10 Preparations For An Automobile Accident

Sat, 11 Feb 2012 05:38:58 +0000

1. Prepare Ahead of Time
Of course it is easier said than done, but drivers should prepare ahead of time for a car accident. In his or her automobile, a driver should keep all documents required by law in Connecticut (such as proof of car insurance and vehicle registration), a pen and paper for taking notes, and information regarding special medical needs, such as allergies or other conditions that may require special care. I used to advise individuals to keep a disposable camera in the car. While this is still not a bad idea, the proliferation of smartphones with photographic capability has rendered this suggestion rather archaic. Furthermore, it is advisable to keep a flashlight, a first-aid kit, a set of cones or warning triangles, and/or emergency flares in your trunk.

2. Know Your Insurance Coverage
The entire insurance process is much easier if you know the details of your coverage before you get in an accident. It is important not to wait until a collision before you find out whether your injuries, towing expenses, rental car, etc. will be covered. Furthermore, it is advisable to maintain a level of insurance coverage above the minimum required by law. While, I certainly understand the incentive to save some money and buy low cost auto insurance, many personal injuries deriving from car accidents exceed Connecticut’s minimum insurance requirement. According to Connecticut law, if a person causes damage to another person or property in excess of his or her insurance coverage, then that person may be liable for the excess. Therefore, it is important to maintain enough insurance to cover potential debts, otherwise your home or bank account could be put at risk.

3. Remain Calm and Civil
Being in a car accident can be frustrating, nerve-wracking, and even life threatening. Still, it is important to maintain a level of civility with the other driver in an effort to gain their respect, and potentially leniency. Remaining calm and civil also helps a party to deal with the police.

4. Stay Away From Traffic
Drivers involved in minor accidents with no serious injuries should move their cars to the side of the road and out of the way of oncoming traffic. Leaving cars parked in the middle of the road or busy intersection can result in additional accidents and/or injuries. If a car cannot be moved, drivers and passengers should remain in the cars with seatbelts fastened for everyone’s safety until help arrives. Make sure to turn on hazard lights and set out cones, flares or warning triangles if possible.

5. Take Photographs
Many people have smart-phones with cameras nowadays. Use it. If you do not have a phone with a camera, use a conventional camera, or keep a disposable camera in your car in case your phone’s battery is dead. After an accident, take as many pictures as you can to document the accident. Keep in mind that you want your photos to show the overall context of the accident so that you can make your case to a claims adjuster. If you do not have a camera available, write down on paper how the accident occurred and describe the damage.

6. Exchange Information
After the accident, exchange the following information with the other driver: name, address, phone number, insurance company, policy number, driver license number and license plate number for the driver and the owner of each vehicle. If the driver’s name is different from the name of the insured, establish what the relationship is and take down the name and address for each individual. Also make a written description of each car, including year, make, model and color — and the exact location of the collision and how it happened. Finally, be polite but don’t tell the other drivers or the police that the accident was your fault, even if you think it was.

7. File an Accident Report
Although it may be inconvenient, drivers should file a vehicle accident report with the police, especially if they believe they were not at fault for the accident. A police report often helps insurance companies speed up the claims process.

8. Identify Witnesses
If the matter must go to court, it is important to know who can serve as a witness. After an accident, get the names and contact information of anyone who saw the crash. Do this as quickly as possible because people who witness collisions will typically only stop for a short time. Other motorists, passengers or pedestrians can be critical witnesses. Get their name and phone number.

9. Do Not Discuss Fault
Do not blame the other driver even if they were clearly at fault. It may just start an argument. However, if the other driver admits it was their fault, make a note of precisely what you remember them saying. Even if you feel you may have been partially at fault, do not say anything that admits your feeling. “Fault” is often a complex determination based on the facts and complicated laws. Leave that issue for the police to decide – or an attorney, if necessary.

10. Contact Your Insurance Agent
All insurance policies require you to notify your insurance company. Usually this must be done shortly after the accident. Unnecessary delay in telling your insurance company about the crash can result in a denial of your claim.
If you have been in a car accident in Connecticut, whether or not it is your fault, it is important that you hire an experienced personal injury attorney who can help to protect your legal rights.

