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Recent Blog Posts
Hundreds of Health Care Providers Facing Criminal Fraud Charges after Nationwide Sweep
After a nationwide sweep for healthcare fraud violations, the Justice Department is bringing criminal charges against hundreds of providers. Nurses, physicians, and even entire clinics are all on the list. What does this mean for their future, and what can you do if you happen to be facing such charges? The following information may be able to help.
Healthcare Fraud or Honest Mistake?
At first glance, avoiding charges for healthcare fraud might seem like an easy task. However, there are strict guidelines and regulations for healthcare providers and facilities. One misstep could lead to serious problems. For example, failing to practice due diligence and ensure that all employees are eligible to participate in Federal healthcare programs could put you at risk. Haphazard documentation can lead to accidental double billing for services rendered.
Motorcycle Crashes and Fatalities: Understanding the Most Common Causes
Although summer is over, many motorcycle enthusiasts still enjoy riding during the autumn months. Unfortunately, this also means there will be motorcycle accidents that may lead to serious injury or fatality. The causes of motorcycle crashes are mixed, but previous studies suggest that vehicle drivers – not motorcyclists – are most often responsible. If you are a motorcyclist, then understanding the most common causes may be able to help keep you safe. If you are a driver, then it is critical that you know how to effectively share the road with two-wheeled motorists; it could save a life.
Human Error Most Frequent Cause of Motorcycle Crashes
Generally, a motor vehicle accident is caused by environmental factors, human error, vehicle failure, or any combination of these three. When it comes to crashes that involve two-wheeled vehicles, an in-depth study from the Association of European Motorcycle Manufacturers (ACEM), the most common cause can be traced back to human error. In particular, the analysis of 921 motorcycle accidents found that the automobile driver (referred to in the study as the “other vehicles”) had been primarily responsible for the accident (just over half). In contrast, motorcyclists were found to be the primary cause of approximately 38 percent of the accidents.
Mandatory Minimums for Firearm Offenses in Wisconsin
In November 2015, a new bill created mandatory minimum sentences for certain firearm offenses. As a result, mitigating opportunities for those charged have been diminished, and the court’s ability to examine a case in an individualized manner has been reduced. If you or someone you love has been recently arrested on a firearm charge, understand how the mandatory minimums for firearm offenses could impact the outcome of your case.
Mandatory Minimum for Possession of a Firearm
Those with a previous felony conviction are not permitted to possess or carry a firearm. Failure to adhere carries a minimum penalty of five years in prison, five years of supervision, and a fine of $25,0000. The new bill expanded on this law and now imposes a mandatory minimum sentence of three years of imprisonment if the following criteria are met:
- The defendant was previously convicted of, delinquent for, adjudicated of, or found not guilty by reason of mental illness for committing, conspiring, soliciting, or attempting to commit a violent felony;
Determining If You Have a Viable Personal Injury Case
Each and every year, hundreds of thousands of people suffer an accidental injury, but not all of these cases are personal injury cases. Some of these incidents are caused by the injured. Others are the victims of unavoidable accidents caused by acts of God or nature. So how do you tell if your injury is the kind that could lead to a personal injury case? The following can help you decide.
Was the Injury Caused by Negligence?
Only certain types of accidents are considered personal injury accidents. For example, those that are caused by acts of nature or not caused by negligence are not covered under personal injury law. Automobile accidents, medical malpractice accidents, dog bites caused by an off-leash dog, slip and fall accidents, and construction accidents are examples of situations that may contain negligence (failure to exercise the same care that a reasonable person would use in the same circumstance).
Juvenile Justice: Restorative vs Punitive
Teenagers, who are still mentally and emotionally maturing, sometimes make poor decisions that can affect the rest of their lives. They may become pregnant or impregnate their girlfriend, drive recklessly and get in an accident, or – in the worst of circumstances – commit a crime that forever alters the path of their life. It does not have to, though. In fact, a recent study indicates that the outcomes for teen offenders can be drastically improved if the juvenile justice system takes a restorative approach instead of a punitive one. Unfortunately, Wisconsin is far from being a place of restoration for teen offenders.
The Sorry State of Wisconsin’s Juvenile Justice System
In most states, children under the age of 18 are criminally processed through the juvenile court system. There, the penalties are often less severe and the goal is usually rehabilitation. In contrast, Wisconsin sends most of its 16 and older teens to adult court. There are also certain conditions that can cause a child to be processed as an adult at a much younger age. For example, 14-year-olds who have been charged with manufacturing, distributing, or delivering any controlled substance could find themselves in an adult courtroom with adult-sized penalties, and a 10-year-old can be tried in an adult court for murder. Even more concerning is that, once they have been tried as an adult, they remain adults for future criminal offenses.
