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Concussion Laws in Indiana and Illinois Try to Keep Kids Safer As They Play Football and Other School Sports

January 26th, 2012 by admin

We’ve posted about new research studies that confirm how young kids playing hockey or football or other contact sports at their school can be seriously injured and permanently disabled by brain injuries and concussions.

Slowly but surely, state legislatures are starting to take heed of these research results (and the outcry from parents whose kids have been hurt while playing a sport) and now, Indiana and Illinois have both recently passed state concussion laws.

According to SafeKids.Org, Indiana and Illinois joined 31 other states in passing legislation designed to protect children playing school sports from suffering concussions and permanent brain injuries.

Illinois Concussion Law (Public Act 097-0204)

Under the Illinois Concussion Law, each school board must adopt a concussion policy that conforms to the established guidelines of the Illinois High School Association.

Both the student athlete and the student’s parent must sign a written acknowledgement of the school’s concussion policy.

Before a student athlete can play a sport again after being removed from play because of concussion or suspected concussion, the student has to be checked by a health care provider and that provider must give the student a written clearance to participate in the sporting activity.

Indiana Concussion Law (Indiana Code 20-34-7)

The Indiana Concussion Law tasks the State Department of Education with the dissemination of guidelines, information sheets, and forms detailing the nature and risk of concussions and head injuries to schools which are to distribute the Department’s work to school coaches, student athletes and parents of student athletes.

In Indiana, all high school student athletes and their parents must acknowledge by their signature that they have received the Department of Education’s brain injury and concussion information on a form collected by the student athlete’s coach each year before the student can start his or her first practice.

If there is a suspicion that a student athlete has sustained a head injury or concussion, the student must be removed from play at that time (the time of the suspected injury).  He or she cannot return to the sport until the student has been evaluated by a licensed health care provider trained in head injuries and that health care provider has given him or her a written clearance form to return to play.

Posted in Illinois Wrongful Death, Indiana Wrongful Death, School & Playground Injuries, Serious Personal Injury, Sports & Boating Accidents | No Comments »

Video of Chicago Teen Beaten By Gang Goes Viral: Assaults Upon Children Must Be Stopped

January 17th, 2012 by admin

Today, a YouTube video has gone viral that shows the vicious and cruel beating of a teenager by six individuals who are now being held by Chicago police for charges related to the beating.  Two more men are being sought in addition to the six behind bars this afternoon.  Because of its graphic nature, we are not placing the video here but those interested can see the video at any of the news sites linked in this post.

The boy was hurt by the assault which took place behind a local elementary school.

According to news reports, this beating was done in response to an earlier attack, where 20 people assaulted two teens.  On Sunday afternoon, the 17 year old boy is shown on the video (that lasts over 3 minutes) being overtaken and having his wallet and shoes taken from him.  He is hit, kicked, and drug along the ground in the video.   He is choked.  Some take big chunks of ice and use them as weapons.

At last, the boy is still, lying there.  Helpless.  Hurt.  All while the video camera captures everything for the eventual YouTube upload. Eventually, the victim rises and runs away.

Interestingly, the very fact that the evildoers put the video online may prove to be their undoing.  As the video went viral, media reports are that over 500 comments were left and calls made to the local law enforcement, some going so far as to name names of those shown beating the boy on the screen.  Virtual finger pointing.  The web version of an eyewitness testifying?

Today, this event is making the national news.  The good thing is that the victim has been treated and released from a local hospital.  And it’s being reported that the gang members will be charged as this being a “strong arm robbery.”

This Is A Growing National Problem – Videotaped Assaults Are Trendy.

Similar videos exist for other attacks upon kids in this country.  Consider the videotaped beating on a Mississippi school bus.  Or the similar group of teens assault upon a 13 year old in Philidelphia. There are more; you just have to surf the web for them.

Assaults Upon Children in this Country Must Stop

Arrests will be made, no doubt, in this Chicago case.  However, in this case as well as countless other beatings of children in this country, there is more than can be done to find justice for the victim and to put an end to this kind of violence: personal injury lawsuits.

In assaults on children, private civil lawsuits can work to force better protections for kids who are in danger of being hurt and assaulted like the teen shown in this viral video.   How the causes of action are framed would depend upon the situation; however, one clear example would be municipal liability causes of action.  Here, violent assaults on public school or city  property can be the basis of a liability suit if there were shown to be inadequate security or neglectful property maintenance that was a cause of the harm.  City governments, school districts, owners of premises, etc. may be held legally accountable for not doing more to protect kids from this sort of thing.

