Child Injury Lawyer Blog
By David Wolf, Attorney
Published by Child Injury Lawyer Network
According to a British organization, the Child Accident Prevention Trust, attractively packaged capsules containing dishwashing detergent pose a serious poisoning risk for children. The capsules contain highly-concentrated detergent, which can cause serious chemical burns. According to the Trust, “hundreds” of children are being poisoned, and they attribute an 11% increase in calls about accidental poisoning to the introduction of the new tablets on the market. Toddlers have reportedly suffered chemical burns to the throat, eyes and skin after biting or playing with the tablets. The vibrant packaging and attractive design of the tablets are believed to make the poison more attractive to young children.
In Connecticut, a family went snow tubing at a recreational facility. In order to use the snow tubing area, the business / recreational facility required the family to sign liability waivers which purported to release the snow tubing recreational facility from liability even if there was negligence on the part of the facility. The family went snow tubing that day and a child was injured when his foot got caught between the snow tube and a man made bank. The parents sued on behalf of the child who had a number of surgeries due to the personal injuries sustained during the snow tubing outing. The trial court threw out the case and this ruling was appealed and ultimately reached the Connecticut Supreme Court. The justices on the Supreme Court reversed the trial judge’s ruling and ruled that the liability waiver was invalid and against public policy for the State of Connecticut.
A near drowning incident of a 2 year old (Jessica Wheat) in an apartment complex pool in Lake Charles, Louisiana shows the importance of safety precautions and measures for swimming pools that can be accessed by children. There was a four foot fence around the pool at the Wilshire Apartments which was undergoing renovation. In fact, the pool had been closed for about 1 year. Unfortunately, someone had removed some of the fence near the locked gate. This, in turn, had given access to Jessica to get into the pool.