Washington Injury Attorney Blog

Even though nearly all of the states have enacted laws prohibiting cell phone usage while driving, a new study by the National Traffic Safety Administration (NTSA) had found that texting while driving has actually increased by 50% in the past year.

In the latest study, researchers polled drivers and also conducted observations at stoplights and intersections.

Observations

Researches set up their study at stoplights and intersections. They observed that 1% of the drivers were texting or using hand-held devices and were texting, e-mailing, using navigation systems, surfing the internet, dialing, playing games, or holding phones in front of their faces.

Polling

Researchers surveyed drivers 18 years of age and older. 50% of younger drivers — those between the ages of 21 ad 24 — admitted to texting while driving.

Distracted Driving

Distracted driving is dangerous. According to NTSA figures, in 2009, 5,500 Americans were killed and 450,000 were injured in distracted-driving related car accidents.

Cases in the News

There have been two high-profile cases in which texting drivers were involved in fatal car accidents.

Joseph Brynda, 20, an Illinois man, received a 7 years sentence this week in the pedestrian accident death of Phillip Rangel, 60, who was killed while walking in a crosswalk. Brynda was under the influence of both alcohol and freon and was driving with his knees while texting when Rangel was hit.

Danae Marie Miller, a 22-year-old California woman, was charged with vehicular manslaughter after she hit and killed Armine Britel, 40, who was riding a bicycle when he was hit by Miller. Miller was texting when the bicycle-car accident occurred and she was also under the influence. She faces a 10-year prison sentence. Her court date is December 12.

In Olympia, Washington, Ashley R. Davis-Jones, was believed to be texting when her car crossed the centerline and collided head-on with another vehicle. IN this accident, Davis-Jones was killed.

Several pilot projects, one in Syracuse, N.Y., and one in Hartford, Conn, found that strictly enforcing cell phone laws and public education campaigns do affect motorists habits. In Syracuse, texting and using cell phones dropped by 30% after enforcement and publicity campaigns. Hartford, after enforcement and publicity, hand-held cell phone use dropped 57% and texting dropped by nearly 75%.

This information is provided by Washington Injury Attorney blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. Our Bellevue car accident lawyers represent people who have been seriously injured in motor vehicle accidents caused by the negligence of another. Read, "What if my accident was caused by someone using a cell phone?" if you believe your car accident was caused by someones negligent use of a cell phone.

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Continue reading "Study finds that despite laws, drivers texting more than ever" »

The wife and daughter of Othon Cortes of Miami have filed a wrongful death lawsuit against American Airlines and Sky Chefs, an airline catering company, alleging that food contamination of a chicken meal that Cortes consumed on a Barcelona to New York flight on May 18 caused him to become ill and led to his fatal heart attack.

The family is asking for $1 million in damages.

Cortes experienced symptoms of food poisoning including severe stomach cramps and extreme thirst that came on suddenly after he arrived at JFK and not long after he consumed his airline meal. Cortes went ahead and boarded his Miami connecting flight where he experienced a cardiac emergency with symptoms of nausea and shortness of breath. American Airlines landed the plane at Norfolk but Cortes was deceased by the time the flight landed.

Cortes' family claims that the meal was contaminated with Clostridium perfingens bacteria, the third leading cause of food poisoning in the United States.

The bacteria can grow in food that is prepared properly but if too much time elapses before it is served bacteria germination can occur and bacterial colonies can form.

Most times when food is contaminated by C. perfingens it is not lethal

Sky Chefs is attempting to dismiss the case against them saying:

"Based upon the allegations in the complaint it is not possible that Sky Chefs is the responsible party because we did not cater the Barcelona flight in question."

There are a lot of unanswered questions about this case. Most cases of food contamination do not present for 12 to 24 hours. The claimants will need to provide an autopsy report which reveals the presence of perfingens and show how that bacteria contributed to Corte's death.

This information is provided by Washington Injury Attorney blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent people who have serious illness due to foodborne illness and the family of those who have died.

Source: Passenger dies in-flight, family says airline to blame
By Tanya Mohn, msnbc.com contributor
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A Washington State Appeals Court has ruled that Pierce County cannot require owners of dogs that animal control officers have deemed to be "dangerous" or “potentially dangerous” to pay fees to appeal the county's ruling on their dog.

