After Google engineer takes a branch to the head, New Yorkers reflect on everyday risks

A four-inch-thick tree branch struck a Google engineer in the head on Wednesday while he was taking a stroll through Central Park, leaving him in a coma with a partially collapsed lung, damaged vertebrae and a nasty cut, The New York Times reports.

While the 33-year-old engineer, Sasha J. Blair-Goldensohn, is showing some early signs of improvement, responding to simple verbal commands, doctors are monitoring his situation closely and though they are optimistic he will make a full recovery, they still consider his injuries life-threatening.

In the meantime, the Times took the opportunity to ask some "regular people" passing through the park what they thought of this particular incident, and accidents in general. From a cautious New York personal injury lawyer's perspective - a unique position, to be sure - the responses were remarkably calm.

"I'd probably be more concerned about a pigeon doing something to me," Katrina Zachmanoglow told the Times.

"I'm more afraid of manholes," said another interviewee, Sarah Crocker.

It is true that one need not look very far to find greater dangers in New York City than falling tree branches and, frankly, the article's exhibition of so much proper perspective was refreshing. The Central Park Conservancy spends some $637,000 a year caring for the 26,000 trees under its stewardship and by nearly all accounts does a very thorough job. In fact, the day after the accident the Conservancy initiated some extra pruning "in what a park department official confirmed was an abundance of caution."

In other words, the danger posed by trees, and trees in Central Park in particular, is deservedly near the bottom of most people's lists of concerns. While certainly a terrible accident for Mr. Blair-Goldensohn, falling branches do not pose the sort of systemic and unnecessary risk that incidents of medical malpractice, construction accidents and even many auto accidents do. These are areas where real improvement is not only possible but dearly needed. On many issues complacence is warranted - on these it absolutely is not.

[The New York Times via City Room]

Asbestos contractor gets jail for defrauding Workers' Comp insurers

Chong-mum Chae, the owner of an asbestos-removal company, has been sentenced to four years in prison after cheating workers' compensation insurers out of $1.6 million in premiums, The New York Times reports.

The conviction comes as the inspector general for the New York Workers' Compensation Board, William Gurin, pledges to "[Change] the focus of our investigation so it's less on claimant fraud and much more intensely on health care provider fraud and employer premium fraud." This is heartening news for both claimants and their New York workers' compensation lawyers, as claimants have long received lopsided attention in the Board's investigations.

The 71-year-old Mr. Chae pleaded guilty to mail fraud and tax fraud after more than a decade of dodging the high workers' compensation premiums associated with the risky asbestos removal his company performed. By repeatedly changing the name of his business and falsely classifying dozens of employees as independent contractors, Mr. Chae managed to stay one step ahead of the insurance carriers while paying for insurance for a single employee, his receptionist.

In addition to jail time, as part of his plea bargain Mr. Chae will have to pay the $1.6 million he owes in premiums as well as a federal tax lien that has yet to be calculated. Since he is an illegal immigrant he will also be deported after he has served his sentence.

New York workers' compensation lawyers can hope that Mr. Chae is the first of many dishonest employers the Workers' Compensation Board investigates. After years of emphasis on claimant fraud it is about time employers receive that same scrutiny.

[The New York Times via City Room]

Political consultant arrested in corruption sweep found dead

Jack M. Shaw, a political consultant who was among those arrested in last week's corruption sweep, was found dead in his apartment yesterday, The New York Times reports.

Mr. Shaw's death occurred under unusual circumstances - some reports indicate an open bottle of pills was found near the body - and police suspect an act of suicide or a sudden heart attack killed the 61-year-old. Police do not suspect homicide.

The latest development in an already tangled story, Mr. Shaw's death came just hours after the mayor of Secaucus, Dennis Elwell, resigned. One of the 44 people arrested in the U.S. Attorney's sweep of New Jersey, Mr. Elwell is facing his own set of corruption charges.

The charges came after a two-year investigation into three separate criminal operations involving organ trafficking, money laundering and public corruption relating to real estate development. Though none of these operations was especially savory, it is the public corruption that most concerns New York construction accident lawyers.

Essentially, the federal prosecutors' cooperating witness, former real estate developer Solomon Dwek, was able to record numerous New Jersey officials - from mayors to building inspectors -accepting bribes aimed at clearing the way for a variety of hypothetical development projects. The success of these bribes, some of which were as small as $2,500, is deeply worrisome to New York construction accident lawyers.

The approval process for large development projects was not designed to be shirked off easily. A developer is supposed to take much time and care to design a project that passes the numerous tests for safety, environmental impact, proper zoning and public approval. While one would be hard-pressed to find a New York construction accident attorney naive enough to believe that bribery is not a regular occurrence in this realm, it would not be difficult to find one who sees it as a great ill.

Though these bribes revolved around construction's public approval process, public safety and inspection processes are vulnerable to this same sort of corruption. There is no easy fix to these problems. Only much more of this sort of diligent work by the U.S. Attorneys can curb the practice. Though not all of their investigations can have this same dramatic impact, they will be just as important.

