Any Florida, Alabama or Georgia customer of Starbucks who has consumed one of the recalled products is at risk for Listeria food poisoning. Listeria infection can result in Listeriosis, a foodborne illness with potentially serious and life threatening health consequences. Symptoms of Listeria food poisoning (i.e., muscle aches, fever, nausea, diarrhea, stiff neck, loss of balance) may not appear for several days or several weeks because Listeria pathogens have a relatively long incubation period (3-70 days). Pregnant women are most at risk because they are 20 times more likely to suffer Listeriosis than other healthy adults. Any customer who suspects that they are suffering Listeria food poisoning should seek medical care as soon as possible.

Daniel Ragland is a food poisoning attorney and available to serve consumers throughout the Southeast including Georgia, Florida and Alabama. He has expertise in the fields of foodborne illness and food safety. Mr. Ragland is a founding partner of the law firm Ragland Law Firm, LLP located in Atlanta, Georgia. Any person with concerns about these recalled contaminated food products may contact Mr. Ragland by email or phone (770) 407-7300.

• 8.4 ounce packages of “Starbucks Chipolte Chicken Wraps Bistro Box”
• 6.3 ounce packages of “Starbucks Chicken & Hummus Bistro Box”

Starbucks has issued its own press release acknowledging that it received and may have sold some of the Listeria tainted chicken products being recalled to customers in Georgia and Alabama between July 13 and July 15, 2011.

Daniel Ragland is an experienced food poisoning lawyer based in Atlanta, Georgia. He is available to represent any residents of Alabama or Georgia who believe they have suffered Listeria food poisoning after eating chicken products at a Starbucks coffee shop.

Ragland Law Firm, LLP recognizes that drunk driving poses a serious risk to the safety of motorists and pedestrians in Georgia and throughout this country. In 2009, alcohol related crashes caused nearly 11,000 fatalities in the United States. Therefore, the trial attorneys at Ragland Law Firm, LLP are committed to helping Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) achieve its mission to “stop drunk driving, support the victims of this violent crime and prevent underage drinking.” Attorney Daniel A. Ragland has served on the State Advisory Counsel to MADD Georgia since 2002. He is the chairman of the Victims Services Committee.

Ragland Law Firm, LLP is an Atlanta based law firm focused exclusively upon personal injury and wrongful death litigation. Its trial lawyers have represented many victims of drunk driving crashes, and they never defend drunk drivers in criminal or civil cases. In addition to the pursuit of civil claims and lawsuits against drunk drivers, the Atlanta personal injury attorneys at Ragland Law Firm, LLP have experience with dram shop liability cases against restaurants, nightclubs and other businesses that unlawfully sell alcohol to underage drivers. The law firm has a statewide practice and its civil trial lawyers are available to represent DUI victims in Atlanta, Gainesville, Athens, Conyers, Douglasville, Carrollton, Cartersville, Stockbridge, Newnan and all other parts of Georgia. Contact us if you desire to consult with an Atlanta drunk driving civil attorney.

Because she never received immunizations needed by asplenic patients, the plaintiff contracted an OPSI in September 2004, just a few months after giving birth to her third child. She was hospitalized for nearly a year and underwent multiple procedures including surgeries to amputate her arms and legs. In 2006, she retained medical malpractice attorney Daniel Ragland who filed a lawsuit against a primary care physician and several OB-GYN physicians who the plaintiff had seen regularly during the 1999-2004 period just prior to her OPSI. The malpractice lawsuit, filed in August 2006, alleged that each physician knew that the plaintiff had lost her spleen, and committed malpractice by failing to vaccinate her against the various bacterial pathogens known to cause OPSI.

The physician defendants convinced the trial judge to dismiss the lawsuit on grounds that it was time barred under the Georgia medical malpractice 5-year statute of repose. See O.C.G.A. § 9-3-71(b). The physician defendants successfully argued that because they first began to treat the plaintiff more than five years before the lawsuit was filed, the five year repose period had expired and the malpractice claims were barred as a matter of law. In effect, the physician defendants contended that to the extent they were ever negligent, such negligence would have occurred the very first time they treated the plaintiff and therefore, the five year medical malpractice statute of repose began to run on that date. In granting the defendants’ Motion to Dismiss, the trial judge rejected attorney Ragland’s argument that the plaintiff’s physicians committed malpractice on each occasion they saw her during the five year pre-suit period, and that each subsequent failure to warn or recommend vaccinations constituted a new and distinct breach of the standard of care for purposes of the five year statue of repose.

