Florida Child Injury Law Blog

Posts Tagged ‘When Kids Suffer Big Injuries’

A report of a particularly heartless hit-and-run pedestrian crash comes from South Florida television station WSVN. Police are looking for the hit-and-run driver who struck a young child, who is now confined to a wheelchair.

The six-year-old boy, a pedestrian, was hit by a car when he crossed Lucy Street near Second Avenue in Homestead, in the company of his father and three-year-old brother, at around 7 p.m. on Thursday. The boy was in the turn lane when he was hit by the car. The driver fled the scene without stopping.

Police have located the vehicle, but the whereabouts of the twenty-two-year-old driver is unknown.

The injured child was taken first to Homestead Hospital and then to Miami Children’s Hospital. He has been released in a wheelchair with a rod in his leg.

Police are appealing to the public for help in locating the missing driver. Leaving the scene of an accident in which a person has been injured in a third degree felony in Florida at present, but the Florida legislature is considering a bill introduced by Senator Mike Fasano to increase the penalty to a second degree felony.

Florida child injury attorney James Dodson has successfully represented many children injured when hit by cars in the state and has assisted their families in recovering damages to assure that the injured child is able to receive needed medical care.

Attorney Dodson has written a book, “When Kids Suffer Big Injuries,” which he makes available free of charge to the families of children who have been injured as pedestrians, available at http://www.jimdodsonlaw.com/.

 It’s official! As of June 28, 2011, there is a federal ban on the manufacture, sale and resale of drop side cribs. Drop side cribs have been blamed in the deaths of more than 30 infants and toddlers. And they are suspected in about dozen other infant fatalities. The cribs have a side rail that can be raised and lowered to allow parents to more easily place or lift a baby.

 Another encouraging and significant change in child safety is a new standard that mandates more rigorous safety tests for children’s cribs before they go on the market. CPSC chairman said these are the toughest safety standards in the world.

 New cribs will have all 4 sides fixed and will be sturdier due to tougher testing requirements.

 CPCS says hotels, day care centers and companies that rent cribs have until December 28, 2012 to purchase cribs that meet the new safety standards. A baby’s crib is the biggest and most important purchase a parent makes for a new baby. Thankfully, parents will have  safe options with these new safety standards.

“When Kids Suffer Big Injuries,” a free guide available to families in Florida who need answers after a child suffers a  serious injury.

Call 1-727-446-0840, for yours today.

As of June 2011, cribs will be  required to have fixed sides rather than the familiar drop-side crib models. The drop-side models are dangerous because their design places infants and toddlers at risk of serious and even fatal injuries.

 The ban on drop-side cribs was announced recently by the government after millions of recalls and the tragic deaths of more than 30 infants and toddlers over the past 10 years. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (USCPSC) voted unanimously to forbid the manufacture, sale and resale of the cribs which feature a side rail that moves up and down.

 Businesses, like hotels and childcare centers who use drop-side cribs, are prohibited to continue using the cribs and will be given a year to buy new ones. During the last 5 years, there has been a recall of 9 million drop-side cribs in the U.S. The cribs pose serious safety issues because of assembly problems and hardware that malfunctions causing the drop side rail to partially detach from the crib. When this occurs, a gap between the side rail and mattress is created in which a child can become trapped and suffocate or strangle.

The CPSC has ordered tougher safety testing for cribs and improved labeling on crib pieces to reduce assembly mistakes that can put children at risk.

This new crib standard is one of the strongest in the world and will greatly reduce crib-related hazards.

Clearwater Child Injury Lawyer Jim Dodson, author of the free consumer guide, “When Kids Suffer Big Injuries,” and your online resource for consumer health and safety tips, product recalls, and legal information related to child accident and injury prevention.

-Working to make safety, every child’s reality.

As a Clearwater Child Injury Lawyer, some of the most difficult cases I handle are those which  involve injured children. Hundreds of thousands of children are hurt each year in preventable accidents.  The purpose of our law firm’s legal blog is to raise awareness of the increasing number of children who are accidentally injured  and to educate parents about  injury prevention/ child safety. Knowledge is power.  We can work together to  keep our children/grandchildren safe.

The folks at the Home Safety Council, Lowe’s and fire and life safety professionals from the community are big supporters of child safety too. They are kicking off National Fire Safety Month with a special, day-long safety celebration. Lowe’s is planning a  day of safety fun for the entire family and the chance to learn how to keep your family safe from fire and other home dangers.

When: Saturday, September 25, 2010
Time: 10:00 am until 2:00 pm
Where: Lowe’s store parking lot

To find a Lowe’s near you, visit the Lowe’s store locator.  Check the Safety Saturday Web site for more information as the draws closer. If you can’t make it to the Safety Saturday event at Lowe’s on September 25, you can still make any day safer for your child.

Use the Home Safety Council’s Safety Saturday starter ideas to take home safety in your own hands.

