Child Injury Lawyer Blog
By Anthony Ferguson, Attorney and David Wolf, Attorney
Published by Child Injury Lawyer Network
Areas near schools and school bus areas can become quite congested during morning and afternoon hours. When there is a high concentration of children, there are dangers in high traffic areas. In Portland, Maine, parents of high school students are quite concerned about the safety of their children. Parents as well as high school principal (Michael Johnson) are urging city officials to mark off areas as a school zone so that drivers are mandated by law to slow down in the area near the high school. City officials, according to a story posted at The Forecaster Newspaper website, claim that the street in question (Cumberland Avenue) is a state road and as such there are limitations or restrictions of action by city officials.
A sixteen year old girl with no driver’s license and a borrowed car drove into a tree outside the Wagon Wheel Mobile Home Park in Alamosa, Colorado. She had three other teenagers and two small children, aged 20 months and 4 years, in the car with her at the time. The car had been borrowed from a relative of one of the passengers. The girl is expected to be charged with drunk driving (DUI), driving without a license and criminal negligence resulting in the injury of a child. The driver is claiming that a steering malfunction caused her to miss the turn she was trying to make into the park, and sent her into the tree instead.
In Cupertino, California, a 5 year old child was run over by a teacher. Tragically, the 5 year old died. It was later determined that the day care center, Elite Chinese School, did not have a day care license. Elite has a business license but did not have the separate California day care license. As such, the State of California never inspected the facility or its grounds for safety or compliance with the applicable day care center guidelines and regulations. The accident at issue is also under investigation.
Nancy Owens and Vanessa Ramirez were at a birthday party together, where both have admitted to drinking. Ms. Owens reportedly allowed Ms. Lopez to drive her three children home, even though she admitted to police that she was aware Ms. Lopez was “drunk.”
Parents can sometimes have a hard time determining when it is appropriate to take a child to the emergency room. CBS News medical correspondent and pediatrician Dr. Jennifer Ashton recently outlined some pointers for parents to recognize when an illness or injury is an emergency.
In Alabama, a mother was arrested for having her teenage child ride in a cardboard box on top of a van. The driver, Jackie Denise Knott, informed Albertville, Alabama police that she had a good reason for placing her teen on top of the van. The reason was that the driver needed someone to hold down a box. Here is a better idea for this driver: leave the box and avoid putting a child at risk for personal injuries. Several drivers had called in this dangerous situation to police.
In Allentown, Pennsylvania and cities across the nation, there is a common danger to children: parked cars and traffic. When cars are parked on the side of a street, it may be difficult for a children to see oncoming traffic. In addition, drivers may not see children who walk between parked cars into a street. A 10 year old boy in Allentown, Pennsylvania was recently hit by a car as he walked between two parked cars. The boy was taken to and treated at Cedar Crest Hospital. He suffered a severe personal injury to his leg. Local police will conduct an investigation as to the cause and manner of the accident.
In the United States, children are the unfortunate injury victims of driveway accidents or incidents. Many such incidents take place when a driver unknowingly back up over a small children standing, sitting, or walking on a driveway. The height of the vehicle combined with inattention of the driver and lack of safety awareness of the child all contribute to cause these injuries. In Australia, driveway injuries / deaths are also prevalent. The Queensland University of Technology will be conducting a study to determine the cause of such incidents / accidents and safety precautions that can be taken to avoid or reduce the rate or number of such injuries and deaths. You can read more at