset dementia and staff and caregivers knew this.

It is estimated that for every one instance of nursing home abuse, another five are unreported. Reports indicate that 5% of the elderly population in the United States resides in nursing homes which equals about 1.8 million people. Every year loved ones are placed in nursing home facilities across the county and undoubtedly large percent of them will endure some form of nursing home abuse or neglect.

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The family of John Paul Lacaillade, II was awarded an $8.5 million verdict by a federal jury for his wrongful death. Lacaillade, 38, was bicycling in Maine when he was run over by a tractor-trailer.

The trucking accident occurred in 2008 with a Canadian trucking company, Loignon.
Lacaillade was "sprint training" when his bike hit a broken patch of pavement. He was thrown off the bike into the road underneath the wheels of a tractor-trailer.

Lacaillade's widow, along with her two children, filed the wrongful death lawsuit last year against the trucking company for the death of her husband. Claiming negligence, Lacaillade's widow named the company as well the truck driver for causing the death of her husband. Loignon, the tractor-trailer company, denied any wrongdoing and initially offered the widow $100,000 to avoid a trail.

After a seven-day trail, the jury returned a verdict in favor of the plaintiff for $8.5 million. The widow was awarded $2.5 million for emotional distress, $3.5 million for loss of future wages, earning power and house personal injury awarded and another $2.5 million to the couple's two children.

The personal injury attorney representing the family could not be reached for comment following the trial.

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A jury recently awarded Isaac Torres a $1.1 million verdict after he fell down the stairs at his apartment complex.

Falling victim to the foreclosure wave, Torres moved with his family into the Larkspur apartment in 2008. Torres, 41, sued his landlord after he sustained a back injury from falling down the stairs at his Rice Lane Apartment in 2010. As a result of the January 1st injury, Torres sued his property owner, Thomas Fleming, after he developed a lumbar strain and a disk problems.

Alleging negligence and failure to keep the stairwell clean, Torres cited Fleming with failure to install a handrail-required by law. The injury forced Torres to quit his job as a houseman for a wealthy San Francisco family because of the pain.

Torres and his personal injury attorney took the accident case to trail. After the 14-day trial, a jury returned a $1,070,801 million verdict plus an additional $850,000 for future lost wages.

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A Federal Judge has approved a $1 million settlement in the wrongful death of a Bay City teenager. The family of Brett Elder filed a wrongful death lawsuit after the 15-year-old died from a police taser. The teenager's father filed the personal injury lawsuit on Brett's behalf in December 2009.

Autopsy reports indicate the teen died of ""alcohol-induced excited delirium" together with "application of an electromuscular disruption device." According to the police, Elder was intoxicated, extremely aggressive towards police officers and required restraint. Settlement proceeds will be distributed among Elder's remaining four family members.

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A California court has ordered Barron Hilton, the younger brother of the infamous Paris Hilton, to pay $4.9 million to a gas station attendant he struck with his vehicle.

In 2008, Hilton was reportedly driving erratically down Pacific Coast Highway when he swung into a gas station and hit the attendant, Fernando Tellez, with his Mercedes-Benz. Hilton was arrested with a blood-alcohol level of 0.14%, and later charged with driving under the influence of alcohol. Hilton denied he had driven the vehicle that struck Tellez.

Hilton's drunk driving accident caused the gas station attendant, Tellez, to suffer permanent injuries. Tellez was out of work for a "significant amount of time" and had numerous surgeries.

The court awarded Tellez with $4.6 million for pain and suffering, medical expenses and loss of earnings. The judgment also awarded Tellez $225,000 in punitive damages, and another $71,000 for interest on the damages.

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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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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.

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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."

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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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A $322 million dollar verdict was awarded this month to a Mississippi man with severe asbestosis caused by asbestos exposure while mixing drilling mud. The jury awarded $22 million in actual damages and $300 million in punitive damages against the manufacturers of the drilling mud.

Asbestos exposure has dangerous consequences, but many people continue to be exposed. The Daily Show recently did a comedy segment about a town called Asbestos, Quebec where asbestos continues to be mined and sold.

Exposure to asbestos can cause mesothelioma, lung cancer, and asbestosis.

Asbestosis often appears years after exposure to asbestos. Its symptoms include shortness of breath, coughing and chest pain, and finger deformity.

Mesothelioma, a specific type of lung cancer caused by asbestos exposure, can be a frightening diagnosis. There is good news, though, because research has led to more promising treatment options. Doctors focus on finding the optimal combination of treatment options, and researchers are coming up with new treatments all the time. A study completed this year has even identified the benefits of curcumin, an extract from the spice turmeric, in fighting this disease.

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Yesterday Personal Injury Attorneys Brett Turnbull and Kirby Farris settled a substantial Alabama Nursing Home case in favor of well deserving clients.