[The New York Times (N.J. Man Facing Bribe Charge is Found Dead, 44 Charged by U.S. in New Jersey Corruption Sweep)]

New studies quantify texting's risk - it's huge

Two new studies have found the risk of texting while driving is far greater than previously suspected, The New York Times reports.

The more recent study, conducted by the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute, found the collision risk while texting "was 23 times greater than when not texting." A similar University of Utah study, which tested college students in a sophisticated driving simulator, found texting increased collision risk by 800 percent.

For New York auto accident lawyers and, really, anyone else on the road, these are staggering figures. Considering texting's ballooning popularity (CTIA, a cell phone trade group, puts current text message traffic at about 110 billion messages a month) these findings should have serious implications for traffic laws.

Tom Dingus, director of the Virginia Tech institute, agrees: "You should never do this," he told the Times. "It should be illegal."

While 14 states do ban texting while driving, 36 do not. For its part, New York's legislature recently passed a ban on the practice, though the bill is still awaiting the governor's signature. Other legislatures have proven more reluctant, citing a lack of data with which to make the decision.

In the scientific community at least, this paucity of data no longer seems to be an issue. Though neither study has yet to complete peer review, the Times reports that researchers in the field are already hailing the results of these studies as "significant."

With the evidence against texting while driving mounting, every state should work quickly to ban this risky activity. New York auto accident lawyers are sure that any activity that increases the chance of an accident by 800 percent, let alone 2300 percent, ought to carry some significant penalties. It is time for our laws to reflect that.

[The New York Times]

Possible drag race kills 3 in Long Island car crash

A Long Island car crash, which police believe was caused by a drag racing contest, killed three women Sunday, the Daily News reports.

The crash, which occurred on Montauk Highway in Copiague yesterday afternoon, took place between a 2009 Mitsubishi and a 1999 Ford Windstar minivan. The Mitsubishi, which police suspect was involved in the drag race, slid out of control into oncoming traffic and collided with the Ford Windstar.

The driver of the minivan, Rosanna Attaguile, suffered several broken ribs and a compressed lung; her father, Guisseppe, suffered similar injuries. Teresea Zuardo, Ms. Attaguile's mother, was pronounced dead at Good Samaritan Hospital Medical Center along with two female passengers who were riding in the Mitsubishi.

A fourth victim, not identified by the News, is now in critical condition; doctors do not expect him to survive.

New York auto accident lawyers are reminded all too frequently of the hazards of irresponsible driving. Whether or not the driver of the Mitsubishi in this accident was drag racing, it remains a very dangerous activity. Unfortunately, those who partake in such activities not only put themselves at risk but others as well. Drivers must remember that they are not just responsible for their own safety but the safety of everyone with whom they share the road.

[Daily News]

Minivan crash kills 8 on Taconic State Parkway

A minivan traveling the wrong way on the Taconic State Parkway in Westchester crashed into an S.U.V. yesterday afternoon, killing eight, The New York Times reports.

The minivan entered the parkway heading in the wrong direction, forcing oncoming vehicles to swerve to avoid a head-on collision with the car. The minivan continued down the ramp and soon collided with an S.U.V., killing the three passengers in the S.U.V. and five others in the minivan. Only a 5-year-old boy, the minivan's driver's son, survived the accident.

New York auto accident lawyers rarely see such deadly accidents in their work. Though the police are still investigating the accident, many details, such as whether the vehicles' occupants were wearing seat belts, are not yet available.

After the initial collision the minivan struck a smaller S.U.V., injuring its two occupants, before rolling onto a grassy embankment and bursting into flames. The minivan's driver, a 36-year-old mother, her daughter and two of her young cousins died from burns at the scene of the accident. Another young girl, another of the driver's cousins, died at Westchester Medical Center.

The driver's son is currently in critical condition and being treated for head trauma.

The best auto accident lawyers in New York always stress how important it is to pay careful attention while driving. Though the complete details of this dreadful accident are not yet known, it is difficult to imagine a circumstance where greater concentration on the road would have allowed this tragedy to occur.

[The New York Times via City Room]

As Harlem Garage Closes, A Sigh of Relief Emerges

A Harlem parking garage on the verge of collapse was closed by police and city officials. New York construction accident attorneys and residents, especially those who park their cars there, are breathing sighs of relief. The question remains for both the parkers and construction accident attorneys as to why was the garage remained open for so long after being declared a danger in as early as April 2008. New York construction accident attorney David Perecman gives his thoughts about the situation.

Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous Include Auto Accidents

The personal chef who works for Yankees baseball star Alex Rodriquez crashed her employer’s SUV into another SUV while taking it out to do errands. High profile accidents like these, remind people that anyone can have an accident, says New York auto accident lawyer David Perecman, who has over 30 years of experience working in New York as an auto accident lawyer. Also noted is the liability of the employer when an employee is the negligent party in an auto accident while on the clock or in the line of duty.

Rotting Harlem parking garage finally shut down

A rotting parking garage with some 60 active Buildings Department violations was finally shut down by the police this month after an order to vacate the site went ignored for more than a year, the Daily News reports.

