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International Paper Killing Jobs in Franklin, Virginia (VA)

John Cooper — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 11:21:01 GMT

In today's tough economic times, no one can really be certain about keeping their jobs. This truth hit the people of Franklin, Virginia (VA) very hard, when they learned that a local paper mill was closing. This mill employed over 1,000 people, all of which are now going to be without work.

Carroll Story, the president of the United Steelworkers local that represents the workers, said: "Right now, everyone is in a hole. They're in a daze, a dream. They're like, 'What happened?' "

"You have people here 30, 40 years, and this is all that they've ever done," said Story, 49, who has worked at the mill for 31 years. "It's going to be devastating to the community. There's not enough work in this area to absorb this work force."

The Memphis-based company, International Paper, has been closing several mills around the country, but shutting down the Franklin mill alone is going to account for more than 2/3 of the company's recent lay-offs.

While the laid-off employees will be getting severance packages, and job-placement assistance, it will be difficult for the surrounding community of Isle of Wight County, Virginia to absorb the new pool of labor. Thus, a community that has depended on this mill since 1887 is now going to be forced to undergo drastic changes.

The paper company's representatives claim that it was a difficult decision for them, and in no way reflected on the employees' skills or hard work, but many in Franklin are now bitter about the way big business has chosen profit over people. Often, a corporation, in selling a plant, will refuse to sell it to anyone who competes with the company pulling out in paper products which is likely the best use for the property and would be the easiest way to reuse the factory.

It is certainly a difficult situation for everyone involved, but my heart goes out especially to the citizens of Franklin, Virginia, who are the most recent victims of the recession and the greed of corporate America. Loss of your job is a devastating problem for a worker or family to face. Although the people of Franklin will survive this body blow, it is sad that the company did not do more to prevent this damage to people who had given so much to the business for so long.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by John Cooper

Amusement Parks and Lawsuits

John Cooper — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 14:11:22 GMT

As a parent and an injury lawyer, I am amazed and scared by the threats posed to the public at theme parks. On June 29th, 2008, a 17 year old boy climbed two six foot fences and strolled into a restricted area at a Six Flags in Georgia where he was decapitated ( his head was cut off ) by a roller coaster called Batman. The State Supervisory Body have now told the amusement park that as a result of the incident it must increase the size and number of warning signs near other popular roller coasters. In May, a girl’s feet were cut off during another ride, called Superman, again at a Six Flags. The family filed a negligence suit against the park.

Horror stories like these often bring up the question: Why isn’t anything being done to prevent these tragedies? The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) figures show that around 6,000 - 7,000 people are treated in emergency rooms by amusement park related incidents every year. The CPSC was created to shield the public from " unreasonable risks of injuries associated with consumer products", yet its power in this industry is limited. Amusement parks with a fixed site such as our local ,Kings Dominion (Hanover County, Virginia (VA) ), and Busch Gardens (Williamsburg, Virginia (VA) ) are granted an exemption from the CPSC, which leaves only parks that move ( like the circus), under the jurisdiction of the CPSC. This results in the injury toll being unreported.

What’s the point of having a commission that doesn’t work? This is a great example of red tape. The problem with federal agencies like the CPSC is that they are too cozy with the industries they regulate, so enforcement is limited. In this case, the big wigs at the heads of these Amusement Park companies are benefiting from not being under the rules the CPSC can place, but doesn’t, and thus lure more customers under false pretenses of safety.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by John Cooper

Will Dangerous Ammonia Refrigeration Systems be Phased Out?

John Cooper — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 20:47:23 GMT

Every year ammonia refrigeration systems cause accidents and explosions in large commercial factories across the United States. Although large companies are aware of the risks of using ammonia refrigeration, it is very important that companies inform their workers of these risks as well. Workers who may be exposed to ammonia or become victims of an ammonia blast should know the potentially lethal effects of this chemical. Even a small leak in these refrigeration systems can have deadly consequences if not caught in time. Ammonia refrigeration is very dangerous because when the chemical is mixed with air in the 16%-25% range it can cause a large explosion capable of leveling an entire building. The ammonia itself is also very toxic and is corrosive to the eyes, skin, and lungs. Workers involved in ammonia accidents of this type are likely to sustain severe injuries and burns if they survive. Even though ammonia is a serious health hazard, many large corporations choose to use this type of refrigeration because of ammonia’s heat transferring properties, its cost effectiveness, its wide availability, and its low impact on the environment.