Pierce County constructed an animal control ordinance that allowed them to deem any dog a "dangerous animal" if the dog:

• bit a person without provocation
  
• injured or killed another animal without provocation
  
• has previously been found to be potentially dangerous and the owner was previously warned of the animal being aggressive and a danger to human or other animals.

If an owner wanted to appeal the county’s decision, they were required to pay fees for appeal hearings upwards of $500.

A dangerous dog designation requires owners to purchase a $250 permit and buy $25,000 in insurance that allows them to keep a dangerous dog.

The case came before the appeals after one dog owner, Heidi Downey, appealed the ruling that her dog was dangerous after it injured another dog that had to be put to sleep. Downey was required to pay $125 of an initial hearing on the ruling and another $250 for a hearing before an examiner.

The appeals court found that requiring owners to pay such stiff fees to get a hearing is tantamount to “purchasing justice” and that the fees denied owners due process.

Due process is guaranteed by the Bill of Rights and it balances the rule of law with an individual’s rights. Due process allows all people to have access to the judicial system regardless of their financial status.

Pierce County argued that without fees that some owners may have “frivolous appeals”. The court, however, felt that dog owners were legally entitled to a hearing before they were deprived of their property.

According to the Centers for Disease Control approximately 4.5 million people suffer dog bites every year and 31,000 people are so severely bitten or injured that they require surgery. In addition, approximately 16 people are killed ever year because of a dog attack.

Washington state does have a dog bite law, RCW 16.08.040 which states that the owner of a dog that injures another person, regardless of whether the dog was previously declared dangerous, to be liable for the injuries to the dog bite victim.

This information is provided by Washington Injury Attorney blog, a service of The Farber Law Group, a Seattle dog bit lawyer. We represent people who have suffered serious dog bite injures. With our help, you may recover compensation for your damages.

Source: Pierce County's dangerous-dog policy unconstitutional, judge rules, The Tacoma News Tribune, 12/04/11

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A construction worked from Montana has received a $9 million medical malpractice award by a federal court jury who agreed with his contention that Campbell County Memorial Hospital and the ER doctor who cared for him following a rollover truck accident were negligent in failing to diagnose his broken neck.

Louis Prager was injured in December of 2008 when his company vehicle skidded off an icy road and road. Prager told emergency personnel who took him to the hospital that he had pain to his neck and shoulder and they placed a cervical collar on.

Dr. Brian Cullison, the emergency room physician ordered x-rays and CT scans of Prager's spine, head and facial bones but neglected to order the tests for his neck. He discharged Prager from the hospital on the day of the accident without a complete diagnosis and without a cervical collar.

Prager returned to the hospital four days later after he experienced extreme pain in his neck and shoulder and it was at that time that he was diagnosed with a broken neck. Unfortunately, because his neck had not been stabilized immediately, he suffered permanent nerve damage.

The jury awarded Prager $7 million and his wife $2 million for loss of consortium.

This was the largest medical malpractice award in Wyoming history.

Often people have the misconception that medical malpractice only occurs when a physician or hospital does an overt act such as dispensing the wrong medication but failing to diagnose can delay treatment which can result in death or a worsening injury as in this case.

In a "failure to diagnose" case, the important test is "Did the delay in diagnosis made a difference?"

This information is provided by Washington Injury Attorney blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent victims of medical malpractice and their family.

Source: Trib.com Feds agree to $2.15 'failure to diagnose' medical malpractice settlement
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Having a slip and fall accident is not an uncommon occurrence; thousands of people slip and fall every single year due to all kinds of causes. It can be a work related injury, to falling on ice in front of someone’s house, or even falling down a flight of stairs at a friend’s house.

How do you know who is responsible if you have a slip and fall accident? If you have been injured in an accident of this type, you should first keep in mind that falls happen, and are a part of normal life. If you are going to file a personal injury claim for a slip and fall accident, you have to first prove that the party you are suing is responsible for negligence in some way. This can mean that they didn’t shovel their sidewalk, or something spilled in a business location and it was not cleaned up right away and there was no notification that a fall was a possibility. If you fall on someone else’s property because you tripped over drainage grates for example, which are necessary and serve a purpose, the homeowner probably cannot be held liable since there is no negligence on their part to clean that up.

