Underage Drinking as a Leading Cause of Teen Car Accidents

Underage drinking continues to be a problem plaguing colleges and universities not just in New Jersey, but around the country. The problem has been brought in the spotlight even more acutely in recent months after a group of chancellors and presidents of colleges around the country launched the Amethyst Initiative. These chancellors and presidents were signatories to a petition calling for a debate on the minimum drinking age law. According to the Initiative, there is a need for informed debate on revising the minimum drinking age which is currently 21 years. The signatories insist that the debate is needed because the minimum age failed to cut down on underage drinking rates, and binge drinking continues to be a serious in colleges in US. More than a hundred presidents of colleges have signed to the petition, and it has fulfilled its purpose in that there has been strong debate on whether lowering the drinking age is really the way to combat the problem.

New Jersey Personal Injury Attorneys

New Jersey personal injury lawyers, a vast majority of college and university presidents, as well as parents had been strongly united in their conviction that lowering the age for drinking legally is not a solution to this complex problem. For instance, the signatories to the Amethyst Initiative have not specified owe they plan to tackle the problem of a lowered drinking age affecting high school students. The minimum age drinking law has been responsible for several lives saved in car accidents every year. Besides, there are other crimes associated with alcohol intake like assaults and rapes that have been kept under control precisely because only adults above the age of 21 can walk into a bar or a retailer and purchase alcoholic beverages. Lowering the age could open a Pandora's Box of new and even more complex problems that we may not be able to deal with.

Falls from scaffolding can be prevented by installing guardrails and equipping workers with personal fall protection systems and restraints. Being struck by falling objects or debris at a construction site can cause serious head and brain injuries. This can be avoided by having restraints for materials and tools on elevated surfaces, and providing all workers with helmets. Being struck by forklifts, excavators and other large and heavy machinery can be avoided simply if there are adequate safety procedures in place that encourage machinery operators to warn pedestrian workers in the vicinity. Very often, workers aren’t equipped with the skills needed to prevent such needless accidents because they haven't been trained sufficiently. Proving employees with sufficient training is one of OSHA's guidelines for workplace safety 

Construction Accident Help

A New Jersey  construction accident lawyer can file a worker's compensation claim and can also frequently file third party injury claims against a manufacturer if it is found that malfunctioning equipment or machinery were responsible for the accident.

A big reason for this is may be that more people seem to be walking to work in New Jersey than in many other states in the country. According to US census statistics, 26% more New Jerseyans walked to work from 2002 to 2006 while in the rest of the country, the increase in the number of people walking to work had only risen by 7%. Rising gas prices and global warming concerns have lead to more numbers of people taking to walking as a means of getting around. It also doesn’t help that New Jersey has the highest population density among states in the US. The state has been spending more on increasing pedestrian safety, but the number of programs that need funding far outnumber the dollars available.

The bill is called Ricci's Law, named after Ricci Branca, a 17-year-old boy from Egg Harbor Township, Atlantic County who was killed in a drunk driving accident. Ricci was biking to Ocean City with a bunch of friends, when Stephen Fench slammed his car into the group. The friends escaped with minor injuries. Ricci died from injuries sustained in the crash. Fench, it was revealed later was not only a repeat DUI offender, but had a blood alcohol level of .339 at the time of the crash. That's more than four times the legal limit in New Jersey of 0.08.   The police reported that  he spent the four hours before the accident drinking up to 10 glasses of wine at a nearby bar. Since, then Fench has been sentenced to 16 years in prison.

As a Bergen and Monmouth County car accident lawyer, I am more than aware of how limited the effect of suspended licenses as well as jail time is on people who commit the most criminally foolish negligence while driving. License suspensions are hardly the tough deterrent for drunk drivers that they are meant to be and, and while jail time is fine, it doesn't help bring back the people who have already been killed. If a single life is spared because a DUI offender was prevented from starting his car and driving off with his system pumped with alcohol, it would be worth the effort getting the law passed. As a Monmouth and Bergen County car accident lawyer we often have to step in to deliver civil justice to the victims or their families after a devastating horrific turn of events. Unfortunately, our efforts can never really make the victim or their family whole again.

