Wrongful Death

Grieving Family Files Wrongful Death Suit Against Charlotte Police Officer

January 16, 2014 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Attorney Matthew R. Arnold answering the question: “What exactly is a wrongful death claim?”

Jonathan Ferrell’s surviving family members have filed a wrongful death suit against the officer who shot him as well as the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department in an attempt to ensure that those responsible for the grisly encounter that left Ferrell dead are held accountable for their actions.

The terrible incident began back in September when Ferrell, who used to play football for Florida A&M and recently moved to Charlotte to be with his fiancé, was driving a co-worker home. After dropping his colleague off, Ferrell was involved in a serious accident that left his car trapped in a ravine. Ferrell had to kick his way out of the badly damaged vehicle and went in search of help for his own serious injuries.

Ferrell walked more than a half-mile uphill until he found the home of a young mother whose husband was away at work. The woman, startled by Ferrell’s appearance, mistakenly believed he was there to break into the house and called 911, asking for police help. Officers arrived and this is when things went terribly wrong.

According to statements made by Officer Kerrick, Ferrell charged the officers, forcing them to open fire. However, a police investigation determined that Kerrick acted hastily and used excessive force. The wrongful death suit claims that Ferrell, who was disoriented, was in the process of lying down when Kerrick opened fire, shooting 12 bullets, eight of which struck Ferrell in the chest. The trajectory of the wounds show that Ferrell was either laying down or kneeling when he was shot, further calling into question the actions of the officers.

Young Boy Killed After Being Run Over By Tractor-Trailer

January 2, 2014 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Attorney Matthew R. Arnold answering the question: “What exactly is a wrongful death claim?”

In a tragic accident out of South Carolina, officials say that a seven-year-old boy died while riding a dirt bike his parents gave him for Christmas. The young boy, Tristan Gabriel Mericle, was hit and killed by a tractor-trailer while riding his new bike at his parents’ house.

Neighbors say that they heard a loud noise and by the time they came outside they saw debris spread across the road and saw the critically injured little boy following the wreck. The neighbors say the accident scene was truly horrific and that no one should have to witness such a terrible tragedy.

Witnesses say the boy was riding his dirt bike in his front yard and drove out onto Highway 97 in Chester County, South Carolina to turn his bike around. Sadly the young boy drove his bike into the lane of traffic right as an 18-wheeler was approaching.

Charges Filed In Tragic Death Of Young Newlywed Couple

December 31, 2013 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Attorney Matthew R. Arnold answering the question: “Are the laws or rules applying to a wrongful death claim different from a personal injury not involving death?”

A terrible accident this past August in Asheville, North Carolina left a newlywed couple dead and police officers searching for clues about what could have gone wrong. The couple, William Reid and his pregnant wife Jamie Reid, were both killed in the August 11th crash just outside Asheville while the two were being driven in a chauffeured Lincoln Town Car.

At the time, police officials in Asheville said that it appeared the Town Car the couple was riding in left the highway and crashed into a tree. The driver of the Town Car, Rodney Koon, was suspected as a possible cause of the terrible accident, but an investigation still needed to be conducted to confirm what role Koon played in the fatal crash.

The crash struck a nerve given that the victims were so young, only 25 and 26, and appeared to have so much life left to live. The two had gotten married only a few months before the accident and soon thereafter became pregnant. They were both visiting North Carolina for a friend’s wedding and excited to return home to Pennsylvania where family and friends were waiting on them.

Just this past week, authorities in Asheville revealed that Koon would now be facing criminal charges in connection with their death. Koon has since been charged with two counts of felony death by vehicle and one count of DWI. Police have said that Koon was not under the influence of alcohol at the time of the crash, saying only that it was a “substance.” One of the victim’s mothers has come forward and said she heard that the driver had traces of cocaine in his system at the time of the crash.

North Carolina Worker Killed In Factory Accident :: Mecklenburg County Medical Malpractice Lawyer

December 24, 2013 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Attorney Matthew R. Arnold answering the question: “Are the laws or rules applying to a wrongful death claim different from a personal injury not involving death?”

Everyone knows that industrial work can be dangerous. The large and powerful machines combine with a host of other potentially dangerous workplace conditions and can lead to disaster in some cases. We hope that employers take action to mitigate these risks, by inspecting machines carefully and providing safety training to workers. Sadly, this does not always happen and innocent workers pay the price.

Police in North Carolina say that a man from Randleman, NC died in a workplace accident late last week. Authorities have revealed that the victim was 61-year-old Martin Soto Rodriguez. Rodriguez was working at the Deep River Dyeing Company at the time of the fatal accident.

Emergency responders say Rodriguez was loading a machine at the dyeing factory when he became tangled in the fabric and was ultimately pulled into the machine. The machine he was loading the fabric into is similar to a washing machine and works by spinning the water out of the fabrics at very high rates of speed.