A property owner is not responsible if someone trips over something that they should know is there. For example simply falling down stairs is not negligence; this is a case of not watching where you are going. We all need to look where we step.

Of course, homeowners and property owners need to keep up their property. Proving a personal injury claim in a slip and fall accident can be difficult and murky at best; you will have to have some proof that the owner of the property where you fell failed to do something that would have prevented your fall. Clearing branches, wiping up spills, or dealing with weather related issues like snow or ice are all things that the owner could be held responsible for. If you fall because you weren’t paying attention to where you were going, you’re probably not going to have much of a case.

In short, slip and fall accidents happen, and if someone could have prevented it and failed to, they should be held responsible. If you simply failed to watch out for yourself, you should have to incur all damages yourself.

This information is provided by Washington Injury Attorney blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent people who have been seriously injured due to a slip, trip or fall accident.

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In August 2010, the DePuy Orthopaedic division of Johnson & Johnson recalled the ASR XL Acetabular and Hip Resurfacing Systems due to a high failure rate compared to traditional hip implants. Patients fitted with the DePuy implants were advised to meet with their orthopedic surgeons to determine if they might require a hip "revision" or the replacement of their hip prosthesis.

The DePuy hip implants were touted by the company as the device that should be used in younger and active patients because the metal-on-metal design would have a longer life and the design would allow the patient to remain active.

Unfortunately, studies have shown that the metal-on-metal design of the hip implant caused cobalt and chromium ions, or metal artifacts, to be released into the patient's tissue which caused a number of complications.

One complication is that metal released in a patient's system can cause pseudo-tumors or granulomas. A granulomatous reaction can occur when immune cells called macrophages wall off foreign substances that the body is unable to eliminate. In the case of the metal-on-metal hip implants, the masses can form as an immune reaction to metal debris. These pseudo-tumors can also contain necrosis, or dead cells.

If a pseudo-tumor grows large, it can cause loosening of the hip joint and it can eat away at the bone.

What tests can determine the presence of a pseudo-tumor?

Doctors have several tests which they can use to determine what is causing a patient's symptoms or to see how the hip implant is doing.

Sonography/Ultrasound

Sonograms is a diagnostic tool that is non-invasive and uses sound waves to generate an image that a medical profession can uses to assess and diagnose. It can be used to look at soft tissue masses and bone surfaces. It is often used as an initial screening tool as it is inexpensive and easy to perform.

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)

MRI's can be costly exams but they are able to provide detailed visualizations of internal structures. They can show reactive masses such as pseudotumors because they can show contrast of the different soft tissues of the body.

CT Scans/catScan

A CT scan can also be a useful tool with its 3-D imaging to show pseudo-tumors. However, the MRI provides a greater contrast between the various soft tissue.

Blood Tests

DePuy hip implant replacement patients are also advised to have a blood test which can determine whether there is an excess of metal in the bloodstream. Some patients with the DePuy hip implant have been found to have cobalt and chromium levels at more than 100 times a normal level. Metal at high levels is known to be a cancer causing agent.

This information is provided by Washington Injury Attorney blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represents patients throughout western Washington and the Pacific Northwest who have had their DePuy artificial hip recalled.

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An Illinois doctor has been found not guilty of medical malpractice by a jury who deliberated for two hours in the case of a patient who died of a heart attack nearly a week after seeing her physician.

The estate of Barbara Jean Pratt filed a wrongful death lawsuit claiming that Dr. Malench failed to diagnose a heart condition. In the lawsuit, the administrator for Pratt's estate claimed that Pratt saw Malench with complaints about pain in her chest, left arm and left side of her neck.

Pratt died of a heart attack six days after she saw Malench, who was her primary physician.

A reviewing physician stated that Malench failed to manage Pratt's symptoms and that he knew she had risk for coronary disease and that Malench incorrectly diagnosed her presenting symptoms as cervical radiculitis, a spinal disorder caused by a spinal disc pressing against nerves to the spinal cord.

Malench claimed that the patient only complained of pain in her chest when she breathed in deeply and that the she had not mentioned the other symptoms.

The jury, however, sided with Dr. Malench. In determining whether a physician is guilty of medical malpractice, a jury need to find the physician negligent and his conduct fell below the "standard of care". In Washington state, the test for "standard of care" is, "Did the health care provider fail to exercise the degree of care, skill and learning expected of a reasonably prudent health care provider with similar credentials and circumstances would have provided?"