Pursuing Pedestrian Accident Claims in New Jersey

Recovering damages for medical expenses, lost wages, and pain and suffering in a pedestrian accident case in New Jersey involves proving that there was a clear negligence on the part of the motorist, and that this negligence resulted in injuries to the pedestrian. That's not always so simple and straightforward. Insurance companies have a vested interest in trying to limit the amount of damages by proving that the accident was the pedestrian's fault. If you've been injured in a pedestrian accident, talk to a New Jersey personal injury lawyer before you talk to anybody else, including the insurers, to ascertain your options for compensation.

New Jersey has the distinction of being one of the first states to clamp down on the use of hand held cell phones, but now a national safety group is calling for a nationwide ban on cell phone use while driving to eliminate one of the biggest causes of auto accidents.

Drivers in NJ are banned from talking on a hand held phone, or text messaging on one, and teen drivers are banned from all cell phone devices behind the wheel, but the state doesn't have a complete ban on cell phone use by motorists. In fact, no state in the country has a complete ban in place. That needs to change, say the National Safety Council whose President Janet Froetcher has called for a ban on all cell phone devices, both hand held and hands free. The reason for the push for no cell phone use in a moving vehicle is the growing number of automobile crashes that are being linked to these accidents. Ever since these devices became a part of our lives, cell phone usage while driving has become the biggest distraction to motorists, ranking above turning on the radio, reaching for something, or eating in the car.  

In recent months, the Metrolink train crash in California has firmly turned the spotlight on cell phone use by drivers. The engineer in that accident was later found to have been exchanging text messages while he was on the ill fated journey. Dozens of messages were found to have been sent by the engineer, including one sent just a few minutes before the crash. The calls for tougher legislation to ban cell phone use have grown louder since then.

In New Jersey, it's been hard to quantify the effects of our cell phone legislation. While accident rates are down, it's still not certain whether this is due at least in part to rising gas prices.  As a personal injury lawyer who regularly represents victims of accidents in Monmouth County, I believe we will find in the days and years ahead that these laws lead to safer streets and more responsible driving which is nothing but good news, for New Jerseyans.

The accident reportedly occurred at Skydive Sebastian, a recreational center in coastal Florida where Daniel Kulpa was enjoying an adventure vacation with some of his friends from New Jersey. Kulpa was a graduate of the Scotch Plains Fanwood High School right here in New Jersey, and was studying electrical engineering at the Mercer County Community College. He worked part time at a Cranbury technology firm, and even ran his own telecommunications company. He had discovered the thrills of skydiving a couple of years ago, and since then had completed more than 100 jumps.   So the question is, how did a fit, young skydiver with plenty of jumps on his record meet with such a tragic accident?

It's a terrible waste of the life of a brilliant, enterprising young man who no doubt, had a very promising future ahead of him. Police say they are still investigating the accident, and are waiting for his outfit which has been saturated with blood after the accident to be dry, before they can attempt to figure out what exactly happened here.

Interestingly enough, another skydiver who jumped from a Skydive Sebastian plane fell in another accident on the same day at the facility. That man suffered back injuries. The wingsuit that Kulpa was wearing at the time of the accident holds the highest number of clues to this tragedy.  It will have to be thoroughly inspected to look for defects in design or manufacture that led to this young man simply slipping out of his harness in mid air. The kinds of safety precautions and skydiving eligibility requirements that Skydive Sebastian has in place at its facility also need to be probed.  As a recreation center which conducted adventure programs, the center could be named by a personal injury lawyerin a wrongful death lawsuit claiming damages for Kulpa's death.   

She sustained severe injuries in the accident, and was rushed to St. Joseph's Wayne Hospital where she died as a result of her injuries. The Passaic County Prosecutor's Office is investigating the accident, and has asked anyone with any information on what happened at the scene of the crash, to come forward. Investigations will take a while to complete and we can only then expect a clear picture of what happened at the Hamburg Turnpike and Leonard Terrace intersection where Sullivan died. 