Construction accident lawyers monitoring the recent outbreak of New York building collapses recognize that the city may have averted a disaster in this situation. In April 2008, the Buildings Department issued an immediate vacate order for the site, citing a long list of serious problems such as "rotted, overloaded floor joists," sunken floors and insufficient fireproofing. NexGen Realty, the owner of the garage, ignored the order and continued its business operations at the site.

Police took action to close the garage after News reporters followed up with city officials regarding the site's bushel of violations. Several expressed concern that the garage operated for more than a year with an outstanding order to vacate.

"It does cause me concern that it's been in use," Geneva Bain, the Community Board 10 district manager told the News. "We need to find out why that is and make clear that it's not acceptable."

Construction accident lawyers in New York can surely get behind this sentiment. While shutting down a dangerous site 15 months after an immediate order to vacate was issued is better than never shutting it down, there is obviously much room for improvement.

The Department of Buildings and the police department should coordinate closely on these matters and make them a priority. A building in danger of collapse is a serious safety issue, and both departments should treat it as such.

[Daily News]

Construction worker injured by handsaw sues contractor, Yankees

A construction worker who nearly lost his hand in a construction accident at the new Yankee Stadium has secured a New York construction accident attorney and is now suing Turner Construction and the Yankees, the Daily News reports.

Marc Kemprowski, the 28-year-old plaintiff, was using a handheld, power-operated handsaw to cut a center field scoreboard last year when the machine kicked back, cutting his wrist down to the bone. Though doctors were able to reattach his hand, Mr. Kemprowski has lost most of the appendage's function.

Mr. Kemprowski and his New York construction accident lawyers are alleging that the saw's safety guard - a "$1.50 piece of plastic" - had been removed. Had it been present, it is likely the saw's kicking back would not have caused the severe injuries Mr. Kemprowski sustained.

Indeed, Mr. Kemprowski's co-workers told him that the day after his accident all the handsaws at the site had their guards reattached.

As Mr. Kemprowski's New York construction accident lawyers pointed out, employers will sometimes remove guard on power tools to allow their employees to work faster. Unfortunately, this practice also exposes them to the kind of danger Mr. Kemprowski faced last year.

The fact is these sorts of tools were designed to be operated with their guards in place. While removing them may save a few minutes here and there, the increased risk of injury outweighs the gain in efficiency. From a purely financial standpoint, it does not take many injuries to counteract any savings from removing the guards. From a human standpoint, the practice is even less defensible.

[Daily News]

Another editorial makes a bad case for medical malpractice reform

A recent editorial in Newsday called on Albany legislators to reform medical malpractice laws to slow the steady rise in the rates doctors pay for medical malpractice insurance.

The editorial did not propose a specific solution and the examples it provided - "to extend the statute of limitations, alter the rules for lawyers' fees and to give defendants access to plaintiffs' doctors" - do not make sense to New York medical malpractice lawyers as they seem to pull the law in contrary directions.

If reform is needed anywhere in New York's medical malpractice system, it is needed to regulate the insurance carrier's fees. As the New York Public Interest Research Group has pointed out, medical malpractice insurance rates rose even as the money paid out on claims decreased. This trend runs against common sense and the state would do well to investigate the situation.

Instead of working to reduce the number of malpractice claims through tort reform, doctors and lawmakers should spend their energy reforming the medical system to reduce the actual incidence of medical malpractice. Yet somehow in these discussions the danger posed by medical malpractice frequently gets swept under the rug.

New York medical malpractice lawyers are in a unique position in that they regularly see the human cost of medical malpractice. Though there are always the rare exceptions, the victims seeking restitution for an incident of medical malpractice have almost always been genuinely hurt. They are not seeking damages because they are greedy - they need the money to live a complete life.

All this should go without saying. It is a testament to the reach and intensity of the tort reformers that it does not.

[Newsday]

For student athletes, a difficult road to recovery

A few days ago some New York personal injury lawyers and I were debating whether workers' compensation would cover a resident assistant injured in his or her college dormitory. We decided, barring some special restriction, that the resident assistant would be covered - just like building superintendents.

Now, The New York Times has shed some light on another group of college students which, unlike resident assistants, is in real need of some health coverage: student athletes. These athletes, even those competing in contact sports such as lacrosse and football, often lack the insurance they need to pay for health care related to sports injuries. The total cost for this care can add up to tens of thousands of dollars, leaving some athletes with a mountain of debt to pay off before they even graduate.

Though the National Collegiate Athletic Association requires universities to ensure their athletes are insured, it did not specify any standards for that coverage. Thus many student athletes are covered by insurance plans with very high deductibles (N.C.A.A. coverage will carry a $90,000 deductible in 2010) or other restrictions.

Most universities with very large, very profitable sports programs do provide extensive coverage for their athletes. While this is commendable, there are plenty of smaller programs in which athletes compete at a high level, virtually uninsured. The injuries that arise from this play can be just as serious and the subsequent bills just as daunting, but this burden falls almost entirely on the athletes.

While this certainly seems unfair, these circumstances extend far beyond college athletes. Astute New York personal injury lawyers recognize this situation as microcosm of a larger problem with health insurance in the United States. With some 47 million uninsured people in this country, the need for some action is apparent. Personal injury lawyers regard most health care as a right, not a privilege, and look forward to a day when it is treated as such.

