Georgia Injury Law Blog

Published on: March 31, 2011

First Full Face Transplant Offers Hope for Traumatic Injury Victims in Atlanta

A team of doctors at a Massachusetts hospital announced that they had completed the country’s first full face transplant.The recipient of the transplant was a 25-year-old construction worker, who had been left horribly injured and disfigured after an electrocution accident in 2008.With the surgery being declared a success, and the military investing millions of dollars in facial transplant research, Atlanta personal injury attorneys believe that this transplant signifies even greater possibilities for the treatment of victims of traumatic injury.

The construction worker had had his nose, lips and much of his face destroyed after the accident.He had been left disfigured and unrecognizable.After the family of a brain-dead young man came forward to donate his face, doctors decided to perform a transplant on the worker.The surgery took a total of 15 hours, and doctors worked to attach a nose, lips, skin, muscles and nerves on his face.The new face hasn’t been revealed yet, but doctors have confirmed the success of the surgery.

The cost of the surgery was borne by the American military, which has pumped millions of dollars into face transplant research.The military is investing in possible treatment and rehabilitation options for soldiers who return from combat duty with horribly disfiguring injuries.

Published on: March 28, 2011

New Safety Initiatives commenced in effort to prevent Motorcycle Accidents in Atlanta and throughout Georgia

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

The Georgia Department of Public Safety has begun implementing motorcycle safety checkpoints, as part of a program in an effort to prevent motorcycle accidents. Some of the most serious injuries and deaths often result from motorcycle accidents. Although motorcycles certainly need to be well maintained, these accidents are more often caused by drivers of cars who are not watching out for motorcycles. It would probably be more effective use of resources if the Department used their limited resources to commence a campaign to educate drivers to watch out for motorcycles and bicycles.

As part of the campaign that is being launched, the Georgia Department of Public Safety will conduct a total of six motorcycle checkpoints between 1 March 2011 and December 31, 2012.The first checkpoint of 2011 was held earlier this month along Interstate 75 and along Interstate 95.Motorcyclists traveling along any of the highways that have been marked for checkpoints will find signs that require them to exit at an inspection station.

The campaign is being funded by a $70,000 grant by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.Officers will be specifically looking to see if motorcycle drivers have licenses, and if they’re wearing helmets.They will also be checking to see that motorcycles are in good operating condition, and will specifically be looking out for bad tires, broken or malfunctioning headlights and tail lights.According to the Department of Public Safety, the checkpoints won’t be a major hindrance, and the average motorcyclist who is riding with a proper license, and is helmeted, will find that the delay lasts just about a minute.

Published on: March 27, 2011

Atlanta Boy Injured in SUV Car Accident

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

A six-year-old Atlanta boy who was injured in an SUV car accident in Cobb County is expected to recover from his injuries.The boy had been injured in the accident that occurred on Sunday at the intersection of Macland Road and John Ward Road.

The child was apparently traveling in an SUV that was T-boned by another vehicle at the intersection.The impact of the accident caused the SUV to flip over.The boy sustained a head injury, and had to be rushed to the hospital.Police are likely to charge the other driver with failure to yield.

Very often, Atlanta car accident attorneys notice that T-bone collisions which occur near an intersection, occur because one of the drivers ran a red light.T-bone accidents involve a car that crashes through traffic and into the side of another car.These side-impact accidents are some of the most injurious of all auto accidents.Side impact crashes can cause serious injuries and fatalities, because there is very little space protecting the occupants of the car from the full impact of the collision.This is unlike a frontal impact collision, where the front of the automobile absorbs much of the energy from the accident, cushioning the occupants from injuries.

Published on: March 25, 2011

Georgia Needs More Trauma Centers to Treat Injuries of Auto Accident Victims

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

The Atlanta car accident lawyers at our firm have been blogging regularly about the need for more trauma care centers in Georgia to treat auto accident victims and others.Rural areas in Georgia have a severe shortage of trauma care centers to treat individuals who have suffered serious personal injuries. This has resulted in a significant number of unnecessary deaths. Unfortunately, a recent vote to provide a limited tax to increase the number of trauma centers was defeated.