Pedestrian Accident Lawsuit

Pursuing damages in a pedestrian accident lawsuit will involve proving that the motorist in question was negligent in his driving duties, and that the injuries sustained were a result of the negligent driving. Even in cases where the pedestrian was partially at fault, he can still be eligible for damages if it can be proved that his injuries were magnified because of the negligence of the driver. If you have been injured in a pedestrian accident, it helps to know that you have nights that can be protected with the help of a Passaic County pedestrian accident lawyer. Consult an experienced pedestrian accident lawyer as quickly as possible.

When gas prices began their stratospheric rise over last spring and summer, more New Jersey residents threw away their car keys, and dusted off their bicycles to be able to cope, a move that is being pointed to an increase in the number of deaths in bicycle accidents across the state.

As of early December, a total of 22 people had been killed in bicycle accidents in New Jersey compared to last year, as well as the year before. In fact, the fatality numbers this year are the highest they have been in six years. Most of the fatalities that occurred as a result of bicycle accidents this year, including the three that took place in Morris County, were related to people who were going to or returning from work at the time of the crash.  The numbers have been distressing enough for the New Jersey Division of Highway Traffic to plan new safety initiatives targeted at the bicycling community before the new year.

Bicycle Accident Litigation                     

Pursuing a civil lawsuit for injuries sustained in a bicycle accident requires proving that the motorist involved was neglectful of the rights of the bicyclist, and that this resulted in severe injuries. An experienced New Jersey bicycle accident attorney can help build a case that results in the compensation the bicyclist deserves. If you or a loved one has been injured in a bicycle accident, contact an experienced bicycle accident lawyer at the Law Offices of Scott D. Grossman for a free initial consultation.

Pedestrian accidents have become far too frequent on this stretch that has the distinction of being voted the most dangerous road in New Jersey by a transportation advocacy group. In all, between 2005 and 2007, a total of nine pedestrians were killed on the road. Now, city authorities are making efforts to stem these growing numbers of accidents.   Since the beginning of September, traffic enforcement officers have stepped up efforts on Route 130, and over 200 vehicles have been stopped. 199 traffic summons have been issued, including several for running red lights, using a cell phone while driving, speeding, and the rest for seat belt, and stop sign violations. 

Burlington City Mayor James Fazzone is looking at other ways to reduce the high accident rate on the much used stretch of road. On the anvil are plans for a pedestrian overpass that should be able to lessen the congestion on the road. Other ideas being proposed include the installation of blinking lights just before the intersection to act as a warning to motorists about the school crossing. 

Whatever the City plans to do, they need to do it fast. Too many innocent people are getting killed because of brazen violations on the street.

Dangerous Roads

When there are defects on a roadway because of the design of the road, improper maintenance, inadequate lighting or signage, then the chances of an accident increase significantly.  Construction defects in a road can cause motorists to lose control of their vehicle, while the lack of signage can lead to confusion, causing auto accidents. It’s the duty of federal, state and county authorities to make sure that the roadways are safely designed, properly constructed, and maintained regularly. If an accident occurs because of the failure of these agencies to provide safe conditions for you to drive in, then they can be held liable in a court of law for any injuries that may occur because of these accidents.

Proving that defects in road design or maintenance were the cause of your accident and injuries requires the expertise of an experienced New Jersey accident lawyer. More than one agency may have been responsible for the negligence, and may be held accountable for damages. Contact an experienced New Jersey car accident lawyer for an evaluation of your case.

This bill titled "The Pharmacy Quality Improvement and Error Prevention Act S-409" has been introduced by Senator Jeff Van Drew, and claims to seek to establish strong measures to prevent pharmacy errors across New Jersey. These measures include the creation of a Medication Error Prevention Task Force consisting of 24 members, that would be responsible for providing guidelines for the improvement of pharmacy quality control standards, and to reduce the number of errors that occur at New Jersey pharmacies.   The bill also require pharmacies in the state to monitor and review any pharmacy errors that may occur, and also mandates the State Board of Pharmacy to release regular alerts about prescriptions drugs that have similar sounding names, so that the frequency of errors is reduced. Pharmacists are required to report any medication errors occurring on their watch to the Board of Pharmacy.