Immigrants Detained in US Without Criminal Charges

Sat, 11 Feb 2012 05:29:58 +0000

The United States already imprisons more people than any other country- in excess of 2 million. An article by the Huffington Post (linked below) recently revealed a new related statistic; on a given day the United States government most likely incarcerates over 10,000 people who have not committed any crime. These individuals are being held behind bars in immigration detention because they are in this country illegally, not because they committed crime. (It is important to note that law considers the act of being in the country without status a civil, rather than a criminal, offense. While some may disagree with this characterization, that is the current law.)

The Huffington Post article, which, through the aid of the Freedom of Information Act, uncovered that on a particular October day last fall over 13,000 individuals who were not facing criminal charges were being detained. These individuals remain in a state of legal limbo, as United States immigration authorities decide their fate.

If an individual is being held in such detention on suspicion of being in this country illegally, that individual should know that they have the right to speak to a representative from their consulate and an attorney.

The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency’s official policy, as stated by spokeswoman Nicole Navas, is to focus on “smart, effective immigration enforcement that prioritizes the removal of convicted criminal aliens, fugitives, recent illegal border crossers and egregious immigration law violators. . . .” However, the recent news indicates that these detention centers do not focus on the removal of dangerous illegal immigrants (such as murders and rapists) from this country as indicated by ICE. Furthermore, the cost of the immigration detentions is staggering, costing the government roughly $730 Million Dollars annually.

As the Republican Presidential Primary heats up and eventually leads to a clash in the general election, I expect to see more rhetoric focusing on immigration. We will see how the candidates handle these issues, and balance the practical, legal and humanitarian issues illegal immigration presents.

Four East Haven Connecticut Officers Arrested

Thu, 26 Jan 2012 21:01:44 +0000

This week, federal authorities arrested four East Haven, Connecticut police officers on charges of conspiracy, false arrest, excessive force, and obstruction of justice. First, it is important to remember that the officers are innocent until they, individually or collectively, are proven to be guilty in a court of law before a jury of their peers.

The charges stemmed from the officers’ (known as the Miller Boys) alleged targeting of Latinos or Hispanics in the Connecticut community. The four arrested are Sgt. John Miller and three officers, David Cari, Dennis Spaulding and Jason Zullo. As described by the New York Times, “They stopped and detained people, particularly immigrants, without reason, federal prosecutors said, sometimes slapping, hitting or kicking them when they were handcuffed, and once smashing a man’s head into a wall. They followed and arrested residents, including a local priest, who tried to document their behavior.”

If the allegations have merit, I expect a related civil lawsuit will be filed soon, if one has not been already. Such a lawsuit would most likely utilize Section 1983 of Title 42 of the Civil Rights Act. This section essentially provides that when a governmental official violates a resident’s civil rights, sovereign immunity is waived (allowing the resident to sue the government), and the resident receives a monetary remedy to compensate for the deprivation.

It is important to note, Section 1983 allows any “person in the jurisdiction” (the United States) to bring suit, and therefore even if the people the officers are accused of targeting immigrated to this country illegally, they may still have a cause of action against the officers and the Town of New Haven. While a recent fifth circuit decision held that illegal immigrants do not have fourth Amendment rights, it is clear in the second circuit (where Connecticut resides) that all people have a right to freedom from unwarranted searches and seizures.

US Citizen Deported To Columbia

Fri, 13 Jan 2012 19:36:36 +0000

A bizarre immigration case emerged this week as a U.S. citizen who was accidentally deported to Columbia by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials returned home after 6 months.
Texas teenager Jakadrien Lorece Turner ran away from home in 2010. Several months later Ms. Turner was arrested and charged with a misdemeanor theft in Houston. At that time she told local authorities her name was Ms. Tika Lanay Cortez, and insisted on her false identity. (For a more descriptive account please view the link below.) It is not clear to what extent, but she was committing the identity theft of a real life Columbian citizen who was born in 1990.
As Ms. Turner was transferred from local to federal officials her case got lost in the mix, and her insistence on the false identity resulted in her deportation to Columbia. Now she has returned, after spending an extended amount of time in a Columbian prison.
The legal question the article asks is whether U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials had a responsibility to determine if a person is a citizen. In general, ICE has an obligation to determine the correct identity of a person in their custody. However, it is certainly quite rare for a U.S. Citizen to engage in purposeful action to deceive ICE in an effort to be deported to Columbia. Regardless, one would think that ICE officials should know she was not who she claimed to be since she did not even speak Spanish.
I think she thought she could get a free vacation to Columbia. Still, this is a very sad case, and the most important thing is that a runaway teenager has been found and will hopefully now have a support mechanism behind her (whether its family or appointed) so that she can turn her life around.

