Articles from our Morgantown Personal Injury Law Office about Safety Issues, Insurance Law, Auto Accidents, Personal Injury Claims, and Other Legal Issues in West Virginia. Questions? Call 304-594-1800 Today. Our phones are answered night and day.
An Aurora woman was killed in a head-on collision on Veterans Memorial Highway in Terra Alta Thursday, August 14, 2014. State Police say the 34 year old woman was driving west on Route 7 in a curve east of Delano’s Furniture and west of Hopemont Hospital at about 2:30 p.m. Her vehicle was struck head-on by a truck that had veered left-of-center and crashed into her car.
According to a West Virginia State Police press release, charges are pending against driver of the pickup.
Does it really matter if I wait to contact a lawyer about my wrongful death claim?If you think that waiting a few months to speak with a lawyer won’t impact your wrongful death claim, think again. Every day that you wait to seek legal counsel equates to a loss of opportunity to obtain full compensation for your injuries. In reality, it is the first 30 days following the fatal injuries to your deceased family member that are most critical to your case.
It is within this relatively short time period that initial inspections should be completed and necessary evidence and testimony secured. It is always best if a lawyer is consulted within the first few days following the tragic event because certain evidence won’t last even 30 days. If you wait too long to develop your wrongful death claim, it will make the job of even a good lawyer more difficult to obtain a full recovery for the estate.
Waiting even a few weeks to get legal advice about your case may be just enough time for evidence to be lost or destroyed or an important witness to disappear. Loss of vital evidence and witness testimony will cause permanent shortcomings in your wrongful death case. Without evidence, you have no way of proving liability against the responsible parties who caused the death of your family member.
You don’t know if or when your evidence will disappear or be destroyed. An important witness to your case will not likely call you up and give you their testimony and forwarding address before they skip town. When they skip town, there goes your evidence, too. And that documentary evidence — the tangible information like records and parts — you need to prove your case can disappear. Nobody is going to alert you to that either.
Also, please keep in mind that West Virginia allows only two years to file suit after the occurrence. After this time, your claim will be forever barred.
It doesn’t matter if your evidence is accidentally lost or intentionally destroyed; both have the same adverse impact on your fatal injury claim. All these things happen without you knowing it — these are some of the legal ramifications of waiting too long to get legal counsel. You don’t have to end up being further harmed — you can exercise your right to consult with your own lawyer about your injury claim today.
For further information about moving forward after a tragic, unexpected death, we offer a free resource for you to help guide you through the process of moving forward with your lives. Click this link to gain the insight you need today: Beside Still Waters: West Virginia Fatal Injury Guide.
No words or amount of remuneration could ever compensate all that you have lost when your loved one is taken from you. As you move forward with your life, those who are responsible must be held accountable to give you a sense of justice and closure. Jeff Robinette and his staff are available to answer your questions. Every call is handled with compassion, and every case is handled with dignity and professionalism.
Call The Robinette Legal Group, PLLC today: 304-594-1800.
A baby delivered after his parents were killed in a Brooklyn hit and run accident on Sunday, March 3, 2013, died early Monday morning.
Police were searching for the driver of a BMW and a passenger who fled on foot after slamming into a livery cab, killing the young pregnant woman and her husband. The horrific crash happened in the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn as the couple headed to a hospital when the mother believed that she might have been starting labor.
“This guy’s a coward and he should pay his price,” a community spokesman added that the community wants a homicide prosecution in the state of New York. Strong words from the community: “Law enforcement is going to find you. Give yourself up before we find you.”
A young married couple, both aged 21, were looking forward to welcoming their first child into their tight-knit community of Orthodox Jews. A year ago this community celebrated the marriage of this young couple, and yesterday over 1,000 had the sorrow of mourning their loss.
The engine of the livery car ended up in the backseat, where the mother, who was seven months pregnant, was sitting before she was ejected from the car. Her body landed under a parked tractor-trailer, said witnesses who raced to the scene after the crash. The husband was pinned in the car, and emergency workers had to cut off the roof to get him out, witnesses said.
They both were pronounced dead at hospitals, and the medical examiner said they died of blunt-force trauma. Doctors had delivered the baby by cesarean section and lived until early Monday morning.
