Georgia Legal Issues Blog

2 motor vehicle accidents occur within minutes on I-75

On behalf of Morris & Dean posted in personal injury on Wednesday, May 16, 2018.

The Georgia State Patrol has announced another fatal and horrific crash on the state's roads. The accident occurred on I-75 in Henry County at about 9 a.m. on Thursday, May 10. The precise circumstances remain unknown, but it involved two vehicles that apparently collided on the interstate in the northbound lanes. As often happens in such catastrophic motor vehicle accidents, a second major crash occurred in the southbound lanes within minutes of the first.

The first crash involved a sedan and an SUV. The SUV flipped over several times on the highway and ejected all nine passengers. The driver of the sedan was not ejected but did suffer injuries. The nine passengers in the SUV consisted of six children and three adults. The passengers all apparently suffered injuries and an 11-year-old girl was killed, according to the Georgia State Patrol.

Criminal defense raises challenges to sorority sex allegations

On behalf of Morris & Dean posted in criminal defense on Wednesday, May 9, 2018.

An investigation of sorority members at a state university in Georgia has resulted in the suspension of the sorority and the resignation of a female administrative employee who served as the sorority adviser. Authorities are investigating whether the woman was acting to sell the sorority pledges of Alpha Kappa Alpha at the Fort Valley State University to businessmen in the community for sexual activities. Criminal defense counsel for the woman said that the allegations were false and "incredulous."

The pledges allegedly engaged in sexual play for pay to take care of their pledging fees at the sorority. Those fees could range from $700 to $2,500. The national sorority condemned the allegations and said that they did not reflect the service-based mission of the organization for the past 110 years. The group announced it had launched its own internal investigation.

Motor vehicle accidents may lead to wrongful death damages

On behalf of Morris & Dean posted in personal injury on Wednesday, May 2, 2018.

Georgia, like other states, is the unwilling host to thousands of traffic injuries and fatalities each year. Many of these motor vehicle accidents are caused by carelessness and innocent distraction, while many others are more egregious due to impairment with alcohol or drugs. Sometimes, fatalities occur when a driver loses all sense of safety and self-preservation, driving in such a reckless manner that the outcome will be etched in that wrongdoer's awareness for a long time to come.

On March 26, 2018 the small town of Morrow, Georgia experienced a reckless driving accident in which the vehicle operator was driving at more than 100 mph on I-75 when the car left the road and became airborne. The car flipped several times and crashed into a tree, killing the 18-year-old passenger. The 17-year-old driver survived only to face a vehicular homicide charge and some real time in prison.

Concert no-shows are naturals for business litigation courts

On behalf of Morris & Dean posted in business torts and business litigation on Wednesday, April 25, 2018.

In Georgia as well as elsewhere, contracts for live concerts tend to run into quite a bit of contention between the parties. When the dispute cannot be mediated or resolved by private negotiations, the dispute will go to court and become another entry into the state's roster of business litigation cases. There are many different reasons for disputes over live entertainment to be commonplace, such as the failure of performers to make the show, the failure of promoters to sell enough tickets, and the failure to pay the entertainer the full amount promised.

Many other reasons can arise based on the particular facts of the situation. One recent lawsuit illustrates a common kind of business litigation matter between a performer and the promoters. The promoters recently sued rapper Travis Scott for not showing up at a scheduled concert. He responded with a counterclaim asking for the remainder of his $200,000 fee even though it is undisputed that he did not show up.

A truck accident lawsuit may involve many different parties

On behalf of Morris & Dean posted in blog on Friday, April 20, 2018.

In a typical car accident between two consumer drivers, parties exchange insurance information, build claims, and file them with their respective insurers or with the insurers of the other party. In most cases, the only potential defendants are the drivers and the claims hang on evidence that one or both drivers caused the accident.

In contrast, truck accidents regularly involve several other parties beyond any of the drivers involved in the accident itself, such as the company that hired the driver of the commercial truck, the company that packed the freight load, or the company that repairs the vehicle and keeps it maintained for the road. Depending on the causes of the accident itself, any or all of these parties may be liable for the accident, and may serve as defendants in a personal injury claim.