So far, so good. 

The wheels seem to be spinning fast as this legislation moves ahead on its way to becoming a full fledged law. It will now proceed to the full Senate for consideration. Unfortunately, New Jerseyans seem to be unaware of the potential implications that this legislation has for their right to protect themselves, and claim compensation in the event of a pharmacy error-related injury. It removes any compulsion that big name pharmacy chains have to maintain quality standards in the dispensation of medicines to patients. Just a few weeks ago, I mentioned how CVS in North Carolina had an incentive scheme in place that rewarded employees for filling the maximum number of prescriptions in a single day. Lured by the incentives, pharmacists were topping 500 prescriptions a day, when the acceptable limit in that state is 150. A mad rush to fill prescriptions inevitably lead to mistakes, even fatal ones. If the bill is passed, customers who suffer from the consequences of these practices, will lose any rights they have to be compensated for their injuries.

It's become imperative that we draw attention to this issue that threatens to impact all New Jerseyans. To learn more about how this bill is bound to affect your lives, please contact me at my pharmacy error lawyers office.

According to witnesses, a woman walked into the store with an extra large cat that not everybody instantly recognized as a bobcat. The animal was already antsy, what with all the pet dogs who had gathered with their owners for their photo shoot, and when it was placed on Santa's lap for the photo session, it bit his hand and wrist ferociously. Bebbington suffered a number of wounds that actually bled. As he said later, the cat had a vicious and strong bite, and if it had been a little child or baby instead of him, he or she could have ended up with a severed hand.

The woman who owned the exotic pet, apparently, walked away from the store after the incident, claiming that she had a license to keep the cat, and it had been through all its vaccinations. She didn't leave her name and address, and Bebbington is worried about the vaccination status of the cat. If he doesn't get in touch with her soon, he will have no choice, but to go ahead and receive painful rabies shots for the wounds.

PetsMart meanwhile, has stepped in to take care of his medical bills. Bebbington is no stranger to handling exotic animals for photo shoots. In his years of playing Santa, he says, he has posed with snakes, horses and a range of other animals, and never been attacked like this.
 

It's extremely fortunate that this animal attack incident was focused around an adult who has some experience handling animals. Bobcats can grow up to 50 pounds, and can pack a big punch in their jaws. The possibilities of what could have happened if the bobcat had panicked at the sight of all the people in the store and run amok, does not bear thinking of. With other people, including children in the vicinity, there was definitely a possibility for more injuries to result from this incident. The woman who owned the cat, apparently told people at the store before she left that she kept the cat on a dog lead in her yard, tethered for safety. How negligent is it to bring an animal that's normally leashed at home, to a public place with children around, and how irresponsible that she should leave without even asking if she could pay for Beddington's medical bills caused by her pet?

Building an Animal Attack Lawsuit

Fatalities and injuries from animal attacks are more common than we'd like. When a person is attacked by an animal, and suffers injuries, he can claim compensation from the owner of the pet, for his pain, suffering and physical disfigurement. Establishing liability in an animal attack case, whether it's a dog bite or a cat attack, can be difficult, and requires the experienced counsel of an experienced animal attack attorney. Contact a New Jersey animal attack lawyer for a free consultation and evaluation of your case.
 

Now, an identical bill “The Pharmacy Quality Improvement and Error Prevention Act A-1803" has been introduced in the Assembly by Assemblywoman Valerie Huttle. She has been busy promoting her legislation, hailing it as an effective measure to prevent the number of injuries that occur because of prescription mistakes in New Jersey.  

A registered pharmacist, who reports information to the board relating to a medication-related error, as required pursuant to subsection a. of this section, shall be immune from liability in a civil action for any injury or damages in connection with that medication-related error.

If the bill becomes law, what it will mean for New Jerseyans, is that in the event that they are injured because of a prescription error, the pharmacist who was responsible for filling the prescription will not be held liable for any injuries that were caused by his mistake. All that's required for the pharmacist is essentially to report his error to the New Jersey State Board of Pharmacy, to get away with a slap on the wrist, and not much more.

