Glendale Personal Injury Lawyer - Wrongful Death

Lawsuit Claims Negligence in Texas Daycare Death

Greg Owen — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 12:30:00 GMT

Attorneys representing Dallas' Rasansky Law Firm announced the lawsuit on behalf of the mother of a two-year-old girl who choked to death on a piece of gravel at a northeast Dallas daycare center in 2008.

According to the wrongful death lawsuit filed in the 44th District Court in Dallas, employees at the Woodbridge Day School located on Plano Road failed to notice when 2-year old Isabella Estep started choking on a small rock and collapsed inside the school on Oct. 31, 2008. Despite activity all around the unconscious child, 5-10 minutes passed before any school employees realized something was wrong. Isabella later died after being transported to a local hospital.

According to Texas Department of Family and Human Services, the girl's teacher, Mia Jennings, did not meet state required qualifications and was not trained in CPR and first aid. The investigation also discovered inadequate supervision.

Attorneys for Isabella's family also allege that the school's owners prevented the results of the investigation from being made public by selling the school. According to the TDFPS investigator, Mr. Hall said he wanted to "sell the operation as quickly as possible" if the state planned to close the facility. As a result of the sale, the school has continued to operate without information about Isabella's death being available on the state database used by other parents when selecting a day care facility.

The Dallas County medical examiner ruled the choking an accident.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Greg Owen

Family of Boy Killed in Hyperbaric Chamber Files Wrongful Death

Greg Owen — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 09:55:27 GMT

A 4-year-old boy and his grandmother were fatally burned when the hyperbaric chamber they were both in exploded. The grandmother died in the explosion. The boy, Francesco Pio Martinisi, suffered burns to 90 percent of his body and died one month after the explosion.

The family of the victims filed a wrongful death lawsuit claiming the Ocean Hyperbaric Oxygen Neurological Center in Lauderdale-by-the-sea was negligent in the treatment of Francesco for cerebral palsy.

Martinisi and his grandmother traveled from Italy for the treatment in Florida. The Ocean Hyperbaric Oxygen Center is state-licensed and treats patients with brain injuries, cerebral palsy and those who have nearly drowned.

The facility had been cited several times for violations of local codes and fire safety standards. The Lauderdale-by-the-Sea fire marshal told the station that the center had several unresolved violations related to its hyperbaric chambers. The Broward County Sheriff's office told the station that the chamber involved in the explosion is old. It used an electric motor to seal the hyperbaric chamber shut. The marshal said there was no high-pressure alarm on the oxygen tank there.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Greg Owen

Suit Filed Over Classroom Murder of Southern California Gay Teen

Greg Owen — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 08:33:00 GMT

The family of a gay teenager murdered during class has filed a wrongful-death lawsuit accusing the scool district, a shelter, and a gay rights organization of failure to protect him.

Lawrence King, 15, was killed last February while attending class at E. O. Green Junior High School. The accused, Brandon McInerney, was charged as an adult and has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder and a hate crime.

The suit names nearly two dozen defendents including Lawrence's principal and teacher; McInerney and his parents; Casa Pacifica, a shelter for troubled children; counselors; a social worker; and the Ventura County Rainbow Alliance.

The shelter allegedly gave Lawrence “cross-dressing clothes and makeup and women’s boots,” and the Rainbow Alliance, where Mr. King took part in group activities for gay teenagers, encouraged him to make sexual advances toward his classmate, the suit claims.

If convicted, Mr. McInerney, now 15, could face 51 years to life in prison. He is accused of shooting Mr. King, who was in the eighth grade, twice in the head in English class.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Greg Owen

Plane Crash Victim's Family Files Wrongful Death Lawsuit

Greg Owen — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 21:48:56 GMT

The family of a Cerritos man killed in a plane crash one year ago has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the plane’s owner and the estates of the deceased pilots.

The crash occurred between two small planes on January 20, 2008 around one mile from Corona Municipal Airport. Scott Gayle Lawrence, 55, and Paul Carlson, 73, both of Cerritos were in one plane. In the other plane were Brandon William Johnson, 24, of Costa Mesa, and Anthony Joel Guzman, 21, of Hesperia.

A third victim, Earl Smiddy, 58, of Moreno Valley, was killed by falling debris from the crash.

The lawsuit was filed on Friday by Scott Lawrence’s ex-wife.

According to a preliminary crash report from the National Transportation Safety Board, both planes were flying under “visual flight rules”, and were responsible to both see and avoid other traffic. It appears that the collision occurred while both were approaching the airport and neither appeared to take any action to avoid the collision. Neither pilots had filed a flight plan.

An attorney for Brandon Johnson’s mother filed a claim last year against the city alleging that the airport should have had a control tower. The Corona airport is a general aviation airport, a classification which does not require a tower. Corona city officials reviewed airport safety after the crash and recommended minor changes, and they asked the Federal Aviation Administration to study whether a tower is needed. The 2008 lawsuit was later thrown out due to failure to file within six months of the crash.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Greg Owen

Wrongful Death Lawsuits to Move Forward

Greg Owen — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 23:00:20 GMT

Lawsuits over KBR (a former subsidiary of Halliburton) drivers' deaths in Iraq could be tried in 2009.

It appears that families who have filed lawsuits against the military contractors may finally get their day in court, according to a federal court judge.

The suits center around Halliburton. The families claim that they knowingly and unnecessarily sent convoys with their family members into dangerous areas, which ultimately ended in the death of several solders and injuries of others in 2004.

Initially, the cases were dismissed, but were subsequently sent back to Judge Gary Miller by the federal appeals court. Attorneys have been advised to prepare for trial, which may go forward in 2009. More than 110 of KBR’s former employees have died in Iraq since it started there under a multibillion-dollar contract in 2003.

