Florida Child Injury Lawyer Blog

Helmets decrease the risk of sustaining head injuries as well as decrease the severity of the an injury if sustained. Therefore, children, who are naturally more susceptible to sustaining head and brain injuries, should always wear a helmet while riding a bicycle.

Below are some basic facts, reasons and statistics that are support why children should protect themselves with helmets:

1. Bicycle Helmets are important. - Although helmets are no replacement for responsible, mature and safe riding, helmets decrease blunt force trauma and impact as well as protect a child from penetrating sharp objects or corners. Also, well-designed helmets have the capability of protecting the spine and neck along with the head.

2. Basic Statistics. - These statistics are from the Bicycle Helmet Safety Institute.
- In 2005, children under the age of 15-years-old accounted for 53% of all bicycle injuries that required hospital visits.
- 62.6% of cycling deaths that were a result of a head injury in 2000 were in children under 19-years-old.
- Approximately 80% of fatal bicycle injuries and 75% of disabling bicycle injuries could be prevented by wearing a helmet.

3. Different Types of Helmets. - There are two different officially-approved types of helmets: 1. hard shell helmets and soft or micro shell helmets. The Consumer Products Safety Commission and American National Standards Institute approves these types of helmets.

4. Bicycle Helmet & Child Safety. - Children are more prone to accidents and their skulls are more susceptible to traumatic injury. Therefore, parents, guardians, babysitters, daycare providers, etc. should make it mandatory for their children to wear a helmet while riding a bicycle.

If you would like to read more on this topic see Reasons why children should wear helmets while riding a bicycle.

If you would like more tips on proper use and fitting of helmets see Properly Using and Fitting Bicycle Helmets - Key TIps for Safety of Children.

In Florida, dirt bikes (motocross bikes) are popular among children and teens. There is plenty of space, trails, and places to ride dirt bikes. Like any other type of motorized vehicle, dirt bikes can be dangerous especially when operated by teen and children. The Orlando Sentinel reported that a 3 year old girl (Aiyna Bryant) suffered serious personal injuries when she was thrown off a dirt bike that was being operated by her 16 year old cousin (Jaime Johnson). The injured child was airlifted to Arnold Palmer Children's Hospital for emergency trauma treatment.

Some parents do not let their children operate or ride on dirt bikes or motorcycles. Others do allow their children on dirt bikes if there is proper supervision, safety precautions, helmets, and training. Accidents in life do happen even with all possible supervision and safety precautions. The problem is that there is an inherent danger and risk to riding dirt bikes. Parents and supervisors of children should read stories like this and use it as a teaching tool for their children.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration recognizes that there are dangers to children when bicycling or simply taking a walk in a neighborhood. Driveways can be especially dangerous to toddlers (1 to 2 years old) due to driveway accidents or back over accidents. The NTSA posted some basic but important safety tips that parents, teachers, day care providers, child care providers, babysitters, and others supervising children should review and print out to review with children. Tip # 7: Play It Safe: Walking and Biking Safely has some nice illustrations as well. Following these safety tips and providing consistent adult supervision of children can help prevent a great number of serious personal injuries and death to children.

According to The Children's Hospital Trauma Center, there are some main causes for traumatic related accidents or personal injuries to children. These include the following: automobile accidents, non-accidental traumatic accidents, bicucle accidents, and pedestrian accidents. Many accidents (while unexpected) can be prevented with better supervision by adults and more attentiveness by drivers and others.

The Children's Hospital, in addition to collecting statistics for the incidents of injuries, provided helpful tips for avoiding such accidents and incidents. The tips included the following: wear a helmet when skateboarding and bicycling, have a first aid kit available, talk to your kids about safety, talk to your children about the dangers of drugs and alcohol, and other helpful tips. See Preventing Unintended Injury Before It Happens.

In Gainesville, Florida, police will be enforcing traffic laws pertaining to pedestrians and drivers pursuant to a campaign / mission to reduce the number of pedestrian accidents and incidents resulting in serious personal injuries. Police will now be more likely issuing citations and fines for failing to yield to pedestrians. Previously, police issued many warnings for such driving or jaywalking acts. Now, the enforcement will be beefed up in order to get the word out that failing to yield to pedestrians along with jaywalking are dangerous acts that can lead to serious personal injuries. Gainesville, Florida is home to the University of Florida. Streets and roads all over town are loaded with pedestrians. As such, Gainesville, Florida has its fair share of pedestrian / automobile accidents and related personal injuries. Hopefully, drivers and pedestrians will take notice of the enforcement program and change bad habits into safer ones. You can read more about this story at Gainesville Police to Ticket Jaywalkers and Driver's Who Don't Yield to Pedestrians.

