In Louisiana, the victim of any auto accident that causes injury or property damage has the right to make an insurance claim and/or file personal injury litigation. Any settlement or judgment is compensation for injuries and damages. The parties responsible for the injuries and damages will be held legally liable. Compensation can be recovered for many types and categories of damages, including:
In addition, where a drunk driver is responsible for the Louisiana auto accident (and the resulting injuries and damages), then victims may ALSO seek punitive damages to punish the at-fault party. This is allowed under Louisiana Civil Code, Art. 2315.4, which states "In addition to general and special damages, exemplary damages may be awarded upon proof that the injuries on which the action is based were caused by a wanton or reckless disregard for the rights and safety of others by a defendant whose intoxication while operating a motor vehicle was a cause in fact of the resulting injuries." Note that, according to several Louisiana court decisions, generally, insurance carriers are responsible for paying any punitive damages that can be proven. How to prove intoxication In most cases of drunk drivers causing Louisiana car accidents, the proof of intoxication is accomplished by showing the driver's blood alcohol level. Generally, this can be provided because, in most cases, the driver was arrested and tested by the police. However, that is not the only method of proving intoxication. For example, if the drunk driver flees the scene of the accident, then the driver will not be arrested or tested. Courts have allowed other evidence of intoxication to be used. These include testimony and other evidence that the driver
How much punitive damages can I recover? Louisiana courts have generally approved awards of punitive damages at an amount basically equal to the proven damages. Thus, in the case of Lacoste v. Crochet, 751 So. 2d 998 - La: Court of Appeals, 4th Circuit 2000), the proven damages for all victims was $33,000, and the court approved punitive damages in the amount of $30,000. Act quickly to contact a Louisiana personal injury attorney If you have been injured in an auto accident in Louisiana involving a drunk driver, you should consider acting quickly to consult with an experienced Louisiana personal injury attorney. In Louisiana, you generally must file a personal injury lawsuit within one year of the date of the accident. Contact A Louisiana Personal Injury Attorney Today For more information, contact the Law Offices of Philip B. Adams. If you have been injured in a Louisiana accident, our Louisiana personal injury lawyers can help you recover the full compensation you are entitled to according to Louisiana law. To contact us, complete our "Contact Us" page here. You may significantly benefit by having an attorney with legal competence and experience assist you with your Louisiana personal injury case. We have offices in Shreveport and handle personal injury cases throughout all of Louisiana. Thank you for reading this blog and visiting our website. In Louisiana, there are four main arson charges: aggravated, intent to injure, simple, and arson with the intent to defraud. All four crimes involve the intentional burning of a building or other property (like a car or boat). Arson involves the purposeful creation of fires using flame and acceleration and/or the use of explosives. Criminal penalties will depend on the intent proven, the extent of damage caused, whether persons were endangered and/or threatened with harm, and whether harm or death occurred. In terms of intent, there can be several possible intents. Was the intent to destroy property, intent to harm another human being, intent to defraud, intent to commit some other crime where a fire started, etc.? If you are arrested and charged with arson, contact an experienced Shreveport criminal defense attorney at the Law Offices of Philip B. Adams. Below is a discussion of the main arson crimes in Louisiana.
Aggravated arson -- La. Rev. Stat, §14.51 Aggravated arson is the most serious of the arson criminal charges. The criminal elements that must be proven by the Louisiana government prosecutors for aggravated arson are
If convicted, the criminal defendant will face a sentence of incarceration at hard labor from six to twenty years and a fine of up to $25,000. Injury by arson -- La. Rev. Stat, §14.51.1 For the crime of injury by arson, the criminal elements that must be proven by the Louisiana government prosecutors are
If convicted, the criminal defendant will face a sentence of incarceration at hard labor from six to twenty years and a fine of up to $25,000. Simple arson -- La. Rev. Stat, §14.52 Simple arson can be proven in two ways. The first method involves proving the following elements:
Or:
If convicted, the criminal defendant will face a sentence of incarceration at hard labor for up to fifteen years and a fine of up to $15,000 if the value of the property destroyed is more than $500. If the property destroyed has a value of less than $500, then the person convicted faces up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $2,500. Arson with intent to defraud -- La. Rev. Stat, §14.52 The elements are:
If convicted, the criminal defendant will face a sentence of incarceration for up to five years and a fine of up to $10,000 Contact A Louisiana Criminal Defense Attorney Today For more information, contact the Law Offices of Philip B. Adams today. We are relentless and aggressive Louisiana criminal defense lawyers. Complete our "Contact Us" page here. You may significantly benefit by having an attorney with legal competence and experience assist you with your Louisiana criminal case. We have offices in Shreveport and handle criminal defense cases throughout all of Louisiana. How Does Louisiana's Comparative Fault Doctrine Impact My Shreveport Auto Accident Claim?10/16/2023