A Jefferson County Jury awarded a Birmingham, Alabama family $3 million on Friday afternoon in the wrongful death of their son, LaBoyish Catlin.

LaBoyish Catlin, 37, died in January of 2006 a few days after having a duodenal ulcer repaired. The wrongful death lawsuit, filed by Personal Injury Attorney Ken Riley, on behalf of the Catlin family claimed negligence and improper surgery lead to Catlin's death. Riley said LaBoyish, better known as Wayne to his friends and family, required multiple blood transfusions post-operatively and later died at home after having been released from Baptist Princeton Hospital.

The autopsy report stated that Catlin bleed to death. Catlin was not properly examined by the attending physician before being sent home with a very low blood count. The wrongful death lawsuit cited "Exsanguination in the artery" as the cause of death.

Riley and co-counsel, Shay Samples, believe Baptist Health will file an appeal. Most large jury verdicts, particularly medical malpractice verdicts, are usually reviewed by the Alabama Supreme Court. Medical Malpractice cases are extremely difficult to win in Alabama, with "doctors and hospitals usually [winning] about 90 percent of cases."

The trial lasted two weeks and ended last Friday. Ken Riley, lead counsel from the law firm Farris, Riley & Pitt, said it took the Jefferson County Circuit Court about three hours before returning a $3 million wrongful death verdict.

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A jury awarded more that $49 million in a lawsuit that killed one man and left another paralyzed.

Last week, a Ventura County jury award Anthony Pedeferri, a California Patrol Officer, and his wife $39 million for paralyzing injuries Pedeferri sustained after a drunk driving crash. Pedeferri had pulled over Andres Parra when a drunk-driver slammed into them, killing Parra and leaving Pedeferri a quadriplegic.

The jury awarded Parra's parents $10.2 million for the loss of their son.

The drunk-driver plead guilty to driving while intoxicated and transportation of marijuana. He was sentenced to 15 years in prison backing 2008.

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David Travis was awarded an $11.7 million jury verdict from injuries he sustained on a job site. Travis, an elevator mechanic, was injured in 2007 while working at the Extended Stay Hotel in Marin County California. The verdict is said to be the largest jury verdict in the county's history.

The trial lasted six weeks, and took the jury three days to deliberate before returning a verdict in favor of the plaintiff. The personal injury attorney for the plaintiff alleged that Bison Builders, the general contractor on site, failed to provide a safe and injury free work environment. For example, Travis, who is 6-foot-one, was forced to carry heavy tools and parts under low lying scaffolding with a clearance of about 5 feet, 7 inches. The scaffolding falls more than a foot below state height regulations.

The injury attorney representing Travis also claimed that the construction area was dark and strewn with litter and very dangerous. Travis reported the conditions to the contractors on several occasions but nothing was done to improve the construction site.

Travis, although wearing a hard hat, reportedly hit his head on the cross-bracing and suffered a herniated disc over the course of two months. The herniated disc compressed into his spinal cord causing near paralysis that was later corrected with surgery.

Travis, 38-years-old, currently suffers from neurological injuries and will probably end up in a wheelchair. Due to his injury, he can no longer perform normal physical tasks and is forced to wear a diaper.

Travis, a father of two, was earning about $150,000 a year prior to the injury. The personal injury attorney representing Travis was quoted after the trial saying, "One thing about money- it does give you power over your life. We're going to make sure that the money is invested so that his kids have trust accounts. They will have an education. And he will have a place to live."

The jury found Bison Builders liable for 75% of the damages. They also found Kenyon Plastering, a co-defendant in the case, not liable for the injuries.

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Yesterday, a Jefferson County jury returned a verdict in favor of a former worker at The Furnace who claimed she was hurt in a drunk driving accident in 2007 because the club failed to stop her from driving home after work. The Bessemer, Alabama employee was awarded a verdict of $100,000 in compensatory damages and no punitive damages.

The Plaintiff had previously worked for The Furnace, went to work on October 17, 2007 and left the club intoxicated. While driving home, she wrecked her car on the interstate and broke her nose and back. Police reports showed a blood-alcohol level of nearly three times the legal limit, a result of drinking while on the job.

The week long trial focused on the negligence of The Furnace management, who failed to follow safety precautions allowing workers to drink on the job and then allowing them to drive home. The Furnace claimed to only allow the workers a 2 drink maximum; however, the Plaintiff and another worker testified that they repeatedly had more than 2 drinks a night. The club actually encourages workers to drink and sell drinks to night club patrons allowing the club and workers to make more money.

Attorneys for the Plaintiff were Birmingham accident lawyers, Kirby Farris and Brett Turnbell of Farris, Riley & Pitt.

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