[The New York Times via Workers Comp Insider]

Hit-and-run leaves mother of two dead in Harlem

A 48-year-old woman was killed early yesterday morning when a speeding SUV struck her as she crossed Amsterdam Avenue near W. 145th Street, the Daily News reports.

Police say the impact killed Debbie Evans, a mother of two and Harlem native, instantly. The force was great enough to knock Ms. Evans out of her shoes.

Witnesses report the SUV sped off after hitting Ms. Evans, never slowing before or after the accident. Police found a side mirror they believe belongs to the SUV and are searching for surveillance video that may have captured the accident.

"I saw an SUV hit her, a little old lady walking across the street," a trucker, identified by the News as Steve, said. "The car was going faster than it should be; she never saw him. It's a travesty."

Unfortunately, experienced New York auto accident lawyers are quite familiar with this type of hit-and-run accident. With some luck, the police will be able to identify the SUV and hold the driver responsible for his or her reckless actions.

[Daily News]

Texting While Driving is Becoming a Dangerous Trend, According to Personal Injury Attorneys in New York

A teen takes a tumble into a manhole. She was distracted while texting. According to New York personal injury attorney, David Perecman, the uncovered manhole appears to be a meritorious case of negligence, but the question of whether banning texting while walking will be an additional outcome of this case remains to be debated. In related news, a few days after the manhole accident, Albany lawmakers voted to ban all electronic devices from being used by drivers who are operating a motor vehicle.

New York Personal Injury Lawyers Step In When Landlords Create Dangerous Living Areas for Tenants

By law, landlords are required to maintain their properties and keep their tenants’ reasonably safe. However, as rising numbers of New York landlords are having financial problems due to the mortgage crises, more and more buildings are falling into disrepair. This situation will most likely lead to an increase in the number of personal injury cases filed in the courts of New York. Personal injury lawyer David Perecman comments on and clarifies the law.

Study exposes the dangers of eating while driving

A new study has found that the action of eating while driving is responsible for 80 percent of car accidents, the Daily News reports.

The study, a survey of drivers conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, also ranked some of the most dangerous foods to consume while behind the wheel. First on the list: coffee.

"Even with a travel lid, hot coffee can find its way out of the opening when you hit a bump," the News quoted the study as saying.

Right behind coffee comes soup, followed by "tacos, chili dogs, hamburgers, ribs and wings, fried chicken, jelly doughnuts, soda and chocolate."

Given the shockingly high percentage of accidents this survey attributes to eating while driving, sensible New York auto accident lawyers would advise against eating anything while behind the wheel. Any distraction - be it texting, talking on the phone or eating - can dramatically add to the danger of driving.

Experienced New York auto accident lawyers know many accidents have been caused by a driver's momentary distraction. As boring as it can be in long stretches, driving requires intense concentration to be able to react to sudden changes that can happen at any time. If you have a phone call you need to take or a hankering for a hamburger that just cannot wait, please consider the safety of yourself and others: pull over first.

[Daily News]

New York State legislature passes ban on texting while driving

In a big step forward for New York auto accident lawyers, the New York State legislature passed a bill banning drivers' use of electronic devices while their vehicles are in motion, the New York Post reports.

The ban covers all classes of electronic device - including music players - and will carry a $150 fine if a driver is caught using such devices while engaging in a moving violation. Under the provisions of the bill, police will apply this fine on top of the fine for the moving violation when they suspect a driver was using a device.

The ban will likely be instituted in November after Governor Paterson signs it into law.

A major win for New York auto accident lawyers concerned with the safety of the state's roads, the bill should serve as a potent deterrent to many of the distracting activities so many drivers engage in. Texting while driving is one of the surest ways to increase a motorist's chance of getting into a car accident. It not only exposes the texter to unnecessary risk, but everybody who must share the road with them.

While New York auto accident lawyers may have hoped for even stronger legislation (why limit enforcement to those engaged in moving violations?) this bill is still a welcome step in the right direction. Driving a vehicle is a serious responsibility, one that no driver can afford to give a fraction of his or her attention. It is good that the law now at least partially reflects this reality.

[New York Post via City Room]

City controller tells Buildings Department to shape up, conduct thorough inspections

William Thompson, the city controller, called on the Buildings Department to redouble its efforts in inspecting properties suspected of having undergone illegal conversions, the Daily News reports.

Mr. Thompson's call to action comes after an audit revealed that the Buildings Department failed to follow up on thousands of complaints regarding illegal conversions. Though inspectors could not gain entry to almost 5600 properties, they only requested access warrants for about 80 of them.

Top New York personal injury lawyers are aware of the dangers posed by these illegal conversions, which are essentially used to divide apartments into smaller units. Apart from allowing far too many people to live together in a very confined space, these divisions are often not compliant with the fire code. They create mazes of rooms without windows which have proved deadly in the event of a fire.

The Department of Buildings insists it treats these violations very seriously and does all it can to follow up on the complaints it receives. All in all, the Department attempted to inspect 8,345 properties and ended up issuing some 2,200 violations.

Department procedure gives inspectors permission to seek a warrant after two unsuccessful inspection visits. According to the agency, obtaining a warrant is a "tedious" procedure, requiring visual evidence of inspection attempts.