In Shreveport auto accidents, "comparative fault" means that all parties who are at fault (in some way) will pay their percentage share of the damages. This applies to the injured victims, too. For example, assume a hypothetical accident where a big rig 18-wheeler truck is speeding towards an intersection to "make the light," but the light turns red just before the tractor-trailer truck gets to the intersection. The truck does not stop. Meanwhile, a passenger car has been waiting to turn left. Believing that the truck would stop, the driver of the automobile starts the left turn as the light turns red. The result is a horrific accident in the middle of the intersection. Now, obviously, the driver of the tractor-trailer truck is at fault for running the red light and for speeding. However, the injured victim in the passenger car bears some responsibility for not waiting and yielding to oncoming traffic (even if that oncoming traffic should have stopped). Louisiana is a "comparative negligence" state, which, as noted, means that all the at-fault parties pay their percentage share of the total damages. The assignment of percentage fault is made by a jury or a judge if the matter goes to civil trial, and if the victim is assigned a percentage of fault, then the victim's money damages are reduced by that amount. See LA Civ. Code, Art. 2323(A). So, in our example, the assignment might be 95% fault to the truck driver and 5% fault to the victim in the passenger car. In that case, if the damages are $500,000, then the victim's actual recovery will be $450,000. For a real-world example, see the case of Pontchartrain Nat. Gas System v. Texas Brine Company, LLC., 361 So.3d 491 (LA. Court of Appeals, 1st Cir. 2023). That case involved who was responsible for a giant sinkhole that formed in Assumption Parish in an area known as the Napoleonville Salt Dome. Various companies were assigned the following percentages of fault: 40% to Occidental; 5% each to Occidental Petroleum Corporation and OXY USA, Inc.; 25% to Texas Brine; 10% to United Brine Services Company, LLC; and 15% to Legacy Vulcan. Note that the assignment of percentage fault can be appealed if any party believes that the assignment was in error. This was successfully done in the Pontchartrain case. On appeal, the Louisiana Appeals Court reassigned the percentages as follows: 30% to Occidental; 0% each to Occidental Petroleum Corporation and OXY USA, Inc.; 45% to Texas Brine; 10% to United Brine Services Company, LLC; and 15% to Legacy Vulcan. In any event, Louisiana's comparative fault rules will potentially impact your Shreveport auto accident claim in two major ways. First, since your actual "in-your-pocket" recovery will be reduced by any percentage fault assigned to you, the insurance carriers involved will likely work hard to find some reason that you were partly at fault for the accident. This is because insurance companies have a financial incentive to pay as little as they can for any accident covered by their insurance. So their agents and employees make the best case they can that the victim had some responsibility for the accident. But remember that the insurance company representatives are just making arguments. Only a Louisiana court can make legally binding decisions about assigning fault. The second major impact potentially happens if there is no settlement with the insurance carriers. As noted, if a judge or jury assigns some percentage fault to you, the victim, then your total money damage recovery will be reduced. Contact A Louisiana Personal Injury Attorney Today For more information, contact the Law Offices of Philip B. Adams. If you have been injured in a Louisiana accident, our Louisiana personal injury lawyers can help you recover the full compensation you are entitled to according to Louisiana law. To contact us, complete our "Contact Us" page here. You may significantly benefit by having an attorney with legal competence and experience assist you with your Louisiana personal injury case. We have offices in Shreveport and handle personal injury cases throughout all of Louisiana. Thank you for reading this blog post and visiting our website. Drug trafficking is a severe crime in Louisiana that can lead to imprisonment at hard labor for 2-30 years, along with fines that can be as high as $150,000. This includes the trafficking of marijuana, which has largely been decriminalized for possession and recreational use. Note that marijuana use and possession are still serious crimes at the federal level. The key difference between use/possession and trafficking is the quantity of the drugs involved and what is being done with those drugs. If you are found by the police in possession of small quantities, this will generally lead to charges involving use/possession. Larger quantities may lead to charges of trafficking since individuals generally don't consume large amounts of marijuana for personal use. Trafficking is also commonly called "intent to distribute." The same trafficking laws may be used regardless of the drugs involved. As noted, you can be charged with trafficking in marijuana as well as many other controlled substances such as cocaine, heroine, "meth," various types of steroids, LSD, ecstasy, etc.