On behalf of the plaintiff, attorney Daniel Ragland successfully appealed to the Georgia Court of Appeals which, in March 2008, overturned the trial judge’s ruling and reinstated the malpractice lawsuit. See Lyon v. Schramm, 291 Ga.App. 48, 661 S.E.2d 178 (2008). In a 4-3 split decision, the Georgia Court of Appeals ruled that “the doctor’s repeated incidents of failure to warn are separate acts of negligent conduct, some of which occurred within five years prior to her suit. Under the [defendants’] reasoning, doctors would be immunized from a recent failure to warn a patient just because they first breached their duty to warn more than five years ago. We find no support for this proposition.”

The physician defendants then filed a petition for certiorari in which they asked the Georgia Supreme Court to review the case. That petition was granted and the case then went to the Georgia Supreme Court for a final appellate decision.

On February 23, 2009, the Georgia Supreme Court published its unanimous decision in Schramm v. Lyon, 285 Ga. 72, 673 S.E.2d 241 (2009). In an opinion joined by all seven justices, the Georgia Supreme Court affirmed the Georgia Court of Appeal’s decision, thereby overturning the trial judge’s erroneous dismissal of the malpractice lawsuit. The Georgia Supreme Court agreed that the plaintiff had properly alleged that her physicians “committed subsequent negligent acts causing new injuries which are subject to separate periods of repose.” Importantly, the Georgia Supreme Court held that “multiple breaches of the standard of care may constitute new and separate instances of professional negligence,” and that each such breach may give rise to separate “trigger” dates for commencement of the five year repose period under O.C.G.A. § 9-3-71(b). The Georgia Supreme Court’s landmark decision in Schramm v. Lyon will have significant implications for many other malpractice lawsuits involving negligent care rendered by healthcare professionals over a multi year period of time. Because of this case, many patients who are victimized by repeated acts of malpractice over a long period of time may still be able to bring lawsuits against negligent parties.

Soon after the Georgia Supreme Court rendered its decision in Schramm v. Lyon, the defendants agreed to a confidential settlement. At the request of the defendants, terms of the settlement cannot be discussed.

Overwhelming post-splenectomy infection (OPSI) refers to a severe systemic infection due to an encapsulated bacterial agent which occurs because the patient has no spleen or no functioning spleen. The spleen is vital to the body’s immune system and its defense against such systemic infections because its function is to filter and phagocytose bacteria and other blood borne pathogens to which humans are constantly exposed. The most likely causes of OPSI are Streptococcus pneumoniae, Neisseria meningitidis and Haemophilus influenzae (forms of encapsulated bacteria). Fortunately, there are separate vaccines which can and should be taken by asplenic patients every several years to guard against each of these bacterial infections. The CDC, various physician organizations, and other health agencies have repeatedly stated that asplenic patients are at a very high risk for pneumococcal, meningococcal and H. influenzae infections and thus, should routinely receive vaccinations available to prevent each of these diseases. Anyone living without a functioning spleen should consult with their physicians about immunizations and other measures which can lower the risk of suffering an OPSI.

Daniel Ragland is a Georgia trial attorney with a focus upon medical malpractice. He has nearly 20 years of experience handling medical malpractice lawsuits in Atlanta and many other parts of Georgia. Visit the Medical Malpractice Practice Center of his law firm’s website if you want more information about the expertise of Ragland Law Firm, LLP in the area of medical malpractice litigation.

Consumers should be warned not to eat or use any of the Zeigler meat products being recalled. Consumption of food contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes can cause Listeriosis, an uncommon but potentially fatal disease. Healthy people rarely contract Listeriosis. However, Listeriosis can cause high fever, severe headache, neck stiffness and nausea. Listeriosis can also cause miscarriages and stillbirths, as well as serious and sometimes fatal infections in those with weakened immune systems, such as infants, the elderly and persons with HIV infection or undergoing chemotherapy. Consumers who purchased or have any of the recalled product are urged to contact Zeigler at (800) 326-6328 or (800) 392-6328.

The potential Listeria contamination of Zeigler wiener products was discovered last week by food scientists with the Georgia Department of Agriculture during routine microbiological testing of product samples. Georgia inspectors detected Listeria monocytogenes in a 12-ounce package of Zeigler Chicken and Pork Wieners marked CI USE BY NOV 26 08. The tested package was also labeled with plant number P-9156S inside the USDA mark of inspection. After discovering the Listeria monocytogene contamination on November 7th, Georgia officials immediately warned the USDA, and began to remove Zeigler hot dog products with certain code numbers from store shelves in Georgia. A copy of the press release issued by the Georgia Department of Agriculture can be found here.

