ACCIDENTAL DROWNING


Cincinnati Personal Injury Lawyer Reviewing Drowning Cases for injured plaintiffs in Ohio and Nationwide
Nationwide Success

Ohio Drowning Lawsuits

According to statistics from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), about ten Americans die every day from unintentional drowning incidents. Of these deaths, about 20 percent are children aged 14 or younger. Accidental drowning ranks fifth among the leading causes of accidental injury death in the United States.

Drowning incidents and near-drowning accidents number in the thousands each year. For every person who dies from drowning, another dozen receive emergency care for nonfatal submersion injuries. Over 50 percent of drowning victims treated in emergency departments are hospitalized or transferred for further care.

Nonfatal drowning injuries may cause severe brain damage, and result in long-term disabilities such as memory problems, learning disabilities, and permanent loss of basic functioning.

Common Causes of Accidental Drowning

Drowning incidents are unpredictable, though most are the result of the same factors and causes. Common causes of drowning accidents include the following:

  • Inability to Swim—many adults and children report that they cannot swim. This obviously poses a huge threat when around bodies of water and swimming pools. Research has shown that swimming lessons can greatly reduce the risk of drowning among children and adults.
  • Alcohol Use—for adolescents and adults, alcohol use is a factor in up to 70 percent of deaths associated with water recreation. About 20 percent of reported Boat Accident Injury involve alcohol.
  • Lack of Barriers—barriers such as pool fencing are a very effective method of preventing young children from gaining Swimming Pool Injury. Isolation fences that cut off access to pool areas reduce a child’s risk of drowning by up to 83 percent.
  • Lack of Close Supervision—drowning can happen quickly and quietly. Anywhere there is water, children should be very closely supervised, including nearby swimming pools, bathtubs, water basins and natural bodies of water.
  • Failure to Wear Life Jackets—the majority of boating deaths that occur are caused by drowning. Up to 88 percent of drowning victims are not wearing life jackets at the time of death. Life jackets and other wearable water safety devices greatly reduce drowning accidents in swimming pools.
  • Physical Disorders—drowning is the most common cause of unintentional injury death for persons with physical maladies and seizure disorders. Swimming pools and bathtubs represent the highest drowning risks.

Who is Most at Risk of Accidental Drowning?

  • Nearly 80 percent of accidental drowning victims are male.
  • Children ages 1 to 4 have the highest drowning rates.
  • The fatal unintentional drowning rate for African Americans is significantly higher than that of whites across all age groups. African Americans aged 11-12 drown in swimming pools at rates 10 times those of whites.

How to Recognize if Somebody is Drowning

To help prevent drowning accidents, stay vigilant, and look for these signs of drowning when persons are in the water:

  • Head low in the water
  • Mouth at water level
  • Head tilted back with mouth open
  • Eyes glassy and empty
  • Eyes closed
  • Hair over eyes
  • Not using legs
  • Hyperventilating or gasping
  • Trying to swim in a particular direction but not making progress
  • Trying to roll over on the back
  • Appear to be climbing an invisible ladder

While Ohio does not have one of the highest rates of drowning, Ohio residents are not immune to accidents. From 1998 to 2000, over 300 drowning deaths occurred in the state of Ohio.

Statistics of near-drownings are difficult to estimate, though community reports suggest over a thousand of near-drowning incidents occur each year in Ohio swimming pools, lakes and rivers.

Accidental Drowning Lawsuits

Following an accident, contact an attorney to help determine liability. With a free case review, we can advise how to proceed and determine the value of your case.

CONTACT THE LYON FIRM TODAY

Please complete the form below for a FREE consultation.

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

ABOUT THE LYON FIRM

Joseph Lyon has 17 years of experience representing individuals in complex litigation matters. He has represented individuals in every state against many of the largest companies in the world.

The Firm focuses on single-event civil cases and class actions involving corporate neglect & fraud, toxic exposure, product defects & recalls, medical malpractice, and invasion of privacy.

NO COST UNLESS WE WIN

The Firm offers contingency fees, advancing all costs of the litigation, and accepting the full financial risk, allowing our clients full access to the legal system while reducing the financial stress while they focus on their healthcare and financial needs.

photo of attorney Joe Lyon reviewing drowning cases
A Voice for Those who have suffered

Why are these cases important?

Serious injuries and accidents often result through no fault of the injured party, yet the injured victim suffers from life altering physical, mental and financial losses. Such economic and human losses can have devastating financial consequences on individuals and families if not properly compensated. Tort law allows those individuals to seek just legal recourse through personal injury lawsuits.

CONTACT THE LYON FIRM TODAY

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Questions about Personal Injury Cases

What is a Personal Injury Lawsuit?

Any kind of negligence by an individual or company that causes injury or harm can lead to filing a personal injury lawsuit. The amount a plaintiff is entitled to depends on several factors, particularly how egregious the act and how serious the injury.

