It is alleged that the caregiver, then 22, was left alone in a room with eight toddlers, which was a violation of Illinois state law. It is claimed that the toddlers got out of control, and that the caregiver lifted Ben above her head and threw him down, causing a skull fracture. The caregiver didn’t call for help until 20 minutes later when Ben passed out. The caregiver is now facing murder charges.

Our Bowling Green, Ohio daycare abuse lawyers see cases involving daycare accident injuries on a regular basis. If your child is too young to speak, it is difficult to judge how they are being treated while under someone else’s care. Make sure to choose a reputable daycare facility and to always check their bodies for bruises and cuts, regardless of how much you trust the caregivers.

If your child is a victim of daycare abuse, you need information. Order your free copy of Little Kids, Big Accidents by calling 800.637.8170.

The best way to help your teen avoid being injured in a car accident or avoid causing a car accident is to talk to your new driver about how teen crashes are caused. Being open with your teen about the dangers of driving may help them to make smarter decisions on the road.

Here are the first three factors in fatal teen car accidents:

1. Speeding. Speeding is a factor in 35% of crash deaths involving young drivers.

2. Texting. Cell phone use increases the risk for a fatal teen crash by an astonishing 300%.

3. Passengers. Adding one passenger increases the fatal teen crash risk by 48%.

Call 800.637.8170 to order your free copy of The Ohio Wrongful Death Book to learn your rights after the tragic loss of a loved one.

A motel employee allegedly strangled Jennifer Lee Hampton after sexually assaulting her. The employee used the hotel’s master key to enter Ms. Hampton’s room and a week later Jennifer’s body was found in a nearby lake.

The family of Jennifer Hampton filed suit against the motel in Knoxville. They are accusing the motel of negligence for allowing employees to have master keys to the guest rooms, as well as hiring illegal immigrants, and their failure to perform background checks. Following this incident, the Days Inn franchise changed their name to AmeriStay Hotel and Suites. Alongside the lawsuit against Days Inn franchise, the accused employee is also being charged with murder.

Our Toledo, Ohio wrongful death lawyers handle cases involving death by murder on a regular basis. If you or someone you know has suffered the loss of a loved one due to tragic circumstances, contact our office today at 800.637.8170 for your free consultation and case evaluation, as well as a copy of The Ohio Wrongful Death Book.

Recently the family of Arizona resident Patrick Graham was awarded $36 million in damages for his 2005 shooting death by a mental patient in the Wal-Mart parking lot in Peoria, AZ. The state court jury found that ValueOptions Inc., the company that held that contract with the state to provide behaviorial healthcare until 2007, was 90% at fault in the shootings of both Patrick Graham and another employee of Wal-Mart, Anthony Spangler.

Ed Liu, a patient of ValueOptions Inc. had suffered from paranoid schizophrenia and been a patient in the state’s mental health system for more than 20 years. According to Jere Beasley, “based on trial testimony, he [Liu] was conscientious in managing those medications.”

However, in December 2004, Liu’s care provider noted that his condition was becoming more severe and despite this fact, his appointment for the following month was cancelled. It wasn’t until May 2005 that ValueOptions sent an employee to knock on his door to check on him. Liu failed to answer the door and called the next day to state that he wanted to get back on his medications, yet once again he did not show up for his June 2005 appointment.

In August 2005 Mr. Liu purchased a Glock semiautomatic pistol while he was “hearing voices and receiving messages from car license plates and newscasts from CNN.” It was August 23, 2005 when he drove to the Peoria Wal-Mart location and shot Mr. Graham and Mr. Spangler while they were collecting shopping carts in the parking lot. Upon his arrest, Mr. Liu had no recollection of the incident.

The State of Arizona was also held responsible. The State of Arizona settled for $250,000 and the settlement amount from Mr. Liu’s liability policy paid an amount that is being kept confidential. Mr. Graham’s widow was awarded $10 million, each of his children were awarded $10.5 million, and both of his parents were awarded $2.5 million in damages and punitive damages. ValueOptions Inc., plan to appeal this ruling.

Our Toledo, Ohio wrongful death lawyers handle cases involving tragic deaths on a regular basis. If you or someone you know has lost a loved one due to tragic circumstances, contact our office today at 800.637.8170 for your free consultation and case evaluation, or to order your free copy of The Ohio Wrongful Death Book.

The 18-year-old boy who was struck by Officer Chandler’s police cruiser is represented by our Toledo, Ohio pedestrian car accident lawyers and we were were interested to read the following article in the Toledo Blade:

Six weeks after Officer Diane Chandler shot and killed a 62-year-old woman with mental illness who tried to attack her with scissors, the Toledo police officer struck a theft suspect with her cruiser.

