Recently in Accident Category

A Cleburne, Texas family has settled a wrongful death lawsuit arising out of an 18-wheel truck crash against Pioneer Drilling Co. (Amex: PDC), PDC MGMT Co., Pioneer Drilling Services, Ltd. and Daniel Armstrong. The family was represented by John David Hart of the Law Offices of John David Hart in Fort Worth, Texas and Dan Boulware and John MacLean of MacLean & Boulware in Cleburne, Texas.

Pioneer Drilling Co. settled the lawsuit on July 9, 2009, after three days of trial in Johnson County before the Honorable William Bosworth. Plaintiffs had not yet rested their case when the $16 million settlement was reached.

The lawsuit was brought on behalf of the husband, children and parents of Rhonda Henson. On September 11, 2008, oil field equipment fell off a tractor-trailer owned and operated by Pioneer Drilling Services, Ltd., a division of Pioneer Drilling Co., on FM 157 in North Texas, crushing Mrs. Henson's vehicle and causing her death.

According to the Venus Police Department's report, the driver of the semi-truck, 21-year old Daniel Armstrong, failed to control his speed and the truck's load was not properly secured. Plaintiffs' investigation and sworn testimony revealed that Armstrong was not legally qualified to drive the Pioneer Drilling Co. truck on the day of the accident and that documents in his driver qualification files were fabricated, falsified and backdated by Pioneer employees after the accident.

"We're pleased to be able to resolve this for Rhonda Henson's family," said John David Hart, attorney for the family of Mrs. Henson. "We believe it was a just outcome within our civil court system and a fair settlement given the facts of the case. It wasn't about money for the Henson family. This lawsuit was about accountability and responsibility."

"This is a terrible loss for the Henson family," said Hart. "Every week seems to bring news of another terrible truck crash. But we believe that this settlement will at least make companies more aware of the need for good safety and hiring practices and hopefully prevent another needless tragedy."

SOURCE The Law Offices of John David Hart

A San Mateo victim, 41, who had her neck broken, was paralyzed for life, and became a quadriplegic when her car was struck by a driver speeding through a red light was awarded $45 million in medical payments, wage loss, and pain and suffering, San Francisco victims' rights attorney Mary Alexander, who represented the woman, announced today.

The order was filed on March 16 following the judgment in San Mateo County Superior Court of California. The case is Tricia Roth vs. Division 1 All Service, Inc.

On September 11, 2006, the driver, Roman Pantoja, 72, an employee of Division 1, drove a Chevy truck through the red light at the intersection E. Hillsdale Boulevard and Franklin Parkway in San Mateo. Even though cars were stopped in both directions, he crashed into Tricia Roth. As Alexander told the Court, "There was no contributory negligence on the part of my client, Tricia Roth."

The Court found that driver Pantoja was working in the course and scope of his employment with Division 1 at the time of the accident. Pantoja was likely using the truck to pick up company supplies.

Court documents state that "when the cars came to rest, Tricia Roth could not move her legs... could not move her arms, she was rendered a quadriplegic. Her neck was broken."

"She will never be able to return to work" and "her life expectancy is reduced," Alexander said in the court brief. Alexander proved that Roth was going to lose annual income of $290,790 with benefits as a software consultant, totaling $7,038,991 over the rest of her work-life. Past medical bills totaled $1,557,131, and future medical care totals $10,758,944 in today's dollars.

Alexander explained that Roth "had been very active, swimming, horseback riding. A particular interest that she and her husband, Kay Huh, had was ballroom dancing. They were very good at it...it was very important to them, one of their activities that they enjoyed together." At the time of the accident, they had been married six years -- a young couple.

Huh now has become a near full-time caregiver, all the while trying to maintain his career in biotechnology. He was awarded $5,000,000 for loss of consortium (companionship) and $30,000 in past lost earnings.

With $15 million for pain and suffering for Roth, plus her medical and wage damages, the total damages to be paid are $45 million.

The presiding judge was the Honorable Beth Labson Freeman.

Alexander stated, "This is a tragic life-altering case. The award is a proper victory for the victims' rights."

Alexander is a past President of the Association of Trial Lawyers of America, (now the American Association for Justice) and past President of the Consumer Attorneys of California. She has spent over 25 years representing tort victims and their families. Her office is in San Francisco.

The order granting plaintiff's motion is: http://openaccess1.sanmateocourt.org/openaccess/CIVIL/civildetails.asp?casenumber=468850&courtcode=A&casetype=CIV&dsn

The Mary Alexander trial brief on the case may be found at: www.weinerpublic.com/Alexander_Roth_Trial_Brief.doc

The trial transcript is: www.weinerpublic.com/Alexander_Roth_Trial_Transcript_pdf

Contact: Bob Weiner/Rebecca Vander Linde 301-283-0821/202-329-1700

SOURCE Robert Weiner Associates for Mary Alexander

Nearly three years after the Japanese government refused to prosecute Toyota executives for concealing a steering rod relay defect until after a horrific accident occurred in Japan, O'Reilly & Danko has filed a Complaint in Los Angeles Superior Court on behalf of the late Levi Stewart's parents. Levi Stewart died on September 15, 2007 when his Toyota truck's steering relay rod snapped and he crashed, due to the total loss of steering control. Levi was killed, and his friends were seriously injured.

The Stewarts contend that Toyota should have issued the recall in the mid-1990s when Toyota first learned that steering rod relays were snapping, causing injuries and accidents due to the loss of steering. Had the Toyota executives issued the recall then, the Stewarts believe that Levi Stewart would be alive today. The Stewarts never received notice of either the Japanese or the later U.S. recall.