Who is to blame for car accidents in icy weather?

Fri, 13 Jan 2012 19:11:55 +0000

While many may not enjoy the winter season, it is typically one of the busiest times of year for a personal injury attorney. Connecticut’s icy wintertime roads inevitably lead to more motor vehicle accidents, and thus a larger caseload.
That’s why it is extremely important at this time of year to be careful when you are operating a car around Connecticut. With that parent-like advice out of the way, someone asked me a question at a holiday party that I wanted to share on this blog; who is responsible when a car crash is the result of Mother Nature?
According to Connecticut law, in order for an injured party to collect from another person, the injured party typically must show that the other party acted negligently. This is true under icy or other safer driving conditions. To be negligent in Connecticut, another party’s operation of a motor vehicle must not meet, or “breach”, the required standard of care. The required standard of care is described throughout Connecticut as that of a reasonably prudent man, but the issues presented may also be fact-specific. Therefore, people are expected to conform their actions to their surroundings, and when the roads are in hazardous conditions, drivers are expected to operate vehicles more carefully, as would a hypothetical reasonably prudent man.
A potential legal question regarding a motor vehicle accident in Connecticut occurring in winter that a jury may have submitted to them is whether the driver of a motor vehicle’s standard of care conformed to the driving habits of a reasonably prudent person operating in blizzard (or some other) conditions. Therefore, while the legal questions to prove fault for car accidents occurring in Connecticut during winter or summer are generally the same, the facts regarding the accident will ultimately help determine who is at fault. If the accident is truly the result of Mother Nature and all cars were operated safely, then maybe no one is to blame, but as a lawyer generally refuse to accept such claims.

Connecticut’s Personal Injury Statute of Limitations

Tue, 03 Jan 2012 02:28:01 +0000

If you have been involved in a car accident, slipped and fell, or suffered some other form of personal injury in Connecticut, it is likely that you have only TWO years from the date of the injury to file a claim. Most types of personal injuries are the result of one party acting negligently. For instance, motor vehicle wrecks in Connecticut usually occur because one party failed to operate his or her vehicle with a reasonable amount of care. Regardless of whether another driver was texting, speeding, eating, or had been drinking while driving, that party has acted negligently. Under theses scenarios, a plaintiff’s ability to assert a cause of action for negligence to recover for damage to his or her personal or property is most likely limited by Connecticut General Statute 52-584. This statute of limitation is titled – Limitation of action for injury to person or property caused by negligence, misconduct or malpractice – and requires a plaintiff in Connecticut to file suit within two years of discovering an injury, but not more than three years from the act complained of. The statute is listed in full below.

Even though an injured party has 2 years to file a claim, it is important to meet with an attorney and get the process started as early as possible so that all expenses (lost wages, medical bills, etc.) can be properly documented. Additionally, it is important to meet with an attorney because your particular type of injury may be limited by a statute other than Conn. Gen. Stat. 52-584.

Sec. 52-584. Limitation of action for injury to person or property caused by negligence, misconduct or malpractice. No action to recover damages for injury to the person, or to real or personal property, caused by negligence, or by reckless or wanton misconduct, or by malpractice of a physician, surgeon, dentist, podiatrist, chiropractor, hospital or sanatorium, shall be brought but within two years from the date when the injury is first sustained or discovered or in the exercise of reasonable care should have been discovered, and except that no such action may be brought more than three years from the date of the act or omission complained of, except that a counterclaim may be interposed in any such action any time before the pleadings in such action are finally closed.

To view the actual law

ICE Has A New Hotline For Detainees

Tue, 03 Jan 2012 02:15:51 +0000

Federal officials from the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency (ICE) recently announced the creation of a telephone hotline as part of a “broader effort to improve our immigration enforcement process and prioritize resources to focus on threats to public safety, repeat immigration law violators, recent border entrants, and immigration fugitives while continuing to strengthen oversight of the nation’s immigration detention system and facilitate legal immigration,” an ICE press release stated.

The toll-free number, (855) 448-6903, is available for detainees held by local law enforcement officials if the detainees believe they may be U.S. citizens or victims of a crime. When an individual that has been detained by local police is suspected of being in the country illegally, the local department is supposed to turn over suspects or criminals to ICE within 48 hours for possible deportation. However, many local law enforcement agencies do not follow the federal law, and the institution of the hotlines comes amid controversy regarding local law enforcement agencies’ constitutional ability to detain individuals they believe to be in the country illegally.