A complete list of the Zeigler products being recalled include:

12-ounce packages of “Zeigler Wieners made with Chicken and Pork, artificially colored.” Each package bears the use-by-date of “November 26, 2008” and the establishment number “P-9156S” inside the USDA mark of inspection.

12-ounce packages of “Vacuum Packed PAR-TI PUPS.” Each package bears the use-by-date of “November 26, 2008” and the establishment number “P-9156S” inside the USDA mark of inspection.

12-ounce packages of “Zeigler Original Recipe Wieners, artificially colored.” Each package bears the use-by-date of “November 26, 2008” and the establishment number “EST. 9156S” inside the USDA mark of inspection.

16-ounce packages of “Zeigler Jumbo Franks.” Each package bears the use-by-date of “November 21, 2008” and the establishment number “P-9156S” inside the USDA mark of inspection.

12-ounce packages of “Zeigler Hot Dogs.” Each package bears the use-by-date of “November 26, 2008” and the establishment number “P-9156S” inside the USDA mark of inspection.

10-pound bulk boxes of “Skinless Wieners, 8 Wieners per lb.” Each box bears the package code “PK 092208A” and the establishment number “EST. 9156S” inside the USDA mark of inspection.

10-pound bulk boxes of “Skinless Wieners, Artificially Colored, 10 Wieners per lb.” Each box bears the package code “PK 092208A” and the establishment number “EST 9156S” inside the USDA mark of inspection.

10-pound bulk boxes of “Skinless Wieners, 10 Wieners per lb.” Each box bears the package code “PK 092208A” and the establishment number “EST. 9156S” inside the USDA mark of inspection.

10-pound bulk boxes of “Skinless Wieners, 12 Wieners per lb.” Each box bears the package code “PK 092208A” and establishment number “EST. 9156S” inside the USDA mark of inspection.

To date, there have been no reported cases of Listeria illness associated with consumption of the recalled Zeigler products.

Listeria monocytogenes is a bacteria which can lead to a food-borne disease known as “Listeriosis.” Listeria can invade the body through a normal gastrointestinal tract. Once in the body, Listeria can travel through the blood stream and produce toxins that damage cells. Listeria invades and grows best in the central nervous system among immune compromised persons, causing meningitis and/or encephalitis (brain infection). In pregnant women, the fetus can become infected, leading to spontaneous abortion, stillbirths, or sepsis (blood infection) in infancy. Approximately 2,500 cases of Listeriosis are believed to occur in the U.S. each year, with about 20% of these cases proving fatal. Certain groups of individuals are at greater risk for Listeriosis, including pregnant women (and their unborn children) and immunocompromised persons.

If you need a Georgia food poisoning lawyer, or you have contracted Listeriosis or any other food-borne illness due to consumption of Zeigler wieners or any other contaminated food product, you should contact us in Atlanta at (770) 407-7300 or toll free at (866) 526-5891. Attorneys at Ragland Law Firm, LLP have experience with handling cases on behalf of consumers who suffer Listeriosis or other food-borne illnesses due to contaminated or negligently prepared food.

“Drowsy Driving Prevention Week” was first recognized in November 2007. At that time, NSF launched a new website: www.drowsydriving.org. On that website, readers can find more information about the dangers of drowsy driving and ways to help increase public awareness about this serious national safety problem. That website also features testimonials from victims whose lives have been permanently affected by a drowsy driving or sleep related crash. Moreover, every year during “Drowsy Driving Prevention Week,” NSF plans to release on its drowsydriving.org website an annual survey about progress being made on specific issues related to drowsy driving prevention and law enforcement. Ragland Law Firm, LLP agrees that driver fatigue and drowsy driving is a serious traffic safety concern. Therefore, the firm fully supports the efforts of NSF to raise awareness about this problem through its “Drowsy Driving Prevention Week,” and related education and prevention campaigns.

Numerous studies have shown that fatigue and/or sleepiness significantly impairs a person’s ability to safely operate a motor vehicle. Drowsy drivers have slowed reaction times, impaired judgment, diminished motor skills, more difficulty with information processing, and a tendency toward more aggressive driving behaviors. One study performed by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety concluded that compared to drivers who had gotten 8 hours or more of sleep, people who had slept less than 7 hours are twice as likely to cause a motor vehicle accident, and people sleeping less than 5 hours increased the risk of a crash four to five times. Researchers in Australia claim that being awake for 18 hours produced an impairment equal to a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .05, and sleep deprivation of 24 hours produced impairment equivalent to that of a drunk driver with a BAC of .10 which is above the legal limit of .08 in Georgia and all across America.

