Latest | Virginia Beach Legal Examiner

Virginia Wrongful Death Suit Expands Interpretation of Insurance Restrictions

The Virginia Supreme Court on Sept. 17, 2015, handed down a decision that has the potential to make it easier for all plaintiffs in personal injury and wrongful death lawsuits to collect on insurance claims. The case stemmed from an incident in which two drunk…

By Richard Shapiro

/ 18 Sep 2015

The Synergistic Effect of Smoking and Asbestos Exposure – A Deadly Team

As many as 1.3 million people in the U.S. go to a workplace where they’re exposed to asbestos every day, according to estimates by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). Mesothelioma (a deadly asbestos-related cancer) has been linked to asbestos exposure in workplaces (e.g. the…

By Richard Shapiro

/ 16 Sep 2015

Toddler’s Near Drowning in Corolla, NC, Highlights Backyard Pool Dangers

An Outer Banks vacation home served as the setting for a nearly fatal drowning on the evening of July 29, 2015. A 3-year-old boy fell into the rental house’s in-deck backyard pool and went undiscovered for an unknown amount of time. As the accompanying picture,…

By Richard Shapiro

/ 30 Jul 2015

BNSF Engineer Fired for Reporting Safety Problems Awarded $1.25M in Whistleblower Suit

A veteran locomotive engineer who got fired twice after going to federal regulators with concerns over his employer’s failure to fix track safety problems has won a whistleblower lawsuit against Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway. A federal jury in Tacoma, Washington (WA), on May 27,…

By Richard Shapiro

/ 28 Jul 2015

Log Truck Wreck in North Carolina Kills One

A log truck slammed into a car in Powellsville, North Carolina today, killing the car driver. North Carolina State Police reported that the driver was going south on US-13 when his car was T-boned by an International tractor trailer carrying logs. Logs were strewn across…

By Richard Shapiro

/ 14 Jul 2015

As Schools Let Out for Summer, Heed Lessons on Backyard Pool Safety

On May 31, 2015, a 6-year-old girl drowned in a private pool in Virginia Beach, VA. Very little information was made public about the tragedy, but it prompted the head of the city’s Emergency Medical Services Division to share these backyard pool safety tips with…

By Randy Appleton

/ 8 Jun 2015

May is Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month

The month of May is dedicated to Motorcycle Safety Awareness, a national safety initiative that focuses on motorists and motorcyclists “sharing the road” with one another. But more and more people are taking a stand and encouraging rider safety, maybe on a smaller scale, but…

By Randy Appleton

/ 22 May 2015

Tort “Deform” May Become Reality in Missouri

A bill that will set an award limit in medical malpractice lawsuits was passed by Missouri lawmakers. It was passed as a compromise between Republicans and Democrats, who had disagreed about previous efforts to pass damages caps through the State Senate. A Closer Outline of…

By Richard Shapiro

/ 5 May 2015

Zofran Side Effects – Serious Risk of Birth Defects?

The prescription drug Zofran, made by drug maker GlaxoSmithKline, is under fire for unapproved use. Most recently, the popular nausea drug has been linked to birth defects. Zofran was initially approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to help cancer patients that were…

By Richard Shapiro

/ 5 May 2015

Keeping Oil Trains Safe Requires More Than New Rail Tank Cars

Nearly 40 percent of all train derailments in the United States result from broken rails or other track problems. Looking only at train crashes that occur outside of rail yards, the percentage of derailments that happen when switches fail to close, rocky ballast subsides or…

By Randy Appleton

/ 3 May 2015

Intentional Hit-and-Run Injures South Carolina Moped Rider

An April 27, 2015, crash on Highway 29 in Belton, South Carolina (SC), involving a moped and a car appears to have been no accident. According to television station WYFF, Anderson County police investigating the collision that left the moped rider needing hospital treatment for…

By Richard Shapiro

/ 30 Apr 2015

NTSB Calls for Immediate Action on Designing and Deploying Fire-Resistant Rail Cars for Oil and Ethanol

News of train derailments and accidents that result in massive oil-fueled fires and explosions have become almost routine. While few such railroad instances in the United States have led directly to losses of life, the risks for injuries and extensive damage to property, the environment…

By Richard Shapiro

/ 8 Apr 2015