This information is provided by Washington Injury Attorney blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent people who have been seriously injured by medical malpractice and the family of those who have died with their wrongful death claims.

Source:
Jury sides with doctor in med mal suit
October 21, 2011 7:01 PM
By SANFORD J. SCHMIDT
The Telegraph.com

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Kadlec Medical Center in Richland, Washington hired Dr. Robert Lee Berry as an anesthesiologist based upon a glowing recommendation from his former colleague, William J. Preau III, MD. Preau wrote in his letter of recommendation:

"He is an excellent anesthesiologist. He is capable in all fields of anesthesia including OB, peds, C.V. and all regional blocks. I recommend him highly."

Dr. Preau's recommendation of Berry helped him land the job at Kadlec, but unfortunately, it did not reveal the truth about Berry, that he was fired from Louisiana Anesthesia Associates because his colleagues felt that he had a drug problem and was known to divert patient's Demerol, an opiod pain killer, for himself.

While at Kadlec, Dr. Berry committed an egregious medical error while anesthetizing Kimberly Jones, 31, and a mother of three, while he was "under the influence." His medical error left Jones in a permanent vegetative state.

Jones' family sued Dr. Berry and Kadlec and they won a medical malpractice award of $1M against Berry and $7.5M against Kadlec.

It was then that Kadlec decided to file lawsuit against Dr. Preau and Lakeview Regional Medical Center in Covington, LA to recoup the medical malpractice judgement against them. In their lawsuit, Kadlec claimed that Dr. Preau and Lakeview misled them and were intentional and negligent for failing to disclose Berry's substance abuse problem. The lawsuit claimed that Lakeview and Preau had a duty to provide crucial information to the prospective employer.

The lower court provided a judgment against Dr. Berry and Lakeview but the judgment against Lakeview was reversed on appeal because the person who provided Lakeview's evaluation of Berry's performance claimed that she did not know the reason for Dr. Berry's termination. The court did, however, uphold the claim against Dr. Preau and ordered him to pay $8.2M to Kadlec.

Dr. Preau probably never imagined he could be on the hook for writing a letter of recommendation.

This information is provided by Washington Injury Attorney blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent people who have been seriously injured due to medical negligence and the family of those who have died.

Continue reading "Anesthesiologist ordered to pay $8.2M following Washington docs medical malpractice" »

A West Virginia awarded the family of Dorothy Douglas, who died after serious nursing home neglect, a $91.5M wrongful death settlement.

It is likely that the ruling will be appealed to the West Virginia Supreme court who will decided whether the settlement amount is subject to medical liability caps.

The wrongful death lawsuit was filed by Tom Douglas, the son of Dorothy Day, who died in 2010 of severe dehydration and neglect in a nursing home. The lawsuit claimed that the lack of hydration led to Dorothy Day's death. The suit was filed against Manor Care, Inc. HCR Manor Care Services Inc., Healthcare and Retirement Corporation of America, LLC, and Heartland Employment Services LLC.

According to Tom Douglas, Dorothy was ambulatory and communicative when she entered the nursing home. Within 20 days, her condition had deteriorated and she was comatose, unable to communicate and was not longer able to feed herself.

According to the trial transcripts, Tom tried to transfer his mother out of the nursing facility but the facility could not get the paperwork right.

In making this large award, the jury awarded $11 million for the wrongful death of Dorothy Douglas. The remaining $80 million was a punitive award, to punish the nursing home for their intentional misconduct. The jury was clearly sending a message that the treatment of Douglas was unacceptable and they wanted to punish the nursing home to prevent future abuse and deaths.

The question that will probably be decided by the Supreme Court is whether medical liability caps should apply in this case. This is a contentions issue. In 2003, the West Virginia legislature created a statute which placed medical liability caps on awards. The attorney for Douglas' family says the punitive portion of the award is not subject to a medical malpractice cap.

Nursing home abuse and neglect can take many forms. Dehydration and malnutrition are two serious signs. Other serious signs can include bedsores or decubitus ulcers, aspiration pneumonia and contractures. Washington state has a wrongful death statute which allows the family member of a person who has died due to nursing home neglect or abuse to seek compensation in civil court on behalf of their deceased loved one.

