If these proposals become law, Massachusetts would be the 20th state, in addition to Washington DC, to ban texting while driving and the 7th state to ban handheld phones. Drivers under the age 18 would be prohibited from using any kind of cell phone when there are behind the steering wheel of a car.
The National Safety Council says that at least 1.6 million US car accidents occur every year because a motorist was talking on a cell phone or texting. While texting is even more dangerous than talking on a phone, because so many more people talk on the phone while driving it is the cause of more motor vehicle accidents. Drivers who text message cause 200,000 car crashes annually, while motorists who talk on cell phones cause 1.4 million auto collisions.
Distracted Driving Accidents
Talking on the phone and text messaging while operating a vehicle are now considered distracted driving activities that can be cited as grounds for a Boston injury lawsuit or a Massachusetts wrongful death complaint.
This latest Massachusetts measure also calls for drivers older than 75 to undergo a vision test every five years before they can renew their driver’s license. The AARP disagrees with any rules that single out elderly motorists solely based on age. However, concern has been growing in the state over the recent number of Massachusetts car accidents that have involved elderly drivers whose waning mental and sensory faculties appeared to have contributed to causing traffic collisions that injured others.
Mass. House OK’s driving safety bill, Boston.com, February 5, 2010
National Safety Council Estimates That At Least 1.6 Million Crashes Are Caused Each Year by Drivers Using Cell Phones and Texting, PR Newswire, January 12, 2010
Related Web Resources:
National Safety Council
Cell Phone Laws, Insurance Institute for Highway Safety
]]> Our Boston accident lawyers represent clients throughout Massachusetts. ]]>Although one study reports that since the warning went out there has been a 19% drop in the use of atypical antipsychotics to treat elderly dementia patients, researchers say that antipsychotics still comprised 9% of all prescription meds given to these nursing home patients in 2008. Not only are antipsychotics used to treat schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, they are also used for “off label” purposes, such as controlling problem patients' conduct.
Dr. E. Ray Dorsey, the lead author of one of the studies and an assistant professor of neurology at the University of Rochester Medical Center, believes that most of the use that he documented was for “off label" purposes.The co-author of the second study, University of Massachusetts Medical School associate professor of medicine Becky A. Briesacher, notes that there is a disconnect between the prescribing patterns and the evidence.
Her study found that one-third of nursing home patients who are treated with antipsychotics are not suffering from psychosis or dementia. Also, elderly persons admitted to assisted living facilities with high antipsychotic prescription rates were more likely to also receive prescriptions for these meds.
While some nursing home patients benefit do benefit antipsychotic drug treatment, treating a patient with antipsychotics without proper cause can be harmful to the resident and may be grounds for the victim to file a Boston nursing home abuse lawsuit. Antipsychotics drug use can lead to serious side effects, such as seizures, severe lethargy, permanent involuntary muscle movements, and sudden death.
It is illegal for nursing home to administer antipsychotics to a resident unless the doctor has prescribed it and the patient has consented to the treatment. You can read more about these two studies in the Archives of Internal Medicine's January 11 issue.
Antipsychotics Still Widely Used in U.S. Nursing Homes, Business Week, January 11, 2010
Compromised Care: Psychotropic drugs given to nursing home patients without cause, Chicago Tribune, October 27, 2009
Related Web Resources:
Archives of Internal Medicine
This prohibition is part of the Obama Administration’s efforts to curb distracted driving. Talking on a cell phone and texting while driving have proven particularly dangerous, and people have died in motor vehicle crashes throughout the US as a result.
Just last May 49 people were injured in a Boston MBTA trolley accident because the 24-year-old conductor was texting his girlfriend. While MBTA operators of buses, trains, and streetcars are no longer allowed to carry cell phones while on the job, among the rest of the Massachusetts driver population only school bus drivers are prohibited from talking on a cell phone while driving. Unlike a number of other US states, Massachusetts currently does not have a law banning drivers from texting or talking on handheld cell phones. However, yesterday the Joint Committee on Transportation approved a bill banning all drivers in the state from texting. It also bans drivers under 18 from talking on a cell phone. The Massachusetts Senate and House must approve the bill before it can become law.