Fatal car wrecks are the tragic consequence of driver impairment due to fatigue or sleepiness. Government statistics provided annually by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) indicate that driver fatigue causes approximately 100,000 police reported automobile crashes in which 1,550 people are killed and 71,000 more are injured each year. However, many experts believe these statistics grossly understate the relative contribution driver fatigue makes to the cause of many traffic accidents. Most police officers are not adequately trained to detect or identify sleep related crashes. Even where police are able to identify driver fatigue or drowsiness as a crash factor, the reporting practices in each state are inconsistent with some states not even having codes for the reporting of these causes on official police reports. Thus, many crashes caused by driver fatigue, drowsy driving or incidents of drivers who fall asleep at the wheel are never detected or officially reported as such. Indeed, many safety advocates in this country have described driver fatigue and drowsy driving as being the most “under-estimated and under-reported” traffic safety problem facing the motoring public. In Australia and many European countries where the reported data is considered more reliable, drowsy driving is consistently blamed for 10-30% of all automobile accidents.

There is ample reason to believe that driver fatigue or sleepiness is no less a contributing factor in causing fatal car accidents in this country. This is especially true given surveys which show how prevalent drowsy driving is in the United States. According to a survey conducted by NSF in 2005, 60% of all adult drivers admitted that they had driven a vehicle while feeling drowsy in the last year, 37% had actually fallen asleep at the wheel, and 4% had actually caused an accident because they fell asleep or were too tired to drive. In a 2001 NSF survey of adults who drive to work, 27% of the respondents said they had driven drowsy to or from work at least a few days every month. According to a major study conducted by NHTSA and the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute in 2006, nearly 80% of all automobile crashes involve some form of driver inattention within 3 seconds before the event. The study concluded that the primary causes of such “inattention” just before impact were drowsiness or distracting activities such as cell phone use. At an April 2006 news conference releasing the results of this landmark research, a representative from NHTSA said, “This important research illustrates the potentially dire consequences that can occur while driving distracted or drowsy. It’s crucial that drivers always be alert when on the road.”

Drowsy driving is preventable. There are warning signs which every driver should look for to assess whether they are at greater risk of causing an accident. If the following warning signs appear, consider not continuing to drive or taking steps to address the situation: head nodding, frequent yawning, heavy eyelids and/or increased eye blinking, varying vehicle speeds for no reason, difficulty with concentration, weaving and/or allowing one’s vehicle to wander over road lines, and feeling restless or irritable.

It is particularly important that drivers be extremely vigilant when they are most at risk for falling asleep or having their driving skills impaired by fatigue or drowsiness. The known risk factors for drowsy driving include persons suffering sleep apnea or other sleep disorders, insomnia or inadequate sleep before driving, long periods of driving particularly where there are few breaks, driving during the night or early morning hours when the driver usually would be asleep, driving after long periods of work, use of any amount of alcohol, and use of any sedatives or medications which cause drowsiness. All of these risk factors should be avoided in order to prevent or at least reduce the chances of a crash due to fatigue or sleepiness.

Drivers who cause car accidents because of impaired driving due to drowsiness or fatigue are liable for damages suffered by innocent victims. Passengers or other motorists who are injured (or their family members in the case of a fatality) can hold drowsy drivers liable for civil damages in personal injury and wrongful death lawsuits. In addition, some victims have successfully asserted claims against employers who required unreasonably long hours of work and then allowed a fatigued employed to drive notwithstanding the obvious dangers associated with that exhausted employee being allowed to get behind the wheel of a motor vehicle. These are two published appellate decisions from West Virginia and Oregon which support the idea of employer liability where the employer is responsible for ignoring the obvious risks of drowsy driving which the employer’s work requirements created. These two decisions are Faverty v. McDonald’s Restaurants of Oregon, Inc., 892 P.2d 703 (Or.App. 1995) and Robertson v. LeMaster, 301 S.E.2d 563 (W.Va. 1983).

The attorneys at Ragland Law Firm, LLP have considerable experience with personal injury and wrongful death claims and lawsuits involving car accidents. Contact the firm if you have been injured in an automobile collision or you believe that you or a family member have been the victim of a drowsy driving crash.

