South Florida Injury Law Blog

James Mullinax knows a thing or two about boating. The commanding officer at the U.S. Coast Guard Station Lake Worth Inlet, Mullinax has spent 31 years watching the country's oceans and waterways, including stints along the coasts of Virginia, Hawaii and South Carolina. In preparation for National Safe Boating Week, Mullinax checked in with The Palm Beach Post's Willie Howard to offer some tips on how to stay safe at sea.

For starters, there are a few safety precautions that every South Florida boater should take: don't let passengers ride on the bows (where they can slip off and be sucked into the propellers), provide life vests that fit and always keep a brightly colored, inflatable safety tube on board.

"For adults, Mullinax recommends buying a comfortable life jacket, such as one of the popular suspender-style inflatable jackets and wearing it whenever the boat is moving," the Post reports. Mullinax also noted that a diver he recently rescued two miles offshore and three miles from his dive boat was able to stay afloat and draw attention to himself with the help of an inflatable safety tube.

According to the Florida Fish & Wildlife Commission, more than 18 percent boating fatalities in 2009 were caused by alcohol or drug use. Mullinax warns that boaters looking to party out on the water should designate a sober driver. "It's not just a designated driver, but somebody who knows how to drive the boat."

Finally, before you make waves, let someone know where you're going. "Filing a 'float plan' every time you head out on the water is a good idea... Even a short written note or an e-mail to a friend or relative telling where you plan to go boating, where you plan to launch your boat and when you are due back is helpful."

Continue reading "South Florida Boating Safety: Tips from a Pro" »

The metro Miami morning commute came to a grinding halt on Wednesday as Authorities closed U.S. 1 in both directions after a fatal hit-and-run near Coconut Grove left one person dead and caused a second accident on the same stretch of road just minutes later.

The Miami Herald's Lidia Dinkova reports "[i]t all began at 6:30 a.m., when a white pickup truck collided with a silver-colored Honda at Southwest 17th Avenue, causing the driver to crash into a tree on the median, said Napier Velazquez, spokesman for Miami Police." The Honda driver, reportedly a woman in her 70s, died at the scene of the accident. The pickup truck driver sped off before police arrived on the scene.

The carnage from the first wreck appears to have spawned a second one. Minutes after the accident, a white pickup truck traveling southbound on U.S. 1 crashed with a silver-colored Nissan Sentra and a silver-colored Toyota RAV4. No one was injured in the second collision and it is unclear whether the accidents are related.
"At this point we don't know if the driver of the white pickup truck slowed down or stopped to help the lady in the first crash," Velazquez told the Herald.

Almost 236,000 traffic accidents occurred statewide in 2009. Florida car accidents are commonly the result of negligent driving. A legal term, negligence generally refers to a failure to act reasonably when one has the legal duty to do so. All drivers have the duty to drive safely and reasonably on the road, and when unreasonable driving leads to an accident, injured parties may be entitled to compensation.

If you are in an automobile accident, you may be entitled to compensation for health care benefits, even if you were at fault. Florida law requires all automobile insurance policies to carry a minimum amount of "no-fault" insurance for reasonable and necessary medical expenses. This statewide requirement is designed to ensure that those injured in car accidents can seek proper medical care, regardless of who is at fault for the accident.

Continue reading "Miami Car Accident Leaves One Dead, Causes Second Accident, Raises Issues of Negligent Driving and No-Fault Insurance" »

As South Florida personal injury attorneys, we were interested to learn that the FDA is warning that use of seizure and migraine drug Topamax (topiramate) as well as its generic versions during pregnancy increases the risk of certain birth defects, according to a recent study.

"Health care professionals should carefully consider the benefits and risks of topiramate when prescribing it to women of childbearing age," said Russell Katz, M.D., director of the Division of Neurology Products in the FDA's Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. "Alternative medications that have a lower risk of birth defects should be considered."

Data from the North American Antiepileptic Drug (AED) Pregnancy Registry suggest that topiramate - prescribed to treat seizures in people who have epilepsy and prevent migraine headaches - increases the risk of cleft lip and cleft palate defects in babies whose mothers take the drug during pregnancy.

The AED data shows that infants exposed to topiramate as a single therapy experienced a 1.4 percent prevalence of oral clefts, almost four times that of infants exposed to other antiepileptic drugs. The Topamax defects "range from a small notch in the lip to a groove that runs into the roof of the mouth and nose, possibly leading to problems with eating, talking and to ear infections. Surgery often is performed to close the lip and palate and most children do well after treatment," according to the FDA.

The FDA warns that pregnant women and those of childbearing potential should discuss other treatment options with their health care professional before starting Topamax or generic equivalents.

Continue reading "Topamax Birth Defects May Be a Concern For South Florida Women" »

Motorcycle deaths were slightly lower over the first nine months of 2010 than in the same period the previous year, according to a new report. Yet while the downturn mirrors statistics nationwide, officials are cautioning bikers to remain vigilant on the road.

The report issued by the Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA) in April states that 286 Florida motorcyclists died over the first nine months of last year, compared to 293 over the same time frame in 2009. Meanwhile, motorcycle fatalities dropped by more than two percent nationwide.

A local motorcycle enthusiast tells The Tampa Tribune's Keith Morelli that "the dangers to bikers mostly are vehicle drivers on phones, either talking or texting or motorists just not paying attention when they switch lanes or make turns." In addition to death, motorcycle accidents can also result in brain and spinal injuries, broken bones and paralysis.

Despite the decrease in fatalities thus far, GHSA - a nonprofit association representing state highway safety offices across the country - points out that the national drop is slight compared to 2009, in which biker fatalities plummeted by 16%, snapping 11 straight years of increases in motorcycle deaths. The organization also notes that the use of Department of Transportation compliant motorcycle helmets dropped by 13% over the same period in 2010, a freefall that the GHSA calls "alarming."

"To prevent an increase in motorcyclist fatalities in 2011, states should work to increase helmet use, provide motorcycle operator training to all who need or seek it and reduce motorcyclist alcohol impairment and speeding," the organization cautions. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates that helmets saved 1,829 motorcyclists' lives in 2008 and that an additional 823 could have been saved if all motorcyclists had worn helmets.

Continue reading "Florida Motorcycle Accident Deaths Down in 2010" »