Clearwater Child Injury Lawyer Jim Dodson, author of  the No Cost consumer guide, “When Kids Suffer Big Injuries” available online or by calling toll free @ 1-888-340-0840.

Dodson Law Firm, “Working to make safety every child’s reality.”

In chapter  one of “When Kids Suffer Big Injuries: A Parent’s Guide to Child Injury in Florida,”  I discuss the tragic fact  that  motor vehicle accidents are the leading cause of injuries to children. Almost 700 children are hurt in car accidents each day and 2,000 children die from injuries in car accidents each year.

We all know the importance of having our children/grandchildren safely secured in an age appropriate child safety device in our cars. But  if their restraint is not installed correctly or is not being used properly your child is at great risk of serious harm.

Did you know 4 out of 5 car seats are not installed properly? Could yours be one of them? Get your child’s car seat checked by a National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Certified Child Passenger Safety Technician. Here’s some helpful info on an upcoming safety event:

Where: All Children’s Specialty Care of Pasco

                  4443 Rowan Rd.

                  New Port Richey, Fl

When: Friday August 27, 2010 9:00am – 12:00pm

Appointments are required: Call 727-834-5403 to schedule yours!

What Parents Need to Do: Provide the age and weight for each child under 8 when making the appointment. Bring the child to the fitting station appointment using the child’s current car seat. Allow at least 20 to 30 minutes for each seat to be checked. Be prepared to purchase a replacement child restraint if the current restraint is unsafe. There are no free child restraints at fitting stations. Seats are replaced AT COST. Provide the vehicle owner’s manual. Provide the child restraint instructions.

For additional locations, times and dates of more car safety seat inspection events, click here.

Reminder, you must make an appointment and it’s always best to call first to verify times and locations.

The Dodson Law Firm, Working to Make Safety Every Child’s Reality!

Clearwater Child Injury Lawyer Jim Dodson is the author of  “When Kids’s Suffer Big Injuries,” available for free by calling 1.888.340.0840 or online at http://www.childinjurylawyerflorida.com/reports/florida-child-injury-consumer-guide-free-child-injury-book-must-read.cfm. If your child was injured due to the carelessness of another person, Jim provides answers to many of  your questions and concerns in his book or if you prefer, feel free to  call our office and speak to Judi to arrange a time to talk to Jim  directly.

Summer is here.  Generally that means more families are traveling by car on day trips, long weekends and vacations.   Our daughter was in town recently with our young grandchildren. Her first priority was finding a car seat safety inspection station! Although our infant grandaughter’s new car seat appeared to be secured properly;  our daughter wanted to be sure. Did you know research shows 7 out of 10 car seats are NOT correctly installed?

 The American Automobile Association conducted a survey and found  76% of parents said safety is their main concern when buying a child safety seat but  the  majority of parents polled didn’t know the specifics in regard to placement, age and height recommendations. In a recent study of 3500 car safety and booster seat installations,  72%  of the safety seats were secured in a way that it could be expected a child would suffer injuries if  in a crash.

With all this in mind, here are some safe practices concerning child seat safety and a website to check the locations of child safety seat inspection stations in this area.

 Safety Checklist

•  Parents should ensure that children up to eight years old or four feet, nine inches tall should sit in a safety seat or booster.
•  All children 12 and younger should ride in the back seat of a vehicle.
•  The safest position for a single car seat is the center of the rear seat.

Florida law regarding safety requirements  for child car and booster seats  is more fully discussed in Chapter 1 of my free consumer guide, “When Kids Suffer Big Injuries: A Parent’s Guide to Child Injury in Florida”  available  on our Florida Child Injury Lawyer website.

Attorney James W. Dodson, working to make safety every child’s reality.

Are birth defects the leading cause of death in children and adolescents?   Is sunscreen the best defense against sunburn for babies 6 months and under?  Get answers to these questions and more by visiting the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website.

 Test your knowledge about kids’ health and safety. Unintentional injuries, not birth defects, are the leading cause of death in children and adolescents.  The greatest threats to child safety come in the form of the following accidents and injuries:

• Poisonings
• Playground Injuries
• Car Accidents as Child Passengers
• Fireworks-Related Injuries
• Traumatic Brain Injuries
• Fire and Burn Injuries in the Home
• Teen  Car and Motor Vehicle Accidents

 Our Clearwater /St. Petersburg, Florida Child Injury Law Firm has served the needs of  families for over twenty five years. If your child was injured due to someone’s carelessness or negligence, you may have unanswered questions and certainly, you have concerns. Request a copy of  Florida Child Injury Lawyer James Dodson’s free consumer guide, “When Kids Suffer Big Injuries, A Parent’s Guide to Child Injury in Florida” as a first step to understanding  your legal rights or call our toll free number (888) 340-0840 to speak directly with Attorney Dodson. There is  no obligation to hire an attorney.