As a pharmacy error lawyer, I am all for legislation to prevent errors, and the establishment of an oversight committee that will act as a watchdog to prevent innocent consumers from having to suffer the often dangerous effects of prescription mistakes. What I cannot understand however, is the establishment of a Task Force that has just two members out of its 17 public members, representing the needs of health care consumers. The remainder of the members is made up heavily of chain pharmacies, pharmaceutical companies, and other allied interests.

Throughout the country, we're seeing big name pharmaceutical interests taking increasing precedence over the protection of the consumer. Whether it’s the eagerly awaited outcome of the currently ongoing Wyeth-Levine lawsuit that threatens to take away an individual's right to sue a company for injuries sustained by an FDA-approved drug, or this bill that jeopardizes the rights of New Jersey residents to claim liability when they have been injured because of pharmacy error, increasing legislative interference with the rights of citizens is a dangerous and continuing trend that must be curbed.  

The three plaintiffs, Kelly Mace, Jordan Speisman, and Lance Sager, all Florida residents, began taking Accutane about a decade ago for treatment of acne. They were in their teens, and the drug had been prescribed to them by their doctors. Soon after, the three began to experience symptoms of Irritable Bowel Disease (IBD) that soon flared into full fledged forms of the condition, including Ulcerative Colitis, and Crohn's Disease.  Speisman will soon undergo surgery to remove his colon, while Sager and Mace will need to continue drug therapy to control their symptoms for the rest of their lives. Worse, all three are faced with a life that has an increased risk of colon cancer. 

Image Courtesy: Flickr - {dpade1337}

At the trial, the jury saw evidence that the company had for long been aware of the fact that Accutane damaged the gastrointestinal tract, triggering IBD. It was back in 1984 that the company warned doctors of a possible association between the medication and IBD, but when studies later proved that there was more than just a "possibility" of the drug causing serious gastrointestinal disorders, the company chose to remain silent about these effects.  The labels on the products that should have carried warnings of these side effects were not altered at all, with the consequence that several users found themselves facing IBD symptoms. There are presently at least 600 cases relating to Accutane against Hoffman La-Roche around the country.

Although the spotlight has focused on Accutane and its links to IBD, the drug has also given the FDA several headaches, relating to its effects on pregnant women, as well as its psychiatric side effects. Accutane has been found linked to severe birth defects, including mental retardation, missing ears, heart defects and other deformities in the fetus. Legislation has made it harder for women of child bearing age to obtain access to this medication, and potential users are even required to sign a consent form before they can access the drug.   Accutane has also been found linked to suicidal fantasies, suicides, and anxiety, and has found itself the focus of lawsuits relating to these.

Everyday, more patients are pursuing lawsuits against Hoffman La-Roche for its negligence in promoting Accutane, even as it continued to be aware of its serious side effects. If you or a loved one have suffered Irritable Bowel Disease (IBD), Ulcerative Colitis, or Crohn's' Disease as a result of taking Accutane, it's important to know that you have legal rights that you can protect. Contact our New Jersey personal injury lawyers' office, for more information on how you can obtain compensation for your injuries.

The case goes back to April 2000, when a patron at the bar, 23-year-old Humberto Herrera-Salas was served alcohol even after it was obvious that he was intoxicated. Other regulars at the bar were quick to notice that Herrera-Salas was already drunk as he walked into the bar, and drunk driving experts later calculated that his blood alcohol level had to have been at least .18 by the time he entered Cheerleaders. At the bar, Herrera-Salas went on to down three shots of tequila and three beers. When it became obvious that he was too intoxicated to be hanging around the bar any longer, employees forced him outside, and even called a cab to drop him home. 

What happened next seems to have been the crux on which the appellate court upheld the decision to repeal the bar license. The employees should have made sure that Herrera-Salas was safely inside the car, and on his way home. Instead, they left him to his own devices, and went back inside the establishment. Herrera-Salas, too drunk to care, simply got into his car, and sped out of the parking lot.  A few minutes later, he was driving south in the northbound lanes of Route 130. The car accident when it did occur, was devastating in impact. Herrera-Salas' car crashed head on into a vehicle carrying a couple from Gloucester City. Patricia and Robert Reed were killed in the crash, and at least two passengers in their car were seriously injured. 