Officer Chandler was unable to control her vehicle on the ice and struck Mr. Lewis, said Dan Wagner, president of the Toledo Police Patrolman’s Association union.Officer Chandler, 33, spent this week trailing police investigators and has agreed to join a program that will keep her off patrol for one to three months as she shadows Toledo Police detectives, authorities said.

“I chose to then remove myself from the streets…,” Mr. Wagner said, adding that he spent two months shadowing police detectives. “You don’t want to deal with the public scrutiny when you are dealing with the day to day.”

He said he advised Officer Chandler to do the same. “I thought she returned to the streets a little too early,” Mr. Wagner said.

If you or someone you know has been injured in an Ohio pedestrian car accident, order your free copy of The Ohio Accident Book by calling our Toledo, Ohio pedestrian car accident lawyers at 800.637.8170.

Our Toledo, Ohio pedestrian car accident lawyers represent the 18-year-old victim, Nathaniel Lewis, who was allegedly running from police but had come to a stop, was at a stand still when witnesses say Officer Chandler struck the boy at a high rate of speed with no attempt to stop the car. The road conditions were clear and free of snow and ice, and were not a factor in the accident.

The victim was taken to St. Vincent’s Mercy Medical Center, where he was kept overnight, suffering from a serious closed-head injury, where he was in stable condition.

If you or someone you know has suffered serious injury due to an Ohio pedestrian car accident, call 800.637.8170 for your free copy of The Ohio Accident Book.

1. Why didn’t the responding officers simply close the door to Ms. Hicks’ room? This would have prevented her from charging them with scissors, which is the stated reason for shooting her.

2. Why did the officers use a Taser gun on an elderly woman with a pacemaker, and did the use of the Taser escalate the situation?

3. Why didn’t the officers secure Ms. Hicks’ room and wait for people better equipped to handle the situation in a way that minimized the chances for Ms. Hicks or the officers to be injured?

4. Did the officers act in a reckless or negligent way given the facts known to them before they responded to the situation?

The Toledo Police plan to submit the shooting to the Firearm Review Board to determine if the officers’ actions were justified. This is an internal process where the police essentially investigate themselves. Ms. Hicks’ family members call on Toledo Mayor Mike Bell and the Toledo Police Department to release all of the documents related to her shooting so the public can determine whether the police acted appropriately. We make no allegation of fault at this time, but in the interest of full disclosure, the public has a right to know all of the facts.

If you have lost a loved one due to tragic circumstances, contact our Ohio fatal accident lawyers at 800.637.8170 for your free copy of The Ohio Wrongful Death Book.

In a letter to the media via a press release, our Ohio wrongful death lawyers wrote:

A fair and impartial investigation must be conducted into
the death of Linda Hicks, whose age and mental illness left her a particularly
vulnerable member of our community. A Lucas County grand jury decided last week
not to indict the Toledo Police Officer who shot and killed Linda Hicks on a
murder charge, but that does not mean the shooting was justified. The grand
jury only considered a murder charge and no lesser offenses. Regardless of any
criminal charges that might have been appropriate, the conduct of the officer
and the Toledo Police Department may have been negligent and a civil action for
wrongful death may be the only recourse for the family of Linda Hicks.

The Estate of Linda Hicks is being represented
by Charles Boyk and Michael Bruno of the Charles E. Boyk Law Offices, LLC, of
Toledo. Ms. Hicks’ grieving family waited patiently for the Lucas County
Prosecutor’s Office to complete its investigation, but they are left with many
questions.

Read our next blog to find out what those questions are.

If you have lost a loved one due to tragic
circumstances, contact our Ohio
fatal accident lawyers at 800.637.8170 for your free copy of The Ohio
Wrongful Death Book.

In most wrongful death cases involving an Ohio fatal car accident, the highway patrol or the investigating officers do their own, independent accident reconstruction.

What our Ohio fatal car accident lawyers like to do in a wrongful death case is to hire our own, independent accident reconstruction expert. They will take measurements, they will take photographs, and we will interview the witnesses, and we will have an accurate accident reconstruction that will help resolve your case.

If you or someone you know has lost a loved one to tragic circumstances, such as an Ohio car accident that results in death, you need information. Order your free copy of The Ohio Wrongful Death Book by calling 800.637.8170.

In an Ohio wrongful death case, an important thing that an Ohio wrongful death attorney can do for you is to do an investigation of the accident.

Witnesses need to be interviewed, affidavits need to be taken, and there has to be a drawing done of the accident scene.

Any pictures that need to be taken can be done by an attorney, and they should made sure to do this early in the process so that they can protect your rights in this type of a case.

If you or someone you know has lost a loved one in an accident, order your free copy of The Ohio Wrongful Death Book by calling 800.637.8170 in order to preserve your family’s rights.