Practice Areas and Legal Definitions

• admiralty and maritime law
• ATV accidents
• automobile accidents
• aviation accidents
• bicycle accidents
• boating accidents
• commercial bus accidents
• cruise ship accidents
• intersection accidents
• motorcycle accidents
• pedestrian accidents
• rear end collisions
• semi-tractor trailer accidents
• school bus accidents
• SUV rollover accidents
• train accidents
• truck accidents
• yacht accidents

The surviving family members of a fatally injured accident victim may be able to bring wrongful death charges against the defendant.

Automobile Accidents:
A car accident is a collision involving an automobile and anything that causes damage to the automobile, including other automobiles, telephone poles, buildings and trees. Sometimes a car accident may also refer to an automobile striking a human or animal. Car accidents — also called traffic collisions, auto accidents, road accidents, personal injury collisions, motor vehicle accidents and crashes — kill an estimated 1.2 million people worldwide each year, and injure about forty times this number.

Motorcycle Accidents:
Motorcycle riders are often exposed to dangers not met by automobile drivers and other motorists on the road.  The lack of any substantial protective barriers, as well as the difficulty that other motorists may have in seeing or stopping for a motorcycle, leaves riders prone to serious personal injury in the event of an accident.

Slip and Fall/Premises Liability:
Slip and fall accidents can happen anywhere and can cause serious personal injury.  Most slip and falls happen in commercial settings, such as grocery stores, drug stores, office buildings, construction sites, gas stations and malls, but they also happen on private property.  Premises Liability accidents can include toxic exposure, animal attacks, swimming pool accidents and amusement park ride accidents.  In any event, there exist duties on the part of the property owners to maintain the property responsibly and avoid the existence of hazardous conditions.

Dangerous or defective conditions may be large or small, temporary or permanent.  Therefore, investigation of the claim is essential to a successful case.  Temporary conditions such as water on the floor of a grocery store, or snow and ice on the stairs of a restaurant need to be investigated quickly.

Spinal Cord Injury:
Spinal cord injury (SCI) occurs when the nerves within the spinal canal are damaged.  Most SCI's are caused by trauma to the vertebral column, affecting the spinal cord's ability to send and receive messages between the brain and the body's systems that control sensory, motor and autonomic function.  Motor vehicle accidents are the leading cause of SCI, followed by acts of violence, falls, sports injuries and diseases such as polio, spina bifida and Friedreich’s Ataxia.  The spinal cord does not have to be severed in order for a loss of functioning to occur. In fact, in most people with SCI, the spinal cord is intact, but the damage to it results in loss of functioning.

Traumatic Brain Injury:
Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a medical phrase used to describe the damage to the brain suffered by sudden impact or physical force to the head.  Essentially, the human brain floats in a fluid substance called cerebrospinal fluid. TBI can result when the force of momentum causes the brain to impact against the skull.  This type of injury, often the result of hitting your head on the windshield, pavement or object, is frequently referred to as a “closed head injury.”  Whiplash can also cause TBI.  These closed head injuries can result in lasting physical and mental problems.

Burn Injuries:
People who have suffered and survived the agony of second, third and even fourth degree burns describe the pain they experienced as among the most severe of all traumatic injuries.  Personal injuries involving severe burns commonly result from explosions, premises fires, defective products, motor vehicle collisions, electric shock, as well as accidental exposure to harmful chemicals and radiation.

Construction/ On-the-Job Accidents:
Construction labor makes up one of the three most dangerous occupations in the United States today; each year producing thousands of debilitating injuries and wrongful deaths.  Factors that contribute to construction accidents include workers lifting loads with worn and weathered cables, working on elevated platforms without fall protection or wearing defective safety harnesses and lanyards, and/or working in trenches with improper benching and using outdated tools and equipment.  Farming and manufacturing accidents, as well as the oil and gas industry accidents can also cause serious injury and toxic exposure.

• Toxic Exposure: Due to the tremendous growth of corporate industry in the United States over the past fifty years, the number of dangerous, toxic substances in the environment has grown significantly.  Some toxic substances are shown to cause substantial injury to people, such as lead-based paint (linked to brain damage, especially in children), asbestos (linked to lung cancer and restrictive lung disease), dry cleaning and other solvents (linked to brain damage and major organ damage), pesticides such as dioxin and DDT (linked to birth injuries) and toxic landfill waste (linked to leukemia).

Dog/Animal Bites:
Every year, millions of Americans are bitten by animals.  Being attacked by a dog is an extremely stressful event. Many dog bite injuries leave scars and have lasting emotional effects.  In every state, a dog owner is liable for bites to people inflicted viciously by a dog that previously bit a person viciously, or that were inflicted pursuant to the command of the dog owner.