This information is provided by Washington Injury Attorney blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent victims of nursing home abuse and the family of those who have died. With our help, you may recover compensation for your damages.

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We just read a story about a an egregious hospital error. A Taiwan hospital transplanted five organs including a heart, liver, lungs and two kidneys from an HIV-infected donor into five recipients. Now, the recipients are all being treated with AIDS drugs.

In all likelihood, the recipients will contract HIV and their health will be impacted as they have to take both AIDS drugs as well as anti-rejection drugs for their new organs, two treatments that are opposite of each other.

The hospital error occurred because a hospital staff member mistakenly thought he heard that the HIV test on the donor was "non-reactive." Unfortunately, he misheard or the person on the other end of the telephone misstated that the HIV test was positive or "reactive."

The donor was hospitalized after a fall and his family was unaware of his HIV status.

A Taiwanese health department official described the error as "appalling negligence."

It seems like the hospital was very negligence in not double checking the results of the HIV test and checking an electronic or printed result. At least, they need to change their terminology as it seems like without an established change in protocol, this error could happen again. The hospital may have also been negligent in not conducting a detailed health history of the donor.

This information is provided by Washington Injury Attorney blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent people who have been seriously injured by medical malpractice and the family of those who have died.

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Hospital-acquired infections can be deadly to patients. According to the Centers for Disease Control, nearly 1.7 million patients acquire an infection while in the hospital which is about 1 in 20 patients. Of those patients, approximately 100,000 patients die of complications caused by the infection they picked up in the hospital.

One solution to bringing down the number of infections is requiring hospital staff to be vaccinated for common diseases including the flu, hepatitis B and chicken pox.

In Michigan, some hospitals are making it mandatory that their employees get a flu shot. Previously, compliance at many hospitals has been as low as 50%.

According to an article we found on Michigan radio, More hospitals require flu shots as condition of employment by Tracy Samilton, some employees are bristling about the new requirement calling it a "civil rights issue."

While the Michigan hospitals are letting employees opt out if they have allergies or if their faith prohibit it, they are requiring employees to get the shots or get fired.

It seems to us like vaccinations in a health care setting is extremely important to protect the lives of patients. Healthcare workers and patients can be contagious up to a couple of days before they feel flu symptoms. A doctor, nurse, respiratory therapist or even house keeping staff could potentially spread the flu to people with compromised immune systems.

When a healthcare professional is working in a hospital setting, he or she is part of a team that should contribute to healing and caring for patients. Inadvertently spreading germs either through poor hand washing or failure to be vaccinated seems to us like negligence.

This information is provided by Washington Injury Attorney blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent people with medical malpractice claims and the family of those who have died. With our help, you may receive compensation for your damages.

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The Children's Safe Products Act which went In effect this week and requires manufacturers of designated baby and toy products to report to the Washington State Depart of Ecology if a product contains one of 66 chemicals on the state's list of chemicals which may not be safe for children.

The products include toys and other products which a child or baby would place in their mouth or would be next to a child's skin.

The state's list contains chemicals including Formaldehyde, aniline, n-Nitrosodimethylamine, n-Butanol, Benzene, Vinyl Chloride, Acetaldehyde, Menthylene chloride, Carbon disufide, Biesphenol A, to name a few.

These chemicals have been found to be either toxic or present in blood, breast milk, or tissue samples. While the presence of these chemicals does not necessarily mean they are harmful to children, the Law seeks to minimize the risk of exposure to children and the environment.

The Children's Safe Product Act, also known as CSPA, and is set forth in Chapter 70.240 of the Revised Code of Washington. One section of the outlaw strictly prohibits the manufacture and sale of children's product containing lead, cadmium or phthlates. In the past few years we have seen some children's products, especially those manufactured in China, coming into the American market with these chemicals and they have been the subject of recalls.

The new reporting act that just went into effect requires manufacturer's of children's products that contain one of the 66 chemicals on the state's list, to report the chemical, its purpose, and the amount used. If the reporting is not done, the manufacturer can be fined up to $5,000 for each violation. The law will be phased in over a period of time with manufacturers with gross sales of over a billion dollars to begin the reporting by next August.

This information is provided by Washington Injury Attorney blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent people who have been seriously injured or sickened by defective or dangerous products. Washington's product liability act takes a consumer-friendly approach for those injured by defective or dangerous products, allowing the injured to seek compensation via a civil action.

