There Are 2 Legal Sides to Every Philadelphia Car Accident
Yesterday, the man accused of killing a young woman in a tragic Philadelphia car accident that occurred in July waived his right to a preliminary hearing and was ordered to stand trial for the death of 24-year-old Celina Langan. Manuel Albandoz is accused of vehicular homicide, involuntary manslaughter, driving without a license and leaving the scene of an accident.
When Philadelphia auto accidents occur, Philadelphia personal injury attorneys point out that two legal actions are possible: a criminal lawsuit and a personal injury lawsuit.
Criminal lawsuits are brought by the governing body that exercises legal authority over the accident location, generally a city, county, state or federal prosecutor. Criminal lawsuits focus on the law. Their purpose is to prove whether or not the accused person broke the law and assign punishment if he is found guilty.
Personal injury lawsuits are brought by the victim of a Philadelphia car accident or his family or estate. The purpose of personal injury lawsuits is two-fold: (1) to recover medical expenses incurred because of the accident and (2) to compensate the victim and his family for physical and emotional pain, suffering and loss caused by the accident.
In Pennsylvania, a car accident victim is entitled to recover damages for hospital and medical expenses, past and future lost earnings, past and future permanent physical disability, emotional distress, grief and emotional suffering caused by the victim's death, loss of love and companionship, damage or destruction of property, physical pain and suffering, and loss of enjoyment of life. Because of the esoteric nature of many of the damages to which an accident victim may be entitled, representation by an astute Philadelphia personal injury attorney is necessary to ensure that victims receive the full amount of compensation to which they are entitled.
