New York Personal Injury Lawyer Blog

A school bus driver suffered minor injuries to his face after being run off the road by a 20-ton coal truck. The bus was carrying high school students on their way to participate in a college science class. The bus driver was able to turn the bus and avoid the coal truck before it hit the bus. None of the students on the bus suffered an injury. They are calling the bus driver a hero.

One of the teachers on the bus says he was grateful to have an alert and experienced driver who knew what to do to avoid a potentially deadly accident. The bus driver received facial lacerations from shattered glass and was treated for these injuries by medical personnel. The bus driver swerved and landed in a ditch. The impact caused the windshield to crack.
Further investigation is needed to determine the exact cause of this accident. The coal truck may have been trying to pass the bus and miscalculated the bus's speed. The coal truck crossed into the same lane as the bus and nearly caused a head-on collision. Mechanical error or medical emergency may be to blame which is why further investigation is needed.

The students were on their way to participate in a college science class as part of a dual enrollment program that offers college credit to high school students. The students were taken back to the school and were given the choice of remaining at the school or taking the rest of the day off. School officials and local law enforcement are currently working together to piece together all the details of the car accident. The student trip will probably be rescheduled for later in the school year.

Damage to the school bus is unknown at this time. A reporter who has seen these accidents in The Bronx and Westchester claims that the bus may be used as evidence if charges against the coal truck driver are filed. No charges have been filed at this time by the district attorney or the school district. Charges may be filed, however, if new evidence is discovered.

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Sometimes who you choose as a friend turns out to be the wrong choice. This case is particularly disturbing, as a drunk driver killed his friend and father of three, by running a red light. Drinking and driving isn’t a smart thing to do and the consequences here speak for themselves. But for the fact the man was drunk and blew a red light, the dad to three young kids would still be alive today.

This car accident happened last year and it’s taken a while to come forward in court. The facts of the case are that the 38-year-old driver, who had been drinking heavily prior to the accident, ran the red light and slammed into another car. The driver did not have a license and was also on probation for various drug convictions. The 36-year-old father of three was dead on impact.

When the police arrived at the scene, they arrested the driver on the spot and took him to jail. He eventually entered a no contest plea to driving while under the influence and causing a death. The driver was sentenced to ten years, with the condition he serve seven of those ten years, outlined the observer. This was a smart plea bargain on the part of the AG’s office. It would get the man off the streets for seven years.

While it would not bring back the dead dad, it would give his family some sense of comfort to know that justice had been served. Whether or not they choose to file a wrongful death lawsuit later, will be a personal decision based on what would be best for the family. Certainly, they will have some financial concerns with the loss of their loved one. Courts in Long island and Manhattan would come to the same conclusion.

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Passengers are questioning a bus driver's statement that he was well-rested and alert the morning his tour bus crashed into a pole in New York, killing 15 people on board.
The expert reports that in a lawsuit, a passenger claims the driver fell asleep while driving when the bus wrecked on March 12 while coming home from the Mohegan Sun casino in Uncasville, Conn.

The passenger was sitting in the back and saw the bus veer onto the rumble strip three times in a 20-minute period before the crash on Interstate 95 according to his lawyer. He said his client did not see a tractor-trailer careen toward the bus, as the driver claims.

The bus turned over on its side, and its roof was ripped off by a sign stanchion. The passenger in question says he had injuries to his shoulder and spine but was able to climb out through the damaged roof.

The lawsuit was filed Wednesday in a Brooklyn court and is the second court case of its kind.
"He doesn't drink, he doesn't even smoke. He takes his job very seriously and he was alert, and is a great driver,” it was said about the driver. The driver was tested for drugs and alcohol and both came out negative.

State police said soon after the crash that according to witness reports the driver was speeding. The bus driver has a criminal history but has tried to put everything behind him and wanted nothing more than to just be a good driver. This accident and it’s victims are intent on hindering that.

He redeemed himself for his mistakes made years ago," his lawyer said. "His life was straight. He was doing well until this horrible accident."

Suffolk County in New York State has stepped up the care of tour buses since the crash. Dozens of buses have been removed after police found issues with logbooks, licenses or equipment. Investigations are still pending in this case. They will determine the extent of the personal injury.

