Kentucky Injury Law Blog

In Jefferson Circuit Court, the respective parents of Claudia Wadlington, 5, and the Riley Lawrence, 4, have filed a Kentucky wrongful death lawsuit for the girls' hit-and-run deaths. The two girls were killed in Louisville on July 25, 2008 as they were walking to swim class. They were holding hands with Claudia’s mom, Angela, as they crossed Floyd Street when a Pontiac Grand Am hit them. The driver of the car, Kenielle Finch, also hit Louisville Metro Police who attempted to apprehend him following the deadly hit and run accident.

Named as defendants in the Kentucky pedestrian accident complaint are Kenielle Finch, who was charged with their murders (in addition to 12 other related charges) and Keynisha Butler, who lent Finch the car that hit the girls. Finch entered a not guilty plea to the criminal charges and will stand trial.

The families’ Louisville wrongful death lawsuit seeks to recover hospital expenses, burial costs, and other accident-related expenses, including Angela’s hospital expenses for her injuries, as well as punitive damages from both men.

Reasons Why Motorists Hit and Run
Not only is it considered negligent conduct to cause an auto accident, but so is leaving an auto accident site after causing a motor vehicle crash—especially if someone was seriously injured. Staying at a crash site to provide assistance and contact emergency medics to let them know that someone has been hurt can determine whether an auto accident victim lives or dies.

Some reasons why people hit and run:
• Driving drunk or under the influence of drugs.
• Driving without a license or proper insurance or documentation.
• Driving a stolen vehicle.
• The driver may have just committed a crime.
• The driver is scared of the legal consequences.

If you were seriously hurt in Kentucky hit and run accident and the driver has not been apprehended, an experienced Louisville car accident law firm can help you pursue your uninsured motorist claim and make sure that you receive a settlement from your insurer that takes as much of your accident-related expenses and recovery costs into consideration. If the driver has been apprehended, then your Kentucky personal injury lawyer can push to recover from the negligent party.

Slain girls' parents sue accused hit-and-run driver, Courier-Journal, May 5, 2009

Kenielle Finch indicted, charged with murder after alleged hit and run, Newsnet14, September 1, 2008

Related Web Resources:
Hit And Run Drivers Kill Nearly 1500 People Annually With Pedestrians At Greatest Risk, According To AAA Foundation Analysis, AAA, May 17, 2004

Pedestrians, Safekids.org

At Bryan Station High School, students are anxiously waiting to find out the condition of three of their classmates who were seriously injured in a Lexington motor vehicle crash on Monday night. One of their other classmates, 15-year-old Nathaniel Lee Stuckey, died in the collision on Russell Cave Road on Monday night.

The driver of the car, Nicoli Petitfrere, 17, and passenger Jasmine Marks, 16, are still in critical condition, while Kierra Fulz, 17, is in fair condition. According to Lexington police, speed may have been a factor, with the teenagers' car going faster than the 55 mph speed limit.

The Kentucky teen driving accident took place around 7pm when Petitfrere lost control of the white Toyota Camry and drove off the narrow two-lane road, striking a rock wall and hitting a tree head-on. Three of the Kentucky car crash victims had to be extricated from the Toyota. Stuckey, who was sitting in the front-passenger seat of the car was pronounced dead at the crash site.

Dangers of Speeding
• Speeding is a contributing factor in over 30% of deadly US traffic accidents.
• It occurs on freeways and on local streets.
• You can be speeding even if you are abiding by the posted legal limit if the weather conditions warrant that you drive slower.

Speeding Facts by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety
• Speeding played a role in than 13,000 motor vehicle fatalities in 2007.
• 88% of traffic fatalities where speeding was involved took place on Interstate highways.
• 24% of speeding-related deaths occurred on roads with speed limits posted at 35 mph or lower.

If you were seriously injured in a Kentucky car crash, retaining the services of an experienced Lexington car accident lawyer can make obtaining your financial recovery a lot easier. Your Kentucky personal injury team can work with accident reconstructions and other accident experts who can help determine whether speed or another factor was the cause of your deadly Lexington auto accident.

