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Nursing home neglect in Arkansas is, unfortunately, not a new phenomenon. Cases date back decades and have resulted in avoidable deaths. Nursing home abuse is 100% avoidable, and our loved ones should not be subjected to mistreatment at the hands of their caretakers. Victims and their family members have the right to stand up and demand responsible parties be held accountable—regardless of whether or not criminal charges are filed. The experienced Arkansas nursing home abuse lawyers at the Pfeifer Law Firm can help.

Elder Neglect in Little Rock Nursing Home Results in Tragedy

The latest nursing home neglect case in Little Rock involves a facility operated by Arkansas Elder Outreach named Pleasant Valley Nursing & Rehabilitation. According to reports, the patient began living at the nursing home in 2012. Almost immediately she began suffering falls at the facility—a problem that would plague her for years and, eventually, result in her untimely death.

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When it comes to car crashes, the face is one of the most exposed areas of the body. A person’s head is where the airbag will expand to, where glass shards will fall, and where other objects from outside the car will land. While many people think of whiplash or traumatic brain injuries in reference to car crashes, the facial injuries alone can be devastating. If you or a loved one have sustained facial injuries in a crash that was caused by someone else’s negligence, you deserve to be compensated for the pain, the recovery, and the long-lasting effects. Contact an experienced Little Rock personal injury attorney for more information on the legal process of submitting an insurance claim and recovering monetarily for your injuries.

Common Facial Injuries Due to Car Accidents

Our face is an integral part of how we interact with the world. Our eyes help us see, nose helps us smell, and facial muscles express emotion. Facial injuries can permanently change how we view the world and how the world views us. Common facial injuries seen as a result of car crashes include:

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Far too many families struggle from the emotional and financial burden that a hit-and-run accident may cause a family. I’ve talked with loved ones who have no idea how to recover emotionally or financially from the long-lasting effects that a tragedy such as this may cause. Crash data from a three-year period shows the number of fatal hit and run accidents in Arkansas is rising at roughly 4.5% every year. Just last month a 27-year-old woman and an elderly man were killed on Interstate 40 just south of Little Rock, Arkansas after a hit and run driver left the woman’s car disabled on the roadway.

At-fault individuals caught by police face serious jail time, but as anyone who has lived through a hit and run accident in Arkansas will tell you, seeing that the other driver is punished often takes a back seat to simply surviving the immediate aftermath of a crash. The pain and suffering (both physical and emotional) can be tremendous, but victims also have to cope with the financial strain a careless person’s actions have forced on their family. That burden may not be as heavy as the fear and anxiety experienced in the first few days after a collision, but it can be significant and have devastating and lasting effects of its own.

The True Cost of Auto Accidents in Arkansas

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Many victims are under the false impression that if a driver is charged with a crime because of their involvement in a truck accident in Arkansas, that the injured individuals cannot seek financial compensation via a personal injury claim. That’s simply not true. Personal injury claims pursuing financial damages from at-fault parties and their insurance companies can be filed regardless of any active or pending criminal prosecution. The two processes are completely separate in the eyes of the law and (when/if necessary) will be handled by different branches of the court system.

Many personal injury claims resulting from truck accidents in Arkansas never result in lawsuits. Most insurance companies are eager to settle with victims who are represented by an attorney before the lawsuit makes it to the courthouse. This means that the majority of victims can get any monetary damages they are entitled to without an extended legal battle or having to wait for criminal cases to crawl through the justice system.

The Danger of Big Truck Accidents in Arkansas is Real

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If you or a family member has been injured in a motorcycle accident in Arkansas, chances are the last thing on your mind is the machinations of the state’s legal system. You’re pouring all your effort into recovering from your injuries one day at a time. But there are important factors which can determine the long-term outcome of your recovery that must be addressed as soon as possible. Chief among them is determining who exactly is at fault. This has a tremendous impact on your ability to provide a stable financial situation for yourself and your family following a devastating motorcycle crash.

Motorcycle Accidents in Arkansas are Increasing

There were 79 fatal motorcycle accidents in Arkansas in 2015 according to the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA). That number represents a 25% increase over the previous year’s figures and makes 2015 the deadliest year for motorcyclists since 2010 (and the second deadliest since way back in 2006). To put these numbers in perspective, deaths caused by motorcycle accidents in Arkansas represent over 13% of all traffic fatalities even though there are only 91,000 bikes registered as opposed to almost 950,000 automobiles. And it’s estimated that for every fatal motorcycle accident there are between 3 and 10 non-fatal accidents which leave riders suffering from serious, long-lasting injuries.