Personal injury attorneys generally only will take cases on a confidential and contingency fee basis, which means your lawyer will only get paid if he or she is able to reach a settlement or positive verdict. The Lyon Firm will review your case for free and assess what compensation any plaintiff can expect through litigation.

Personal Injury cases can range from minor auto accidents to complex lawsuits filed against large corporations. The Lyon Firm has handled both with equal care. Severe injury requires legal action on occasion, no matter if the injury is the result of a vehicle accident, a dog bite, a boating accident, workplace injury, defective consumer products, medical malpractice, or toxic exposure.

What is the Process?

Pre-Suit Investigation and Negotiations: Personal injury lawsuits are unique and require a thorough investigation before a lawsuit is filed. An initial investigation involves gathering all relevant medical records, accident reports, and interviews with available witnesses.  Preservation letters are drafted to notify the defendant of the case. The duty to preserve electronic evidence is critical in most cases to prevent spoliation.

Filing a Lawsuit in Cincinnati: If pre-suit negotiations are unsuccessful, then a lawsuit must be filed to preserve the statute of limitations.  Filing a lawsuit early in the process is often necessary to begin gathering evidence while the witnesses memories are fresh and documents remain available.

Once suit is filed by your personal injury lawyer, the court will set a case management schedule and the parties will begin exchanging information in the formal process of discovery. Depositions will be taken to preserve testimony for trial and to understand what certain witnesses are likely to say at trial.

Proving Negligence, Causation and Damages: In addition to lay witness testimony and other documentary evidence, personal injury claims rely upon medical and scientific evidence to prove negligence, causation and damages. The chosen expert in a case must have a reliable and sound basis in science and in the facts of the case or his opinion may not be admissible under the rules of evidence.

In the areas of Toxic and Environmental Torts, the admission of expert testimony may be scrutinized harder than in other areas simply because the subject may not have been as widely tested and may rest on novel scientific theories.

Are there any limits to what I can recover?

Each state will vary. Under Ohio law, an injured party may recover damages related to medical expenses, lost wages, property damage, loss of enjoyment of life, past pain and suffering, future pain and suffering, and punitive damages. The numerical limits are as such:

  1. Non-Catastrophic Injury:   The non-economic award is limited to $250,000 per plaintiff, or three times the economic loss, up to $350,000 per plaintiff. A maximum of $500,000 for each “occurrence.”
  2. Catastrophic Injury: No limits.

The Lyon Firm may be able to file injury claims and recover rightful compensation for clients for medical expenses, pain and suffering, lost earnings and long-term disability.

Why should I hire The Lyon Firm?

Our Firm will help you find the answers.  The Firm has the experience, resources and dedication to take on difficult and emotional cases and help our clients obtain the justice for the wrong they have suffered. 

Experience:  Joe Lyon is an experienced Cincinnati Personal Injury Lawyer. The Lyon Firm has 17 years of experience and success representing individuals and plaintiffs in all fifty states, and in a variety of complex civil litigation matters.   Personal Injury lawsuits can be complex and require industry experts to determine the root cause of an accident or injury.  Mr. Lyon has worked with experts nationwide to assist individuals understand why an injury occurred and what can be done to improve their lives in the future. Some cases may go to a jury trial, though many others can be settled out of court.

Resources/Dedication: Mr. Lyon has worked with experts in the fields of accident reconstruction, biomechanics, epidemiology, metallurgy, pharmacology, toxicology, human factors, workplace safety, life care planning, economics, and virtually every medical discipline in successfully representing Plaintiffs across numerous areas of law. The Lyon Firm is dedicated to building the strongest cases possible for clients and their critical interests.

Results:  Mr. Lyon has obtained numerous seven and six figure results in personal injury,  automotive product liability, medical Negligence, construction accidents, and auto dealership negligence casesThe cases have involved successfully litigating against some of  the largest companies in the world.

Our Victories

The Lyon Firm aggressively, professionally, and passionately advocates for injured individuals and families against negligent individuals or companies to obtain just compensation under the law. 

$1,000,000

WRONGFUL DEATH: DISTRACTED DRIVER

(Brown County, Kentucky):   The Lyon Firm was second chair a case involving a driver texting and driving when he crossed the median, killing a father of four. The case was resolved once discovery confirmed the cell phone records proved the texting-related incident. The settlement will pay for the surviving childrens’ education. The driver was likely facing additional criminal charges at the time of the settlement.

$495,000

MOTORCYCLE ACCIDENT

(Cincinnati, Ohio):  The Lyon Firm was lead counsel in a $495,000 settlement. This case involved a motorcycle operator who sustained fractures of the calcaneus, talus, medial cuneiform, tarsal bones, and tarsometatarsal when a car ignored its driving lane and crossed into his right-of-way. Settlement provided repayment of medical bills of $20,000 and funds for future education to re-enter the work force in a less physically-demanding job.


© The Lyon Firm. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED