Mississippi Trucking Accident Attorney Talks About Accidents on Rural Roads

This past summer, an early morning head-on collision between a box truck and a van turned into a catastrophic wreck that claimed the lives of eight people. The eight people who lost their lives in the crash were in the van, riding to work. The van is owned by a Mississippi forestry company, and the workers were on their way to a job site in Alabama to cut trees. The passengers in the van were not wearing seatbelts at the time of the collision. The truck was owned by an Alabama company whose ninety-one commercial drivers operate a fleet of eighty-five trucks. Nine crashes involving trucks owned by that same company were reported during the past two years. The van driver received a ticket for not having a driver’s license. At the time of the writing of this article, no other charges were filed in connection with the accident.

The driver of the van survived, as did the driver of the truck. The van driver claims that although he swerved to avoid the box truck, it hit his van. An official investigation into the accident validated the van driver’s claim with a finding that the box truck crossed the center line before colliding with the van on June 3, near Scooba. The truck came to rest on the van, which it had pushed backwards into a guardrail.

Rescue workers who responded to the wreck say that the road where it happened is in a rural area and that drivers must use caution when driving on country roads late at night or in the early morning. The roads in much of rural Mississippi are very dark, and they are two-lane highways with one lane traveling in each direction, separated in most places only by a center line. That’s not the only danger present on Mississippi’s rural roads, where higher speeds can lead to more forceful collisions than occur in areas where there is more traffic and lower speed limits.

Accident investigation data from across the nation shows that rural roadways like the one where this crash happened are four times as deadly as city streets. Mississippi often tops lists of the most dangerous places to drive, and the amount of rural roads in the state is a major contributing factor. Law enforcement agencies do what they can to keep the road safe, but the number of officers is small, considering the number of miles of roadway that they are responsible for policing. When motor vehicle wrecks occur on Mississippi’s rural roads, there may be a significant delay between the time of the crash and the time someone sees it and reports it, if the driver or passengers cannot report the accident themselves. It may also take rescue workers a while to get from where they are to the site of the wreck, which could be miles and miles away from where they are when they get the call. The crash scene could also be many miles from a hospital, which could mean the difference between life and death in some cases.

To learn about how you can file a claim for damages that you suffered in a Mississippi truck crash, call the knowledgeable Mississippi Trucking Accident Attorney at Barrett Law PLLC, at 1 (601) 790-1505 today.

 

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Mississippi Personal Injury Attorneys Talk About Lung Illnesses Caused by Vaping

Over eight hundred cases of lung illnesses related to vaping and e-cigarettes are reported from across forty-six states. Twelve deaths across ten states have been attributed to e-cigarette or vaping-related lung illnesses. At least one of those deaths is said to have occurred in Mississippi.

Officials from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently testified before panels in the House of Representatives regarding the illnesses, which they say are not yet connected with any particular e-cigarette brand or vaping product. Investigating the causes of lung illness in these patients is proving to be hard for doctors because there are many products available, and a variety of ingredients are used in those products. Also, some substances like marijuana, which are legal in some states and illegal in others, are sometimes included as ingredients in vaping products and e-cigarettes.

Individuals who are suffering from lung illnesses caused by vaping and e-cigarettes want answers about why they are sick. In addition to the difficulties mentioned above, clear answers may be tough to find because many people who use e-cigarettes or vaping products have tried numerous brands and varieties of them. Vaping products and e-cigarettes come in a dizzying array of flavors, formulations, and brands, and many people who use those products enjoy sampling different products.

Some of the people who got sick after using vaping products or e-cigarettes are not willing to disclose to their doctors that they use those products or use particular varieties of those products. Some of the products that have been used by both young users and users of legal age were purchased on the black market, where ingredient lists and product descriptions may not be wholly accurate or reliable.

Despite myriad difficulties in pinpointing the cause or causes of vaping-related illnesses and deaths, the CDC says it has been able to determine that the diseases appear to be caused by some chemical exposure. Multiple chemicals may be causing the illnesses, but one likely culprit that is causing at least some of them is Vitamin E acetate. Vitamin E acetate is an oil that is often used by manufacturers of cannabis-containing products to dilute the THC oil that the companies use to fill their cartridges. Vitamin E acetate is safe to use in topical products like skin creams, and it is safe to ingest in multivitamins or nutritional supplements. Health care professionals say the substance is not safe to inhale, and it may cause shortness of breath, chest pain, and other symptoms that correspond with the symptoms described by many of the patients reporting lung ailments in connection with e-cigarette or vape use. Samples of products taken from some of the individuals who have gotten sick from vaping or using e-cigarettes were tested by the United States Food and Drug Administration, which found Vitamin E acetate in approximately half of the product samples that contained THC.

