Jacksonville Personal Injury Blog

The nonprofit group Transportation for America is once again showing the fallout of road design that has for decades accommodated motor vehicles and not pedestrians. The bottom line numbers – from 2000 to 2009, 47,700 pedestrians died on U.S. roads. As the group likes to point out, that is about equal to a jumbo jet full of passengers crashing every month.

These are avoidable tragedies.

Add to the numbers more than 688,000 pedestrians injured during that time, roughly equal to a pedestrian struck by a motorist every seven minutes.

When it comes to funding roads that are more pedestrian-friendly, the budgets usually are not there. That’s why nationwide pedestrian fatalities make up nearly 12 percent of traffic deaths. Compare the U.S. to Europe where many cities cordon off a usable bicycle and pedestrian path that is separated from traffic by huge concrete barriers.

Among the top ten most dangerous metropolitan areas identified by the group - Orlando-Kissimmee is first, Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater is second, and Jacksonville is third, followed by Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach, Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, California, Las Vegas, Memphis, Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, the Houston area, and Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington.

The group says between 2000 and 2009, 5,163 people were killed in pedestrian accidents in Florida. The cost to us all is $22.2 billion.

Florida lawmakers Rep. John Mica and Gov. Rick Scott have both recently issued positions that building bike and walking trails might not be wise when money’s tight. The Jacksonville pedestrian accident lawyers at the Farah & Farah law firm supports Florida’s Share the Road campaign and road improvements that encourage improving one’s health by walking and bicycling. Improving safety of our roads is imperative to improving the health of our citizens. Florida can and must do better.

The Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) says it will have zero tolerance for motorists who do not wear their seat belt during the Memorial Day weekend, beginning Friday, May 27. This marks the 11th Click It or Ticket campaign in Florida and now with a primary safety belt law, officers can pull you over and issue you a ticket if you fail to buckle up.

The FHP reminds us:

• That Florida’s use of seat belts is now at 87.5 percent - an all-time high.
• In Florida in 2010, 64 percent of 21 to 24-year-olds who died in traffic accidents were not wearing a seat belt.
• While Collier County had the lowest rate of unbuckled passengers and drivers, Gadsden County had the highest in 2008. FHP invites you to see where you county ranks by visiting http://www.clickitfla.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/CountyByCountyFatalities-2008.pdf

Expect the FHP to be out all Memorial Day weekend beginning Friday, May 27 and ending midnight Monday, May 30. You should also expect to see FHP Auxiliary and Reserve troopers patroling interstate and major state roads.

Under Florida’s primary seat belt law, passed in June 2009, all front-seat passengers must wear a seat belt. Everyone under the age of 18 must wear a seat belt or be buckled into a child safety seat. It appears to be working. For example, in Volusia County wrote 3,231 citations the year after the new law, a 12 percent increase. Between May 2010 and May 2011, another 16 percent jump in citations was noted by the 3,775 citations or ten tickets a day, reports The Daytona Beach News-Journal.

The Jacksonville car accident lawyers at Farah & Farah law firm reminds you that you can report an aggressive driver by dialing *FHP (*347) from your cell phone to contact FHP. Also use the service to call in for someone who needs roadside assistance.

Stay safe this weekend!

Five patients injured by a former Mayo Clinic radiology technician are the basis of indictments by a federal grand jury that could put the healthcare worker in prison for life for medical malpractice.

A 48-year-old man from Orange Park is facing five counts of tampering with a consumer product, five counts of obtaining a controlled substance by fraud. Five patients contracted Hepatitis C and one has died. The man is infected with the liver disease.

The Florida Times Union reports the man worked at the Mayo Clinic from October 2004 through last August where he used a patient’s painkillers, Fentanyl, on himself, then refilled the syringe with saline. In doing so he spread his Hepatitis C even though he used a new syringe. His lawyer says the man had no idea he was Hepatitis C positive.

Mayo Clinic has tested 3,500 patients who had radiology work done and found two more positive for the disease that may be related to the man's. Mayo says it has tightened its pre-employments checks and its narcotic drug security procedures.