Rodriguez was pronounced dead at the scene and his family was notified soon thereafter. Officials with the North Carolina Department of Labor say they are investigating Rodriguez’s death and will be looking carefully to ensure that all required safety procedures were followed in the case.

North Carolina Woman Killed In Walmart Parking Lot Accident :: Personal Injury Attorneys and Lawyers in Charlotte, NC

December 5, 2013 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Attorney Matthew R. Arnold answering the question: “What exactly is a wrongful death claim?”

Officers in Statesville, North Carolina say that they will continue an investigation into the case of a woman who died after being run over in a Walmart parking lot earlier this week. Officials with the Statesville Police Department say that the accident happened around 11 a.m. on Monday morning.

Authorities say that a female employee, Tamara Sheppard, was hit by a slow moving pickup truck driven by Jesse Brown. According to eyewitnesses, Sheppard was an employee at Walmart and appeared to be in the parking lot while on-the-job. As Sheppard was walking down an aisle in the parking lot Brown turned a corner to try and grab a parking spot when he collided with her.

Brown was later interviewed about the accident and said that he never saw Sheppard and does not think that she ever saw him. Security cameras show that the accident happened at a very low rate of speed, but the slow speed was not enough to save Sheppard. Brown said that he felt the car hit something and once he did he stopped the car to get out and look. It was then that he saw Sheppard behind the back of his Ford truck.

Emergency responders were called to Walmart to try and assist Sheppard but say that her injuries were too severe. She was airlifted to Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte where she later died. Officers say that Brown has not yet been charged in connection with the accident and that police are working in connection with the District Attorney to determine if charges are warranted in the case.

Two North Carolina Bicyclists Dead After Hit-And-Run Accident :: Personal Injury Attorneys and Lawyers in Charlotte, NC

October 3, 2013 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Attorney Matthew R. Arnold answering the question: “What exactly is a wrongful death claim?”

Police in Chapel Hill, NC say that a second bike rider has died after being involved in a hit-and-run accident last week. Authorities say the accident happened as the cyclists were heading south along U.S. Highway 15/501 at around 11:30 p.m. Thursday evening.

While the two cyclists, Alexandra Simou and Ivin Scurlock, were riding south of Chapel Hill, police say they were hit from behind by a passenger vehicle. The force of the collision was great and Scurlock died at the scene of the accident. A spokesperson for UNC Hospitals said that Simou was transported to the facility for treatment and died on Sunday from her injuries.

A ghost bike has since been placed at the scene of the accident by family and friends to serve as a memorial for the couple. Ghost bikes are white bicycle replicas, usually miniature versions of bikes, which are placed along roadsides to serve as memorials for those who have been killed in car accidents. The bikes are meant to serve as eerie reminders of the damage a car can do to those simply out for a ride. The ghost bike memorials are not just a North Carolina phenomenon, but have been popping up all around the world, with one website listing some 600 of them in more than 100 U.S. citizens and nearly two-dozen countries.

According to North Carolina Highway Patrol officials, authorities are still searching for the car that hit the rider. So far police say they believe the vehicle is a sedan that has some front-end damage and likely a damaged windshield. Anyone with information about the accident is urged to contact his or her local law enforcement officials.

Overall, hundreds of cyclists die and thousands more are injured in tragic accidents just like this one every year. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reported that 618 cyclists were killed and 52,000 injured in crashes with motor vehicles in 2010 alone. The number of deaths is far too high and speaks to how much work remains to be done to educate drivers about the importance of watching out for cyclists.

Man Responsible For Deadly Charlotte Hit-And-Run Apprehended :: Personal Injury Attorneys and Lawyers in Charlotte, NC

October 1, 2013 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Attorney Matthew R. Arnold answering the question: “Are the laws or rules applying to a wrongful death claim different from a personal injury not involving death?”

Police in Charlotte say they have charged an 18-year-old driver with involuntary manslaughter after a deadly accident occurred in south Charlotte last week. The hit-and-run collision left a 19-year-old driver and a three-year-old passenger dead.

According to Charlotte-Mecklenburg police, the accident took place last Wednesday at around 6 p.m. on Sharon Road West. Authorities say a 2002 Mercy Sable collided with a utility pole near the intersection with Hopeton Road. The driver of that car, a 19-year-old named Shaquise Bush, died at the scene of the crash. A passenger in that car, Shanquise Wilson, was seriously injured and taken to Carolinas Medical Center for treatment.

Three other small children in the car, an 18-month-old girl, a 22-month-old girl and a three-year-old boy, were all critically injured. Authorities say it was after being taken to the hospital that the three-year-old succumbed to the traumatic injuries he suffered in the accident.

Police say they received a tip that a white pickup truck, driven by Uriel Eduardo Flores, was involved in the accident but took off from the crash scene before police officers were able to arrive on location. Flores later turned himself into police and was questioned by investigators about his role in the accident. Police say they are still investigating exactly what caused the deadly crash. In the meantime, Flores is now facing charges of involuntary manslaughter and felony hit-and-run.