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Product liability cases are often long and complex. This case was no exception to that rule. A dead woman’s estate brought a wrongful death action, stating that the woman had died in an accident due to the fact that the rear aisle seat of her SUV has only lap belts instead of lap-and-shoulder belts.

The case was dismissed at the state trial court level and on appeal it was affirmed. The court found material that specifically required the installation of passive restraint devices (seatbelts) pre-empted a state tort suit against an auto maker who failed to install airbags.

In this particular case, the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard stated that auto makers are required to install seat belts on rear seats and the must install lap-and-shoulder belts on seats next to car doors or frames. However, they may put in either lap belts or lap-and-shoulder belts on rear inner seats – meaning in an aisle.
The upshot of this case was that section 208 does “not” pre-empt state tort lawsuits that claim an auto maker should have installed lap-and-shoulder belts, rather than simple lap belts on rear inner seats of vehicles such as the minivan in which the woman was riding. There was a further interesting debate about various exemptions and pre-emptions on the state versus federal level. But suffice it to say that in cases such as this, a good representative will have their work cut out for them checking various legal precedents and safety standards.

Cases like this in the Bronx and Brooklyn always take longer to make their way through the courts for the simple reason that the law in this area is complex and often changes quickly.

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A deadly auto accident in New York has prompted lawmakers to take a closer look at the United States tour bus industry.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) will “launch a broad investigation into the entire safety regime that governs the low-cost bus industry,” lawmakers said.
According to these legislators, they made the decision after a March 12 accident in which 15 people were killed.

“March’s bus crash was a tragedy for New York, but these passengers did not have to die in vain,” said Senator Charles Schumer, D-NY. “A full and comprehensive review of this industry and the safety regulations governing it will no doubt lead to greater safety standards for the thousands of passengers who use these buses every week.”

“By ensuring NTSB thoroughly reviews how this standard is regulated, we can keep passengers safe, while restoring customers’ confidence in this type of travel,” Representative Nydia Velazquez said.

The lawmakers claim that another NTSB review has already “led to major improvements” when it comes to airline safety. The senator has also requested a review of all drivers of low-cost tour buses to make sure none of them have previous safety violations or suspended licenses. He revealed that such an audit would have shown the driver involved in the March 12 car accident “shouldn’t have been behind the wheel.”

Andrew Cuomo, governor of New York, ordered an investigation into the crash. The driver had a commercial license – despite having a poor driving record and a criminal history of grand larceny and manslaughter in Staten Island and Westchester County.

The bus line itself is not new to accidents. They had a crash in 2009 that resulted in an injury, and another crash in New Jersey in 2010 that caused another injury. They have also been cited numerous times for “fatigued driving” between December 2009 and October 2010 in several states.

The driver claims he was attempting to swerve out of the way of a tractor-trailer that was going to clip the bus. The bus then fell onto its side and hit poles that cut through a large portion of the vehicle. The driver has not been charged, though his license was suspended.

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A “brilliant” and “vibrant” senior was found dead early Wednesday after her hair apparently got caught in a lathe during a laboratory accident. The Yale Community is in mourning.
The astronomy and physics major was just weeks away from graduation and was looking forward to beginning a career in oceanography after she graduated. She had spent last summer working as a student fellow in the competitive Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Woods Hole, Massachusetts.
The young scientist was working on a class project when the accident occurred. She was in the Sterling Chemistry Laboratory. Other students working in the building found her body and called police between 2 and 3 a.m.
The Medical Examiner said she died of accidental asphyxia by neck compression.
The Yale President and Vice President met with the young woman’s family to express condolences and to relay that the university’s practices were under investigation. They said that her parents are planning to return to the campus before the end of the semester to attend a memorial service in their daughter’s honor.
The incident has prompted Yale University to conduct a thorough review of safety policies and laboratory practices – even of the procedures taken in the machine shops and other facilities with power equipment that is accessed and operated by undergraduates. According a NY City Injury Lawyer following the case, Yale is limiting access to facilities until the review is complete. Students must submit lab working schedules and be approved to work only during specified hours.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has opened an investigation as well. They are exploring conditions in the laboratory. The NY City Injury Lawyer said their purpose is to “determine what safety standards apply and whether or not the employer complied with those standards.” Colleges in Nassau and Suffolk Counties are trying to protect their student from accidents like this.
“By all reports, [this young lady] was an exceptional young woman, an outstanding student and young scientist, a dear friend and a vibrant member of this community,” Yale’s Vice President wrote on the school’s website. “We will find ways in the next days to gather to celebrate her life and grieve this loss.”