Given the issues with obtaining a warrant, Helen Marshall, the Queens borough president, is cautiously advocating a legislative solution to streamline the process.

Whatever the solution, New York personal injury lawyers know the city must address this problem. The success rate of inspections is too dismal, and the conversions too dangerous, to allow this situation to persist.

[Daily News]

In dueling op-eds, the case for liability wins

The New York Times published dueling op-eds this weekend on the hot-button issue of medical malpractice reform.

One, "Liability = Responsibility," written by Tom Baker, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania Law School, took the position shared by just about every New York medical malpractice attorney: medical malpractice laws ought to be strong, both to protect those injured by medical malpractice and to ensure doctors and hospitals do not expose their patients to undue risk.

The other, co-written by Mitchelle Mello, a professor of public health at Harvard, and Amitabh Chandra, a professor of public policy at Harvard, advocated for two measures the authors said would reduce the number of claims and take some of the burden of medical malpractice off of doctors.

The first measure involved "evidence-based practice guidelines" that doctors could adhere to and then use as a defense in the event of a medical malpractice claim. As the authors themselves point out, in many areas of medicine such guidelines do not exist. Even in areas where they do exist, the course of care does not always rigidly follow the guidelines - deviations are fairly common.

What's more, medical malpractice lawyers already consult these guidelines in the course of assembling a case. They have their purpose, but they are hardly the last word in any case.

The second measure called for removal of certain medical injuries, like birth injuries, from the court system. These injuries would be routed to a separate fund to "assign fair compensation on a no-fault basis." As ThePopTort points out, the two pilot programs the authors mention, Florida and Virginia, have had absolutely miserable results. Florida's program is strictly voluntary, while Virginia's fails to provide families with fair compensation and, despite this, is bankrupt with some $150 million in debt.

Endorsing Mr. Baker's position is not exactly a hard decision. Preserving liability in medical malpractice is one of the best ways to make medicine safer for everyone and far more fair for those injured by medical malpractice. Limiting liability may save someone, somewhere a few dollars, but the cost for that savings could hardly be justified.

[The New York Times (Liability = Responsibility, The Cap Doesn't Fit) via ThePopTort]

New York construction accident lawyers monitor investigation of concrete testers

American Standard and Stallone Testing Laboratories, companies with contracts to certify the concrete on several major projects in New York City, are reportedly under investigation by the Manhattan district attorney's office, The New York Times reports.

While the investigation's purpose is still unclear, sources familiar with the matter have indicated to the Times that the investigation grew out of an earlier case against Testwell Laboratories which was later accused of "systematically falsifying its results on many public and private construction projects."

For New York construction accident lawyers, these investigations raise some serious concerns. Concrete testing is a crucial safety procedure, the proper execution of which is essential to ensure the short- and long-term viability of structures.

Testwell's defense that "they did not believe falsified results created hazards because...the concrete poured in New York is of a high quality" is rather weak. After all, it was Testwell's job to ensure the quality of the concrete. Without the proper tests - like the tests Testwell is accused of falsifying - it is impossible to determine the quality of concrete.

In fact, as the Times reports, the concrete in the Freedom Tower, which Testwell was supposed to certify, was well below the standard that Testwell had indicated. The concrete had to be jackhammered away and repoured, delaying construction and increasing the cost of the project.

The Department of Buildings is still in the process of testing concrete at other Testwell sites.

It is too early to say what the implications of the investigations of American Standard and Stallone will be. Between them, they hold contracts for concrete testing on the Second Avenue subway project, the extension of the No. 7 line and the Fulton Transit Center being built in Lower Manhattan. If the investigations lead to any indictments, new concrete testers will probably have to be retained for these projects.

Some experts blame the falsification of these tests on a highly competitive bidding process that tempts prospective contractors to submit unrealistically low bids. Perhaps the city should evaluate this process and determine if there is a way to make safety or quality of the work a larger factor in its decisions.

[The New York Times via City Room]

Mortgage crisis begins to have an impact on New York City building maintenance

With many landlords unable to make payments on their mortgages, let alone pay for repairs to their properties, many buildings in New York City are falling into a dangerous state of disrepair, The New York Times reports.

Of immediate concern to New York construction accident lawyers, many of whom know how essential regular repairs are to the safe occupation of a building, the tenants in these buildings are also becoming worried. With holes appearing in their ceilings and walls and front doors being sold for scrap metal, they can hardly be blamed.

While residents are doing what they can to keep their apartments livable - some undertaking amateur repairs using cardboard and duct tape, others donating money to pay for the most critical repairs - New York City construction accident lawyers know these solutions are not ideal.

Of course, landlords, along with many others, are caught in a difficult position: stuck with properties that can no longer generate enough income to cover the expense of their mortgages, they truly have no funds to pay for repairs. According to the Times, both tenant advocates and elected officials do not blame the situation on landlords but rather the widespread predatory lending that famously contributed to the current economic crisis.

While Fannie Mae has bought many of the loans in question and is conducting emergency repairs on some of the buildings on which it has already foreclosed, these proceedings take time and the agency cannot enter a property until the court gives it permission. Meanwhile the tenants suffer increasingly unsafe conditions, hapless victims of forces beyond their control.