Neighbors and friends said the boy weighed only about 4 pounds. The livery cab driver was treated for minor injuries at the hospital and was later released. Both the driver of the BMW and a passenger fled and were being sought, police said.
Car accidents are sometimes understandable mistakes or are simply unavoidable. But as soon as drivers flee the scene in order to avoid responsibility, the accident becomes a crime. In cases like this one, families often file wrongful death lawsuits against hit-and-run drivers in addition to criminal charges.
We need to send a message to hit-and-run drivers which is: “You will be caught, and you will be prosecuted, so don’t make matters worse for yourself or anyone else involved.”
Submitted by the Robinette Legal Group, PLLC, West Virginia Injury Lawyers. Free books and downloads for WV accident victims — Call us today: 304-594-1800 for your free copy of Righting the Wrong: WV Serious Injury Guide; Collision Care: WV Auto Injury Guide; or Beside Still Waters: WV Fatal Injury Guide for Families. We are glad to answer your questions about hit and run accidents.
Traumatic brain injury (TBI) has been designated as the signature injury of the recent conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq, and as a result many injured soldiers and their families suffer in silence. In response to the need, the US military is now funding new research and has established multiple centers for those soldiers with traumatic brain injuries to receive effective therapies to rebuild and reroute their neurological pathways in the hope returning to work and building a better future.
Though most of the traumatic brain injury cases we handle are the result of vehicle and work accidents, hazardous military duty and sports activities also often lead to traumatic brain injuries (TBI). Injury to the brain is usually the first injury to occur, and the last to be diagnosed. Thanks to new funding by the US military and the NFL, more hope, treatments, and tests are available to help heal the wounds.
Symptoms of TBI involve a wide range of symptoms including vomiting, persistent headaches, sensitivity to light, memory loss, mood disorders, inability to focus, slow reaction time, dizziness, depression, blurred vision, and loss of balance.
On the leading edge of TBI research are studies concerning the use of Omega-3 fatty acids and new cognitive therapies designed to reroute and stimulate neurological pathways where healthy parts of the brain can compensate by learning to handle new functions. Rest augmented by a battery of mental exercises involving memory drills, math, and hand-eye coordination can help a brain accomplish neuroplasticity, a term which means that the brain repairs, regenerates, and reconnects.
Source: http://www.worldmag.com/2012/12/broken_brains/page1
In January of 2013, the results of the examination of the brain of the former NFL player, Junior Seau, were published indicating that Seau’s brain was found to be clearly damaged by the repeated blows inherent to football. Prior to his death by suicide, he had been diagnosed with degenerative brain disease. Results of an NIH study of Seau’s brain revealed abnormalities consistent with chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a severe problem experienced by dozens of top football players.
The NFL may be facing thousands of lawsuits right now from former players who say that they were not protected or informed enough about the result of concussion. In response, The NFL, both directly and in partnership with the NIH, Centers for Disease Control and other leading organizations, is supporting a wide range of independent medical and scientific research that will both address CTE and promote the long-term health and safety of athletes at all levels.
Read More http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/nfl/news/20130110/junior-seau-brain-disease-cte.ap/#ixzz2Hb6czY43
More and more, researchers have speculated a connection between sports-related concussions and mild traumatic brain injuries with the development of degenerative brain diseases later in life – most notably chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) and even Alzheimer’s disease.
Previously, the only way to confirm a connection between repetitive brain injury and these debilitating brain conditions was through an autopsy.
But now, there may be a new way to identify or track the progression of these brain diseases while a current or former athlete is still alive.
For the first time, researchers from the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) have utilized positron emission tomography (PET) scans and a newly developed chemical marker called FDDNP to do brain imaging tests on five retired NFL players. The new imaging technique ultimately revealed the buildup of the abnormal tau protein, which has been associated with repetitive head trauma, as well as the onset of Alzheimer’s.