In 2004, local police in Komamoto, Japan investigated a frightening accident when the steering relay rod in a Toyota Hilux Surf (4-Runner) snapped, causing it to cross a median and strike another vehicle head-on. The police learned that Toyota executives had known since the mid 1990s that the steering rods were defective, but had refused to issue a recall then. Only after the media storm from Komamoto did Toyota issue a recall, but only in Japan, and not any other country in which their vehicles were sold.

Toyota knew that it had installed this same part, the defective steering relay rod, into nearly 1 million vehicles in the United States. In 2004, Toyota told the U.S. government it "had received field information from the Japanese market but no similar information from the U.S. Market had been received." This was untrue. O'Reilly & Danko's investigation has uncovered multiple accidents caused by the defective relay rods, which had been reported to Toyota or their dealers before the Japanese recall. The lawsuit alleges that Toyota, in fact, had notice of steering rods failing in the United States, when they told NHTSA otherwise. O'Reilly & Danko's investigation continues at www.ToyotaSteeringRecall.com.

Toyota eventually issued a recall in the United States in 2005, but due to the lackadaisical effort by Toyota only approximately 32% of the trucks were repaired after a year and a half. The generally accepted pass/fail rate for automotive recalls is 70%. "32% may be acceptable for the Red Sox lead off hitter. For an automotive recall where drivers can lose steering, it's an utter failure," said their attorney, John P. Kristensen of O'Reilly & Danko.

SOURCE O'Reilly & Danko

Two former students of the University of Rhode Island are set to face a civil trial over the death of a 21-year-old Fairfield University student in 2004. They are accused of creating a hostile environment for the student leading to his death. Their civil trial began in Providence Superior Court on Thurday, January 29, 2009.
Francis J. Marx died after being pushed into Thames Street, Newport, and being run over by a charter bus carrying URI students back to their campus on May 20, 2004. Marx was engaged in a scuffle with URI students before he fell on the street.
Jarrad Rocheleau of Cumberland and Loren Welsh of Neshanic Station, N.J. have been named as defendants in the lawsuit for failing to exert care leading to Marx's death. Marx's family is seeking $5 million in damages.
To read more about the case click here.

Giants receiver Plaxico Burress, will attend a court session in Pennsylvania today to determine how much he owes a car dealer for damage to a 2004 Chevrolet Avalanche that he leased from the dealer more than two years ago. The car dealer claims that he filed a complaint after he retrieved the damaged and impounded truck from the New York Police Department.
Matthew T. Croslis who is representing Burress in this case, yesterday acknowledged that Burress was responsible for some of the damage but he stated that the jury will have to decide exactly how much of the damage, the football star was responsible for.
The Associated Press reported that the dealer's complaint did not specify the extent of the damage or how it was caused and why it was impounded. However, the Daily News yesterday reported that court documents had revealed that Burress had loaned the car to some friends who then took it to New York where they were involved in a shootout.
To read more click here.

Three victims of a fire in an industrial plant four years ago are unhappy with the damages awarded to them by an Oconee County, South Carolina jury earlier this month.
Keith Black, Scott Lawing and Curtis Martin were severely burnt as a result of an accident at a Univar USA, industrial plant when sparks from a torch being used by a worker fell on a stack of sodium bromate.
The jury awarded $6.1 million in damages, jointly to the three plaintiffs. This amount includes $100,000 each to spouses Tammy Lawing and Tina Martin for loss of consortium. 
Univar USA is a subsidiary of Univar N.V., a leading distributor of industry chemicals which generates more than $6 billion annually.
Attorneys for Univar USA also filed a motion last week to reduce Black's $2.6 million award and Matin's $1.4 million award. They claim that the award amount must be reduced by the amount settled out of court by the two men with two other co-defendants in the case.
To read more about the case click here.

Pic courtesy The Joy Of The Mundane from flickr.com 

The family of a police officer, killed in a crash last August, has filed a lawsuit against the man responsible for the officer's death.
John William Belk III, an Opelika, Alabama, police officer, was killed while driving a jeep, when it collided head-on with an SUV, driven by Jimmy Vickerstaff Jr. Belk's wife and two sons have filed a lawsuit against Vickerstaff Jr. who was driving the vehicle and against Shawn Teresa Patterson who allegedly owned the car.
A criminal trial against Vickerstaff Jr. is still pending. He is being tried for manslaughter and for leaving the scene of an accident with injuries.
At present, Vickerstaff Jr. is being held at the Lee County Detention Facility.
To read more about the case click here.

Two women who were involved in a freak accident in Hancock County, Ohio in 2003 were recently awarded a settlement of $325,000 while their original claim was for $2.5 million. This is because they were found by the jury to be 75 percent responsible for the accident. Their original claim against the county  was reduced when the jury found the county to be only 25 percent liable for the accident.
The accident occurred in June, 2003 on County Road 37 when a guardrail of a bridge impaled the pickup truck that the two women were travelling in. As a result of the accident, Angela Rasmussen of Rawson had to have her right leg amputated while Julie Rasmussen suffered serious injuries. They sued the county alleging negligence in the rail's maintenance.

A woman severely injured in an automobile and skateboard accident in the city of Eugene, Oregon, sued city authorities for negligence. City authorities for their part, have acknowledged that streetlights were off along Franklin Boulevard at the time of the accident in August 2006. However, they have denied that they are liable for the collision.
The accident left Kim Hagen, an acrobatic performer, permanently disabled. Hagen was crossing the road on her skateboard when she was hit by a car.
Hagen's guardian filed suit this summer seeking $32 million in damages from the city and the state Department of Transportation for failing to repair three nearby streetlights that were not working at the time of the accident.
The city has stated that Hagen's own carelessness and the fact that she was under the influence of alcohol were the reasons for the accident. They feel that the driver of the car, the Lane Transit District, which was engaged in the construction of an EmX bus rapid transit line at the time of the accident and two other contractors were primarily to blame for the accident.
The case is being heard in Lane County Circuit Court.