These child beating law suits are being filed by parents all over the country, and it perhaps through these civil suits that school bullying will be become the subject of widespread assault by those with the power to stop these horrible injuries on children.

Posted in Insurance Claims, School & Playground Injuries, Serious Personal Injury | No Comments »

Toy Safety: Protecting Children From Being Hurt By Dangerous Toys That Are Sold Everyday

January 3rd, 2012 by admin

Now that the holidays are over and the wrapping paper has been tossed and the batteries bought, those new shiny toys are being used quite a bit by happy kids all over Indiana and Illinois and all the rest of the good old U.S.A.

Problem is: profit happy toy companies still sell toys that can serious injure children all for the sake of making a buck.  And, as a recent article in the Los Angeles Times reports, it’s usually only after innocent little ones have been hurt that we hear about another dangerous or deadly toy that has been manufactured, distributed, and sold in this country. To read the entire Los Angeles Times article, check out “Parents, you are top regulator when it comes to toy safety.”

The news story has it partly right.  Parents are the first line of defense when there is a dangerous toy.  However, toy safety must be a concern at any day care, elementary school, or child-friendly pizza joint where toys and kids coexist.

If your child is injured by a toy, then not only are the toy makers responsible, but the seller as well as the place where the child came into contact with that toy may be legally responsible as well (including schools, restaurants, doctors’ offices, playgrounds, etc.).

The Child Safety Protection Act was passed in 2005 to help protect kids from harm.  You can read its online fact sheet here.  This is federal law that holds manufacturers, etc. responsible for toy safety.  Product liabilty laws in both Indiana and Illinois also exist to protect kids who have been hurt by a toy.

26th Annual Trouble in Toyland Study Released for 2011

Every year for many years now, a non-profit organization — USPIRG — has released its annual study of dangerous toys and toy safety.  This year, “Trouble in Toyland” reported that there are still dangers present in the American marketplace for children and their toys.  Included in their concerns:

Lead Continues to be a Hazard in Toys
Exposure to lead can affect almost every organ and system in the human body, especially the central nervous system. Lead is especially harmful to the brains of young children and has no business in children’s products. This year our investigators found 2 toys whose lead levels exceeded the current 300ppm standard set by the CPSIA and one additional toy that exceeded its prospective 100ppm standard; we found 4 additional toys that exceeded the American Academy of Pediatrics recommendation that lead levels in toys should not exceed 40ppm.

Phthalates in Toys
Numerous studies have documented the potential negative health effects of exposure to phthalates in the womb or in child development. U.S. EPA studies show the cumulative impact of different phthalates leads to an exponential increase in harms including premature delivery and reproductive defects. The CPSIA permanently banned toys containing three phthalates and set temporary limits on three others, while tests continue. No toy or childcare article can contain more than 1000ppm of each of the six phthalates.

This year, we found two toys that laboratory testing showed to contain 42,000 ppm and 77,000 ppm levels of phthalates. These products exceed limits allowed by the CPSIA by 42 and 77 times, respectively.

Choking Hazards
Choking on small toy parts, on small balls, on marbles and balloons continues to be the major cause of toy-related deaths and injuries. Between 1990 and 2010, over 200 children died from a choking incident.

This year we found several toys that violated CPSC’s small parts for toys standard intended for children less than 3 years old. We also found “near small part” toys that – while not in violation of current regulations — support our call for the small parts test to be made less permissive. Finally, we found toys intended for older children that failed to provide choking hazards warnings required for small parts or small balls.

Noisy Toys
Research has shown a third of Americans with hearing loss can attribute it in part to noise. The third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey showed one in five U.S. children will have some degree of hearing loss by the time they reach age 12; this may be in part due to many children using toys and other children’s products that emit loud sounds such as music players. The National Institute on Deafness and other Communication Disorders advises that prolonged exposure to noise above 85 decibels will cause gradual hearing loss in any age range. We found 1 toy on store shelves that exceeded the recommended continuous exposure to 85-decibel limit and 2 close-to-the-ear toys that exceeded the 65 decibel limit when measured with a digital sound level meter.

