California Injury Blog

A Florida jury has ordered auto maker Mitsubishi to pay $11 million in compensatory damages to a couple whose son was killed after being partially ejected from the Montero sport utility vehicle that rolled over, the Orlando Sentinel reports. The lawsuit brought against Mitsubishi by Donna and Peter Laliberte, alleged that the carmaker put its Montero SUV on the market in spite of knowing about problems with the seatbelt.

Their 25-year-old son, Scott, was thrown backward through the rear window in the SUV rollover crash, which occurred nearly four years ago. Scott was a passenger in the vehicle and was reportedly wearing his seatbelt. Jurors were convinced after attorneys argued that Mitsubishi took the unprecedented step of releasing a new version of the Montero halfway through the 2000 model year to fix those problems. But Mitsubishi officials never told consumers about the seatbelt defect in their earlier model.

Attorneys for the auto maker still denied that, which is typical. However, they did acknowledge that the changes in the Montero happened because of “poor crash test results,” the newspaper reported. Jurors awarded the couple $10 million for pain and suffering and the rest for funeral expenses and losses. The newspaper also reported that the trial was emotional for jurors and that many of them embraced the couple teary-eyed after the verdict.

Continue reading "Florida Jury Awards $11 Million To Parents of SUV Rollover Victim" »

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Posted In: SUV Rollovers

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Ford Motor Company has agreed to an out-of court settlement in an automobile defect/rollover accident case that we have been pursuing for our client, Gloria Levesque. She was seriously injured in a Ford Expedition rollover accident five years ago and rendered quadriplegic. The initial trial in Los Angeles Superior Court lasted three weeks and ended in a hung jury last December.

Of course, we’re pleased that Ford decided to settle with our client for an amount that is being kept confidential pursuant to Ford’s condition of settlement. But the more important fact in this case is that Ford’s top officials know – and have known for a very long time – that the roofs of their sport utility vehicles leave much to be desired in terms of strength. What happened to our client has happened to thousands of others.

The roofs of Ford’s SUVs such as the Explorer and Expedition are made so weak that they cave in during a rollover accident. Gloria’s accident happened on the 5 Freeway in Fresno County. She was a passenger in the vehicle. The driver swerved to avoid a collision, lost control of the vehicle, which rolled over many times. The Expedition roof collapsed and crushed inward causing her severe head and spinal injuries leaving her quadriplegic.

This is a classic case of Ford putting their financial interests ahead of consumer safety. They could have made that roof withstand a rollover accident for as little as $30, about what they charge for a chrome exhaust tip! How many unnecessary deaths has such skimping caused? Had Ford been a little more safety conscious Gloria would still have full use of her arms and legs. Now, she needs full-time care for the rest of her life and has no capacity to be employed. The settlement funds will help but they will not restore what she lost.

We consider this a victory for our client and more importantly, for justice. It’s cases such as these that constantly sound the warning bell to manufacturers such as Ford that they will be held accountable for the decisions they make in the board room.

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Posted In: SUV Rollovers

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An Escondido nursing home, which has been repeatedly cited for serious violations and abuse in the past, was slapped with the highest penalty of a $100,000 fine after a resident receiving oxygen caught on fire when he was smoking unsupervised. According to a news article in the San Diego Union-Tribune, this was the fourth accusation in three years made by state officials against Palomar Heights Care Center.

Nursing home officials apparently have nothing more to say about the incident other than it was an accident. But state records cited by the newspaper clearly show there is a lot more to this story. The man, who died of severe burns Jan. 11, was left alone with an oxygen tank smoking a cigarette and he wasn’t even wearing the flame-retardant apron as required by law. And the nurse who was supposed to be watching him was somewhere else filling out charts.

Could this be a case of understaffing in this nursing home? That is certainly a possibility. Nursing homes cutting staff to boost profits is considered to be one of the leading causes of nursing home abuse and negligence, according to the advocacy group, California Advocates for Nursing Home Reform. In fact, the nurse in this facility wasn’t even aware that her patient was on fire until she heard someone else call out a “code red.” The man reportedly burned for six minutes.