Tests after the car accident revealed that Herrera-Salas' blood alcohol level was close to .28, almost three times the limit of .10.   He was sentenced to 22 years in prison.

It's evident that the staff at Cheerleaders was negligent in its responsibility, and that the establishment deserved the repealing of its license. Dram shop liability laws allow an injured person of the family of someone who has died in a drunk driving accident, where it can be proved that the establishment in question continued to serve alcohol even after being aware that the driver was intoxicated, to seek compensation from the establishment for their suffering.

Throughout the country, drunk driving is one of the major causes of auto accidents, causing hundreds of injuries and fatalities every year. New Jersey is no exception. Although we have been fortunate enough to witness a steady drop in our drunk driving accident rates, we still have a lot to do to deal with this menace. What we need is a combined initiative that includes all levels of society, including the establishments that serve alcohol to their customers. There's only so much that New Jersey car accident lawyers, the police and courts can do to tackle this problem.

The company in question is CVS, which has the highest number of stores – 285 of them - in the state out of all the nationwide chains. According to the report, the distinction with other chains doesn't quite end there. CVS also has the highest number of citations from  the North Carolina Pharmacy Board for prescription errors. In fact, the Board has repeatedly cited the chain for creating a work environment in which employees are likely to make mistakes.

Regular customers who get their prescriptions filled at CVS are noticing the difference in service, the report says. Staff members often seem to be in a hurry to rush through prescriptions. It's not simply a desire to squeeze more out of their workday that's behind this high speed work environment. As the report points out, the company has incentive systems in place that reward employees based on the volume of prescriptions they fill. In fact, CVS pharmacists routinely receive updates on the amount of extra cash they stand to make depending on how quickly they can fill bottles with pills.

The extent to which CVS has been able to continue this practice unchecked, is shocking. Consider these statistics – the Board of Pharmacy stipulates 150 as the number of prescriptions that can safely be filled by a pharmacist in a single day. At CVS, some former employees have gone on record to claim that on a busy day, it's not unusual for pharmacists to fill as many as 500 prescriptions.  

In one complaint of pharmacy error against CVS that was filed with the Board, a pregnant woman took home what she thought was anti-morning sickness medication from her local Salisbury CVS store.   Only, it turned out to be a drug that's prescribed for patients with spinal injuries. When the Board investigated the number of prescriptions that were filled on the day of the potentially tragic mistake – a common practice when pharmacy errors are reported – it was found that the pharmacist responsible had filled 513 prescriptions on that particular day.

CVS itself sees nothing wrong with the speed at which prescriptions are filled at its stores. According to a spokesperson, certain speed is necessary in "specific defined circumstances."   The blasé attitude at CVS towards the concerns of the Board and the public, as well as the company's focus on volume and profits at the cost of patient safety, is appalling. But it's far from an isolated case. The push for profits over safety is common to most of the major nationwide pharmacies. The kind of prescription errors that result when pharmacists are counting the dollars that will be chalked up on their incentive sheets, instead of focusing on the name of the medication they are filling out, should be a cause for worry, not only for pharmacy error lawyers, but also consumers.

Our sincerest condolences go out to her family.

Data released by the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta, 2% of the American population is bitten by a dog annually. That’s over 4.5 million people, and of those bitten by a dog, most of them are children between the ages of five and nine. And of those 4.5 million people who are attacked by a dog, 20% receive treatment from a medical professional, and 20 people suffer fatal injuries.

            As a dog bite attorney lawyer covering Freehold, Manalapan, Marlboro, Howell, Jackson, Paterson and all of central and northern New Jersey and know how physically painful and emotionally traumatizing a dog bite can be. The article cited above provides a lot of good information on how to handle dog bite attacks and how to care for the injury afterwards. Some important statistics cited are “In the US alone, nearly 5 million people are attacked by dogs per year, and 1,000 people go to emergency rooms per day as a result of a dog attack; many of them are children, and about half of them have been bitten in the face.” Dog attacks are a serious problem throughout the country and New Jersey is no different. I suggest reading the article several times so you can be well informed on what to do if a situation arises. I hope this information can be useful to your family and friends in helping to prevent dog bite attacks.