This story highlights the fact that even with a reputable facility such as the Mayo Clinic, medical errors can occur. The Hearst Corporation in a 2010 investigation “Dead by Mistake” found about 200,000 people die every year from preventable medical errors, hospital infections, and prescription errors.
While most hospitals and doctors are competent and ethical, it only takes one bad practitioner to cause a fatal outcome.

The Florida medical malpractice lawyers at Farah & Farah are available to investigate your medical error to determine who is liable for the costs associated with your injury, illness, or related suffering. Call us at 1-800-533-3555 for an honest assessment of your case. Remember, there is time limit within which to file a medical malpractice claim, so call as soon as possible.

It is that time of year for these horrific stories - stories of people leaving their innocent loved ones in the back seat in a hot car with no way out. A 60-year-old woman was arrested on Saturday, May 21, after leaving a 3-year-old girl in the back seat of a hot car while she went into a Publix in Wesley Chapel to grocery shop. The St. Petersburg Times says the little girl was seen by witnesses standing in the backseat screaming for her father. The outside temperature was about 90 degrees and the windows were up. The female driver had dropped the father off at a gym and went into Publix to use the restroom and then, forgetting the child was in the back, began grocery shopping.

Fortunately, some witnesses noticed the girl and alerted authorities. They likely saved her life. A paramedic retrieved her from the Publix on Bruce B. Downs Boulevard and the little girl was let out of the hot car and treated for slight dehydration. The woman, whose relationship to the child is uncertain, was arrested on child neglect charges and released from jail Saturday night.

So far in 2011, there have been three children who have died in hot vehicles from hyperthermia or heat stroke. In 2010 that number was 49. And between 1998 and 2010 only Texas had more cases of child hyperthermia in vehicles (71) than Florida (56). And since 1998 there have been a total of 497 of these preventable tragedies, according to data from San Francisco State University Department of Geosciences. In half of these instances the person said they forgot the child was in the car.

The Jacksonville personal injury lawyers at Farah & Farah law firm recommends you never leave a child unattended in a vehicle under any circumstances. If you happen to see a child in a hot vehicle call 9-1-1 and stay there until help arrives. You always have the option to break the glass if it might save a life.

The Orlando Sentinel reports that on the story of a 33-year-old man who was killed a month ago after an Orlando police officer zapped him with a taser stun gun because they said his behavior was out of control at a movie theater at Universal CityWalk. The man had celebrated his birthday with his family the same day. One of the gifts he received was a new cane to help him walk despite his excruciating back spasms.

His family members say they do not recognize the actions that police reported as resembling Johnson. He was described by police as being “disorderly” grabbing his beard and his head. It took four officers to try and restrain him, but police say Johnson resisted. That’s when they decided to use a taser on him. Johnson became unresponsive and officers used CPR to try and bring him around. He was taken to Dr. P. Phillips Hospital where he was declared dead. The police officers involved are now back on duty. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement has opened an investigation into the death of Johnson.

According to the article, hundreds of people have died after receiving up to 50,000 volts from a taser stun gun. Amnesty International reports that more than 400 people have died from taser inflicted strikes. If a taser is used near the heart, the voltage can cause one’s heart to jump from 72 beats per minute to as many as 220 beats per minute. The controversy is whether or not that can cause a heart attack.

While many industry-funded taser safety studies say it cannot, wrongful death and negligence lawsuits have been filed against law enforcement agencies for deaths allegedly caused by a taser stun gun. Despite a link to heart attacks, the Orange County Sheriff announced in March deputies would soon carry a more powerful taser to be able to go through clothing.

The Florida taser injury victim lawyers at Farah & Farah offers its condolences to the friends and family of this man who was so loved. At this point the family is grieving which is compounded by the many questions that remain – why would police taser someone who was so fun loving, did not use drugs and would not have confronted police? A toxicology report taken at the time of his death has not been released. If you or a loved one have become the victim of this form of police action, an experienced personal injury attorney may be able to answer questions about your legal options at this point.