In almost all states, a bite victim can recover compensation from a person whose negligence caused the attack and from a person who violated a leash law, a trespass law applicable to dogs or other dog safety laws.  The owner or keeper of a dog is strictly liable for his or her dog, even if it is the first time the dog has injured someone.  As long as the injured victim was not trespassing, teasing or tormenting the dog, the keeper or owner of the dog is liable for any injuries sustained.  Compensation for a dog bite can include payment for medical bills, pain & suffering, mental anxiety, fear and scarring.

Insurance Claims:
Insurance claims are a notice for reimbursement from an insurance company when the insured has suffered a loss that is covered under the insurance policy. Insurance companies cannot refuse to pay a customer's claim without "reasonable justification."  This means that an insurance company must engage in a reasonable investigation and pay legitimate claims in a timely manner.  If an insurance company fails to handle its customer's claim properly, it may be held accountable for resulting economic losses, including lost wages, interest on money the insured borrowed to cover expenses while insurance benefits were wrongfully withheld, and loss due to damaged credit.

Bicycle Accidents:
According to the Federal Highway Administration, over 67,000 cyclists in the U.S. are injured every year in accidents involving motor vehicles.  Many cyclists who are injured in bicycle accidents are unaware that they have a personal injury case and that they may be entitled to compensation for injuries, pain and suffering, medical bills and lost incomes.  A cyclist may be entitled to receive compensation for an injury sustained because of a pothole, poor road or defective sidewalk.  There are state mandated residential and commercial bicycle laws, which entitle cyclists to observe different traffic rules than cars, trucks and other motorized vehicles.  This may mean that the cyclist is not legally responsible for an accident.

Train Accidents:
Train accidents can result in injuries such as sprains and fractures, catastrophic injury such as head trauma, brain damage, paralysis and loss of lives or property.  Train accidents can include derailments, collisions with passenger vehicles or other trains, grade crossing accidents or accidents due to mechanical failure.  It is the railroad company's responsibility to ensure that there are appropriate signals and gates at every railroad crossing for safety precautions.  If the railroad company fails to take such precautions, they are liable for any injury or death that ensues.  Victims of train accidents may be entitled to compensation for pain and suffering, medical expenses, property damage, lost wages and loss of earning capacity.

SUV Rollovers:
Although SUV rollovers do not occur as often as other automobile accidents, when they do occur they have a higher chance of resulting in serious injury or death, and are considered to be the most fatal type of vehicle accident on national roadways.  According to the Federal Highway Administration, SUV rollover accidents account for more than side and rear fatal vehicles combined and SUV's are three times more likely than the average passenger car rollover.

Although SUV's were designed primarily for the purpose of off-roading, manufacturers have since discovered their immense popularity as family vehicles.  Manufacturers have begun removing roll bars in current models.  SUV seat structures are not designed to keep occupants in place during a rollover regardless if seatbelts are worn.  Vehicle roofs, windshields and side windows easily collapse, increasing the risk of occupant head, brain and spinal cord and back injuries.  While the body of an SUV remains the same as it would if used for off-roading, the removal of the roll bars, combined with the high center gravity due to multiple passengers, make rollover accidents and occupant ejection that much more fatal.

Workers' Compensation:
Workers' compensation is insurance that an employer is required by law to carry in case an employee is injured on the job or becomes ill, temporarily or permanently disabled, or fatally injured due to circumstances surrounding his or her job.  Although workers' compensation laws vary from state to state, covered medical care generally includes: medical, surgical and hospital services; dental services; crutches; hearing aids; chiropractic treatment; physical therapy; nursing care and prescribed medications.  Additional monetary compensation may be provided if an injured employee is temporarily unable to work for more than a certain number of calendar days set by state law, hospitalized as an in-patient, or becomes permanently disabled due to a job-related injury or illness.  The right to receive medical treatment at the employer's expense typically continues as long as treatment is reasonable and necessary to treat the injury.

Wrongful Death:
A wrongful death occurs when a person is killed due to the negligence or misconduct of another individual, company or organization.  A legal action for wrongful death belongs to the decedent's immediate family members, usually a surviving spouse and children, and sometimes parents.  Under certain circumstances, unrelated minor children living with and supported by the decedent may also bring a claim for wrongful death.  In order to bring a successful wrongful death cause of action, the following elements must be present:

• The death of a human being caused by another's negligent or intentional conduct.
• The survival of family members who are suffering the loss of financial support, love, care, comfort, supervision, guidance, household assistance and general society previously provided by the deceased.

