Southern California Injury Law Blog

September is Baby Safety Month and it comes as we read and hear about defective baby items almost every day in the news. In fact there are on average 5 baby products recalled every month. That’s a lot of worrying for any new family, but thankfully we have the U. S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, CPSC, to watch out for us. Damages from unsafe consumer products cost the U.S. more than $700 billion per year. But over the last 30 years there has been a 30% drop in death and injury, thanks to smarter consumers.
If you’re a new parent, here are two new warnings out this week that you should be concerned with.

The first one is the recall of infant formula imported from China. This recall specifically is targeted to the Chinese American communities within California, but it could also end up in any store. The Orange County community of Irvine has one of the fastest growing Chinese populations in California and so has many shops containing Chinese -made products. The Federal Drug administration, FDA, is worried that some formula may have brought in illegally and potentially be in ethnic markets. It is illegal to import Chinese manufactured baby formula, but it does end up here. The name of the product is Sanlu.

So far there have been no reported illnesses in the U.S. but in China, three infants have died and 6000+ children have been sickened with kidney stones, flu-like symptoms and kidney failure. It has been discovered that the formula has been tainted with melamine, which is a nitrogen-based compound used in commercial plastics and industrial products. You may recall the large recall of pet food last year had the same ingredient. The Chinese government is now sending inspectors out to the milk suppliers of Sanlu Group. Evidence is mounting that the suppliers were adding the melamine to the milk to artificially give the milk higher protein content. Sanlu knew about the tainting as early as May when the first baby died, but kept quiet to avoid bad press during the Olympic games.

The second warning is a major recall of baby cribs and bassinets. This is the third major recall of children’s sleep furniture from Simplicity. A year ago Simplicity recalled over 1 million cribs after the deaths of two children. Some of these cribs were sold under the brand name of Graco. Just last month, 900,000 bassinets under the brands Simplicity, Disney and Graco were recalled. This month, 600,000 drop-side cribs can come off its tracks and suffocate a child. The cribs were made between January 2005 to August 2008 and were sold at Target, Wal-Mart and Babies-r-us. For more information on model numbers of the cribs, please visit the CPSC website at www.cpsc.gov for more information on this and other defective baby products.

Just to complicate the issue a little more, Simplicity has gone bankrupt and sold its assets to a new buyer. That buyer has now stated that they are not liable for recalling any products. Sound confusing? If your infant has been injured from this type of product or any other device, you don't hesitate to consult an attorney to answer all your questions.

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After California’s worst accident in metrolink history, the trains are back open and rolling. The crash has left many living here in Southern California wondering just how safe our commuter trains are. Even though the actual cause of the accident is under investigation, it could take up to one year until the National Transportation Safety Board, NTSB has concluded its inquiry. But as scattered facts are coming to light, shock has changed to anger when we slowly piece together the puzzle on what actually happened on the train that killed 25 commuters and injured over 135 other passengers.

So far the investigators have ruled out mechanical, track and train problems. The main focus is on the engineer, Robert Sanchez. According to the data that was recovered from the data recorder, no brake pressure had been applied and he was speeding. In addition, Metrolink officials confirmed that all signal lights were operating correctly and that he ran two red lights that warned of the approaching freight train. Other factors that could have influenced human error are that he typically worked a split shift (6am-9pm with a 3 ½ hour break), and was possibly texting at the time of the crash.

California senator Dianne Feinstein quickly introduced legislation this week that would require all trains to install new technology called “positive train control”. This new monitoring system would track all trains’ locations and stop them via an override system, if the engineer does not physically stop. This would prevent deadly train crashes and save hundreds of passengers from personal injury from wrecks.

