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Litigation Funding Blog

Drunk Driving Kills Five People, Injures Two Others

July 31, 2013

An 18-year-old who was allegedly drunk driving after escaping a juvenile detention center escapee is accused of killing family members and injuring two others in an auto accident. His blood alcohol content was reported to be 0.12 percent, well above the legal limit of 0.08.

Police reports indicate that the teen and his passenger were injured when the vehicle they were in rear-ended a Chevy van carrying seven people. The force of the impact flipped the van, killing five of the occupants. The van’s driver and a 15-year-old boy were the only survivors. Despite the teen’s lawyer indication that he would plead not guilty, the boy had reportedly admitted to police he was behind the wheel at the time of the accident. In the front and back seat investigators found several bottles of beer.

The teen was subsequently charged with DUI causing substantial injury or death, plus two misdemeanor charges —- driving without a license and failing to slow down. According to his criminal defense attorney, the teen plans to plead not guilty, as there may be some issue as to whether or not he was driving at the time of the accident. In the meantime, he is being held on $3.5 million bail and is in isolated, protective custody in jail. His attorney indicated that his client was praying for the five people killed in the accident.

Anyone facing the loss of five members is likely utterly devastated. The expense to bury five and pay funeral costs typically is staggering. In order to be able to pay their bills and wait for their wrongful death lawsuit to be resolved, the perfect solution may be to apply for a lawsuit cash advance. Pre-settlement funding is an emergency loan advanced to qualified plaintiffs working with a lawyer that allows them to get out of debt and keep their financial obligations current while waiting for a trial or settlement.

Plaintiffs just need to fill out an application online or by calling a litigation funding company. They do not get put through a credit check, there are no fees to be paid upfront or monthly, the applicant does not need to have a job and if they do lose their case in court, the lawsuit cash advance is theirs to keep, with no strings attached.

Unsafe escalator Causes Death of Man

July 15, 2013

Due to the negligent maintenance of a public elevator, a man was strangled to death.

A 42-year-old man was in a downtown Seattle bus terminal early one Sunday morning; near the bottom of the escalator, he apparently lost his balance and fell. His shirt was caught in the moving escalator teeth; the fabric of his shirt was slowly tightened until it strangled him.

Eyewitnesses called 911, but no one was able to provide a knife or other sharp instrument which might have helped to cut the man loose. He was deceased by the time paramedics and the police arrived on the scene. The Washington State Department of Labor and Industries then presumably attended the scene to investigate the cause for the gruesome accident.

According to reports, the man might have been drinking prior to the accident; he was spotted walking unsteadily on the escalator and had in his possession a bottle of brandy. Regardless of his state of inebriation, there were maintenance problems with the equipment. In fact, there were numerous known issues that needed to be dealt with in regards to the escalator: ensuring the stop switch worked; fixing demarcation lights; replacing broken teeth; keeping the maintenance journal up-to-date; annual cleaning, and more. These items had been flagged during a safety inspection in December. None of the safety issues were addressed by Metro Transit at the time of the man’s death.

The man’s family may wish to contact a personal injury attorney and find out what they need to do in order to file a wrongful death lawsuit. These suits are often initiated by the deceased’s relatives to ensure nothing like this happens to anyone. In short, the suit would send a message that necessary maintenance must be performed to keep such equipment in good operational order and safe.
The family may face financial difficulties in trying to deal with the man’s funeral and burial expenses and would have a difficult time paying all of their bills. One solution for them would be to apply for lawsuit funding, once they have hired a lawyer. The process for applying for pre-settlement funding is easy and only takes a few minutes, either online or by phone.

A lawsuit cash advance is given to a plaintiff in advance of their case going to settlement or court. Once their application has been approved, the lawsuit loan is sent directly to their bank account, where they may access it to pay pressing bills. Once they have the funding in the bank, they do not need to deal with any insurance companies that would try and get them to settle for less than what they would likely be awarded in court. Litigation funding is often the one best advantage a plaintiff has to level the playing field.

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