Continue reading "Neglected Patient Burns To Death In San Diego Nursing Home" »

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Posted In: Nursing Home Abuse/Neglect

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Ford Motor Company is recalling more than 400,000 model year 2005 to 2008 Mustangs because the passenger-side airbags may cause neck injuries to small women or large children riding in the seat without being buckled up. According to an article on consumer watchdog Web site Consumeraffairs.com, federal officials informed Ford last year of this problem after conducting a lengthy investigation. Mustang owners are asked to contact Ford at 1-866-436-7332 or the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration at 1-888-327-4236.

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Posted In: Defective Auto Products

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A church van crash in Florida is yet again raising concerns about the use of unsafe 15-passenger vans by churches, schools and community organizations to transport small groups of people. On Sunday night a 15-passenger van crash in Ocala left 12 passengers, all from a church group, injured. One of them is still in the hospital with critical injuries, according to an MSNBC news report.

The accident reportedly happened in the northbound lanes of the I-75. The driver lost control of the vehicle, which landed on its side. Firefighters had to use the Jaws of Life to extricate one passenger whose leg was trapped between the ground and the van, according to the report.

It’s a miracle that no one was fatally injured in this crash. For many years now, the federal government has repeatedly issued warnings that these 15-passenger vans are nothing short of death traps. Yet community groups, universities, childcare centers and schools continue to use them. Some of them may not know the hazards, but most groups roll the dice and operate the vans anyway because they are cheaper and can conveniently transport these groups, but at what cost? Some church groups are now switching to more expensive minivans, which is great. But there are still too many of these 15-passenger vans out there, which in itself is cause for concern.

Continue reading "Florida 15-Passenger Van Crash Injures 12" »

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Posted In: 15 Passenger Van Accidents

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The Orange County Register reports today that a 21-year-old U.S. Marine has been charged with gross vehicular manslaughter in a rear-end crash that killed a prominent radiologist. Click here to read our blog about this auto accident. Michael Aung Sein and his wife Grace were sent to the hospital with major injuries. Elijah Ferguson was reportedly driving under the influence and his blood alcohol level was reportedly more than the .08 legal limit. He was also driving without a valid license, the newspaper reports. Ferguson is being held on a $100,000 bail and will be arraigned March 21.

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Posted In: Auto & Car Accidents

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One man died and four Fresno State football players were injured after their car veered off Highway 99 in Selma and rolled over. Terren Hall, 18, the only one who wasn’t wearing a seatbelt, died in the crash after he was ejected from the 1998 Ford during the rollover crash. According to an article posted on the local ABC News Web site, investigators are looking into whether the driver lost control of the vehicle because a big-rig may have cut him off.

Those injured were the driver Jermaine C. Thomas, 19, of Duarte; Isian Green, 18, Sharrod Davis, 22 and Terrance Dennis, 19 – all football players from Cal State Fresno, the Fresno Bee newspaper reports. Thomas was reportedly the one who told investigators that the big-rig cut him off and sent him careening off the roadway.

Continue reading "Fresno Fatal Rollover Crash Kills 1, Injures 4" »

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Posted In: SUV Rollovers

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If you’re still not convinced that illegal towing is a huge problem in Southern California, you’ve got to read this story. The Riverside County District Attorney and several police departments are investigating a local towing company called Desert Automotive Specialists, for illegally towing as many as 2,500 cars, sometimes with people still inside them. According to an article in the Desert Sun, sometimes this company paints curbs red just to make people think they parked in a tow-away zone!

Once they had towed away vehicles with their owners kicking and screaming, this company charged astronomical fees to release those vehicles back to the desperate owners. Who were these unfortunate owners? Mostly Spanish-speaking folks and seniors. Sounds like a pretty targeted and well-planned operation to me.

Continue reading "Illegal Towing Company In Riverside Could Face Criminal Charges" »

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Posted In: Predatory Towing

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Drunk driving accidents are unfortunately all too common in the Newport Beach and Costa Mesa area. Unfortunately, a drunk driving accident over the weekend took the life of a well-known local radiologist. According to an article in The Orange County Register, 64-year-old Michael Aung Sein of Newport Coast died in a rear-end crash involving an allegedly drunken driver. Elijah Ferguson, 21, of Santa Ana was arrested and charged with gross vehicular manslaughter, the newspaper reported.

Ferguson rear-ended Sein’s Aston Martin when it was stopped at a red light on MacArthur Boulevard. According to his colleagues at the Coastal Communities Hospital in Santa Ana, Sein was a “highly talented radiologist.” Sein succumbed to severe injuries suffered in the crash and was pronounced dead at Hoag Hospital, the article said. His wife, Grace Sein, is in the hospital with head injuries, the article said.

Ferguson apparently got away with a broken ankle. Police are still investigating the case, but officials told the Register that both speed and alcohol were dominant factors in this accident.

Continue reading "Well-Known Local Radiologist Dies In Newport Beach DUI Crash" »

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Posted In: Auto & Car Accidents

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A 21-year-old man suffered severe injuries in a big-rig crash in Santa Ana after he slammed his Honda Civic into the back of a semi truck, The Orange County Register reports. The accident happened at the 100 block of E. Dyer Road near Main Street, according to police reports.

Initial reports from the investigation apparently revealed that the semi was pulling out of a driveway on Dyer and had started heading east, which was when the Honda crashed into the rear of the truck. The impact of the crash left the Civic wedged under the truck. Firefighters had to extricate the driver from the crumpled car, the Register reports.

Officials said they came to the conclusion initially that the driver of the Civic was going too fast because of the large amount of skid marks they found. They say he must have seen the truck and stepped on the brakes, but couldn’t stop in time. The big-rig driver was not injured.

Continue reading "Man Suffers Major Injuries In Rear-End Truck Accident" »

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Posted In: Truck Accidents

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Four children reportedly died and at least 14 others suffered severe to moderate injuries in a tragic school bus accident in southwestern Minnesota. According to an Associated Press article posted on the local Fox News’ Web site, the bus was initially hit by a van. Then the bus hit a pickup truck and tipped onto its side. While rescue squads and ambulances arrived, the first motorists on scene were asked to take children to the hospital, the Marshall Independent, a local newspaper reported.

The bus was carrying children from kindergarten through 12th grade. Among the victims transported to two different area hospitals, two were in critical condition and others were reportedly being treated for back and neck injuries, cuts, bumps and bruises. Two victims ages 11 and 14 had complex fractures, which required special treatment at a hospital farther away from the crash site, the report said.

This is no doubt a tough week for the people of Cottonwood, Minn. who must deal with the grief and shock of four young lives lost. Families of the severely injured will have it tough as their children gradually recover from the physical and mental trauma of a horrific bus accident that took the lives of people they knew or were friends with.

Continue reading "Minnesota School Bus Crash Kills 4 and Injures 14" »

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Posted In: Bus Accidents

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A 52-year-old Costa Mesa woman is dead after she was ejected from her Jeep Wrangler, which rolled over on the northbound 5 Freeway near Avenida Vaquero in San Clemente, The Orange County Register reports. Gloria Ann Weaver reportedly died in the rollover accident. Officials are still not clear what caused the accident and why the vehicle flipped, the article states.

There is no mention in the article whether or not she was wearing a seatbelt. Officials are still investigating, but I hope they don’t jump to the conclusion that she was not wearing a seatbelt just because she was ejected from the vehicle. Many times traffic accident reports will jump to the conclusion that an ejected occupant of a vehicle in an accident wasn’t wearing a seatbelt simply because they were ejected.

