Author Archives: Jay Butchko
The Five Kinds of PTSD
Contrary to popular myth, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder is a physical brain injury. Extreme stress, like the stress of a car crash, dog bite, or other serious personal injury, alters the brain’s chemical composition. The amygdala (part of the brain that controls emotional responses) swells, causing the hippocampus (logical responses) to shrink. The effect… Read More »
What You Should Know About Job-Related Burn Injuries
Burn injuries are unusually common and unusually severe. These injuries, mostly temperature burns, are the fourth leading cause of unintentional death in the United States. Furthermore, about half of burn injuries affect a high-risk area, such as the eyes, face, head, neck, airway, or hands. If a burn injury is work-related, special laws apply… Read More »
Mechanical Birth Aids and Birth Injuries
Doctors often turn to the birth assistance devices listed below when a baby becomes lodged in a mother’s birth canal, often because of shoulder dystocia (SD), which is basically a baby with very broad shoulders or a baby drifting down the birth canal at the wrong angle. Seconds count in these situations. A distressed… Read More »
What is the Most Common Boat Accident?
The most common boat accident is a collision between two vehicles, and California has one of the highest number of collisions in the country. Some of the major causes of boat collisions, and the accompanying liability issues, are outlined below. Other common boat accidents include onboard falls and “man overboard” drownings. The liability issues… Read More »
Do I Need a Lawyer for a Bicycle Accident?
If you want a fair settlement, then yes, you need a lawyer for a bicycle accident. The average attorney-negotiated settlement is over three times larger than the average non-attorney-negotiated settlement. The reason for the discrepancy is simple. Insurance companies have lawyers looking out for their interests. An unrepresented victim taking on a lawyer is… Read More »
Are Hit-and-Runs Hard to Prove?
In criminal court, hit-and-runs are hard to prove. The burden of proof is beyond any reasonable doubt. Usually, little evidence is available. Additionally, police investigators must follow strict procedural rules. But in civil court, hit-and-runs are not hard to prove. The burden of proof is only a preponderance of the evidence (more likely than… Read More »
Driver Kills Pedestrian on the I-5
Few details were available after a negligent driver hit and killed a pedestrian on Interstate 5 near the San Diego Airport in December 2024. California Highway Patrol (CHP) issued a Sig Alert at 8:25 p.m. Saturday due to a pedestrian accident on I-5 southbound near the intersection of Sassafras Street and Kettner Blvd by… Read More »
Who’s Legally Responsible for Uber Injuries?
California law imposes important safety responsibility laws on Uber and all other companies. Largely because of these laws, ridesharing companies, like Uber, are normally financially responsible for passenger injuries, whether those injuries were sustained in a car crash or due to a passenger’s or driver’s individual misconduct. The same basic rules apply if an… Read More »
What You Don’t Know About Grocery Store Slip-and-Falls in California
Grocery store slip-and-falls are among the most common, and most preventable, premises liability injuries in California. Slip-and-falls are, by far, the leading cause of employee and guest injuries at grocery stores, easily exceeding categories like repetitive stress injuries and food consumption-related injuries. However, especially in the Golden State, these numbers only tell part of… Read More »
How Do Truck Accidents Happen?
Most truck accidents happen because truck drivers make mistakes, either before they get behind the wheel or while operating their vehicles. For this reason, most truck wrecks are not accidents. Truckers accidentally leave the lights on at home. They don’t accidentally make one of the serious driving mistakes discussed below, cause crashes, and cause… Read More »