Kentucky Personal Injury Lawyer Blog

In Kentucky, a recent Kentucky Supreme Court ruling has expanded spousal rights to sue for loss of consortium. The old law in Kentucky for a personal injury wrongful death case was that a spouse was entitled to loss of consortium up until the time that the other spouse died. But, with recent large accidents that have left a lot of spouses without their loved ones, such as the 2006 Comair Flight 5191 crash in Lexington, Kentucky, and widows of deceased miners, the Supreme Court took it upon itself to change the law. As a personal injury lawyer, Mr. Alitowski can explain to you all you need to know about personal injury wrongful death cases.

The case that helped change the law was a case where a wife, who had a husband who was disabled and completely dependent on his wife, was involved in a car accident. She died on the way to the hospital. The husband sued for loss of consortium and the jury awarded him damages, but the trial court only allowed the damages for his loss during the short time between his wife’s accident and her death. The Kentucky personal injury wrongful death law had been common law which only allowed damages for loss of consortium up to the time of death. The husband appealed and the Kentucky Supreme Court reversed holding that common sense would allow damages for the loss of marital companionship for the time after death. It used to be for only during the time between wrongful injury and death, but the Kentucky Supreme Court has now expanded the time for a spouse in which he or she can recover. And in the case of the man who was disabled and completely relied on his wife, you can see how this new ruling really makes sense.

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Airbags were first invented and placed into vehicles back in the 1970’s. But, it was not until the mid 1980’s did they become more common. In 1998, the United States mandated that all vehicles be equipped with dual front airbags.

The car airbag evolution continues as scientists think of more advanced ways of saving lives. In 2008 Toyota came out with a rear curtain shield airbag to protect the rear occupants. In 2009, Toyota came out with a rear-seat center airbag to help protect occupants incase of a side collision. And in 2009, Lexus has come out with a seatbelt airbag which is basically that the actual seatbelt inflates when the car accident occurs. These are great new items, says Kentcucky car accident attorney, Andrew Alitowski.

Though airbags are made to save lives, unfortunately sometimes they do not function or function improperly and injuries from them deploying do occur. Thus whenever you are in a car you should always wear your seatbelt. You should not rely on a car airbag to save your life. Second, you should stay well back from the steering wheel. Studies show that the height of a driver or passenger does affect the outcome in a car accident from a seatbelt and so this should be considered when entering a vehicle.

Third, when driving, you should keep your hands at the 10 and 2 positions. This will help protect you incase of the airbag going off, your arms won’t hit you in the face. Fourth, do not drive leaning over the steering wheel. Fifth, make sure children in the car are in the back seat; secured in car seats if so mandated. Unfortunately, children and infants are at the highest risk of sustaining injuries from a airbag going off. And sixth, if you have a passenger in the back seat, do not have dry cleaning or anything else hanging from the sides because if the side airbags go off, these items can become objects that hit and can cause injuries to those passengers. Mr. Alitowski as a Kentucky car accident attorney can help explain these things to you.

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In the State of Kentucky, car accidents are by far the most common way for a child to get hurt. Throughout the country, the statistics are that nearly 250,000 children are injured every year in a car accident. That comes out to roughly 700 children are injured due to a car accident every day.

Approximately 2,000 children die from car accident injuries every year. That is about 5% of all the car accidents involving a child. For children between the ages of 2 and 14, motor vehicle accidents are the leading cause of death. And 20% of the deaths of children invovle someone who is intoxicated.

So what can we do to better protect our children?

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The State of Kentucky is not one of the safest places to walk around. As compared to other states that have more walkways and side pathways, Kentucky is not as well equiped to handle pedestrian traffic as are some other states. In a recent study of pedestrian safety, Kentucky was the 7th most dangerous city for walking.

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The State Song of Kentucky is "My Old Kentucky Home." It was written by Stephen Collins Foster in 1850. It was officially declared Kentucky's State Song in 1928. One of the most popular renditions is by singer Paul Robeson. Mr. Robeson was born in 1898 and was a forerunner of the civil rights movement. This is his rendition.

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