Construction Zone Accidents
In less than a two-week period, three people were killed along I-41 in Wisconsin. As a result, state patrol issued a warning, asking drivers to be cautious and slow down in construction zones. However, so many accidents within the same area suggest drivers may not be the only ones at fault. In some cases, these accidents may be a matter of construction zone negligence.
Safety in Construction Zones
As a driver, you must do your part of staying safe within construction zones. Stay alert, avoid distractions, buckle up, slow down, and watch for suddenly changing terrain and lanes. Also, it is critical that you keep an eye out for road workers, trouble up ahead, and avoid following the driver in front of you too closely. This can help protect you within a construction zone. However, there are also circumstances that may be out of your control. In these instances, you may be due compensation.
Understanding Your Fifth Amendment Right to “Remain Silent”
When a suspect is arrested, they are informed of their “right to remain silent.” What does this right really mean, though? When does it apply, and are there any exceptions? Sadly, most American citizens do not know, or they have misconceptions that lead to accidental incrimination. The following information can help you better understand your Fifth Amendment right, and know when you should exercise it to its fullest extent.
Why We Have the Fifth Amendment
Like all rights granted by the Constitution, the Fifth Amendment right is meant to protect citizens in the face of a corrupt government. This does not mean that our government is, in fact, corrupt. It simply means that, should you face a corrupt officer, judge, or other legal entity, your rights can help protect you from wrongful imprisonment and/or wrongful due process.
Specifically, the Fifth Amendment is meant to protect you from having to testify against yourself. It postures that you are innocent until proven guilty and that you cannot be forced into telling law enforcement otherwise. This does not mean that they will not try. They will lie, negotiate, trick, and manipulate in any way that they can to get you to cave. Do not give in! Instead, exercise your right to remain silent and pair it with your right to legal counsel the moment you are taken into custody.
Study Shows Seatbelts and Airbags Can Reduce Risk of Facial Fractures
When accidents happen, victims need all the protection they can get. A recent study suggests that safety updates in vehicles, particularly those made to seatbelts and airbags, provide a certain level of risk reduction. However, injuries can and do still happen to auto accident victims. As such, it is important that you know what to do, should an accident happen to you.
Risk of Facial Fractures Reduced, but Not Eliminated
Using data from the National Trauma Data Bank, researchers from the University of Tennessee Health Science Center examined the risk of facial fractures among auto accident victims. What they found was that, out of 518,106 accident victims, 56,422 had suffered at least one facial fracture. Seatbelts were used by about 27 percent, 6 percent had an airbag, and 9 percent had both.
When compared to those that did not have any safety devices in their car, victims were 18 percent less likely to suffer a facial fracture with only an airbag. Those using only a seatbelt had a risk reduction of 43 percent. And when victims used both seatbelts and airbags, their risk of a facial fracture was reduced by 53 percent. This suggests that, while people have a fear of the damage that an airbag can cause, their risk of facial injuries are reduced, especially if that airbag is used in conjunction with a seatbelt. However, the risk of facial fractures is still present.
Understanding Sexual Assault Charges in Wisconsin
Sexual assault (also known as sexual battery) is a serious offense in the state of Wisconsin. Considered a violent offense, and generally a felony, it comes with heavy penalties for those who are convicted. If you or someone you love is facing such charges, understand what these charges could mean for your future and understand how to ensure you are effectively and aggressively represented.
What Constitutes Sexual Assault?
Sexual assault charges can be brought by a victim against a total stranger, a friend, a neighbor, or even a spouse. The law treats them all the same. Essentially, it is constituted as compelling someone (a victim) to engage in sexual penetration, contact, or other sexual acts against their will. This can also apply if the alleged victim is considered to have been unable to give sexual consent (i.e. being overly intoxicated, a minor, or mentally incapable) at the time of sexual intercourse or contact.
Most Common Motorcycle Accident Injuries
Even with the protection of gloves, leathers, helmets, boots, and safety goggles, motorcycle riders are at an extremely high risk for serious injury. This is due, in part, to the lack of encasement around them. However, they are also at an increased risk because, more often than not, other drivers simply do not see motorcycle riders. What injuries are riders most likely to sustain in a motorcycle accident? The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration (NHTSA) have both conducted studies to find the answer.
Most Common Non-Fatal Injuries
Based on hospital records of 1,222,000 motorcycle crash victims, the CDC’s study of non-fatal motorcycle crash injuries determined that the feet and legs of riders were most likely to be injured in a crash (30 percent of all injuries). However, in a very close second, injuries to the head and neck accounted for 22 percent of injuries. This includes injuries like traumatic brain injury (TBI, also known as a concussion), paralysis, whiplash, and others. Injuries to the chest, back, shoulders, hips, arms, pelvis, and other areas of the body made up the remainder of non-fatal injuries sustained by riders.