The hotline will be available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and will be staffed by ICE personnel. ICE will have interpreters available in several languages, although they have not made public the specific languages available as of yet. “ICE personnel will collect information from the individual and refer it to the relevant ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations field office for immediate action,” the statement said.

Additionally, ICE officials are preparing to issue a form to all detainees, which will inform them that ICE will assume their custody within 48 hours. The form will be available in English as well as Spanish, French, Portuguese, Chinese and Vietnamese.

The form “advises individuals that if ICE does not take them into custody within the 48 hours, they should contact the [law enforcement agency] or entity that is holding them to inquire about their release from state or local custody.”

While I believe this is a positive move for ICE, I would caution anyone who is unsure of his or her immigration status to call the hotline.

For More Information:

Calculating Person Injury Damages

Tue, 20 Dec 2011 02:27:45 +0000

People often ask me, how do juries and insurance companies arrive at the amount of money they award to plaintiffs? Some juries award damages in the hundred of millions of Dollars, while others have awarded much less, so it is bound to cause some confusion. I will attempt to provide a short answer regarding Connecticut personal injury law damage awards here.

When a party is determined to be liable for the personal injury of another party, meaning that a jury decided that the actions or omissions of the party, whether intentional or negligent, caused injury to another, a jury will award the injured party damages. Juries in Connecticut are not just supposed to make up the numbers; they are to be based on a variety of factors.

The general goal of personal injury, or tort, damages is to return the injured party to his or her pre-injury state through compensation. One very common factor that determines the extent of a jury award is the injured party’s decreased earning’s potential. Under this rule, a party can be compensated for the amount of money they will no longer be able to earn due to the injury. Therefore, in a car accident, assuming they have similar injuries, a young neurosurgeon will normally collect more in damages than an older blue-collar worker. Whether you agree with that or not, that is the law in the State of Connecticut.

Other factors include medical costs, the extent of the injured party’s pain and suffering, damage to property, loss of consortium (a term referring to companionship), and punitive damages. Punitive damages, unlike most of tort damages, are primarily designed to punish the wrongdoer, rather than to compensate the injured party. Because of their punitive nature, punitive damages are less frequently available to plaintiffs. These are all topics that you should discuss with a Connecticut personal injury attorney before you decide to institute a court action.

Legal Status Of Connecticut’s Dream Act

Tue, 20 Dec 2011 02:24:46 +0000

Last May, Connecticut passed the DREAM ACT, a piece of legislation that allows undocumented students who graduated from a Connecticut High School to attend a State university and pay the in-state rate. Supporters of the bill called it “common sense” (Governor Daniel Malloy), and argue that these youths’ right to education should not be impeded due to the actions of their parents and their uncertain immigration status. Opponents characterize the bill as placating individuals that came to the United States illegally and fear that the program could displace other qualified students.

A few days ago I came upon in article in the Washington Examiner discussing the legal posture of similar bills around the country. The article cites Federal Legislation passed in 1996 and signed into law by President Bill Clinton, ‘The Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act.’ According to Section 1623 of that statute, state colleges and universities are prohibited from providing in-state tuition rates to illegal aliens on the basis of residence within the State, unless the state provides the same benefit to citizens regardless of their residence. The article claims that 12 states, including as Connecticut, are brazenly and unambiguously violating federal law to benefit undocumented individuals.

To this point, the Obama administration has not challenged such state legislation in Federal Court. If the Connecticut Act is challenged, it will be interesting to see if Connecticut’s high school graduation condition adequately circumvents the residency prohibition discussed in the Federal Bill.

Read More about the Dream Act in Connecticut

Why You Should Hire a Trustworthy Personal Injury Attorney

Sat, 10 Dec 2011 22:49:17 +0000

The Hartford Courant is reporting that a Stamford Chiropractor is the latest individual to be arrested in an undercover FBI insurance sting. In addition to the chiropractor, a Connecticut personal injury attorney and other medical professionals are accused of conspiracy to exaggerate medical claims and commit insurance fraud. Such insurance fraud should have no place in personal injury law. This is why it is important to hire a trustworthy and honest Connecticut Personal Injury Lawyer.

To read more CLICK HERE.