To read the details of the case click here.

A state superior court in Bridgeport, Connecticut recently awarded the estate of a Greenwich teenager, killed in a drunk- driving accident, $2.3 million in damages.
Justin Brown was a passenger in a car driven by his friend Evan Kimia, when it crashed into a tree before striking a stone wall. He was pronounced dead at the scene after it was ascertained that he had suffered serious head injuries. Police said that Kimia's blood alcohol level was above the legal limit of 0.8. 
The civil suit, filed by Brown's parents against Kimia seeks damages for emotional pain and suffering as well as medical and funeral expenses.
Kimia is currently serving a four- year term at the Webster Correctional Institution in Cheshire after being convicted for second- degree manslaughter with a motor vehicle. He met Brown at Greenwich High School and attended Norwalk Community College with him in 2005.
Both parties agreed to the settlement in October before the date of a scheduled trial and the settlement was approved by the Greenwich Probate Court. The bulk of the settlement costs were paid by Kimia's insurance company, Liberty Mutual.

A nursing home patient is suing Huntsville Emergency Medical Services Inc., Huntsville, Alabama, after she was accidently dropped from a gurney on a sidewalk on November 25 this year. Ruby Crocker, 95, is suing HEMSI for punitive and compensatory damages for the incident which took place last month while she was being taken to Madison Manor Nursing Home in Madison.
The lawsuit which does not list the alleged injuries that Crocker suffered from, states that on arriving at the Madison Manor Nursing Home from an undisclosed location, staff of HEMSI dropped Crocker on a concrete sidewalk causing her to suffer from painful physical injuries and mental anguish.
The suit asks for a jury trial and seeks unspecified monetary damages.

The family of a 17- year old employee of Automotive & Truck Services, Inc., who died while unhooking a vehicle he had towed to an impound lot, cannot sue the company for violating child labour laws as per the ruling of an appeals court in Wisconsin.
Joshua Reif was asked to drive a tow truck by is company in violation of state laws that barred him from doing so because he was not 18 yet. Reif, who was in Brookfield because of an apprentice program was made to operate vehicles illegally along with other minors by the company, which an investigation by the Department of Workforce Development revealed, had committed 1,434 violations of child labour. As a result regulators fined the company $12,000 in penalty wages.
The Waukesha boy's parents along with his estate agents sued Automotive and its insurance company for damages related to his death. A Waukesha County judge dismissed the case however, stating that state law only allowed compensation through the workers' compensation program. Under state law, the compensation program is for employees injured in work accidents to seek recourse from their employers.
The estate's lawyers plan on appealing to the Wisconsin Supreme Court.
To read more about the case click here.
 

The attorneys of a woman based in Royal Oak, Michigan, accused of a hit and run accident that fatally injured a bicyclist, attempted to dismiss criminal charges against her by alleging that the police improperly seized and searched her vehicle without a search warrant. Both her defence attorney, Neil Rockind, and her civil lawyer, James Czarnecki, stated that the improper conduct of the police who had not followed due process could be considered as grounds to dismiss criminal charges against their client.
But the Royal Oak City attorney, Dave Gilliam, stated that the search and seizure of the vehicle was entirely proper.
Kimberly Dancy, 44, fatally struck a cyclist and then drove away. After a while she intentionally drove her 2008 Jeep Liberty into another car to disguise the damage to her vehicle.
Dancy is undergoing a trial for leaving an at-fault accident that caused death and for malicious property destruction. She is liable to receive 15 years of imprisonment for the former felony and 2 years for the property destruction felony. Police allege that Dancy drove her car into another car at a drugstore parking lot a few hours after striking the cyclist on September 19.
Czarnecki stated that her car was seized a day before police obtained a search warrant.
Royal Oak City attorney Dave Gilliam is well prepared for a civil lawsuit from the defendant. He states that the police were well within their rights when they seized her vehicle. Czarnecki and Adam Latra, Dancy's two lawyers who have been retained for the civil lawsuit against the Royal Oak police may well pursue their claim that the police were wrong to seize her car without a warrant. Gilliam stated that if they do so, on behalf of his client, he would file a motion for summary disposition, which asks a judge to throw a case out at its first hearing.
Jacqueline Robinson, 40, was killed in the accident while commuting to the home of a 92 year old man to take care of him, which she did often.
To read all the details of the case click here.

A Gregg County family won a staggering amount, of $2.3 million in damages for an accident that took place in February 2005 when their car had a head on collision with another car on West Marshall Avenue, Gregg County, Texas.
The family of Martha Hillin Wallace was awarded the large amount for the accident in which the jury found Jamie Lee Cocker, who drove the other car, 97 percent responsible and Mom's Biker Bar, where Coker allegedly drank alcohol hours before the accident, 3 percent responsible. Despite being charged with involuntary manslaughter and being summoned for court hearings in 2006, Coker never appeared for the trial and has not been apprehended either. His wife, who was a passenger in the car he was driving, was also killed in the crash.
Gregg County Judge, Alfonso Charles stated that this amount was the largest award in his courtroom since he took the bench in 2002.
The award is unusual as the defendant has been absent from both the criminal and civil proceedings of the case. There is no evidence of how much Coker drank at the bar or whether he consumed more alcohol after leaving the bar.
J. Ryan Fowler, who represented the Wallace family stated that they faced problems as they weren't allowed to tell the jury anything about Cocker's criminal conduct.
The bar's responsibility amounts to $60,000.
Hank Bauer, attorney for Mom's Biker Bar stated that they were not going to appeal the decision.

