California Injury Blog

The driver of a pickup, which swerved out of the Express Lanes of the eastbound 91 Freeway and caused a car accident involving at least three other cars, has been arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence. According to an article in The Orange County Register, the car crash occurred the afternoon of July 1, 2009 near Gypsum Canyon Road in Yorba Linda. At least one person was taken to the hospital after the car collision. The pickup being driven by the suspected drunk driver was apparently carrying a load of nails. As the truck rolled over, the nails spilled all over the freeway, California Highway Patrol officials said. No other car accidents were caused by the spilled debris.

My heart goes out to the injured victims in this case who were hurt because of this suspected drunk driver's negligence and recklessness. I wish the injured victims the very best for a speedy and complete recovery.

According to California Highway Patrol's 2007 traffic accident statistics, 178 deaths and 14,185 injuries were reported in Orange County as a result of car crashes. During the same year in Orange County, 75 fatalities and 1,501 injuries involved alcohol-related car crashes.

Continue reading "Driver Who Caused Orange County Car Accident Arrested for DUI" »

Charles Bybee, 62, of Norwalk suffered critical personal injuries in an Orange County car versus pedestrian accident after he saved an apparently suicidal woman from getting hit by traffic on a Fullerton street, CBS News reports. Eyewitnesses told reporters that Bybee was trying to help the woman out of the middle of a busy street the night of June 29, 2009 where she was trying to get motorists to kill her. Bybee then went back across the street to talk to a police officer when he was hit by a car. The woman was not injured, but Bybee is said to be in critical condition.

My heart goes out to Charles Bybee, who did a brave and noble deed here. Bybee saved a life! Here was a man who genuinely tried to do a good deed and succeeded, but got seriously injured in the process. How tragic! I wish Charles Bybee the very best for a quick and complete recovery. Please keep him in your prayers.

Continue reading "Orange County Car Accident Critically Injures Good Samaritan" »

Rodrigo "Rod" Armas, 45, died in a Los Angeles County bicycle accident after both he and his son were struck by a truck while cycling east along Pacific Coast Highway, the Ventura County Star reports. The hit-and-run bicycle-car crash occurred early morning on June 28, 2009 near the 34000 block of Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu. Armas and his 14-year-old son were hit by a suspected drunk driver while riding on the shoulder of the highway. Armas died at the scene while his teenage son was taken to the hospital with several broken bones.

The truck driver, 30-year-old Robert Sam Sanchez, fled the scene, but was arrested a short distance away from the accident scene. He was still displaying signs of alcohol intoxication, officials said. Sanchez apparently works for the city of Malibu and lives in Oxnard. It is not clear whether he was on the job or returning from a city event at the time of the fatal Los Angeles car accident. Armas and his son were on their way back to Malibu during the annual 200-mile Los Angeles Wheelmen "Grand Tour" event.

My heart goes out to the family and friends of Rod Armas and his young son who is in the hospital with serious injuries. I offer my deepest condolences to Armas' surviving family members, his wife Shelly Armas, his son and two daughters. Please keep this family in your prayers as they go through this difficult time.

Continue reading "Los Angeles County Bicycle Accident Kills Dad, Injures Son" »

Mark Hampton Montgomery, 59, was killed in a Huntington Beach motorcycle accident after his motorcycle collided with a car the evening of June 26, 2009. According to an article in The Orange County Register, Montgomery was riding the motorcycle west on Garfield Avenue near Edwards Street. A gold, four-door sedan was traveling east on Garfield. The sedan then turned north onto Edwards ahead of Montgomery, who crashed into the car, Huntington Beach police said. Montgomery was wearing a helmet, but he died from injuries sustained in the motorcycle crash. If you saw this accident, please call the Huntington Beach Police Department at 714-536-5666.

I offer my deepest sympathies to the family and friends of Mark Hampton Montgomery for their tragic and heartbreaking loss. Please keep them in your prayers.