Florida remains one of just three states that do not require the use of a booster seat by adolescents who have outgrown child safety seats in the car. Florida legislators allowed a bill to die before the 2011 session came to a close this month. This is reminiscent of 2001, when then Gov. Jeb Bush vetoed a child booster seat bill saying the seat would be too expensive for poor families and enforcement would be a burden to police officers.

Car crashes remain the leading cause of death for children, teens, and young adults ages 5 to 34, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The function of a booster seat is to allow the seat belt to fit the child in a similar way to how a seat belt fits an adult since seat belt configuration is based on an adult’s size and weight. The CDC recommends booster seats for young children but for now, use in Florida is voluntary.

When should a child transfer to a booster seat? When they grow out of comfortably sitting in their child safety seat and/or when their ears are level with the top of the seat’s back or when they reach the weight limit specified by the child safety seat manufacturer. Children should be in a booster until they are at least 57 inches tall and weigh 80 pounds with a sitting height of 29 inches. This describes most children age 10 and younger.

The Amelia Island car accident lawyers at the law firm of Farah & Farah reminds parents to always place their children in the back seat, the safest place to be in a crash, to reduce the chance of their child suffering a serious injury or death.

Accident investigators are revising their routine traffic report to a homicide investigation after a woman died from her injuries after being hit by a man who was texting on his cell phone and on prescription medication.

The wreck occurred in Brevard County on Tuesday, April 19. The woman was stopped in her PT Cruiser at a red light on U.S 192 when a 27-year-old man, driving a Ford F-150, reportedly slammed into the back of the car. The PT Cruiser then slammed into the back of four other cars. The driver, a 53-year-old mother of two, suffered a collapsed lung but her injuries were not considered life-threatening until she died Friday, May 13. The Brevard County Medical Examiner has ruled her death is attributed to injuries she received in the Florida car accident.

The initial report says there was no attempt to stop and the driver was arrested on charges of DUI with injury or damage and careless driving. He posted a $5,000 bond. The 27-year-old driver now faces additional charges.

In conducting a homicide investigation the Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) normally requires a blood sample from the suspect, but because the woman did not appear seriously injured troopers were prevented by law from forcibly drawing blood. According to the FHP report, the pickup driver admitted he was texting while driving and had taken prescription medication. One trooper witnessed the man was nodding off and was clearly “messed up” after the collision.

In all, seven people were hurt but without the blood test results, there is no way of knowing exactly how much medication the man was on at the time of the collision.

Our condolences are extended to the friends and family of the woman who died in this entirely preventable auto collision.

While the Florida Legislative session for 2011 again failed to enact any limitations on texting while driving, Farah & Farah’s Jacksonville car crash lawyers strongly encourage everyone to put away the cell phone while driving. Distracted driving-related crashes killed 5,475 lives in 2009, according to the Department of Transportation, and led to 448,000 traffic injuries.

It is reported that 16 percent of traffic fatalities in 2009 were the result of distracted driving. These are devastating auto accidents that are totally preventable if the driver takes seriously his or her responsibility to pay attention to the rules of the road. Unfortunately, many do not, resulting in serious injury or even fatal accidents. If you have been injured in a distracted driving-related crash in Florida, please call our law offices so we can get started on your case today.

Late Tuesday, May 17, Jacksonville police announced they arrested an 18-year-old, charged with leaving the scene of a fatal crash on the Westside. The teen was allegedly driving a white pickup truck that hit and killed a 23-year-old woman who was riding an electric wheelchair on the side of Lambine Road early Saturday morning, May 14. Channel 4 reports the young woman was returning home with a pizza in the electric chair because she didn’t have a car when a full-size Dodge pickup truck traveling southbound in the 4600 block hit her. Witnesses told the television station that it appeared the truck was racing with an ATV down the dark, narrow road. Unfortunately, there are no sidewalks and only a drop off on either side of the road. The young woman was not disabled but had borrowed the chair from a family member.

Her fiancé says he was in the road waiting for the young woman to return and he tried to warn the driver. Instead he saw his fiancé struck by the truck which then stopped for a minute or two before driving off.