An Orrick, Missouri teenager, responsible for the vehicular assault of a wheel chair bound man, is seeking the dismissal of his lawsuit. Cody Kolosick, 17, is awaiting trial for driving into Todd Dickens, while he was crossing the street in a wheelchair after one of his kid's baseball game. The accident took place in June after which Dickens filed a lawsuit against Kolosick. However, in September, Dickens passed away. Kolosick's attorneys have argued that as per Missouri laws, an 'estate' cannot bring suit. The law further states that only a child or spouse can bring a suit.
Tricia Wartenbee who is listed as next of kin to one of Dickens' children is not legally married to him but has been living with him for several years.
The lawsuit seeks $25,000 in actual damages in addition to punitive damages. Kolosick's attorneys argue that awarding punitive damages against their client would violate his fifth and fourteenth amendments and Missouri constitutional amendments.
At the moment Kolosick's trial has been stalled as prosecutors may change his charges from vehicular assault to vehicular manslaughter. The next court appearance is scheduled for December 23 by which time doctors tending to Dickens will submit a report about whether Dickens passed because of the injuries he sustained in the alleged accident.

After surviving a disastrous plane crash in September, Travis Barker, the former drummer for Blink 182 has filed a lawsuit against the plane's owners, Goodyear Tire and Rubber Co., and an airplane maintenance company seeking more than $25,000 in damages.
Barker and fellow traveller DJ Adam Goldstein were the only survivors of the crash. The two pilots of the plane, Chris Baker, Barker's assistant and Charles Monroe Still Jr, his bodyguard did not survive the crash.
After the crash, Barker and Goldstein suffered second and third degree burns and were admitted to the Joseph M. Still Burn Center at Doctor's Hospital in Augusta, Georgia.
Barker is seeking damages for pain, suffering, disfigurement, loss of earnings as well as medical and legal expenses. His allegation is that the accident took place because of the negligence of the companies that operated and maintained the Learjet. In addition to these allegations, Barker also claims in his lawsuit that the pilots who died in the crash were inadequately trained.
Information from efluxmedia website. Click here to read the original article.

Pic courtesy ugotsoul from flickr.com

Eight years after a tragic gym accident left a young man wheelchair bound he is finally getting some justice. In 2001, Harold Leon Bostick, a native of Pennsylvania, became a quadriplegic when weightlifting equipment crashed onto his neck. After a long fight for justice, Bostick was finally awarded $18.6 million in damages recently.
This hard fought victory does not console the 39 year old who longs to return to the life he had before the accident.
A former marine who holds degrees in chemical engineering, business and law, Bostick suffered from temporary amnesia after his accident at Gold's Gym in Venice. The accident, caused by a Flex Equipment Co. Smith machine, took place because the safety stops weren't installed on the machine.
After this, Bostick sued Flex and Gold's Gym. He settled with Flex and its insurer, Atlantic Mutual for $1 million. However, Atlantic Mutual never responded to Bostick's offer. Later a Superior Court jury found Flex liable and awarded Bostick more than $14.6 million. Peeved at having to pay a such a large amount when they could have settled for less, Flex then gave Bostick permission to sue Atlantic Mutual for bad faith for refusing to settle earlier in the case. Gold's Gym settled with Bostick for $7.3 million.
Last week, after seven years of litigation, a U.S. district Court jury ordered the insurance company to make a payout of $11.3 million.
To read the complete article by Joanna Lin on the Los Angeles Times website, click here.

Pic courtesy pbo31/ Patrick Boury from flickr.com

A shop class teacher is set to face a lawsuit for an incident that took place three years ago, when he drove a forklift with defective brakes into a station wagon that was up on lifts, injuring two high school students who were working underneath.
The two Morro Bay High School students, Melissa Olson and Michael Van Heuver were trapped under the vehicle and suffered several injuries. They originally filed separate lawsuits against Roberts but their cases have been consolidated for the trial which will be held in January next year.
Olson's attorneys allege that she has been left with two damaged discs and is in constant pain while Van Heuver's attorney, Louis Koory, alleges that despite undergoing ulnar transplant surgery his client is still undergoing physical therapy.
David Cumberland, attorney for the San Luis Coastal Unified School District and for Roberts has stated that both the school district and Roberts have accepted responsibility for the incident.
While Van Heuver is asking for $75,000 in damages for medical expenses incurred to date and more than $100,000 to cover future medical damages, Olsen is asking for $37,271 for medical expenses, $4,000 for wage loss and more than $3 million for future medical expenses.
The lawsuit alleges that even though Roberts knew that the main brake of the fork lift was faulty and that its emergency brake didn't work, he still decided to drive it that ill fated day.

 

A Russellville man, convicted for the fatal drunk driving crash that resulted in the death of two members of a family, will now face a civil trial from the survivors of the crash.
Larry Welch, 55, was sentenced to 15 years in prison for each of the two counts of involuntary manslaughter he was convicted for in August this year. On Novemebr 4, 2007, Welch swerved off his lane into oncoming traffic and crashed into the passenger side of a car driven by Eric Olsen. As a result of the accident, Jean Olsen, 45, and her son Tobias Olsen, 17, were killed. Eric Olsen, 42, and his daughter Johanna Olsen, 15, survived the crash. Welch will also serve two five year sentences on two counts of second degree assault for injuring the other passengers in the vehicle.
The surviving Olsen's are seeking at least $25,000 in damages on each of the four counts mentioned as well as unspecified punitive damages on four other counts.