Students grieve after crash kills, injures Bryan Station classmates, Kentucky.com, April 28, 2009

Related Web Resources:
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

Teen Drivers

Continue reading " Lexington Teen Driving Accident: One Kentucky High School Student Dies and Three Others Are Seriously Injured" »

A Kentucky multi-vehicle collision in Jefferson County has claimed the life of a 16-month-old girl. Daphnie Mangrum was pronounced dead from a traumatic brain injury at a local hospital on Saturday. Mangrum’s mother and two siblings were also injured in the catastrophic Kentucky car crash, which occurred on the Dixie Highway on Thursday afternoon. The three of them are expected to recover.

According to Louisville Metro Police, at about 4:48pm, a Mazda drifted into the center lane, hitting a Dodge Caliber, which then struck a Chevy Lumina before hitting a Dodge Ram truck. Daphnie and her family members were riding in the Lumina. The children in the car were reportedly not properly restrained. The driver of the Mazda and the Lumina were transported to hospitals. West Point resident Janet Crowell, who was driving the Dodge Caliber, was pronounced dead at the crash site.

Traumatic Brain Injuries
• Motor vehicle crashes are the number one cause of TBI’s, followed by fall accidents and athletic injuries.
• Every 15 seconds, someone sustains a TBI.
• TBI’s occur when there has been a jolt or blow or a penetrating injury to the head.
• 1.4 million people sustain TBI’s each year.
• 50,000 people die from TBI’s annually.
• About 2,685 kids, ages 14 and under, die from TBI's each year.

While traumatic brain injuries can range from mild (approximately 75% of TBIs are mild TBI’s) to severe to fatal, there are those who do survive and continue to live with catastrophic TBI’s that require them to receive long-term, specialized care. A TBI can affect one’s senses, memory, and the abilities to communicate, comprehend, and reason, as well as result in personality changes, depression, and changes in behavior.

Living with a serious TBI can be costly and life changing. Losing someone you love because they sustained a fatal TBI can be incredibly traumatic.

16-month-old dies from injury in Dixie Highway crash, Courier-Journal, April 18, 2009

Traumatic Brain Injury, CDC

Related Web Resources:
Brain Injury Association of America

Brain Injuries Overview, Justia

Continue reading "Kentucky Brain Injury Law Firm: 16-Month-Old Girl Dies from TBI Caused by Jefferson County Multi-Vehicle Collision " »

In Kentucky, a Jefferson County grand jury has charged Herbert Lee III with four counts of murder for a deadly Louisville auto accident that killed four teenagers. Lee was 16 at the time of the crash.

Injured in the catastrophic Kentucky auto collision on December 18 were 15-year-old Arron Shields, 16-year-old twins Demar and Jemar Claybrooks, and their 14-year-old brother Marc Claybrooks. All of them were riding in the stolen motor vehicle that Lee was driving.

Police spotted the stolen auto and tried to make Lee pull over. The teenager reportedly refused, resulting in a short police chase and then the fatal accident.

NHTSA Teen Driver Facts
• Motor vehicle accidents is the number one cause of teen driver deaths.
• 6,982 young drivers, ages 15 to 20, were involved in deadly auto accidents in 2007.
• 3,174 teen drivers died.
• 252,000 others were injured.

CDC Teen Driving Facts
• Having other teenagers in the car with a teen driver increases the chances of deadly auto accident occurring.
• Teens with new driver's licenses are a crash risk for the first year that they are allowed to drive.
• Teens lack the experience that older drivers have of assessing potentially dangerous situations on the road.
• Teens are more likely to speed or engage in distracted driving than their adult counterparts.

If someone you love was seriously injured or killed in a Louisville auto crash, you should speak with an experienced Kentucky injury attorney to determine if you have grounds for filing a personal injury claim or a wrongful death lawsuit. Suing for personal injury won’t bring back the person you love, but it can provide you with some comfort to know that the negligent party has been held liable.

Grand jury indicts Ky. teen in quadruple fatal, Kentucky.com, April 15, 2009

Young Driver Traffic Safety Fact Sheet, NHTSA

Teen Driving Fact Sheet, CDC

Related Web Resources:
Teen Drivers, Insurance Information Institute

Teen Driving

Continue reading "Louisville Personal Injury Law Firm: Grand Jury Indicts Kentucky Teenager for Motor Vehicle Deaths of Four Other Teens " »

In Kentucky, Michael and Amy Walker are suing two veteran basketball coaches for their son’s wrongful death. Keith Michael Walker, 13, died during the first day of practice in October 2008 while running a drill at Grayson County Middle School.