Reports were solicited through Crime Stoppers and Tuesday afternoon the young man was booked into the Duval County jail on a charge of leaving the scene of a crash that resulted in a death.

Hit-and-Run Reward is a program the Jacksonville car accident attorneys at Farah & Farah have joined because hit-and-run collisions are such a problem in Florida. Financed by personal injury attorneys, if you turn in a suspect who is later convicted of the hit-and-run you can be eligible for another $1,000 in addition to the Crime Stoppers reward. Not only that, but you will remove a dangerous driver from the road. Call Hit-and-Run Reward at 1-800-644-8678 if you have information on a hit-and-run in Florida today.

Stun guns, also referred to as tasers, are frequently used by law enforcement to subdue a suspect by delivering an electrical current to stun the person into submission. The stun gun can deliver up to 50,000 volts of electricity, and causes a person's muscle tissues to contract. According to Amnesty International, 334 Americans died between 2001 and 2008 after being tased.

So far, research has been inconclusive on the stun gun, but The New York Times reports that now cardiologists at the University of California, San Francisco, have conducted a review of 50 studies on tasers. The results of the study depends upon whom you ask. In all, the researchers found 23 of the studies were financed by Taser International, a manufacture of the stun gun, and 27 were written by independent researchers. The report concludes the mixed results on the safety of the stun gun may depend on the author.

According to the industry funded studies – 70 percent concluded stun guns were not likely to be harmful or were not harmful.

According to independent studies – 26 percent found that tasers were not harmful and half found tasers were unlikely to be harmful or not harmful.

With thousands of stun guns sold to law enforcement on a yearly basis, with promises that the taser is safe to use, law enforcement agencies need to understand that assurances of safety may be as reliable as the research. The Florida taser victim lawyers at Farah & Farah suggest that users of stun guns need to look deeper to see if the information they have been given regarding the safety of tasers has been tainted by industry-funded research. If you have suffered severe physical injuries as the result of being tased, contact our attorneys to learn more about your legal options today.

The annual Public Citizen Health Research Group report has recently been released, and ranks states on how often doctors are disciplined and face licensure action for medical malpractice incidents that injure and kill patients. As in past years, Florida is among the worst for “not living up to their obligations to protect patients from doctors who are practicing substandard medicine…”

The citizen advocacy group uses three-year averages of “serious” discipline by every state. In Florida, the discipline rate is rate is less than two per 1,000, compared to 4.5 or 6 for every 1,000 doctors for the more strict states. While most physicians are professionals who do their job to help patients, there are up to 4 Florida doctors per 1,000 who are not receiving anything more than a letter telling them to do better, rather than an official reprimand or probation from the Florida Board of Medicine. According to the report, in all, there were 5,887 physicians who were disciplined for medical malpractice (in one case a dozen times) who did not go before their state medical board for any licensure action.

Public Citizen found some doctors are inept due to training, their mental state, or drug addiction. The advocacy group found in a 2004 report that 5.4% of doctors were responsible for 56% of medical malpractice payouts.

Medical malpractice is estimated to kill about 200,000 Americans every year, according to the latest report by HealthGrades, a healthcare grading company. Health News Florida reports that the state Department of Health does not do criminal background checks on dozens of healthcare providers, such as doctors, nurses, or chiropractors before issuing a license to practice.

With all of these loopholes, if you or a loved one has suffered an injury or an illness as the result of a healthcare professional's negligence, the Florida medical malpractice lawyers at the Farah & Farah law firm remind you that there is a limited time within which to file a claim for compensation. Talk to any of our attorneys today about your legal rights and options in a complimentary consultation.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in its Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report for May 6, reports that incidents of traumatic brain injury-related deaths in the U.S. decreased between the years of 1997 to 2007.

However, the report reminds us that traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) still cause about 53,014 deaths in the U.S. annually and is a leading cause of death and disability among adults. The good news is TBI death rates decreased significantly among people up to the age of 44 but unfortunately increased significantly among those ages 75 or older. TBI mostly affects males and rates were found to be highest among American Indian and Alaskan Natives and lowest among Hispanics, although all races and ages are affected.