Our law firm has been involved with dozens of auto accident cases where an official accident report states that an ejected person wasn’t wearing a seatbelt, yet our experts on close examination of the involved seatbelt system, found evidence of use at the time of the accident and/or failure of the system. My partner, Brian Chase, is one of the most knowledgeable seatbelt failure attorneys in the country. Personal injury attorneys from all over the country consult with him on their seatbelt failure cases.

Continue reading "Orange County Woman Dies in Jeep Wrangler Rollover Accident" »

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Posted In: SUV Rollovers

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A man, who was a passenger in a 1996 Mitsubishi Eclipse, reportedly died after a traffic collision near the Los Alamitos Race Track in an area, which city officials themselves have admitted is a dangerous intersection. The deceased man has been unidentified as Fernando Flores, but there is no word yet on his age or city of residence, The Orange County Register reports.

Apparently, the intersection where the accident occurred – Siboney Street and Katella Avenue – is an extremely busy and dangerous one where officials have applied for grants to make median and intersection improvements. Flores died after the car he was riding in crashed into a 2004 Chevy Tahoe driven by Ivan Gandarilla of Long Beach.

Officials are still investigating the crash and it is not known if alcohol was a factor in this crash. But Gandarilla was arrested on an outstanding warrant for driving under the influence. Flores was pronounced dead after he was transported to the Long Beach Memorial Medical Center. Gandarilla escaped with nonlife-threatening injuries. No one else in the Tahoe or the Eclipse suffered serious injuries, The Register reported.

Continue reading "Man Dies In Fatal Crash At Dangerous Orange County Intersection" »

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Posted In: Defective Roadways

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Here is a story that is both interesting and deeply concerning. It’s about two neighbors in Chico. One has a permanent pack of pit-bulls as pets, one particularly dangerous pit-bull called Princess. The other neighbor, who shares the driveway with this dog owner, has been bitten by the same dog twice, which has attacked him unprovoked leaving him with a permanent scar on his body.

According to an article in the Chico Enterprise, city officials have agreed that this vicious dog is to be confined in the property and muzzled in public, but not be put down. Obviously, neighbors are concerned that someone is going to die because of this dog in their community. Many neighbors and witnesses who have seen the dog in action say it is potentially dangerous, the article states.

City officials filed a complaint and requested a hearing regarding Tyler Doman’s dog after the victim, Doman’s neighbor, Niels Cecil Nielsen had been twice attacked and bitten by the dog. The Domans have reportedly agreed to all demands made by the city including keeping the pit-bull confined and muzzled, getting the dog licensed, vaccinated, micro-chipped for identification and getting it spayed.

Continue reading "Owner Of Dangerous Dog Must Be Prepared To Assume Financial Responsibility" »

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Posted In: Dog Bites

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In what is the biggest meat recall in the history of this country, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) recalled 143 million pounds of raw and frozen beef from a Chino meat-packing facility that recently earned notoriety for its inhumane treatment of cows and unethical business practice of forcing sick cows to the slaughter area. According to a Los Angeles Times article, USDA officials deemed meat from the Hallmark/Westland Meat Packing Co. “unfit for consumption” because of many reported lapses in federally mandated inspections.

There was widespread concern about this particular facility because it was a top supplier to the National School Lunch Program. However, USDA officials still maintain that there is no immediate health risk with food-borne illnesses with this recall as with others in the past involving E. Coli-tainted beef. But the practices of this meat-packing unit in Chino were clearly dangerous and unethical and have led to criminal charges against the managers. So far, there are no known reports of food-poisoning as a result of consuming meat from this facility.

Federal agency reports show that the company did not consistently contact a public health veterinarian as required when cattle became unable to walk after being inspected. Officials say there is a remote possibility that someone would become sick from eating this meat and that this recall is a matter of taking “abundant caution.” A video surreptitiously recorded by the Humane Society of the United States shows managers hitting a sick cow with a paddle or attempting to drag animals by their feet to take them to slaughter. By law, animals that cannot walk are banned from entering the food supply.

