St. Louis Injury Lawyer Blog

Early Thursday morning, Ameren UE workers discovered a woman's body in the parking lot of a North Saint Louis bar. The woman has been identified as Stephanie Caroll, 42, a resident of the area. The workers discovered the body around 8:45 a.m. and immediately called the police.

The parking lot is located at 4960 Parker Road, next to a an establishment called Meyer's Country Cottage and Irish Pub. Investigators said there was no obvious cause of death but police are classifying it as a suspicious incident. An autopsy is currently being performed to determine the cause of death and piece together the night's incidents.

Continue reading "Body Found Behind North County Bar In St. Louis" »

Early Saturday morning, authorities recovered the bodies of a mother, her son and a family friend's son from a St. Claire County lake. The mother, Kathy Baxmeyer, 40, had taken her son, Kadin Baxmeyer, 7, and her son's friend, Steven "Austin" Baum, 6, out to celebrate her son's birthday.

By midnight on Friday, Austin's mother had been unable to get in contact with Kathy Baxmeyer. Worried, she reported her son as missing to the Monroe County Sheriff's Department. When authorities arrived at the Baxmeyer residence, family members were asleep and under the impression that Kathy and the boys were still at the movie they had planned on seeing for the birthday celebration.

Upon finding boots and gloves near a lake by the residence, police used dogs to track the smell from the items. Investigators had their suspicions confirmed when the dogs led them to the water's edge. Diving teams from several fire departments worked for hours before recovering the bodies in 12 feet of water.

Authorities suspect that the boys made their way out onto the icy lake and the mother followed, trying to save them. At this point, all three deaths have been ruled an accident and no charges have been made.

According to the CDC, in 2005, there were 3,582 fatal unintentional drownings in the United States, averaging ten deaths per day. In Illinois, from 1989 to 1998, there was an average of 138 drownings each year. More than one in four fatal drowning victims are children 14 and younger. For every child who dies from drowning, another four received emergency department care for nonfatal submersion injuries. Nonfatal drownings can cause brain damage that may result in long-term disabilities including memory problems, learning disabilities, and permanent loss of basic functioning (i.e., permanent vegetative state).

Continue reading "Tragic Deaths In Waterloo Illinois Drowning Accident" »

Last week, Medora teenager Andrew Ruyle, 18, filed charges against Shipman Mayor Daniel Barnett, 56 for an incident that occurred last July. Barnett, who also serves on the Shipman police force, pulled Ruyle over while he was driving an ATV on a public road. Ruyle claims Barnett cut in front of his vehicle at a high speed, causing Ruyle to break two fingers on the hand brake of the ATV. Aside from allegations that Barnett disregarded the teen's safety while making the stop, the suit also claims that the vehicle Barnett was operating was not marked as a police vehicle and that no sirens or lights were used while making the stop. Ruyle, who was one of two ATV operators that night, was charged with illegal operation of an ATV on a state highway but has not pleaded guilty.

As a result of the accident, Ruyle developed a staph infection in one of the injured fingers resulting in hospitalization and the threat that the finger may have to be amputated if it does not improve. The injury has resulted in 3 surgeries to date. While no court date has been set, Ruyle is seeking damages in excess of $50,000 to cover his injuries and medical expenses.

Continue reading "Medora Illinois Teen Files Lawsuit Against Shipman Mayor" »

On the evening of February 5, two cars were involved in a head-on collision in the southbound lanes of I-255. The driver of one car, Tawanda Jackson, 32, her son, 9-year-old Arnold J. "Jay" Jackson and passenger Jon L. Moss, 28, were all killed upon impact while Jackon's 11-year-old daughter, Takia, was seriously injured. The driver of the other car, Newton M. Keene, 46, was found to have a blood-alcohol content (BAC) of 0.29 percent after the accident- nearly four times the legal limit in Illinois.

Keene, who was injured in the accident, has a long history of drunk-driving offenses with six convictions on file, a Missouri license that has been revoked since 1997 and indefinitely suspended driving privileges in Illinois. Late last Thursday, Keene was charged with three counts of reckless homicide and a host of aggravated drunken driving charges.

Continue reading "Family Sues Hazelwood Missouri Tavern over Son's Death in Drunk Driving Accident" »

Last week, the Cardiac Science Corporation notified the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) of the voluntary recall of approximately 12,200 automated external defibrillators (AEDs). Manufactured between October 19, 2009 and January 15, 2010, the devices began to fail under certain conditions, though these conditions were not listed. The company stated that the failure is being attributed to a manufacturing defect.

While the company claims that it has not received reports of the problem from external sources or customers- the problem was found through internal testing- a defect like this can lead to serious medical complications, including death. AEDs are used to treat victims thought to be experiencing cardiac arrest; the devices attach to the victim and then provide prompts to guide rescuers through rehabilitation steps. The devices also analyze heart rhythms and determine if defibrillation shock is necessary for resuscitation.

