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A 6 year old Morganza, Louisiana, child was killed on November 15, 2009, while getting off of a school bus on Louisiana Highway 1, north of Louisiana Highway 420, in Pointe Coupee Parish, Louisiana. The school bus driver had activated the bus’s safety signals, but the oncoming driver of a Ford car, nevertheless, struck and killed the child as he exited the school bus. The driver of the Ford car was booked into the Pointe Coupee Parish Prison for failure to stop while bus signals are activated and for negligent homicide.

The National Highway Transportation and Safety Administration reports that between 1996 and 2006, there were approximately 1,536 fatal school transportation-related motor vehicle traffic crashes, with one-half (50%) of all school-age pedestrians who were killed being between the ages of 5 and 7. The National School Bus Safety Week is held the third full week of October every year. The next School Bus Safety Week will be October 18-22, 2010. Do not wait until then to practice school bus safety. Our children’s lives are too important to take chances–always stop when school bus signals are activated and never pass a school bus. Be patient, a child’s life may depend on it.
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A motorcyclist trying to enter Interstate 20 in Shreveport, Louisiana, was killed on November 14, 2009, when his motorcycle struck a barrier on the overpass and then plunged about thirty feet onto Interstate 20 below.

Often times, overpass curves, guardrails, or barriers are defectively designed or maintained and can contribute to vehicle accidents. Motorcyles and automobiles being operated under normal or expected conditions should not vault over a guardrail or other overpass barrier.
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Two Villa Feliciana Medical Complex employees, accused of hitting a patient, were arrested on November 13, 2009, and booked into the East Feliciana Parish Jail.

Hitting a patient is considered an intentional tort or battery by Louisiana law, and any claim for injuries and damages suffered by the struck patient generally fall outside the Louisiana Medical Malpractice Act. Other types of abuse and neglect of the elderly in nursing home settings will generally fall within Louisiana Medical Malpractice Act.

The National Center for Elder Abuse estimates that between 1 and 2 million Americans age 65 or older have been injured, exploited, or otherwise mistreated by a caregiver. If that caregiver is a nursing home or other healthcare provider licensed by the State of Louisiana, a complaint should be filed with the Health Standards Section of the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals. The Health Standards Section will investigate any good-faith and timely complaint against the health care provider, and if the complaint is verified, appropriate action will be taken.
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On the evening of November 12, 2009, a Ford truck backed out of a private driveway onto Louisiana Highway 40 in St. Tammany Parish, directly into the path of a 2005 Honda VTX motorcycle. The motorcycle operator was wearing a helmet, but nevertheless, was killed in the motorcycle crash. The driver of the Ford truck is believed to have been impaired and was charged with DWI 3rd offense, Vehicular Homicide, and Failure to Yield from a Private Drive.

Motorcycle accidents claimed 4,810 lives nationwide in 2006, and alcohol was involved in 1,677 of the deaths. 88,000 motorcyclists were injured during the same time period. In Louisiana, 95 motorcyclists were killed in 2006, 29 of which deaths involved the use of alcohol. Never drink and drive!

While the St. Tammany, Louisiana motorcycle operator lost his life despite wearing a helmet, the importance of helmet use cannot be underestimated. The National Highway Transportation Safety-NHTSA estimates that helmets saved 1,658 motorcyclists’ lives in 2006, and that 752 more could have been saved if all motorcyclists had worn helmets. Remember, helmts save lives.
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One person killed and five injured on November 7, 2009 in a Natchitoches, Louisiana car wreck on Louisiana Highway 117. The driver of a 1997 Ford Crown Victoria lost control of his vehicle and left the roadway to the right, then overcorrected and traveled across the center line and crashed into a 2005 Chevrolet Trailblazer. One passenger in the Ford Crown Victoria was not wearing his seat belt and was killed. Five others were injured. The driver of the Ford Crown Victoria was charged with four counts of vehicular negligent injury, DWI 4th offense, reckless operation, vehicular homicide, open container, and operating a vehicle with a suspended driver’s license.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 36 people in the United States die every day in motor vehicle accidents involving an alcohol-impaired driver, and approximately 700 more people are injured. 32% of all traffic fatalities (13,470 people) in 2006 involved drunk drivers. Children were especially effected with nearly one-half of all auto accident deaths of children 14 or younger caused by drivers over the legal limit. Never drink and drive!
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Crisis, what Crisis? Medical malpractice lawsuits account for less than 1% of all civil suits and have been declining for nearly 10 years. In 2008, fewer medical malpractice claims were filed by patients in Louisiana than in any year since 1996. The insurance market is so strong in Louisiana that the largest medical malpractice insurer in Louisiana has returned a 20% dividend on written premiums to its Louisiana doctors each of the last two years.