The Mississippi Personal Injury Attorneys of Barrett Law PLLC have helped many plaintiffs and their families pursue claims for damages or losses in connection with all kinds of injuries. Call our office today, at 1 (601) 790-1505 to schedule a free, initial consultation.

 

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Mississippi Workplace Accident Attorneys Discuss Heavy Equipment Accidents

Road construction is dangerous work. Work zone injuries and fatalities have many causes, including distracted drivers, weather, and the machinery and tools that workers use every day. A recent workplace fatality in New Bern, NC is an example of a fatal workplace accident involving road construction machinery.

A man died when a construction roller tipped over. Initial reports of the fatal accident did not state whether the man was operating the roller when it overturned, or whether he was working near the roller when the accident happened. Either scenario could have resulted in a fatal accident. Construction rollers can tip easily, and there are often uneven surfaces in construction areas that can cause them to tip over, crushing the operator and possibly other workers nearby. Also, some rollers have seatbelts and rollover protection devices, but some do not. Even when a roller has seatbelts and other safety equipment, workers sometimes do not use the seatbelts and other safety features, thus increasing their accident risk.

The State Department of Labor is investigating the accident, and other agencies may join in the investigation. When workplace accidents, especially fatalities, are investigated, surprising things often come to light regarding the circumstances surrounding the injury or death that help others understand more about workplace accidents. For example, people who do not work with heavy machinery might think that workers who operate heavy machinery are always qualified to do so and always follow proper safety procedures because their work is so dangerous.

Unfortunately, the operation of heavy machinery is not always carried out with the appropriate degree of care and concern. While not every heavy machinery violation it finds during its workplace inspections leads to an injury or a fatality, many OSHA workplace violations involve heavy machinery. Heavy machinery accidents are one of the top four causes of construction worker deaths, along with falls, electrocution, and getting hit by an object.

Operating heavy machinery is a dangerous job. However, employers and employees can work together to decrease the risk of injury or death in areas where heavy machinery is used. For example, employers can inspect their equipment and maintain it in a safe condition. They can provide personal safety equipment for employees who will be operating the equipment, and they can train their employees on the safe operation of heavy equipment. Employees can also inspect the machinery they are using and alert their employers if it needs repair before it can be operated safely. Employees must use safety equipment that is provided to them, and they must follow the safe operating procedures that they learn while they are receiving the training that enables them to operate heavy machinery.

A workplace accident attorney can help you with the work of pursuing a claim for damages after a heavy machinery workplace accident so that you can focus on healing from your injuries. If your family lost someone in a heavy machinery workplace accident, a workplace accident attorney could take on the task of pursuing a claim for damages while you and your family focus on recovering from your loss. Call the Mississippi Workplace Accident Attorneys at Barrett Law PLLC at 1 (601) 790-1505 to learn more.

 

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Mississippi BP Oil Spill Attorneys Discuss Continued Danger to Gulf from Offshore Drilling

The Deepwater Horizon oil spill devastated the environment and economy in the Gulf Coast area and beyond. People whose lives were affected by the spill are moving forward, many of them with help from settlement claims they filed after the disaster struck. Everyone hopes that a catastrophe of that magnitude will never happen again. Unfortunately, it seems as though the risk of another Gulf Coast oil spill disaster looms larger than many people realize.

An environmental advocacy group recently filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration, claiming that the government is allowing offshore oil drillers to avoid following rules that require extensive safety testing of their equipment. The rules were put in place during the Obama administration, with the Well Control Rule, which was enacted in 2016.

The Deepwater Horizon explosion was traced back to a faulty blowout preventer, a safety device that is intended to stop unintended releases of oil or natural gas. The blowout preventer had not been inspected since 2005, and it was damaged, but not replaced, following a near-blowout incident before the 2010 disaster. The Well Control Rule aims to avoid another disaster like Deepwater Horizon, and it contains requirements for the testing, design, and maintenance of blowout preventers.

However, the Well Control Rule can only protect the Gulf if its provisions are enforced. The lawsuit filed by Democracy Forward on behalf of Healthy Gulf against the United States Department of the Interior claims that the director of the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement amended the provisions of the Well Control Rule unlawfully and in secret. The amended rule allows offshore drilling companies to request waivers that enable them to be exempt from some of the provisions of the Well Control Rule.

