Oklahoma Injury Lawyer Blog

On April 28, 2001, authorities found the horrifically mutilated and decapitated body of 'Precious Doe' in Kansas City, Missouri. In 2010, the girl's father filed suit against the Oklahoma Department of Human Services, the state Department of Corrections, and the University of Oklahoma Medical Center, blaming the various officials for the girl's murder.

Precious Doe was born to an incarcerated mother in the Oklahoma University Medical Center in 1997. She first lived with a family friend, then her biological mother Michelle Johnson, and finally her mother's boyfriend Harrell Johnson. According to authorities, Harrell Johnson killed the girl by kicking her in the head.

Through the lawsuit, Larry Green sought compensatory and punitive damages. His attorney also emphasized that the lawsuit was about encouraging the Oklahoma Department of Corrections, as well as DHS, to reconsider their practices when children are born to incarcerated women. The Oklahoma Department of Corrections referred to the lawsuit as "frivolous."

It has recently been reported that the lawsuit has finally settled. Under the settlement, Larry Green will receive an unspecified payment, and the three named entities will have to develop procedures to ensure that babies born to incarcerated women are reported to DHS and thereafter placed in a safe home.

After an Oklahoma jury found that a carbon-fiber-enhanced Louisville Slugger bat was responsible for the injuries sustained by a 15-year-old pitcher, a federal court has thrown the decision out. According to the court, there was "no basis for a reasonable jury to find that the bat had 'dangerous characteristics.'"

As reported by Forbes, attorneys in various states have been able to show that baseball bats made out of aluminum are more dangerous than those made from wood. This is because the aluminum bats can launch a faster ball. In the opinion, the judge states, "Plaintiffs assert that a bat that hits the ball too fast is unacceptable."

Jurors agreed with this assertion last December, when they ordered Louisville Slugger manufacturer Hillericn & Bradsby to pay $871,000 to injured pitcher Dillon Yeamon, and another $80,095.85 to his parents. Yeamon's face was shattered when he was hit with a line drive. The new decision asserts that attorneys for the plaintiffs did not conclusively establish that the bat itself was the cause of Yeamon's injuries. The attorneys were unable to show that the bat displayed any measurable characteristic that made it defective.

The difference between the bats? About 64 milliseconds. According to WolframAlpha, that's the average length of a human blink of an eye.

The Natural Resources Defense Council asked the FDA in 2008 to ban the substance outright from food containers, saying in a petition to the agency that the chemical "causes serious adverse health effects."

Did you know some NFL players are getting Kevlar retrofitted into their helmets? I sure didn't (mind you, this is a press release on Yahoo's Finance site, via the manufacturer):

UNEQUAL Technologies®, the premier provider of head and body armor for soldiers and athletes, congratulates the Pittsburgh Steelers on their 35 to 7 victory against the Cincinnati Bengals. Several Pittsburgh Steelers players' helmets were fitted with Unequal's patented Concussion Reduction Technology (CRT™) -- a patented composite for head trauma made with military grade technology and fused with DuPont™ Kevlar® that is five times stronger than steel and considered the world's best shock suppression material.

CRT™ saw action in the Steelers' helmets when James Harrison, their star All-Pro linebacker, was injured in a collision with a Houston Texans player and suffered an orbital fracture in his right eye socket. There was no timetable for his return. Unequal was contacted to put CRT™ in Harrison's helmet. Subsequently, Harrison was cleared to play ahead of schedule and returned to the lineup against the Baltimore Ravens, where he decimated Ravens' QB, Joe Flacco, with four incredible sacks.

After the victory over the Ravens, Mr. Harrison called Rob Vito, Unequal's CEO, to thank him for putting Unequal CRT™ in his helmet, proclaiming it was the first time he did not experience post-game head pain or ringing in his ears. Harrison said CRT™ was incredible protection and gave him the confidence to stay aggressive on the field.

A few thoughts:
1) That was Harrison's first time that he did not experience post-game head pain or ringing in his ears??
2) If this actually reduces the chance of a concussion (and other head trauma), why aren't high school and college players using it?

It's clear that a booster seat the safest way possible for a child to ride in a car, but many people don't actually have it properly installed. The Washington Post has a nice article on recent booster seat of evaluations and cites a recent insurance study that shows half of child booster seats need checking.

Safekids.org provides an excellent directory of car seat inspection sites throughout all 50 states. Here are our state's upcoming events:

10/01/2011
10:30AM-02:00PM Okeene Campus Corner Restaurant
318 N Main
Okeene, Oklahoma 73763

10/01/2011
09:00AM-12:00PM Church of the Savior
5600 NW 63rd St
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73132

10/01/2011
01:00PM-03:00PM St. John Center for Women's Health Classroom - Siegfried Tower 6th Floor
1923 S Utica Ave
Tulsa, Oklahoma 74104

10/08/2011
09:00AM-12:00PM StorkLand & Kids
6917 N May
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73116

10/08/2011
11:00AM-02:00AM Fire Department
107 N 3rd
Minco, Oklahoma 73059

10/15/2011
10:00AM-02:00PM Lowe's
1605 S Garth Brooks Boulevard
Yukon, Oklahoma 73099

10/15/2011
10:00AM-12:00PM St. John Medical Center - Mary K. Chapman Health Plaza
1819 E 19th St
Tulsa, Oklahoma 74104

10/15/2011
10:00AM-03:00PM Ron Shirley Buick
4700 West 6th
Stillwater, Oklahoma 74074

10/22/2011
10:00AM-02:00PM The Boy's and Girl's Club
305 E. Chadick Av
McAlester, Oklahoma 74501- 5807

10/25/2011
02:00PM-04:00PM St. Benedicts
2200 W Ithica St
Broken Arrow, Oklahoma 74012

My wife and I are currently shopping for a stroller for our son (he's now just over 13 weeks old!). It's surprising that a lot of the strollers out there are not actually safe.

The latest one recalled is the B-Nimble Stroller manufactured by Britax Child Safety, Inc. The stroller may have brake failure (basically, the brake pedal will click when it's pressed, but it might not actually be locked). The recall is for about 20,000 units in the U.S. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission information on the recall can be accessed here.