Virginia lawyer

Chesterfield Teen Convicted in Wrong-Way Crash That Killed 2

by admin@gotechark.com | September 1st, 2011

September 1, 2011

A 17-year-old Chesterfield, Virginia, boy who drank as many as seven shots of tequila and then drove the wrong way down a highway, killing two people, has been convicted of aggravated involuntary manslaughter and now faces up to 41 years in prison.

The Richmond Times-Dispatch reports that the fatal collision occurred in March 2011 when the high school junior, who had a learner’s permit but not a license, got on the road around 2:30 a.m. and drove the wrong way through a Powhite Parkway Extension toll plaza at Courthouse Road. He then accelerated and began traveling north in the southbound lanes at up to 90 miles per hour.

The boy traveled the wrong way for a mile, during which time he almost collided with two cars being operated by police officers, before slamming into a BMW and killing both a 32-year-old male and 29-year-old male. One man died instantly, while the other died before paramedics arrived on the scene.

“I think the most aggravating factor was that he didn’t even realize he was involved in a (fatal) accident,” said Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney B.J. McGee. “He thought it was a single-car accident … and didn’t realize that he had hit, and unfortunately killed, two other individuals.”

In addition to the manslaughter charge, the teen was charged with drunk driving and will be sentenced on December 5. He will serve a minimum of a year in jail on each manslaughter count, but could be imprisoned for as long as four decades.

Read more.

What do you think can be done to deter drunk driving in Virginia?

If you or someone you know has been the victim of a Virginia auto accident, the injury lawyers at Lowell Stanley can help.

Suit Accuses Virginia Beach Jail of Wrongful Death

by admin@gotechark.com | August 18th, 2011

August 18, 2011

Family members of a 54-year-old inmate who died while at the Virginia Beach jail have filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the sheriff and the jail’s medical staff, alleging poor medical care.

The deceased checked into the jail on October 29, 2010, to serve a 10-day sentence for driving with a suspended driver’s license. Hampton Roads reports that the man told a nurse that he had diabetes and hypertension and thus needed to take medication. Though the man was given insulin, the lawsuit says he was not treated for his hypertension.

On November 3, 2010, the victim complained to jail staff of severe pain in an eye before collapsing and hitting his head on a table. He was taken to the jail’s infirmary and then back to his cell. The suit says staff believed the man was faking or exaggerating his symptoms.

Later that evening the man fainted in his cell, remaining unconscious for a reported 15 minutes.

“The inmates in his cell block began frantically banging on the window and the deputies only then removed him from the block,” the lawsuit says.

The man was taken to an emergency room in handcuffs and then transported to Virginia Beach General Hospital, where he died several days later of a brain hemorrhage.

The man’s sister, a Norfolk, Virginia resident, seeks $5 million.

Read more.

Do you think that the Virginia Beach Jail’s medical staff could have done more to save this inmate’s life?

If you or someone you know has been the victim of a Virginia wrongful death, the injury lawyers at Lowell Stanley can help.

2 People Die in Separate Hotel Balcony Falls in Virginia Beach

by admin@gotechark.com | June 21st, 2011

June 21, 2011

A 33-year-old man from Cincinnati, Ohio, died Sunday night after falling from a balcony at the Virginia Beach, Virginia, Oceanfront hotel where he was staying. His death follows the death of a toddler who, just two days earlier, also died after falling from an Oceanfront hotel balcony in Virginia Beach.

Just after 9 p.m., the man fell from a ninth-floor balcony at the Four Sails hotel at the 3300 block of Atlantic Avenue and was pronounced dead at the scene. He was staying at the hotel with his wife and three children.

Police spokesman Adam Bernstein told WTKR that foul play was not suspected in the death and that it hasn’t yet been determined whether the man jumped or fell from the balcony. He also told WAYTV that alcohol is “definitely a factor in this case.”

This death follows a similar Virginia Beach tragedy. On Friday, a two-year-old girl from Staunton, Virginia, fell five stories through the balcony railing at the Sandcastle Oceanfront Resort in Virginia Beach. The toddler slipped through a six-inch gap between the bars of the balcony railing and hit a canvas awning before landing on a patio outside a restaurant. She died the following morning at Norfolk General Hospital.

Newsleader.com reports that state building codes updated in 2009 state that balconies should allow no more than four inches between bars on a railing but that because this hotel was built in the ’60s it didn’t have to adhere to those codes.

Read more.

Do you think this death could have been prevented had the hotel balconies been designed differently? Do you think a hotel should be held liable if a visitor falls from its balcony?

If you or someone you know has been the victim of a Virginia wrongful death, the Virginia wrongful death lawyers at Lowell Stanley can help.

18-year-old driver killed in Virginia auto accident

by admin@gotechark.com | August 11th, 2008

August 11, 2008

Richmond Times-Dispatch reported an 18-year-old driver was involved and killed in a Virginia auto accident early Sunday morning.

The driver was driving his Ford Ranger pickup truck when he ran off the road and caused the Virginia auto accident.

The driver of the Virginia car accident overcorrected his truck and lost control of it when it overturned. He was not wearing his seat belt and was killed when he was ejected from the truck.

Read More