Source: Children's Safe Products Act, Department of Ecology, State of Washington

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Child safety experts are warning people who use transdermal medication that they must exercise caution when using the patches around children after one small child nearly died after getting a hold of one of his grandparent's patches containing the drug fentanyl, a strong opioid.

While there is no source of complete statistics on the injuries to children because of contact with transdermal patches, records show that at least four children have died and six children were hospitalized after contact with fentanyl patches.

While transdermal patches containing powerful pain killers are probably the most dangerous, other patches can also be dangerous including nitroglycerin patches which could cause life-threatening hart problems or Nicotine patches which could cause rapid breathing and even seizures.

Medication Safety Tips

The following safety tips should be adhered to to keep children safe:

• Safely store medication patches in the same way you would other drugs.
• Dispose of patches where children can not pull them out of waste cans and adhere them. They can be placed in child proof containers before being discarded.
• For pain patches, the patches should be folded with the sticky sides together and flushed down the toilet.
• Keep track of patches because they can get stuck to clothing or fall of where children might pick them up.

This information is provided by Washington Injury Attorney blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent people who have been seriously injured due to the negligence of another and the family of those killed.

Continue reading "Child safety experts warn about the hazards of transdermal medications and children" »

The mother of Chasity Glisson, a woman who died of carbon monoxide poisoning when she inadvertently left her Lexus running in her garage, has filed a wrongful death and product liability lawsuit against Toyota claiming that the Smart Key keyless ignition system allowed her daughter's Lexus to continue running silently without a key in the ignition.

Kimberlin Nickles filed a wrongful death lawsuit in Broward County naming Toyota, a Lexus auto dealer and the Marabella Premium Apartments as negligent parties. Marabella Apartments is named in the lawsuit for failing to provide proper ventilation.

Nickles contends that her daughter "either inadvertently forgot to shut down the engine of the subject vehicle or pushed the start/stop button in an effort to do so but was unsuccessful." Apparently Glisson was unaware that her vehicle was still running when she parked her car in the garage and entered her home. She was found dead after suffering carbon monoxide poisoning. Her boyfriend, Timothy Maddock, was critically injured in the incident.

The Smart Key system allows for keyless entry into vehicles and also remote engine start and stop. Nickles claims that the electronic key system requires consumers to go against a deep-rooted and ingrained behaviors and that it does not have protection for consumers who mistakenly leave their vehicles with it running or those who inadvertently start their vehicle after they have left it.

This is not the first death attributed to the keyless entry system. In the exact same scenario, a Queens woman's partner, a 79-year-old lawyer, died of carbon monoxide poisoning and she was suffered brain damage. In that case, the woman filed a similar wrongful death lawsuit in October of 2010. (Reference New York Daily News.)

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is evaluating emerging safety concerns regarding keyless ignition systems after numerous drivers have contacted them. (Reference Update FMVSS No. 114 for Keyless Ignition) Following are the concerns as reported to the NHTSA:

• The inability to shut down the engine in emergency situations
  
• The ability to shut down the engine without putting their vehicle in "park". This has resulted in drivers walking away from their vehicle and it rolling away.
  
• Drivers putting their vehicle in park but inadvertently leaving the engine active, increasing the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning in garages.

Wrongful death lawsuits often stem out of product liability cases when a defective or poorly designed product results in the death of a person. Washington state's wrongful death statute allows the loved ones of a person killed due to an unreasonably dangerous product to recover damages in a civil action against the entity whose negligent or wrongful act resulted in the family member's death.

This information is provided by Washington Injury Attorney blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We are a personal injury law firm, representing wrongful death and product liability cases for more than 30 years.

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The mother of a 19-year-old college student who died of alcohol poisoning during a fraternity hazing ritual has filed a $25 million wrongful death lawsuit against the Sigma Alpha Epsilon Fraternity, a national fraternity.

The New York Times reports that George Desdunes of Brooklyn, NY, was a student at Cornell University when he participated in a "mock kidnapping" and was forced to drink alcohol until he passed out. The lawsuit alleges that Desdunes had his hands and feet bound with zip ties and duct tape during the hazing.