The head of Metrolink last year addressed congress and complained that these new technologies would involve substantial costs and urged them to allow flexibility in implementing the new systems. They had just spent 177 million on newer, safe passenger cars. In every crash, the first car is normally more damaged than the others, and of course this is where most of the fatalities results. Unfortunately these new cars are not to be delivered until December 2008. The cars will hopefully prevent derailments and passengers from being crushed. Of course every industry does have to weigh the risks to upgrading old technology but in this case, the costs are enormous—literally.

Lawsuits already have begun being filed in California courts. The cap of $200 million, imposed by congress 11 years ago for liability on any one railway accident, will be tested because of the sheer volume of severe personal injuries and fatalities. Attorneys argue that more litigation actually provides more information for the community at large and this can bring about regulatory changes.

If you were injured in this recent train accident or any accident where you experienced any personal injury, you probably have a lot of questions. Contact a professional firm such as Allen, Flatt, Ballidis and Leslie for answers to your questions as well as assistance through this ordeal.

Metrolink passengers took over 10.5 million trips last year in Southern California. It still is safer than driving the freeways for commuters. With the recent high prices of gas and severe traffic congestion in Orange County, ridership was up 8% and there is more expansion planned for stops in Fullerton, Orange, Tustin, Irvine and Laguna Niguel.

Stay safe and enjoy each day.

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Posted In: Car Accidents , Injuries , Product Liability , Truck Accidents

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The nights are getting cooler, leaves are beginning to change and the kids are nowhere in sight. Yes, summer is over and children are back in school. But for most kids here in Orange County, they will either be passengers in cars or walking to school, instead of taking the bus, due to California’s state budget cuts. 70% less school bus routes will be available for families living within Laguna Niguel and Mission Viejo this school year. Transporting children to and from school creates more traffic in and around schools and leaves children vulnerable to personal injury.

When driving a vehicle, your children have ten times greater risk of injury then if they were in a school bus. While walking them to school, your injury risk is about double. School bus transportation is generally safe but it does have inherent safety risks as well. Nationwide school bus-related accidents send over 17,000 children to emergency rooms each year. Over 1500 fatalities have occurred over the last two decades.

One quarter of school bus accidents occur while the children are boarding or leaving the bus area. Another 50% of injuries are directly related to crashes while traveling on the bus and the other 25% are generally slips and falls, getting jostled when buses stop or turn suddenly, and from roughhousing.

Earlier this year in Chino, California we had a serious school bus accident, but fortunately for the occupants on the bus, they all had some type of restraining device thanks to our new seatbelt law and fortunately most of the injuries were minor. California is one of only 6 states that have mandated seat belts in all new school buses and this has reduced the risk of serious injury tremendously.

Although the approximate $4,000 cost of safety belts installed in new school buses are generally thought to be a good idea, many smaller districts can’t justify the extra costs. Some districts are now faced with liability issues of kids misbehaving on buses. Distraction among bus drivers is the leading cause of accidents. This is another strong argument for seat belt use in school buses. Keeping kids immobile will provide a safer environment for everyone involved.
If one of your children or if you know a child that has been injured in a school bus-related accident, don’t hesitate to call an experienced personal injury attorney. They are ready to assist you through the process of dealing with insurance companies, specialty doctors and other agencies.

Lastly, if your child does ride on a school bus, he or she should be aware of the area called the “danger zone”. This is the area in front of the bus where the driver has a blind spot and sadly over 2/3 of children’s fatalities are caused by their own bus running them over. Many new buses have wider windows for better viewing and door arms to help protect the kids.

Let's keep our children out of the danger zone if we can.

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Posted In: Car Accidents , Injuries , Product Liability , Truck Accidents

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Lake Forest California is a great community that I call home, and as a personal injury attorney I can tell you that it is a safe community. However, if you are texting while driving, you are endangering me, my darling daughter, family and all others in our community.

Last year over 360 million text messages were sent in the United States and over 57% of those were from adults, not teenagers. It is a dangerous trend that is not associated with teens anymore. More adults are learning this new hip language and are learning to multitask more efficiently than ever. Busy lives are the norm for many of us who live in Orange County and as you might imagine, rates of motor vehicle accidents with personal injury are also on the rise due to many distractions.