The couple’s Kentucky wrongful death lawsuit accuses coaches George Meredith and Bill Lee of “acting with reckless disregard” toward their son’s safety and contends that they did not exercise reasonable or normal care. The complaint contends that the two men’s negligent actions contributed to the younger Walker’s wrongful death.

Walker collapsed about 30 minutes into basketball practice. He reportedly had passed physicals to participate n the tryouts. Autopsy results show that sudden cardiac arrest was the 7th grader’s cause of death.The Walkers’ Kentucky wrongful death lawsuit seeks unspecified punitive damages, in addition to damages for lost earning capacity, pain and suffering, medical expenses, and funeral costs.

Grayson County Schools says they believe the two defendants will be exonerated. The coaches’ attorney says heat did not contribute to the teenager’s death and that the two men did not place the teenager at risk of injury.

Personal Injury to Minors
Schools, youth camps, daycare centers, athletic teams, and others charged with the care and supervision of minors can be held liable for personal injury to minors or wrongful death if inadequate supervision or other negligent acts results in a person getting hurt or dying.

In an unrelated incident, the parents Jeffrey Dean Gilpin and Glenna Michele Crockett filed a Kentucky wrongful death lawsuit against the head coach and a number of assistant coaches at their 15-year-old son’s high school after he collapsed during football practice last year. They are accusing the defendants of negligence and reckless disregard contributing to his death.

Recently, Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear signed legislation making it a requirement for high school athletic coaches to undergo sports safety training related to cold emergencies, heat stroke, face, neck, and head injuries, and emergency planning. Beginning the new school year, a trained supervisor must attend all athletic practices and games.

Middle school athlete's death sparks lawsuit, Kentucky.com, March 30, 2009

Parents of Max Gilpin suing football coaches after son's death, WHAS, September 26, 2008

High School Sports Safety Bill Becomes Law in Kentucky, MomsTeam.com

Related Web Resource:
High School Sports Safety Law Passes Kentucky Legislature But Could Have Done Much More, MomsTeam.com

Grayson County Middle School

In Frankfort, Kentucky, an 8-year-old boy suffered injuries yesterday morning after he was hit by a car on Frankfort Road. Fire department workers had to rescue the boy, who became trapped under the 1997 Honda, driven by Danny L Givens.

The boy was walking to the bus stop when the Kentucky pedestrian accident happened. He is receiving treatment at a Lexington hospital.

2007 Pedestrian Facts (NHTSA):

• 4,654 pedestrians died in US traffic accidents.
• That’s 1 pedestrian that died every 113 minutes.
• 70,000 pedestrians were injured.
• 14,000 of the injury victims were younger than 15.
• 8,000 of these victims were boys.
• 93 of the pedestrians that died last year were between the ages of 5 and 9.
• 36% of young pedestrian fatalities (under age 16) took place in the afternoon, between 3pm – 7pm.
• 44 people were killed in Kentucky pedestrian accidents in 2007.
• Auto crashes are the number one cause of death for kids between the ages of 3 and 14.

Some of the reasons why younger pedestrians are at risk of getting injured or killed in a Kentucky motor vehicle crash:
• Their ability to determine how fast a car is going and whether it is safe to cross the street is not always accurate.
• Drivers may not see child pedestrians because of their smaller size.
• A child pedestrian may wrongly assume that the driver is going to yield the right of way.
• A child pedestrians may not fully understand traffic signs or know how to safely cross the street.

Children injured in Kentucky pedestrian accidents are prone to serious injuries, including spinal cord injuries, traumatic brain injuries, broken bones, severed limbs, internal injuries, and death.

