California Injury Lawyers Blog

The state of California has approved a $20 million payout for Jaycee Dugard and her two daughters. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed the California injury settlement on Friday.

Dugard, now 30, was just 11 when she was abducted in 1991 by Phillip Garrido, who held her hostage in his backyard compound until last August. She bore him two daughters, who are now ages 15 and 12.

Police have said that Dugard was raped, kidnapped and held captive by Garrido. His wife, Nancy is awaiting trial for kidnapping and other charges. Both have pleaded not guilty.

Phillip Garrido was already a convicted sex offender for a 1976 rape crime prior to abducting Dugard. California's inspector general has criticized the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation for failing to properly monitor Garrido. Also, the California attorney general's office has alleged that state parole agents may have interacted with Dugard and her older daughter but did not follow up on her relationship with Garrido.

Last February, Dugard and her family filed a California personal injury claim against the Department of Corrections. Over the years, the agency missed opportunities that might have allowed them to locate her sooner. The Dugards contend that they suffered physical, psychological, and emotional harm from being held captive for nearly twenty years.

The California attorney general's office has said that the "the uniquely tragic circumstances" surrounding the Dugard case justifies the $20 million settlement. Dugard and her two girls will likely require millions of dollars in therapy and at least $450,000 to educate all three of them.

Report Says California Parole Agents Spoke with Jaycee Dugard in Captivity, FoxNews, July 7, 2010

Jaycee Dugard to get $20 million in settlement, SFGate, July 2, 2010

Kidnap Victim Wins Settlement, NY Times, July 1, 2010

Related Web Resource:
Timeline and Map, Jaycee Dugard Case, San Jose Mercury News

The Santa Ana Unified School District is seeking to dismiss the Orange County, California injuries to a minor lawsuit filed by the parents of a special-ed student who was molested by a teacher's aide in 2008. The former special-ed aide, Alonso Manuel Gonzalez, pleaded guilty last year to the misdemeanor charge of child abuse and endangerment. The original charge against him prior to the plea agreement was a felony for a lewd act with a dependent adult. He was sentenced to four years of probation, 240 hours of community service, one day in jail, and restitution. The teenager's family is also suing him for her Santa Ana, California personal injury.

In their Orange County, California injury lawsuit, the girl's family is seeking damages for the physical and mental trauma that she suffered from the molestation. They are also accusing the school district of negligence because they kept Gonzales on as an employee even though parents had complained about him for years. Among the complaints was that he behaved inappropriately with female students.

Now, however, some media are reporting that not only is the school district using 40 separate affirmative defenses in an attempt to dismiss the complaint, but it is also contending that the victim's negligence caused her trauma and injuries because she did not exercise enough care to protect herself from Gonzales. The victim, who was 17 at the time, has the mental capacity of a 7-year-old, is wheelchair bound, and cannot communicate verbally. Yet, according to the school district's attorneys, she consented to the molestation. They are also accusing the girl's parents of reckless, negligent, and careless supervision of the girl, which caused and contributed to her damages and injuries from the sex abuse.

The Santa Ana Unified School District is asking that all charges be dismissed. The defendant also want the victim's family to compensate it for legal feels.

Orange County, California Child Sexual Abuse
Child sexual abuse, molestation, and rape are crimes. The trauma caused by any type of sexual assault, especially by trusted adults on minors, cannot be quantified. A sex abuse victim may suffer from nightmares, relationship issues, eating disorders, depression, suicidal tendencies, mood swings, and other injuries. Children that are placed under the authority of abusive adults are especially vulnerable. Tens of thousands of children in the US are the victims of sexual abuse every year. Parents may be entitled to seek Santa Ana, California sex abuse damages on their child's behalf.

Santa Ana Unified School District Blames Disabled Student for Her Molestation by School Worker, Demands She Pay Their Legal Bills!, OC Weekly, June 24, 2010

School district blames disabled student for own molestation, The Raw Story, June 25, 2010

Related Web Resources:
Santa Ana Unified School District

Child Sex Abuse, American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry

Child Sexual Abuse Fact Sheet for Parents, Teachers and Other Caregivers, American Academy of Experts in Traumatic Stress

114 of the 226 people who sustained injuries while attending the 14th annual Electric Daisy Carnival at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum and Exposition Park this weekend had to be treated at local hospitals. Some 185,000 people attended the event, which took place on Friday and Saturday. Insomniac Events produced the carnival, which went on from 2pm to 2am on both days.

52 of the injuries and 94 incidents were reported on Friday. 132 incidents were reported on Saturday when 62 people had to be taken to hospitals.

According to the LA Fire Department, some of the injuries were sustained when people who didn't have tickets attempted to rush barriers to enter the carnival. Other attendees who did have tickets reportedly tried to climb over barriers to enter the VIP sections.