Truck drivers who text reportedly increase their Massachusetts truck crash risk by up to 23 times. Truckers and bus drivers who text inevitably have to take their hands off the steering wheel and their eyes off the road. When this occurs, a public bus, a school bus, a tractor-trailer, a semi-truck, or an 18-wheeler truck turns into a dangerous and deadly fast-moving vehicle. Meantime, Some US Senators are calling on the US Transportation Department to extend its federal texting ban to all motorists.
It is never a good idea to text message or surf the Web while driving. In the event of a catastrophic Massachusetts motor vehicle collision, the negligent driver can become the defendant of a Boston injury case.
Mass. lawmakers propose law to ban text messaging while driving, Masslive.com, January 28, 2010
Senators urge expansion of federal ban on texting by truckers, bus drivers, StarGazette, January 26, 2010
U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood Announces Federal Ban on Texting for Commercial Truck Drivers, US Department of Transportation
MBTA: Conductor in Boston trolley crash was texting his girlfriend, Boston.com, May 8, 2009
Related Web Resources:
Cell Phone Driving Laws, Governors Highway Safety Association
Thibault, who is Danielle’s identical twin, was mentally ill. She had received treatment for her condition at McLean Hospital. Psychiatrists at the Harvard-affiliated psychiatric facility had diagnosed the 39-year-old with bipolar disorder in 2007. After discharging her from the Belmont hospital they recommended outpatient therapy and prescribed psychotropic drugs. However, the Lamberts claim that McLean’s doctors failed to warn them that Marcelle might be a danger to herself and those close to her.
On the night of the tragic incident, four months after she was discharged from the mental hospital, Thibault arrived at the Lamberts home to pick up the kids for a sleepover. Earlier in the evening, Massachusetts State Police almost detained her for a psychiatric evaluation. She reportedly was behaving strangely on an I-495 median and she even hit a motorist who tried to help her.
Thibault took her nephew and niece back to the median where she stopped her vehicle, parking it in the wrong direction. She took off the kids’ clothing, as well as her own clothes, and ran with them into oncoming traffic. A week after her death, the Middlesex district attorney’s office ruled the Lowell pedestrian accident a murder-suicide.
Other defendants in the Massachusetts wrongful death lawsuit are Katryn Healy, a licensed social worker, and psychiatrists Dr. Mia D. Pfleging and Dr. Matthew E. Bernstein.
A party does not have been the direct cause of Massachusetts wrongful death in ordered to be named as a defendant. A defendant can be held liable if their allegedly negligent actions contributed to causing the death.
Parents' suit blames hospital in children's Lowell I-495 deaths, January 27, 2010
Lawsuit faults McLean in death of 2 innocents, Boston.com, January 26, 2010
Related Web Resources:
Wrongful death, the General Laws of Massachusetts
Howe was accused of striking one state trooper and trying to flee the scene. Police arrested him after a brief pursuit and he was charged with assault and battery on a police officer.
The family’s Massachusetts injury attorney says that Howe never attempted to resist arrest. According to the driver of the pickup truck that the Worcester man was riding in, the trooper pulled Howe from the vehicle and started yelling out that she had been assaulted. 10 – 20 cops then surrounded Howe, who afterwards was unable to stand up unassisted. Police picked him up and dragged him to a cruiser.
While in the booking room at Andover State Police Barracks, Howe became unconscious. He was transported to Lawrence General Hospital where he was declared dead.
Howe’s relatives have said that the “blunt force” injuries to the chest and head that killed Howe were a result of police beating him during his arrest. This week, the Chief Medical Examiner’s office ruled that the Worcester man’s death was a homicide, with “beating” as the cause of the victim’s fatal injuries. However, the medical examiner’s office was quick to point out that it is not assigning criminal wrongdoing or blame. Final forensic and autopsy findings are still pending.
Massachusetts Police Brutality
If you believe that your loved one sustained injuries or died while in police custody because a Massachusetts police officer used excessive force when apprehending, questioning, arresting, or interrogating him/her, you should not be afraid to report the incident. Police brutality is a violation of a person’s civil rights. Even if no wrongdoing is found on the part of an officer or a police department, you may have grounds for filing a Massachusetts police brutality complaint.
