Charlotte Injury Lawyers Blog

Ten Fans Injured In Camera Accident At Charlotte Motor Speedway :: Personal Injury Attorneys and Lawyers in Charlotte, NC

May 16, 2013 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Attorney Matthew R. Arnold answering the question: “What can you sue for in a personal injury case?”

A bad accident on the Charlotte Motor Speedway took place this weekend at the Coca-Cola 600 when a heavy nylon rope that was holding a Fox Sports overhead television camera fell from the grandstands and landed on the surface of the track.

The freak accident left 10 fans at the Speedway injured and three requiring hospitalization for those injuries. Officials say that two of the fans were taken to the Carolinas Medical Center in Concord and one was taken to the University Medical Center.

Fox Sports has said that it has not been able to identify the cause of the accident and says that until it does it will indefinitely suspend the use of the camera system. The camera consists of three ropes and two guide ropes that are used to move the camera back and forth. A spokesperson says the drive rope failed and then fell to the track. Thankfully, the other ropes were able to hold the camera in place, which spared fans from even more serious injuries.

The rope even caused problems for drivers when it fell on the track and wrapped around Kyle Busch’s car. Busch said he never saw the rope itself, but did hear a very loud thud next to his right front tire, thinking maybe the tire blew out. The rope caused his car to slow down until officials delayed the race to clean the track and tend to injured fans.

Pregnant Woman And Young Son Killed In North Carolina Boating Accident :: Personal Injury Attorneys and Lawyers in Charlotte, NC

May 14, 2013 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

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

This Memorial Day weekend ended in tragedy for the family of one pregnant woman and her young son who both died on High Rock Lake in North Carolina in a terrible boating accident. According to police, the woman and her three-year-old son died when a speedboat crashed into their pontoon boat.

Authorities say Melissa Chambers Britt and her son died in the terrible accident on High Rock Lake, located in Davidson County, NC. According to a police spokesperson, the speedboat that smashed into Britt’s boat was traveling at more than 50 miles per hour at the time of the accident.

Witnesses say Britt’s husband, William, who was not injured in the accident jumped in the water after the crash to save his wife and young son. The boy was taken to the hospital, but later died of his injuries. Sadly, William was not able to find his wife’s body which was only recovered several hours later by rescue crews. Police say Britt’s brother, Michael Chambers, was also in the boat at the time of the accident was taken by helicopter to a hospital for treatment of serious head injuries.

However, police say that none of the four people in the speedboat driven by Michael Greene were injured in the crash. According to witnesses, Greene became aware of the pontoon boat too late to slow down and tried to turn away but the two vessels were already too close together to avoid an accident. Police say they do not believe alcohol played a role in the accident, but do believe Greene was distracted behind the wheel. Authorities say they will make a final decision about possible criminal charges against Greene next week.

Speeding Truck Driver Leaves Man Dead On North Carolina Highway :: Personal Injury Attorneys and Lawyers in Charlotte, NC

May 9, 2013 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Attorney Matthew R. Arnold answering the question: “What should I do if I have been injured by another party but I can’t afford a lawyer?”

A terrible accident on wet North Carolina roads left an innocent motorist dead earlier this month. Officials with the state highway patrol say that a truck driver, Hiep Truong, 45, was driving more than 15 miles per hour over the posted speed limit when he lost control of his tractor-trailer on wet, Winston-Salem roads.

Authorities say Truong was driving a produce vehicle for a Charlotte, NC company at the time of the wreck. The accident took place on U.S. 52 a little before afternoon rush hour. Police say it was pouring down rain at the time of the accident and the driver’s speed combined dangerously with the already slick roads.

According to emergency responders, the tractor-trailer was going more than 70 miles per hour in the rain near the Clemmonsville Road exit on 52 when the truck lost traction. At that point, the semi went out of control, crossing over the median and crashing head-on into an oncoming 2008 Chevrolet Impala. The Chevy was driven by Kenneth Baum, who was ejected from the car and died at the scene of the accident.

Police say that the truck continued moving south in the northbound lanes of 52 after striking the Chevy, hitting two more vehicles before finally rolling over onto its right side. Truong collided with a 2006 Ford and a 2009 Mazda, sending a shower of broken pieces of concrete onto several other vehicles. Thankfully none of the occupants in the other cars were injured in the terrible accident. Traffic along U.S. 52 was backed up for hours after.

Terrible Accident Results In Three High School Students Being Airlifted To Hospital :: Personal Injury Attorneys and Lawyers in Charlotte, NC

May 7, 2013 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Attorney Matthew R. Arnold answering the question: “I was involved in a motor vehicle accident with injuries. Do I need a lawyer?”

Police with the North Carolina Highway Patrol say that a wreck that took place near Forestview High School has sent three students to the hospital for emergency treatment.

