Criminal violence such as a shooting, stabbing or beating may result in serious injuries causing death, brain injury, paralysis, or permanent impairment or disfigurement. In addition to the emotional trauma often caused by such an attack, many victims also suffer life-long, debilitating injuries to the brain or spinal cord.

A Traumatic Brain Injury or “TBI” can be highly devastating depending on its severity, and 11% of all TBIs in the United States are the result of an assault. A blow to the head, a fall/throw to the ground or other type of impact can cause mild to major brain trauma resulting in learning and memory impairment, decreased physical mobility or inability to live independently. Depending on the severity of the injury, many victims of brain trauma may not fully show symptoms of serious injury for days or even weeks after the assault. If you or a loved one has suffered a blow to the head, careful monitoring by medical personnel is highly recommended.

According to the National Center for Injury and Prevention Control, common symptoms of brain injury are:

• Headaches
• Nausea or vomiting
• Memory loss
• Tiredness or listlessness
• Sensitivity to light
• Loss or decrease in smell or taste
• Change in sleeping patterns
• Irritability/Changes in attitude

Spinal cord injuries and paralysis might also occur as the result of violent assault. In the nervous system, two types of motor neurons are involved in transmitting signals from the brain to the muscles to help move our bodies. These are known as upper and lower neurons. If the spinal cord is damaged from the impact of a bullet or the stabbing of a knife or other weapon, the result may be a complete or incomplete spinal cord injury. Complete spinal cord injury often results in quadriplegia or paraplegia, rendering entire parts of the body inoperable. An incomplete injury may leave the victim unable to move their limbs but still sensitive to the touch.

Coping with paralysis is one of particular difficulty. And, while our attorneys cannot turn back time, they can assist in the recovery from these devastating injuries by aggressively representing the victim and their family in a lawsuit against the negligent parties who failed to take reasonable steps to prevent the violent attack. A favorable resolution of the lawsuit will often provide for medical treatment, lifestyle adjustments, as well as compensation for physical and emotional pain and suffering.

Other disabilities and serious injuries linked to violent assault:

• Scarring, broken bones, permanent disfigurement
• Blindness
• Deafness
• Permanent disability to face resulting in speech or other vision or hearing impairment
• Loss of control of other bodily functions requiring colostomy, dialysis, etc.
• Loss of consortium (inability to have intimate relations with a spouse)