Posted in Defective Products, Product Liability, School & Playground Injuries, Serious Personal Injury, Wrongful Death | No Comments »

NTSB Seeks National Ban on Drivers Using Any Electronic Devices While Driving on US Roadways

December 13th, 2011 by admin

One, single traffic accident – if it’s bad enough – can change how things work in this country, surprising though that might be in today’s complicated world.

Today’s example: a bad, bad traffic pile-up down in Missouri last year, where a teenager who was busy texting on his cell phone while driving along a Missouri interstate highway in his pick-up truck ended up crashing into the rear-end of a tractor trailer semi truck. That would have been bad enough, the teenage driver was killed in this crash, but that’s not the end of this story.

It’s now known as the Gray Summit, Missouri crash, where the 19-year-old pickup truck driver had sent 11 texts in 11 minutes right before he drove right into the back of a semi truck, including one text that was sent “right before impact.”

After the pickup rear-ended the big rig, seems that a chain reaction happened and there was a big pile up that included two school buses crashing one after another into the wreck. Tragically, a local high school band was taking a field trip by bus to the Six Flags St. Louis amusement park.

Two people died that day (one of the kids on the bus along with the kid who was texting) and 38 others were seriously injured. It was a horrific accident, and it got the attention of the powers that be at the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).

Today, pointing directly to that one, single crash, the NTSB has issued a federal goverment recommendation of a national BAN on drivers using any kind of “personal electronic devices” whatsover while they are driving a vehicle on American roads. Of course, the NTSB can only recommend this to the states – however, states are listening.

The Governors Highway Safety Association is keeping track of the state laws that are being passed against distracted driving: no handheld cellphones, no texting, etc.

To see what the current laws are for Indiana, Illinois, or our surrounding states, go here.

Posted in Auto Accidents, Bus Crashes, Illinois Wrongful Death, Indiana Wrongful Death, Other Jurisdictions, School & Playground Injuries, Semi-Truck Crashes, Serious Personal Injury, Transportation, Wrongful Death | No Comments »

Illinois December 2011 Preparedness Campaign – Is Your Home Safe? Are You Ready in Case of Emergency?

December 8th, 2011 by admin

This month out of Springfield there’s something akin to holiday cheer being distributed out of the offices of IEMA (Illinois Emergency Management Agency) as its December 2011 Preparedness Campaign kicks off, trying to increase citizen awareness of home dangers like fire and radon as well as being ready in case of a home emergency.

Major, life-altering disasters can hit families within their home, along their street, or in their neighborhood, it’s not just the big winter storms or flooding disasters that can strike and alter lives forever.   It’s because of these kinds of possibilities that a new website has been created (www.Ready.Illinois.gov) and IEMA has started its new campaign.

All through December 2011, IEMA will be publishing all sorts of home safety tips at the Ready.Illinois website.  Things like decorating for the holidays will be covered.  Candles can start fires, for example.  So can faulty strings of outdoor lights.

Injuries and Deaths at Home From Fire and Toxic Fumes

Even more importantly from a personal injury point of view are things that cause serious injury and death in our part of the country each year.  Old furnaces collect dust and get old and rusty, and can cause fires as well as release toxic carbon monoxide fumes.  It’s very important to have furnaces professionally checked every year.

The IMEA also reminds us all that it is mandated by Illinois law that homes must have both smoke alarms and carbon monoxide detectors within 15 feet of each and every bedroom.  Landlords must abide by this; is yours? Homeowners have to abide by this, too.  Are your batteries still working in your smoke alarms and CO detectors?

Radon Gas Is Top Cause of Lung Cancer Among Non-Smokers in the U.S.

The agency also has a very wise warning for all of us:  radon is an undetectable gas that causes cancer – in fact, it’s second only to smoking tobacco in causing lung cancer among smokers and the top cause of lung cancer in non-smokers.  Radon comes out of the soil as uranium decays.  It’s important to have your home (as well as other buildings, schools, hospitals, etc. ) tested for radon.   You can do the test yourself (see www.radon.illinois.gov).

From the EPA’s Citizen’s Guide to Radon:

Radon is a radioactive gas. It comes from the natural decay of uranium that is found in nearly all soils. It typically moves up through the ground to the air above and into your home through cracks and other holes in the foundation. Your home traps radon inside, where it can build up. Any home may have a radon problem. This means new and old homes, well-sealed and drafty homes, and homes with or without basements.

