Georgia Injury Lawyer Blog

Williams Oinonen LLC partner Julie Oinonen was recently appointed as a Fellow at the Emory University School of Law Center for Advocacy and Dispute Resolution.

Previously, Ms. Oinonen has been a Dean's Teaching Fellow and Post Doctoral Fellow for Emory University School of Law. She is also admitted into the prestigious Order of Emory Advocates, in addition to being awarded the Kathleen Kessler-Eidson Trial Advocacy Award and International Academy of Trial Lawyers Award by Emory University School of Law. Ms. Oinonen has a Masters of Education and Masters of Business Administration graduating Magna Cum Laude. She completed her undergraduate education at Covenant College, a Christian college located on Lookout Mountain, Georgia.

Ms. Oinonen now joins her partner, Mr. Mario Bernard Williams, who is also a Fellow at the Center. Prior to Mr. William's career as an attorney at Williams Oinonen LLC, he worked in the field of International Human Rights throughout South America. Mr. Williams graduated with honors from Morehouse with a degree in Political Science and has extensive experience with opponent research, policy analysis and political consulting. Additionally, Mr. Williams and Ms. Oinonen have had much success working on opponent research campaigns for elected officials throughout Georgia.

Ms. Oinonen's recent appointment as Fellow at the Center for Advocacy and Dispute Resolution makes Williams Oinonen LLC the only law firm in the United States to have both Partners named as Fellows of Emory University Law School.

Currently, Williams Oinonen LLC is accepting new clients. We welcome you to contact us to schedule an appointment today.

This is an extremely disturbing video of what happened yesterday in Oakland, California at an Occupy Oakland protest. A young Iraq war veteran named Scott Olsen, age 24, is potentially brain injured thanks to a police officer throwing something that some people are alleging to be a flashbang grenade, i.e. a bomb, into a crowd of people. When a crowd of young people rush to help save him it appears that the police officer throws a second bomb at the crowd. At this point, the police department have issued a press release denying use of flash bang devices but others dispute this.

Flashbang grenades are NOT a non-lethal use of force as some police departments would have you believe. They are deadly. Just this year in Charlotte, North Carolina, a SWAT officer by the name of Fred Thornton was killed when a flash bang grenade exploded as he was securing his equipment in the trunk of his patrol car. Certain city police departments, including the New York City Police Department have banned the use of flash bang grenades because they kill innocent victims.

Sadly, certain police departments in Georgia use this dangerous device and have unjustifiably injured innocent Georgia civilians. For example, we've had clients with gruesome burns all over just because a police department in our state has unjustifiably thrown these bombs in the bedroom windows of innocent Georgia citizens while sleeping.

The video clip is an absolute example of police misconduct that violates the Constitutional rights of United States citizens. Shame on Oakland Mayor and Chief of Police for allowing such an unacceptable, illegal and unconstitutional use of force!

Hopefully, Scott Olsen, the 24 year old young man and Iraq war veteran who was injured by police yesterday, will pull through and recover without lasting damage to his brain. It is shocking that what he escaped on the streets of Iraq he came home to on the streets of America.

We do not live in a regime like Syria where dictators abuse their citizens without recourse. The Fourth Amendment of our United States Constitution protects persons from such such unlawful activities. Additionally, our civil justice system, as is guaranteed in the Seventh Amendment allows us to seek redress for violations of our Constitutional rights. Shame on the city of Oakland if in fact it is true that a police officer was allowed to throw a flashbang grenade at a crowd of people. These bombs due more than stun. They seriously maim and kill.

Good Georgia Lawyer calls on the Mayor of Oakland and Chief of Police to stop this unnecessary violence, do the right thing, and protect the constitutional rights of its citizens.

UPDATE: Oakland Police Department is denying that these were in fact were flashbang grenades. We hope this is true. But regardless, the above video clip shows unacceptable use of force against citizens and a clear violation of Constitutional rights.

Occupy Atlanta has set up their occupation protest in Woodruff Park, just a short walk from the law offices of Williams Oinonen LLC. Our law firm is just a few blocks from the protests, located in the Historical Grant Building at 44 Broad Street, Suite 200 in downtown Atlanta.

On Friday, several hundred members rallied in Woodruff Park, protesting corporate corruption. The protests are also timed for the 10th anniversary for Afghanistan war and patterned after the Occupy Wall Street group in New York.

Atlanta police first told the protesters to stay on sidewalks but later allowed a dozen or so tents to be set up in Woodruff Park as long as the protesters behaved themselves.

For legal assistance, our office is just a short walk from Woodruff Park in downtown Atlanta. Contact Julie Oinonen at 404-654-0288 for more information.

Good Georgia Lawyer is very happy to report that the United States Department of Education Office of Civil Rights is cracking down on how colleges and universities report sexual misconduct.

The tougher response comes after a federal investigation identified problems at a number of colleges where sexual assault victims were re-victimized by university policies and procedures.

The Obama administration approach is also in response to the previous administration's laissez faire approach. Now however, colleges and universities are all on notice that they must respond appropriately and accurately report sexual misconduct incidents. Additionally, feds have launched investigations on certain campuses.

In April, the US Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) sent a letter to all colleges and universities clarifying specific ways that sexual misconduct should be dealt with under Title IX, a 1972 gender-equity law governing educational institutions that receive federal funds.

Among other things, the letter addresses appropriate time lines for resolving cases, supporting victims, and curing hostile environments. Thus far, at least 25 colleges and universities, ranging from Stanford University to the University of Virginia, have changed and implemented new policies in response to the letter say OCR officials calling it the "wake up call" that was needed.

