Archives : 2009 : September

California Pedestrian Accident Lawyers Concerned about Fatalities in Riverside, San Bernardino Valley

PE.com has statistics for pedestrian accidents in Riverside and San Bernardino counties between 2006 and 2008, and the numbers are of grave concern to California pedestrian accident lawyers. These show the challenges that pedestrians face as they perform what should be the fairly mundane tasks of walking or crossing the street.

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Toyota Recalls 3.8 Million Cars Because of Defective Floor Mats

In August this year, four members of a family were killed in a devastating accident in San Diego, involving a jammed accelerator on their borrowed Lexus. The car accelerated to uncontrollable speeds, went over an embankment, flipped over several times and burst into flames. The four people – CHP officer Mark Saylor, his wife, his 13-year-old daughter, and brother-in-law were killed instantly. A harrowing 911 call made by Saylor’s brother-in-law indicated that the car’s accelerator had jammed in the seconds before the accident.

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Orange County Motorist to Face Trial in Texting-While-Driving Pedestrian Accident

An Orange County judge has ruled that a motorist from Costa Mesa will stand trial for his involvement in a pedestrian accident last year.

Martin Burt Kuehl faces charges of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence. He has been accused of text messaging while driving, which contributed to the accident.  His attorneys argued that there was no evidence to show that Kuehl was text messaging at the time of the crash. However, prosecutors held that his use of a cell phone indicated that he was driving negligently, which caused him not to see Marta Ovalle. Ovalle was an immigrant from Guatemala, and was working in Newport Beach as a nanny. On August 29^th 2008, she was crossing the street in a marked crosswalk, when she was struck by Kuehl’s car.

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Ex-Los Angeles Deputy Sentenced to 6 Months in Drunk Driving Accident

A former deputy with the Los Angles County Sheriff’s Department has been sentenced to 6 months in jail for his role in a drunk driving accident that injured two people last year. Robert Moran of Buena Park has also been sentenced to three years of informal probation. In February, Moran pleaded no contest to driving under the influence causing injury, and driving with a blood alcohol level of .08 percent or more, causing injury. Moran has been ordered to be enrolled into a three-month program for first offenders, which will include paying Mothers Against Drunk Driving a fee to hear victims of drunk driving accidents, or relatives of these victims, talk about their stories and experience.

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California Family Injured in Drunk Driving Accident in Bakersfield

A California family returning home from a trip to Disneyland, has suffered injuries in an alcohol-related car accident.

According to Bakersfield.com, the family, consisting of six children, their father and grandmother were in their SUV and returning home from a trip to Disneyland. The SUV was on highway 99, when it was struck by a car driven by an intoxicated driver. The SUV flipped over, and the 8 occupants of the SUV were injured. The children and their father sustained minor injuries, but their grandmother was seriously injured, and was airlifted to the hospital. The motorist whose car stuck the SUV, has been arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence.

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Southern California’s Roads are Death Traps for Wheelchair Users

California pedestrian accident lawyers have long been concerned about the high rates of pedestrian accidents, especially in southern California. The lack of awareness about motorist responsibilities and a disturbing lack of respect for the rights of pedestrians to be on the streets, have meant hundreds of pedestrians are injured or killed in accidents in southern California every year. So, it’s no wonder that our roads are even more dangerous for those on motorized wheelchairs.

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Report Shows 218 Fatalities in Metrolink Train Accidents in Past 15 Years

A report published in the Los Angeles Times shows that 218 people were killed in accidents involving Metrolink trains in the 15 years before last year’s deadly crash that killed 25 people.

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Concern as Trucking Industry Lobbyist Begins FMCSA Chief Confirmation Hearings

California trucking accident lawyers regularly follow legislation impacting trucking safety, and other developments that impact the safety of truckers and the motorists who share the roads with them.  This week, President Barrack Obama’s nomination for head of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration began confirmation hearings in the Senate.  What trucking accident lawyers and safety advocates have been concerned about is that nominee Anne Ferro served as a trucking industry lobbyist for the last 6 years. Ferro headed the Maryland affiliate of the trucking industry group, American Trucking Associations. She has been a major lobbyist for the trucking industry in that state.

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Motorist in San Fernando Pedestrian Accident Charged with Murder

A motorist involved in a fatal pedestrian accident in San Fernando last year has been charged with second degree murder.

On September 23^rd 2008, Marcia Roberts was driving a sports utility vehicle that struck 19-year-old California State University Northridge student Johoney Lobos. Lobos was walking in a crosswalk near the university campus, and was on her way to an evening class at CSNU when she was hit. Roberts didn’t stop to offer the seriously injured Lobos any help.  She fled the scene of the accident.

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FDA Admits Menaflex Knee Device Approval Flawed

The Food and Drug Administration has for a while now been battling allegations related to the approval of a knee device, Menaflex.  This week, the agency admitted that its review process for Menaflex had been influenced by lawmakers. The agency has also announced that it will now review the approval of the knee device.

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