Radon from soil gas is the main cause of radon problems. Sometimes radon enters the home through well water (see “Radon in Water“). In a small number of homes, the building materials can give off radon, too. However, building materials rarely cause radon problems by themselves.

RADON GETS IN THROUGH:

  1. Cracks in solid floors
  2. Construction joints
  3. Cracks in walls
  4. Gaps in suspended floors
  5. Gaps around service pipes
  6. Cavities inside walls
  7. The water supply

Winter Storm Emergencies

Finally, those big storms do hit and we’re going into a long winter now.  IEMA has a great checklist for a home emergency kit, now is the time to make sure you’ve got everything you need.  Among them:

  • A battery-powered NOAA Weather Radio and a battery-powered commercial radio
  • Extra batteries.
  • Foods that do not require cooking or refrigeration.
  • High energy foods such as dried fruit and granola bars.
  • Extra medications and special items for babies, the disabled or elderly.
  • Extra water in clean containers.
  • Flashlights.  Do not use candles.
  • First-aid kit, non-prescription drugs and personal sanitary items.

Your Duty to Keep Safe

Of course, there is much discussion here on the legal duties of product manufacturers, sellers, and distributors, as well as trucking companies, car dealers, road crews, and employers along with all other sorts of individuals or entities to keep us from harm in their ordinary course of business.

However, we each have a duty, too.  All of us have a duty to ourselves and our loved ones to avoid danger and maintain our homes, our cars, etc. as well as to do what reasonable people do to protect themselves and their families from harm.

For example, if you race over 100 mph and crash your car, then you’ve assumed some of the legal risk of that wreck.  Similarly, if you hang a sweater over a space heater and it catches fire, you’ve got some legal responsibility for that home disaster.

Be careful out there.   Participate in this preparedness campaign – it’s a good thing.

Posted in Defective Products, Product Liability, School & Playground Injuries, Serious Personal Injury, Slip & Falls, Spinal Injuries, Sports & Boating Accidents, Wrongful Death | No Comments »

High School Hockey and Football Players May Be Suffering Brain Injuries In Routine Play Per New Research Study

November 15th, 2011 by admin

This week, a new research study is warning that high school kids playing football or hockey as part of their school sporting programs may be suffering brain injuries merely from getting routine hits to their heads as part of standard hockey or football play (which would include practice as well as game time).

These kids who are football and hockey players may be getting hits that aren’t enough to cause a concussion but still strong enough to cause brain injuries over time.

The study, released yesterday by the University of Rochester Medical Center and reported in the journal Magnetic Resonance Imaging, has as its lead author Jeffrey J. Bazarian, M.D., M.P.H., a noted researcher in brain injuries and their causes. Players, parents, coaches, as well as health care providers should take advantage of this opportunity and consider what the researchers found after doing brain scans on kids involved in high school sports.

Admittedly, this study is just the beginning: it’s pointing out a need for concern and will be followed by more research, involving more athletes.  Still, it is significant enough for us to take notice of now — and to begin questioning how children with their brains still growing (and this includes high school boys) may be harmed by sports injuries to the head that we have been dismissing as minor.

Brain Injuries Should Be Considered Serious – They Can Be Life-Altering, Even Deadly

The human brain is vulnerable to injury, positioned as it is: above the neck, encased in a rather weak bone shell, the skull.  All too often, traumatic brain injuries are subtle and it takes time to notice that the victim has been injured.  Also all too often, these brain injuries result in permanent damage and someone’s life is forever changed as a result.

From our website:

Traumatic Brain Injury is the “silent epidemic” in our country today.  According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, each year approximately 1,400,000 people will suffer a brain injury in the United States. Of these, 100,000 will die from their injuries and another 500,000 will face a life where they must cope with severe and horrific permanent disability.

Many assume that brain injuries happen because of a direct blow to the head or loss of consciousness, whether during a slip and fall, an accident at work, a semi-truck crash, auto collision with a heavy truck or bridge abutment. While many brain injuries are the result of trauma directly to the head, sometimes brain damage can occur without loss of consciousness or a direct blow to the head. This is so because the brain, a very soft organ suspended in cerebral spinal fluid, is encased in a very hard shell, the skull.

The brain can often be injured by striking the bony skull, which occurs during sudden acceleration-deceleration – which occurs, for example, in a crash between a car and semi-truck at highway speeds or when a person falls at work from a scaffolding or ladder. In fact, most neurologists and neuropsychologists agree that mild traumatic brain injury does not require actual loss of consciousness or direct trauma to the head.