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All the victims are now grown and the suspect now deceased, but the witness are still coming forward to testify against a Connecticut doctor who police believe may have molested hundreds, or even thousands, of children over a thirty-year span of time.
A civil case in Waterbury Superior Court is the first of about 90 to reach the trial. They are all suing St. Francis Hospital and Medical Center of Hartford, alleging that hospital official did nothing to stop the abuse by the doctor who died in 1998 and never faced any criminal charges.
One victim, now 50-years-old, told the court that the doctor took pictures of him and his sister performing sex acts together. The doctor abused him over a three year period, starting in 1969 when the victim was only eight years old. Parents and hospital officials were told the victim was being used in a human growth study.
“He took pornographic pictures of us in his office,” testified the victim to New York Injury Lawyers. “He asked us to disrobe. He asked us to insert things.” The jury saw these photographs, along with graphic photos of other victims who would testify later.
The abuse was only recently revealed in 2007 when the owner of the doctor’s former home cracked open a basement wall while renovating the house. Inside that wall were tens of thousands of slides and videos of children engaged in sexual activities or posed in a sexual manner.
As for the hospital, they don’t dispute the abuse, but they also said to New York Injury Lawyers the officials there had no idea what was going on and should not be held liable.
The hospital’s attorney told the jury the doctor, and the doctor alone, was responsible, not the hospital. According to him, no one ever complained about the abuse. “We are all angry at what he did,” the attorney said. “We’re certainly not in any way defending his actions.”
No one thought of the doctor as anything other than a respected physician who was engaged in a great deal of legitimate study and research, as well. He did take measurements from the children, though he never actually published his findings. He resigned in 1993, due to molestation accusations, but was never charged, and his license to practice medicine was revoked in 1995. As it would be in Staten Island and Westchester County.

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Various dentists tell New York Injury Lawyer that fluoride causes dental issues and the U.S. Department of Health has decided to lower the level of fluoride in the drinking water. This announcement was made to combat the many dental issues that have arisen across the nation. The Department of Health and Human Services gave a recommendation that the level of fluoride in water should be 0.7 milligrams per liter of water instead of a range recommendation that exceeded that amount.
Of course, according to the dental profession, the recommended level is not going to be in effect right away. The Lawyer who practices in New York City and Long Island agrees that it is in the best interest of the public to have some time to think about this and to comment on so thirty days is the time period to listen to any complaints.
The Department of Environmental Protection has decided to do their own investigation and research in the meantime and so they will be reviewing the highest degree of fluoride that should be allowed in the water.
A reputable doctor said to a New York Injury Lawyer,” We have waited so long to hear this kind of announcement in support of the right amount of fluoride to be allowed in our water irrigation systems. It will lessen tooth decay and other dental issues.”
This recommendation was reached because of the number of people found to have had too much fluoride consumption and the relation it had with tooth decay and other dental problems.

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A New York Injury Lawyer was quick to agree that Emilio Navaira, a Tejano Singer, was extremely neglectful to ruin his tour bus while he drove home in a drunken stage from a concert.
According to a friend and confident of the accused, the singer did some damage to the vehicles in the accident, but not nearly as much damage as his previous bass player did. It so happened that in court, the former bass player asked for a little less than $95,000, which the juries awarded him.
After the court session, both the defendant and the complaint said that they agreed with the verdict. According to the bass player, he just wanted everything to be over. He said that the guy in the accident was his friend and now he wanted to move forward.
The NY Injury Lawyer indicated that the bass player looked like he did not want to hurt his friend. He had told the jurors that he had never seen Navaira drinking while he was doing the concert. All he could remember was the brake slamming on the highway and his friend trying to control the vehicle. The Tejano Singer had to have five brain operations because of his extensive injuries.
The lawsuit between the former bass player and the Singer was settled in court. The bass player was originally asking for one million dollars and after deliberating for eight hours, the jury came back with a lesser amount that seemed to be favorably to the complainant in the end. In Brooklyn and Queens, cases like this one are handled in the same manner.

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