As OSHA and EPA regulations for ammonia refrigeration systems are becoming more stringent, corporations and insurance companies are looking for an alternative to ammonia refrigeration that would also minimize the safety risk to workers. It seems that carbon dioxide may be a good candidate for future refrigeration systems. Carbon dioxide refrigeration is already being widely used in Europe because unlike ammonia, carbon dioxide does not pose a health risk and is non-toxic and non-flammable. Since carbon dioxide is a benign chemical it is also not heavily regulated by OSHA or the EPA. Carbon dioxide does have some drawbacks however. Carbon dioxide is very effective for use in freezers, and coolers in the low range of the temperature scale, but is not very effective for the high side of the scale for use in an engine room or condensers because carbon dioxide has to be highly pressurized.

However, many companies have found that using both ammonia and carbon dioxide is a very effective method. Using both chemicals allows for effective use with low and high scales. It also increases safety because concentrations of ammonia will be lower and the ammonia will be contained in areas such as engine rooms far away from workers. This method using both ammonia and carbon dioxide is called a CO₂/Ammonia Cascade System and it is likely to replace refrigeration systems that use ammonia alone in the next few years. Greenhouse gases called chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs) that have been commonly used as refrigerants are being banned and phased out in most developed countries including the United States. These bans have led companies to seek alternative refrigerants that do not have a negative impact on the environment. As the United States is scheduled to conclude its phase out of HCFCs by 2030, refrigerants such as ammonia and carbon dioxide that are non-ozone depleting will be more widely used. The CO₂/Ammonia Cascade System that offers the advantage of increased safety may very well be the future of refrigeration.

 

About the Editors: Shapiro, Cooper, Lewis & Appleton personal injury law firm (VA-NC law offices ) edits the injury law blogs Virginia Beach Injuryboard, Norfolk Injuryboard, as well as the Northeast North Carolina Injuryboard as a pro bono service to consumers. Lawyers licensed in: VA, NC, SC, WV, DC, KY, who handle car, truck, railroad, and medical negligence cases and more.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by John Cooper

Driver's ed returning to public high schools

Rick Shapiro — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 08:56:30 GMT

USA TODAY had an interesting story Thursday about how driver’s education, on the wane in public schools for many years, is becoming more popular.

A generation ago, driver’s ed was in almost every American high school. But as time passed, more and more students took the course from private instructors.

In Virginia, the state Department of Motor Vehicles requires residents 19 and under to take a state-approved driver’s education course and to hold a learner’s permit for at least nine months before getting a full driver’s license.

In Virginia Beach, the school board talked about cutting drivers education in 2008 because of high costs, long waiting lists and accounting issues.

After debate and discussion, the school board decided to raise driver’s education tuition from $100 to about $350 – enough to make the program break even on its own, but still less than many private providers.

However, there is still a debate among experts about the efficacy of driver’s education classes. The director of the Center for the Study of Young Drivers at the University of North Carolina told USA TODAY that there is some hope for greater effectiveness of a dramatically revised version of Driver Training (not simply education), but at present that impact will be speculation.

However, an executive at the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety told the newspaper that driver’s ed is “not effective in reducing crashes. It’s a lot to expect that a relatively limited amount of time with a teen could have a big effect on their risk-taking behavior.” My response to this is: if we don't train them when they are learning, when should we train them? After they develop bad habits? The point is to update and modernize how we teach young drivers-and if this can happen at schools, great.

I hope schools everywhere put safety first and offer driver's ed to all students.

About the Editors: Shapiro, Cooper,Lewis & Appleton personal injury law firm is based in Virginia (VA), near the NE North Carolina (NC) border and handles car, truck, railroad, and medical negligence cases and more. Our lawyers proudly edit the Virginia Beach Injuryboard, Norfolk Injuryboard, and Northeast North Carolina Injuryboard as a pro bono public information service. Lawyers licensed in: VA, NC, SC, WV, DC, KY.

