Georgia Injury Law Blog

Published on: March 24, 2021

Binge Drinking Increases Spring Break Accident Risks

With students across Georgia gearing up to have fun over spring break, it’s important for parents and colleges to understand the very high incidence of binge drinking during this season, and the resultant elevated risks of being involved in drunk driving accidents.

Binge drinking is a contributor to several drunk driving accidents every year. Binge drinking is the consumption of too many alcoholic beverages in too short a period of time. This is quick and excessive drinking, and the number of drinks consumed can range from 4 drinks during a 2-hour span in the case of a woman, to 5 drinks or more in the same period of time in the case of a man. High intensity drinking, the incidence of which is also very high among college students during spring break, is the consumption of double this amount or more. The chances of blood alcohol levels rising very quickly with such speedy drinking are extremely high.

During a typical drinking session, a person might eat or pace his drinking, slowing down the absorption of alcohol in the blood. However, when young adults binge drink, that same kind of pacing does not happen. The result is a quicker absorption of alcohol into the blood stream and faster intoxication. Couple this excessive drinking with the kind of reckless and uninhibited behaviour that typically occurs when young adults are with friends of the same age, and you have a potent situation with a high risk of a drunk driving accident. Several studies show that teenagers and young adults are at a much higher risk for binge drinking, compared to older, mature adults.

Published on: March 17, 2021

Could Minimum Wage Increase Enhance Nursing Home Care?

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

The ongoing debate on increasing the federal minimum wage could have unexpected, but welcome, consequences, like the enhancement of care available at the nation’s nursing homes. That could, in turn, mean fewer cases of abuse and neglect of residents at these facilities.

At many nursing homes in Georgia, poor care and even abuse of residents is often linked to understaffing and high rates of staff turnover. Many nursing homes see high staff attrition rates, and in most cases, staff members choose to move jobs when there is a higher pay scale promised. These high staff turnover rates are part of the reason for the devastating effect of the Covid-19 pandemic on these nursing homes.

When the pandemic raged across Georgia, residents in nursing homes were some of the earliest victims. Higher rates of staff turnover meant that many of these nursing homes were understaffed. Fewer staff members meant lower adherence to social distancing protocols of the type that would have helped prevent nursing home residents from infecting each other. Fewer number of staff members also discouraged stronger adherence to the kind of sanitation protocols that would have prevented the spread of infections via contaminated surfaces and objects.

Published on: March 10, 2021

Stronger Laws, Enforcement Could help Prevent Distracted Driving Accidents

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

A new study by the Governor’s Highway Safety Association finds that a combination of strategies, including stronger laws against the use of cell phones while driving, as well as stringent enforcement of these laws could significantly help reduce the risk of distracted driving accidents.

Many states, including Georgia, have been struggling with containing the distracted driving epidemic. The use of cell phones behind the wheel is rampant, despite laws that specifically prohibit such practices. Several studies have indicated that most motorists admit to having used a cell phone while driving for texting or for having a conversation. It is only a minority of motorists that will actually turn off cell phones while driving.

Cell phone use has become an integral part of the driving experience, and for many people, the car has become an extension of the workplace. This makes it tempting for motorists to reach out for their phones to answer a text message, read and respond to an email, or answer a phone call. All of these are extremely distracting activities, and seriously increase the person’s risk of being involved in an accident.

Published on: March 2, 2021

Metro Atlanta Region one of the Most Dangerous for Pedestrians

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

In Georgia, initiatives continue to grow for less car and more pedestrian friendly areas throughout the state. A new report, however, identifies the Metro Atlanta- Sandy Springs-Roswell area as one of the most dangerous areas for pedestrians in the country.

This alarming finding was part of a report that found a total of 1,160 pedestrian accidents in the Atlanta- Sandy Springs-Roswell area between 2010 and 2019. That makes it an average rate of approximately 2 pedestrian deaths per 100,000 pedestrians every day.

The list included the top 20 most dangerous areas for pedestrians in the country, and the Metro Atlanta region was the only area in Georgia that featured on the list. This region also had a Pedestrian Danger Index of 152.3. The Pedestrian Danger Index is a rating system that measures how dangerous it is for pedestrians to walk in an area or state, based on the number of pedestrian deaths that occurred in these areas or states. The data specifically focused on pedestrian accident deaths that occurred between 2010 and 2019. All data came from the Fatality Analysis reporting system.

Published on: February 23, 2021

The Real Reason Why Women are More Likely to be Severely Injured in Accidents

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

Women have a higher risk of being severely injured and suffering certain types of injuries in in car accidents compared to men. The prevalent theory is that this is the result of physiological differences between men and women. A new study spotlights other more likely factors for this disparity.

The study was conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, and the results were released recently. Men are overall much more likely to be involved in fatal accidents than women. However, women are more likely to suffer fatal injuries. According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, women are between 20 and 28% more likely to sustain fatal injuries in accidents compared to men. They are also approximately 37 to 73% more likely to suffer serious injuries in an accident compared to male drivers, even after adjusting for factors like speed.

According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, women are more likely to suffer certain types of injuries in accidents because of the types of vehicles that they are likely to drive. The circumstances surrounding the accident could also have a lot to do with the kind of injuries that females suffer. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety researchers found that in a front-impact accident, women had a 3 times higher risk of experiencing moderate injuries like concussions. The risk of suffering a traumatic brain injury or lung injuries was twice as high as for males.