According to troopers, the accident happened on Tuesday at around 3:45 p.m., just after school had let out. A white Mazda was heading south on Union Road near Wilson Farm road when the driver attempted to pass a slower moving car. Unfortunately, the white Mazda miscalculated the distance needed to get around the slower car and ended up crashing head-on into an oncoming Ford pick-up.

Highway Patrol officials say the accident was serious and sent three 16-year-old students of Forestview High School to the hospital. Two of the students were so badly injured that emergency responders called for helicopters to airlift one student to Carolina’s Medical Center in Charlotte and another to Gaston Memorial. Thankfully, police say that the three students appear to be in stable condition, despite the severity of their injuries.

Many people understand that head-on accidents are dangerous, though you may not know just how dangerous. Head-on collisions are serious and have substantially higher fatality rates than other kinds of crashes, with the notable exception of rollovers. In 2005, two percent of crashes were head-on collisions, but these accounted for 10 percent of all fatal accidents. Head-on crashes more frequently result in death because of their abrupt nature; stopping forward movement so suddenly.

AFL-CIO Releases Report Examining North Carolina Worker Safety :: Personal Injury Attorneys and Lawyers in Charlotte, NC

May 2, 2013 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Attorney Matthew R. Arnold answering the question: “I have been injured on another person’s property. What should I do now?”

A major report compiled by the AFL-CIO was recently released which discussed the current state and health of the average American worker. The report dove into the ways in which workers suffer harm while on the job and examined which workers were at the greatest risk for suffering workplace accidents.

The study, titled “Death on the Job: The Toll of Neglect,” found that in 2011 there were 148 workplace deaths in North Carolina. Of these, a third involved transportation incidents such as workers dying while on the road. Amazingly, 20 percent of the workplace fatalities involved violence and assault, not something that many people would assume happens in the workplace.

The next biggest category of workplace fatalities was industrial falls. Contact with dangerous workplace equipment is responsible for 24 fatalities in North Carolina each year, harmful substances and chemicals are responsible for 12 fatalities and fires and explosion were found to be to blame for four fatalities.

The study also found that Latino workers were at an especially high risk of workplace death and injury. The reason was not because Latinos are more prone to accidents, but instead because, as a group, Latinos are more likely to work in hazardous industries with poor safety records. These industries include things like construction and agriculture where safety regulations are often lax or totally nonexistent. Another problem identified in the report is that undocumented workers are especially vulnerable to workplace injuries because they are often reluctant to report dangerous working conditions for fear of being deported.

Families In Deadly Charlotte Drag Racing Awarded $6 Million From Subdivision Developer :: Personal Injury Attorneys and Lawyers in Charlotte, NC

April 30, 2013 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Attorney Matthew R. Arnold answering the question: “What should I do if I have been injured by another party but I can’t afford a lawyer?”

A recent article in the Charlotte Observer discussed the tragic case of the 2009 accident that left a Winthrop University professor, her two-year-old daughter and an unrelated 13-year-old boy dead.

The accident happened one evening back in April of 2009 when the professor, Cynthia Furr, pulled out into a N.C. 49 intersection. What Furr did not realize is that a Mitsubishi Eclipse that had been street racing another vehicle was currently speeding down the road at more than 100 miles per hour. The Eclipse rear-ended Furr, killing her and her young daughter. The crash also left the passenger in the Eclipse dead.

The two 20-somethings who were drag racing have since been charged and are now serving terms in prison for their actions that night. After the criminal trials were over, the families of Furr and the 13-year-old turned their attention to a developer, Crescent Resources, that had promised but failed to install a stop light at the very intersection where Furr was killed.

Back in 2006, Crescent agreed to install a traffic light at the intersection of N.C. 49 and Riverpointe Drive in exchange for zoning approval to construct a large subdivision in the area. Rather than do as it said, the developer dragged its feet, arguing that the traffic volume in the area was not great enough to justify a light. The plaintiffs argued that had there been a light at the intersection, Furr would never have pulled out into oncoming traffic and the driver of the Eclipse would not have had the opportunity to race for so long or build up so much speed.

Truck Driver On Trial After Pedestrian Accident Left Two Young Boys Dead :: Personal Injury Attorneys and Lawyers in Charlotte, NC

April 25, 2013 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Attorney Matthew R. Arnold answering the question: “What should I do if I have been injured by another party but I can’t afford a lawyer?”

A terrible accident in February of last year that left two Charlotte, NC brothers dead moved to a courtroom this week as the driver of the delivery truck testified about his actions that terrible morning.

The driver, Dirk Jerome Brown, told a Charlotte judge earlier this week that he was not distracted the morning of February 22, 2012 as he was on his way to his first delivery of the morning. Brown said that he had just picked up his co-worker and was heading to Rock Hill when he approached the intersection of W. Tyvola Road and Shady Lane.