In Gainesville, Florida - home to the University of Florida, the Alachua County Sheriff's Office, Gainesville Police Department, the UF Police Department are working to remind drivers to yield to pedestrians. With the presence of the University as well as a number of schools in the area, pedestrians are every where in Gainesville. Drivers should be on the lookout for pedestrians which include college students as well as much younger children. In an effort to encourage and remind drivers to yield to pedestrians, signs are posted in Gainesville publicizing the percentage of Gainesville driver yielding to pedestrians. Awareness and action are key components to this campaign. Many pedestrian personal injuries and deaths in Gainesville and other Florida cities can be avoided with better driving and by having drivers yield to pedestrians. See Gainesville Florida Signs Showing More Drivers Yielding to Pedestrians.

A recent article posted at the Florida Times Union Website focused on the dangers and statistics involving personal injuries to bicyclists and pedestrians in Jacksonville, Florida and other cities in Florida. The Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles maintains statistics on personal injuries suffered by pedestrians and bicycle riders. In 2008, in Jacksonville, Florida alone, there were 566 pedestrians and bicyclists who were hit by vehicles in 2008. Of this number, 20 died from the accident related personal injuries. In 2009, these figures rose to 604 pedestrians and bicyclists who were hit by a vehicle with 29 dying from accident related injuries. The Jacksonville Sheriff's Office also maintains statistics as to injuries and fatalities. According to JSO, there have been 124 bicycle riders and pedestrians who have been killed in Duval County since 2006.

Many of these automobile / bicycle / pedestrian accidents and injuries could have been prevented with better safety awareness and driving on the part of drivers. Driver distraction is a huge problem in Jacksonville, Florida and other areas. Mobile phones, text messages, e mails, and web surfing all play a part in the rampant problem of driver distraction.

In Florida, we have the benefit of great weather. This, in turn, makes Florida a great place for adults and children to ride their bicycles. There are millions of bicyclists in Florida. It is important for Florida drivers to watch out for bicyclists especially children. Pursuant to Section 316.083 - Florida State Uniform Traffic Control - Overtaking and Passing a Vehicle - a driver must driver pass a bicycle or a non-motorized vehicle at a safe distance of at least 3 feet of distance between the bicycle / non-motorized vehicle and the vehicle itself. Of course, a reasonably safe driver must also slow down as needed and obey speed limit and school zones. You can read the full statute at Official Site for Florida Statutes.

Drive safe and watch out for bicyclist.

If you have questions about a Florida bicycle / automobile accident, contact a Florida Child Injury Lawyer for advice, consultation and representation on the issues of liability, medical bills, medical treatment, insurance, and legal rights.

A Spring Break vacation turned tragic when 9 year old - Chase Brubaker - died in a bus / bicycle accident at Disney Fort Wilderness. As reported in the Orlando, Sentinel, Chase was riding his bicycle on a sidewalk. Thereafter, Chase was run over by the rear back tire of the Disney bus. The details as to how the accident happened will be investigated. The issues would involve the following:

Where was Chase riding his bicycle just prior to the incident?

What was the speed limit in the area?

Did the bus driver see Chase or the other bicycle riders prior to the incident?

Was there anything about the bus driver's driving that caused or contributed to the incident?

Was there anything about Chase's bicycle riding that caused or contributed to the incident?

People reading about this incident should keep in mind that newspaper and television stories are very brief in nature and often times do not include the full statements of the witnesses, detailed diagrams or accident reconstruction, or other key facts or information to a case of this nature.

It was quite a frightening site for his friend, the bus driver and those on the bus. Police will conduct a thorough accident death investigation into the incident. The accident took place on Big Pine Drive which is a two lane roadway that runs around the Fort Wilderness Campground according to the Florida Highway Patrol. You can read more about this incident at 9 Year Old Boy Dies in Disney Bus / Bicycle Accident.

Serious injuries and deaths to children from driveway accidents are tragedies in every respect. . There are hidden dangers in driveways. Some think that sidewalks are the best place for children, pedestrians, and bicycle riders. In actuality, drivers frequently ignore or do not carefully look for children and others on sidewalks and driveways. When there is a death or serious personal injuries suffered by a child in a driveway or back over accident, it is certainly difficult for the family, extended family, and community to deal with such a tragedy. Unfortunately, driveway or back over accidents continue to be reported across the nation.

The prevalence of texting has skyrocketed shooting from 9.8 billion messages per month in December 2005 to 110.4 billion messages per month in December 2008. Sadly, it is estimated that cell phone usage contributes to approximately 342,000 car accident injuries and causes $43 billion dollars worth of damage every year!