Amritpal 'Paul' Dhaliwal and his brother Kulbir who survived a tiger attack at the San Francisco Zoo last year, have filed a lawsuit against the zoo amongst others, claiming that their civil rights had been violated. The attack which took place on Christmas day last year resulted in the death of Carlos Sousa Jr., 17, a friend of Paul, while Paul and his brother were seriously injured. The police fired at the animal after it attacked Sousa, killing it. The Siberian tiger, named Tatiana, attacked the three boys after escaping from her enclosure.
The lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in San Francisco comes after a claim for monetary damages was denied by city attorney Dennis Herrera. In denying the claim Herrera's office stated that there was no indication that the city and county were liable for the attack. They directed the brothers to file a claim with the San Francisco Zoological Society, the non-profit organization that runs the zoo.
The brothers contend in the lawsuit that they suffered severe injuries and emotional trauma as a result of the attack.
Sousa's family is also expected to sue the city and the zoo.

Pic courtesy Domenico Photography from flickr.com 

 

The mother of a teenager killed in an accident, is filing a Texas wrongful death lawsuit based on the dram shop laws in the state, against Buffalo Wild Wings Grill & Bar, for serving too many alcoholic beverages to the man responsible for her child's death.
On October 14 this year, Michael Nason left the bar in an inebriated state and crashed his pickup truck into a car killing Adreanna Norrid and Courtney Mengwasser, two high school students who were passengers in the vehicle. Nelson was also killed in the accident and his passenger, as well as the driver of the vehicle he collided into were seriously injured.
Ercilia Velora Norrid, Adreanna's mother, has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Wingsport LP, which owns Buffalo Wild Wings Grill & Bar, alleging dram shop liability against them claiming that they were responsible for continuing to serve Nelson alcohol when his blood alcohol level was three times the limit in Texas.
Dram Shop Laws exist in several states of America, Texas being one of them, which enable people to make a bar liable for serving alcohol to a visibly inebriated person or to a minor which subsequently kills or endangers the life of another person. The laws are designed to protect the public from the irresponsible serving of alcohol to minors or to intoxicated individuals irrespective of whether the people injured by the accident had a connection with the bar prior to the accident.
Norrid's family is seeking up to $7 million in damages for past and future mental anguish, loss of their loved one, funeral expenses, medical expenses and other damages.
Information from aboutlawsuits.com

 

Pic courtesy powerbooktrance / Terry Johnston from flickr.com

 

A Gilmer man's accidental death during a boating accident on Lake Cherokee in July this year has resulted in a big lawsuit with both parties involved hurling accusations at each other. Initially Terry Ellison, a passenger on one of the boats, filed a lawsuit against the boat operator, Michael Wilcox, 22, and the boat owner Mike Wilcox as well as against the second boat driver Corbin Crane, 17, and the boat owner Curtis Crane. Ellison broke his collarbone in the collision. Another passenger on Wilcox's boat, Chris Carpenter, 26, was killed in the accident and his parents Temple and Sandra Carpenter have joined the civil lawsuit against the operators and owners of the two boats.
The Carpenter's claim Wilcox and Crane operated their boats in a negligent manner and that Mike Wilcox and Curtis Crane were also negligent in entrusting their boats to their sons.
Apart from the loss of companionship, mental anguish and funeral expenses, the Carpenters are also seeking damages equivalent to the value of their son's future financial contributions to them.
The Wilcoxes and the Cranes are both defendants in this case and have requested for the venue to be changed from Rusk County as they had already received a lot of negative publicity in the area and did not feel they would receive a fair and impartial trial.

Information from the news- journal website.

Pic courtesy Analog Weapon/ Nic Stage from flickr.com

An accident on 2 August 2008, outside Amtrak station in Springfield, Massachusetts, left Clara Gardner, a 17 year old student of Northampton high School, physically disabled for absolutely no fault of hers. She was struck by a car driven by Roberto Carrasquillo Jr, 20 while she was loading her luggage into her van outside Amtrak station after returning from mexico. Carrasquillo Jr will face charges of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, operating under the influence of alcohol and leaving the scene of the accident.
The civil suit, which names both Carrasquillo and his father as defendants, was filed in Hampshire Superior Court this week. Seeking damages from both defendants, the suit alleges that Carrasquillo Sr is as responsible as his son as he entrusted the 1991 Honda to his son even though he knew that he was unfit to drive the vehicle responsibly.

A pickup truck driven by Thomas Lee Appel was driven into a trailer pulled by a pickup truck driven by James Dennis Watkins in the year 2007. Watkins was driving under the influence. A Springdale police officer testified that his blood alcohol level was 0.13 which is above the legal limit of 0.08 and he was jailed after pleading guilty to felony drunk driving charges. On 6 February this year, after having served one month of his three year sentence, Appel died of an aneurysm. Watkins, who sustained several injuries as a result of the accident, is now seeking damages from Appel's estate.
Though his medicals bills have cost him $9,000 apart from the $5,500 shoulder surgery he will require, Watkins is suing the estate for $50,000 for compensatory damages for medial bills and $100,000 for punitive damages to discourage others from doing the same thing.
Watkins is represented by attorney Don Elliot and the estate is represented by attorney Brian Wood.

The widow of an accident victim is pursuing a wrongful death lawsuit against passengers in the car that caused the death of her husband after a state appeals court ruled in her favour.
Antonios Podias, 40, was riding a motorcycle when he was struck from behind by a car driven by Michael Mairs who is a student of Monmouth University. Mars was travelling with Swanson and Newell and the three of them drove away in fear without trying to help Podias. After they left, Podias was run over by Patricia Uribe ultimately leading to his death. According to attorney Jefferey Peck who represents Podias' widow, Podias had suffered fractures to his arms, legs and skull after the first accident which he could have recovered from if the students had stopped to save him.
Sevastia Podias will file a civil lawsuit against Swanson and Newell after the state appellate court ruled that the two men had a legal obligation to help Podias.
In March a trial judge has ruled that Podias could not sue for damages against Swanson and Newell because she had already settled out of court with the driver and other defendants for a very large amount than what the jury had determined to be appropriate.
Mairs settled with Podias for $1.075 million and served 13 months in jail. The party host Thomas Chomko settled by paying $300,000 and Patricia Uribe who went to trial against Podias was found to be 10 percent responsible for the accident and was asked to pay $80,000.    