TBI remains a major public health problem and the TBI-deaths were associated with firearm use, motor vehicle crashes and falls. With 53,014 TBI-related deaths every year in the U.S., motor vehicle-related TBI deaths decreased 22 percent from 1997 to 2007. That may be due to the use of seat belts and primary enforcement legislation. Florida joined 18 other states in June 2009 in enacting a primary seat belt law.

Seat belt use is important because every time someone is thrown from a vehicle they increase the risk of suffering a traumatic brain injury. If you or a loved one have been injured in an auto, motorcycle, or trucking accident and suffered a TBI, you should know the road to recovery can be a long and costly one. The responsible party for any motor vehicle collision should be required to pay the costs associated with rehabilitation. The Florida brain injury lawyers at Farah & Farah can help determine the liable party and make sure your medical needs and lost wages are taken care of.

In a new report, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found that injuries among workers ages 55 and older increased from 12 percent in 2003 to 17 percent in the latest tracking, according to a report in HealthDay.

More and more Americans are choosing to work later in life and the injury rate overall is roughly the same as younger workers; however older workers have an increased risk for falls from ladders and stairs that can lead to hip fractures and other injuries. The workers surveyed were employed by all types of businesses from retail stores to industrial and service workers.

In 2009, the report found there were 210,830 injuries on the job, along with illnesses such as chronic back pain which resulted in lost workdays. It’s estimated by the CDC that up to one-quarter of the workforce will be older by 2018 and the CDC’s National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health says that forecast means employers need to accommodate and protect older workers. The bit of good news is that industrial injuries among older workers actually decreased with age.

The Farah & Farah law firm encourages employers to make the workplace a safe place. Avoid injuries by installing slip-resistant flooring, and with more than 8,000 employees killed in work-related traffic accidents between 2003 and 2008, employers should make safety on the road a priority encouraging the use of safe driving, following the speed limit, using a safety belt, and discouraging use of distracting devices such as cell phones.

If you are a worker in Florida and suffer an injury or illness while at work, and are finding it difficult to receive the compensation you need for healthcare costs, call the Florida workers' compensation lawyers at Farah & Farah today. For many years, we have protected the rights of injured workers and can help you understand the legal options available to you. Call our law offices today for a free consultation to get started.

The Sun-Sentinel reminds Floridians that this is the season for one of the deadliest tragedies – forgetting a child in a hot car. Many people don't realize that the inside of a car in the sun at 80 degrees can heat up in just 20 minutes to 109 degrees.

Last year, across the country 49 children from ages 2 months to 6-years-old died after being forgotten in a hot vehicle and since 1998, 495 children have died when they were left behind in hot cars by distracted caregivers. Florida consistently ranks as the second worst state for this type of tragedy, according to Safe Kids USA.

No parent can imagine how someone can forget their child, but it happened to a 38-year-old man from Cape Coral. Last March, after taking his daughter to the doctor, he rushed back to work and left the 17-month-old in the car seat. When he returned to the vehicle sometime later, he found her dead from heat stroke. Now the man gives presentations speaking about the dangers of complacency. “Don’t go around thinking it can’t happen to you,” he says. The man blames such tragedies on hectic lifestyles, absent-mindedness, and most people going through the day on auto-pilot.

Just over half of the time since 1998, Safe Kids USA found parents forgot their children in the back seat. In about one-third of the deaths, a child accidentally locked themselves in a car. Parents deliberately left their children in a car about 17 percent of the time.

The Florida personal injury lawyers at Farah & Farah remind you to never leave children alone in the car, even for a minute. Have reminders throughout the vehicle to prompt you to look in the backseat so a child is not forgotten. Arrange a reminder call, put your computer or other item in the backseat, or put a note on the dashboard so you never forget. Do whatever it takes to avoid this totally preventable tragedy.