To date,  over one thousand five hundred waivers have been granted. Approximately a third of those waivers allowed companies to forego testing of their blowout preventers before putting them into use. That adds up to many rigs that are not in compliance with the safety testing rules that are intended to prevent another disaster like Deepwater Horizon. The process for granting waivers has not been made available to the public. Because of that, companies with less than stellar safety records may be expanding their operations without thoroughly testing their equipment. It is also possible that waivers are being given to companies that would not have resources to pay for the damages they would owe if they were to cause a release of oil or a massive oil spill.

The Gulf region is slowly recovering from the disastrous effects of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. The health of the economy and the environment in the Gulf region is precarious. Another oil spill in the area could undo all of the healing and repair that has taken place. To learn more about past and present BP oil spill litigation, call the Mississippi BP Oil Spill Attorneys at Barrett Law PLLC at 1 (601) 790-1505, to arrange an initial consultation.

 

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Mississippi Automobile Accident Attorneys Talks About School Bus Accidents

A man died, and eight children were hurt in a school bus accident that happened on Tuesday, September 10, on Highway 72. The school bus driver had a heart attack and lost control of the bus, which went off of the road and flipped over several times before coming to rest in a ditch. The students that were on the bus at the time of the crash attend school in the Benton County School District. Eight children of various ages were transported from the accident scene to a hospital for evaluation and treatment. Four of the children were admitted to the hospital in serious condition. The other four children received minor injuries, for which they were treated and released.

Riding the school bus is part of many children’s school day routines in Mississippi. Parents and children do not often think about the possibility of a school bus accident, and most children will never experience one. School bus accidents are uncommon, but when they do occur, there is a risk to the bus driver as well as to every child who is on the bus. Since many parents depend on school buses to get their children to and from school, a report of a school bus accident may cause parents to question whether having their kids ride the bus is safe. Fortunately, you do not have to pull your kids off of the bus and make a plan to get them to school yourself to keep them safe. The National HighwayTransportation Safety Administration has studied school bus safety, and it has concluded that riding the school bus is multiple times safer than riding to school in a private vehicle.

You may wonder how it’s possible that school buses are a safer transportation choice for kids when most buses have no seatbelts. One factor that gives a school bus a safety advantage over a car is its size. School buses are large, and when a school bus crashes, the force of the impact is distributed throughout the entire vehicle. Passenger vehicles are much smaller and have much less area over which to distribute the force of a collision. Also, despite the lack of seat belts, the design of school bus seats separates the bus into compartments where passengers experience less movement during a crash than people riding in a passenger car experience in a collision. Finally, while anyone who can pass a driver’s license test can drive a passenger vehicle, school bus drivers undergo hours of safety training and testing before they can obtain work transporting students.

As safe as school buses are, school bus accidents do occasionally happen. Fortunately, most school bus accidents result in only minor injuries. However, severe injuries and deaths do sometimes occur. If you’d like to learn about the possibility of pursuing a claim for damages following a school bus accident, call the Mississippi Automobile Accident Attorneys at Barrett Law PLLC, at 1 (601) 790-1505, to learn more.

 

 

 

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Mississippi Whistleblower Attorney Describes the Procedure for Blowing the Whistle With Intelligence-Related Complaints

Whistleblowers come from all kinds of positions and professions. From the corporate world to government headquarters, individuals come forth to expose misdeeds. Sometimes, whistleblowers are caught in a position where they have information about wrong actions happening within their workplace or organization, but because of the nature of the wrongdoing, blowing the whistle publicly could compromise national security. This is a delicate position, and anyone in that position must understand that there is a mechanism for blowing the whistle without blowing the cover off of sensitive information.

The Intelligence Community Whistleblower Protection Act (the Act) protects intelligence officials from retaliation after they bring forth concerns about government misconduct. Not only does the Act protect whistleblowers, but it also provides a procedure for blowing the whistle without revealing classified information. If a person follows the process outlined in the Act, they cannot be prosecuted criminally, nor can they be fired.

The way that the Intelligence Community Whistleblower Protection Act says intelligence officials must submit their concerns about government misconduct to the Inspector General of the intelligence community. When the Inspector General receives a complaint, they have fourteen days to evaluate it. If the Inspector General determines that the claim describes a matter of urgent concern – a violation of the law, an abuse of power, or other serious problem that relates to an intelligence activity that involves classified information, the complaint must get forwarded to the Director of National Intelligence.

