The Illinois Personal Injury Weblog of Schaeffer & Lamere P.C.

More Should Be Done on Interstate 44

From the St. Louis Post-Dispatch: " 'Miserable highway' has largely been rebuilt," by Elisa Crouch--

Interstate 44 near Six Flags St. Louis is a hotbed for traffic crashes.

This year, the Eureka Fire Protection District has responded to 67 crashes on the stretch between Highway 141 and Pacific, district spokesman Scott Barthelmass said. The crashes have killed at least 12 people, including the five who died Thursday, according to data compiled by the Post-Dispatch.

Five occupants of a minivan died when a truck rear-ended their vehicle about a mile east of the exit for Six Flags St. Louis amusement park, the family's destination.

--Posted by T. Evan Schaeffer of the Missouri personal injury law firm of Schaeffer & Lamere, P.C.

A Doctor's Dispute with a Rural Hospital

From the St. Louis Post-Dispatch: "Small-town hospital is ill in fight with doctor," by Kevin McDermott--

The only hospital in Nashville is teetering on bankruptcy largely because, some say, it picked a fight with the wrong man: a popular local doctor, who now is referring his patients to hospitals in St. Louis and elsewhere.

Like many small-town hospitals, Washington County Hospital scrapes for every dime, and the grudge match with Dr. Thomas Coy has drained it of both revenue and credibility, officials say.

They say the drop in patients from Coy has contributed to financial shortfalls that could ultimately shutter the hospital, forcing Nashville's 3,200 residents to travel 20 miles or more for even basic medical care.

--Posted by Illinois personal injury lawyer T. Evan Schaeffer of Schaeffer & Lamere, P.C.

Supreme Court Nomination: John Roberts

From the Associated press via St. Louis Post-Dispatch: "Bush chooses Supreme Court judge," by Deb Riechmann--

President Bush chose federal appeals court judge John G. Roberts Jr. for a seat on the Supreme Court Tuesday, delighting Republicans while unsettling some Democrats with the selection of a young jurist with impeccable conservative credentials.

Roberts, 50, would succeed retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, who has long been a swing vote on a court divided narrowly on issues such as abortion, affirmative action, states' rights and the death penalty.

--Posted by Illinois personal injury lawyer T. Evan Schaeffer of Schaeffer & Lamere, P.C.

Illinois to Require License for Tasers and Stun Guns

From the Alton Telegraph: "Illinois to require firearm license to own stun gun or Taser," by Nicole Thorp and Tyler Bennett--

Illinois soon will become the first state to require a Firearm Owner’s Identification Card to purchase a Taser or stun gun.

Gov. Rod Blagojevich signed legislation into law June 3 in an effort to keep the weapons out of the wrong hands.

"Tasers and other stun guns can be very dangerous in the wrong hands -- the amount of voltage they exert alone can be lethal. By treating these weapons just as seriously as we treat firearms, we can make our streets and neighborhoods safer," Blagojevich said in a news release.

--Posted by Illinois personal injury lawyer T. Evan Schaeffer of Schaeffer & Lamere, P.C.

A Lawyer Fond of St. Louis

From the St. Louis Post-Dispatch: "Jerry Schlichter thinks St. Louis can be comeback city of the country," by Martin Van Der Werf.

Has some of your work made the railroad industry safer?

I believe so. ... The railroad industry didn't sound-proof their locomotives, didn't provide hearing protection until there were injury claims. I handled a significant number of those claims in the very late'80s. Only then did they provide 29-cent earplugs to their employees.

Is tort reform going to make it harder to win these sorts of cases?

There will be a lot of innocent victims who will not get compensation as a result. We now have in Missouri restrictions on damages for what's called non-economic loss. Losing a child is a severe loss, (but) there are cases that won't be brought for children's deaths because they don't have an economic loss. And I think that is sad.

--Posted by T. Evan Schaeffer of the Missouri Vioxx law firm of Schaeffer & Lamere, P.C.

Bicyclists and Motorists at Odds

From the St. Louis Post-Dispatch: "Residents, bicyclists clash on sharing rural roads," by Sue Hurley--

[T]he dangers of sharing the roadways are clear. In 2003, 17 bicyclists were killed on Illinois roads, and 2,971 were injured, according to Illinois Department of Transportation officials.

In Missouri, nine people were killed in bicycle traffic accidents in 2003, the last year for which statistics were available. More than 650 were injured in crashes involving bicycles, said Al Nothum of the Missouri Highway Patrol. Most car-bicycle accidents occur in urban areas.

--Posted by T. Evan Schaeffer of the Illinois Vioxx law firm of Schaeffer & Lamere, P.C.

Blunt Appointee Resigns

From the St. Louis Post-Dispatch:  "Blunt appointee resigns under pressure," by Jo Mannies and Gail Appleson--

Randa Hayes resigned today from her job as director of Missouri’s Division of Business Development and Trade, as a result of reports about her apparent criminal record in Illinois. S

tate Economic Development Director Greg Steinhoff asked for Hayes’ resignation after a department investigation confirmed the allegations, said department spokesman Paul Sloca.

--Posted by T. Evan Schaeffer of the Illinois Vioxx law firm of Schaeffer & Lamere, P.C.

A Missouri Political Website

From the St. Louis Post-Dispatch: "Political bloggers in state are an independent bunch," by Jo Mannies--

He's John Combest, the founder and operator of johncombest.com - a headline service that's arguably the state's best known and most popular political Web site.

Weekdays and weekends, Combest attends to the hobby that has taken over his life. He trolls the Web and posts the headlines, with links, to almost every political story or column in virtually every newspaper in the state. They're big and small, from the Neosho Daily News, the Joplin Globe and the Sedalia Democrat to the Kansas City Star, the Post-Dispatch and the Associated Press.

--Posted by T. Evan Schaeffer of the Illinois Vioxx law firm of Schaeffer & Lamere, P.C.