The Los Angeles Times reports on the findings of an autopsy performed on former NFL player Dave Duerson who committed suicide out of fear that the hard hits to his brain may have damaged it irreparably. The results released on Monday, May 2, confirm that Duerson had a neurodegenerative disease linked to repeated head trauma and concussion. Duerson committed suicide last February. He was 50-years-old and left a suicide note asking that his brain be donated to Boston University’s Center for the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy, which is funded in part by the National Football League (NFL).

Boston University researchers say the area of the brain most affected influences inhabitations, emotion, memory, and impulse control. Duerson is one of 14 former football players whose brain displayed signs of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). Boxers and military veterans have also been found to have CTE symptoms such as depression and erratic behavior. Repeated concussions and blows to the head are considered to be the primary risks factor, but researchers have not ruled out a genetic predisposition. The NFL plans to study the report and may enact changes to the trauma experienced in the field. At the very least, former players say the league needs to provide adequate pensions and healthcare to former players.

Brain injury may be signaled by repeated headaches, lack of concentration, and a loss of memory. A medical evaluation following a car accident or personal injury may be the first step to identifying a brain injury and getting you the rehabilitation you need to fully recover. If you believe you have suffered a brain injury due to the negligence of another, contact the Florida brain injury lawyers at Farah & Farah. We can conduct a thorough investigation into your case to determine at-fault parties and help you hold them accountable for their actions. To learn how we can help you receive the compensation you need and deserve, call our law offices today.

The Miami Herald has completed a yearlong investigation into Florida’s assisted-living facilities (ALF) and a gruesome picture emerges of abuse, neglect, and inaction by the state agency charged with regulating the industry. There are 2,850 ALFs in the state that are supposed to provide a safe shelter for those who cannot live alone. Some of the residents suffer from dementia, others are mentally disabled.

Unfortunately these are some of the most vulnerable individuals and the investigation finds the state regulatory agency, the Agency for Health Care Administration, does little to monitor, regulate, and shut down the worst offenders. The Miami Herald spent a year examining records from the state, police, and court reports, and autopsy files to expose a lucrative industry that is allowed to be a repeat offender. Among the findings:

• A 75-year-old Alzheimer’s patient wanders away from a Clearwater ALF and is mauled to death by an alligator.
• A man running what was found to be a dangerous facility in 2004 was allowed to renew his license three times, despite breaking the law 51 times.
• Residents were beaten and forced to sleep on urine soaked mattresses without air conditioning.
• A 71-year-old man in a Hialeah ALF was scalded in bath water and left there. He later died.
• A young psychotic woman was raped by a caretaker with a criminal history who gave her an overdose of powerful psychotic drugs. She later died.

At least 70 people have died from abuse or neglect at assisted-living facilities since 2002. Criminal charges have been filed in two incidents. Homes were caught using illegal restraints such as cages, ropes, and drugs like tranquilizers 1,732 times since 2002. Yet, only 26 facilities have been closed down by AHCA since 2005, even though some homes have had more than 1,000 reports of complaints of abuse. And instead of fining offending facilities, which would have brought the state more than $6 million in fines, fines collected totaled just $650,000.

While ALFs in Florida are inspected once every two years, other states such as Texas, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Arizona, and Illinois conduct annual inspections. Florida slashed investigation funding by 90 percent between 2002 and 2008 and cut the number of inspectors. With nearly one resident dying every month from abuse and neglect this investigation is long overdue as is state action.

If you or a loved one is involved in an assisted-living facility and need to talk to someone about unacceptable living conditions or abuse, the Florida nursing home abuse and neglect attorneys at Farah & Farah have an open door policy. Call us at 1-800-533-3555 for a complimentary consultation today.

You may not be aware they you have willingly signed an arbitration agreement hidden in many contracts. Arbitration agreements mandate if you have a dispute with a company, whether it is a nursing home, a bank account, a cell phone company, a rental agency etc. you will submit to an independent arbitration board that will decide your case and not a jury. They are called binding mandatory arbitration clauses. A company involved in wrongdoing does not want to open its documents to your attorney as required in preparation for trial so companies often push for arbitration agreements in contracts.