The truth is that any injury to the head can seriously and permanently harm someone. Any sudden blow to the head can render an individual physically incapacitated and reliant upon mechanical life support, or mentally disabled, depressed, unable to sleep and incapable of exercising self-control.

Not all brain injuries are easy to spot. TBIs may be wickedly subtle in how they have damaged someone. Brain injury victims sometimes have violent, sudden mood swings as well as a frustrating loss of memory – particularly short-term memory.

TBI victims are vulnerable to being easily confused and often exhausted because brain injury often disrupts one’s ability to sleep. brain injury to children who will henceforth have learning disabilities they never experienced before their fall in the schoolyard or injury in a car or truck crash.

You should suspect a loved one may be suffering from a serious brain injury or TBI if they are show signs of being:

  1. Clumsiness (especially immediately after the accident) – dropping things, unable to hold tightly onto an object;
  2. Confusion (especially immediately after the accident) – they may not know where they are, how to get home, what day it is, etc.;
  3. Dizziness (either immediately after the accident or later) – dizzy spells are a big hint of TBI;
  4. Fatigued – very weak or too exhausted to do activities that they would normally undertake which is frequently associated with sleep disruption caused by TBI;
    Headache – severe head pain may hint of brain injury;
  5. Photophobic – that is, bothered by bright light or extra-sensitive to loud sounds;
  6. Memory Loss – unable to recall new info or facts recently learned – like what they ate for breakfast;
  7. Nausea (especially immediately after the accident) – vomiting or feeling the urge to vomit is a common result of a brain injury;
  8. Numbness – the inability to feel any part of their body (finger, toe, limb) can mean TBI;
  9. Depression – this is a common effect of mild TBI because the person realizes she’s no longer able to think and remember as well as she could once;
  10. Asnomia – that is, the loss of sense of smell (the olfactory nerves which control the sense of smell are very delicate and can easily be damaged during trauma);
  11. Personality change – this is the most troubling aspect of TBI since it affects loved ones as well as the injured person; the inability to control one’s temper and emotions is a frequent consequence of TBI;
  12. Seizures– seizure disorder and convulsion can occur immediately or begin years after a TBI;
  13. Other diseases– persons who have suffered TBI are more susceptible to early onset of Alzheimer’s or other dementia, Parkinson’s Disease and brain atrophy.

Posted in School & Playground Injuries, Serious Personal Injury, Wrongful Death | No Comments »

Lead Exposure in Toys Can Harm or Kill Kids: CPSC Sets Tougher Lead Levels for U.S. Toys Effective August 2011

July 26th, 2011 by admin

“Lead exposure is one of the most common preventable poisonings of childhood,” reports the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP), the nation’s top professional medical association dedicated to treating children and adolescents affected by this type of injury or harm.

Lead is a poison.

Kids are at high risk of injury or death from lead exposure because they have growing nervous systems which are particularly susceptible to being compromised by any sort of lead exposure. Still, it’s reported that almost every child in this country has been exposed to lead: either from lead paint chips, to lead in the soil, to lead in their drinking water, to lead in their toys.

Lead impacts the child’s brain — even very small amounts of lead exposure can have terrifying consequences: kids can become inattentive; with just a little more lead in their systems, they can develop hearing loss and learning disabilities. Lead poisons the human brain and nervous system.

High lead levels in a child’s body can cause permanent brain injury and sometimes, lead will kill the child.

This is so serious a reality in this country that the Center for Disease Control (CDC) wants every single child to be screened for lead exposure (which can be easily done with a quick blood test). There are medicines that can pull the lead out of the human body; additionally, once the lead exposure has been discovered, steps can be taken to remove the source of the lead from the child’s environment.

This week, in response to this continued problem, the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) voted (3-2) to establish higher lead standards for products designed and sold for children in this country. Read the agency’s full press release here.

The new lead limit is contained within the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA), and it goes into effect on August 14, 2011. Within a matter of weeks, manufacturers, distributors, importers and retailers of children’s products must comply with the new lead exposure laws which establish a new 100 ppm federal limit for total lead content. It will be one of the lowest acceptable lead limits in the world.

If your child is 12 years of age or younger, then be on the safe side: have your child tested for lead exposure.

