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Nursing home neglect lawyer - Trammell & Mills Law Firm

Is It Just a Bruise? – Nursing Home Abuse

Nursing Home Neglect

It’s a beautiful Sunday afternoon and you’ve decided to visit grandma at the nursing home. She’s glad to see you and the conversation is light and friendly. At some point, her sleeve pulls up a bit and you see a dark bruise on her forearm. You don’t want to seem too alarmed. After all, older people bump into things, their skin is thinner, or most are on medication that could be a factor.
Is it just a bruise? Is it one of the innocent side effects of aging, or did someone cause it? You hate to even consider the possibility but ignoring it could be a dangerous mistake.
While many older adults have a positive and supportive nursing home atmosphere, the tragic truth is that some don’t. In 2020, there were more than 15,000 nursing home abuse complaints in America. Nobody knows how many abuse incidents go unreported. Out of every 100 residents, ten may suffer some sort of mistreatment…and advocate groups estimate that more than 65% of victims are women.
Sometimes, bruises, cuts, or even broken bones are the result of nursing home staff handling the resident too roughly. A fall may not be accidental. Some staff members aren’t properly trained to properly maneuver residents through their daily routines. In many facilities, there’s not enough staff, so employees are overworked. If they’re tired and impatient, they can be careless enough to cause injuries. Sadly, some staff members are simply cruel to the people in their care.

Workers can simply neglect patients, which can result in bed sores, lack of proper bathing, or even malnutrition. Isolation can be mentally damaging to seniors and so can insulting language. Their fellow residents may be hurting them or speaking hatefully when no one is watching. There are even cases of other residents’ relatives causing physical and emotional injuries.
The heartbreaking truth is that these vulnerable seniors are often afraid to speak up about being abused. Don’t expect them to volunteer information. That’s why it’s so important to follow your gut instinct. If an injury looks like abuse, don’t ignore it. Part of every nursing home visit should include an honest conversation with your special senior about how they’re being treated. Ask specific questions about food, hygiene, interactions with staff, and physical injuries. Notice if they hesitate to answer.
If you have any suspicions, document injuries with photos or video recordings. Speak with nursing home management. Don’t hesitate to relocate your senior to a safer environment. The action you take will not only help your loved one, but may protect many others as a result.

Remember, it may not be “just a bruise.” Nursing home abusers deserve to be prosecuted and their employers pursued in civil court, we at Trammell & Mills will thoroughly investigate your situation and take proper legal action. We have no tolerance for elder abuse, and we’ll help you collect the damages your valued family member deserves. We urge you to call us at (864) 485-8585, so your senior can enjoy peace and safety in the golden years they have earned.

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When You Fall Head Over Heels, Call Trammell & Mills

Personal Injury , , , , , ,

We can’t help you when you fall in love, or out of love, but we can help you.  What we do involves holding other individuals and companies responsible for their negligence, ignorance, or omissions that caused you harm. Yes, that really means the insurance company hiding behind the people and companies that pay for just that type of incident.  Those negligent, ignorant, or forgetful people and companies often have little to do with the decisions that make you whole again. A wide array of real world examples and some of the most common types of cases are below:

  • injured while workingand not really getting straight answers from your employer or HR person;
  • another driver not paying attention and rammed their 3,000 pound hunk of metal into your only means of transportation. Now you can’t move your neck or get to work;
  • a tractor trailer driver on interstate 85nearly kill you when they were switching lanes while texting;
  • neighbor’s dog get loose again and bite your child, leaving permanent scars and an infected wound;
  • finally realize you are in need of Social Security benefits and got denied;
  • can’t believe a manufacturer would sell a product so dangerous;
  • slip, trip, or fallon someone’s property that knew there was a problem where you fell;
  • get jumped on, beat up, called dirty names, and held without your permission until a large retailer realized you actually paid your bill.  Oops, they made a mistake;
  • something not true being written and/or said about you to others;
  • have to lay your motorcycle down because another driver didn’t see you.

Those are just the top ten or more scenarios that have come into the office in the past couple months. I am sure there are more but I think you get the point. Enjoy your Valentine’s Day and hopefully you never need us. HOWEVER, if you ever do, or know someone that does, just tell them to call us or visit our website.

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Pain & Suffering Under The Law in South Carolina

Motor Vehicle Law & Statistics, Personal Injury

If you get hurt in a car wreck or injured in some other type of accident that isn’t your fault, you can take legal action to get fairly compensated. You may be entitled to collect damages, which is the legal term for financial payment from a lawsuit.

Whenever someone is the victim of a personal injury, the amount of money they can seek is broken down into two categories. First is Economic Damages, calculated by medical bills for treatment of your physical injuries, medications, or even an ambulance ride. This also includes lost wages, the amount of money you can’t earn from your job because you’re too hurt to work. It’s repayment for the measurable costs you experience after the accident.