[The New York Times via City Room]

Fond profile of Bronx county court paints familiar picture for New York personal injury lawyers

As part of its ongoing coverage of U.S. Supreme Court nominee Judge Sonia Sotomayor, The New York Times has profiled her native county's court house to get a different, more nuts and bolts view of the law.

With much attention focused on Judge Sotomayor's confirmation hearings being held in the Hart Senate Office Building, the Times piece provides a grounding perspective with a look at some of the more routine legal procedures that transpire every day in the Bronx court house. These are, the article points out, the extent to which most people will interact with their country's justice system. Though these procedures may lack the drama and widespread impact of a Supreme Court nomination, for the people involved their outcome is crucial.

For New York personal injury lawyers, it is good to see these more mundane events get some attention in the paper of record. While there are obviously plenty of stories with a more pressing demand for the paper's limited space, once in a while it is rewarding to read about the familiar happenings of your daily work. After all, to the majority of this article's readers, the Bronx courthouse was an alien, opaque world that this story shed some light on.

This sort of coverage is valuable to New York personal injury lawyers who, on occasion, are a misunderstood lot. The more people who understand what their daily work entails, and what it means to regular people, the more people will accept their work as something worthwhile.

[The New York Times via City Room]

Texting Teen Falls Down NY Manhole

Alexa Longueira was texting on her phone and walking with a friend on a residential block in Staten Island when she fell down an open manhole. She fell five feet, landing in raw sewage.

The hole was open to allow the Department of Environmental Protection to flush the sewer through.

Longueira was helped out by an apologetic DEP worker and taken to the hospital for minor injuries. The Longueira family has vowed to file a lawsuit over the incident because the manhole was left open, unattended and with no cones or signs to prevent accidents. This accident comes after the passing of legislation in some countries and US states to ban texting while driving and raises questions about the user's level of awareness when texting.

Judge Sotomayor's deep roots in New York

A piece in today's New York Times explores Judge Sonia Sotomayor's life in New York City in great detail in an attempt to draw a cohesive picture of the judge's experience and lifestyle. Though much of it has been said before, there is still some interesting information for personal injury lawyers practicing in New York City.

The story sketches Judge Sotomayor's life from her childhood in the Bronx to her nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court. It practically overflows with personal details, from her treatment of her clerks to her preferred type of cars (white Saabs).

She comes across well in the article, but perhaps the most intriguing aspect of the story for New York City personal injury lawyers is just the opportunity to read so much regarding the mannerisms and personality of a potential Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. For lawyers in New York, it's especially intriguing to read about her favorite pizza place (Grimaldi's) or her preferred neighborhoods (Greenwich Village).

Judge Sotomayor's story has a deeper resonance for some New York lawyers. The story dwells on her feelings of loneliness, of sacrificing friendships and romances time and time again for the sake of her work. It describes a workweek that often spills into the weekends and a strange, occasional isolation from life outside work.

Definitely worth a read for any New York personal injury lawyer easing into his or her weekend.

[New York Times via City Room]

Fire kills disabled man - faulty smoke detector may be to blame

The family of a disabled man who died in a March fire at the public housing development in which he lived is suing the Housing Authority after an investigation raised concerns about the condition of the smoke detector, the Daily News reports.

Janet Jackson, the sister of the man who died in the fire, and her New York personal injury lawyers are alleging that there was no smoke detector in Kenneth Jackson's apartment at the time of the fire. The Housing Authority had a "hard-wired system" in place with special considerations for Mr. Jackson's disability, but with no detector in place neither Mr. Jackson nor firefighters would have received necessary notifications.

Mr. Jackson, who lost an eye and was left brain-damaged and partly paralyzed after an earlier construction accident, struggled over 20 years to regain some of his lost Independence. According to his sister he eventually learned to cook simple meals for himself and travel about the city unattended using public transit.

Ms. Jackson does not believe her brother was so incapacitated that he would not have escaped the fire had the alarm system worked. The Housing Authority even took pains to install special alarms to let firefighters know a disabled person was living in the unit. Had these been activated at the time of the fire, Ms. Jackson's New York personal injury lawyers argue, Mr. Jackson would still be alive today.

For its part, the Housing Authority insists it inspects each of its apartments every year. These inspections are supposed to include a check of the smoke detectors.

Whatever went wrong in March, Mr. Jackson's death is a tragedy. From his sister's description Mr. Jackson was a man who tried to wring some enjoyment and pride from a life of significant hardship. His persistence was admirable.

[Daily News]

After collision, cab jumps curb and hits four pedestrians

After a collision with a beer truck on the upper West Side, a cab jumped a curb and hit four pedestrians, the Daily News reports.

The cab's driver, Hafiz Faheem, said the truck hit his cab as he made a turn, sending his vehicle out of control and onto the street where it hit four pedestrians before coming to a stop. Three men were taken to St. Luke's Hospital for treatment of their minor injuries, while a fourth refused treatment.

"He came behind me so fast, and he hit me," Mr. Faheem told the News, "He was not paying attention or he was doing something."

