Gellner Law Offices

Why are cognitive distractions so dangerous?

2020-04-30T16:53:44Z

West Virginia drivers face a barrage of distraction every time they hit the road. Some tools like hands-free tech aim to reduce these distractions. But how much danger can these devices cut back? Today we will look at three types of distractions drivers may encounter on the road. We will focus on cognitive distractions, which are often the most encompassing. They can have a big impact on driver safety. Physical and visual distractions on the road The National Safety Council says hands-free tech does not guarantee driver safety. In it, they talk about the three primary types of distractions drivers face. This includes physical, visual and cognitive distractions. Anything that takes your eyes off the road is a visual distraction. Physical distractions keep your hands away from the wheel. Hands-free tech may help with these two aspects. But other physical and visual distractions exist outside of your on-board tech. Why cognitive distractions are so dangerous Cognitive distractions encompass anything that takes your mind off of driving. This covers a very broad range. For example, talking to passengers may distract you. So can changing your radio station or adjusting the temperature in your car. Operating hands-free devices may distract you. This is true even if you do not use your hands or look at the screen. Because cognitive distractions are so prevalent, they are also dangerous. A driver comes across tons of external and internal cognitive distractions every day. Drivers must learn to recognize cognitive distractions and combat them as they appear. This is one way to keep themselves and other drivers safe on the road. Do not discount the dangers of a distracted mind.

Is new car technology safe?

2020-04-30T16:52:57Z

If you are one of the many consumers who is thinking about shopping for a new car, truck or sport utility vehicle soon and it has been some time since you have purchased a new vehicle, you will want to educate yourself about the many new features commonly included in or available with today’s models. More and more new vehicles are coming equipped with infotainment systems that allow you to communicate via phone calls or texts while driving, get directional assistance and enjoy music, podcasts or audio books. While these infotainment systems may be popular, a study by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety uncovered that they pose a significant danger. In essence, these systems may simply be new forms of distracted driving. A low demand on drivers would be considered safe by AAA, yet none of the 40 systems evaluated in the study fell into that category. Instead, 17 placed a very high demand on drivers, 12 a high demand and the remaining 11 a moderate level of demand. The task that took driver’s attention away from the road for the longest on average was programming in a destination to get navigational help. In some cases, this required up to 48 seconds of a driver’s time, giving more than ample opportunity for an accident to take place. This information is not intended to provide legal advice but is instead meant to give drivers an overview of how dangerous some in-vehicle technology systems may be so that they may make wise decisions when driving and know what to watch for in other drivers when on the road.

Drunk driver does not remember fatal sidewalk collision

2020-03-31T21:12:04Z

The driver involved in a fatal collision said he has no recollection of hitting and killing the Kanawha County college student with his pickup truck while she was walking on a sidewalk in Morgantown. About 11 months later, he caused another DUI hit-and-run fatality. As a result of his actions, he faced two felony charges and pleaded guilty. In addition to the criminal trial, a civil trial jury awarded the first victim’s family more than $7 million for the loss, pain and anguish they suffered as a result of their daughter’s death. As reported by Metro News West Virginia, $1.25 million of the award verdict represents punitive damages. Intended to punish wrongdoing and deter future occurrences, a jury may award what it feels represents a justifiable amount. College student never saw the vehicle until struck  Struck from behind, the young college student could not have seen the vehicle, a black Ford pickup truck, coming up on the sidewalk, as reported by WSAZ News Channel 3. Local law enforcement believes that she had no way to avoid the collision. She succumbed to her injuries later that day at a nearby hospital. The victim’s father speaks out against drunk drivers Appearing on a local talk show after the verdict, the father of the Morgantown victim voiced concern that his daughter will not be the last to die as a result of drunk driving in West Virginia. He feels that the issue should be “brought to the forefront” and that it is “not right” that there are such a high number of drunk drivers in the region. The still-grieving parent described the three-day trial as “tumultuous.” The painful testimony provided by first responders and the hospital surgeons who fought to save his daughter was difficult to hear. The jury’s decision came in roughly 90 minutes. Legal action may help to bring closure to a tragic event A wrongful death suit may help a grieving family obtain a sense of closure and justice. Although financial compensation cannot wipe away the pain of a lost loved one, it may help relieve the stress associated with medical bills, funeral expenses and other losses suffered by family members.

What types of errors occur in the ER?

2020-03-31T21:28:45Z

If you are like most people, you think of your local emergency room as your go-to place any time you suffer an unexpected injury or illness. After all, by definition an emergency room has the doctors and other health care professionals to determine what is wrong with you and how to best treat it. But what happens if these professionals make a mistake? Science Daily reports that emergency room errors occur all too frequently. While you might think that they happen because of the frantic activity that often takes place in an overcrowded ER, such does not appear to be the case. Instead, ER errors seem to have more to do with the way in which health care professionals gather and process the information about you. Most common ER error causes In order of occurrence, the following make up the most common causes for ER errors:

Failure to adequately process information – 45% of errors
Failure to adequately verify information – 31% of errors
Failure to adequately gather information – 18% of errors
Failure to adequately assess the seriousness of the patient’s symptoms – 13% of errors
Failure to properly diagnose the patient’s illness or injury – 13% of errors
Other knowledge problems - 6% of errors

Source: Science Daily Most common ER errors Specifically, you risk becoming the victim of one or more of the following any time you visit the ER:

Misdiagnosis
Delayed diagnosis
Delayed treatment
Failure to treat
Premature ER discharge
Misread test results

These types of errors, in turn, can escalate into additional errors such as prescribing the wrong medications and/or sending you home when you should have been admitted to the hospital.

Is road rash severe?

2020-03-03T18:24:53Z

West Virginia motorcyclists face many risks that drivers of covered vehicles do not. For example, the rate of traumatic brain injury is higher. Why? Because even with helmets, motorcyclists are more likely to hit the road. Another risk unique to motorcyclists is road rash, which we will discuss today. VeryWell Health provides ample information on the risks that road rash pose. The mild cases of road rash are not a big concern. In fact, many sufferers treat themselves at home. Medical professionals suggest going to a doctor at least once, though. It is important to be thorough with disinfection. A doctor will ensure all debris is gone. They have medical grade ointments to apply that help with disinfection. They can give pointers on keeping the area clean as well. For moderate to severe road rash, a doctor is necessary. This type of damage has a lasting impact on the body. Lacerations extend beyond the surface layer of the skin. In some cases, lacerations cut through muscle and even reach bone. With this level of trauma, surgery is sometimes needed. Skin grafts are not uncommon. If too much skin is missing, your chance of suffering from infection rises. Severe infection like gangrene or sepsis may occur. The damage from severe road burn can take months or even years to heal from. Victims often deal with scarring and disfigurement that lasts a lifetime. Some even need physical therapy. This depends on the location of the wound and the amount of deep tissue damaged. You should not take these injuries lightly. Anyone suffering from them should seek immediate medical care.

Is your loved one’s nursing home guilty of neglect?

2020-03-03T18:08:35Z

Leaving your loved one in the care of a nursing home facility is a difficult decision. You expect that he or she have the best possible care. Unfortunately, some nursing homes fall short of the standard of care. How do you know if your nursing home neglected your loved one? Poor hygiene is a major red flag when it comes to nursing homes. Most residents require help with personal hygiene and preparing for the day. If your loved one has messy hair, long nails or looks as though he or she has not bathed or showered, there is a chance that your loved one is suffering from neglect and abuse. In addition to personal hygiene, your loved one should be in sanitary living conditions. Residents, according to Next Avenue, should have a safe and clean facility. On top of the state of the nursing home, pay close attention to your loved one’s physical health. Has he or she had any unexplained injuries? Often, in cases of nursing home abuse, the patient will present with broken bones, bruises or head injuries. Often, these injuries occur when a patient does not have help walking or doing daily tasks. When someone who cannot typically perform these tasks attempts to do so on his or her own, it leads to accidents. Remember to spend time talking to your loved one. Look for any signs that there is a change psychologically. Elderly residents may become afraid of the caregivers. In some instances, you may notice that your loved one is more distant than he or she was before. While not all psychological issues lead back to abuse, it is a common sign.

Charleston accident results in bus driver’s arrest for DUI

2020-03-03T17:55:13Z

While people in Wheeling understand that the potential of being involved in a car accident is ever-present, most trust that those with whom they share the road place as much importance on driving safely and responsibly as they do. Such an expectation is especially true of those who drive for a living. Yet sadly that standard is not always met. When blatant negligence is apparent in an auto accident case, accident victims and their families may feel compelled to take legal action. It may be difficult to argue that negligence did not play a factor in an accident where a driver was found to be under the influence of alcohol. Surprisingly, such has proven to be the case in a recent multi-car collision that occurred on Interstate 64/77 in Charleston. Three vehicles and a school bus transporting special needs children were involved in the accident. One of the vehicles caught fire after being collided with, prompting witnesses to the accident to come to the aid of its driver, who was thankfully pulled from the car before it was completely engulfed in flames. Despite the damage caused in the collision, no one involved was reported to have sustained serious injuries. The driver of the school bus was found to have been driving while intoxicated at the time of the accident; she has since been arrested. Many involved accidents occurring under similar circumstances may think that they need to wait for the criminal proceedings facing those responsible for their collisions to play out before they can take action, yet that is not the case. A civil action can indeed be pursued concurrently with a criminal case. Those contemplating taking such action in the wake of a car accident may first want to consult with an experienced attorney.