Brain Health Education and Research Institute was founded by Dr. Michael Lewis in 2011 to pursue educational and research endeavors to further knowledge of natural and nutritional ways to improve brain health. The initial focus of the Institute is educating providers and the public on the use of omega-3 fatty acids for the prevention, treatment, and rehabilitation of the brain prior to or following an injury such as traumatic brain injury or concussion. With Dr. Lewis’ 30-plus years of military experience, a special emphasis is working towards improving the care and outcomes of our military personnel and veterans who have experienced psychological or physical trauma to the brain.
Dr. Lewis is a pioneer in the use of omega-3 for concussion and TBI – a simple, yet profound concept. Everyone is different, but his theory is if the basic building blocks of the brain aren’t present, the brain is going to have a more difficult and longer time putting the pieces back together. Here is something essential to know:
According to Dr. Lewis, there is no cure for concussion and TBI. All medical providers can do is optimize the conditions to help the brain do the healing. That is what using omega-3’s will do. It provides a tool, the basic building block, for the brain’s healing.
Source: http://www.brainhealtheducation.org/resources/advances-in-tbi-management/
Neurosurgeon Dr. Julian Bailes is often at the cutting edge of the latest treatments for people with brain injuries. Former NFL players and other notable people with brain injuries—including Randal McCloy Jr., the sole surviving miner in the 2006 Sago Mine disaster in West Virginia—have received his care. Dr. Oz talks with Dr. Bailes about how he used omega-3 fatty acids, a common nutritional supplement, to aid in Randal’s brain recovery.
On January 2, 2006, the nation was captivated by efforts to rescue 13 men who were trapped in the Sago coal mine explosion. While news sources initially reported that all 13 men were alive, tragically it was only Randal who survived. After more than 40 hours of exposure to carbon monoxide, Randal was entrusted into the care of many doctors, including Dr. Bailes. “He’s had a massive heart attack from the carbon monoxide exposure, he was in kidney failure, liver failure, he was dehydrated, he was hypothermic and he was in the deepest of coma,” he says. “We didn’t have anything promising.”
Soon though, Dr. Bailes says he and the other doctors were confident they could save Randal’s life, but it was uncertain if his brain would recover from its extensive injuries. Randal was given three hypobaric oxygen treatments, but Dr. Bailes says there was no drug available that could help repair his damaged brain. “Since there was no drug to do it … why don’t we give him what his brain was made from in the first place, when he was an embryo in his mother’s womb?” Dr. Bailes says. That substance was omega-3 fatty acids. “Omega-3 fatty acids—EPA and DHA—[are] what people commonly would call fish oil, but we gave him a super variety in extremely high doses, up to 19 grams a day that we delivered to him in a liquid form through his tube that was in his stomach,” he says.
As Randal’s brain functions started to improve, Dr. Bailes recorded his findings and now says people suffering from minor to severe brain injuries can benefit greatly from omega-3s. “Consider this as a nutritional supplement, if you will, for their recovery, which I think has very profound effects on the brain,” he says. While Randal was the first known person with brain injuries to be treated with omega-3s, Dr. Bailes says he won’t likely be the last. And, Dr. Bailes says everyone can benefit from the supplement—in fact, he says he takes 800 milligrams of algae-based DHA a day.
Randal McCloy has gone on to live a normal life in a small town in West Virginia and has become the father of two children since the Sago coal mine disaster.
Source: http://www.oprah.com/health/Amazing-Omega-3s#ixzz1qQPdLsKe
Research published last year by Brain Health Education and Research Institute’s Michael Lewis, MD, in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry reported that active-duty military with lower blood levels of omega-3 fatty acids were 62% more likely to have committed suicide compared to those with higher levels. In October 2012, the military announced they are funding a three-year study to do just that. In cooperation with the NIH, researchers at the Medical University of South Carolina led by Bernadette Marriott, Ph.D., a professor in the Clinical Neuroscience Division of the Institute of Psychiatry, will test whether omega-3 fatty acids found in fish oils can relieve the anxieties and quiet the suicidal thoughts plaguing many combat veterans.