Continue reading "Medical Product Manufacturer Announces Recall of AED Devices" »

Early Wednesday morning a Bethalto man was killed in a two-car accident near Fosterburg. The victim, William L. Gibson, 36, was driving around an "S" curve when ice and snow caused him to lose control of his Nissan Altima. The car went into a ditch on the right side of the road before Gibson over-corrected, causing the car to slide sideways into an on-coming Chevrolet Tahoe.

The driver of the Tahoe, Alton resident Adam C. Merkel, 28, escaped the accident uninjured along with his passenger, 6-month-old Emmett C. Merkel. Authorities say that Gibson was not wearing a seatbelt, causing him to be thrown into the backseat of his car upon impact. Both Merkel and his passenger were wearing their seatbelts at the time.

Continue reading "Macoupin County Illinois Car Wreck Leaves One Dead" »

Last Saturday, five-year-old Ava Karpowecz was on her way to gymnastics when she slipped on a patch of ice in her driveway. Hearing her child's cries, her mother came over and discovered Ava had hit her head on the pavement. Beyond being shaken, their child seemed to be fine, though they opted not to go on to gymnastics class. However, as the night went on the Karpoweczes grew nervous after Ava would complain about pain and began vomitting. They consulted doctors who told the parents to give her Tylenol and wake her intermittently and check for confusion.

Sunday afternoon, Ava woke from a nap screaming in pain. Her mother rushed her to St. Anthony's Medical Center. Upon arrival, doctors noticed the child vomiting and originally diagnosed her as having the flu. However, because of her fall the previous day, they ordered a CT scan to be certain. The results of the scan sent the medical team into swift action. The fall had caused an epidural hematoma- a blood clot between the skull and the membrane covering the brain. Injuries such as these can take hours to manifest themselves through symptoms, however, once the injury occurs, it becomes a race against the clock. Ava was immediately airlifted to Cardinal Glennon for emergency surgery.

Continue reading "Slip-and-Fall Causes Serious Brain Injury in Eureka Missouri Child" »

On Thursday, the Illinois Supreme Court overturned a five-year old ruling that limited the amount patients could receive from medical malpractice cases. Previously, the law allowed jury awards of up to $500,000 against doctors and $1 million against hospitals for non-economic damages (such as pain, suffering, loss of companionship, etc). In its 4-to-2 decision, the court stated the law was a violation of the states separation of powers because legislators were imposing decision that should be left up to judges and juries.

While lawyers, patients' rights advocates and union groups celebrated the decision, medical associations and doctors say it will mark a return to increased malpractice rates and an exodus of medical professionals from the state of Illinois. Others argue that the blame for high insurance rates lies with the insurance companies themselves.

Continue reading "Illinois Supreme Court Throws Out Caps on Medical Malpractice Awards" »

The Madison County Coroner's office, headed by Stephen P. Noon, announced last week that it is establishing a multi-disciplinary team to help shed new light on the problem of elderly abuse. Comprised of members from law enforcement agencies, social services, law, and health care, the group is responsible for reviewing cases involving alleged exploitation, neglect or abuse of the elderly.

The coroner's office believes there are two benefits to such a team: identifying trends and information about abuse as well as examining cases more effectively because of the varying backgrounds of the team members. This team is the first of its kind in the area, and only the second in the state of Illinois. With a large elderly population living in Madison County, it seemed like the ideal place for the next review team.

According to the National Committee for the Prevention of Elder Abuse (NCPEA) elderly abuse can come in multiple forms. From physical abuse to psychological abuse, it is estimated that 4-6% of the elderly are abused nation wide.

Continue reading "Madison County Illinois Creates Team to Investigate Elderly Neglect and Abuse" »

Over a week ago, Toyota raised concerns when it announced the recall of 2.3 million vehicles. These concerns were validated with the company's announcement later in the week of a massive recall in China, culminating with the announcement Friday that it also intended to recall 1.8 million vehicles in Europe as a "preventative measure". By this time, the company had also issued an order to halt production of the eight-best selling models in the U.S.

Citing problems with floor mat entrapment and sticky gas pedals that cause unexpected acceleration, Toyota's recall numbers have jumped to almost 9.5 billion since late last year. Both consumers and dealers were affected when Toyota halted the sales of the 2009 and 2010 RAV4, 2009 and 2010 Corolla, 2009 and 2010 Matrix, 2005 to 2010 Avalon, 2010 Highlander, 2007 to 2010 Tundra and 2008 to 2010 Sequoia.

These actions drew the attention of Congress, prompting the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform to schedule a hearing next week to investigate the government's response to Toyota's problems. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has an early warning system in place that provides statistical forecasting to identify trends and help signal problems such as the ones Toyota is experiencing. In this case, the system did not recognize the problem, causing the House to request extensive data reports from both the NHTSA and Toyota.

Continue reading "Toyota Expands Recall on Top-Sellers, Honda Issues Voluntary Recall" »