Studies have even indicated that texting while driving is worse than drunk driving! Check out this YouTube video that shows the gut-wrenching consequences of texting while driving (WARNING: this video is graphic, with realistic, but potentially disturbing, reenactments). It is stunning to see how dangerous and how devastating the effects of texting while driving can be.

According to Florida's dangrous instrumentality doctrine, owners and possessors of inherently dangerous tools are liable for any injuries caused by the operation of those tools. This legal principle was applied to the realm of automobiles in Southern Cotton Oil Co. v. Anderson, 86 So. 629 (Fla. 1920). This means that if you own a car, you can be responsible for injuries caused by that car.

As a result of this watershed case, victims of car accidents occurring due to negligence may look to the vehicle owners for damages, regardless of whether it was the actual owner driving the vehicle or not. Likewise, employers may be pursued for the injurious acts of their employees under the theory of respondeat superior.

In order to be held liable, an owner must have the ability to exert control over his or her vehicle. For that reason, people whose cars are stolen may not be penalized for injuries involving their vehicles depending on the particular facts of the case. Furthermore, if an owner did not give permission to a driver to operate the car, the owner may avoid liability if he files a police report to show that the car was stolen at the time the injury was caused. These distinctions are critical for determining who needs to be brought into litigation via impleader and the bounds of a victim’s potential recovery.

Unsure of what all this means to you? Consult a personal injury attorney to learn the intricacies of the law!

The U.S. News & World Report released a state-by-state study on America's Worst Drivers.

Florida ranked 43rd. While Idaho ranked #1, New Jersey bowed out as last year's worst, making way for New York. GMAC Insurance's 2009 National Drivers Test tested 5,000 drivers in each state, evaluating their basic knowledge of driving laws. Alarmingly, over 20% of America's drivers could not pass the written driver's test. That's about 41 million drivers from sea to shining sea who don't know the meaning of a yellow light or how to calculate a safe following distance.

The study shows a direct correlation between increasing age and improved test scores. In other words, there's a reason why your teenager's insurance premiums are through the roof.

How will you do? Take the test to see if you will fare better than your fellow drivers.

Automobile accidents and related injuries continue to be a daily problem in Jacksonville, Florida and other cities and towns. The Department of Motor Vehicles is one agency that reports and keeps track of automobile accidents and related injuries. 2004 statistics were reported that there were 14,116 accidents in 2004. This calculates to 38 accidents every day.

Even after decades of research to design safer vehicles, people frequently are injured in motor vehicle accidents / collisions. To be exact, there were 10,455 traffic accident injuries in 2004. Here's a summary of Duval County's crash data:

Alcohol Related Traffic Accidents - 1,245
Traffic Fatalities - 131
Alcohol Related Fatalities - 49
Injuries in Traffic Accidents - 10,455
Alcohol Related Injuries - 847
Motorcycle Fatalities - 15
Bicycle Fatalities - 6
Bicycle Injuries - 230
Pedestrian Fatalities - 31
Pedestrian Injuries - 329

Car accidents happen every day. If someone runs into you on the road, seek immediate medical attention, and contact a Florida automobile accident attorney for advice, counsel, and representation.

In Florida and the rest of the nation, bicycle accidents, injuries, and deaths involving children continue to take place and are frequently reported. In Tampa, Bryan Lebron, Jr. (age 11) was hit as he was trying to cross a busy street while riding with his father and another sibling. In an unrelated bicycle accident, Mitchell Bowers (age 12) dies after reportedly turning left from a bicycle lane in front of a car.

Both of these incidents will be fully investigated by the Tampa Police Department, the Hillsborough Sheriff's Office, and / or Florida Highway Patrol. The information obtained from witnesses and these reports will certainly help provide answers as to how the accidents took place and if the accidents were avoidable or due to negligence.

In Florida, an independent investigation can also be conducted by any party to the incident to determine the facts or causes of a certain accident. It is often times helpful to have a trained investigator and a Florida Child Injury Lawyer assist with the investigation. Florida is a comparative fault state. In other words, there can be shared or apportioned fault for an accident in a civil case.

The deaths of these young children show the importance of bicycle safety as well as the dangers of bicycle riding on or near Florida roads. See 2 Boys Die in Separate Bike Accidents - Florida Times Union.

According to the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT), a bicycle lane is defined as “a portion of a roadway (either with curb and gutter or a flush shoulder) which has been designated by striping, special pavement markings, and signing for the preferential use by bicyclists.” Since bike lanes are a relatively new phenomenon, some drivers are unsure of the driving laws surrounding them. Because both adults and children can ride their bikes in designated bicycle lanes, drivers should use caution and make sure they know the rules of the road.