“The potential good versus the potential extraordinarily low risk and low cost make this a type of intervention that can be – if findings are warranted – rolled out extremely fast and on a large scale,” said Dr. Ron Acierno, a co-investigator on the project at USC. “Omega-3s are among the primary fatty acids in the brain… They’re responsible for the neural generation and neural repair – for new neurons to be made and for broken ones to be fixed.”According to Dr. Hibbeln, “Research conducted in our lab [at the NIH] during the last 20 years points to a fundamental role for omega-3 fatty acids in protecting against major depression, substance abuse and other problems. Here we hope to be successful in understanding if omega-3 may play a role in reducing the risk of severe suicidal behaviors among U.S. military veterans.”
Source: http://www.brainhealtheducation.org/category/all-articles/
If research by the Army and Cleveland Clinic is successful, then diagnosis for brain injury could include an inexpensive blood test. Medical researchers are developing a test that will determine the presence of a protein that is released into the bloodstream after a person suffers a brain injury.
Researchers are currently testing their findings by analyzing the blood of college football, hockey, and soccer players to even diagnose concussions. Current methods of diagnosing brain injury involve the use of a CT scanner. These scans are expensive and may also fail to detect slight bleeding and other signs of a brain injury.
The military has also ordered nearly 50,000 sensor helmets with the ability to measure the severity of blows to the head and to detect possible concussions. The NFL is partnering with the military to place similar sensors in the helmets of professional football players.
Research indicates that the potential for serious lifelong traumatic brain injury is increased greatly if a subsequent head injury occurs a short time after a concussion, so a quick and inexpensive means of determining mild brain injuries could be a lifesaver for military personnel, workers, children, and sports participants.
Source: http://www.worldmag.com/2012/12/broken_brains
As a lawyer who has helped victims of TBI navigate and receive substantial settlements from insurance companies, my great hope for these injury victims is that they would be able to move forward with their lives and receive the best care and treatment available. Kudos to those who are at the forefront of this helpful new research designed to overcome TBI and help those people function in a manner close to that of their pre-injury selves.
Submitted by the Robinette Legal Group, PLLC, West Virginia Injury Lawyers. Free books for WV accident victims — Call us today: 304-594-1800 for your free copy of Righting the Wrong: WV Serious Injury Guide; Collision Care: WV Auto Injury Guide; or Beside Still Waters: WV Fatal Injury Guide for Families. We are glad to answer your questions.
An ambulance and a flatbed semi-truck collided on Interstate 79 south near Weston Tuesday morning and closed the highway for almost two hours on Tuesday, January 15, 2013.
Jan-Care Ambulance Services confirmed Tuesday morning that a Jan-Care EMT died following the accident on Interstate 79 in Lewis County.
A Jan-Care ambulance was returning to the station from an EMS transport when it collided with a flatbed semi-truck Tuesday morning, according to the Director of Operations at Jan-Care Ambulance Services.
Lewis County sheriff’s deputy said Jan-Care EMT, a passenger in the ambulance, was injured in the accident and later died as a result of his injuries at Stonewall Jackson Memorial Hospital. The ambulance’s driver was treated and released. No patient was on-board the ambulance at the time of the accident.
A spokesman of Jan-Care reflected that “It is a real tragedy when something like this happens to someone who has devoted so much time and effort to helping others.”
The Lewis County Sheriff’s Department said the driver and passenger of the semi-truck involved in the fatal crash were not injured.
The collision happened south of the Weston exit at mile marker 97.5. Lewis County Sheriff’s Department and the Weston Fire Department were called to the scene. Drivers on I-79 south of Weston were stuck for an hour and a half until crews opened the shoulder to allow them to pass through.
The cause of the accident is unknown.
The Lewis County Sheriff’s Department and State Police are investigating the accident.
Submitted by the Robinette Legal Group, PLLC, West Virginia Injury Lawyers. Free books for WV accident victims — Call us today: 304-594-1800 for your free copy of Righting the Wrong: WV Serious Injury Guide; Collision Care: WV Auto Injury Guide; or Beside Still Waters: WV Fatal Injury Guide for Families. We are glad to answer your questions.
Source: WBOY News, by reporter Stacy Moniot, 01/15/2013: http://www.wboy.com/story/20589835/update-emt-dead-following-i-79-accident-in-lewis-county
Click on the book image for immediate download, or if you are a WV injury victim, call 1-304-594-1800 or email our office today to have a softcover book sent to your home at no cost or obligation to you.
