General Blog
With so much recent media attention focused on gun control and school safety, it can be easy to forget that the biggest threat to teens’ safety are teen drivers themselves. Teen drivers face certain increased risks when it comes to car accidents. Researchers have been able to identify risk factors, and many state legislatures have written teen driving laws to help address them. Rhode Island laws restrict certain teen driving privileges in order to promote road safety. Providence parents should understand these laws and help their teens enact safe driving habits as soon as they learn to drive. The Facts About Teen Drivers Despite the claims of many aggravated teenage drivers, legal restrictions on teens’ driving privileges are not enacted simply to be mean, or even out of distrust. Research…Read More
Diagnostic errors (misdiagnosis and failure to diagnose) injure many patients across the United States every year. These errors can result in hospitalization, surgery, paralysis, or even death. They cause victims and families to incur medical expenses in the face of lost wages, while also missing out on the relationships and activities of daily life. It is important to hold negligent hospitals and doctors responsible for diagnostic errors that injure patients. A Providence medical malpractice attorney can help patients access the compensation to which they are legally entitled, and also protect future patients from harm by holding medical facilities and providers accountable for negligence. Why Diagnostic Errors Can Be Difficult To Identify The Journal of the American Medical Association reviewed studies of autopsies performed between 1966 and 2002 to identify diagnostic errors in…Read More
Winter increases the risk of injuries and accidents in parking lots. But the truth of the matter is that parking lots are dangerous year-round. Anywhere motorists and pedestrians mix increases accident risks, and that's never more true than in parking lots, where vehicles are often backing out of spots, visibility is often reduced, and basic traffic rules are often ignored. Furthermore, while distracted driving is a primary threat on the road, drivers are even more likely to be distracted in parking lots, according to a recent article in Safety and Health magazine. Injury Risks In Rhode Island Parking Lots An experienced injury lawyer in Providence knows these incidents can include backover accidents, slip and fall injuries, motor-vehicle collisions and even vehicles that drive into storefronts. Safety begins with property owners. Employers are reminded that…Read More
When it comes to the future of motorist safety, the contest will not be man versus machine. Most safety advocates are already in agreement: machines win. Those injured in Providence find most commonly that human error is to blame. Many motorists assume self-driving auto technology is years away. They are wrong. Self-driving cars have already been on the road in California and Michigan for a number of years and rapid rollout of the technology is expected nationwide in the coming decade. The impact on injury law cannot be overstated. One of the primary reasons for the rush to deploy this cutting-edge technology is simple: Machines are already proving themselves to be better drivers. This summer, the Providence Journal reported a 70 percent spike in the number of traffic deaths in Rhode Island. Causes of high-profile…Read More
Traffic fatality rates across the nation have climbed over the last five years. Rhode Island has not been immune to this unfortunate reality. When comparing the first half of this year to the first half of last year, Rhode Island officials and safety advocates were stunned at the rise. The Statistics On Traffic Fatalities In The United States And Rhode Island The Washington Post reports that United States traffic fatalities hit an all-time low in 2011. This was a result of fewer vehicles being on the road after the economy started to spiral nearly a decade ago. Fewer vehicles were driven and fatalities rates declined between 2008 and 2011. Unfortunately, traffic fatalities have been steadily rising ever since. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports that more than 37,000 fatal injuries were sustained on…Read More
Simple acts of littering can have fatal consequences. Traffic accidents caused by road debris kill hundreds of victims every year. The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety estimates that 500 victims were killed in accidents caused by road debris across the United States between 2011 and 2014. Littering and improperly secured cargo have very real consequences for Providence injury victims whose lives can be altered as a result of a car accident. Consult a Providence car accident attorney after any type of traffic collision in order to better understand and protect your legal rights. Rhode Island Drivers Have A Legal Obligation To Prevent Littering - Whether Intentional Or Not Section 31-25-10 of the Rhode Island General Laws prohibits drivers from operating any vehicle on any highway with any load, unless the load and any covering on…Read More
Older drivers are in the sympathetic situation of not always being able to identify the physical changes which impact their ability to drive. Nonetheless, accidents are dangerous for everyone on the road, and it is important that negligent drivers be held accountable for injuries they cause. If you or a loved one has been injured in a car accident, an experienced Providence car accident attorney will help you secure the compensation to which you are entitled by Rhode Island law. The Connection Between Car Accidents And Slip And Fall Accidents There are many complications of age. Researchers have been working for decades to determine what, exactly, occurs to the human body and mind over time, and how these effects increase the risks of accidents and injuries. The Journal of the American…Read More
In recent years, the United States has experienced a public health crisis. Opioid abuse and overdoses have skyrocketed over the past decade, and they have created a significant problem on Rhode Island roads. Business Insider reports that the governors of Arizona, Florida and Maryland have all declared states of emergency, in order to grant them access to federal grant moneys through the Department of Health and Human Services. Unfortunately, the problem is not limited to the damage opiate users inflict upon themselves. Impaired drivers are responsible for thousands of traffic deaths every year. Injury victims are entitled to compensation for their injuries and losses under Rhode Island law. But it is also important to hold impaired drivers accountable for their dangerous - and often lethal - behavior. The Opioid Epidemic Hits…Read More
Driving is an exciting rite of passage for many teenagers. But it's an experience riddled with danger. According to AAA, new teen drivers who are 16 and 17 are three times more likely to be involved in a fatal traffic accident than adults. Back to school season can be a particularly perilous time for high school students, as high concentrations of young, inexperienced drivers increase the frequency of traffic accidents in and around school zones. The Graduated Driver’s License Program In Rhode Island Like many states, Rhode Island has introduced a graduated driver’s licensing system. This occurs in three phases. According to the Rhode Island Department of Motor Vehicles: A limited instruction permit may be issued to any Rhode Island resident between the ages of 16 and 18. Applicants must first complete a thirty-three…Read More
As technology improves and expands, Rhode Island drivers face an increasing number of distractions while driving. Smart phones, navigation systems, in-vehicle entertainment, and a host of other devices can have deadly consequences for a driver who allows them to divert his or her attention from the road. This increasingly pervasive problem demands answers to an important question: how can these devices be made safer for use in vehicles? The Rise Of Do Not Disturb Features Business Insider reports that Apple will release an expansive “Do Not Disturb While Driving” function for the iPhone with the iOS 11 operating system (due for release in late 2017). This comes after multiple wrongful death lawsuits have been filed against the tech giant. The New York Times reported on a lawsuit arising out of a fatal accident…Read More