On behalf of Ragland Law Firm, LLP, Daniel Ragland (right) accepts the “Top Fundraiser” Award from MADD National President, Laura Dean-Mooney (left)

During the three years (2006-2008) that Ragland Law Firm, LLP has sponsored and participated in the annual fundraising walks held by MADD Georgia, the firm has contributed and raised over $22,000 in funds to support MADD Georgia. The stated mission of MADD is to “stop drunk driving, support the victims of this violent crime and prevent underage drinking.” Ragland Law Firm, LLP is dedicated to safety advocacy, and is particularly dedicated to supporting MADD Georgia.

The defendant-physicians assert that the Plaintiff’s claims of professional negligence are barred by Georgia’s five year medical malpractice statute of repose because the patient first starting seeing them more than five years before the lawsuit was filed. For this reason, the trial court granted Motions to Dismiss on behalf of the Defendants in April 2007. Mr. Ragland appealed to the Georgia Court of Appeals which reversed the trial court’s decision finding that the five year statute of repose had not expired. The Georgia Court of Appeals reasoned that the Defendants had failed to vaccinate and otherwise properly protect their asplenic patient from the risks of OPSI on many occasions, including visits which took place during the five year pre-suit period. As such, the Georgia Court of Appeals agreed that negligent acts which were committed within five years of the lawsuit could support timely malpractice claims by the Plaintiff.

Both sides have now filed their appellate briefs with the Georgia Supreme Court. Oral argument before the Georgia Supreme Court has been scheduled for 10:00 a.m. on Monday, October 20, 2008.

Earlier this year, the Executive Committee of GTLA decided that there needed to be a permanent annual event to recognize excellence in the Georgia Judiciary. Therefore, it was decided to honor the judiciary with an annual reception to be known as “The Height of Excellence.” Ragland Law Firm, LLP is proud to be one of the first sponsors of this event and to have made a $1,000 contribution to help provide necessary funds.

The GTLA Executive Committee has also now created the “Anthony A. Alaimo Award for Judicial Excellence,” which will be bestowed upon a worthy member of the trial or appellate judiciary in Georgia at this inaugural event and annually at this event every year in the future. This award was created in honor of the Honorable Anthony A. Alaimo, Senior Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Georgia. It has already been announced that Judge Alaimo will be the first deserving recipient of this award which has been named in his honor. Before being appointed to the federal district court in 1971, Judge Alaimo served as the 13th President of GTLA in 1968. Before attending law school, Judge Alaimo served in the U.S. Army Air Corps and had flown a B26 as a member of the 322nd Bomb Group during World War II. His plane was shot down over the North Sea and he was captured by the Germans. Judge Alaimo was one of many American prisoners of war who daringly escaped from a German POW camp.

Though one judge will receive special recognition with the “Anthony A. Alaimo Award for Judicial Excellence” every year, the reception is planned to honor all members of the Georgia Judiciary. GTLA hopes the reception will become a very special happening every year. For this 2008 inaugural event, the Past Presidents of GTLA, as a group, will serve as the official Host Committee. Civil trial attorney Daniel A. Ragland, founding partner of Ragland Law Firm, LLP, plans to attend and help honor Judge Alaimo and all of the other members of the state and federal judiciary of Georgia.

Mr. Ragland will attend many of the workshops planned during the day on September 5 and September 6. Some of these workshops will address various topics including, among other things, understanding and meeting the needs of persons suffering a traumatic brain injury, providing support to those grieving the death of a family member, understanding the role of alcohol interlock technology to prevent convicted offenders from repeating their drunk driving, methods to reduce access to alcohol by underage drivers, and the use of Victim Impact Panels to help show convicted offenders that innocent persons are victimized by their impaired driving.

Daniel Ragland is a civil trial attorney who regularly represents victims of drunk driving in lawsuits against the DUI offender. He has also handled many dramshop liability cases against persons or businesses who have negligently served or sold alcohol to an underaged youth or a noticeably intoxicated adult. Mr. Ragland has been an active member of MADD Georgia since 1990. He served as “Legal Advisor” and as a member of MADD Georgia’s Board of Directors during 1992-1998. Currently, he is a member of the State Advisory Council of MADD Georgia, a position he has held since 2002. Mr. Ragland has been asked on many occasions to conduct training workshops for MADD victim advocates on topics relating to civil law claims against drunk drivers, as well as civil claims based upon negligent entrustment, vicarious liability, dramshop liability or social host liability. Mr. Ragland has been invited to make presentations about civil law remedies available to victims of an alcohol-related traffic collision at training workshops conducted by MADD chapters in Georgia, Florida, Texas, Arizona, New Mexico and Washington.