 

After deliberating for less than three hours, a Los Angeles jury unanimously rejected the civil lawsuit filed by paparazzo Alison Silva against The Matrix star Keanu Reeves.
Stating that he respected the jury's decision, Silva who had asked to be awarded $711,974, which included medical bills, lost wages and punitive damages, did not receive even a dollar for his efforts.
Silva had alleged that Reeves had hit him with his Porsche thus making him fall down and injure his left wrist but evidence presented at the hearing showed him climbing a wall with that same wrist after taking a video of Britney Spears.

A paparazzo is suing Keanu Reeves for being knocked down by his car while the actor was pulling out of a parking lot.
The trial, which began last Monday, refers to a March 2007 accident in which Alison Silva fell while photographing the star, behind the wheel of his Porsche.
A Los Angeles courtroom judge has already ruled out the possibility of punitive damages or any other claims by Silva.

Pic courtesy lewishamdreamer /Jason from flickr.com

In the beginning of this year, a Montgomery County Jury awarded $350,000 to a woman involved in a crash that killed a bicyclist during a Blacksburg triathlon in the year 2000.
Sharon Knight, a resident of the town had filed a lawsuit against the town and the director of the third annual Greater Blacksburg Triathlon, alleging that they had failed to warn passing vehicles that they were entering a race area.
Gary Wayne Taylor, a participant of the race, crashed into Knight after passing through a red light. Knight tried to swerve away but couldn’t avoid a collision. She had initially asked for $750,000 in damages for emotional trauma and damage to her car. A jury awarded $500,000 in damages to Taylor's family in a 2002 verdict after finding that the town and Biancur were negligient in organizing the race.
The town, which sponsored the event, stated that they had asked all participants to follow traffic rules and signs before the competition began.
Beverly Biancur, the director of the race is no longer an employee of the town.

Pic courtesy K. Todd Storch from flickr.com

Three members of an Augusta County family have been involved in a long drawn out legal struggle for the past year after one of them was involved in an accident that lead to the death of a teenager in 2007. Jason, Gloria and Emil Steidel have spent most of 2008 in and out of courtrooms. After battling criminal charges for the alleged drunk- driving fatality, they now face a civil suit for which they may have to pay more than half a million in damages.
Jason Steidel was involved in an accident that lead to the death of Timothy Ray Moran. When state police arrived at the site, there was no one in the vehicle but they later identified Steidel as the driver. Now Ray Moran’s father is filing a suit against Steidel claiming he was under the influence and driving very fast. The suit is seeking funeral expenses and damages for sorrow and mental anguish which they have estimated to be around $525,000.  
Steidel’s parents insisted their son wasn’t driving that night and even produced evidence, in the form of a written statement from another teenager who said Steidel was in the backseat at the time of the accident, to prove their claim. This claim was later proven to be false and Steidel’s parents were charged with inducing another to commit perjury.
Like their son, both of them face upto ten years in prison for their crime.

The Texas A&M University bonfire tragedy in 1999 that resulted in the deaths of eleven students and a graduate as well as injured 27 others finally closed a chapter recently with the last case against the University being resolved for a payout of $2.1 million to four families of students who were killed and to three students who were injured. This agreement brings the total payments to victims and their families to $7.6 million. However, lawsuits against companies that provided machinery and personnel involved in erecting the pyre are still active.
The 60 feet tall bonfire is a century old tradition of the students of the University and is considered a highlight of the Thanksgiving- time football game against their archrivals, the University of Texas. However on November 18, 1999 the bonfire collapsed and resulted in the death of several students.
To read the original story click here.

Pic1 courtesy Mikel Duke from flickr.com

Pic2 of Bonfire Memorial courtesy surveillant/ Clint Vigil from flickr.com 

In 2005, Krysten Chambrot was severely injured in an accident with a car and truck while riding a bicycle. As a result of the accident she had to amputate her left leg. Although partially to blame, Chambrot sued the city of Columbia and Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission amongst others in a personal injury lawsuit.
This week, Chambrot received $450,000 of the $1.8 million awarded in the lawsuit. This amount was arrived at using the ‘pure comparative fault’ theory adopted by the Missouri Supreme Court in 1983. According to this theory a plaintiff can still be awarded money even if they are partly at fault. Thus, the court found Chambrot to be 75 percent at fault for the accident which according to the theory was deducted from the $1.8 million awarded overall.
Judy Pope who was driving the car that hit Chambrot first, was found to be 12 percent at fault while Arens, who was driving the truck that hit her after Pope, was found to be 13 percent at fault along with the city of Columbia. Thus the city had to pay $234,000 and Pope had to pay $216,000.
Jeff Parshall, attorney for the city of Columbia and Arens was not satisfied with the result as he said they were trying to prove that the entire accident was Chambrot’s fault. Chambrot’s attorney was satisfied though he had hoped that his client would be awarded the $4 million they had sought in damages.
Read the original article here.

The parents of a Bradenton teenager killed in a motorcycle crash have initiated a wrongful death suit against her friend, on whose motorcycle she was riding, which began today at a Manatee County court. Jaclyn Bien was killed on Aug 12 2006 in a motorcycle crash while riding with her friend Ricky Lee Rowell who her parents claim, was under the influence of alcohol. The suit against him seeks $5 million to $10 million in damages, however, Bien’s parents don’t expect any financial recovery as Rowell does not have any assets. According to the Bradenton Herald, Bien’s parents stated that they just wanted the judicial decision to dignify their daughter’s life and to discourage other young people from driving under the influence of alcohol.
Rowell who is not represented by an attorney had a blood alcohol level of .031 the night of the tragedy which is illegal considering he was underage at the time. The law does not allow those under the age of 21 from having a BAC of more than 0.02.
Bien’s parents, Jeanine Gregory and Jeffrey Bien, also filed a suit against Karen Librizzi, Rober Librizzi and their daughter Lauren as they hosted the party that Jaclyn went for. They reached a settlement with the Librizzis’ insurance company.