The lawsuit, filed by Marie Anfre, Desdunes' mother, alleges that the fraternity members did not seek medical attention for her son after he passed out several times. Desdunes was found unconscious on a sofa the morning after the event and he was pronounced dead at a hospital. His blood alcohol content was five times the legal limit for driving at 0.409%.

Frat members allegedly removed the zip ties before the police arrived.

In filing the wrongful death lawsuit, Anfre is fighting against fraternities and the dangerous drinking rituals which results in the death of one student every year on average. Her attorney, William Friedlander, says that the wrongful death lawsuit is "not about the money" but about bringing change to fraternities.

A wrongful death lawsuit can be filed by the family of a person who has died due to the negligent or wrongful act of another. Wrongful death statutes allow the family to recover damages against the person or entity whose negligent or wrongful act caused the family member's death. Wrongful death cases can arise from car accidents, medical negligence, criminal activities or activities such as sports or school activities.

In a case such as this one, not only may individuals be found liable but the organizations including the local fraternity chapter as well as the national parent fraternity may be included in the lawsuit.

This information is provided by Washington Injury Attorney blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We are a personal injury law firm with more than 30 years representing families with their wrongful death claims.

Source:
The New York Times
Cornell Fraternity Sued Over Student’s Drinking Death

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So far 16 people have died in Europe because of E-coli infection linked to tainted vegetables. The death toll may rise as upwards of 1,150 have become sickened.

Hundreds of people have become sickened in several European countries including Germany, Switzerland, Denmark and Sweden but the only deaths so far have been in Germany.

373 people in Germany are said to have been sickened with the most deadly form of E-coli,
Escherichia coli O157:H7. This form of the bacteria can have life-threatening complication, a kidney condition called hemolytic-uremic syndrome (HUS).

Another 796 people have become ill with the enterohaemorrhagic E.coli, also known as EHEC, bacteria.

At this point it is unclear the exact source of the E-coli contamination but there appears to be a strong link to cucumbers from Spanish Almeria and Malaga as the source of infection.

The World Health Organization (WHO) says the E-coli outbreak is "very large and very severe."

Symptoms of E-coli infection includes severe and acute bloody diarrhea and abdominal cramps. A diagnosis is made by culturing a stool sample.

When an E-coli infection can be traced to a particular manufacturer or packaging process, victims may pursue a legal claim for damages against the producer, manufacturer or distributor of infected food sources.

This information is provided by Washington Injury Attorney blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent people who have become seriously ill due to foodborne illness caused by negligence.

Continue reading "16 killed, hundreds sickened in European E-coli outbreak" »

The Spokesman-Review reports that the Washington Supreme court has upheld the $6.5 million wrongful death and negligence judgment against CH2M Hill, an engineering company, that the court ruled was responsible for the death of one Spokane sewer plant workers and the injuries to two others in a 2004 construction accident.

The Spokane sewer plant accident killed Mike Cmos when a tank imploded and Cmos was buried in sludge. Two other city workers, Dan Evans and Larry Michaels were injured in the accident.

In 2008, the Superior Court Judge Robert Austin ruled that CH2M Hill was negligent in its design changes to the digester. He ordered a wrongful death settlement of $2.6 million to be paid to Cmos estate; $2 million to Cmos' widow; $650,000 to Cmos' daughter. He also ordered payment to Evans for the broken bones he suffered and to Michaels for his serious knee injury.

CH2M Hill appealed the decision all the way to the Washington Supreme Court which upheld the Superior Court decision with six justices signing the majority opinion and three justices signing a concurrence opinion.

This information is provided by Washington Injury Attorney blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent people who have been seriously injured in construction accidents and the family of those killed. We have more than 30 years experience successfully representing clients with their wrongful death claims.

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Continue reading "Washington Supreme Court upholds $6.5 wrongful death judgment in Spokane sewer plant accident" »

A day after a Kirkland man shot a pit bull dog in the Juanita Beach Wildlife Park in Kirkland, a pit bull attacked two men in Kent and killed a Pomeranian dog. The KIRO report said that two children were walking the Pomeranian when it a pit bull attacked and killed the Pomeranian.

Wile the reports on KIRO TV and KOMO TV vary a bit, what does seem clear is that a 46-year-old man received multiple dog bites in the leg and one in the abdomen and a 19-year-old man suffered a leg injury when they were attacked by two dogs believed to be pit bulls around 1:00pm near south 222nd and 94th Ave. S. in Kent.