Florida Statute 316.084 applies to cars passing on the right. The conditions under which passing on the right is allowed are as follows:

• When the passed vehicle has stopped and is indicating a left turn;

• When there is unobstructed pavement available of an appropriate width for a
motor vehicle, including one-way streets; or

• When the act of passing the other car may be done safely.

You can read a more in depth analysis of the Florida law as it pertains to cars driving in the bicycle lane at Passing on the Right Using a Bike Lane.

If your child has been injured in a bicycle, car or pedestrian accident, a consultation with a child injury lawyer could answer questions as to traffic statutes, negligence, fault, and responsibility for damages and bills resulting from such an accident.

Continue reading "Sharing Florida Roads with Bicyclists – Is It Legal for Cars to Use the Bike Lane for Passing?" »

A fifteen year old boy from Interlachen (Putnam County) Florida was hit by a pickup truck and critically injured while crossing County Road 315 near Mary Wisham Park on his bicycle last Saturday afternoon. At the time of the accident, the boy was trying to cross from the sidewalk on the west side of the road to the entrance of the park on the east side. Apparently the boy crossed the road just as the southbound lane cleared, without checking the northbound lane for oncoming traffic. He was hit by a pickup truck in that lane and sent flying onto the shoulder of the road. The driver of the pickup, sixty two year old Samuel Hancock Jr. of Satsuma, Florida, pulled over immediately to check on the boy. The driver was wearing his seat belt and was not injured. No charges have been filed by police.

Children often have poor safety judgment and awareness when crossing streets. Many accidents and injuries caused by car accidents can be avoided by slower driving, more attentive driving, and safety awareness by both driver and pedestrian or bicyclist. In this case it appears that the driver did nothing wrong, but a bit more caution on his part might have prevented the accident. Drivers should pay close attention to traffic, road conditions, and pedestrians when driving on Florida roadways. Parents need to take the initiative as well, and teach their children proper safety precautions when crossing roads on foot or on a bicycle.

Read more about this car accident at Teen bicyclist hit while crossing county road.

Victor Steen, 17, of Pensacola, Florida, died after being run over by a police car while being chased on his bicycle. The incident began when Officer Jerald Ard saw the boy around 2 am in a construction site. When Steen fled the scene on his bicycle, Ard pursued him in his police car. During the chase, Ard attempted to stun the teenager with a taser. Some time during the chase, Steen crashed his bicycle in the path of the police car and was run over.

Even though it does not appear that Steen was stunned by the taser, the incident has raised interest from a national civil rights group, which advocates a national stun gun policy. The group, Southern Christian Leadership Conference, said that it will release a report in December that shows that 400 people have died from stun gun incidents. In response to concerns, the Pensacola police department changed its policy from “reasonable use” of stun guns to prohibiting shooting a stun gun from or at a moving vehicle.

Th Florida Highway Patrol and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement are investigating Steen’s death. Officer Ard has been placed on administrative duty. It will ultimately be up to the Florida attorney general to decide if charges will be filed in this case.

Find out more about this teen’s tragic death at Deadly chase brings new look at stun gun use.

The City of Jacksonville, Florida (Duval County) has unfortunately made the list of the top three cities in Florida for deadly automobile accidents involving teens. The other top cities in Florida, according to an Allstate Insurance Company study, were Tampa and Orlando. Driving distraction in the form of text messaging, e mails, web surfing, and talking on mobile phones is a major problem in these cities and others throughout Florida. Teens these days seemed to be tethered to their phones. This is fine when the teen is a passenger in the vehicle. On the other hand, acts like text messaging while driving can lead to automobile accidents involving serious personal injuries and, yes, the wrongful and untimely death of teens and others on Florida roads. You can read more about this recent study and dangers of distracted driving at Florida Teens: Distracted Driving Can Turn Deadly.

In Lake County, Florida and other school districts, young children get to school by school bus. There are several benefits to taking the school bus to school. The benefits include the following:
*Reduces traffic in and around school;
*Reduces the number of pedestrians and bicycle riders;
*Avoids dangers of walking for the children; and
*Provides assistance to working parents in need of bus transportation for their children.

It is sad that another benefit for children is that it keeps children away from the homes of sexual offenders and child predators. Some children walk or ride their bikes past the homes of sexual offenders and child predators in order to get to school. Due to budget cuts, Lake County and other school boards must consider measures to save money - this includes, at times, the reduction of bus services to children who live within a few miles from school. You can read more about the issues facing the Lake County School Board and busing at Lake County School Board - Youngest Kids Shouldn't Walk to School.