(MM)

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Rick Shapiro

Blaming the Train Operator is Typical Initial Response to Disasters Like the D.C. Metro Train Crash

John Cooper — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 08:33:25 GMT

I am an injury lawyer in Virginia who specializes in railroad accidents and works with the national plaintiff’s bar group, the AAJ, as their railroad law section chair, so I follow these kinds of metro train disasters closely. The city officials for the District of Columbia, the federal officials at the NTSB, and the officials from Metrorail have been relatively measured in saying who did what wrong to cause one Metro train with six cars to crash into and jump over the back of another on Monday, June 22, 2009. However, you can just hear the implication that this young woman who was unfortunate enough to be behind the controls and was killed on the rear-ending train was as fault. The media immediately pointed out that she was relatively new to the job of operating the Metro trains. They talked about the fact that it was a clear day, and a straight set of tracks, not in a dark subway tunnel, so that she should have been able to see what was in front of her. They pointed out that even if the train is being run in automatic, which it apparently was, that she had an emergency brake button which she can push to avoid a collision.

Sometimes a train wreck is in fact the conductor’s, engineer’s or train operator’s fault as apparently it may have been in the case in the Los Angeles Metro Link disaster a year ago. In that situation, it turned out that there really was a distraction, namely, using a cell phone that caused the person responsible for the passengers’ safety to “be asleep at the switch.” But sometimes it’s not the case that the worker in charge is a cause or a main cause of multiple people being dead or injured in the train wreck. Sometimes, the implication that it was one particular worker’s fault may be used to get the who organization off the hook for systemic problems that they knew about and failed to do anything to properly respond to.

For example, some of the information coming out in the days after this D.C. Metro two-train accident are as follows:

1. It appears that the “mushroom” button used to stop the train had been activated by the operator;

2. This old Series 1000 train may not have been properly maintenanced before the disaster;

3. The older train was not even supposed to be used as NTSB and other agencies had told the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) that these train cars were obsolete and not reasonably safe;

4. Even the older trains were supposed to have some kind of computer, automatic emergency braking to prevent trains from getting too close to one another and just this kind of collision which evidently failed; and

5. Other aspects of the train were potentially unsafe and might lead to more people dying or getting severely hurt, including the crashworthiness features of the older subway cars.

If some of these systematic factors turn out to be the main cause, then the administrators of the system are the ones who made bad choices that caused nine people to die, rather than anything that the poor employee did or didn’t do on the date of this fatal wreck.

About the Editors: Shapiro, Cooper, Lewis & Appleton personal My injury lawfirm (VA-NC law offices ) edits the injury law blogs Virginia Beach Injuryboard, Norfolk Injuryboard, as well as the Northeast North Carolina Injuryboard as a pro bono service to consumers. Lawyers licensed in: VA, NC, SC, WV, DC, KY, who handle car, truck, railroad, and medical negligence cases and more.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by John Cooper

Man sentenced in Williamsburg DUI crash

Emily Mapp Brannon — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 19:52:00 GMT

Mark Schneider will spend a year in jail after drunkenly hitting pedestrian Irene Carson last Christmas Eve, a Williamsburg-James City County circuit court judge ruled this week.

Schneider, 39, struck Carson, 72, as Carson crossed Francis Street East in Williamsburg, the Daily Press reported. Francis Street runs along the southern edge of what is generally considered historic Williamsburg.

"You are an example to the community of what can happen when you drink to excess and drive," Judge Samuel Powell of Williamsburg-James City County said to Schneider during the sentencing hearing.

Carson, of Chadds Ford, Pa., was apparently not at the hearing. But the Daily Press said she suffered multiple skull fractures in the crash and will likely never recover fully.

Schneider works as a historic interpreter at Colonial Williamsburg; a manager there testified at the sentencing hearing that Schneider can keep his job.

Schneider can serve his sentence at the Virginia Peninsula Regional Jail on weekends; he is to report for his first day on Dec. 24, a year after the crash.

Schneider had a blood-alcohol content of .19, meaning almost two-tenths of one percent of his blood was alcohol. In Virginia, .08 is the legal minimum for intoxication, though drivers can be arrested with lesser levels if they are driving in a manner a police officers thinks indicates intoxication.

Schneider pleaded guilt to a charge of felony assault, the Daily Press said. A charge of maiming while driving was not ruled upon by the judge, who can dismiss it later if he chooses.

About the Editors: Shapiro, Cooper, Lewis & Appleton personal injury law firm (VA-NC law offices ) edits the injury law blogs Virginia Beach Injuryboard, Norfolk Injuryboard, and Northeast North Carolina Injuryboard as a pro bono service to consumers.

