Month: October 2013

Speed Kills and Maims and Causes Car Crashes

Posted on by John Young

Indianapolis Auto Injury AttorneysMy older readers may remember this slogan as a part of an anti drug campaign in the 1960’s. It is also true as it applies to automobile accidents. I would modify it to read as “Speed kills and maims”. Increased speed increases stopping time and stopping distances. Increased speed increases the likelihood of serious personal injury and death. Did you know that as a driver doubles the cars speed, the driver quadruples the stopping distance of the car. A drivers reaction time is generally thought to be between 1 second and two seconds depending on the facts of the event. This means that a driver traveling 35 miles per hour will have between one and two seconds to recognize a hazard and react to that hazard, hit the brakes and take evasive action. A car travelling 35 mph is travelling approximately 51 feet per second. This the driver will travel between 51 and 102 feet before they can do anything to avoid a collision. Now take a car going seventy miles per hour. That car is travelling 102 feet per second and will travel 204 feet before the drive even touches the brakes. When the driver does hit the brakes it will take the car four times the distance to stop as the car travelling 35 miles per hour.

So you can see that traveling faster raises the chances of not being able to see a hazard. It increases the distance the car will travel while the driver reacts and it increases the amount of distance a car will travel after the driver reacts. All of this increases the likelihood that a car crash will occur, where if the car was being at a safe slower speed, the crash will likely not occur. If you have to be somewhere at a certain time, give yourself plenty of time to get there. If you have teenagers talk to them all the time about the fact that speed kills. I know teenagers can be hard to talk to but they do listen and some of what you say will sink in. Thanks for listening.

60 Minutes and Social Security Disability

Posted on by John Young

The key to making a convincing argument is to have a study, based on a large enough sample to make the conclusions of the study reliable. In addition the rules of the study must be sound and reproducible. One cannot simply state that because the number of people on Social Security Disability has increased in the past 6 years, that there is fraud in the system. If I, for instance, who has 25 years of experience representing claimants before the Social Security Administration, say that I can only remember a handful of claimants that I believed was attempting to defraud the system, that that then means that very few people are trying to defraud the system. My experience may or may not be average, but it cannot be used to state that there is no fraud in the system

Likewise, the Senator who was interviewed cannot state with any degree of certainty that because his research turned up what he termed fraud in a high percentage of the cases he reviewed that there is a high percentage of fraud in the system. The 60 Minutes story intimated that the Senator’s sample was small. We have no idea upon what basis the Senator’s staffers (Presumably persons with no medical training or experience with disability claims) conclude that any of the claims they reviewed were fraudulent. The Senator, and 60 Minutes for that matter, would have us believe that just because they say so, their assumptions are correct.

The 60 Minutes story on Social Security Disability is provocative. I am glad that our leaders are doing all they can to make sure that the system serves those who need assistance. However, the story itself did very little to convince me that we are in a crisis. In fact the only thing of which it convinced me, something I already know, is that big government programs need to be kept under scrutiny at all times.

Fall Travel Preparedness Tips

Posted on by John Young

Fall is a time to enjoy the great outdoors and in Indiana we are blessed with a change of seasons that reminds us each season’s particular beauty. Safety when traveling can avoid accidents and injuries.

When preparing to take a road trip be sure to check your headlights, taillights and turn signals. Examine your wiper blades and change if necessary. Don’t forget your tires. Inspect them and check the air pressure.. Include the spare in that inspection. You want make sure all doors work properly and that the air conditioner and heating systems works properly as well. Be sure to check the fluid levels including coolant, oil, transmission fluid , brake, power steering and windshield washer fluids. Finally be sure to prepare or update your emergency road kit.. Make sure you have your cars manual, a flashlight, extra batteries, jumper cables , tire pressure gauge,  a signal flag, blanket, umbrella, cell phone, pencil , notebook and gloves.

A few moments of prevention  now can provide hours of comfort  and lowered stress levels if the need arises. These steps can help you avoid auto accidents. Accident and injury prevention can be greatly increased by following these few precautions as you and your family hit the road and explore the great fall outdoors.

Social Security and Residual Functional Capacity

Posted on by John Young

Indianapolis Social Security AttorneyWhen reviewing a social security application, the Commissioner of the Social Security Administration, by and through her employees, uses a five step process to determine whether an individual is disabled. The last step in the process seeks to determine the claimants residual functional capacity and then determine whether that person can do any work. The Social Security Administration is concerned whether the applicant can still perform the job they used to perform. If the applicant can perform the physical requirements of their former work, then they will not be found disabled. Not surprisingly, applicants generally are not capable of performing their past job. This does not mean, however, that the applicant is disabled. The Social Security Administration will have to decide whether there is any other work the applicant can perform. If not, the applicant will be found to be disabled. If so, the applicant will be found not to be disabled.

A person’s residual functional capacity is what the applicant’s body can still do despite the medical disabilities an applicant can prove. The administration looks at the applicant’s medical records and decides what medical problems exist and what limitations those problems cause. Next the administration determines the applicant’s residual function. The Administration looks at how much a person can lift, both occasionally and frequently, how long they can stand, how long they can sit, can they kneel, squat, crawl, bend at the waist, climb stairs, climb ladders, climb ropes, reach over head, manipulate small objects, stay on task and other physical and psychological activities.

Once the Social Security Administration determines the applicant’s RFC, they next look at whether that allows them to do Sedentary work, light work, medium work or heavy work. Generally in order to be considered disabled, the applicant must not be able to complete the full range of sedentary work. Sedentary work is work that requires a person to lift up to 10 pounds, walk or stand for up to 2 hours in an 8 hour day, to be able to sit for up to six hours in an 8 hour day, and to be able to communicate in English.

If you are an applicant and have questions about any issue involving Social Security, please give us a call.

Drunk Driving Accidents Shatter Lives

Posted on by John Young

Indiana auto accident attorneysWe have stated many times that drunk driving collisions must end. I personally think the serious personal injury and even wrongful death caused by the recklessness of the drunk driver is shameful. It can be summed up in this way: What is good for me is good, it matters not how it affects you. The drunk driver is only thinking of themselves. They do not think about the consequences of their decision to drink and drive. Sad as it is to kill or maim a fellow Hoosier, it is just as sad when the drunk driver accident causes the death of the drunk driver. I know, it is hard not to say they deserved it, but try and say that to a child who will never have the benefit of hugging their mother, brother, father, or sister.

I know I am not alone in these feelings. I share with you the following link that proves others want to do away with drunk driving. I hope it helps you find a way to prevent others from driving drunk. Be careful.

Click here

NOTICE: No face-to-face meeting needed. You can remain safely in your home from case signup to settlement.

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