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Guns provide many families in El Paso with a sense of safety and security. Unfortunately, not everyone who picks up a firearm knows how to handle it properly, which can result in accidental tragedies. If you or a loved one were injured in an accidental shooting lawyers in El Paso area, you may be able to file a lawsuit to recover compensation for your injuries.
To see if you have a viable compensation claim, call (800) 863-5312 for your 100% free case consultation with one of Zinda Law Group’s accidental shooting injury lawyers in El Paso. Our injury attorneys are familiar with these kinds of cases and can help you take the first step in getting your life back on track.
For a free legal consultation with a accidental shooting lawyer serving El Paso, call 800-863-5312
ACCIDENTAL SHOOTING LAWSUIT FAQs
Many Americans may think that accidental shootings are extremely rare, but surprisingly hundreds of people die from unintentional gunshot accidents yearly, and thousands more are injured. If you have lost a loved one to an unintentional shooting, or you have been injured in a firearm accident, we are incredibly sorry for the pain you have experienced.
You probably have a lot of questions running through your mind like, “Why do I need an injury lawyer near me?” or, “Could I benefit from a lawsuit?” Below we have answered a few common questions asked about these tragic accidents, but if the answer you’re looking for is not here, our accidental shooting lawyers are always ready for your call.
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What Are the Causes of Shooting Accidents?
Unfortunately, there are many different possible causes of accidental shootings. Some of the more common causes are:
Insufficient Training
Handling a gun is not a skill that comes naturally, which is why it is very important that every person who is going to touch the weapon has sufficient training to know how to handle it. Whether you’re at a firing range with an instructor or at home with a family member, that other person should take the time to make sure you know how to use and navigate the weapon. When they don’t, it can be extremely dangerous.
Dangerous Assumptions
A common cause of an individual shooting accidentally is assuming a gun is unloaded when in fact it is not. Whether the individual is going to clean the gun, is showing it off to friends, or is just relocating it, assuming that the weapon is unloaded can be very dangerous and can cause an accidental shooting. The best practice is to always assume every gun is loaded and handle it with that assumption in mind.
Lack of Muzzle Discipline
As you may know, muzzle discipline refers to keeping the firearm pointed in a safe direction at all times. The purpose of muzzle discipline is that if the gun is always pointed in the safest direction possible, then if there is a negligent discharge, it will not physically harm anyone. Whether it is because of a lack of maturity, insufficient training, or intoxication, oftentimes gun owners leave their muzzle discipline at the door; when they do, it is very dangerous.
Inadequate Trigger Discipline
Another important discipline for gun owners to practice is trigger discipline which refers to keeping their fingers off of and far away from the trigger until the gun handler is ready to fire. If a handler lacks trigger discipline and has their finger on it before they are ready, it makes it that much easier to accidentally fire and injure someone.
Gun Range Negligence
Customers go to gun ranges to learn how to safely handle a gun, but if a range is poorly maintained or uses faulty equipment, customers can end up shooting accidentally at other customers or employees nearby. This can turn what was supposed to be a learning and fun experience into an absolute tragedy.
Defective Parts
Firearms, unlike most products in the United States, are not within the scope of the Consumer Product Safety Commission. Unfortunately, this means that it is not uncommon for a gun to be defective or have a defective part. Defective parts, as you may expect, can be very dangerous and cause accidental shooting accidents.
If you or a loved one were injured in an accidental shooting in El Paso, but the cause of your accident is not listed above, don’t let that stop you from reaching out to one of our personal injury lawyers. We recognize that these kinds of accidents can happen for a myriad of reasons, and we believe that if yours was caused by negligence of some kind, you deserve compensation regardless of your circumstances. Free Consults24/7
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Who is Responsible for my Injuries?
Who is liable for your injuries will largely depend on the circumstances surrounding the accident. If, for example, the accident was caused by the negligence of an employee at a gun range, then the range owners could be legally responsible in addition to the negligent employee. If on the other hand the accident occurred at a friend’s house while they were showing off their new gun, the friend’s homeowner insurance would be responsible for compensating you.
Figuring out who is responsible is not as easy as it may sound, which is one of the many reasons why it is important to hire an El Paso injury lawyer. Someone shooting accidentally happens so fast, it may be hard to figure out what went wrong; was it user error, or was it a defective part in the firearm?
Figuring out the answer to that question may not be something you can do on your own, but thankfully you don’t have to. At Zinda Law Group, our experienced injury attorneys know how to investigate your case, figure out who was liable, and fight for you to be compensated to the maximum.
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What Kind of Compensation Might I Receive?
This is unfortunately another question where the answer is “It depends.” Every case is different, so despite how experienced our accidental shooting lawyers are, we can’t give you an exact amount of compensation you might receive. However, we can explain generally what types of compensation you may be awarded.
The type of compensation you may be awarded depends in part on the type of claim you bring. In the example where the accident was caused by a gun range employee’s mistake, the claim would likely be negligence.
In successful negligence cases, a plaintiff is normally awarded economic and non-economic damages. Together, these cover costs like medical expenses, lost wages, pain and suffering, and lost quality of life.
Unfortunately, accident shootings can also cause fatalities. If you lost a loved one due to an accidental shooting, we extend our sincere condolences for your devastating loss and want to help you seek some remedy.
In these kinds of cases, your cause of action would likely be wrongful death. Under this cause of action, you can be awarded other kinds of damages to help relieve some of the stress of your grieving process, such as compensation for funeral and burial expenses, lost earning capacity, lost love and companionship, and emotional anguish.