Collision Care: A Guide for West Virginia Accident Victims will give you the basic facts that you must know in order to make the best decisions for your present and future circumstances and to help you achieve the best result possible regarding your injury claim. (87 pages)
Righting the Wrong: West Virginia Serious Injury Guide provides serious injury victims and their families essential information about the insurance claims process to enable them to maximize their efforts to rebuild their lives. (161 pages)
Beside Still Waters: West Virginia Fatal Injury Guide provides surviving family members the information they need in order to pick up the pieces of their lives to enable them to rebuild a financial future for themselves and their children. (123 pages)
Click on a book cover image for a free immediate download, or if you are an injury victim or family member, call our office today to have a softcover copy sent to your home. Due to limited availability, there is a limit of one book per family.
All of these books can also be purchased on Amazon.com and Barnes and Noble for $16.95 each, plus shipping, but if you act now, Jeff will send it to you at No Cost or obligation.
Some of the useful information you will find in these books:
Our Mission
Morgantown lawyer and principal attorney, Jeff Robinette, shares what he believes is the mission of the Robinette Legal Group, PLLC. The primary objective of a personal injury law firm is to help the average person who has been the victim of negligence against the powerful resources of the insurance industry.
Jeffery Robinette is a personal injury lawyer with decades of insurance litigation and trial experience in personal injury and wrongful death claims. Prior to representing injured individuals exclusively, Mr. Robinette was a partner in a major West Virginia law firm where he focused his legal practice on defending serious personal injury and wrongful death claims and lawsuits stemming from auto and truck collisions. He has also represented the nation’s largest and most powerful insurance companies at all levels of litigation including jury trials and appeals in state and federal courts in West Virginia.
Mr. Robinette taught insurance companies and their adjusters how to follow insurance laws and regulations, including how to adjust insurance claims in good faith. He was a frequent speaker at insurance conferences on West Virginia insurance law.
Submitted by the Robinette Legal Group, PLLC, West Virginia Injury Lawyers. Call us today: 304-594-1800. We are glad to answer your questions.
The wife of a Weston man killed in fatal crash in Monongalia County is suing for wrongful death. This woman’s husband was killed last July when he and a coworker were ejected from their vehicle. Now his widow is suing her husband’s employer, Nabors Well Services for negligence and wrongful death.
She said Nabors knew her husband and coworker had worked more than 30 hours in a 48-hour span. The wife of the deceased is also is suing the driver of the vehicle for negligence causing wrongful death. The driver of the vehicle suffered minor injuries. Federal laws regulate how many miles a truck driver can travel per day, per week and on consecutive days. All too often, however, truck drivers push these limits to increase profits or because they are pressured by their employers.
The Nabors companies own and operate approximately 521 land drilling and approximately 607 land workover and well-servicing rigs in North America. Nabors Industries is an oilfield service company involved in every phase of oil and gas drilling and production. Nabors advertises that they promote safety in the workplace and full compliance with the laws and regulations of the countries in which it operates.
Oil and gas workers face many risks inherent to their job which may include: explosions, workplace injuries, truck accidents, serious and catastrophic injuries, exposure to hazardous chemicals, industrial accidents involving heavy tools and complex equipment, contaminated air and water, hazardous driving conditions, fires, burns, malfunctioning equipment, and safety violations. Driving to and from the drilling site has become a major risk factor: one-third of all serious accidents and fatalities linked to fracking occur from trucking accidents.
Giving the many dangers, some of which may be unmanageable by these companies, the greatest attention needs to be giving to ensuring that safety regulations are consistently followed to maximize safety for their employees.
Drowsy driving (driving 30 hours in 48 definitely qualifies) is a known hazard and is preventable. We all know how dangerous driving under the influence or texting while driving is, but driving while drowsy can be equally dangerous. Sleepiness can cause slower reaction times, blurred vision, lapses in judgment, and delays in processing information.
No employee should be put in a position of driving with such sleep deprivation which causes his reaction ability to be about equal with a person who is driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol. Individual people are irreplaceable to their families and loved ones, but the rest of the family will need to attempt to build a new life without the love and financial support of this accident victim. This wife was correct in filing a wrongful death suit. Companies must be held accountable for maintaining as safe as possible work environments for their employees and should be heavily penalized when they don’t.