Of course when a highly publicized incident occurs, legislative officials often take swift action to introduce legislation that will attempt to minimize or avoid the likelihood of the same type of events occurring in the future. This undertaking may be borne out of a genuine concern for doing what an individual believes is the right thing to do or may be the result of political pressures or a combination of the two.   Unfortunately, portions of “Congo’s Law” would likely, in my humble opinion, place New Jerseyans in actual danger of additional vicious dog bite attacks while sparing the lives of dogs that have already attacked persons that resulted in serious bodily injury or even death.  Now don’t get me wrong, I want to be clear that I am a dog and animal lover. I believe wholeheartedly that animals should never be abused for purposes of someone’s warped entertainment and any individual intentionally abusing an animal should be fully prosecuted under animal cruelty laws.  However, common sense mandates that if a domestic animal attacks a human being resulting in serious bodily injury or death, now we put the risk of harming persons above the value of the animal’s life.  We cannot put the safety of our children or our loved ones at risk of physical harm in order to preserve the highest burdens of proof.  Most rational persons would agree that to grant animals the same rights as our citizens is purely absurd. Believe it or not, this in essence is what certain provisions of the Congo Law would require if enacted.  For example, under the current law if after an attack the dog is declared vicious by a municipal court judge, meaning it killed a person or caused serious bodily injury then the dog shall be destroyed in a humane manner. See N.J.S.A. 4:19-22.  The Congo law would allow the municipal judge discretion in allowing the dog to return home even if an attack occurred resulting in serious bodily injury or death and where it found that the dog is declared vicious.  Then the court would require its owner to obtain a special municipal vicious dog license, orange identification tag, a municipal registration number, and maintain liability insurance.

Under the provisions of Congo’s law, the municipal court shall declare the dog vicious if it finds that the dog “beyond a reasonable doubt” killed or caused serious bodily injury to a person and “poses a continuing or future serious threat of serious bodily injury or death to a person."  So in other words, the burden of proof in these proceedings will be changed to the highest burden of proof that is only used in criminal prosecutions.  Practically speaking, how can a judge determine “beyond a reasonable doubt” if the dog poses a future serious threat of serious bodily injury or death?   Yes, believe it or not these are some of the amendments that are actually in the bill. 

It is the existing laws that are codified in N.J.S.A. 4:19-17. et seq. that already require certain procedures to be followed by animal control officers and municipal courts after a dog bite attack occurs in order to determine whether or not the dog shall be deemed vicious or potentially dangerous that need to be better enforced. I find that often times after a dog bite attack, the victim and the community’s right to be safe are too often overlooked and the vicious or potentially dangerous dog is returned back to the owner only to hold the community and the victim hostage. All too often, the same dog is a recidivist which results in another future attack or attacks.  Now we have created more victim’s whose attacks could have been easily prevented had the law been properly enforced.

 The goal of amending the current laws to more clearly define the burden of proof by the municipal courts to demonstrate the dog wasn’t provoked makes sense however; Congo’s Law goes too far by placing future human life and liberty at risk of harm.  Maybe the only good to come out of Congo’s repeated attacks is that it will raise awareness to the public of the importance of strict enforcement of the procedural requirements by our municipal officials of the current dog bite laws.
       

 As Monmouth County and New Jersey motorcycle accident attorney I have witnessed first hand the devastating life altering effects of motorcycle crashes. In this particular situation there could be many factors that made the rider swerve into the opposite lane leading him to strike the curb. What ever the cause of the accident may be, drivers on the road have to make sure they are careful around motorcycle riders. A simple act of having your high beams on can blind a driver and when the driver is a motorcycle rider they can more easily lose control and crash. One way to simply lower the motorcycle fatalities is to always keep a safe distance between your vehicle and the motorcycle and always proceed with caution before entering into a turn or a lane change. Motor vehicle drivers can do their part by being more responsible on the road and hopefully motorcycle riders will do their part by taking the right safety precautions.