Texas also recognizes exemplary damages which are sometimes called punitive damages. In an El Paso accidental shooting case, these damages can be awarded where the incident was caused by especially reckless conduct. When a jury awards exemplary damages, the jury is essentially punishing the defendant for their reckless and unacceptable behavior.
Exemplary damages can add up, making a significant difference in your compensation award. Hiring an experienced injury attorney like the accidental shooting lawyers at Zinda Law Group can greatly increase your chances of recovering the maximum amount of compensation possible.
Why Do I Need an El Paso Injury Lawyer Near Me?
Accidental shootings are oftentimes traumatizing experiences. Even if the negligent party didn’t intend to cause you harm, they did, and you deserve to be compensated for all that you lost. Moreover, the negligent party needs to be held accountable for their mistakes so that they don’t make them again; hiring an accidental shooting lawyer is the best way to make that happen.
An experienced injury attorney can listen to your story, investigate your case, and negotiate with the defendants or their big insurance companies. Negotiating with lawyers from insurance companies—lawyers whose main goals are to compensate you the least amount possible—is an intimidating experience and not one you should have to take on yourself.
Our personal injury lawyers are experienced negotiators and have obtained great settlement offers for countless clients. More importantly, if negotiations are unsuccessful, our lawyers are ready to fight for you in court and have the experience necessary to present the strongest case to help you win.
The best part is that our injury attorneys not only offer 100% free case consultations, but they also promise a No Win, No Fee Guarantee. That means it won’t cost you a penny to hire us, and it’ll only ever cost you anything if we win. We know you have struggled physically and financially; it’s our job to make this process as easy for you as possible.
WHAT TO DO AFTER A SHOOTING ACCIDENT
Despite how common gun ownership is in El Paso, most gun owners don’t know what they would do if they found themselves involved in a shooting accident. Although gun accidents may seem rare, they are much more common than you might think. These accidents happen fast and can be extremely overwhelming, so the best thing you can do for yourself and your family is to be aware of the steps you should take if you find yourselves in this unfortunate situation.
Seek Medical Attention
It’s probably no surprise to you, but the first step you should take is to always seek the appropriate medical care. Wherever the gunshot wound is, it can be fatal, which is why it is so important to act fast and see a doctor right away.
Even if the wound is minor, getting it checked out as soon as possible will help avoid infection. If you wait and it gets infected, the defendant could use that down the line to argue that you didn’t properly mitigate your damages by failing to take care of the injury. To avoid this argument and to take care of yourself, always seek medical care as soon as you can.
Report the Accident
After you have seen a doctor and been taken care of, you should try to report the incident to the police as soon as you can. Reporting the incident to the police and filling out a police report will help you and your personal injury attorney down the line.
Filling out a report quickly when the details are still fresh in your mind is important and helps set you up to succeed in any subsequent lawsuit you file. If you don’t file a report, the defendant could argue that the story happened differently than how you explained it, and you won’t have a report to back you up.
Reporting the accident can also help protect others. If, for example, the accident occurred at a gun range that was being improperly maintained, the police can begin an investigation and the gun range owners will be on notice to better manage their shop.
Document Everything
Starting the day of the accident, try to document everything that you can. Write down the names and contact information of any witnesses of the incident so that we can call on them later on if necessary.
If possible, take pictures of the scene where the accident took place or pictures of your injuries. Keep a log of the days that you had to take off work or any other expense you incurred.
Although the tragic event will likely stay with you forever, your surrounding memories of it might fade. Documenting your road to recovery is extremely helpful for when it comes time to prove to a jury that you deserve compensation for your struggles.
Call Zinda Law Group’s Accidental Shooting Lawyers in El Paso
Call an El Paso injury lawyer. Every step of the legal process has its complications. First, you have to figure out what caused the accident and who should be held liable.
Next you need to assess what legal claims you have and what damages you can prove before you begin negotiating with opposing counsel. Lastly, if negotiations aren’t successful, you need to go to trial and prove your case to a judge or jury.
Realistically, you can’t do this all on your own, but luckily you don’t have to. Our experienced injury attorneys at Zinda Law Group can take care of every step of this process for you.
The earlier you call your injury lawyer the better. The length of time you have to file in court depends on the type of claim you have, but generally for these kinds of cases in Texas, plaintiffs have two years from the date of the accident. This may feel like a long stretch of time, but the earlier you call an El Paso injury lawyer, the earlier they can get started on your case and the quicker you can get compensated.
To take advantage of your 100% free case consultation, call (800) 863-5312 today. We wish that we could turn back the clock and prevent this accident from ever happening to you, but instead, let us help you get back to the place you were before this tragedy. We can help you obtain the maximum amount of compensation possible, and if we don’t, then you don’t have to pay us a dime; that is our No Win, No Fee Guarantee.
So don’t wait; call us today for your case consultation. Our El Paso injury lawyers are here, waiting to help you get back on your feet. AWARDED TO JOHN C. (JACK) ZINDA BY THE NATIONAL TRIAL LAWYERS ASSOCIATION (2016-2020) AWARDED TO JOHN C. (JACK) ZINDA (2009, 2011-2012, 2014-2021), JOE CAPUTO (2019-2021), BURGESS WILLIAMS (2019-2020), & NEIL SOLOMON (2020-2021) AWARDED TO JACK ZINDA (2016-2020), JOE CAPUTO (2016 – 2020) & BURGESS WILLIAMS (2016-2017) LIFETIME MEMBERS JOHN C. (JACK) ZINDA & JOE CAPUTO
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