According to California Highway Patrol's 2007 Statewide Integrated Traffic Reporting System, there were no fatalities, but 55 injuries occurred involving motorcycle accidents in Huntington Beach. In Orange County as a whole, 24 fatalities and 752 injuries were reported in 2007 as a result of motorcycle accidents.

Continue reading "Huntington Beach Motorcycle Accident Kills Man " »

Three occupants of a Honda Civic--Francisco Magana, 20, Virginia Garcia, 21, and Vivian Garcia, 14--were killed in a Fresno car accident that officials believe was caused by a suspected drunk driver going in the wrong road direction.

According to a news report in the Fresno Bee, 32-year-old Willie Rivera Jr. was driving a Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck the wrong way and collided head-on with the Honda at the intersection of Jensen and Armstrong avenues the night of June 24, 2009. The Silverado apparently sideswiped a Ford pickup and then hit the Civic. A Daewoo sedan was also caught up in the fatal car crash.

Continue reading "Fresno DUI Car Crash Kills Three" »

The General Motors-Chrysler bankruptcy has caused much anxiety among consumers because it seeks to throw out auto product liability and personal injury lawsuits against them. Now, a new report predicts that a loophole created by the bankruptcies of General Motors and Chrysler will make it possible for the companies to avoid issuing product recalls of defective cars that were manufactured prior to the bankruptcy filings.

According to a news article on Consumer Reports, this new report released by Safety Research and Strategies (http://www.safetyresearch.net/chrysler-gm-bankruptcy) looks into the implications of a provision in the GM and Chrysler bankruptcies that allows the automakers to avoid liability for the vehicles made before the bankruptcy. The report projects that based on information provided by both GM and Chrysler and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), more than 3,400 Americans will be injured or killed by a defective Chrysler of GM vehicle during the first year after the bankruptcy.

Continue reading "GM-Chrysler Bankruptcy Will Have Chilling Effect on Product Recalls" »

California investigators believe that nursing home negligence may have caused the death of an 83-year-old man, who died from head injuries that were not properly assessed or treated by nursing home staff. According to an Associated Press news report, Lakewood Manor North in Los Angeles received an AA citation – the most severe that the California Department of Public Health issues. The negligence, according to officials, involved a patient who had slipped, fallen and suffered a head injury while trying to move from his bed to a wheelchair in 2007. The resulting head injury was not properly assessed or treated, investigators say. The man ended up dying four days after he fell.

Continue reading "Los Angeles Nursing Home's Negligence Caused Patient's Death, Officials Say" »

At least nine people were killed and scores of other commuters were injured in a Washington D.C. train accident the evening of June 22, 2009. According to a Fox News report, one Metro train smashed into the back of another during rush hour traffic causing the front end of one train to jackknife violently into the air and fall on top of the other. Cars of both trains were ripped open and smashed together in what officials say is the worst train accident in the Metrorail's 33-year history. Washington D. C. fire officials treated at least 76 people at the scene and many were sent to area hospitals including six people with critical injuries. Among the dead was Jeanice McMillan, operator of the trailing train.

Officials said the first train was stopped on the tracks waiting for another to clear the station ahead when the trailing train plowed right into it from behind. Officials have not been able to explain what caused this catastrophic train crash. The trailing train is said to be one of the oldest in the Metro fleet. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is investigating the incident.

Continue reading "Washington D.C. Metrorail Train Accident Kills Nine, Injures Many Others" »

California Zicam class action attorneys are aware that the problem with Zicam intranasal cold remedies is nothing new. According to an investigative news report done by Denver's 7News in 2004, five years before the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) cautioned consumers that use of Zicam can result in the loss of sense of smell. In 2004, Matrixx Initiatives, the manufacturer of Zicam, admitted that they did not know if their nasal gel could cause loss of smell.