It is a simple blood test, and you are protecting your child against brain injury or worse. If your child has been exposed to dangerous lead levels, then get help in investigating the source of the lead exposure – and if necessary, seek legal remedies to insure that your child is protected from harm as well as other potential victims and that those responsible for the lead exposure injuries are made to take responsibility for the harm they have caused.

Posted in Defective Products, Illinois Wrongful Death, Indiana Wrongful Death, Job Site Injury, Product Liability, School & Playground Injuries, Serious Personal Injury, Work Related, Wrongful Death | No Comments »

Indianapolis Boy Fights Death After Birthday Party Pool Accident Just as CPSC Begins Its National Pool Safely Campaign: Pools are Dangerous for Kids

May 31st, 2011 by admin

Indianapolis saw another instance of a child almost drowning in a swimming pool when a young boy celebrating his 13th birthday was found floating near the bottom of a neighborhood pool and who now remains in critical condition (as of Tuesday, May 31st) at Riley Hospital. Our prayers go out to this boy and his family and we hope that he recovers fully from this tragic accident over the Memorial Day Weekend.

So far this year, there have been 55 fatalities and 63 close-calls across the country involving swimming pools.   It’s in hopes of keeping these numbers low as we enter the summer season that the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has re-upped its “Pool Safely: Simple Steps Save Lives” campaign for another year.

The CPSC is promoting a national educational effort try and protect kids from swimming pool drowning accidents, as well as injuries due to entrapment incidents in both swimming pools and spas.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission has also released its latest statistics on swimming pool accidents involving children, which include the following:

  • An annual average of 383 pool and spa-related drownings for children younger than 15 occurred from 2006 to 2008; about 76 percent of the reported fatalities involved children younger than five.
  • An estimated average of 5,100 pool or spa emergency department-treated submersions for children younger than 15 occurred each year from 2008 to 2010; children younger than five represented 79 percent of these-injuries.
  • Children between the ages of one and three (12 to 47 months) represented 66 percent of these fatalities and 64 percent of the injuries.
  • About 72 percent of the fatalities from 2006 through 2008, and 55 percent of the estimated injuries from 2008 through 2010 that involved children younger than 15 occurred in a residential pool or spa; children under five made up the majority of incidents at residential locations, with 84 percent of fatalities and 61 percent of injuries, respectively.
  • Tragically, based on reported statistics, 96% of victims involved in a submersion incident will die. Fatalities usually occur the day of the drowning event (72%). For the victims who survive the event, most will succumb to their injuries within a week (24%). Only 4% of near drowning victims will survive beyond a week, and many will have severe injuries and require intensive medical care.
  • There were no reported entrapment fatalities for 2010. CPSC received three reports of entrapment injury incidents during 2010.

Posted in Insurance Claims, School & Playground Injuries, Serious Personal Injury, Slip & Falls, Spinal Injuries, Sports & Boating Accidents, Wrongful Death | No Comments »

Good Samaritan Laws in Illinois and Indiana: Do You Risk a Lawsuit If You Stop to Help Someone at the Scene of an Accident?

April 28th, 2011 by admin

You’re driving home from work, or maybe it’s the end of a long weekend and you’re part of a parade of cars filled with families returning home. Or maybe you’re at work. In a mine, in a mill, on a train, or in a factory.  You could even be at school, or at the stadium for a game.

Suddenly, without warning: there’s an accident. A serious, scary accident where someone is seriously hurt. They’re in need – and if someone doesn’t help them, they may die.

This scenario becomes reality every day, in every state, in this country. Tragedies happen. Shockingly, however, not every state protects its citizens in the same way when they step up to render aid in an emergency. In fact, without Good Samaritan Laws in place, these do-gooders were sometimes later sued (yes, sued) for trying to help in a crisis.

For example, this winter in Fort Wayne, Indiana, there was a horrific car crash and an off-duty state trooper stopped to help the woman trapped inside her car.  It was only when a stranger, an ordinary citizen and good guy, stopped to help the trooper that they were able to set the woman free.

Illinois Good Samaritan Law

In 2011, the Illinois Good Samaritan Act was amended to clarify that the Illinois General Assembly’s purpose in passing the law was to ” …establish numerous protections for the generous and compassionate acts of its citizens who volunteer their time and talents to help others. These protections …shall be liberally construed to encourage persons to volunteer their time and talents.”

The overall Good Samaritan Law for Illinois is found in 210 ILCS 50, where it provides:

Sec. 3.150. Immunity from civil liability.