Medical Examiner: Death in cop custody a homicide, Boston Herald, January 23, 2010
Man Dies In State Police Custody After Arrest, WBZ, November 27, 2009
Related Web Resources:
Office of the Chief Medical Examiner's Office, Mass.gov
The vehicles included in this recall are the:
• Sequoia (2008 – 2010 models)
• Tundra (2007 – 2010 models)
• Highlander (2010 model)
• Camry (2007 to 2010 models)
• Avalon (2005 to 2010 models)
• Matrix (2009 to 2010 models)
• Corolla (2009 to 2010 models)
• Rav4 (2009 to 2010 models)
Toyota’s reputation for making quality, safe cars has taken a beating. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says that Toyota recalled more autos than any other car manufacturer in 2009. In total, the automaker recalled 4.87 million vehicles, including 110,000 Tundra pickups over worries that the vehicles’ spare tires might fall onto the road, causing a potential traffic hazard.
Now, Safety Expert Sean Kane is reportedly telling ABC News that there have been over 60 new incidents involving runaway Toyotas since the automaker announced the November recall and said it would modify the affected vehicles’s gas pedals. Over the holiday season, four people died on December 26 after their Toyota drove off the road and landed upside down in a pond. The floor mats were in the trunk, where Toyota had advised car owners to put them.
Toyota says this latest recall isn’t related to the one from last November.
Defective car parts can be a significant safety hazard that can kill and seriously injure people. Injured parties and their families can find out whether they have a Boston auto products liability complaint on their hands.
TOYOTA RECALL: Reports of Runaway Cars, ABC News, January 21, 2010
Auto recalls surge in '09, NHTSA says, Detroit News, January 12, 2010
Related Web Resources:
Toyota Motor Corporation
Toyota may shorten gas pedals in acceleration recall, Consumer Reports, November 17, 2009
]]> An experienced Boston, Massachusetts injury law firm can explore your legal options with you. ]]>According to Norrie’s Plymouth injury complaint, he fell down a flight of stairs and separated his shoulder as he fled his home. Now, he is seeking over $250,000 in Massachusetts personal injury compensation for his injuries and the damage to his home. Norrie is accusing Hewlett-Packard of breach of warranty and negligence in regards to the manufacture, sale, instruction, and distribution of a product that was defective.
Lithium-Ion Batteries and Laptops
The fact that lithium-ion batteries pose an injury hazard is not news. Over the past five years, HP has announced four recalls of its lithium-ion batteries because they were considered fire hazards. Last May, HP recalled the batteries for nine Pavilion Notebook models because there was a chance the batteries might rupture, posing a fire hazard. 70,000 lithium-ion batteries were part of this recall, which included batteries for HPs, Compaq Presarios, and one HP Compaq model. Over the last several years, other computer manufacturers, including Apple Inc., Compaq, and Dell, have also recalled their lithium-ion batteries.
While a battery that gets a little hot may not sound too dangerous, it can lead to serious injuries and even death if the overheated battery causes a laptop to burst into flames. Last August, a 56-year-old Canadian man died when his HP laptop caught fire after it was left on a sofa. Yet despite the dangers, manufacturers continue to sell laptops that pose a fire hazard. Just this month, The Consumer Product Safety Commission announced the recall of approximately 22,000 Acer Aspire notebooks because they might short circuit and overheat.
Plymouth man sues Hewlett-Packard over laptop fire, The Boston Globe, January 8, 2010
Laptop fire blamed for Vancouver death, CBC News, August 26, 2009
HP Recalls Notebook Computer Batteries Due to Fire Hazard, CPSC, May 14, 2009
Related Web Resources:
Hewlett-Packard
Products Liability, NOLO
]]> You may have grounds for filing a Boston products liability lawsuit against a negligent computer manufacturer. ]]>Lowell police say Medeiros’s motor vehicle struck Kelvin at the intersection of Route 113 and Mammoth Road, causing him to fly about 20 feet in the air. Rather than stopping to help the boy, the teen driver is accused of leaving him dead and rushing off to a Lawrence salon for a hair appointment.