Debris From Dump Truck Kills Unsuspecting Driver In Rural North Carolina :: Personal Injury Attorneys and Lawyers in Charlotte, NC

September 26, 2013 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Attorney Matthew R. Arnold answering the question: “What exactly is a wrongful death claim?”

In a truly tragic case out of North Carolina, officials say a large rock that came rolling out of the back of a dump truck is responsible for an unsuspecting driver’s death. Officials with the North Carolina Highway Patrol say that a rock flew through the window of a car on U.S. Highway 221 while it the driver was winding his way through the North Carolina mountains.

Police say that the rock was the size of a basketball and weighed nearly 25 pounds. The rock fell off the back of the truck and landed on the driver, killing him almost immediately. According to a statement from the Highway Patrol, the large rock fell off the back of a northbound dump truck, hit the road once time and bounced upward, ultimately striking the windshield of a Mercedes heading southbound.

Authorities say the rock was one of many loaded into the dump truck that was hauling the rocks to a construction site in nearby Avery County. Police say that the driver of the truck had no idea there was a problem until another driver flagged him down more than a mile from where the deadly accident occurred.

Police say that the accident is an especially tragic reminder of how important it is for commercial vehicles to have their equipment inspected regularly and be up to legal standards. Authorities say that when officers inspected the truck involved in the crash it was clear that there were a lot of equipment violations. An official with the Highway Patrol went so far as to say the dump truck was a faulty vehicle that clearly should not have been allowed on the road.

Drunk Driver Hits And Kills North Carolina Motorcyclist :: Personal Injury Attorneys and Lawyers in Charlotte, NC

September 17, 2013 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Attorney Matthew R. Arnold answering the question: “If I am injured in a car accident or at work what should I do?”

A motorcyclist in North Carolina died earlier this month after being hit by a drunk driver. According to a local ABC News station, 52-year-old Bradley Pelletier of Raleigh died after he was hit by 25-year-old Lakeisha Jones.

Officers who responded to the accident scene say that Pelletier was heading north on Wake Forest Road just after midnight while Jones’ Chevrolet sedan was heading south. Police say that Jones then attempted to make a left turn onto Creekside Drive when she crashed directly into Pelletier’s motorcycle.

Police on the scene detected signs of intoxication and have since charged Jones with DWI. Officials say that in addition to driving while impaired, Jones and her two passengers were also not wearing their seatbelts at the time of the accident.

Our hearts go out to the family of Pelletier who did nothing wrong in the crash and yet paid the ultimate price for another person’s poor choices. The fact is that drinking and driving is deadly and that the more alcohol that a person consumes the more likely it is that he or she will be involved in accident.

Studies have definitively shown that a driver with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.10 or greater is seven times more likely to be involved in a fatal motor vehicle crash than is a driver who has not consumed alcoholic beverages, and a driver with an alcohol concentration of 0.15 or greater is about 25 times more likely.

Front Yard Fire Leads To North Carolina Man’s Death :: Personal Injury Attorneys and Lawyers in Charlotte, NC

September 10, 2013 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Attorney Matthew R. Arnold answering the question: “Are the laws or rules applying to a wrongful death claim different from a personal injury not involving death?”

Police in Fayetteville, North Carolina say that a man standing near a fire pit at a North Carolina home died after a terrible explosion. Authorities say the deadly accident happened last weekend, late one Saturday night when a group of friends and family were gathered around a front yard fire.

According to a spokesperson for the police department, one man, 28-year-old Martin Antoine Blossom, died and at least four other people sustained serious injuries as a result of the fire pit explosion. Police have not yet said how or why the explosion occurred, but say they do believe the incident was accidental.

Emergency responders say that beyond the fatality, two other men were injured in the fire pit explosion along with a woman and a young 14-year-old girl. All four of those injured were taken to local hospitals for treatment.

Commercially manufactured fire pits have grown in popularity in recent years are commonly used for social gatherings. While they are perfectly legal, fire pits can pose serious risks, especially if used improperly. Experts say that every year fire pits are blamed for house fires, serious injuries and even deaths. As a result, anyone considering using a fire pit at his or her home should consider the following safety tips.

First thing, be sure to set up the fire pit on a solid surface away from any buildings or overhanging rooflines or trees. Next, be sure to clear any and all combustibles away from the fire pit. This includes leaves, dry grass, pine needles and patio furniture. Keep a working fire extinguisher nearby as well as a water source. Never use a fire pit during windy conditions as you will not be able to control where embers are blown. Keep fires small and under control and be sure that children stay away from the fire pit in case the pit accidentally tips over. Never leave a fire pit unattended and be sure when you are done to follow the manufacturer’s recommendations for how to put out the fire and safely dispose of the ash.