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A pedestrian accident in Fayetteville claimed the life of a young woman earlier this month. To make the situation even worse, the driver fled the scene.

It is becoming more difficult with each passing day to pick up the paper in the mornings to find yet another article written about an innocent person’s life being taken at the hands of an irresponsible driver who chose to drink and drive. These stories are especially hard to read because these types of accidents are 100% preventable.

The driver, who ran from the scene of the crash, was later found to be intoxicated. The CDC estimates that nearly one-third (29%) of all fatal traffic accidents in the United States involve alcohol. Another 16% of crashes are caused by drivers under the influence of other legal and illegal drugs, including marijuana.

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Deteriorating roadways in the United States are a major concern. We all hear politicians from different political ideology talk about investment in infrastructure to help us economically. However, fewer discuss the need for major updates to our roads for the safety of drivers and passengers of cars and trucks. A new report found that infrastructure investments have the potential to save 63,700 lives and prevent 353,560 serious injuries over a 20-year period if changes and updates were made to interstates and roads.

“Safety Benefits of Highway Infrastructure Investments” released earlier this month by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, a nonprofit research and education association, details key strategies to accomplish that goal. The report noted that the U.S. is ranked nearly last among developed countries in annual traffic fatalities. This fact should not be ignored. The report listed six items that the group recommends to greatly reduce car accident deaths and injures. They recommended that key intersections be turned into roundabouts, install roadside barriers and clear roadside objects, add sidewalks and signalized pedestrian crossings on majority of roads, install median barriers on divided highways, install shoulder and center line rumble strips, and pave and widen highway shoulders.

Inattentive driving is a big cause of car and truck accidents. The changes outlined in the report would help alleviate careless driving and make our roads safer. Several cities in Arkansas are putting roundabouts in new developments to help alleviate traffic congestion. I hear complaints about these intersections; however, I believe that as they become more common, people will not have issues with their use. Several people have told me that they hated roundabouts at first but they really enjoy them now. We should all do our part to tell our politicians to start making these changes for the good of our economy and our safety.

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Determining fault in an Arkansas car accident is not always a straightforward affair. While some accidents lend themselves to simple explanations of what happened, others present a much less clear situation.

Surveillance CameraNormally, police or other investigative authorities will survey the scene of an accident for evidence that can help them determine what caused a car accident and who was at fault. Of course, this may mean collecting physical evidence from the scene of the accident, and it may also include noting skid marks, checking cell phone records, and surveying nearby homes and businesses for video surveillance.

As video technology has increased over the years, the price of high-quality surveillance systems has significantly dropped, making them more affordable for homeowners and business owners. While owners of these surveillance systems are not likely thinking about catching an accident on tape, police can request video that may be able to help them determine what happened in the moments leading up to a serious accident.

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Proving an Arkansas personal injury case against another driver is not always as straightforward as it may seem. In some cases, this is because determining what happened in the moments leading up to the accident is difficult to impossible, given the injuries sustained by the parties or a lack of available evidence. In other cases, however, it may be relatively easy to determine who was at fault for the accident, but proving that they can be held legally responsible can be an issue.

Windy RoadGovernment Immunity

Accidents involving a government employee can present particular difficulties for victims. This is because as a general rule, government entities and employees are entitled to immunity from personal injury lawsuits. However, in some situations, government immunity does not apply to an employee’s actions. For example, if the government employee is not acting within the scope of their employment, immunity may not attach. Similarly, if a government employee’s actions are intentional or especially reckless, immunity may not apply. Determining whether immunity attaches is highly dependent upon the surrounding circumstances of the accident.

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Earlier this year, the Arkansas Court of Appeals issued a written opinion in a motorcycle accident case that was brought by a man who was injured when an overhead cable was accidentally pulled down by a passing tractor. The issue presented to the court was whether the owner of the wooden poles that held the cable could be held liable to the plaintiff for his injuries. Ultimately, the court determined that the owner of the poles did not owe a duty of care to the plaintiff, and the plaintiff’s case was dismissed.

Power LinesThe Facts of the Case

The plaintiff was riding a motorcycle behind a tractor on a rural road when the tractor’s sickle caught an overhead cable, pulling it down. The cable fell, causing the plaintiff to lose control of his motorcycle and ultimately resulting in a crash. The plaintiff filed a personal injury lawsuit against several parties, including the driver of the tractor as well as the company that owned the wooden poles that held up the cable.

The company that owned the poles was not the same company that owned the cable. However, the company that owned the poles had previously entered into an agreement with the cable company to allow the placement of the cables.

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