Pic courtesy Akeg/ Eric Schmuttenmaer from flickr.com

  18 months after the most savage fire in Minnesota in 80 years, a 64-year-old Washington, D.C. man was indicted for allowing his campfire on Ham Lake to blow out of control on a windy day in May. Stephen George Posniak was indicted by a grand jury in a federal court of Minneapolis. The fire cost the state $11 million to battle, destroyed 150 buildings costing millions of dollars, not to mention the environmental cost in terms of the destruction of wildlife and was spread across 75,000 acres of forest land.
The irresponsible camper could face more than five years in prison for the accident apart from which he may have to pay civil damages.
In a similar case in 1995 after a blaze near Saganaga Lake a youth camp director was asked to pay $3.8 million in damages to the government which was reduced to $750,000 after some negotiation.

Pic courtesy Greg Clarke from flickr.com

An man involved in a shootout in April in Indianapolis Colts' receiver, Marvin Harrison’s hometown of

Philadelphia

has sued the NFL star for the injuries he has sustained. Acknowledging that he owned the weapon used in the shootout (a Belgian made F5.7 firearm), Harrison clearly stated that he did not have anything to do with the incident. The alleged victim, Dwight Dixon is seeking more than $50,000 in compensatory damages and more than $50,000 in punitive damages.

Pic courtesy The Brit_2 from flickr.com

Nineteen year old Kayhan Dong, of East Brunswick, was struck by a car driven by Michael T. Alape, and badly injured disabling him from dancing and running which he loves the most. The driver paid a fine of $ 222 to  the sufferrer according to a deal with the county prosecutor and escaped imprisonment.
However Dong’s family being unsatisfied with the ruling had filed a civil law suit against Michael and was offered $125,000 as compensation. But Dong and his family are still waiting for the right verdict, the reason being that Michael was drunk when he was driving and such people need to learn a lesson so that they do not repeat the same mistake again.
William M.  Dellicato, victim’s right attorney for MADD (national office of Mothers against drunk driving) stated that it is not about punishment, but letting the drunk drivers know that they would have to face severe consequences for their actions and, that awarding punitive damages would deter the effect.

A Worcester County Circuit Court judge has dismissed a civil suit filed by the family of a man killed by an automobile while crossing the Coastal Highway in June 2007. The family had also claimed $ 1 million in punitive damages against the driver of the vehicle.

Although there were no criminal charges against the drive, Brian Scott in the case, the family of the victim, Dale Blankenship, had filed a civil suit in August 2007 $750,000 in compensatory damages and another $1 million in punitive damages.

Scott’s attorney, Cornbrooks argued that Scott did not act maliciously when he ran a red light and struck and killed Adams, despite the agreed-upon facts in the case that state he was intoxicated and underage at the time.

Now Circuit Court Judge Theodore Eschenberg has ruled that Adams’ behavior did not meet the standard for malicious behavior and granted the motion for summary judgment.

The parents of the six children killed by a Labor Day weekend apartment fire are suing the landlord, Jay Johnson, alleging that he was negligent.

The lawsuit filed today by an attorney for Augusta Ramirez, her husband Anando and Maria Ramos -- who also lost her daughter in the fire -- says that the landlord failed to keep the building in a reasonably safe condition.

It also says that the apartment had no smoke detectors.

Authorities have said the fire was started by candle, which the Ramirez family was using because their electricity had been cut off.

Killed in the fire were six children between the ages of three and 14. Five of the children were siblings in the Ramirez family. The sixth was Ramos' daughter.

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David Rothman, the father of Jeffrey Rothman, who fell off a pier and drowned,  is suing the city of Myrtle Beach and the police department. He claims that the police department did not follow  proper procedures, did not treat the case as a possible homicide and showed a lack of professionalism.

Jeffrey Rothman died after jumping off a pier and an autopsy determined that he had taken the drug Ecstasy and died accidentally.

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Jockey Gary Birzer, who was paralyzed after falling during a race two years ago, has agreed to settle his lawsuit against the Jockeys' Guild and two former officials who allowed his health insurance to lapse.

Although he had sued for $ 10 million, the financial terms of the settlement were not disclosed, and it is protected by a confidentiality agreement.

The settlement includes five years of health insurance coverage for Birzer and his family, as well as a public role with the guild, advocating for other disabled jockeys.

Birzer had a riding accident during a race in July 2004 that resulted in him breaking his neck and being paralyzed from the chest down.

He thought the Guild would pay for his medical care and ongoing therapy, but learned too late that a $1 million insurance policy he'd bought for $10 per race had been allowed to lapse.

He and his family were forced to get by on Medicaid and charity.

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A Greenville jury awarded $18 million in a lawsuit against Ford Motor Co. for a 1999 crash that killed Patricia Carter and paralyzed Sonya Watson, who was 17 at that time. The jury found that the company had a defective speed-control system in the 1995 Ford Explorer that crashed.

Sonya Watson got $15 million while $3 million was awarded to the estate of Patricia Carter.

"I don't think it will ever be a fair amount because I can't put a price on my legs," said Watson, who sat outside the courtroom in a motorized wheelchair. Watson's attorneys had argued that the SUV "took off" while she was driving down the interstate.

The lawsuits also had claimed Ford and TRW Vehicle Safety Systems had installed defective seat belts, but jurors rejected that argument.