Published on: February 16, 2021

Study Points to Benefits of Clothing, Helmets in Preventing Injuries in Motorcycle Accidents

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

Motorcycle accidents are some of the most devastating of all motor vehicle accidents in the metro Atlanta region. Due to the unenclosed nature of motorcycle riding, it comes as no surprise that a motorcyclist is much more likely to be sustain serious and even fatal injuries in an accident as opposed to victims in other types of auto accidents.

A new study focuses on the injury prevention benefits provided by appropriate clothing and helmets in reducing the risk of fatal injuries in motorcycle accidents. According to the new study which was conducted at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, motorcyclists are approximately 25 to 30 times more likely to be killed in an accident compared to other motorists, even after taking into account a number of other factors that could affect fatality rates.

The lead researchers involved in the study focused specifically on the key factors involved in motorcycle accidents and the mitigation strategies that could be employed to reduce these risks. According to the researchers, there is no comprehensive evidence available that specifically measures the harm that motorcyclists sustain in accidents. The researchers made use of the Injury Severity Score that rates the seriousness of injuries, and data collected from the Motorcycle Crash Causation Study.

Published on: February 4, 2021

GHSA Report: Speeding is a Major Contributor to Teen Accident Deaths

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

Teens account for a greater proportion of all speeding-related accident deaths in the United States, compared to all other age groups. Those disturbing facts come from a new report by the Governor’s Highway Safety Association, which analyzed data between 2015 and 2019.

The report found that teen motorists, as well as their passengers between the ages of 16 and 19, accounted for a much higher proportion of accident deaths that were caused by speeding, with 43% of deaths occurring in this age group. In all other age groups, speeding accounted for approximately 30% of all deaths during the same time period.

According to the report, there were a total of 4,930 fatalities in accidents that were caused by speeding, between 2015 and 2019. During this time, there were 15,510 teen driver and passenger accident deaths, and more than 5,200 of those occurred in accidents that were caused by speeding.

Published on: January 28, 2021

Calls for New Administration to Prioritize Traffic Safety, Zero Accident Deaths

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

Traffic safety advocates are calling on the new Biden administration to prioritize road safety, especially the vision of zero traffic deaths by the year 2050.

Road accidents can have a tremendous human cost. The new administration has a personal link to the kind of tragedy and pain that result from a car accident. The President lost his first wife and daughter in a tragic car accident in 1972.

Road to Zero is the nation’s largest coalition of traffic safety organizations. The coalition along with a number of other organizations, including Vision Zero Network, and Toward Zero Deaths, has called on the Biden administration to prioritize the saving of American lives in traffic accidents and the strengthening of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Road to Zero and the other organizations are partnering with a single goal in mind – to reduce the number of preventable traffic accident fatalities to zero by the year 2050. The new Secretary-designate of Transportation as already begun meeting with lawmakers. There is hope that the new administration will prioritize road safety even as it grapples with other more pressing issues including the pandemic.

Published on: January 21, 2021

Research Sheds New Light on Long Term Effects of Brain Injury

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

Many may not realize, but traumatic brain injuries are some of the more common injuries associated with slip and fall accidents. New research makes a connection between the kind of mechanical forces that are exerted on the brain during an accident and the long-term consequences of such an impact.

Whenever there is any kind of fall accident that results in a person sustaining a blow or jolt to the head, there is the potential for a brain injury. Brain injuries are difficult to diagnose because they may not result in loss of consciousness after a fall. They also may not even result in any physical symptoms. You may not see any inflammation, swelling, bleeding, or cuts after the brain injury, but that does not mean that damage has not occurred. In fact, it’s not unusual for a person to bounce back to “normal” after a fall, only to lose consciousness an hour or two later when the symptoms of the brain injury begin to emerge.

Traumatic brain injuries are some of the most serious types of injuries that you can sustain in a slip and fall accident because these can have long-term consequences, unlike other types of injuries. There may be long-term memory loss, distraction, lack of attention and loss of cognitive ability. An individual’s abilities may be impacted to the extent that he may no longer be able to even work at the job that he had before the injury.

Published on: January 14, 2021

Are you Aware of These Georgia Motorcycle Safety Laws?

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

If you are a motorcyclist in Atlanta, it is a must for you to be aware of all the laws that govern the operation of motorcycles in the state of Georgia to ensure that you are not putting yourself at risk of an accident.

Georgia is one of several states in the country that have helmet laws in place. It is mandatory to wear helmets when you are riding a motorcycle here, regardless of your age or experience level. Whether you are an amateur or an experienced motorcyclist, you must be helmeted while operating a motorcycle. The only exception to the rule may be persons operating motorcycles that are used for agricultural purposes, or those operating motorized carts, or enclosed two-wheel vehicles.

There are reasons why most states like Georgia have chosen to make helmets mandatory. A recent study in Michigan found that after the state repealed its motorcycle helmet laws, the number of motorcyclists whose organs were donated increased three-fold. In fact, hospital trauma centers have a name for motorcycles whose riders don’t wear helmets – “donorcycles.” That grim term clearly indicates the high risk that you have of becoming a fatal accident victim and organ donor when you ride a motorcycle without a helmet and suffer fatal traumatic brain injuries.