Brown claimed that he was looking in his mirrors and made sure that everything was clear before he made his turn. Sadly, his turn was not clear and Brown has since been charged with two counts of misdemeanor death by vehicle after running over one-year-old and five-year-old brothers. The two boys were walking with their sister and father on their way to daycare along the shoulder of the road prior to the accident.

Brown testified that he made a wide turn and then heard screaming and noticed the children on the ground. Authorities have said an investigation revealed that the tire of Brown’s truck clipped the shoulder of the road which is what killed the two young boys. A witness also testified that the driver did not make a wide turn and had far more room to turn more broadly then he did.

North Carolina First Grader Killed In Bus Stop Hit-And-Run :: Workers’ Compensation Law Firm in Charlotte, NC

April 23, 2013 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Attorney Matthew R. Arnold answering the question: “What should I do if I have been injured by another party but I can’t afford a lawyer?”

In a tragic case out of North Carolina, a first grade girl was killed after being hit by a log truck driven by a drunk driver who illegally attempted to pass a stopped school bus. The fatal accident took place last Tuesday afternoon as a bus from Sampson County pulled up to a stop along Highway 421.

Police say around 3:45 p.m. the school bus was headed south on Highway 421 with the log truck some distance behind. After arriving at the scheduled stop, the bus came to a complete stop and activated its emergency alert, the stop sign swung out and the lights flashed. Then seven-year-old Alyiah McKenzie Morgan stepped off the bus and was hit by the log truck driven by Johnny Allen Spell.
Witnesses have said that the driver of the truck slowed down slightly, but never came to a complete stop and then sped around the stopped bus. Not only did the driver break the law by passing a stopped school bus, but he then compounded his legal troubles by fleeing the scene of the accident.

Police say an anonymous tip led to Spell’s eventual capture. The man was arrested several hours after the crash in Autryville, approximately 35 miles away from where the accident took place. Spell has since been charged with felony passing a stopped school bus, felony hit and run, DWI, DWI while operating a commercial motor vehicle and involuntary manslaughter. Spell remains behind bars on $200,000 bond.

Fungal Meningitis Outbreak Leads To FDA Scrutiny Of Compounding Pharmacies :: Workers’ Compensation Law Firm in Charlotte, NC

April 18, 2013 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Attorney Matthew R. Arnold answering the question: “What should I do if I have been injured by another party but I can’t afford a lawyer?”

In a worrisome press release, officials with the U.S. FDA have discovered potentially life-threatening safety issues at more than 30 specialized pharmacies across the country. The issues were uncovered after an investigation prompted by the tainted steroid medications that were found at a Massachusetts compounding pharmacy.

One frightening example was one Florida pharmacy where the FDA said it had discovered black particles in several vials of injectable medication. At another facility, inspectors found rust and mold in what were designated “clean rooms.” Still other facilities had sterilization issues or workers with tears in their gloves, all serious safety lapses that could lead to yet another deadly outbreak.

The series of inspections took place across the country over the last two or three months, the result of a major enforcement effort by the FDA that targeted small compounding pharmacies in the wake of the deadly fungal meningitis outbreak. The outbreak was caused by unsterile conditions at the New England Compounding Center and led to ore than 50 deaths and more than 700 people seriously injured.

In it’s statement, the FDA also revealed that several of the pharmacies targeted by investigators at first refused to grant access to the FDA, refusing to allow entry to their facilities or to view their records. Eventually the FDA prevailed, but the episode highlighted not only the deficiencies that exist in some operations, but the real challenge the agency must overcome at those facilities where cooperating with regulators is clearly not a priority.

North Carolina Legislature Considers Repealing Mandatory Helmet Law :: Workers’ Compensation Law Firm in Charlotte, NC

April 16, 2013 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Attorney Matthew R. Arnold answering the question: “What should I do if I have been injured by another party but I can’t afford a lawyer?”

Adult motorcyclists in North Carolina would be allowed to ride around the state without a helmet under legislation that was recently approved by a North Carolina House committee. The measure would repeal the state’s mandatory safety helmet law for the vast majority of motorcyclists, something that has safety experts calling for legislators to vote no before it is too late.

The new law would require that motorcycle helmets only be worn if the motorist is younger than 21 or if the motorcyclist is recently licensed. In the case of recently licensed drivers, those with a motorcycle license for less than 12 months would also be required to don helmets. The measure also states that riders without a helmet would have to carry enough insurance coverage to pay for the first $10,000 of any medical bills that result from a possible crash.

Across the country, 31 states allow motorcyclists to choose for themselves whether to wear helmets. The closely divided vote by the House Transportation Committee moves North Carolina one step closer to joining that group of states. While one member of the committee cheered the results, saying that each person should decide for themselves whether to wear a helmet, another member said that he was worried about the cost that long-term brain injuries might have on the public at large. Representative Rick Catlin said that his life had been saved by wearing a helmet and it worried him that the mandatory safety helmet law was now under attack.