According to estimates, approximately 700 people in Georgia are killed every year because they lacked immediate access to emergency trauma care.Many of these people were injured in catastrophic accidents, and sustained serious injuries that could not be treated without the facilities available at a trauma center.The first hour after a person suffers serious injuries is the “golden hour,” and if the person receives emergency care during this time, his chances of surviving the accident or injuries increase substantially.Unfortunately, many people who are involved in auto accidents in Georgia cannot be taken to an emergency trauma care center in time because there is not one close enough to them.

According to estimates, there should be at least 30 trauma centers in Georgia for trauma care access for all.Currently, we need at least 12 more centers to ensure that all Georgia residents live within 50 miles of a trauma center.Georgia’s trauma care network leaves much to be desired, and the average trauma death rate in our state is much worse than the national average.To make matters worse, recent budget cuts have slashed approximately $10 million of funding for the existing trauma care centers in Georgia.

Published on: March 24, 2011

Why Atlanta’s Senior Motorists May Be at a Higher Risk of Pedestrian Accidents

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

As Atlanta pedestrian accident attorneys, we often come across cases involving pedestrians seriously injured in accidents caused by senior motorists.A new study conducted by Israeli researchers suggests that elder drivers may suffer from an inability to see things in their peripheral vision that prevents them from seeing pedestrians on the curb or sidewalk. This increases the likelihood of a pedestrian accident. Of course, auto accidents involving pedestrians often involve the most serious injuries.

The study came out of a spike in pedestrian accidents involving senior motorists in Israel.The researchers were looking at the specific challenges an elderly motorist faces as far as pedestrian safety is concerned.The researchers placed older motorists in a simulator, and measured their responses to vital safety signals.

They found that drivers above the age of 65 were half as likely to spot a pedestrian as younger drivers.Not only that, they also found that senior motorists were just half as likely to tap the brakes when they spotted a pedestrian on the curb or sidewalk, as younger drivers.This signifies one of two things-either these motorists don’t spot a pedestrian in time to react, or they don’t consider pedestrians a serious accident hazard.Either of these theories spells danger for any pedestrian in the path of an elderly motorist.

Published on: March 23, 2011

US DOT, Consumer Reports Announce Campaign to Prevent Teen Auto Accidents

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

According to Consumer Reports, teenagers are dying and suffering serious injuries every year because of car accidents caused by texting and using cell phones while driving.The safety advocacy group along with the US Department of Transportation have announced a new campaign aimed at minimizing the incidence of distracted driving among teen motorists. As an Atlanta injury lawyer, I very much applaud their efforts. Car accidents are one of the leading causes of deaths and injury among teenagers. Simply put, too many families have been devastated by these car accidents.

According to a study conducted by researchers at the University of Utah, the average reaction time for a teenage motorist driving and talking on a cell phone was equal to that of a 70-year-old driver not using a phone while driving.There are numerous other studies that have clearly laid out the significantly increased accident risks that come when motorists are using cell phones while driving.For instance, a study by the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute found that texting while driving could increase a motorist’s risk of an accident by a staggering 23 times.

According to the same study, physically dialing a phone while driving increases the risk of an accident by as much as six times.In 2009, approximately 16% of all fatal accidents were caused by distracted driving.At least one in five of those deaths involved the use of cell phones or texting while driving.

Published on: March 21, 2011

Road Debris on Atlanta Highways Contributes to Auto Accidents

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

Apart from DUI drivers and distracted motorists, Atlanta drivers face other equally dangerous risks from silent killers – road debris that has fallen off from pickup trucks, flatbed trucks and tractor trailers. Such debris regularly cause car accidents on Atlanta roads. If you are an Atlanta injury lawyer, you have seen the impact of this debris first hand in the auto accident cases which come through your office.

The number of people being killed every year in accidents caused by road debris is a matter of debate, and accidents don’t result every time objects fall off a truck or any other vehicle.However, when such debris takes motorists unawares causing them to brake suddenly, the results can be devastating.Besides, accidents can also be caused when the object flies directly into vehicles behind or around the car, crashing through windshields and injuring or killing occupants inside.

