A 72-year-old flood relief volunteer from Alabama suffered a fatal head injury after a fall at an area laundromat.
Bryant Edwards “Sonny” Ellis had just arrived in Denham Springs from Satsuma, Ala. to assist other relief volunteers who were already on-site. According to Satsuma First Baptist Church Pastor Roy Hill, Mr. Ellis slipped and fell in the parking lot of a Denham Springs coin-operated laundry facility. Friends remembered him as a selfless person who loved to give of himself. “Sonny always wanted to be involved in whatever was going on, and he loved to serve,” Rev. Hill remarked.
Mr. Hill is survived by his wife of fifty years Gloria Hill, daughters Kim Moore and Chris Parker, five granddaughters and a great-grandson. [Read more…] about Disaster Relief Effort Ends In Tragedy
Fatal Accident
More Details Emerge In Fatal Bus Crash
The events leading up to a serious bus crash that killed two people and injured dozens are coming into sharper focus, and as a result, some victims are turning to workers’ compensation to obtain money that will help them recover from their injuries.
Several St. John’s Parish Fire Services Operations officers were injured, and 37-year-old Firefighter Spencer Chauvin was killed, when a runaway bus collided with a disabled vehicle. That bus was filled with flood relief workers, and about a half dozen of them plan to file workers’ compensation claims as well.
Although the employer’s identity is clear as far as the firefighters are concerned, investigators are still working on identifying the relief workers’ employer. Apparently, these individuals may or may not have been in the country legally. It seems that Wallace Rush Schmidt Inc. recruited local day laborers to work for Servpro and perform flood restoration work. Kristina’s Transportation owned the bus, but it is unclear what professional relationship, if any, the company had with the bus driver.
That driver was an undocumented immigrant from Honduras who had no commercial drivers’ license. Denis Amaya Rodriguez had evidently been involved in bus crashes before, and some state lawmakers are asking questions about the entire affair.
Workers’ Compensation
About a hundred years ago, labor groups negotiated with management representatives to devise a plan to address the rising number of workplace injuries brought on by the dawn of the Industrial Revolution. Essentially, workers agreed to trade time for money. They gave up their right to sue in negligence court and obtain compensation for noneconomic damages, like pain and suffering, in exchange for a no-fault insurance system that compensates injured victims for their economic losses, like medical bills.
In many jurisdictions, the so-called “Grand Bargain” is no longer an even exchange, because workers’ compensation benefits have been reduced so dramatically in recent years. As a matter of fact, workers in several states – including Florida and Oklahoma – have challenged the system in court, claiming that it is no longer a legitimate alternative to a tort system.
However, that is not the case in Louisiana, where benefits are usually a bit more generous. For example, the average workers’ compensation payment for medical bills in the Bayou State is 430 percent higher than the comparable Medicare rate. However, victims must act fast to claim their share of benefits, because there are very strict time deadlines in these cases and administrative law judges almost never grant extensions or mulligans.
Benefits exist to help those injured on the job get back to work and back to life. For a free consultation with an experienced workers’ compensation attorney in Lake Charles, contact Lee Hoffoss Injury Lawyers. We do not charge upfront legal fees in these cases.
Fatal Car Crash Near Natchitoches
A man is dead after a high-speed, head-on crash on Interstate 49 that may have been either speed or alcohol related.
According to Louisiana State Police, 18-year-old Deytwan Demetrius, of Fort Polk, was southbound on Interstate 49 just south of State Highway 485 when he lost control of his vehicle, careened through the median, and smashed into a northbound automobile driven by 39-year-old Jabe Maddox, of Longview. Mr. Maddox was declared dead at the scene; Mr. Demetrius and a passenger – 18-year-old Trevon Lewis, of Leesville – were both transported to a local hospital with various injuries.
Charges against Mr. Maddox, as well as the results from toxicology tests, are pending. [Read more…] about Fatal Car Crash Near Natchitoches
Regional Athlete Wins Olympic Gold
Houston native Simone Manuel now shares the world record for the fastest time in the 100-meter freestyle, and she is also the first black American athlete to win a gold medal in any swimming or diving event.
Her victory roughly coincides with the release of a university study which concludes that 70 percent of black children cannot swim. Furthermore, black children between ages 11 and 12 suffer from an accidental swimming pool drowning rate that’s ten times greater than white children of a similar age. To explain the discrepancy, some scholars blame the residual effects of racial segregation. Many municipal pools were not legally integrated until the 1960s or 1970s, and informal discrimination remained at some locations for decades afterwards. As a result, swimming was not part of the black experience for many children who grew up in the latter part of the 20th century, and some parents may pass their preferences onto their children. [Read more…] about Regional Athlete Wins Olympic Gold
Feds Launch Probe Following Driverless Car Crashes
The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration is demanding answers from Tesla after its vehicles’ auto pilot feature allegedly failed in two separate incidents.
In May, 40-year-old Joshua Brown was killed when his Tesla Model S sedan apparently failed to distinguish a beige-colored tractor-trailer from the bright sky and did not apply the brakes. After the car passed under the trailer at full speed and its roof sheared off, it drove off the road, crashed through at least two fences, and finally slammed into a pole. Apparently, the air bag never deployed. The manufacturer has until August 28 to produce data concerning its vehicles’ Forward Collision Warning (FCW) and Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB) systems. [Read more…] about Feds Launch Probe Following Driverless Car Crashes
Alcohol-Induced Fatal Crash In Sterlington
An allegedly drunk driver killed one police officer and seriously injured two others during a traffic stop on southbound Highway 165.
According to Louisiana State Police, 44-year-old Tracy Govan, of Monroe, crossed the fog line in a 2014 GMC Sierra, striking three officers who were on the scene. Officer David Elahi was declared dead at the scene; two other officers, whose names were not released, were transported to a local hospital, where they are expected to survive. Mr. Govan now faces a number of criminal charges, including vehicular homicide, improper lane usage, and vehicular negligent injury. [Read more…] about Alcohol-Induced Fatal Crash In Sterlington