Couple In Texting Suit, Who Lost Legs, Reach $500,000 Settlement

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Posted on 23rd August 2012 by gjohnson in Uncategorized

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A New Jersey couple has reached a $500,000 settlement of a suit they filed when their motorcycle was hit by a motorist who was texting on his cellphone, according to press reports. The man and woman each lost a leg in the accident.

http://www.dailyrecord.com/article/20120821/NJNEWS/308210023/Dover-couple-agree-500G-settlement-teen-who-hit-them-while-texting-driving

David and Linda Kubert, who lived in Dover, N.J., at the time of the accident, had filed a lawsuit against Kyle Best, 19 at the time of the crash, who got distracted while texting and went into their lane in Mine Hill, N.J., according to The Daily Record. The accident took place Sept. 21, 2009.

The amount of the settlement, $500,000, is the policy limit on Best’s auto insurance, The Record reported.

Both David and Linda lost a leg in the accident. They are now living in Florida, and are having a hard time financially, with neither one working, according to The Record.

Best pleaded guilty in municipal court this year to using a hand-held cellphone while driving, and was sentenced to talk at 14 high schools about the dangers of texting and driving.

A judge previously ruled that the woman who texted Best right before the accident, Shannon Colonna, cannot be sued for aiding and abetting his conduct the day of the crash. The Kuberts are appealing that ruling.

Attorney Gordon Johnson
Past Chair Traumatic Brain Injury Litigation Group, American Association of Justice
g@gordonjohnson.com :: 800-992-9447 :: Attorney Gordon S. Johnson, Jr.

Six Die In Truck Accidents In Oklahoma City

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Posted on 11th August 2012 by gjohnson in Uncategorized

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Friday was death day in Oklahoma City, where six people were killed in two separate truck accidents, according to NewsOK.com.

http://newsok.com/2-separate-automobiles-accidents-claim-6-lives/article/3699729

Five people died in a crash involving a car and a tractor trailer on Interstate 35, south of Interstate 40, at 1 a.m. Friday. The car was driving south on I-35 when it went off the road, came back on and then went under the truck rig, NewsOK.com reported.

The roof was sheared off the car, which then went into the westbound lane of I-40 and went on fire. The five people in the car were all thrown out of it, and were all killed, according to NewsOK.com. Four of the five victims were from India. Authorities didn’t release the names of the deceased.

The tractor trailer driver wasn’t hurt in the accident.

Then there was a second crash at 1:40 p.m. Friday. A pickup truck was traveling east on I-40, west of I-35, when it struck some oil-field gear that was in the road, NewsOK.com reported.

The pickup then veered off and crashed into a retaining wall, and flipped over. The driver, who didn’t have his seat belt on, died of traumatic head injuries, according to NewsOK.com.

 

Attorney Gordon Johnson
Past Chair Traumatic Brain Injury Litigation Group, American Association of Justice
g@gordonjohnson.com :: 800-992-9447 :: Attorney Gordon S. Johnson, Jr.

Tractor Trailer Hits Bus In Illinois, Injuring Passengers

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Posted on 8th August 2012 by gjohnson in Uncategorized

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A semi tractor trailer Tuesday struck a Madison County transit bus in Granite City, Ill., injuring many passengers, according to Fox2Now.com.

http://fox2now.com/2012/08/07/semi-crashes-into-bus-multiple-injuries/

The accident took place on Route 3 and Chain of Rocks Road at 7 p.m.

The bus was picking up passengers at a bus stop when it was hit in the rear by the truck, Fox2Now.com reported. Seven ambulances and two helicopters were called to the scene.

The bus driver and five passengers suffered minor injuries, but were taken to a local hospital. The semi driver was flown to St. Louis University Hospital, where he was in serious condition, according to Fox2Now.com.

Local police said that the tractor trailer hit the back of the bus, which in turn hit a pick-up truck that was in front of it. The semi then hit two traffic lights and then landed in a ditch, Fox2Now.com reported.s

Attorney Gordon Johnson
Past Chair Traumatic Brain Injury Litigation Group, American Association of Justice
g@gordonjohnson.com :: 800-992-9447 :: Attorney Gordon S. Johnson, Jr.

Oklahoma Oil Boom Leaves Worker Victims In Its Wake

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Posted on 4th August 2012 by gjohnson in Uncategorized

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For a microcosm of the dangers of working in a U.S. oil field, look to Oklahoma.

Since October 2011 nine workers have died in oil and gas field accidents, according to a recent report by StateImpact. Those deaths coincide with the boom in domestic oil production.

http://stateimpact.npr.org/oklahoma/2012/08/02/the-human-toll-of-a-drilling-boom-in-oklahoma/

The rise in oil-field accidents has people concerned about safety in many of the states where oil drilling has blossomed, such as North Dakota. And in Oklahoma City in June, oil workers gathered to go over the fatal accidents at a confab sponsored by the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), the state Department of Labor and the Mid-Continent Exploration and Production and Safety Network, StateImpact reported.

The story noted that even though these oil workers, so-called roughnecks, are hard-nosed men, some of them had to “wipes away tears” when there was discussion of accidents where their friends were killed.

As Oklahoma’s OSHA director told StateImpact, oil-field gear is “big” and “it moves fast.” That means accidents often end in deaths.

The story also noted that there are few Oklahoma state safety regulations regarding the oil industry, and only five OSHA inspectors to cover the entire state.

There is a pattern in the Oklahoma oil field fatalities, according to StateImpact.

“The average worker killed is young — only 35,” it reported. “Their tenure at the company is often short — less than five years. Most of the men died after being crushed or struck by equipment, and most of the accidents happened at small drilling or service companies with less than 100 employees.”

The report by State Impact offers a thoughtful look at oil-drilling safety, and is well worth reading.

 

 

Attorney Gordon Johnson
Past Chair Traumatic Brain Injury Litigation Group, American Association of Justice
g@gordonjohnson.com :: 800-992-9447 :: Attorney Gordon S. Johnson, Jr.

Texas Youth Texted Before Almost-Fatal Truck Accident

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Posted on 3rd August 2012 by gjohnson in Uncategorized

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Chance Bothe waited a little too long to take his own advice.

The 21-year-old Texas native on Jan. 24 sent a prescient message to a friend.

“I need to quit texting, because I could die in a car accident,” he texted while driving. The next thing you know, Bothe drove his truck off  a bridge down into a 35-feet-ravine.

The youth sustained brain injuries, and “nearly broke every bone in his body, including his cheekbones, neck and skull,” according to The Huffington Post.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/02/chance-bothe-text-crash_n_1735137.html

Bothe’s injuries were so bad that he was hospitalized for six months. He underwent rehabilitation for his traumatic brain injury (TBI), and had to be taught how to walk and talk again, The Huffington Post said. He also had many reconstructive surgeries.

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/lookout/crash-survivor-preaches-dangers-texting-while-driving-132609321.html

The youth believes he survived so that he can warn others about the dangers of texting while driving, according to Yahoo! News. It reported that Texas doesn’t ban texting while driving, although it is barred in some towns and school zones in the Lone Star State.

Currently there are texting-while-driving prohibitions in 39 states and the District of Columbia.

Attorney Gordon Johnson
Past Chair Traumatic Brain Injury Litigation Group, American Association of Justice
g@gordonjohnson.com :: 800-992-9447 :: Attorney Gordon S. Johnson, Jr.