Personal Injury Accidents: Preserve Evidence
Evidence is an integral part of legal proceedings including personal injury since it helps prove a plaintiff’s case. Example of evidence includes photographs, debris, medical records, and visible injuries among other things. Evidence helps a personal injury lawyer to establish the grounds on which to argue a case. In personal injury litigation, unlike other litigation, the plaintiff has to demonstrate the extent of an injury to get a comparable payment for damages. It is therefore vital for evidence to remain intact throughout the court process.
At Johnson Attorneys Group, our personal injury attorney has years of experience handling personal injury litigation in California. We offer free consultations on personal injury accident cases and only charge legal fees after we have won your case.
Evidence Preservation After a Personal Injury Accident
Go Back to the Scene of the Accident
Everything that was involved in an accident should be collected as soon as possible. In the case of a car accident, take photographs from different angles to help create a vivid description of the accident. It is vital that the photographs capture the whole vehicle and other details in the scene of an accident to help establish who was at fault resulting in personal injury.Locate Witnesses
Ensure to get the full names, contacts, and address of the people at the scene of the accident. Witnesses play an integral part invalidating*** a claim by:- Witness statements help to back up the injured person's account of what happened
- Providing more information about the accident which the injured person may not be privy to, which might help absolve them of blame.
- Helping establish relationships between past accidents and the one involving the injured person, which is vital in the discovery of the fault.
Protect Physical Evidence
Physical evidence is what you can see or touch as opposed to a description of what took place. It is essential to keep gathered evidence in its original condition. For instance, injured persons should not wash or wear clothes or shoes that were worn when the accident occurred. The injured person should get in touch with an experienced California personal injury attorney before handling any physical item that was involved in an accident to avoid weakening a claim. Seek special facilities for the storage of large pieces of evidence such as vehicles to avoid tampering. The essence of storing evidence is to ensure everything remains the closest possible to when the injury occurred.If you aren’t able to preserve the physical object, take pictures of it. A few tips for preserving evidence with photos include:
- Take the photos right away or as soon as possible so that the pictures show the accurate condition of the physical evidence shortly after the accident.
- Take good quality clear photos.
- Take several photos from different angles.
- Get your film developed immediately and have the photo center specify the date on the back of the prints, or at least on your receipt.
Document Your Injuries
To preserve evidence of any injuries it is critical that the injured persons are immediately attended to by a medical professional to have valid medical documentation including x-rays, CT and MRI scans. Take pictures of any visible injuries including bruises, cuts, swelling, and even bandages, splints, and casts. If you do not supply medical documentation it will be difficult to prove the seriousness of your injuries later on.
Contact Our Experienced California Personal Injury Lawyer for a Free Case Evaluation
At present, our experienced California personal injury attorneys at Johnson Attorneys Group have successfully helped our clients win damages amounting to more than $100 million. Get in touch with Johnson Attorneys Group today at 1-800-208-3538 to enhance the chances of success in seeking damages for personal injury.