The second category is Non-Economic Damages. You could be paid a separate amount for long-term physical disability or limitations caused by the injury, loss of a companion, ongoing inconvenience, or for pain and suffering.

What is “pain and suffering?” Legally, it refers to the physical and emotional injuries suffered by a victim after an accident.  This could be a combination of physical pain and mental or psychological agony.  It might be the result of ongoing impairment, disfigurement, loss of enjoyment of life, depression, or even anger. A traumatic accident or injury can have long-lasting effects.

How much can you collect for pain and suffering?  In South Carolina, there is no statewide standard for adding up a dollar value of Non-Economic Damages. There’s not a chart that lists standard payment amounts.  Each injury case is considered separately, and Non-Economic Damages are determined individually by the court. If you ever see a commercial for another law firm suggesting that a car wreck automatically pays $100,000, that’s just not true.

To determine pain and suffering, you need to look at the long-term disadvantages your accident injuries have caused and will cause, in your lifetime. This can be extremely difficult to do on your own, and we don’t recommend trying it. You need the professional experience of a personal injury attorney to establish fair and reasonable amounts that fit your specific situation. Trammell & Mills is a personal injury law firm based here in the Upstate that handles these types of cases all the time.

Economic and Non-Economic Damages apply to cases where you are less than 50% responsible for the accident or personal injury. There are statutes of limitations on recovering some damages, so taking legal action in a timely manner is important. And there are maximum dollar limit caps on some Non-Economic Damages, such as malpractice or claims made against the government.

If you’re the victim of a car wreck, if you get hurt because of negligence at someone’s home or business, or if you get an injury because of a defective product, don’t try to settle the matter yourself.  And never assume that insurance will cover all your costs. Trust the experienced attorneys at Trammell & Mills to help you recover your Economic Damages, as well as fair payment for any pain and suffering you may experience.

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Don’t Ruin Thanksgiving with a DUI

Motor Vehicle Law & Statistics , ,

Drunk Driving Injury Lawyer in Anderson, SC

Nearly half of all Americans travel during the holiday season and Thanksgiving weekend is usually the busiest time on the roads.  Everyone is in a big hurry to get to their destinations and once they arrive, people just want to relax and have a good time.

Thanksgiving is when we pause and express gratitude for our blessings.  We love spending time with family and friends.  The problem is, too many folks see it as a time to drink…and drive.  Last year, law enforcement in South Carolina made nearly 22,000 DUI arrests.  Over 3,500 people were injured in DUI collisions and more than 200 died.  Property damage wrecks exceeded 2,500.  The consequences of drinking and driving are real and local.

Many of us have been at a bar, club, or even a private party, where there’s plenty to drink.  People drink to relax and the alcohol impairs their judgment enough that they assume they’re fine to drive.  It’s not hard to imagine the dangers of someone roaring drunk behind the wheel.  But folks who are just slightly intoxicated can also pose a huge threat on the road.

You’ve probably seen police shows where officers conduct sobriety tests, including blowing into a breathalyzer.  You blow in a straw and a device measures your alcohol level.  In South Carolina, the legal alcohol limit is 0.08.  Some people reach that intoxication level with just two drinks.  Even with a legal blood alcohol content of 0.05, your chances of having a car wreck increase 100% over being sober.  On top of that, legal defense of a DUI charge can easily cost you $10,000 to $30,000—or more.  Of course, the price of causing property damage, injuries, or even death could be far greater.

Here’s a simple truth: DUI wrecks are preventable.  If people who drank too much didn’t get behind the wheel, they wouldn’t crash vehicles, destroy property, or injure others.  Now more than ever, it’s easier to keep intoxicated people from driving- 1) Have a designated driver in your group; 2) Call a cab; 3) Text a friend to pick you up; or 4)  Hire an Uber or Lyft driver to deliver you safely.  The price of that ride is nothing compared to the cost of driving drunk.

Trammell & Mills doesn’t handle DUI cases.  That’s not our area of practice.  However, we do deal with the victims of DUI crashes.  People who had a vehicle, property destroyed or got injured because of someone else’s irresponsible driving.  We see the suffering our clients have endured from property damage, hospital bills, and missed time from work.  The reality is that insurance companies drag their feet when it comes to paying claims and may not even cover real costs.  We fight hard every day to get victims fairly compensated for the foolish mistakes of others.

Don’t ruin Thanksgiving with a DUI.  Please be safe and make smart decisions during the holidays.  Avoid being stopped by the police, getting into a wreck, causing injuries to others, or possibly killing innocent people.  It’s just not worth a few drinks. However, if ignorance and recklessness come into your life and harm your family or property, call Trammell & Mills Law Firm, LLC to handle the civil side of justice.

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