The beer truck did not stop after the accident.

Though it should go without saying, New York auto accident lawyers remind New York City pedestrians and motorists alike to maintain an awareness of their surroundings and a concentration on the task at hand. Drivers especially should refrain from using their cell phones or engaging in any other distracting activity while in their vehicles.

Though some may take a carefree attitude attitude towards their driving, they would do well to remember the harm that outlook can inflict upon those with whom they share the street.

[Daily News]

Tips for avoiding a construction site fall

Occupational Health and Safety has published an excellent guide on avoiding falls that ought to be required reading for just about every construction worker and contractor. New York construction accident lawyers might want to take a look as well.

While the guide is of most use to those in charge of coordinating construction site safety, every worker at a site should be aware of the safety measures that should be in place for their protection. Armed with that knowledge, workers may be in a better position to request equipment such as safety nets or proper harnesses.

The guide itself covers a broad swath of safety concerns, from fall prevention (properly covering holes and training workers) to fall mitigation (installation of safety nets and supplying the right kind of harness). Most of the tips seem fairly obvious, but, as construction accident lawyers in New York know all too well, obvious measures can prevent most accidents.

Unfortunately, employers often do not take basic, common sense steps such as ensuring that multilingual safety training is available to workers who do not speak or read English. If ignorance is preventing them from implementing these sorts of programs, reading this guide will be a great first step in their education.

But ignorance, as any New York construction accident lawyer is aware, is just one reason employers neglect the safety of their workers. This guide may sway a few of the employers who have made a conscious decision to skimp on construction site safety to save money, but it is unlikely to affect many.

[Occupational Health and Safety]

YouTube video shows cop slamming cyclist - cyclist sues for $1.5 million

A cyclist is suing the NYPD for $1.5 million after an officer body-slammed him off his bike during a Critical Mass rally and proceeded to file a police report which contradicted a YouTube video of the incident, the Daily News reports.

Cyclist and farmer Christopher Long was participating in the July 2008 rally when Patrick Pogan, a rookie police officer, tackled him to the ground. Though Mr. Pogan reported that Mr. Long was weaving in and out of traffic and refused to stop when ordered, a YouTube video of the event showed Mr. Long cycling peacefully when Mr. Pogan knocked him to the ground.

The NYPD has already fired Mr. Pogan for filing false police reports. Mr. Long and his New York personal injury lawyers are alleging the incident caused him psychological trauma that forced him to move to rural Wisconsin and become a farmer, giving up his life in New York.

While Critical Mass is an explicitly illegal movement (it is essentially a periodic mass meeting of cyclists devoted to breaking traffic laws to achieve a muddied set of goals) police must still exercise restraint in dealing with its members. Unless seriously provoked, the sort of force Mr. Pogan used on Mr. Long is simply not justified.

Top New York City personal injury lawyers know it is up to the courts to evaluate Mr. Long's claim that this incident was so stressful that it forced his move to Wisconsin. They also know the NYPD did the right thing in firing Mr. Pogan. Falsifying a police report is a serious offense, and it is good to see the NYPD treating it as such.

[Daily News]

Personal Injury Attorneys Contemplate Toxic Evidence in the Death of 3 Men in New York

Three workers, including a father and son, were killed on June 29, 2009 in a gruesome personal injury accident at a privately operated waste transfer plant in Jamaica, Queens. All three apparently suffocated after falling into a manhole-sized, 18-foot deep well filled with four feet of liquid sludge and deadly hydrogen sulfide gas. The first man fell by accident while trying to vacuum the putrid well. The other two men died, one after another, in attempted rescues with a rope and ladder. All died after being overcome by the toxic fumes, a common byproduct of decomposing garbage.

Read the rest of the article...

Staten Island Ferry Hits the Pier Again Leaving New York Personal Injury Lawyers Wondering How it could Happen Again, So Soon.

A Staten Island ferry boat packed with about 800 rush-hour commuters slammed into a pier while docking on July 1. Approximately 14 people were left with minor injuries. There was some damage to the dock, but the vessel did not suffer any damage, reports the New York Post.

"When I heard the story, the first image that came to my mind was the horrible ferry accident that killed eleven in 2003," says New York personal injury lawyer David Perecman. "I was relieved to hear that there were only minor physical injuries reported this time."

Read the rest of the article.

Bus crash in upstate New York kills one, injures 8 others

A bus transporting passengers to several upstate prisons crashed near Lake George on Sunday morning, killing one passenger and injuring seven others, as well as the driver, The New York Times reports.

According to police and fire officials, the bus crashed near Exit 21 on Interstate 87 early Sunday morning and was found flipped on its side near the median. Curtrice E. Gravitt, the 33-year-old woman who died in the crash, was somehow propelled out a window and was found trapped underneath the side of the bus.

Seven injured passengers were taken to Glens Falls Hospital where they were treated for a variety of injuries, some quite severe. At least two passengers required surgery and another was in serious condition at the hospital's intensive-care unit. The bus driver sustained only minor injuries.

While police are still investigating the accident, it seems the bus's left front tire blew out or suddenly deflated, causing the driver to lose control of the vehicle. The Times was unable to reach the bus's operator, Angelic Tours and Shuttles Inc., for comment.