Continue reading "Zicam Class Action Suit Pending in California? Zicam Defects Surfaced Five Years Ago" »

Dustin Rogers Martin, 17, was killed in a San Bernardino County pedestrian accident after he was struck by a hit-and-run driver. According to a news report in the San Bernardino Sun, Dustin was riding a skateboard on Cottonwood Avenue near Poplar Street the morning of June 15, 2009 when he was hit by a sedan. The driver, Kenneth Stotelmyre, left the scene, but later returned with his father. Stotelmyre has been arrested on suspicion of felony hit-and-run.

My heart goes out to the family and friends of Dustin Rogers Martin for their heartbreaking and tragic loss. I offer my deepest condolences to everyone who knew and loved this young man. Please keep them in your prayers.

According to California Highway Patrol's 2007 traffic accident statistics, there were four fatalities and seven injuries involving pedestrian accidents in Hesperia. In San Bernardino County as a whole, 50 fatalities and 432 personal injuries involving pedestrian accidents were reported in 2007.

In this particular case, it's not quite clear, based on the newspaper report, whose fault this fatal pedestrian accident was. Did the driver, Stotelmyre, have enough time to stop? How old is Stotelmyre? Was he distracted, driving reckless or driving under the influence of alcohol or controlled substances? These are all important questions that need to be answered to determine whether there was any negligence and also the level of negligence that may have existed here.

Continue reading "San Bernardino Hit-and-Run Pedestrian Accident Kills Skateboarder " »

Most Zicam lawsuit lawyers have seen recent warnings of the drugs effects. These effects can be devastating and the recent warnings about Zicam intranasal products, which are believed to cause a loss of sense of smell among users, is another example of that. A news article in the Associated Press talks about David Richardson of Greensboro, North Carolina, who believed he was taking a "homeopathic cold remedy" when he used Zicam's cold gel. With one squirt of Zicam cold gel, Richardson lost his sense of smell.

Here's how Richardson describes his loss to the Associated Press: "It's like watching a sunset in black and white. The things that you take for granted, not only smelling fresh-cut grass or bread in the oven…you miss those parts of your life. There's not a day that goes by that you're not reminded of it."

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) warned consumers against three Zicam products -- Zicam Cold Remedy Nasal Gel, Nasal Swabs and discontinued Swabs in Kids' Size. Apparently, Zicam belongs to an under-the-radar, but legal sector of the drug industry called homeopathic remedies. Many drug injury attorneys have seen these pharmaceutical drugs sold over-the-counter without prescription as legal drugs claiming to treat specific aliments, yet they are not routinely reviewed for safety or benefit by the FDA. Matrixx Initiatives, the company that makes Zicam, still maintains Zicam is safe and has not yet issued a product recall. All that the company has agreed to, so far, is to suspend shipments and reimburse customers who want refunds.

Continue reading "California Zicam Lawsuit Attorneys: Victims Lose Sense of Smell after Using Zicam Cold Relief Products" »

Six people were injured in a San Bernardino County bus accident after a suspected drunk driver in a pickup crashed into the charter bus carrying 23 passengers from the San Manuel Indian Bingo and Casino to Los Angeles. According to a news article in the San Bernardino Sun, 32-year-old Vernon Christopher Hernandez ran a red light at the intersection of Victoria Avenue and Mirada Road in San Bernardino the night of June 15, 2009 and slammed into the bus. Hernandez died in the bus crash.

After the initial impact, the bus and truck continued sliding 20 to 30 yards. The bus then crashed into a large block wall. Six passengers on the bus suffered personal injuries and all 23 were pulled through the windows after the bus crashed into the wall, San Bernardino County Fire Department officials said. The Los Angeles-bound charter bus had just picked up the passengers from the casino. Police are apparently still investigating what caused the bus-car accident, but based on the preliminary investigation, they are placing the blame on the driver of the pickup truck. Police say they believe alcohol or drugs may have played a part in this bus collision.

I'm relieved that other than the suspected drunk driver, no one else was seriously hurt or killed in this San Bernardino bus accident. I wish the injured bus passengers the very best for a quick and complete recovery.

Continue reading "San Bernardino Bus Accident Leaves Drunk Driver Dead and Six Passengers Injured " »