Submitted by the Robinette Legal Group, PLLC, West Virginia Injury Lawyers. Free books for WV accident victims — Call us today: 304-594-1800 for your free copy of Righting the Wrong: WV Serious Injury Guide; Collision Care: WV Auto Injury Guide; or Beside Still Waters: WV Fatal Injury Guide for Families. We are glad to answer your questions.
Massey Energy Valued Profits over People: Massey official admits that if Massey had consistently followed the safety laws, coal production would have been decreased.According to WV MetroNews, a former Massey Energy coal company official has agreed to plead guilty to federal charges stemming from safety violations at mines he operated.
The charges against David C. Hughart, the former President of Massey’s Green Valley Resource Group, are a result of the ongoing investigation into the 2010 explosion at the Upper Big Branch Mine that killed 29 miners.
U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin says Hughart will plead guilty to a felony count of conspiracy to defraud the United States and a misdemeanor charge of conspiracy. He faces up to six years in prison. Hughart is the fourth Massey official so far to be criminally charged in connection with the UBB investigation. According to federal documents, Hughart operated Massey Energy subsidiary mines in Nicholas County that routinely violated health and safety laws “because of a belief that consistently following those laws would decrease coal production.”
Additionally, Hughart was responsible for illegal advance warnings at his mines when federal Mine Safety and Health Administration inspectors arrived. According to the federal document charging Hughart, “If these routine mine health and safety violations were detected by MSHA, the resulting citations and orders could result in coal production being stopped.”
Goodwin says it was a case of putting production ahead of safety.
“He wasn’t acting alone,” Goodwin said on Wednesday’s MetroNews Talkline. “The very nature of the conspiracy is that he acted in concert with other individuals, not just at Green Valley, but at other coal operations in Massey Energy.”
Federal investigators have been probing Massey operations since the April 2010 disaster at UBB. An MSHA investigation released last year found that flagrant safety violations contributed to a massive coal dust explosion that killed the miners.
Former UBB Mine Superintendent Gary May and the former head of security at the mine, Hughie Elbert Stover, have both been convicted of charges stemming from the disaster. A former UBB worker, Thomas Harrah, has also pleaded guilty to lying about being a foreman when he acted as one at UBB.
A judge has denied a motion to delay the sentencing of Gary May, a former superintendent of the Upper Big Branch (UBB) mine, so the January 17th sentencing will go on as planned. U.S. District Judge Irene Berger denied prosecutors’ request for a postponement, saying they’d failed to “state good cause.” Gary May pleaded guilty to a conspiracy charge in March.
May’s sentencing is set for Jan. 17, 2013 in Beckley. He’s cooperating with federal authorities in the ongoing criminal investigation of the 2010 explosion at the former Massey Energy mine where 29 men died in an explosion.
Additionally, Alpha Natural Resources, which bought out Massey after the disaster, has reached a $209 million dollar settlement in the case.
The UBB mine, located in Raleigh County, is permanently closed.
West Virginia coal miners are among the hardest working professionals in America. Despite strong MSHA regulations, coal mining continues to be one of the most dangerous occupations in the world. Every year, miners are injured or killed because the coal operators continue to circumvent or violate safety laws for the protection of the miners.
The UBB disaster illustrates the continued need for integrity in safety compliance and inspections to prevent the untimely deaths of people who are simply trying to earn a living. Unscrupulous companies that seek maximum profits by ignoring safety concerns must be held accountable.
Attorney Jeff Robinette has litigated complex work-related injury and death cases caused by workplace hazards. Our law firm has significant experience in litigating complex coal mine cases – like the Sago Mine explosion – where serious injuries and deaths occurred.
Submitted by the Robinette Legal Group, PLLC, West Virginia Workplace Injury/Wrongful Death Lawyers. Call us today: 304-594-1800 for your free copy of Righting the Wrong: WV Serious Injury Guide.
