Dog v. Mailman

Though Dog Bite Prevention Week was May 19 - 25, the information that the United States Postal Service released on May 15, 2013 is always relevant.  Dogs and postal service workers have an age old rivalry that is often depicted in cartoons to be a funny incident.  However, there is nothing funny about a dog attack, and no one knows this better than the 5,879 postal employees who were attacked by dogs in 2012.  Los Angeles ranks the most probable for dog versus mail carrier duals to take place.  Ken Snavely, acting postmaster of Los Angeles states, "If our letter carriers deem your loose dog to be a threat, you'll be asked to pick up your mail at the Post Office until it's safe to deliver."

It's not as if dogs have taken a certain liking to letter carriers.  No, while nearly 5,900 attacks is nothing to ignore, it pales in comparison to the 4.7 million Americans who find themselves victim to a dog attack.  Unfortunately, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), more than half of the 4.7 million victims are children.

If you're a dog owner, it is imperative that you're aware of the potential for any dog to attack, even Oscar, your beloved dachshund.  Make sure you're pup is properly socialized.  Not only is it good for everyone to get out and toss the ball around, but it's a key factor in ensuring that your dog does not perceive every stranger as a threat.

Below is the list of the top cities whose postal employees had a less than pleasant run in with Fido in 2012.  Let's keep Maui off this list:

Ranking	City, State	Attacks
1	Los Angeles, California	69
2	San Antonio, TX and Seattle, WA	42
3	Chicago, Illinois	41
4	San Francisco, California	38
5	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania	34
6	Detroit, Michigan	33
7	St. Louis, Missouri	32
8	Baltimore, MD and Sacramento, CA	29
9	Houston, TX and Minneapolis, MN	27
10	Cleveland and Dayton, Ohio	26
11	Buffalo and Brooklyn, New York	24
12	Denver, Colorado	23
13	Dallas, TX and Tacoma, WA	21
14	Wichita, Kansas	20

Do I Have a Personal Injury Case?

When accidents happen, and they do happen, many people don't realize they have a personal injury case.  How do you know?  Well, if the actions of another individual operating a motor vehicle were careless, chances are you have a case.  Careless is simply another word for negligent, and a person is negligent when they fail to act in a way a reasonable person would in any given circumstance.  For example, if an individual failed to stop their vehicle at a red light, as a reasonable person would, they could be considered negligent and responsible for any damages that may arise. 

Types of Personal Injury Cases:

Auto accidents: When a motorist is injured because of another's negligence, financial compensation could be owed you.  Negligence includes speeding, driving while under the influence, or simply operating a vehicle recklessly.

Workplace injuries: Worker's compensation programs are put in place for incidents that occur at your workplace.

Defective products: Manufacturers, suppliers, and retailers have an obligation to ensure their products are safe for public use.  Inadequate instructions or warnings could hold the manufacturer liable for any consumer injuries.  

Slip and fall: When conditions are unsafe and a person slips and/or falls, the building or property owner may be liable for their injuries. 

Boating accidents: On Maui, thousands of people board sailing vessels every day.  When a person's negligence leads to an accident and causes injuries, they can be liable for all persons onboard.

Trucking accidents: Truckers travel all over the country for long stretches at a time.  If a driver is fatigued, fails to inspect their vehicle, or is traveling with unsecured loads, the driver, the company, and truck part manufacturers can be liable for injuries.

If you think you have a personal injury claim, contacting an attorney is your first step in recovering compensation for your pain and suffering. 

Distracted Drivers: Driving While Intexticated

"DWI" now has another meaning: "Driving While Intexticated."  While it may be a clever play on words, the issue of texting while driving is a serious one.  In 2011, at least 23% of auto collisions involved cell phones.  At the very least, when someone decides to take a look at an incoming text message, they divert their attention for a mere five seconds.  If you were traveling at 55 miles per hour, you would travel the length of a football field without looking at the road!

The finger is usually pointed at teenage drivers when the topic of texting while driving is mentioned.  But adults do it, too.  If you're honest, you're probably guilty of glancing at your phone a time or two while driving.  48% of teens say that they have been in a car with someone while the driver was texting.  And if an adult is caught in the act, their justifications usually go something like this: "Reading a text is safer than composing and sending one."  Or, "I hold the phone near the windshield for 'better visibility.'"  Or, "I only text at a stop sign or a red light."

What can be done about it?  Well, in Hawaii, there are laws in place to help reduce the number of distracted drivers.  Hawaii is one of 39 states that flat out ban drivers from cell phone use while driving.  That includes texting at stop signs and red lights, and it even includes pulling over and operating your phone while your engine is still on.

We have pretty clear laws about driving while intoxicated.  Here are a few statistics that might make you think twice before sending that text.  

Texting While Driving Causes:
- 1,600,000 accidents per year (National Safety Council)
- 330,000 injuries per year (Harvard Center for Risk Analysis Study)
- 11 teen deaths EVERY DAY (Institute for Highway Safety Fatality Facts)
- Nearly 25% of ALL car accidents

Texting While Driving is: 
- About 6 times more likely to cause an accident than driving intoxicated
- The same as driving after 4 beers (National Highway Transportation Safety Administration)
- The number one driving distraction reported by teen drivers

So what is being done about it?  Social media has championed a campaign targeting drivers between the ages of sixteen and twenty-four.  The hope for campaigns like this is that it will do for distracted drivers what drunk driving campaigns have done for reducing alcohol-related accidents.  Not too long ago, taming the beast that is drunk driving seemed like an insurmountable task.  Thanks to a number of anti-drunk driving campaigns, as a nation, we have seen a decrease in alcohol-related accidents.  There is hope for this new generation of texters when they take to the wheel.  The task at hand is not too large.  By raising awareness and working together as communities, we can affect change. 

Statistics from: Texting and Driving Safety