270.781.6500

law

06.17.2014

Kentucky Wrongful Death Case Involving a Lack of 911 Response

In a 2013 unpublished appellate case, a woman’s estate appealed after the circuit court granted summary judgment on some of the estate’s claims and directed the verdict on the remaining wrongful death claims. The case arose from the death of Cheryl Powers from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Before dying, Powers called 911. A dispatcher took the call. Powers couldn’t speak clearly, but she tried to give her address before the call was disconnected. The dispatcher called the number back, but it went to the woman’s voice mail. The dispatcher called the police dispatcher instead of an ambulance and explained that she thought the woman had given a particular address. The dispatcher replayed the 911 call and called the police dispatcher again, saying that she thought that the woman had said “Vista Apartments.” The police dispatcher sent an officer to the first address, but the first address did not exist. The police dispatcher told the officer there was no additional information and thereby “cleared” the 911 call. Therefore, no emergency services responded to the woman’s 911 call, and she died. On the following morning, the woman’s boyfriend found her dead in the hallway. Read More

05.27.2014

Kentucky Police Officers Claim Qualified Immunity for Wrongful Death

In a recent case, a decedent's parents appealed the court's grant of summary judgment in favor of police officers, the police department and the City. The plaintiffs were the parents of a man who was killed in 2009 in a head-on collision with a car that was driving dangerously. Before the collision, several people called 911 to report the dangerous driver. Because of the calls, the police department asked its officers to look out for a green sedan. When the officers responded to the call they encountered a red pickup truck on Ky. 39 and were pointed towards the highway. They thought this meant the green sedan was up ahead. The red pickup pulled up and told one of the officers that the green sedan was stopped on Ky. 39 not far away. As one of the officers drove south on the highway, he saw the green sedan at the end of a driveway on the left side of the road. Traffic stopped him from seeing license plate numbers, but he saw that the driver of the sedan looked lifeless and he was worried it was a medical emergency. Read More

04.04.2014

What is a “Daubert Hearing” in Kentucky?

A "Daubert hearing" takes its name from a United States Supreme Court case titled Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals, Inc. It refers to a hearing in which the trial judge evaluates whether testimony or evidence from a particular expert is admissible. The hearing occurs outside of a jury's presence before trial. This type of hearing is often necessary in a pharmaceutical injury case where the plaintiff alleges the drugs prescribed caused serious harm. In Kentucky, a trial judge must determine whether the expert will be testifying to (1) technical, scientific, or specialized knowledge that (2) will help the trier of fact understand a fact at issue in the trial. A hearing is not always required, but a trial judge can only rule without a hearing if the record before the court is complete enough to measure the proposed evidence against the standards of reliability and relevance. Evidence must be both reliable and relevant to be admitted. A 2008 pharmaceutical injury case involving, among other issues, a Daubert hearing arose when a woman gave birth to her second child by cesarean section. She didn't want to breastfeed, so her obstetrician prescribed the drug Parlodel to stop her lactation. She started the drug and was discharged from the hospital. A few days later, she experienced a headache and pain between her shoulders. The next morning, her mother found her dead. Read More

04.03.2014

ELPO sponsors reception following Lexington legal event

ELPO sponsors reception following Lexington legal event Read More

03.13.2014

Environmental attorneys to present national webinar

Environmental attorneys to present national webinar Read More

03.11.2014

Nathan Vinson joins ELPO as tax law attorney

Nathan Vinson joins ELPO as tax attorney Read More

01.23.2014

Bob Young to speak at ABA new partner conference

Bob Young to speak at ABA new partner conference Read More

01.16.2014

Aaron Smith ends term as local bar President

Aaron Smith ends term as local bar President Read More

01.15.2014

Catherine Sharp, Laurie Seavey now Certified Kentucky Paralegals

Catherine Sharp, Laurie Seavey now Certified Kentucky Paralegals Read More

10.30.2013

LaJuana Wilcher to speak at two conferences

LaJuana Wilcher to speak at two conferences Read More