(a) Any person, agency or governmental body certified, licensed or authorized pursuant to this Act or rules thereunder, who in good faith provides emergency or non‑emergency medical services during a Department approved training course, in the normal course of conducting their duties, or in an emergency, shall not be civilly liable as a result of their acts or omissions in providing such services unless such acts or omissions, including the bypassing of nearby hospitals or medical facilities in accordance with the protocols developed pursuant to this Act, constitute willful and wanton misconduct.
(b) No person, including any private or governmental organization or institution that administers, sponsors, authorizes, supports, finances, educates or supervises the functions of emergency medical services personnel certified, licensed or authorized pursuant to this Act, including persons participating in a Department approved training program, shall be liable for any civil damages for any act or omission in connection with administration, sponsorship, authorization, support, finance, education or supervision of such emergency medical services personnel, where the act or omission occurs in connection with activities within the scope of this Act, unless the act or omission was the result of willful and wanton misconduct.
(c) Exemption from civil liability for emergency care is as provided in the Good Samaritan Act.
(d) No local agency, entity of State or local government, or other public or private organization, nor any officer, director, trustee, employee, consultant or agent of any such entity, which sponsors, authorizes, supports, finances, or supervises the training of persons in the use of cardiopulmonary resuscitation, automated external defibrillators, or first aid in a course which complies with generally recognized standards shall be liable for damages in any civil action based on the training of such persons unless an act or omission during the course of instruction constitutes willful and wanton misconduct.
(e) No person who is certified to teach the use of cardiopulmonary resuscitation, automated external defibrillators, or first aid and who teaches a course of instruction which complies with generally recognized standards for the use of cardiopulmonary resuscitation, automated external defibrillators, or first aid shall be liable for damages in any civil action based on the acts or omissions of a person who received such instruction, unless an act or omission during the course of such instruction constitutes willful and wanton misconduct.
(f) No member or alternate of the State Emergency Medical Services Disciplinary Review Board or a local System review board who in good faith exercises his responsibilities under this Act shall be liable for damages in any civil action based on such activities unless an act or omission during the course of such activities constitutes willful and wanton misconduct.
(g) No EMS Medical Director who in good faith exercises his responsibilities under this Act shall be liable for damages in any civil action based on such activities unless an act or omission during the course of such activities constitutes willful and wanton misconduct.
(h) Nothing in this Act shall be construed to create a cause of action or any civil liabilities.

Indiana Good Samaritan Law

Indiana’s Good Samaritan Law is not the same as that of Illinois.  Indiana focuses upon protecting emergency medical professionals, whether they are licensed in Indiana or elsewhere, as they do their work at the scene of an emergency.

Indiana’s Good Samaritan Law is found at IC 16-31-6-1, where it provides:

IC 16-31-6
Chapter 6. Immunity From Liability

IC 16-31-6-1
Emergency medical technician services
Sec. 1. (a) A certified emergency medical technician or a certified emergency medical technician-basic advanced who provides emergency medical services to an emergency patient is not liable for an act or omission in providing those services unless the act or omission constitutes negligence or willful misconduct. If the emergency medical technician or emergency medical technician-basic advanced is not liable for an act or omission, no other person incurs liability by reason of an agency relationship with the emergency medical technician or emergency medical technician-basic advanced.
(b) This section does not affect the liability of a driver of an ambulance for negligent operation of the ambulance.
As added by P.L.2-1993, SEC.14. Amended by P.L.205-2003, SEC.33.

IC 16-31-6-2
Use of defibrillators
Sec. 2. (a) Except for an act of negligence or willful misconduct, a certified first responder who uses an automatic or semiautomatic defibrillator on an emergency patient according to the training procedures established by the commission under IC 16-31-2-9 is immune from civil liability for acts or omissions when rendering those services.
(b) If the first responder is immune from civil liability for the first responder’s act or omission, a person who has only an agency relationship with the first responder is also immune from civil liability for the act or omission.
As added by P.L.2-1993, SEC.14.

IC 16-31-6-3
Advanced life support
Sec. 3. An act or omission of a paramedic or an emergency medical technician-intermediate done or omitted in good faith while providing advanced life support to a patient or trauma victim does not impose liability upon the paramedic or emergency medical technician-intermediate, the authorizing physician, the hospital, or the officers, members of the staff, nurses, or other employees of the hospital or the local governmental unit if the advanced life support is provided:
(1) in connection with an emergency;
(2) in good faith; and
(3) under the written or oral direction of a licensed physician;
unless the act or omission was a result of negligence or willful misconduct.
As added by P.L.2-1993, SEC.14. Amended by P.L.205-2003,

SEC.34.

IC 16-31-6-4
Life support provided in connection with disaster emergency
Sec. 4. (a) This section does not apply to an act or omission that was a result of gross negligence or willful or intentional misconduct.
(b) An act or omission of a paramedic, an emergency medical technician-intermediate, an emergency medical technician-basic advanced, an emergency medical technician, or a person with equivalent certification from another state that is performed or made while providing advanced life support or basic life support to a patient or trauma victim does not impose liability upon the paramedic, the emergency medical technician-intermediate, the emergency medical technician-basic advanced, an emergency medical technician, the person with equivalent certification from another state, a hospital, a provider organization, a governmental entity, or an employee or other staff of a hospital, provider organization, or governmental entity if the advanced life support or basic life support is provided in good faith:
(1) in connection with a disaster emergency declared by the governor under IC 10-14-3-12 in response to an act that the governor in good faith believes to be an act of terrorism (as defined in IC 35-41-1-26.5); and
(2) in accordance with the rules adopted by the Indiana emergency medical services commission or the disaster emergency declaration of the governor.

Posted in Airplane & Train Crashes, Auto Accidents, Bus Crashes, Construction Injuries, Electrocution, Equipment and Machine Malfunction, Explosions & Fires, Falls, Insurance Claims, Job Site Injury, Longshoremen & Maritime, Medical Malpractice, Mill Accidents, Motorcycle Accidents, Pedestrian Accidents, Railroad Workers (FELA), School & Playground Injuries, Semi-Truck Crashes, Serious Personal Injury, Slip & Falls, Spinal Injuries, Sports & Boating Accidents, Transportation, Work Related, Workers’ Compensation | No Comments »

Illinois Budget Crisis: What Will Happen to Government Services and Public Safety?

January 4th, 2011 by admin

Illinois is in big financial trouble according to the financial bigwigs over on Wall Street: Moody’s Investors Service reportedly ranks Illinois as having the lowest credit rating in the country (tied with California, which we all know isn’t good news) and Moody’s also predicts things are not getting better in the near future for the state.

Meanwhile, the Illinois Legislature is hitting the ground running as it makes critical budget decisions: there is a $13 billion dollar deficit – and millions in unpaid bills and missed pension fund payments. No one can avoid the reality that there will be severe cuts in public services, but who is going to be hit? 

How will your family be impacted by the Illinois Budget Crisis?

Maybe not at all if the Illinois Governor gets his way, and the state borrows $15 billion to cover the shortfall.  If not, then California is providing an example, although severe public service cuts are being made in a number of states across the country: thousands of kids lose child care; young adults see an increase in tuition; state workers are laid off; and health care costs are slashed. 

Which means the state safeguards in place to protect Illinois citizenry may be disappearing — and with them, an increase in the risk of individuals being harmed.  For many, the harms will simply have to be handled within the family. 

Injury Lawsuits and Justice When Budgets are Slashed

However, if there is a serious personal injury or wrongful death because of scenarios like:

  • a child is on the streets instead of day care; 
  • a lack of state inspection regarding compliance with boating regulations or hazardous road conditions, or 
  • a stressed-out unemployed worker fatally crashes his vehicle into an innocent family’s minivan

this budget crisis will not close the courthouse doors on justice.

Plaintiffs’ personal injury law firms have traditionally provided legal services on a contingent basis to their clientele.  This is not going to change with the current recessionary times. 

It’s sad to predict that the loss of government services may have as an unintended consequence the serious personal injury or wrongful death of someone in the future, but it is very likely to be the reality.  At least, in these instances of personal injury lawsuits, Illinois budget cuts cannot cut justice out of our future.

Posted in Airplane & Train Crashes, Auto Accidents, Bus Crashes, Defective Products, Illinois Wrongful Death, Insurance Claims, Medical Malpractice, Motorcycle Accidents, Pedestrian Accidents, Product Liability, School & Playground Injuries, Semi-Truck Crashes, Serious Personal Injury, Slip & Falls, Spinal Injuries, Sports & Boating Accidents, Transportation, Work Related, Wrongful Death | No Comments »

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