Last December, one person in Atlanta sustained serious injuries in an accident that was traced to road debris.In that accident, the woman had been driving on a highway when some debris, including tools and clamps, fell off a truck and onto the highway.Most of the cars that were behind the truck were able to avoid the debris, but the woman wasn’t as fortunate.A piece of equipment that had fallen off the truck crashed through the windshield of her car, and struck the driver in the head and face.She sustained serious injuries.

Published on: March 20, 2011

Untested Car Safety Seats Could Cause Injuries in Atlanta Car Accidents

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

The role of car safety seats in preventing injuries to children in an auto accident is one that no Atlanta injury lawyer would deny.According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, between 1988 and 1994, the use of car seats led to a 73% drop in infant wrongful deaths and a 54% drop in car accident related injuries in children between the age of one and four.However, not all car safety seats may have been tested and approved to be safe for your child.

The Washington Post warns parents against assuming that the car seat that they’re using for their child will protect them from injuries in the event of an accident.The seats that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration regulates are only tested for protection in a front impact collision.The seats are not regulated against side-impact, rear end or rollover accidents.This is in spite of the fact that the risk of injuries and fatalities is often much higher in a rollover accident or a side-impact accident than a front impact collision.

One of the reasons why the federal agency has failed to regulate the effectiveness of car seats in these kinds of accidents is the lack of proper-sized crash test dummies.That is also the reason why the agency has failed to regulate the safety of large-sized car seats that are used for toddlers above 65 pounds.There’s a growing class of overweight children who are too heavy for infant car seats, and too young for seat belts.Car seat manufacturers have been marketing larger-sized car seats for children of this size, but the NHTSA has failed to regulate the effectiveness of these seats.One of the reasons has been the failure to develop a crash test dummy of an appropriate size.

Published on: March 11, 2011

Heavier Atlanta Trucks Are an Accident Risk

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

If a new bill that has been introduced in Congress is approved, states like Georgia would be allowed to increase truck weight limits on our interstates to boost trucking productivity and efficiency. As an Atlanta injury lawyer, I strongly oppose this legislation. Any move like this would increase the risks of serious truck accidents and catastrophic injuries and death when passenger vehicles are involved in accidents with much heavier trucks.

The bill, called the Safe and Efficient Transportation Act has been reintroduced by Republican lawmakers from Maine and Ohio.It would allow states to adjust the weight limits on commercial trucks on interstates within their borders. The increase in weight limits could be as much as 97,000 pounds from the current 80,000 pounds.The current weight limits have stayed the same since 1982, and trucking safety groups and Atlanta truck accident attorneys oppose any increase in the weight limits on our interstates.

Most of the arguments in favor of increased weight limits on commercial trucks have to do with profits for the trucking industry.The industry believes it could save billions of dollars every year, if trucking companies were allowed to use up every inch of free space in their trailers.Trucking companies talk about reduced fuel consumption, and even bring up lower accident risks from fewer trucks needed to transport the same amount of cargo.

Published on: March 11, 2011

IIHS Advocates Stronger Under Ride Guards for Tractor-Trailers to Prevent car accidents and injuries

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

As an Atlanta injury lawyer, I often find that the kind of damage that results from a rear end truck accident involving a tractor trailer and a car leaves little chance for survival. The Institute Insurance for Highway Safety is now calling on the federal administration to require stronger under ride guards for tractor-trailers and 18-wheelers, to prevent the serious injuries that result from auto accidents in which a car rear-ends these large commercial trucks. I strongly support the move towards improving under ride guards.

Under ride guards hang low at the back of a tractor-trailer, and are designed to protect occupants of a passenger vehicle in case of a rear end accident.When a small passenger vehicle crashes into the back of a tractor-trailer, the bumper and front of the car can slide under the trailer.The under ride guard is supposed to prevent this.However, the Institute Insurance for Highway Safety has found in a study that in low-speed rear-ender accidents involving a tractor-trailer and cars, the under ride guard failed to prevent catastrophic injuries.

The Insurance Institute relied on an analysis of 1,000 accidents between 2001 and 2003.There were 113 accidents that involved passenger vehicles crashing into the back of a tractor-trailer.Out of these, 73% resulted in the passenger vehicle sliding under the tractor-trailer.28 of these accidents were fatal, and out of these, 23 accidents involved those in which the entire front portion of the passenger vehicle slid completely under the trailer.