When the Director of National Intelligence receives a complaint, they have a week to forward the complaint and any relevant documents that support it to the intelligence committees in Congress. If an intelligence community whistleblower follows that procedure, their claim should be heard and acknowledged by those who have the power to address the wrongdoing without exposing the classified information associated with it. If the inspector general dismisses a complaint as not credible or, even worse, ignores it entirely, the whistleblower is not without options. They may take their complaint directly to Congress if they first comply with two additional requirements. First, the whistleblower must notify the inspector general of their intent to approach Congress directly with their complaint. Next, they must seek guidance from the Director of National Intelligence about how to approach Congress without revealing classified information. Once those two steps are complete, the whistleblower can contact Congress with their complaint while following the instructions provided to them by the Director of National Intelligence on how to do so in a way that protects classified information.

Whistleblowers often experience retaliation in a variety of ways, including but not limited to threats of prosecution or job loss. Fortunately, would-be whistleblowers within the intelligence community can protect themselves from those threats and keep classified information securely under wraps by following the provisions of the Intelligence Community Whistleblower Protection Act. To learn more about whistleblower laws and whistleblower protection claims, call the Mississippi Whistleblower Attorney at Barrett Law PLLC today at 1 (601) 790-1505 to set up an initial consultation.

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Mississippi Workplace Accident Attorney Says Pressures at Work Contribute to Workplace Accidents

Every job has a unique set of pressures and stresses that comes along with it. When people get together and talk about work, workplace stress, and the demands of their jobs are often topics of conversation which everyone can weigh in on. While some workplace stresses are unique to particular jobs, many people can relate to a specific type of corporate culture that is unfortunately very common in today’s workplaces. The pressure to work faster and longer is pervasive in American workplaces. Aside from being stressful for employees, this type of workplace culture is proving to be dangerous.

It is this pressure to work at a fast pace for long hours that is turning jobs that do not appear from the outside to be overly stressful or demanding into occupations with a high risk of injury, illness or death from workplace accidents. If you’re a health care worker, hotel housekeeper, restaurant server, delivery driver, or even someone who works lots of extra hours at the office, you know what we’re talking about. Overwork is no joke, and when you and your coworkers talk about the stresses of your workplaces and the demands that wear you thin, you’re not merely griping. You’re acknowledging a dangerous trend in American workplaces where companies are trying to get more out of their employees each hour that they work while simultaneously asking them to clock more and more time on the job.

Injuries, deaths, and illnesses caused by overwork often go unnoticed because the connection between the injuries, deaths, and diseases and the individual’s workplace is not always acknowledged. The employees who get sick, hurt, and killed by overwork don’t often fall ill, get injured, or die at work. Less than fourteen percent of work-related deaths occur at work. The stresses of overwork often manifest as long-term physical and mental health problems that cause the individuals affected by them a great deal of pain and suffering before they die.

One of the ways that the do more, faster, and more often workplace culture raises the risk of injury, illness, and death is by creating work schedules that are not compatible with a healthy work-life balance. Humans are not designed to work around the clock like machines, producing hour after hour, day after day. We are created to live in relationship with others, to care for and enjoy time with friends and family. When we must work long hours at an exhausting pace to secure basic needs for ourselves and our families, our health, as well as our relationships, suffer. The same happens when we choose to work more hours so that we have more money to spend on things that we want that are not necessities. The stress caused by difficulties in managing the tension between life at work and life outside of work can contribute to sickness, injury, and even death.

If overwork or stress has contributed to a workplace injury or illness in your life, you may be able to pursue a workplace accident claim. To learn more about how to pursue a workplace accident claim, call the Mississippi Workplace Accident Attorney at Barrett Law PLLC today, at 1 (601) 790-1505.

 

 

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Mississippi Whistleblower Attorneys Say Whistleblowers Crucial to Protecting National Security

The courageous actions of whistleblowers at all levels of influence bring things to light that would otherwise remain hidden. Each wrong that a whistleblower exposes can provide an opportunity for businesses or governments to mitigate some of the consequences that could be caused by the wrongdoing, outcomes that have the potential to be widespread and devastating without intervention.

Sometimes, whistleblowers expose threats or concerns to our national security. The House Intelligence Committee just released a declassified document containing a whistleblower complaint against President Trump. The document was released shortly before the director of national intelligence was set to testify regarding that complaint. The complaint, filed by an as yet unidentified whistleblower, alleges that the President of the United States is soliciting interference with the 2020 Presidential election from a foreign country.

In their complaint, the whistleblower claims to have received information from multiple United States officials regarding that solicitation. The information is said to have come to light over the past four months, by more than six officials who conduct official interagency business with the whistleblower. That official business routinely includes the sharing of information that would inform those individuals and equip them to carry out their policymaking duties regarding their areas of responsibility.