According to the Government Accountability Office (GAO) and the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), less than one and one-half percent of overall health care spending in the United States is related to medical malpractice suits. While there is evidence that some doctors run unnecessary tests to generate more income for themselves, there is no credible evidence that “defensive medicine” increases health care costs. Rather, good doctors run additional tests to aid in their diagnosis of their patients. The only way to reduce medical malpractice suits is to hold doctors accountable for their unacceptable errors and mistakes. Juries and fellow doctors must stop protecting bad doctors. As long as bad doctors are “given a pass”, they will continue to cut corners and perform below the standard of care.

In Louisiana, the Medical Malpractice Act protects doctors and other qualified health care providers with a $500,000, plus medical expenses, cap on damages. This draconian $500,000 cap on damages includes lost wages. So, if a 20 year old husband and father of two infant children is killed by medical malpractice, the most his widow and infant children can recover, including for lost wages or support, is $500,000. This is a joke.

Not only is the cap on damages so low as to be unconscionable, but the Louisiana Medical Malpractice Act requires that three Louisiana doctors review the case against their fellow Louisiana doctor prior to suit being filed. Anyone who thinks the “conspiracy of silence” and “good ole boy” system is not alive and well in Louisiana is fooling themselves. The extent to which many doctors reviewing Louisiana medical malpractice cases will go to protect their fellow doctors is absolutely shocking.

Doctors and hospitals in Louisiana are not suffering from any malpractice crisis. The Louisiana Medical Malpractice Act was enacted in 1975. Doctors and other qualified health care providers are ONLY liable for $100,000 of the damages caused to their patients. The Louisiana Patient’s Compensation Fund (PCF) is liable for the remainder, including future medical expenses. And, since 1975, the Louisiana PCF has paid in excess of $4.5 million in Just 20 medical malpractice cases, including for medical expenses for brain damaged babies and other malpractice victims requiring 24 hour attendant or custodial care. If there is a crisis in Louisiana, it is the crisis of the medical malpractice victim who can no longer work or care for his or her family following an unacceptable medical error and who cannot obtain fair and equal justice.
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On October 28, 2009, the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) announced that about 610,000 Halloween themed flashlights manufactured in China and sold exclusively at Target stores from August 2009-September 2009 have been recalled. The $1 “Mini Flashlights (3 Pack)” with key rings and the $2.50 “Flashlight with Stencil” can overheat and melt, posing a burn hazard. To avoid injury, consumers should stop using the flashlights immediately and return them to any Target store for a full refund. For additional information, contact Target at (800) 440-0680 between 7 a.m. and 6 p.m. or visit www.target.com.

According to the American Burn Association, 500,000 people seek medical treatment each year for burn injuries. Each year approximately 3,500 deaths are caused by residential fires and 500 deaths result from other sources such as motor vehicle and aircraft crashes, contact with electricity and chemicals or hot liquids and substances.
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A Justice of the Peace Constable for Monroe, Louisiana, who is also a former Ouachita Parish Police Juror, was involved in car wreck on October 26, 2009, on Louisiana Highway 151 near its intersection with Louisiana Highway 546. The Constable’s car crossed the center line during a rain storm and collided head-on with an oncoming truck being operated by a Ruston, Louisiana man. The Constable suffered serious injuries and the other driver suffered moderate injuries. The auto accident occurred less than one mile from the Constable’s home.

Under Louisiana law, a driver whose vehicle crosses the center line of a highway and collides with another vehicle in that vehicle’s lane of travel is presumed to be at fault in causing the car accident. If the Constable was at fault in causing the auto accident, and if the Constable was in the course and scope of his employment at the time of the wreck, his employer may be vicariously liable for any injuries and damages caused by his fault.
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At its annual meeting in Natchitoches, the Northwestern State University Foundation Board of Directors elected Scott Andrews as its Treasurer for the 2009-2011 term. Scott Andrews, an attorney at Dué Guidry Piedrahita Andrews Courrege L.C. in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, graduated from Northwestern State University in 1992 after serving as Student Government Association President. Scott Andrews has served on the NSU Foundation Board since 2003, having previously served a three year term on the NSU Alumni Association Board. The NSU Foundation Board serves the University, its students and its faculty, through fundraising and by promoting the educational and cultural welfare of the University.

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The Louisiana Fourth Circuit Court of Appeal held that the plaintiff has the absolute right to dismiss with prejudice an original defendant and to secure an order prohibiting all defendants from filing subsequent third party demands against the previously dismissed defendant. DiBenedetto v. Noble Drilling Co., 2009-0073, 2009-0464, 2009-1025 (La.App. 4 Cir.10/21/09), ___ So.3d___.

This Louisiana personal injury legal update is provided by Baton Rouge, Louisiana injury lawyer Scott Andrews of the Louisiana accident and injury law firm, Dué Guidry Piedrahita Andrews Courrege L.C..