Finch McCranie, LLP

Surgery Patients Awake During Procedures

Many surgery patients report that they awake during surgery. They say it feels like being trapped in a corpse, unable to move or scream. Some remember hearing their surgeons talk, and a few recall feeling intense pain.
Each year, as many as 40,000 of the 21 million patients undergoing surgery in the United States may experience inadequate anesthesia, leading to anxiety and even post-traumatic stress disorder if patients regain consciousness, according to the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations.
A widely used device that
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Another Police Chase: Another Tragedy

It seems that everyday our personal injury lawyers open the paper, we read about another wrongful death in the context of a high speed police chase. One such case occurred this past weekend in Augusta, Georgia when a Sheriff’s Deputy was chasing a 19-year old suspect. Initially the officer involved pulled the suspect over and was provided his ID and driver’s license. Thus, the officer knew who the suspect was and where he lived. While the officer went back to his car to
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Another Innocent Victim Killed in a Police Chase for a Stolen Car

In February of this year, an active member of the military at Fort Benning, Sgt. Joanna Joy Ringer, age 21, was reportedly killed as yet another innocent victim in a police chase case. This time, the, innocent victim, Ms. Ringer, was killed because the police were chasing a 17 year old teenager for joyriding in a stolen pickup truck. Ms. Ringer, like all such victims, was simply at the wrong place, at the wrong time when the fleeing suspect ran head on into her car.
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Atlanta School Bus Accident Raises Questions Concerning Bus Safety

Our personal injury lawyers read today about a serious accident case involving an overturned school bus which apparently lost control and overturned about 40 miles north of Atlanta near Canton, Georgia. It was traveling from one high school to a middle school when the accident happened. When the bus overturned, even though no students were ejected from the bus, according to initial reports, approximately 25 students were injured. Two were reported to be in critical condition.
Initial news accounts state that the bus driver apparently
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Doctor Charged Criminally

In 2006, a disabled and brain damaged man, near death, was taken into an operating room at a California hospital in order to harvest his organs for donation. Law enforcement officials contend that what occurred in the operating room was a criminal act. The surgeon, Dr. Hootan Roozrokh has been criminally charged with prescribing excessive and improper doses of drugs, apparently in an attempt to hasten Mr. Navarro’s death to retrieve his organs sooner. The doctor is facing three felony counts relating to his actions
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New Supreme Court Decision Makes It More Diffcult For Georgia Lawyers To Sue Medical Device And Drug Companies In Product-Injury Claims

Last Wednesday the Supreme Court of the United States made it harder for injury and wrongful death victims to sue manufacturers of federally approved medical devices. This decision will also impact cases involving dangerous drugs. The issue before the Supreme Court was whether the Estate of Charles Riegel could sue a company under state law over a medical device which had previously been cleared for sale by federal regulators. Under federal law, a company must prove the safety and effectiveness of a medical device
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Atlanta Police Chase

Atlanta TV stations are reporting that this afternoon, a car veered into a bus stop during a police chase and struck four pedestrians. The incident was near Metropolitan Parkway and University Drive.
According to reports, the Atlanta Police were chasing three juveniles in a stolen vehicle when the car ran into the bus stop. One juvenile was apprehended at the scene while two others escaped.
Four of the people involved were injured, one critically. This is another instance of innocent civilians harmed and/or killed
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Dangerous Drugs–Who Is The FDA Trying To Protect?

In January of this year, the FDA issued a proposed rule which directly contradicts Congress’ expressed intent when it passed the Food and Drug Administration Amendment’s Act of 2007 (FDAAA). Unlike the FDA’s proposed rule, Congress intended the duty to warn customers of a drug’s hazards rests with the drug company, who is in the best position to warn about problems associated with the drug. However, under the FDA rule, drug companies will enjoy more relaxed labeling requirements and will use the rule to claim
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Trasylol Heart Drug Dangers Hidden By Manufacturer

Two studies have concluded that heart surgery patients are more likely to die if given the anti-bleeding drug Trasylol. The drug has been widely used for the last 14 years to treat hundreds of thousands of heart bypass patients each year. Drug manufacturer Bayer AG ceased sales of the last fall, after a Canadian study was halted because of deaths among patients taking Trasylol.
The new studies are being published this week in the New England Journal of Medicine. Bayer funded one of the two
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Medical Device Manufacturers Receive Protections

This Wednesday the Supreme Court issued a major anti-consumer opinion, making it harder for consumers to sue manufacturers of federally approved medical devices.
In an 8-1 decision, the court ruled against the estate of a patient who suffered serious injuries when a catheter burst during a medical procedure. The case has significant implications for the $75 billion-a-year health care technology industry, whose products range from heart valves to toothbrushes.
At issue before the Supreme Court was whether the estate of Charles Riegel could sue
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Family Files Wrongful Death Suit Over Police Chase That Ended in Fatality

It seems that everyday when our personal injury lawyers open the paper, we read about another wrongful death in the context of a high speed police chase. Today, we read about another tragic police chase, this one in Montana. The Billings Gazette reported that the family of a Billings nurse killed by a drunken teenager who was fleeing from police has filed a wrongful death and negligence lawsuit, claiming city officers and county deputies violated their own pursuit policies. Stahl died shortly
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Dangerous Contraceptive Pills Yaz and YasminShould Be Removed From The Market

As Georgia injury lawyers, we are well aware that citizens can no longer rely on the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) to be the guardian of public safety when it comes to new drugs that come to market. Every year, the cash rich pharmaceutical companies, with their high powered lobbyist market and sell dangerous drugs and medical devices to the public. The Coalition Against Bayer Dangers, a consumer watchdog group, has demanded an ban of “third generation” contraceptive pills with increased rates of side effects. Studies
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Aide Pleads Guilty To Neglect In Nursing Home Death

Nursing home neglect and nursing home negligence leading to the wrongful death or serious injury of the elderly is a growing problem. With the number of aging baby boomers steadily increasing, it is likely to continue to be a problem. Neglect takes many forms. Recently, we read that an Illinois woman involved in a lawsuit over the alleged wrongful death of an 89-year old Alzheimer patient has pleaded guilty to criminal neglect, according to the Chicago Tribune. Sara Wentworth died of hypothermia earlier this

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Federal Pleading Standards Receiving Congressional Scrutiny

Pleading standards in Federal Courts have been dramatically impacted by two recent United States Supreme Court decisions. These decisions, Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly and Ashcroft v. Iqbal, raised the standard that parties bringing a lawsuit must meet to avoid having their cases dismissed.
At issue is how specific a pleading must be under the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. Rule 8 requires that a complaint include “a short and plain statement of the claim showing that the pleader is entitled to relief.” Rule 12
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Serious Injury Or Death Often Results From Electrocution Injury

As Georgia injury lawyers, we have seen a number of electrocution cases over the years. Some of the electrocutions result in serious injury and many result in death. Electrocution injury can cause many problems which include, tingling, pain, tetany, palpitations, chest pain, respiratory arrest, amnesia, seizures, altered mental state, coma, blistering and wounds. This week we had occasion to investigate the electrocution of a client who is a lineman for an electric utility company. He was seriously injured when he came into contact
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Nine Deaths Linked To Highly Flammable Women’s Robes

The product liability injury lawyers at Finch McCranie,LLP have handled many wrongful death cases stemming from dangerous products. These products take many different forms. The Associated Press reported this week that full-lenght women’s chenille robes made in Pakistan are being recalled because they are highly flammable and are now linked to nine deaths of women, most of whom were in their 70’s and 80’s. Most of the incidents occurred while the victims were cooking.
Our firm has seen many wrongful death cases
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Doctors Convicted Of Felonies Still Paid By Taxpayers

Doctors who have committed crimes are still being paid by taxpayers for doing work for the Food and Drug Administration according to a report in the Wall Street Journal. This work ranges from conducting research for the agency or overseeing the safety of patients in clinical trials. The report takes the FDA to task for slowness in debarring ,( disqualifying ), health professionals who have been convicted of crimes.
The FDA has the authority to debar doctors from overseeing the safety of patients in clinical
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Ford Recall:Cruise Controls Malfunction

Recently our firm posted a blog about a tragic accident in Georgia where an 11-year old girl lost her life due to an apparent malfunctioning cruise control switch on a Ford Econoline Van. Last week, we noted with great interest that shortly after this tragic event occurred, the Ford Motor Company recalled 4.5 million vehicles over “faulty cruise control switches.” According to the recall, the faulty cruise control switches being recalled could cause a fire in the vehicle which was the stated reason for the
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Defective Cruise Control Suspected In Wrongful Death

We read today about a tragic case in which an 11-year old girl was killed in an accident that may have resulted from a defective product. According to news accounts, a 1997 Ford Econoline Van lost control near the intersection of U.S. 441 and Interstate 16 while the van was being operated by the child’s grandfather. The grandfather reported to the Georgia State Patrol that the cruise control had gotten stuck and that he could not cut it off. As the driver took the exit
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Recreational Off-Road Vehicle Rules Proposed

Our Atlanta attorneys frequently review cases involving recreational off-road vehicles which involve death and serious injury. The Consumer Product Safety Commission staff has recommended that the agency set mandatory rules to regulate recreational off-road vehicles.
The CPSC’s five commissioners received the written recommendation this week, and must propose a rulemaking before any rules could be implemented. An agency spokesman said the commissioners could vote on whether to proceed with the rulemaking as early as Wednesday of this week.
The off-road vehicles, also known as ROVs,
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