Blood Alcohol Concentration and DUI Charges

Posted by Adam R. Leighton on Dec 20, 2019 in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Blood Alcohol Concentration and DUI Charges Every state has a legal limit for blood alcohol concentration. If your BAC meets or exceeds that limit, it is considered adequate evidence to charge you with driving under the influence. However, many people do not understand about drunk driving laws as they relate to blood alcohol level. Some people think that if your BAC is below the legal limit, you are untouchable and cannot be charged. This is not true. Per Se Intoxication In almost every state in the country, the legal limit for BAC is 0.08%. The exception is Utah, which set a new, lower limit of 0.05% in 2018. The state legislature of Michigan has proposed a bill to follow suit. According to the most recent information, this bill is still before the state House Judiciary Committee. What a legal BAC limit does is set the level for per se intoxication. When your blood alcohol is at or above the legal limit, the law presumes that you are too drunk to drive. Therefore, once chemical testing establishes that your blood alcohol exceeds the legal limit, the prosecution does not need to present any further evidence of your impairment. This is not to say that you cannot challenge the blood testing in court. There are many factors that may affect the accuracy of the test result. Additionally, even with an elevated BAC, there are possible defenses against DUI. For example, you may have become involuntarily intoxicated if someone spiked your drink without your knowledge. Impairment With a Lower BAC However, even if your blood alcohol concentration is lower than the legal limit, it does not mean that you cannot be charged with DUI. Researchers have studied the effects of alcohol on the body and found that even small amounts of alcohol can impair functions needed for driving. In other words, if a police officer pulls you over on suspicion of impaired driving and your blood alcohol level is below the legal limit, it merely means that the officer will have to collect more evidence in order to charge you in addition to your BAC. For example, the officer could administer a field sobriety test while recording you with the patrol car’s dash cam. If you failed the test while the dash cam was recording, the footage could be entered against you as evidence of your intoxication. State governments take drunk driving very seriously, and the penalties for...
read more

Responsibilities of a Nursing Home

Posted by Adam R. Leighton on Dec 18, 2019 in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Responsibilities of a Nursing Home Experienced Attorney Assisted living facilities or nursing homes are establishments that you entrust to take care of your aging parents or grandparents. When your loved one becomes a patient in a living care facility, you expect that the best possible care will be provided to him or her. Even without a contract between your loved one and the home, the caregivers do have a duty to care for patients. Ethical Responsibilities In a nursing home, every caregiver is meant to act with professionalism. The caregivers have to analyze all ethical issues and prioritize ethics above all else. A nursing care doctor or caregiver must be trustworthy and reliable to the patients and to anyone else he or she has a business relationship with. He or she should put a client’s interests and welfare first and ensure that he or she avoids all harm. Your loved one deserves dignity and respect. The caregivers should uphold his or her dignity and human rights. Your loved one may be in a vulnerable time in his or her life and it is important for the caregivers to protect but also to allow privacy and autonomy. Legal Responsibilities The responsibilities of the living facility do vary from facility to facility. In general, every state has its own laws that govern nursing homes. Even without a contract, there are still legal obligations. It is up to the nursing home to provide proper nutrition to the patients, to assist your loved one in caring for his or her living space, to supervise, to provide the proper healthcare and medication, along with taking care of the emotional and physical welfare. A nursing home cannot legally act negligently. If your loved one is suffering abuse or neglect, this is not legal and unethical. You do have legal recourse that you can take against the nursing home if you suspect that there is a serious problem. If you feel as though the caregivers, doctors or other professionals at the nursing care facility have neglected or abused your loved one, then you may have a case. It does not matter if your loved one had a contract with the care facility. What matters is that there is a responsibility to all patients and if the nursing home acts in a way that is negligent or irresponsible, you may have a case. To find out more about filing a claim against...
read more

Types and Causes of Traumatic Brain Injury

Posted by Adam R. Leighton on Dec 12, 2019 in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Types and Causes of Traumatic Brain Injury You may have heard the urban legend that human beings only use 10% of their brains. This is not true at all. In a way, however, it might be better if it were. Then traumatic brain injuries might be less devastating and the recovery less difficult. The fact of the matter is that almost every part of the human brain is responsible for some necessary functions. These include movement and sensation as well as consciousness, emotion, and intelligence. A traumatic brain injury occurs when some external force causes damage to the brain. Sometimes this occurs because of a fracture to the skull or penetration of a foreign object into the neural tissue. However, sometimes impact to the brain can cause damage even without fracture or penetration. These are called “closed brain injuries.” They can be more subtle and therefore more difficult to diagnose. Causes of Brain Injuries The most common causes of traumatic brain injuries are falls and motor vehicle accidents. In war-torn areas, they may result from a bomb blast or a military attack. TBI can also occur as a result of violence. This may involve a weapon, such as a bludgeon or a gun. However, TBI can also result from forms of violence that do not involve weapons, such as a blow to the head, a shove, or violent shaking. Types of Brain Injuries Some types of brain injuries are more likely to arise due to certain causes. For example, diffuse axonal injury is a rare but serious TBI caused by the tearing of brain tissue. It is more likely to arise due to violent shaking. It can also occur due to rotational forces, such as may occur in a car accident. The more common types of traumatic brain injuries tend to arise due to a direct impact to the head. A contusion is a localized area of bleeding in the brain. It is sometimes necessary to remove a contusion surgically. A concussion is the most common type of traumatic brain injury. Most patients with concussions recover completely; however, there is a possibility that a concussion could cause long-term complications, especially if it is severe. Even if the concussion is mild, every TBI is a serious concern that requires medical attention. If you or someone close to you suffered a traumatic brain injury that was caused by someone else, you may be able to recover monetary damages....
read more

Who Can Be Sued in a Boating Accident?

Posted by Adam R. Leighton on Dec 12, 2019 in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Who Can Be Sued in a Boating Accident? Boating Accidents If you or someone you know was involved in a boating accident, you are probably wondering who exactly can be sued in this unique situation. The answer is a number of individuals and corporations. It largely depends on the specific facts and circumstances of your accident. For example, your case will depend on if you are working on the boat, on the boat at your own leisure, or driving the boat itself. It also depends on who’s negligence and fault caused your injury or injured those around you. If you were at fault and negligent, you can be sued. However, if you were not at fault, you have a wide variety of individuals and companies to pursue a claim against in the event you were substantially hurt in the accident. Injured at Work Let’s talk about the commercial side first. If a person is working on a boat and is injured while on the boat, then the employer or operator can be sued through workers’ compensation or just through a legal claim. This is a very fertile area of litigation and injured individuals are typically very successful with claims against their employers or the boat’s operator. Injured While Boating for Leisure Another type of case is more of the boating for the pleasure side. If you are out boating with your friend and they had too much to drink and run into another boat or rocks, resulting in your being injured, you can actually sue your friend for things like medical expenses, lost wages, and even pain and suffering compensation. You will not necessarily be suing your friend, but instead their insurance company. If someone else owned the boat that your friend was operating, like your friend’s family member, you can sue the boat’s owner as well. Injured Because of a Malfunction The last type of common case is a product malfunction case. This means that something that should have been working on the boat did not work in the way it was intended to or malfunctioned, resulting in your injury. You can then sue the product’s company, as well as its manufacturer. Keep in mind that you have legal rights after a boating accident that was not your fault, but the longer you wait to take legal action, the harder it may be to gather evidence to strengthen your claim. Taking pictures of the accident site,...
read more