Source: WAJR/WV MetroNews: http://www.wvmetronews.com/index.cfm?func=displayfullstory&storyid=56579&type=
We have one hundred years’ worth of laws to protect laborers and punish wrongdoers, but we still have much to learn about ensuring that those who labor for our benefit are treated with justice. In the early years of manufacturing in the US, we were dealing with the same issues as Bangladesh, India, and China. More recently, the Upper Big Branch Coal Mine and Sago Coal Mine disasters illustrate the continued need for integrity in safety compliance and inspections to prevent the untimely deaths of people who are simply trying to earn a living. The natural gas drilling industry is now working on regulating and inspecting its worksites for safety issues to minimize the hazards of this dangerous work. Unscrupulous companies that seek maximum profits by ignoring safety concerns must be held accountable.
Concerning the UBB Coal Mine explosion, federal documents state that the Massey Energy subsidiary mines in Nicholas County routinely violated health and safety laws “because of a belief that consistently following those laws would decrease coal production.” David C. Hughart, the fourth Massey official facing criminal charges, will plead guilty to a felony count of conspiracy to defraud the United States and a misdemeanor charge of conspiracy. He faces up to six years in prison.
Workplace personal injury and wrongful death lawyers are dedicated to ensuring that business owners maintain OSHA’s high standards for workplace safety, and ensure that if they do attempt to skirt compliance, they suffer great punitive damages. Unfortunately, the fear of lawsuits is sometimes the only motivator for companies to maintain safety standards for their employees.
A scenario almost identical to the Tazreen Fashion Factory disaster in Bangladesh occurred in 1911 in New York City. The infamous Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire became the deadliest industrial disaster in the history of New York and became the catalyst for true reform in New York State labor law. The facts of this disaster were nearly identical to those of the recent fire in Dhaka where three company officials have been taken into custody and face criminal charges for locking the exit doors while employees were working.
As we shop for Christmas gifts and seek bargains, maybe we should consider why an object is so very cheap. To make a difference on a personal level, we can investigate online where some of our goods are manufactured and avoid brands that are known to use sweatshop labor.
Submitted by the Robinette Legal Group, PLLC, West Virginia Workplace Injury/Wrongful Death Lawyers. Call us today: 304-594-1800 for your free copy of Righting the Wrong: WV Serious Injury Guide.
Today, November 27th, 2012, has been designated a national day of mourning in Bangladesh. On November 25, 2012, fire swept through the Tazreen Fashion factory, a garment factory on the outskirts of Dhaka, Bangladesh’s capital, killing more than 120 people in the country’s worst-ever factory fire. The fire at the nine-story factory started on the ground floor late on Saturday and spread, trapping hundreds of workers. Interior stairways were made impassable by the flames rising from the first floor where the blaze began. The cause of this fire that started on the ground floor is not yet known. The building had no fire escapes.
Over 600 of the factory’s 1,500 employees were reported to have been in the factory working overtime when the blaze began. Most of the workers killed were women, including at least nine who jumped to their death from windows. Some workers died of smoke inhalation and many were burned beyond recognition, while many more were taken to the hospital for severe burns and toxic exposure. The Tazreen factory has been reported to have sales of over $35,000,000 per year. The entry-level wage for a garment worker is about $37 per month.
Thousands of people are in the streets this week protesting working conditions at Bangladeshi factories which are notoriously poor, with little enforcement of safety laws, and with overcrowding and locked fire doors common. In 2006 a similar fire in Bangladesh killed 84 garment workers who could not escape through blocked fire exits. Over 300 factory workers have died in Bangladesh in the past six years resulting from unsafe working conditions.
More than 300 factories near the capital shut for almost a week earlier this year as workers demanded higher wages and better working conditions. Bangladesh, with over 4,500 garment factories, is the second-largest exporter of clothing after China, manufacturing clothing for stores like Wal-Mart, J.C. Penny, and Khols. After the blaze was extinguished, charred clothing with labels from Faded Glory, Wal-Mart’s brand of clothing was found in the remains.