A St. Louis jury has awarded $11 million to the relatives of Lois and Randy Anderson who were killed at the Lake of the Ozarks by carbon monoxide from their boat's generator.

The couple and two friends were killed in 1999, when the corroded exhaust pipe of the cabin cruiser's generator leaked carbon monoxide into the cabin, the suit said.

The Andersons' children, and the mothers of both Lois and Randy Anderson, had sued the generator's manufacturer, Kohler Co., and Oklahoma marina owner Bratco Inc. Relatives of the other victims, John C. Harris and Robert A. Stein, had already settled their lawsuits before trial, lawyers said.

The jury found that the Wisconsin-based Kohler had sold a generator that was defective and "unreasonably dangerous," and that the defect led to the death of the Andersons.

In January 2005, Carriel Louah, 25, traveled to Darlington, Wisconsin, to wish her mother a happy birthday. After spending the night at her mother and step-father's house, the next morning she slipped in their driveway, breaking her ankle and injuring her leg.

Louah's mother, Wendi Reichling, wrote her a letter saying that she and her husband "should have fixed that damn (gutter) years ago. We have learned we have to take better care of our sidewalks."

Now Louah is using the same letter as ammunition in a lawsuit, arguing that her parents should be held liable for damages for maintaining "an unnatural accumulation of ice" on their driveway. She alleges that the gutter of their house was defective and they should pay her more than $75,000 in damages.

A federal judge has refused to throw out the lawsuit, setting up a potential mother-daughter courtroom showdown at a trial scheduled for November.

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A jury has awarded nearly $3.2 million to the daughter of a Denver couple who were killed in a car crash.

Clinton Andersen, 85, and Sophie Anderson, 83, who who established one of the city's first buffet restaurants, Andy's Smorgasboard, were killed when they were struck by a car driven by Frederick L. Culp. Accident reconstruction experts estimated that Culp, 31, was traveling between 60 and 67 mph in a 25 mph zone.

A jury on Wednesday ruled that Culp must pay the couple's daughter Marilyn Wagner $2 million in punitive damages, $1 million for causing her pain and emotional suffering, and nearly $200,000 for her economic loss, her attorneys said.

Wagner's attorney, Kyle Bachus, said that because of caps on damages, the jury award could be reduced to $2.4 million. Culp has pleaded guilty to a criminal charge of criminally negligent homicide in the case.

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Bell Helicopter has settled a wrongful death case filed by the widows of three Los Angeles city firefighters who died in a helicopter crash in 1998. The crash also killed Norma Vides, 11, of Sun Valley, a car crash victim who was being airlifted to Childrens Hospital Los Angeles.

Details of the agreement between the widows and Bell Helicopter were not released and will remain confidential.

"We have agreed with the defense that there would be no comment on the resolution," said Ron Goldman, an attorney representing the three widows.

The lawsuit was filed in 1999 by the widows of Michael Butler, 33, of Santa Clarita; Eric Reiner, 33, of Carson; and Michael McComb, 48, of Crestline.  The firefighters died March 23, 1998, in Griffith Park when the 20-year-old Bell helicopter they were in lost its tail rotor and crashed.

The lawsuit alleged that the tail rotor yoke and assembly was defective and that the defect caused parts to fatigue. The rotor helps control a helicopter's lateral motion.

Litigation dragged on for years, partly because of an initial ruling upholding federal law that prohibits such suits against manufacturers of helicopters over 18 years old.

In 2003, a state appellate court reversed that decision and said the rule does not apply to this case because Bell had failed to disclose to the Federal Aviation Administration five prior military helicopter crashes that had the same design yoke and fatigue fracture.

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The family of Edward Souza, who was fatally struck outside his home by a drunken driver has been awarded $28.2 million by a jury. This includes $ 1 million in punitive damages.

Bexar County jurors found Monte James Cooper, 58, liable in the 2004 death of Edward Souza. Cooper had a blood-alcohol level twice the legal limit when his pickup hit Souza and his wife. Edward Souza was pinned between two vehicles and dragged to his death, while his wife, Aleshia, suffered a broken neck and pelvis.

Cooper was sentenced to seven years in prison and 10 years probation. He pleaded no contest to intoxication manslaughter and intoxication assault.

A jury has awarded $3.7 million in damages to Gerald Vincent, his wife, Corey Vincent, and her 11-year-old son for injuries suffered during a crash. Vincent's  car was slammed by vehicles owned by Harris Ranch Beef Co. and FedEx Ground Package System Inc.

The Contra Costa County jury has ordered Harris Ranch to pay 80 percent of the damages while  FedEx Ground was found liable for the remaining 20 percent.

On December 26, 2003, the Harris Ranch tractor-trailor rear-ended the FedEx Ground delivery van, which crossed the double yellow line and hit another car before slamming into the Vincents' 1999 Dodge Durango.

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Puget Sound Energy has paid a settlement of over $8 million to the family of a Bellevue woman who died from a natural gas explosion. Frances Schmitz, 68, was badly burned in the explosion and died later of her injuries. The settlement ends a lawsuit filed in King County Superior Court by her three children.

State investigators found that corrosion in a gas line caused the leak and that an electrical device designed to repel corrosion had been wired backward.

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A Jury has awarded $ 500,000 in the wrongful death lawsuit filed by the parents of a six year old boy who died beneath the wheels of a school bus. John and Terri Wright, the parents, had sued the Neosho R-5 School District and the estate of bus driver Bill Hoover, seeking a compensation of $ 8 million for the death of their 6 year old son, Jacob. Jacob and his older brother, Jeremiah had got off the bus when Jacob went back towards it and fell. As the jury found Jacob 50% responsible for his death, the court reduced the compensation of $ 1 million awarded by the jury to $ 500,000.

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