New York auto accident lawyers familiar with the state's outdated wrongful death laws know Ms. Gravitt's family will not receive just compensation for its loss. The state's wrongful death laws only cover pecuniary - financial - loss. As anyone who has experienced the death of a loved one can attest, financial loss is hardly the only hardship one endures. Unfortunately, the law does not reflect this reality.

[The New York Times]

New York Workers' Compensation Board gets new head, faces challenges

Governor David Patterson has appointed former workers' compensation judge Robert Beloten to the top post at the troubled New York Workers' Compensation Board, The New York Times reports.

Mr. Beloten has spent 17 years as a workers' compensation judge in Jamaica, Queens, before he became a commissioner this May. His chairmanship is not subject to Senate confirmation because of this prior position.

The New York workers' compensation system has lately come under attack as an inefficient, ineffective system - a nightmare for claimants, lawyers and employers alike. Though the Board has instituted some changes over the last few years they have done little to silence the calls for reform. Obviously, the new chairman is under tremendous pressure to deliver substantial change.

Recognizing this and wasting no time, Mr. Beloten promised to shorten the wait claimants must endure before they receive workers' compensation benefits, great news for both New York workers' compensation lawyers and their clients. He also praised the progress Zachary Weiss and Governor Patterson have made over the last few years, pledging to continue their work.

“It’s an area where you can try to make people as whole as possible, to try to put them in the same position they had before they were injured,” Mr. Beloten said.

Lawyers with experience working in New York's workers' compensation system are familiar with this sort of statement. They have heard words like these from Mr. Beloten's predecessors plenty of times before. It will be up to Mr. Beloten to prove he can match action to his rhetoric.

[The New York Times via City Room]

Incident on Staten Island Ferry leaves 15 with minor injuries

A power failure on the Staten Island Ferry boat John Marchi caused a hard docking at the ferry terminal in Staten Island injuring 15 passengers, the Staten Island Advance reports.

For New York City personal injury lawyers, as well as many other city residents, the accident conjured images of the ferry accident that killed 11 people in 2003. This most recent accident caused only minor injuries, the worst of which was a dislocated elbow.

James DeSimone, the ferry chief, believes the boat's propulsion system failed as the ferry pulled into its slip, likening the situation to a car losing its brakes. Mr. DeSimone warned the boat's passengers to brace themselves before it bumped, hard, into the dock, causing superficial damage to both the ferry and the dock.

The 15 injured passengers were rushed to area hospitals while the remaining 750 to 800 passengers disembarked using an auxiliary gangplank.

Officials were still investigating the cause of the malfunction at the time of the article's publication.

Of possible interest to New York personal injury lawyers, the Advance report mentions that the John Marchi "has been plagued with mechanical and generator problems" but does not go into further detail. A similar "hard docking" of the boat in 2007 injured seven people.

New York personal injury lawyers need no reminder of how deadly a ferry accident can be. Staten Island politicians have already commended the crew for its quick and effective reaction to a harrowing situation. We would like to add our voice to that praise.

[Staten Island Advance via Gothamist]

Nine hurt when police car crashes onto sidewalk

There was an interesting item in today's news for auto accident lawyers in New York. A police car rushing to the aid of a colleague had an accident with a Cadillac that sent it onto the sidewalk, injuring five pedestrians as well as the four people riding in the two cars, The New York Times reports.

The police car was heading north on Avenue D yesterday afternoon when the accident between it and the Cadillac occurred. There are conflicting reports as to which car caused the accident. The police car then swerved onto the west side of the street, mounting the sidewalk and striking several pedestrians as well as an infant's carriage.

The driver of the police car swerved to avoid the carriage and it was not hit with the full force of the police car. The infant in the carriage sustained only minor injuries and was rushed to Bellevue Hospital along with the other pedestrians and the people in the Cadillac. The two police officers were taken to Beth Israel Medical Center.

Most of the injuries were minor, with some of the worst being a man's three-inch cut on his head and some leg injuries.

[The New York Times via City Room]

Department of Buildings evacuates another building on 2nd Avenue

The New York Department of Buildings ordered the evacuation of the building at Second Avenue and 92nd Street after it was found to be leaning 18 inches to the north, the New York Post reports.

Residents were furious that they received such short notice that they would have to evacuate their apartments. Several residents had to cancel vacation plans in order to move their belongings and at least one new resident had yet to finish moving in when he got the order.

Tenants were quick to blame the Department of Buildings and the MTA, which is constructing the Second Avenue subway line nearby, for the building's damage. Both agencies deny responsibility. The Department of Buildings is arguing it issued a repair order with which the building's owner never complied. The MTA claims it issued a notice regarding the building's state of disrepair to the Department of Buildings in 2006, before construction on the new subway line even began.

Whoever is to blame for the building's alarming slant, New York construction accident lawyers can bring some perspective to this situation and point out that an evacuation, even a last-minute one, is better than having an inhabited building collapse. Though ideally the Department of Buildings would have taken more action back in 2006 when the MTA first brought the situation to its attention, given the Department's lousy track record we are grateful for what we get.

[New York Post via Gothamist]