Continue reading "USDA Recalls 143 Million Pounds of Beef Packed In Chino Plant" »

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Posted In: Foodborne Illness

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A 58-year-old Glen Ellen man died in a head-on collision on a section of Highway 12 in a legal passing area where there have been at least four auto accident deaths in the past five or six years, a news report in the Times Herald stated. According to the article, Alfredo Alcaraz was killed when his 1998 Honda Civic was struck by a 2003 Toyota Camry driven by 63-year-old Allen Gates of Santa Rosa.

Officials said Gates was eastbound when he unsafely passed a garbage truck. That led to a head-on crash with the Honda, which was going westbound and the impact pushed Gates’ Toyota into the path of the garbage truck. The driver of the truck was not injured but the Honda spun into a ditch.

Continue reading "Glen Ellen Man Dies In Head-On Collision at What Is Believed To Be A Dangerous Portion Of Highway 12" »

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Posted In: Defective Roadways

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Two young Orange County children and their grandmother are reportedly on a tough road to recovery after they suffered critical injuries in a DUI accident in Lake Forest. According to an article posted on MSNBC News’ Web site, the drunken driver drove into oncoming traffic and crashed head-on into the family minivan near the intersection of Muirlands Boulevard and Entrados Drive.

A 3-year-old and 5-year-old in the Ford minivan suffered severe head injuries when Nelson Mercado, 27, driving a Chevy pickup caused the crash. He only suffered minor injuries. The children’s mother and two other teenage boys riding in the minivan were also reportedly injured.

Continue reading "Toddlers and Grandmother Suffer Severe Injuries In Orange County DUI Crash" »

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Posted In: Auto & Car Accidents

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I came across an article that very well explained the problem of overloaded big-rigs and the dangers they pose to themselves and other vehicles on our roadways. We often hear about big-rig drivers losing control of their vehicles and slamming into others on the road. Often, these types of accidents result in fatalities. And usually, it’s the drivers or passengers of the other vehicles who get seriously or fatally injured, not the occupants of the big-rigs.

What makes these vehicles lethal on our highways is their size and weight. As this article well states, the greater the weight of the truck, the more likely that it will become a death machine that bolts out of control. Overloaded trucks have an increased propensity to be involved in accidents because the increased weight means the truck cannot stop quickly and is more likely to lose control.

Traffic investigators believed that overloading may have been a factor in a Mission Viejo big rig accident where the truck, overloaded with electronic equipment, lost control and slammed into the back of a family’s minivan, crushing and killing three young children. In that case, the driver was also speeding and the overloading just worsened the situation.

Continue reading "Overloaded Big-Rigs: A Dangerous Wrong That Must Be Righted" »

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Posted In: Truck Accidents

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In a class action lawsuit filed on behalf of hundreds of thousands of veterans seeking medical benefits, the Bush administration is fitting them with ungrateful arguments. The Bush administration attorneys claim that veterans fortunate enough to be coming back home from Iraq have no legal right to specific types of medical care, according to an article in the San Francisco Chronicle. The lawsuit basically accuses the government of denying mental health treatment to some troops – this at a time when suicide rates are at an all-time high among returning veterans.

Shocked, surprised and appalled? Well, in me, it evokes a sense of “de ja vu” all over again. I served in the U.S. Army between 1968 and 1970 and today’s situation with this lawsuit reminds me of the men I served with – soldiers who had to sue the VA for medical care necessitated by the herbicide Agent Orange, which caused a variety of cancers and health issues among the troops that were exposed to it. In my day I don't think anyone wanted to admit they needed mental health services, and that's when you really need them.

The Vietnam War ended decades ago, but the illnesses associated with Agent Orange took 20 to 30 years to surface. But the VA refused to treat these illnesses or compensate these veterans for their injuries. Is this the way our government treats the war-wounded and the men and women who are prepared to make the ultimate sacrifice for our country and our ideologies?

Continue reading "War Veterans Being Denied Health Care: A Case of De Ja Vu?" »