The general rule in wrongful death cases is that one is entitled to recover both economic and non-economic damages which are suffered as a result of the loss of a loved one.  Economic damages in a wrongful death case include an award for the financial contributions which the decedent would have made to his or her spouse, children and/or parents had he or she survived.  It also includes the recovery for funeral service expenses in memory of the decedent and for burial cost.  Non-economic damages include loss of love, society, companionship, comfort, affection, solace or moral support.

If you or someone you know in Raleigh, Durham or Goldsboro, North Carolina needs the assistance of an experienced Goldsboro Personal Injury Lawyer, call Riddle & Brantley today at 866-435-4280, or complete the contact form provided on this site to schedule your free consultation.

• Workers' Compensation
• Social Security Disability

• Workers' Compensation Specialist, NC, State Bar Board Certified

• North Carolina, 1993

• J.D., Campbell University School of Law, Buies Creek, NC, 1993
• B.A., East Carolina University, 1989

• American Bar Association
• North Carolina Bar Association
• North Carolina Advocates for Justice
• NCATL Workers' Compensation and Disability Section
• NCATL Young Lawyers Division
• Wayne County Bar Association
• Lenoir County Bar Association
• Association of Trial Lawyers of America

• Personal Injury
• Workers' Compensation
• Social Security Disability
• Wrongful Death

• J.D., Wake Forest University School of Law, Winston Salem, North Carolina, 1985
• B.A., University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 1981

• Campbell University Law Review Book Awards in Property
• Moot Court Finalist
• Goldsboro Jaycees Family of the Year, 1999

• American Bar Association
• Association of Trial Lawyers of America
• North Carolina Advocates for Justice
• North Carolina Bar Association
• Lenoir County Bar Association
• Wayne County Bar Association
• Wayne County Chamber of Commerce: Military Affairs Committee
• American Heart Association, Past-President
• Chairman, Wayne County Board of Elections

• Personal Injury
• Workers' Compensation
• Social Security Disability

• North Carolina, 1999

• J.D., Widener University School of Law, Wilmington, Delaware, 1999
  • Honors: Law Review, Editor-In-Chief
• B.A., Political Science, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 1994

• Phi Delta Phi, Harrington Inn, Honor Chapter, 1997 - Present
• Who's Who: American Law Students, 1998 - 1999
• Widener Univ. School of Law Outstanding Service Award
• Eagle Scout; God and Country Award

• NC Bar Association
• American Bar Association
• NC Advocates for Justice
• Wayne County Bar Association

• Assistant Attorney General, NC Department of Justice, Crime Control & Motor Vehicles Section, Raleigh, NC
• Assistant District Attorney, Judicial District 16A, Laurinburg, NC
• Police Officer, Henderson Police Department, Henderson, NC

• Personal Injury
• Wrongful Death
• Nursing Home Abuse and Neglect

• North Carolina, 2006

• J.D., The University of Michigan Law School, Ann Arbor, Michigan, May, 2002
• M.P.P., University of Michigan, 1997
• B.S., Economics, North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University, Greensboro, North Carolina, 1995

• Robert Millender Fellow
• Woodrow Wilson Fellow

• North Carolina State Bar
• North Carolina Advocates for Justice
• Southeast Michigan Council of Governments (SEMCOG)
• Former Environmental Planner

• Personal Injury
• Wrongful Death
• Nursing Home Abuse and Neglect
• Workers' Compensation

• North Carolina, 2003

• J.D., Campbell University Norman Adrian Wiggins School of Law, Buies Creek, North Carolina, 2002
• Hampton University
• B.A., University of Florida, 1998

• Certified Instructor, Legal Updates, Law Enforcement Office, 2005 - 2007

• Who's Who Among American Law School Students, Campbell Law and Observer Association
• Onslow County Bar Association
• North Carolina Bar Association
• Black Law Students Association, 2000 - 2002
  
  • President
• North Carolina Advocates for Justice

• Fourth Prosecutorial District, Assistant District Attorney

• Key Volunteer, 2/6 Infantry Unit, Camp Lejeune, North Carolina

• Spanish

• Personal Injury
• Auto Insurance
• Medical Malpractice
• Social Security

• North Carolina, 2000
• District of Columbia, 2001

• B.A., Ohio State University, 1995
• J.D., Capital University, 2000

• North Carolina Bar Associations
• District of Columbia Bar Association
• Wayne County Bar Association (Past President)
• Communities in Schools Teen Court Volunteer
• Former Deputy Sheriff, Franklin County, Ohio
• Former Assistant District Attorney for North Carolina's Eighth Judicial District
• North Carolina Wesleyan College, 2006
  • Adjunct Professor