(MM)

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Emily Mapp Brannon

Toyota Product Scandal: Allegations of Fraud, Obstruction of Justice From Former Attorney

Rick Shapiro — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 20:57:41 GMT

It’s rare that an insider "whistleblower" risks all by admitting personal knowledge of alleged fraud on courts, obstruction of civil justice and conspiracy. But these and further serious allegations are in a 100 plus page civil Complaint filed in a California state court suit by one of the former top Toyota defense attorneys named Dimitrios Biller-and it’s not in dispute that Biller was one of Toyota’s defense attorneys inside the inner sanctum of the overall coordination of Toyota’s computer files and therefore involved in responses to attorney and court ordered production of relevant documents. The Injuryboard national news desk reported on this Toyota tempest the other day as have a number of my Injuryboard blog colleagues ( Read Toyota Conspiracy to Conceal, Withhold, Destroy Evidence and ... ).

What is also not in dispute is that Toyota’s attorneys have spent--and are continuing to spend--big money to try to seal up the entire court file-unsuccessfully to date. Biller was paid over 2 million in a severance package and you have to wonder if Toyota was paying part hush money and part severance pay..

This is a big tempest, a tempest that I label as tort reformer nightmare fodder, because it’s not about a frivolous injured person’s suit this time—it’s about Toyota having hundreds of thousands or millions at stake in defending Toyota’s brand against rollover suits around the United States, mainly Toyota car accidents where consumers were seriously injured or killed in car “rollovers” which can involve analysis of roof strength and other product safety issues. In many suits, family’s attorneys have alleged that Toyota knew it had inadequate roof strength and were seeking to discover what Toyota knew about its car (product) quality, testing, and about other similar incidents (OSI’s). Attorneys are moving to reopen cases-which Toyota’s lawyers may have won. Is it losing if an opposing party games the system? Yes, and forever unless a party proves that there was fraud on the court that could not reasonably have been discovered. And just how would a victim’s injury attorney know if Toyota fraudulently concealed its documents and did not produce relevant memos. Biller actually outlines some of the issues in his lengthy complaint which reads like a short novel. And, yes, there is a ton of bad blood between him and his former colleagues. Its blatant they hate each other’s guts. Biller even attached his lengthy memo to his supervisors after he got a poor performance review before his demise. Its replete with references to how he and Toyota played hardball in fighting plaintiff's injury attorneys but I suppose that stuff is not surprising-they have a business to run and protect. Ethically, that is.

About Attorney Ethics, About Civil Justice, and About A Level Playing Field

There is a bad smell emanating from this sordid affair and no angels are in sight. Toyota issued a news release on its corporate website and between that and their court pleadings they essentially admit Biller was a coordinating defense attorney for its product liability defense outfit, but call him an unstable crackpot in as many words. Toyota claims lawsuits abound where Mr. Biller is involved and there may be something to that, but let’s get back to the point.

Toyota also admits Biller got a multimillion dollar severance package from the co. entity that employed him to coordinate electronic discovery responses and Biller was involved in managing outside attorneys handling the big Toyota cases. That’s a lot of money to pay a blithering fool that Toyota makes Biller out to be. Or, was Toyota concerned about what Biller knew and was it concerned about paying for silence? Toyota says it has done absolutely nothing wrong and claims its all fairy tale stuff.

When massive dollars are on the line—like defending product liability suits with a central coordinating law firm or defense attorneys—there is an effort to maintain central control of the faucet of information turned over. Would there be pressure to hold back documents that straddle the line? Sure. Would there routinely be “privilege” or other objections filed. Sure. But there comes a time—like receiving a court order-where the court may command that the documents be produced that only a defense attorney and the defendant client know about, until its produced. It’s painful complying with the law sometimes! But it’s painful for plaintiff attorneys to have to disclose a prior similar injury for example also. We attorneys do it because we know the law requires compliance.

If Toyota has nothing to hide, why would it seek to “seal” the entire court record? Because Biller might disclose ‘trade secrets”? Oh please. Balderdash.

So I ask again: where is the public outrage over the total disconnect between the wholesome, safety conscious image that Toyota presents in millions of dollars of television advertisements versus these allegations of its former insider? Toyota has on one of its international websites (Australia) a co. code of ethics, and I sure hope Toyota can prove it followed it in the US of A, or else a bunch of injury suits may end up being retried. If Toyota withheld similar incidents or product testing results from courts and juries we are talking “do over’s,” folks. And some of the attorneys at Toyota that determined it would not turn over documents-as Biller alleges-may have some explaining to do. To a judge or a state bar perhaps.