Michelle then called Lawrence police to report that someone had vandalized her father’s car. She also allegedly filed a false police report and had the vehicle towed to a body shop in an attempt to cover up evidence from the Massachusetts car accident.
Police say Michelle later confessed to her involvement in the Massachusetts hit-and-run crash. The high school senior is charged with passing a vehicle stopped for a pedestrian, negligent operation of a motor vehicle, operating at a speed greater than reasonable and proper, leaving the scene of an accident, and failure to use caution when changing lanes.
Hit-and-Run Accidents
Motorists are not allowed to drive away without stopping at the crash scene anytime they are involved in a pedestrian accident. To do so is called hit-and-run driving and against the law. Leaving a crash site can prove catastrophic if the pedestrian is seriously injured and no one calls for medical help. In some pedestrian accidents, victims who should otherwise have survived and recovered from their injuries ended up dying because the motorist that struck them didn't contact 911.
Law suit filed against Methuen teen in hit and run, The Eagle-Tribune, December 29, 2009
Hit-And-Run Victim Home, With Sense Of Humor, WBZ, November 27, 2009
Related Web Resources:
Teen Drivers: Fact Sheet, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Taylor drowned while drunk. The body of the 17-year-old Plainville teen was found in a swamp. She disappeared after leaving an underage drinking party at the abandoned Norfolk airport. A two-day search ensued.
Named as defendants in the wrongful death lawsuit are siblings Paige and Brian Zuzick, Sean Flynn, Rachel Stark, and her mother Dianne, Matthew Dusseault, and Christopher Moran. Brian gave alcohol to Taylor and Paige. Flynn, a 21-year-old North Attleboro resident, bought the rum for Brian. Taylor allegedly had access to alcohol during a party at the Stark residence before she went to the party at the airport. Dusseault and Moran, who are both from Norfolk, are accused of bringing alcohol to the underage drinking party.
In her Norfolk wrongful death complaint, Kathi says that friends laughingly pointed Taylor toward the swamp instead of the street as she left the party at the airport. Kathi is accusing the defendants of negligence, wrongful death, conscious infliction of pain and punishment, and willful and reckless acts.
Underage Drinking
There is a reason why minors are not allowed to drink alcohol. The US Surgeon General reports that about 5,000 minors die every year because of underage drinking. Teens often do not know how to handle their liquor, which can lead to injuries and deaths from tragic car accidents, violent and sexual crimes, suicide, drug use, and other unfortunate incidents.
Mother files lawsuit after daughter’s drowning death at party, Boston Herald, January 13, 2010
Friends, parents sued in teen's death, The Sun Chronicle, January 13, 2010
Related Web Resources:
Dangers of Teen Drinking, Federal Trade Commission
Underage Drinking, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
]]> If your loved one died because they were over-served alcohol as an adult or illegally served alcohol as a minor, you may have grounds for pursing a Boston wrongful death lawsuit against all negligent parties. ]]>According to head injury specialist Professor Roger Woo and colleague Claire Williams, traumatic brain injury patients can exhibit a loss of emotional attachment with family and friends, which suggests a connection between empathy problems and traumatic brain injuries.
Per neurology literature, there are three broad categories for empathy:
Cognitive empathy: Allows the person to know what someone else is feeling
Emotional empathy: Let’s someone feel what another is feeling
Compassionate empathy: Enables the person to response to another person’s upset feelings with compassion
In the Wood and Williams study, TBI patients scored low on empathy tests—two times lower, as a matter of fact, than control subjects. TBI patients displayed an impaired ability to identify what people on video and in photographs were feeling. Williams and Wood also tested for alexithymia, a personality trait that makes it hard for a person to know/describe what he/she is feeling. 60% of TBI patients they tested compared to 11% of the control group exhibited this personality trait. One reason that emotional processing can become impaired when a person has a TBI is that the areas of the brain that control this type of activity are susceptible to damage.
Massachusetts Traumatic Brain Injury Lawsuits
In addition to wreaking havoc on the victim, a traumatic brain injury can also take a toll on family members and friends. You may be able to obtain Massachusetts injury recovery by filing a Boston traumatic brain injury lawsuit.