California senator Joe Simitian introduced SB-28 last year, a bill that would make it illegal for adults to send text messages while driving. It is already illegal for anyone under 18 years old to text. The bill is now one of many sitting on Governor Schwarzenegger’s desk awaiting signature. But with California’s current budget crisis, it is doubtful any bill will be signed without a new budget.

With or without a new law, do we really need the threat of a $20 fine because we were texting? Some legislators argued that we are limiting the personal freedoms of drivers and they fear further fines for things such as eating and kids in the car. It is clear that you can’t legislate common sense, but it is apparent that the less distraction you have in your car, the less likely it is that you will experience an auto accident. Nearly 80% of all collisions involve some sort of distraction within 3 seconds of the crash and fortunately, many of these issues can be avoided with some advanced planning.

A study by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety recently concluded that drivers using cell phones were four times as likely to get into a crash that can cause personal injuries, serious enough to send them to a hospital emergency room. These findings were for phone use only, not even for texting. Looking down and reading your electronic devices and sending text messages can only increase your risks. Already cell phones are blamed for over 300,000 collisions per year and 2,600 fatalities.

One tragic fatality was a young girl from Southern California driving home this month in Redlands. Officers reported that the girl had just sent a text message before her car lost control and hit the meridian. Other factors were involved but texting was cited as one of the causes. Other cases around the country are equally terrifying when you read that kids are texting their parents as they lay dying in a car wreck. One of the biggest influences on how teens drive is by modeling their parents. So if you want your kids not to speed, where their seatbelt, talk on their cell phones or text, try to model good driving patterns.

Whether SB-28 becomes law or not, fyi drive safe and ttyl.

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If you drive routinely on the freeways here in Orange County or in fact throughout California, you might have noticed an increase in aggressive driving. Increased congestion, running late, and anger are all contributing factors to the most aggressive driving that we’ve seen on the increase. The big problem is at what point does aggressive driving turn to road rage and thus become a risk factor for personal injury accidents, or in some cases, homicide.

Los Angeles is a major metropolitan center that now has the honor of “worst congestion in the US”, according to the American Automobile Association. Unfortunately it is also the 4th highest city for road rage incidences. Number 5 is Burbank, California, so Californians have a lot of issues to deal with. Do you think there is any connection there?

California alone has around 45,000 automobile accidents per year and of those accidents, 35,000 result in some type of personal injury to the occupants of the car. The 5th leading cause of auto-related fatalities, right behind speeding, alcohol, drowsiness and distraction is aggressive driving. It is a major problem within our state and is only increasing over time.
Only yesterday the Los Angeles Times reported that a man was shot on the 110 freeway as the result of a road rage incident. These reports have become so frequent that sometimes we are not fazed anymore. But what drives a person to react this way? A recent study asked drivers what makes them drive more aggressively and/or gets them angry and the main reasons were : getting cut off by another driver, drivers not allowed to merge in on a freeway, close tailgating, driving too slow in the left lane and finally, obscene gestures targeted towards them. After a busy day, yes you certainly don’t want to deal with this, but it’s important to contain your composure and not react back.

In California the Aggressive Driving Laws are quite clear. Using your car in an aggressive way that commits a crime is considered a criminal assault and you can be penalized with a fine of up to $10,000 and up to 4 years in jail.

This issue does not affect just cars against cars either. More cases of cars vs. pedestrian and bicyclists are becoming more common as well. Just last week a doctor pleaded not guilty in a road rage case where he yelled at two cyclists before cutting them off and then hit his brakes hard. One of the riders slammed into the rear window of the car and is now recovering. The driver is being charged with reckless driving, battery with serious bodily injury and special allegations of causing great bodily injury. Don’t let your anger get the best of you because these charges are quite serious and are just not worth losing your freedom over.

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