About the Editors: Shapiro, Cooper Lewis & Appleton personal injury law firm is based in Virginia (VA), near the NE North Carolina (NC) border and handles car, truck, railroad, and medical negligence cases and more. Check out some of our case results. Our injury attorneys host an extensive injury law video library on Youtube . In addition, our lawyers proudly edit the Virginia Beach Injuryboard, Norfolk Injuryboard, and Northeast North Carolina Injuryboard as a pro bono public information service. Lawyers licensed in: VA, NC, SC, WV, DC, KY.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Rick Shapiro

Home and Car Invasions Are on the Rise – Tips to Keep You and Your Family Safe

Emily Mapp Brannon — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 15:38:00 GMT

Last week, a good friend of mine when out to her car in the early morning to retrieve her laptop and some work files from the trunk of her car. When she got there, she immediately realized that something was wrong – the map light in the passenger’s side was on. Sure she didn’t leave it on, or even turn it on, my friend went inside for her pepper spray, then went back out to the car. Her instincts were right. Her car had been ransacked the night before. Everything was gone – laptop, briefcase, iPod, GPS, and even a new lunchbox.

She called me hysterical. She lives in a safe, affluent, well-lit neighborhood where everybody knows everybody else, and just couldn’t understand how – or why – this happened to her. Aside from the very expensive loss she encountered, her privacy had been violated. After we hung up the phone, I started thinking about how much we take personal safety for granted. In light of the economic troubles the country is going through, home and car invasions are on the rise. How many of us are really prepared or protected from this happening to us?

As a woman and as a personal injury attorney, I think I’m hyper aware of the dangers citizens face every day. In the office, we deal with a lot of big companies and greedy corporations, but hearing my friend’s plight really hit home just how scary our front yards and driveways can be. So, I’ve put together a list of personal safety tips that I hope you’ll not only read, but take to heart. These are aimed at women, but can be adapted by anybody of any walk of life, in any neighborhood or situation, to help keep you safe.

Be aware of your surroundings, at all times: walking to your car, walking in your home, reading in your living room, jogging with your dog at night, etc. True self-defense begins long before any actual physical contact. Awareness is your first defense against any attacker’s strategies.

Go with your gut. My friend did this when she went back inside for her pepper spray when she felt that “something wasn’t quite right.” If something doesn’t feel right, trust yourself and steer clear.

Never, ever, ever, EVER open your door for someone you don’t know who doesn’t have a legitimate reason for being there. This goes for door-to-door salesmen, repairmen, policemen, and even Jehovah's Witnesses.

Keep your doors locked when you’re driving. It isn’t hard to be surprised by a car-jacker when you’re stopped at a stoplight or stop sign.

If you are attacked, fight back with all you have. Kick, bite, scratch, pull, twist, squirm, and hit all you can. Most attackers will back off once they know their victim is willing to put up a fight – it just simply isn’t worth it to them. Also, scream as loudly as you can. WHAT you scream is very important – yell “Fire!” or the most horrible obscenities you can think of. Doing this will attract more attention than yelling “Help!” or “Rape!”

Think about your actions, and go out of your way not to make yourself a victim. Don’t park your car in dark, isolated places, don’t leave your bathroom window open at night, and don’t be afraid to call the police if you see someone you don’t recognize loitering in front of your house. In short, don’t be shy about taking responsibility for your own personal safety.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Emily Mapp Brannon

Military Must be Held Accountable for Medical Malpractice

Rick Shapiro — Mon, 18 May 2009 13:47:00 GMT

Tech Sgt. Connie Wilson gave birth to a healthy baby boy on Langley Air Force Base in Hampton, Virginia (VA). Twelve hours later, she was dead. The circumstances leading up to her death indicate a level of negligence by the doctors who delivered Connie’s child. Her uterine artery was cut and there were two surgical sponges left in her abdomen. Despite this glaring malpractice, her family is unable to pursue any legal action against the doctors in question.

According to an article in The Virginian-Pilot, the military is free from accountability to active military patients when it comes to medical malpractice due to a set of cases from the 1950s decided by the Supreme Court known as the Feres Doctrine. One of the cases featured a soldier who was barred from suing the military even after discovering an Army doctor left a towel marked “Medical Department U.S. Army” inside his body (very similar to what happened to Connie Wilson).