How do you prove a wrongful death case?

2020-02-05T20:43:54Z

Wrongful death lawsuits are not criminal cases. According to Harvard Law School, this is so because they require a lower burden of proof. For these lawsuits, you can win with a preponderance of the evidence, unlike proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. Proving wrongful death often takes a lot of steps, which can be time-consuming. Some of the most common actions are strategy development, getting expert opinions, claim investigation, finding witnesses, and researching the tort law. For this lawsuit, you will have to make demands, go for mediation, and find a reasonable settlement. If the first argument is unsuccessful, you have the right to take the case to trial. For wrongful death cases, you do not need to think about the quantity of evidence. All you need to consider is the quality and credibility of the evidence. You must, therefore, find all the evidence and witnesses to make a solid argument. It would help if you also showed that they did not get their due duty of care. The duty of care means that everyone needs to act with diligence to keep other people safe and not harm them. If you can prove that the accused did not exercise a duty of care, then you have a case to answer. It would be best if you also showed that the plaintiff was involved directly in the issue. Sometimes this can be hard, especially where some equipment was in use. Issues of manufacturer defects and broken tools also come to play. The victim must not have gotten fatal injuries before coming into contact with the defendant.

Changes in family dynamics make brain injuries challenging

2020-02-10T23:52:54Z

Catastrophic injuries can quickly devastate families because they change the entire dynamic of the home. When you suffer one of these, you must ensure that you are doing what you can to adjust to the changes that are occurring. A brain injury is one type of catastrophic injury that can dramatically change a person's life and their abilities. There are many ways that you might be able to make things easier on the victim once they come back home. First, make sure that you're helping to take care of them out of love and don't make them feel as if they are a burden. The journey isn't going to be an easy one. This is a tough situation, especially if the person has emotional or behavioral impacts from their traumatic brain injury. These conditions can make it hard for the injured person to react to situations in a suitable manner, and it can lead to them acting out in an undesirable manner. Second, try to be patient. They are learning to live with altered abilities. This can be very hard, and they might have to find ways to cope with some challenges. Add in the feelings that they are causing more stress for their loved ones, and the situation can turn dire. Third, it is often challenging for children to learn to adjust to the uninjured parent's new responsibilities in caring for the injured parent. This makes it harder for everyone involved because they have to try to work with the kids while remaining the caregiver for the injured person. Everyone involved is more stressed. You also have to think about the financial challenges that occur in these cases. When the injured person was bringing in an income for the family, it can be hard to make ends meet. The increase in medical care costs and other related expenses can add more financial strain. When the injury was the result of another person's negligence, a claim for compensation might be in order if the injury was caused by the fault of someone else.

WTRF includes horrific accident recap in year-end stories

2020-01-16T03:13:33Z

It's hard to conceive of a worse life-ending scenario than a pedestrian being struck by one vehicle and then dragged for miles by another. Yet, that was the fate of one local resident who met her demise earlier in November 2019.

In its recap of the year's top stories, Wheeling media outlet WTRF included this sad tale. On Nov. 7, shortly after 6:30 a.m., a pedestrian was walking along Route 2 in Warwood, just north of Wheeling.

Driver hits woman walking

A driver in a pickup struck her and pulled over to call police and notify them that he had hit a pedestrian. However, when he got out of his truck, he saw nobody lying injured in the road or leaving the scene.

First responders and police arrived and searched the vicinity for a wounded pedestrian but found no one.

Driver reports grisly discovery

Meanwhile, a driver who had been traveling behind the pickup truck on Route 2 drove to her intended destination several miles away on Washington Avenue.

She was horrified to see that she had unwittingly dragged the body of a 54-year-old woman from the scene of the Route 2 accident. The pedestrian, a Bridgeport, Ohio, resident, was declared dead at the scene.

Autopsy findings, other factors, still unknown

The West Virginia Medical Examiner's Office conducted the autopsy. However, results are still pending.

Case raises liability questions

This case certainly is a tragedy for the deceased and her surviving family and friends. However, from a purely legal standpoint, it poses some pertinent questions.

Did the pedestrian herself bear any liability for the accident? Was the pickup driver who initially hit the pedestrian at fault for her death? Or could she have indeed survived the initial impact had not the second car then struck and dragged her for so many miles?

Complex cases deserve special attention

Cases with complicated liability issues such as this sad example can be very difficult to unravel. Indeed, it is cases like this that most need an aggressive personal injury attorney at the helm to ferret out elusive facts regarding the liability of the at-fault parties.