According to the New York Times, Bangladesh’s garment industry has also attracted rising international and domestic criticism over a poor fire safety record, low wages and policies that restrict labor organizing inside factories. The Clean Clothes Campaign, a European group that opposes sweatshops, said that more than 500 Bangladeshi laborers had died in factory fires since 2006. In 2010, 29 workers died from a fire inside a Bangladeshi factory making clothing for Tommy Hilfiger.
The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory:
Thanks to decades of reform and creation of workplace safety laws, the United States, generally speaking, is one hundred years ahead of countries like Bangladesh concerning workplace accidents and safety. This disaster is nearly a reenactment of one of the United States’ most horrific workplace disasters. On March 25, 1911, in New York City, the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire became the deadliest industrial disaster in the history of New York City. Young women, most in their teens, were found dead by locked doors within the factory.
The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory doors had been locked from the outside to keep the workers in and union organizers out. At least 146 garment workers died in this fire, some burned so badly that they were unrecognizable.
Some workers had died from smoke inhalation; many died from being crushed by other frantic workers trying to escape. Others jumped from 9th and 10th story floors of the building to escape the flames and were instantly killed upon impact; some even impaled on a nearby iron fence that bordered the street by the building before they hit the ground.
In November of 1910, just months before this disaster, 20,000 young women had organized a general strike, protesting in the streets to condemn the unsafe working conditions in the dimly lit fire traps in which they had found employment. The union eventually ran out of money, and the thinly clad garment workers who were not even able to afford coats were forced to return to work in order to provide for their daily existence.
A Factory Investigating Commission was created by the New York State Legislature to “investigate factory conditions in NYC and other cities and to report remedial measures of legislation to prevent hazard or loss of life among employees through fire, unsanitary conditions, and occupational diseases.” The investigators found more than 200 New York factories were found to have conditions similar to those leading to the Triangle Shirtwaist fire. Today, these conditions still exist in China, Bangladesh, India, and other countries where workers’ rights to safety have been ignored in favor of maximum profits for the companies.
These reports helped modernize labor laws, making New York State “one of the most progressive states in terms of labor reform.” New laws mandated better building access and egress, fireproofing, availability of fire extinguishers, installation of alarm systems, automatic sprinklers, better eating and toilet facilities for workers, and limited the number of hours that women and children could work. Eventually, organizations such as OSHA and AFL-CIO were created to represent American workers; much of that representation concerns their safety.
Workplace Personal Injury Lawyers’ Role in Enforcement of Workplace Safety Law
Workplace personal injury and wrongful death lawyers are dedicated to ensuring that business owners maintain OSHA’s high standards for workplace safety, and ensure that if they do attempt to skirt compliance, they suffer great punitive damages. Unfortunately, the fear of reprisal is sometimes the only motivator for companies to maintain safety standards for their employees.
It has taken over two centuries of legal progress for this to happen. Consider the untold number of injury victims from recent prior decades who received no compensation for their injuries because laws favored business and industry and practically ignored workers’ safety.
Modern-day companies including coal mines and gas drilling sites even now at times have the same tendencies as their predecessors — to take advantage of their workforce. Like their predecessors, our modern-day companies don’t want to fairly compensate the people they injure or the families of the people they kill. Just like in earlier times of corporate abuse, little to no compensation will be offered to injury victims who must nurse their own injuries with inadequate financial support.
Lawmakers normally respond to public sentiment; this is how our representative system of government works. When enough interested citizens and injury victims voice support for better laws, it is up to the lawmakers to respond. In recent decades there has been steady public support for better laws for injury victims. But, corporations and insurance companies don’t want more restrictive safety requirements — that means more liability exposure.
In response, lawmakers have had to choose between helping the corporations make more money and helping injury victims get recoveries from wrongdoers. Lawmakers thus far have not completely caved in to the desires of the corporations and insurance companies, because a majority of people have voiced their outrage over corporate greed and their role in causing an increase in incidents involving serious injuries and deaths. Even so, it takes a constant flow of information to lawmakers about injury victims’ plights, and that’s where trial lawyers and their associations are effective in protecting your rights.
Submitted by the Robinette Legal Group, PLLC, West Virginia Workplace Injury/Wrongful Death Lawyers. Call us today: 304-594-1800 for your free copy of Righting the Wrong: WV Serious Injury Guide.