Additional Information Pertaining to Wrongful Death

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Greg Owen

Teenager From Faith-Healing Family Dies Unnecessarily

Greg Owen — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 14:31:11 GMT

Ava Worthington, the 15-month-old child of Carl and Raylene Worthington didn't stand a chance. Her parents belong to a faith healing church group known as Followers of Christ, which has a congregation of approximately 1,200 members. The members of that church do not believe in using modern medicine. Instead they relay on faith and prayer. As a result of those beliefs, in March, Ava died unnecessarily due to untreated bronchial pneumonia and a blood infection.

Due to the wrongful death of Ava, her parents of Ava have been charged with manslaughter and criminal mistreatment to which they have pleaded not guilty. According to their defense attorney, they intend to use a religious freedom defense.

Thankfully, in 1999 Oregon law struck down the use of religious shields for parents who treat their children with nothing other than prayer. This came about after earlier deaths involving children of Followers of Christ believers.

Most recently, Ava’s cousin, 16-year-old Neil Beagley, died also as a result of not having medical treatment. However, in Oregan, a child as young as 14 can refuse medical treatment (makes little sense to most). "All of the interviews from last night are that he [16-year-old Neil Beagley] did in fact refuse treatment," police Sgt. Lynne Benton said Wednesday. "Unless we can disprove that, charges probably won't be filed in this case." Neil died of heart failure caused by a urinary tract blockage.

Additional Information Pertaining to Wrongful Death

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Greg Owen

Judge Orders Family of Slain Farmer to Repay Assets

Greg Owen — Fri, 02 May 2008 22:46:17 GMT

In 2003, 48-year-old Rodney Heemstra was convicted of murdering his neighbor, Tom Lyon. That verdict was then overturned, and the money that was initally awarded must be returned.

At the time of the conviction the family of the decedent were awarded $11.5 million, an award based on the murder conviction. However, subsequent to the 2003 trial, a new trial was granted and in 2006 the original conviction was overturned. The second conviction is now under appeal. In the new trial Heemstra was convicted of voluntary manslaughter. He claims he was merely defending himself at the time of the incident.

Now the decedent’s family must return deeds to property worth millions - deeds they acquired as a result of the initial verdict. Additionally, the estate must pay back more than $929,000. Punative damages will be pursued by the family of the decedent during the upcoming second civil trail.

Get Informaton Pertaining to Wrongful Death.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Greg Owen

Ritter Family Presses Wrongful-death Suit

Greg Owen — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 15:14:09 GMT

You may recall that 54 year-old actor/comedian John Ritter of Three's Company fame died most unexpectedly in September 2003 on, of all days, his 5-year-old daughter's birthday. At the time of his death, Ritter was married to actress Amy Yasbeck. Yesback and Ritter's four children have now filed a wrongful-death lawsuit in Los Angeles. Two doctors are named in that suit.

According to court records, to date, the family has received more than $14 million in settlements. The doctors at St Joseph Medical Center, where Ritter died, treated him as if he was having a heart attack. That point is not in dispute. However, both sides agree that what Ritter was actually suffering from was an aortic dissection, which was not identified until after his death. Ritter's wife feels that sign of her husband's condition were missed by his doctors until it was too late.

Additional information pertaining to wrongful death

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Greg Owen

Did a Pit Bull or a Person Cause this Child's Death

Greg Owen — Tue, 29 Jan 2008 17:47:04 GMT

Sharon, a seven-year-old Kingston girl, was found dead in the basement of her family home a decade ago. She had suffered more than 80 wounds and part of her scalp was torn from her head. Eventually, the child bled to death.
The cause Sharon's death is what has experts and police alike at raising questions.

The cause of death given by the family of the victim was a pit bull attack. However, one of Ontario's top forensic expert, Dr. Robert Wood, is not buying it. He still believes that a dog attack is not the only explanation for the death. Yesterday, he gave testimony rejecting the opinions of other experts who concluded that the dog attack caused all of Sharon's injures and indeed her death.

Both Woods and the police are much more inclined to believe that some of the 80 wounds on the child were stab wounds. Particularly a wound to her neck. "I would like someone to explain to me ... how that could be made by a dog's tooth," said Woods. It is interesting to note that a man by the name of Gordon Strowbridge, was in the house at the time Sharon died and he was convicted of a brutal stabbing murder in Nova Scotia after Sharon's death.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Greg Owen

Wrongful-death suit filed against Red Robin

Greg Owen — Mon, 07 Jan 2008 18:04:54 GMT

When the parents of a 20 year old young man allowed him to go the grand opening of a new Red Robin restaurant in January 2006, they felt secure in the fact that their young son would be supervised by the management of the restaurant while he was away from home. After all, they had been assured by Pete Cardillo, a manager for Red Robin, that not only would there be supervision, but that he (Cardillo) would be staying in the rented townhouse with their son, Kyle Watz, along with other employees. The last thing the Watz family expected was the wrongful death of their son.

While it is true that Red Robin rented a townhouse for the male employees and another for the female employees, neither Cardillo nor any other supervisor stayed in the same townhouse with the employees as promised. On January 7, 2006 some of the employees who were over the age of 21 purchased alcohol and made it readily available to Watz. In fact, they celebrated the 20th birthday of Watz with that alcohol. Red Robin supervisors knew or should have known of this party. No supervisors were even on hand. During the early morning hours of Jan. 8, 2006, Watz died at the townhouse after celebrating his 20th birthday. Red Robin management breached its duty to supervise Watz. Accordingly, the suit is seeking unspecified monetary damages in this wrongful death case.

For more information on this subject, please refer to the section on Wrongful Death.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Greg Owen