“Jackknifing” is one of the most dangerous things that can happen with tractor-trailers or semi-trucks. This is a situation where the truck skids and folds in on itself, often causing a serious wreck. A report from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) revealed that jackknife crashes are associated with around 10 percent of semi-truck …
Semi-Truck Accident in Ohio Today – Do You Need a Lawyer?
An accident with a semi-truck is much more complex than a regular car crash. For one, these big rigs can weigh up to 80,000 pounds, which means a collision could lead to catastrophic injuries and fatalities. Investigating a truck wreck also requires highly technical knowledge of truck mechanisms and trucking laws. Most semi-trucks in the …
Self Driving Semi Trucks & The Risk Of Accidents
Self-driving trucks, which are also called autonomous trucks, are touted to be the future of cargo transport. Autonomous “big rigs” are equipped with technologies such as camera systems, radar, depth sensors, speed monitoring, and autopilot, all to remove the need for human driving. As self-driving trucks have become more common on Ohio roads and roads …
Delivery Truck Accidents – FedEx, UPS, Amazon / Liability Insurance Coverage For Bodily Injury Claims
It is any driver’s nightmare to get in an accident with a commercial truck. The huge size and weight of the truck can easily lead to catastrophic injuries and fatalities. On top of that, claiming compensation for damages can be extremely difficult for injured victims and bereaved families. Unfortunately, large-truck accidents in the USA have …
New Albany Boy Severely Injured in Illegal Fireworks Display
ABC6 reported on a fireworks tragedy last week. The accident occurred in New Albany, just northeast of Columbus. A six-year old boy was struck in the head while watching fireworks in a neighbor’s backyard. Police say a group of 40 guests were watching a home made fireworks show when the boy was injured. After lighting …
Understanding Contributory Negligence in Ohio
In any car accident claim, fault is considered to be one of the most critical components taken into consideration. When a claim for damages resulting from an accident is filed, the first thing that needs to be determined is the party that caused the accident. The party believed to be at fault is the party …
Trial Alternatives
Following an auto accident, you may visualize resolving the conflict through a full-blown trial with witnesses, lawyers and a judge. However, there are many reasons why proceeding to trial may not be the ideal choice. Trials can be long, expensive, risky, and unpredictable. Courts are overloaded with cases; many newly filed cases do not …
Texting Ban For Ohio Drivers
Drivers using hand-held electronic devices while driving in Ohio will now be subject to prosecution. Police and state troopers will issue just warnings — instead of $150 tickets — for the first six months. Teens must especially be careful: While texting behind the wheel will be a secondary offense for adults — meaning they have …
Teenager Killed in Jet Ski Crash in Danbury Township
According to 13abc.com, a teenager died last week from a jet ski accident. The accident occurred on a Wednesday afternoon in Sandusky Bay near the Edison Bridge in Danbury Township. Another teen was left with minor injuries. The Ohio Department of Natural Resources report stated that a group of teens were jet skiing when their …
Suit Filed in Ohio to Halt Photo Traffic Enforcement System
An individual filed a civil complaint on Thursday, September 12, 2013 in the Common Pleas Court of Franklin County, Ohio seeking to halt Columbus’ Photo Traffic Enforcement System as being in violation of Ohio’s Constitution. The complaint alleges the system established by Columbus City Code 2115 is invalid and unenforceable because it fails to provide …
Senior Citizens on the Road
As the Baby Boomer generation ages, more elderly drivers are out on America’s roadways. Senior citizens (people over age 65) can be very good drivers, but as their vision, hearing and motor skills worsen, the incidence of motor vehicle accidents increases. In 2012, there were 5,560 people 65 and older killed and 214,000 injured in …
Ohio Supreme Court to review law limiting rights of child rape victims
In the matter of Simpkins v. Delaware Grace Brethren Church, Ohio Supreme Court Case No. 2014-1953, the Court has agreed to review the constitutionality of an Ohio law which limits the rights of child rape victims while protecting the rights of many sexual predators and those who cover up their misconduct. Current Ohio law limits …
Ohio Judge Reduces Jury Award to Woman Raped Twice by Pastor
An Ohio jury awarded $3.65 million dollars to a 21-year-old woman who had been raped twice by a church pastor when she was 15, she believed that the legal system had rendered justice. However, the trial judge ruled that the victim’s award must be reduced by 3.15 million dollars because of a Republican law which …
Ohio Brain Injury Attorney: Minor Injuries Are a Major Problem
Following a car, truck, or motorcycle accident, the most dangerous type of injury that can occur is often the least noticeable. Mild brain injuries do not always have obvious signs, and some symptoms do not appear until long after the accident. Unfortunately, this type of injury also often requires expensive medical treatment and rehabilitation, resulting …
Ohio Auto Accident Attorney: 10 Risks Caused by Texting While Driving
According to the American Automobile Association, approximately 50% of U.S. teenagers admit to texting while driving. Perhaps even more frightening, studies have shown that at any given moment, over 800,000 people are texting, making calls, or using a hand-held cell phone while driving in the U.S.–and that number is growing every day. Texting while driving …
No cap on damages sought in child rape
Columbus lawyer John K. Fitch calls it “a horrific injustice for children who are raped or otherwise sexually abused.” If victims and their parents turn to court seeking pain-and-suffering damages from their assaulants, and those who enabled them, they are limited by Ohio law to the recovery of $250,000. “A child could be raped 50 …
NFL Concussion Settlement Payouts
Many people across the United States enjoy the excitement that football and other contact sports bring. Though it is common knowledge that professional football is a dangerous game, playing the game shouldn’t have to increase a player’s risk for dementia, depression, and suicide. The NFL researched the effects of repeated concussions, but found no evidence …
Know Your Rights: Auto Accidents
As an attorney with over 30 years’ experience, I have taken on hundreds of auto accident cases. Helping my clients recover is my highest priority, but often I wish these victims had known their rights prior to an incident. If you don’t know what to do ahead of time, the chaos and shock following an …
Human Error is No Accident
An increasing number of safety advocates are pushing for a change in the language we use to describe traffic crashes. They argue that calling crashes “accidents” removes blame from at-fault drivers, and makes crashes seem like an act of fate. After all, human error is the number one cause of traffic incidents. Safety advocates – …
Fitch files Ohio Supreme Court brief on behalf of child rape victim
The Fitch Law Firm filed a brief today in the Ohio Supreme Court on behalf of one of its sexual abuse victims, Jessica Simpkins, in her case against the Delaware Grace Brethren Church. In 2008, Jessica, then 15, was twice raped by her pastor, Brian Williams. A jury awarded her 3.5 million dollars in pain …