One big issue is that college campuses must now use a "preponderance of the evidence" standard when adjudicating sexual assault cases. That means a university judicial board needs to be just over 50 percent sure the incident occurred. Some campuses had used a "clear and convincing" standard, which required about 75 percent and then some, like Stanford, had even required "beyond a reasonable doubt," similar to a criminal trial.

In addition to the April letter, OCR has been conducting inquiries and compliance reviews, prompted by concerns at specific schools. OCR reached a settlement with the University of Notre Dame this past summer which came about when a student committed suicide after accusing a fellow student of sexual assault. The school agreed to improve all the sexual assault policies, use a preponderance of the evidence standard, and resolve cases in a timely manner. Currently, Yale University is being investigated by the OCR as well concerning allegations of sexual harassment.

What Does The Law Say Regarding Sexual Assault At Colleges and Universities?

Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 ("Title IX"), 20 U.S.C. Sec.1681, et seq., prohibits sex discrimination in any federally funded educational program or activity. Title IX also covers sexual violence and obligates schools to do the following. Once a school knows or reasonably should know a sexual assault it must take appropriate action to investigate:

• If sexual violence did happen the school must take immediate effective response to end it, prevent it, and address the effects.
• A school must take steps to protect the victim.
• A school must provide a complaint procedure for students to report sexual discrimination, harassment and assault. The procedures must present an equal opportunity for the accused and accuser to present evidence and appeal.
• A school must now use the preponderance of the evidence standard (51 percent) in adjudicating student judicial hearings.
• A school must notify both parties of the outcome.

Good Georgia Lawyer is encouraged because fortunately, these civil rights laws will now protect more and more students who are victims of sexual assault.

If you are a college student who has experienced a sexual crime on campus you are welcome to contact us to discuss your legal rights. But first, immediately seek medical treatment to preserve DNA and other related evidence. Call us though. We can provide legal counsel via telephone if you are too far away from our Atlanta office but still in Georgia. If you are outside of Georgia, we would be happy to refer you to another lawyer.

If you are a college or a university administrator, Williams Oinonen LLC offers legal consulting, workshops and seminars to train faculty and staff on a variety of legal issues that help insure that institutions comply with the law, avoid liability, and aid in promoting a positive university environment for all students.

The American Disabilities Act prohibits employers from discriminating against employees on the basis of their disability. To be considered disabled under the ADA, you must have "a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities" be a person who has a record or history of such an impairment, or be a person that is perceived to have such an impairment.

Title I of the ADA requires employers who have 15 or more employees to provide equal opportunities to qualified individuals with disabilities. For example, under Title I employers are prohibited from discriminating in hiring, recruitment, training, pay, and other employment privileges. Title I also prevents questions that an employer can ask about a prospective employee's disability before the job offer is made. It also requires that employers provide reasonable accommodation to the known qualified individual with disability unless it creates undue hardship for the employer.

How do you ask for a reasonable accommodation?

All you need to do is to let your employer know that you need an adjustment or change at work due to a medical condition. Employees may use "plain English" and need not mention the words "reasonable accommodation" or ADA. Additionally, requests can be made orally and do not need to be made in writing. Nevertheless, documenting things are always a good idea in the event you face problems in the future.

What are types of reasonable accommodations?

Any kind of modification to the work environment or adjustment as to how a job is performed that may include: restructuring the job position, modified work schedules, making facilities accessible, modifying equipment, providing qualified interpreters, reassignment to a vacant position. Examples of this would be if an employee who works the cash register has a physical disability and needs to request a stool to sit down while working. Another example might be a deaf employee who a TTY service to answer the phone. These are all examples of "reasonable" accommodations. Employers do not have to lower production standards, but employers do need to provide reasonable accommodations so the disabled employee can meet that standard.

Employers only need to provide accommodations that are reasonable and do not possess undue hardship to them. Thus, employers don't need to provide accommodations that people use personally outside of work such as hearing aids or prosthetic limbs. They also don't need to provide accommodations that would cause great financial difficulty to the employer or that would disrupt and fundamentally alter the business operation. For more information on reasonable accommodations under ADA, we recommend you read the EEOC's page on enforcement guidance.

For employers: You should assess each reasonable accommodation request on a case by case basis and consult a lawyer for advice to make sure they are keeping in with the requirements of the law. This is essential to avoid liability and the expense of potential litigation.

For employees: If you do feel your employer is violating your rights under Title I of the ADA, complaints must be filed within 180 days of the date of discrimination, or 300 days if the charge is filed with a designated State or local fair employment practice agency. Individuals cannot file a lawsuit until they receive a "right to sue" letter from the EEOC.

Recently, the Oinonen Law Group LLC wrote a request for precautionary measures to the Inter-American Human Rights Commission on behalf of Grady Hospital dialysis patients.

The international human rights petition resulted in the Commission officially contacting the U.S. government and requesting that the U.S. respond to the petitioners' allegations in addition to addressing the issue of medical treatment necessary for their survival. The Commission's action represents the first step in deciding whether to grant precautionary measures. The decision should be made some time soon.

The petition was officially submitted by the Oinonen Law Group LLC and Lindsay R.M. Jones. Mr. Jones who is lead counsel for the Grady patients, whose U.S. court case is currently to be submitted for appeal.

Grady dialysis patients lives are threatened due to the hospital attempting to deny the rights of the patients in accordance with a legally binding contract. The patients, third party beneficiaries to a legally binding contract, were denied the informed consent they are entitled to by law when Grady representatives told the patients that leaving the state was their only option. Moreover, Grady implored the patients to sign an agreement that reduced their contactual right of one year of treatment to three months.

Continue reading "International Human Rights and Grady Hospital in Atlanta" »