The whistleblower speaks to potential concerns about the validity of their complaint by explaining how the pieces of information that were revealed to them were each revealed by multiple sources and corroborate with each other. Some of the information also corroborates with publicly reported information. The whistleblower’s complaint, which they claim they have filed in fulfillment of their duty to report this matter, which they say falls within the definition of an urgent concern as defined by 50 U.S.C. §3033(k)(5)(G). The whistleblower’s complaint also implicates other individuals besides the President in the solicitation efforts, including the President’s personal attorney and the Attorney General of the United States.

Much of the complaint focuses on a July 25th telephone conversation between President Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. According to the individuals who shared their concerns with the whistleblower, President Trump used the majority of the phone call to advance his personal interests. During the conversation, the President is alleged to have pressured Zelensky to investigate the activities of Joe Biden and his son. He also asked Zelensky to provide information about the Russian interference with the D.N.C.’s computer networks in 2016. Trump also asked the Ukrainian President to meet with individuals that he has selected to serve as his envoys. Approximately a dozen government officials listened to the conversation, which is customary procedure for routine calls with foreign leaders, which is what everyone thought that phone call would be.

The content of the President’s July 25th telephone call with Volodymyr Zelensky is just one concern raised by the whistleblower complaint. There are also concerns about the actions of officials in the White House following that conversation. We will explore those concerns in a separate article.

The integrity of the election process in the United States has come under increasing scrutiny in recent years. National security is also at risk when the election process is tampered with by foreign countries. The Mississippi Whistleblower Protection Attorneys of Barrett Law PLLC support whistleblowers in their efforts to maintain our nation’s integrity and keep America safe. To learn more about whistleblower protection, call 1 (601) 790-1505 to arrange an initial consultation with the Mississippi Whistleblower Attorneys of Barrett Law PLLC.

 

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Mississippi Whistleblower Attorney Says Whistleblower Complaints Demand Accountability

When whistleblowers file complaints like the one that was recently filed regarding President Trump, individuals and organizations are called upon to account for their actions. Accountability for one’s actions or the actions of a company, group, or agency is critical to the healthy functioning of companies, organizations, and governments. In a previous article, we investigated how the President’s interactions with foreign leaders have the potential to undermine the integrity of the United States’ Presidential election process. In this article, we’ll explore another element of the whistleblower’s complaint; the allegation that Senior White House officials misused their authority in handling records of a phone call after it happened.

The complaint recently filed by an unidentified whistleblower regarding President Trump’s July 25th, 2019 telephone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky alleges that the President exerted pressure on Zelenskyy to take actions that would help strengthen Trump’s 2020 bid for reelection. The complaint also alleges that in the days following the telephone conversation, Senior officials in the White House acted outside the scope of their authority in ordering records of the phone call to be locked down.

Select White House officials do have the authority to divert sensitive and classified information from the standard procedures for information handling that White House officials ordinarily follow while carrying out their official duties. There is a system outside of customary information handling procedures that is only to be used to handle information that is highly sensitive and classified. The whistleblower’s complaint raises the question of whether the White House officials who removed the records of the July 25th phone call from the standard information handling system and placed them into the system intended only for highly sensitive information abused their power and discretion in doing so.

According to the whistleblower’s complaint, at least one White House official stated that the telephone call did not contain any highly sensitive national security matters and thus did not require special handling apart from the customary procedures. The system is reserved for codeword-level intelligence matters, and it is directly managed by the National Security Council’s (NSC’s) Directorate for Intelligence Programs. Codeword-level intelligence matters include things like covert operations. Codeword-level intelligence can only be viewed by individuals who possess the proper level of security clearance to see them and the specific codeword associated with the information. The whistleblower’s complaint claims that other officials share the concern over this Administration using the NSC-managed information handling system for inappropriate reasons. Their concern applies to the July 25th telephone conversation, as well as other matters placed into that system, that are politically sensitive but have nothing to do with national security.

Whistleblower complaints draw criticism and even abuse from those whose alleged wrongdoing is detailed in them. No one wants their poor choices or mistakes brought to everyone’s attention, but whistleblowers must continue to do this crucial work. Accountability is critical to the proper function of corporations, organizations, and governments, and whistleblowers play a significant role in holding people and organizations accountable for their actions. To learn more about the protections available to whistleblowers, call Mississippi Whistleblower Attorney Jonathan Barrett of Barrett Law PLLC today at 1 (601) 790-1505 for an initial consultation.

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