King County animal control officers captured the pit bulls after the attack.

According to KIRO, the pit bull was tracked back t a house but the people who were there at the time denied owning the dog.

This Kent dog attack is similar to the Kirkland dog attack in that the dogs were off-leash and not in control of their owner .

When the dog owners are found, they may face criminal prosecution. The victims can also file a civil suit asking for compensation for damages. Washington has a "dog bite law" which is certainly sympathetic to victims and find that dog owners are liable for dog bite injuries. Click here for more information.

This information is provided by the dog bite lawyers at The Farber Law Group. We represent people who have been seriously injured in a dog attack and the family of those killed. Since many dog bite victims suffer permanent nerve damage and often require several surgeries, obtaining compensation for medical costs and for pain and suffering is necessary to support the victim.

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Continue reading "Kent pit bull attack injures 2, kills small dog" »

The Kirkland Reporter says that a Kirkland man shot a pit bull dog with a handgun after his dog was attacked and the pit bull then threatened him at Juanita Beach Park in Kirkland, Wa.

The dog attack occurred on Saturday as the man let his dog, a German shepherd, off-leash in park. According to the report, one of three pit bulls who were off-leash attacked the shepherd and then was joined by the other two.

The owner of the pit bulls, a Seattle man, attempted to pull his dogs off of the shepherd when one pit bull turned and threatened the Kirkland man.

The Kirkland man had a permit to carry a gun and shot the pit bull. The pit bull is expected to survive after surgery at a local veterinarian clinic.

It is obvious that the Kirkland man felt very threatened and police are investigating the shooting. One question that comes to mind is, "Are pit bulls more prone to attacking and injuring people than other dog breeds?" According to a study done by the Center for Disease Control which looked at 20 years of dog attacks and looked at 25 different breeds of dog, the pit bull and Rottweiler dogs were responsible for 67% of dog bite fatalities and attacks by pit bulls were responsible for more deaths.

In the past six months, there are a number of reports of pit bull attacks in the news. The following are a few representative news stories:

• January 2011 -- A 5th grader in Vallejo, Ca, suffered a serious dog bite to his arm
  
• January 2011 -- Union County, NC, 5-year-old girl was killed and her grandmother seriously injured when they were attacked by a neighbor's 2 pit bulls
  
• February 2011 - El Dorado, Ca, a 15-year-old girl and her small schnauzer were attacked by a pit bull and the girl suffered injuries to her arm
  
• November 2010 - Orland Park, Ill, woman suffered numerous bites to her arms and thighs in a pit bull attack
  
• November 2010 - Robbinsville, NC 2-year old boy critically injured in a pit bull attack

Washington state law, RCW 16.08.040, finds that the owner of a dog which bites another person, regardless of the dog's previous viciousness, is liable for damages to the victim.

This information is provided by Washington Injury Attorney blog, a service of The Farber Law Group. We represent Seattle, Bellevue and Kirkland dog bite victims and their families.

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Continue reading "Kirkland man shoots pit bull in dog attack at Juanita Beach park" »

The United States Postal Service (USPS) released statistics today which showed the cities where the most dog attacks against postal workers occurs; Seattle, Washington is #10 on the list with 28 dog attacks against postal carriers in 2010.

Nationally, there were 5,669 postal employees bitten by a dog. Throughout the U.S., there are 4.7 million Americans bitten annually.

According to the Insurance Information Institute, dog attacks account for more than 1/3 of all homeowner insurance liability claims paid in 2010.

Dog attacks can leave victims with serious injuries. Many victims suffer disfigurement or scarring. Other victims can suffer permanent nerve damage. According to one Seattle-area plastic surgeon, victims of dog mauling require multiple surgical procedures to repair the damage.

Washington States dog bite law, RCW 16.08.040 enables victims to recover damages for their injuries.

If you or a loved one has suffered a serious dog bite injury, you should contact a personal injury attorney who has experience representing dog bite victims. At The Farber Law Group, a Bellevue, Washington based personal injury firm, we have more than 30 years experience in representing dog bite victims. With our help, you may recover compensation for your medical costs, rehabilitation costs and for pain and suffering.  See our Dog Bite Resources.

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Continue reading "U.S. Post Offices lists Seattle as #10 in "Top Dog Attack Cities" report" »