Traumatic Brain Injury leads to problems with emotional processing, Psychology Today, January 3, 2010
Related Web Resources:
NINDS Traumatic Brain Injury Information Page
TBI, The Mayo Clinic
]]>Savicki says that after giving birth to Manuel Flores on December 19, 2006, a medical team performed a tubal ligation, which is a permanent procedure, instead of implanting an intrauterine device, which is a birth control procedure that can be reversed. She says that the permanent procedure left her mentally distressed and upset that she can no longer have more children.
Savicki says the defendants did not have a medical reason for performing the permanent sterilization. She also claims that never signed a written consent for the procedure, which is required for MassHealth patients.
A spokesperson for the hospital says that the document was signed. However, Savicki’s Massachusetts medical malpractice lawyer says that the hospital’s Health Information Management System department hasn’t been able to locate a signed consent form.
Failure to Obtain Informed Consent
Choosing to permanently prevent pregnancy is a serious and important decision for a woman to make. Doctor should notify a patient of the risks and ramifications associated with this medical procedure.
Medical providers must obtain a patient’s informed consent before performing an invasive procedure. A patient can sue for Boston medical malpractice if a medical procedure was performed without his/her permission or if a medical complication that he/she wasn't warned about occurs.
Ma mom: I was sterilized against my will, Cape Cod, January 3, 2010
Mother of Nine Claims She Was Sterilized Against Her Will, WCTV, January 4, 2010
Related Web Resources:
Medical Malpractice, Nolo
Tubal Ligation – Permanent Birth Control for Women, HealthNews, December 31, 2007
]]>According to police, the alleged drunk driver, 33-year-old Philip Daniels, entered Interstate 90 from the wrong way in his 1995 Jeep Cherokee. He is accused of crashing head on into Bronfield’s MG near the Prudential Center tunnel. The fatal Boston motor vehicle crash occurred just before 2am.
Authorities say that Daniels, a financier for John Hancock Financial Services, had a BAC of .23, which is significantly higher than the .08 legal driving limit. The Norwood man reportedly told Massachusetts police that he was drinking beer at Lucky’s Lounge prior to the Boston auto crash.
At his arraignment, the Norwood man pleaded not guilty to motor vehicle homicide while under the influence of alcohol.
Drunken Driving Accidents
Drunk driving not only causes serious injuries and deaths, but this dangerous behavior destroys families. In addition to the victims involved in a drunk driving crash, there are the victims' family members who must now cope with the emotional trauma brought about by losing someone they love prematurely and in such a senseless manner. Drunk driving victims and the people they love will likely spend years grappling with the consequences brought about by someone else's negligent behavior.
You can hold a drunk driver liable for causing your serious injuries or your loved one’s death.
Financier charged in fatal Pike crash, Boston Herald, December 29, 2009
Surviving victim of wrong-way crash still critical, Telegram, December 29, 2009
Related Web Resources:
Mothers Against Drunk Driving
Fatalities and Fatality Rates in Alcohol- Impaired-Driving Crashes by State, 2007-2008, NHTSA (PDF)
]]> Contact our Boston personal injury law firm to explore your legal options.]]>Somang Ath, the 26-year-old driver of the vehicle that struck the car that their son was riding, was also killed in the tragic Massachusetts car accident. Prior to driving the wrong way and crashing head-on into the vehicle that VonBehren was in, Ath drank alcohol with friends at Jillian’s, a Worcester bar.
According to Massachusetts police, Ath’s BAC was .28%. The License Commission suspended the bar’s license for a week after determining that there was evidence that Jillian’s over-served him. JBC of Worcester, which was bought by Revolution Entertainment of Whitinsville this May, was the owner of the bar at the time that the deadly Shrewsbury traffic accident happened. 10 days after the tragic Shrewsbury car crash that killed Ath and VonBehren, Jillian’s allegedly over-served another man who had a BAC of .30.
The Massachusetts wrongful death complaint accuses the company of negligence for over-serving Ath and letting him get drunk. 50 “Does” were also listed as Massachusetts wrongful death defendants in the VonBehren’s civil lawsuit.
The VonBehrens are seeking damages for pain and suffering, loss of consortium, and mental anguish.