As a personal injury lawyer practicing for over 20 years in Virginia (VA), I’ve seen multiple cases of medical negligence. I handled a malpractice case involving a woman whose husband was in active service. She underwent obesity-reducing gastric bypass surgery in December 1996 by a surgeon in at Portsmouth Naval Hospital in Portsmouth, (VA), and endured horrendous after effects due to the improper stapling of the gastric pouch. These effects included vomiting, ulceration, the loss of her teeth due to nutrient deficiency, and multiple surgeries to correct the initial error. I argued the case effectively by illustrating the damage done to my client’s body and the lifelong ramifications. The judge ruled in our favor.

Another case example was in 2002 when my colleague John Cooper, also a personal injury lawyer, represented a 43-year-old woman who went in for a hysterectomy, but the surgeons and staff left a medical sponge in her body. This wasn’t discovered for six months and led to the creation of fistula in her bowels. This required an additional surgery. This client was able to recover under Virginia medical malpractice laws, unlike active military men and women victimized by negligence at a U.S. military hospital or clinic.

It’s outrageous that our brave men and women in the military have no legal options when medical malpractice occurs at a military run facility, but that the same military person can recover for the same malpractice in a private, civil hospital. Under the current unfair, illogical Feres doctrine, the spouse and family members of our courageous military men and women can sue under the Federal Torts Claim Act for malpractice over their care, but the active military member has no recourse! So Connie Wilson’s family including her parent’s Tommy and Connie Wilson are left with no legal remedies, but if the malpractice happened to a spouse, there is a remedy. Totally illogical in today’s world.

Another limiting factor is the fact that actions for medical malpractice involving military families (against the government) can only be filed in federal court and no jury trial is available. Let’s call a spade a spade: The current law makes no sense.

U.S. Rep. Randy Forbes (R-Va.) is wrong when he said, “How do you look someone in the eye and say we’re going to take a service member who was not in a combat situation and give them an elevated position for compensation and recovery that we would not give to someone who was in combat? I think that would create a huge problem in terms of morale.”

The better question to ask is, “How do you look a military service member in the eye and say we’re not going to provide elevated compensation and recovery if a military doctor does something wrong while you’re under their care in a civilian, not cambat setting?” We can make the situation more fair by allowing suits in the civilian setting-not in a combat setting.

The fact is, the military should be held accountable when medical malpractice occurs. Congress needs to act and pass legislation nullifying the outdated, archaic law enabling military doctors to shirk their responsibilities when malpractice occurs involving active military—especially in the civilian setting.. It’s just basic, common sensewyAbout the Editors: Shapiro, Cooper Lewis & Appleton personal injury law firm is based in Virginia (VA), near the NE North Carolina (NC) border and handles car,truck,railroad, and medical negligence cases and more. Our lawyers proudly edit the Virginia Beach Injuryboard, Norfolk Injuryboard, and Northeast North Carolina Injuryboard as a pro bono public information service. Lawyers licensed in: VA, NC, SC, WV, DC, KY. PA

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Rick Shapiro

Man is thrown from motorcycle and dies in Norfolk, Virginia accident

Emily Mapp Brannon — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 02:36:00 GMT

Around 6pm on April 3, 2009 a man riding a motorcycle on East Ocean View Avenue in Norfolk, VA ran into a car. The car was attempting to make a left turn and upon impact the motorcycle driver was thrown from the bike. WVEC 13 News reported the motorcycle driver was pronounced dead at the scene. The names of those involved have not been released and the accident is under investigation.

The Outer Banks of North Carolina will be hosting the OBX Bike Week April 23-26, 2009. As the cities of Manteo, Nags Head, Kill Devil Hills and Kitty Hawk prepare for this week it is my hope that so will the motorists who travel the streets of these cities. Accidents involving motorcycle drivers and often result in death or serious injury do to the lack of protection they have. Because of their size motorcyclists are easily overlooked by drivers of other vehicles. Wearing a helmet and proper clothing can help minimize the injury a motorcyclist can receive from an accident.

Shapiro, Cooper Lewis & Appleton personal injury law firm is based in Virginia, with offices in northeast NC and Virginia Beach (VA), practicing primarily in the southeastern U.S. and handles only injury law, including car, truck, railroad, and medical negligence cases and more. The firm's website is: hsinjurylaw.com, the firm edits three injury law blogs: Virginia Beach Injuryboard & Norfolk Injuryboard, as well as the Northeast North Carolina Injuryboard and also hosts a video library covering many FAQ’s on personal injury subjects.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Emily Mapp Brannon