Boy, 8, struck by car, Kentucky.com, December 15, 2008

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

Related Web Resources:

Injury Center, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Walk This Way, Safe Kids

Continue reading "Kentucky Pedestrian Accident Attorney: 8-Year-Old is Struck by Car" »

Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom and the family of Kaitlyn Lassiter have reached a Kentucky personal injury settlement agreemeent. Kaitlyn is the teenager whose feet were severed while riding the Superman Tower of Power ride in June 2007. She was 13 when the accident happened.

While the terms of the settlement are confidential, the amusement park says the settlement will take care of Kaitlyn for life. The Lassiter’s personal injury attorney, however, disputes this claim and says that because the girl’s medical condition is not stable, it is unclear what additional care she might need. It hasn’t even been quite 18-months since the catastrophic amusement park ride accident, but the teen’s medical bills reportedly are already close to $500,000.

Kaitlyn not only has had to undergo multiple amputation surgeries, but she continues to experience severe pain and depression. In statements she made made earlier this year about the accident, she described initially smelling burning flesh but not knowing that she was injured.

Kaitlyn lost her feet when a cable on the Superman ride broke and severed them. While doctors were able to reattach one foot, she had to be fitted with a prosthesis for her left foot. Her parents later sued the Kentucky amusement park for negligence and failure to properly test, inspect, maintain, and operate the ride.

Although Kentucky inspectors could not figure out why the ride’s cable snapped, they did confirm that the girl would have only suffered scrapes and cuts if the Superman Tower of Power operator had hit the emergency stop button right away. They also found that the amusement park ride accident might have never occurred if workers at the park had followed instructions on how to determine if a cable was deteriorating.

The Kentucky amusement park had denied responsibility, placing the blame with Intamin Ltd. Earlier this year, Kentucky Kingdom sued the amusement park ride manufacturer for the cable defect that caused Kaitlyn's accident. Two other Kentucky personal injury claims against the park, filed by Kaitlyn’s friends Arin Valsted and Blair Johnson, are pending. They are suing for the emotional trauma and minor injuries they sustained during the same accident.

Six Flags settles with Lasitter family, Courier-Journal, November 22, 2008

Kaitlyn Lasitter Gives First Public Account Of Ky. Kingdom Accident, WLKY, January 30, 2008

Girl's feet severed on ride at Six Flags in Kentucky, CNN, June 22, 2007

Related Web Resources:

Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom

Ride Accidents

In Jefferson Circuit Court, Judge Barry Willet has ruled that the two girls that were sitting with Kaitlyn Lassiter, the then 13-year-old girl whose feet were severed while riding the Superman Tower of Power ride at Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom last year, can join in the Lassiter family’s personal injury lawsuit against the amusement park.

Arin Valsted and Blair Johnson are friends of Kaitlyn, and they were sitting next to her when the accident happened on June 21, 2007. They sustained bruises and cuts during the incident and continue to seek counseling. The two girls are seeking damages for medical costs, pain, and emotional trauma.

While the judge is allowing Arin and Blair to join the lawsuit, their parents, who had wanted to sue the Six Flags park for emotional trauma and travel costs incurred while helping their children recover from their injuries, cannot join the suit.

The Lassiter family filed an amusement park accident lawsuit against the Louisville park after a cable that snapped on the ride severed Kaitlyn’s feet. Their lawsuit contends that Six Flags could have prevented the serious injury accident if they had properly maintained the ride. The ride is no longer in operation and state officials are citing a faulty cable and the amusement park operators slow response during the incident as causes of Kaitlyn's serious injuries. A personal injury trial is scheduled to begin in January.

While thrill rides at amusement parks can be a great source of enjoyment for children, they can also lead to serious, even fatal injuries, if a ride malfunctions or a ride operator makes a mistake.

Injuries to Minors
In Kentucky, an injured minor cannot file a personal injury lawsuit without the assistance of a parent, a guardian, or another adult.

Kentucky Kingdom Suit Expands, Courier-Journal.com, August 5, 2008

Judge: Teens can join Kentucky amusement park suit, WHAS.com, August 4, 2008

Related Web Resources:

Factors in ride accident cited, Courier-Journal.com, May 31, 2008

Read the Six Flags Accident Report (PDF), WHAS.com

A good personal injury lawyer can determine whether your child was injured because a driver, a doctor, a product manufacturer, an amusement park, the owner or a business or residence, or another party was negligent.