Electrocution Accident Occurs in Jupiter
Several children and adults were injured on October 22nd in a freak electrocution accident at the Harbourside Place shopping center in Jupiter. According to first responders at the scene, a child was playing in a fountain that features “no swimming” and “no climbing” signs when the child and several bystanders who had come to the child’s aid were electrocuted. Eight people in total were treated for injuries, with two adults and three children being taken to area hospitals for treatment from their injuries, while another three were reported to have been treated on the scene and did not require transport to a hospital. One of the adults died shortly after arriving at the scene from injuries sustained in the incident. Florida Power & Light ended up having to shut off electricity to the area to allow first responders to investigate how exactly this occurred. Although this was the first incident involving this fountain, authorities and FP&L are being tight-lipped as to what exactly occurred to lead to the electrocution incident.
Comparative Negligence in Florida
Although this may not seem like a scenario where a defense attorney may blame the people (including the children) who were killed and injured in connection with this electrocution incident, it would not be surprising if an attorney or insurer for either pointed out that there were NO SWIMMING signs in capital letters on all sides of this fountain. While an average person would not expect a young child to understand this, many defense attorneys and insurers became enamored with this type of defense and would have you believe that the fact that there was a no climbing or no swimming sign on the fountain means the case is over for the injured children and adults.
The truth is not so simple. Juries often see through this tactic and will refuse to accept the defense narrative of what occurred because this ends up penalizing the innocent party. In this particular scenario, these are children who were hospitalized with serious injuries and one adult died trying to save a child who ended up in the fountain. Regardless of how the child ended up there, victim-blaming is not likely a winning scenario for the defense.
Contact Schwed, Adams & McGinley
At Schwed, Adams & McGinley, P.A., our experienced personal injury attorneys have more than 200 years of combined practice representing victims of all sorts of personal injury scenarios. Our experienced attorneys have dealt with defense attorneys overplaying their hand and arguing that our client was at fault rather than the actual tortfeasor whose negligence caused the incident. Just like in the recent incident in Jupiter, it is never surprising what insurers and defense attorneys are willing to argue to save the insurer or the defendant a few dollars. Nevertheless, juries at Schwed, Adams & McGinley can use our thorough knowledge and understanding of both how juries operate, as well as, the law to help you pursue full and fair compensation for your losses after you have been injured or lost a loved one due to someone else’s negligence. Therefore, if someone else’s negligence caused you to suffer injuries in Florida, contact the experienced personal injury attorneys at Schwed, Adams & McGinley, P.A today at 877-694-6079 or contact@schwedlawfirm.com for a free consultation.