On Wednesday, April 27, the U.S. Supreme Court in AT&T v. Concepcion granted a request by AT&T to use fine print of contracts to bar consumers from joining a class-action lawsuit. Consumers can be forced into arbitration and barred from holding a company accountable for misdeeds, greed, fraud, or reckless behavior. A class action lawsuit allows people to band together to obtain justice in a courtroom in a way they would never be able to afford as an individual. Now a company that defrauds a large number of customers is insulated from liability. Public Citizen has been working with members of Congress to end forced arbitration.

Under mandatory arbitration agreements, there is no right to appeal and nothing will ever be uncovered about the misdeeds of those who wrote the contract. Mandatory arbitration slants the favor to the side of business. As Public Citizen found when it looked at data from National Arbitration Forum, in California cases, 94 percent of arbitrators ruled in favor of the business that hired them.

The attorneys at the Farah & Farah law firm believes losing your right to go to court puts the consumer on the losing end of any dispute. As an informed consumer read carefully any contract and inform the business you will not sign an arbitration agreement.

It has happened for a second time in less than a week – a pedestrian crossing a North Florida roadway is hit and killed by a law enforcement patrol car in St. Johns County. This time a 57-year-old man from South Florida was driving a Mercedes when he hit the center median on Interstate 95 where he was northbound, according to The St. Augustine Record. The man got out of his car and walked to the north side of Race Track Road. The newspaper does not explain why he was walking back to the car when he was hit by a Jacksonville Sheriff’s Deputy vehicle in the left lane. The man was taken to Baptist South Hospital where he was pronounced dead. Just one week earlier a 44-year-old man from Elkton was struck and killed by a St. Johns County Sheriff car off State Road 207. That fatal collision is under investigation. Under FHP policy, an officer is supposed to assist at an accident scene if they can safely do so.

Our condolences are extended to the friends and family of this unfortunate man.

Avoid Becoming a Florida Pedestrian Accident Statistic

If you are in a crash or your car breaks down, you are advised to move off the road and away from traffic. If it is safe to do so, stay inside the car. If it is not safe to be in the vehicle, all passengers should safely go to the road’s edge and away from traffic. FHP suggests raising the hood of the vehicle and tie a white cloth to the door handle or use reflective tape or triangles to alert oncoming drivers placed far enough ahead so motorists have an opportunity to slow down. Call 9-1-1 and wait for help.

In Florida, 482 pedestrians were killed in collisions with motor vehicles in 2009, according to the state Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. Many of these pedestrian fatalities involve children.

The Florida pedestrian accident lawyers at the Farah & Farah law firm encourages everyone to drive defensively and be aware of people using other forms of transportation who choose to Share the Road with motor vehicles.

A judge in Tavaras has ruled that prosecutors can use evidence obtained from a blood test that indicates a well-known civic leader had been drinking vodka just before his pickup truck was involved in a fatal motorcycle accident in Mount Dora in October 2009. The ruling was issued on April 24, and included the right of prosecutors to show jurors a half-full bottle of vodka Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) troopers discovered on the floor of the truck, according to a report in The Orlando Sentinel.

Lawyers for the 48-year-old man argued that troopers needed a search warrant before retrieving the bottle. The pickup truck driver had twice the legal limit for intoxication when he broadsided the motorcycle of a 61-year-old postal worker in Mount Dora on Majestic Oak Drive. The motorcyclist had not been drinking, according to an autopsy.

The man was returning from a Gators football game in Gainesville. A witness who had followed his truck before the crash said it was “all over the place” according to the newspaper.

Florida law considers anyone at or over the limit of 0.08 percent blood alcohol content (BAC) to be intoxicated. A DUI conviction can have lasting consequences and impact your driving record, your employment, and your future.

The Florida drunk driving accident attorneys at the Farah & Farah law firm remind drivers that the only thing worse than causing a car accident while under the influence is to leave the scene, especially when there are injuries or a fatality. Call our Florida offices immediately following an accident with a drunk driver at 1-800-533-3555 so we can begin to advocate for you in your time of need.