Falling asleep remains a major cause of motor vehicle accidents

On behalf of Morris & Dean posted in personal injury on Wednesday, April 18, 2018.

Georgia like other states is grappling with the relatively recent problem of distraction on the highways. This phenomenon has led to an increase in motor vehicle accidents. Falling asleep at the wheel is not technically in the same statistical category; it has been, instead, a substantial cause of deadly highway accidents for a very long time.

The latest accident in Georgia caused by falling asleep at the wheel was a car crash on I-985 South in Hall County that occurred on Friday, April 13 at about 7 a.m. The 21-year-old male driver veered off the interstate near the Plainview Overpass, causing the vehicle to go down an embankment and into a wooded area. It continued out-of-control until it hit a cement structure and then finally crashed into a tree.

Passengers hurt in car accidents can recover monetary damages

On behalf of Morris & Dean posted in personal injury on Monday, April 9, 2018.

In Georgia as in other states the law of personal injury is based on the legal concept of negligence. This doctrine imposes a duty of due care owed by vehicle operators toward one another. When car accidents occur, if one or more drivers were negligent in causing the mishap, then they must compensate victims injured in the accident. There are, however, many complexities of negligence law, and its application differs from state to state.

One concept that is clearly established regarding car accidents is that a passenger who is seriously injured in a vehicular collision is nearly always entitled to collect monetary compensation from the at-fault negligent driver(s). The passenger has a claim against all parties at fault, including the driver of the vehicle that the passenger occupied. For example, a passenger reportedly injured in a recent accident is Fulton County Commission Chairman Robb Pitts.

Georgia teen likely considering criminal defense

On behalf of Morris & Dean posted in criminal defense on Friday, April 6, 2018.

Some law enforcement authorities in Georgia encourage people to be vigilant of their surroundings and contact police if they notice any suspicious behavior. However, "suspicious" is a subjective term, and often, behaviors that some would label as such turn out to be easily explained. Unfortunately, a teenager has recently found himself facing criminal charges after a concerned citizen contacted police, likely leaving the young man considering his criminal defense.

The events that led to the 18-year-old's arrests -- as well as a juvenile who was allegedly with him -- are said to have happened during the early-morning hours of a day in late March. According to reports, police received a call from a resident. The caller was concerned that the youths were breaking into cars after the former allegedly saw them walking away from a home.

Personal injury recovery is available to nursing home victims

On behalf of Morris & Dean posted in personal injury on Tuesday, March 27, 2018.

Nursing home neglect and abuse is well-documented nationwide, including in Georgia. One of the biggest problems appears to be the staffing of nursing homes with unskilled workers who are underpaid and under-supervised. When a loved one in a nursing home suffers injury or death from nursing home negligence or intentional abuse, the institution may be held liable for personal injury or wrongful death damages. This is true even if the institution knows nothing about the incident; the institution's owners are liable for the torts of their employees carried out within the scope of their job duties.

A man in another state recently made a claim against a besieged nursing home for allegedly causing the death of his 84-year-old mother due to alleged lack of care and abuse. The man claims that his mother was wheelchair bound because of severe arthritis. He claims that the staff left her for hours at a time without any care, allowing her to be covered with her own feces and urine for long periods.

Challenging your Breathalyzer results after a DUI

On behalf of Morris & Dean posted in blog on Monday, March 26, 2018.

DUI charges in Georgia are relatively common, but they are not a matter to take lightly. Even for first-time offenders, the consequences can cause complications and restrictions to privileges for years, on top of the serious fines you must pay if convicted.

As soon as you are charged, the prosecutor began working on building a case against you, possibly seeking the maximum penalties available. To the prosecutor, you are not a good person who made a mistake or someone who had a few more drinks that they realized and was just over the legal limit. You are simply another case among hundreds, and it is the prosecution's job to secure convictions.