Colorado Trial Practice Blog : Colorado Injury Lawyer & Attorney : Mac Hester : Personal Injury, Auto Accident, Medical Malpractice : Serving Denver, Colorado Springs, Aurora

Automobile drivers don't pay much attention to bicyclists and the result can be devastating to the bicyclist, as bicycles and helmets provide very limited protection against injury in an automobile/bicycle accident.

There are many ways that bicyclists get whacked by inattentive or rude motorists, including:

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Q.  What is a wrongful death action?

A.  A wrongful death action is a lawsuit for damages filed by the spouse (not ex-spouse) and/or heirs of a deceased adult or by the parent(s) of a deceased unmarried adult who had no children or by the parent(s) of a deceased unmarried minor who had no children against the person or entity that wrongfully killed the deceased.

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Q.  If I am injured while skiing or at a ski resort, can I recover for my injuries and damages?

A.  Yes, depending upon the situation. You cannot recover if you are injured as a result of an "inherent risk" of skiing. An example of an inherent risk of skiing is that skis will slide on snow and you could lose your balance and fall down and get hurt. On the other hand, a skiier slamming into your back is not, by the express terms of the Colorado Ski Safety Act, an inherent risk of skiing - otherwise, skier collisions could arguably be considered an inherent risk of skiing.

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Automobile collisions, falls, and other traumatic events can cause injury to the spine. Injury can be caused by blunt force trauma (e.g., parts of the body striking the interior of the car) and/or by abnormal movement of the spine caused by collision forces. The spine is referred to in three segments: cervical (neck); lumbar (low back); and thoracic (between the cervical and lumbar).

The spine provides the vertical structure and support for the body and also acts as the conduit for the spinal cord which runs from the brain down through the spine with nerve roots branching off at every level of vertabrae and running to every part of the body. Electro-chemical signals are sent back and from from every part of the body to and from the brain. The proper functioning of the brain and the body are dependent upon these signals being transmitted correctly. Also, these signals provide us with useful information (e.g., The stove is hot. Move your hand!). When a part of the spine is injured, signals - including the feeling of pain - are transmitted to the brain. The body, in conjunction with the brain, then reacts in various ways to protect us (e.g., immobilization: when the neck is injured, the neck muscles may not let us move our neck very much until it is healed sufficiently to resume normal movements).

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Q.  I didn't hit my head on anything inside the car. Can I have a brain injury?

A.  Yes. A car collision or any other traumatic event that causes rapid movement of the head can cause your brain to slam into the interior wall of your skull causing bruising and/or bleeding and/or swelling. Also, the brain is held in place by bony ridges on the interior of your skull. Sudden movement against these bony ridges can cause micro abrasions and tears. And, because the brain sits atop the brain stem, sudden movement can cause the brain to rotate on the brain stem causing injury.

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An automobile collision with a semi-truck and trailer, even at low speed, generates many times the injury producing forces that are generated in a similar car to car crash - because of the much greater mass (weight) of the semi-truck/trailer (Physics geeks: See Newton's Laws of Motion - especially the 2nd Law). The collision may not have caused signigicant visible damage to the car, but there is often damage under the surface: a bent frame or bent or broken bumper supports. The collision forces that are not absorbed by the vehicle are transferred to the vehicle occupant - who is instantly propelled by the force of the collision until stopped by the seat belt or interior of the car. This instant acceleration/deceleration of the body can, and usually does, cause injury - because the crash forces cause parts of the body, usually the spine, and especially the cervical spine (neck), to move in abnormal ways and beyond the usual ranges of movement.

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Carbon monoxide is a colorless, odorless, tasteless gas usually produced by combustion (the burning of fuel; e.g., gasoline, natural gas, oil, wood).

The most common sources of carbon monoxide are motor vehicles, furnaces, water heaters, fireplaces, woodstoves and various internal combustion engines.

Carbon monoxide is dangerous when inhaled because carbon monoxide molecules bond with hemoglobin in the blood over 200 times more easily than oxygen molecules. Oxygen is vital to proper functioning of the major organs and muscles of the body. When carbon monoxide replaces oxygen in the blood, the body is deprived of oxygen. Oxygen deprivation can cause alteration or loss of consciousness, organ damage, brain damage, coma and death.

The symptoms of mild carbon monoxide poisoning include headaches, stuffiness, fatigue, dizziness, and drowsiness. Because these symptoms are the same as for colds and flu, carbon monoxide poisoning is often not diagnosed, but mistakenly attributed to cold or flu.

The symptoms of moderate carbon monoxide poisoning include those of mild poisoning plus alteration or loss of consciousness.

The symptoms of severe carbon monoxide poisoning include those of mild and moderate poisoning plus cardiovascular problems, seizure, coma and death.

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 My Triumph Bonneville T100

Fort Collins Colorado Motorcyle Accident Injury Lawyer Mac Hester

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In a rear end auto collision case, the Defendant is presumed by law to be at fault. The Defendant can overcome that presumption by proving, for example, that the Plaintiff slammed on the brakes and the Defendant couldn't stop in time.

However, in the case where the Plaintff was at a complete stop and the Defendant rear-ended the Plaintiff, the Defendant will not be able to overcome the presumption of liability. Nevertheless, Defendants rarely admit liability in litigation. They, or rather their attorneys - puppets of the insurance company, file an Answer admitting that the front of the Defendant's car struck the rear of the Plaintiff's car but they deny that the Defendant was at fault. After a year or more of litigation the case goes to trial. The Defendant has denied liability the entire way. Then, on the first day of trial the Defendant admits liability, says he's sorry, and says that he will be happy to pay what's reasonable.

The judge will not allow the Plaintiff to tell the jury that the Defendant has been denying liability from the start all the way to trial.

Q. Why would the Defendant deny liability all the way to trial and then admit liability?

A. (1) To punish the Plaintiff for filing a lawsuit by causing the Plaintiff to incur litigation expenses, delay, and frustration (Remember, the insurance company is paying for the attorney and litigation expenses, not the Defendant); (2) To teach the Plaintiff's attorney a lesson (If you file lawsuits you will be punished); (3) To advance the insurance industry agenda of punishing and preventing people from trying to recover for their injuries and damages; and (4) so that when the case goes to trial they can portrary the Plaintiff as greedy and the Defendant as magnanimous - admitting fault and being willing to pay a fair amount of damages (hoping of course that the jury is going to punish the Plaintiff by awarding little or no money damages - or at least not enought to have made the litigation economically productive).

Fort Collins Colorado Auto Accident Attorney Mac Hester

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