Third Party Lawsuits
In Massachusetts, not only can you sue the drunk driver that caused a car crash for Boston personal injury or wrongful death, but you can also sue third parties, such as a bar or a liquor store, that contributed to the inebriated motorist becoming drunk. For example, a bar may have overserved the motorist, allowed an underage teen driver to drink or obtain alcohol, or let a drunk patron get behind the wheel of the vehicle. This holiday season, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and Massachusetts State Police are cracking down on drunk drivers to prevent more alcohol-related crashes from happenings.
Family sues bar’s ex-owner in son’s death, Telegram.com, December 15, 2009
Dedham Police joins Massachusetts State Police in crackdown on drunk driving during the holiday, Wicked Local, December 15, 2009
Related Web Resources:
MassDOT
Fatalities and Fatality Rates in Alcohol- Impaired-Driving Crashes by State, 2007-2008, NHTSA (PDF)
]]>Jason, who was born with Tetralogy of Fallot, died in December 2004 after undergoing a procedure at Children’s Hospital in Boston a year and a half earlier to treat his birth defect. The serious defect, which was treatable, prevented his limbs and organs from receiving enough oxygen.
Jason underwent seven cardiac catheterizations and open heart surgery. During his second catheterization in April 2003, Jason had a seizure. The contrast dye, which allowed doctors to better see his anatomy, went into his brain.
Doctors who conducted an MRI to determine if he now had brain damage found a piece of metal in his brain that they think came from a medical instrument. They are not sure which procedure or what hospital the metal piece came from. The toddler’s heart rate dropped during the MRI and doctors had to revive him. Jason couldn’t speak or walk when he left the hospital. He sustained permanent brain injuries and eventually died.
Jason’s parents, Brian and Andrea Fox, say the doctors lied about what they did when treating their son and tried to cover up their actions. In Superior Court last week, the jury blamed Dr. James Lock and anesthesiologist Dr. James A. DiNardo for the boy’s wrongful death. They found at least two other doctors liable for providing Jason with negligent medical care.
Because of an agreement reached between the defendants and plaintiffs before the $15 Million Boston wrongful death verdict was announced, the actual medical malpractice award will be less.
Family wins $15 million malpractice judgment against Children's, MyFoxBoston, December 18, 2009
Jury ties doctors’ errors to boy’s death, Boston.com, December 19, 2009
Related Web Resources:
Children’s Hospital in Boston
Tetralogy of Fallot, National Heart Lung and Blood Institute
]]>The CPSC and the WCSC are providing free repair kits. Also, to prevent strangulation accidents involving window coverings, they are recommending that only cordless window coverings be used in homes that have young children. If your window blinds or shades do come with cords, then they are advising that you keep the cords out of children’s reach.
The Safe Kids USA Web site reports that airway obstruction (through suffocation, choking, and strangulation), is the number one cause of accidental injury-related fatalities among children younger than age 1. Kids, especially in the younger than 3 age range, are especially prone to strangulation injuries and deaths.
Product manufacturers are aware of the hazards that their furniture, clothing, toys, and other consumer goods can pose to this young age group. Yet many continue to make dangerous or defective products that young children continue to pay for with their lives. If this has happened to your son or daughter, do not hesitate to contact our Boston products liability lawyers about your Massachusetts child injury case.
In just the last few weeks, the CPSC has announced several major recalls involving young children’s products. In late November, it recalled 2.1 million drop-side cribs by Stork Craft due to possible suffocation, entrapment, and fall hazards. That announcement was followed up by the recall of about 500 LaJobi cribs and approximately 24,000 Amby Baby Motion Beds this month over similar concerns. The CPSC also recalled approximately one million umbrella strollers by Maclaren following 12 fingertip amputations. Also, there have been numerous recalls involving thousands of children’s clothing items and toys because they posed potential lead poisoning, choking, and strangulation hazards.
CPSC Announces Voluntary Recalls to Repair Millions of Roman Shades and Roll Up Blinds by Multiple Firms, CPSC, December 15, 2009
Airway Obstruction, SafeKids USA
Related Web Resources:
Window Covering Safety Council