In terms of proof, the old Louisiana laws have been strengthened, so the prosecution now has only two legal elements to prove: possession of certain quantities of the controlled substance and intent to distribute. In other words, the prosecution does NOT have to prove that you exchanged a bag or container of drugs for money. To prove possession, generally, the Louisiana prosecuting attorneys need only prove physical possession. For example, if you are stopped, and the police find a sufficient quantity of controlled substances in your pockets, that fact alone, absent extenuating circumstances, is likely sufficient proof of the first element. However, constructive possession can also be proven. For example, if the police "raid" your house, and there is a large quantity of drugs on your dining room table, that fact may be deemed, at least, constructive possession. Proof of intent to distribute can be shown with many types of evidence. These might include
With respect to drug trafficking, some criminal defenses are rarely useful or applicable to the facts. These include common Louisiana criminal defenses like alibi, misidentification/wrong person, self-defense, defense of others, incapacity, etc. More common to drug trafficking cases are constitutional rights-related defenses, procedural defenses, evidentiary challenges, and directly attacking the sufficiency of the evidence (particularly concerning the alleged evidence of intent). For example, if the drugs were discovered during a traffic stop, an argument can be raised about the lawfulness of the stop and subsequent search. If the drugs were discovered after a "stop and frisk," was the stop lawful and, just as important, was the "frisk" lawful? If the drugs were discovered after a "raid," the question arises whether the "raid" was lawful. If a warrant was issued for the "raid," was the warrant properly issued? Depending on the facts, there may be other constitutional challenges. Procedurally, there may be challenges to the chain of custody, lab reports, etc. These will "go to" the validity of the evidence of the drugs themselves. Contact A Louisiana Criminal Defense Attorney Today For more information, contact the Law Offices of Philip B. Adams today. We are relentless and aggressive Louisiana criminal defense lawyers. Complete our "Contact Us" page here. You may significantly benefit by having an attorney with legal competence and experience assist you with your Louisiana criminal case. We have offices in Shreveport and handle criminal defense cases throughout all of Louisiana. Embezzlement in Shreveport, Louisiana, is a form of theft and is punished as theft in Louisiana. Embezzlement is a crime under both Louisiana criminal law and under federal law. In Louisiana, the severity of the crime (and the punishments) depends on how much money has been embezzled. The punishments are the following under Louisiana law:
Under federal criminal law, embezzlement of amounts higher than $1,000 can result in up to 10 years in a federal prison. For federal crimes, usually, some element of interstate commerce or cross-state-border activity must be involved. An example would be embezzling money from a bank or company engaged in interstate commerce. If you have been charged with embezzlement in Louisiana, contact an experienced Shreveport white-collar criminal defense attorney now. As noted, embezzlement is a form of theft. However, embezzlement involves circumstances in which the money was entrusted to the person who ultimately engaged in the theft (i.e., the person was allowed or authorized to possess the money but then took the money without authorization and with the intent to permanently deprive the owner of the money). As a simple example, imagine you give your friend $40 in cash to go to the pharmacy to buy medication or pick up a prescription. No crime has been committed. Your friend is authorized to have your $40; that money has been entrusted. However, if your friend absconds or flees with the money, never buys your medication, and never returns your money, then your friend has committed the crime of embezzlement. Real-world embezzlement cases are never so simple. Embezzlement cases are always very complex, difficult, and time-consuming for the government prosecuting attorneys to prove. This complexity is why hiring a Shreveport white-collar criminal defense attorney may help you in defending against the charges. As mentioned above, the prosecutors must prove that the money was actually taken. In most cases, that is not easy to do. This will generally require a high-level expert witness with deep experience in forensic accounting. Further, it must be proven that the money was taken without authority -- explicit or implied authority. By extension, it must be shown that there was an intent to take the money. That is, the evidence must refute the possibility that the money was taken by inadvertence, accident, or mistake. Finally, it must be proved beyond a reasonable doubt that the money was taken with the intent to permanently deprive the rightful owner of the money. There are, of course, other potential defenses that a Louisiana white-collar criminal defense attorney might be able to explore. In white-collar criminal cases, one important question is how did the government come into possession of the alleged evidence? Was the evidence collected in violation of the defendant's constitutional rights? Contact A Louisiana White Collar Criminal Defense Attorney Today For more information, contact the Law Offices of Philip B. Adams today. We are relentless and aggressive Louisiana white-collar criminal defense lawyers. Complete our "Contact Us" page here. While no results are guaranteed, you may significantly benefit by having an attorney with legal competence and experience assist you with your Louisiana criminal case. We have offices in Shreveport and handle criminal defense cases throughout all of Louisiana. |