The Los Angeles Police Department made 63 arrests on Saturday. 9 of those who were apprehended were juveniles. Trespassing, possession and sale of narcotics, and drinking in public were among the offenses allegedly committed.

Los Angeles Personal Injury and Premises Liability
If you were injured while attending a party, concert, festival, or another type of event, and you believe that those in charge of the event may have negligent or careless in making sure that the function ran smoothly and safely, it is important that you contact a Los Angeles premises liability law firm immediately. Event facilitators are supposed to make sure there is adequate security and that any hazardous conditions are removed from the grounds. In the case of large, professional events, preemptive planning should have taken place to prevent situations that could cause Los Angeles personal injuries. There also may be other parties and individuals who should be held liable.

More than 100 taken to hospitals during Electric Daisy Carnival, Los Angeles Times, June 28, 2010

Over 100 people hospitalized during LA festival, ABC Local, June 28, 2010

Related Web Resources:
Electric Daisy Carnival 2010

Insomniac Events

Continue reading "226 People Hurt During Festival at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum and Exposition Park" »

Orange County, California has paid $750,000 to Orange County inmate Matthew Ryan Fleuret who was wearing handcuffs when deputies shocked him more than once with a stun gun and kneed him in the head in 2006. In his Orange County personal injury claim, Fleuret alleged excessive use of force by the deputies.

Deputies had accused Fleuret, who was being held in jail after his arrest during a bar fight, of being drunk and "uncooperative." However, while video footage shows the then 24-year-old detainee trying to get out of a cell, several deputies are also seen tackling him to the floor and violently restraining him. Fleuret was even strapped to a restraining chair while a mask was placed over his face. According to Fleuret's Orange County, California injury lawyer, deputies stunned him, 11 times.

This is not the only time that Orange County, California deputies have been accused of police brutality. Footage of Another jailhouse Taser incident shows a woman in "wristlocks" being stunned on the back with a Taser. While a jury did not find that deputies employed police brutality against Lisa Munoz, they nevertheless awarded her $25,000 for battery.

In August 2008, the police department changed its policy, preventing cops from stunning prisoners while they were secured/handcuffed.

The US Justice Department is now investigating whether Orange County jails have engaged in a pattern of civil rights violations, including the use of excessive police force and failure to protect inmates. For example, inmate John Derek Chamberlain was murdered by other inmates in 2006. The fatal assault occurred less than 70 feet from the guard station. A special grand jury heard testimony from people claiming that deputies at Theo Lacy Jail engaged in rampant police misconduct, such as watching TV rather than observing the inmates, sleeping while on the job, and failing to make their rounds.

Orange County, California Police Brutality
Police officers are not allowed to use excessive force unless absolutely warranted. It doesn't matter whether you were arrested or convicted for a crime. Officers must still uphold your civil rights and refrain from inflicting any harm on you or allowing others to hurt you.

Former inmate gets $750,000 in use-of-force settlement, OC Register, April 29, 2010

$750,000 is Magic Number for County of Orange Check Writers, OC Weekly, April 29, 2010

Related Web Resources:
County Correction Facilities & Jails, Orange County

Police Use of Force, Department of Justice

Actor Michael Avila is suing the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences for Los Angeles personal injury. He is claiming that he and his wife Mandy were falsely imprisoned, which resulted in bodily injuries, mental anguish, emotional distress, physical distress, and humiliation. Avila and his wife are seeking exemplary and punitive damages.

Michael claims that his publicist told him he could pick up his tickets for the Academy Awards ceremony on March 7 once he was inside the venue. However, when he and his wife showed up on the red carpet without tickets, they were ushered to an AMPAS Detention Center where they were held and questioned. It wasn't until six hours later that they were moved to a police station and released. No criminal charges were filed against the couple.

According to their Los Angeles injury complaint, the couple was never arrested, read their rights, or allowed to contact a lawyer so that they could understand why they were being held without their consent. In addition to physical injuries, the plaintiffs say that they suffered injury and shock to their nervous system.

Los Angeles Personal Injury
There are many reasons why an injured person or the family of someone who has died may have grounds for suing a responsible party for personal injury. Depending on the circumstances surrounding an accident, Los Angeles County personal injury lawsuits can be filed over:

• Inadequate security
• Medical malpractice
• Civil rights violations
• Products liability
• Police brutality
• Truck accidents
• Motorcycle crashes
• Pedestrian accidents
• Medical malpractice
• Wrongful death
• Slip and fall injuries
• Nursing home violence
• Nursing home abuse
• Nursing home neglect
• Violent crimes
• Dog bite injuries
• Injuries to minors
• Traumatic brain injuries
• Inadequate security
• Drowning accidents
• Spinal cord injuries

The Academy is countersuing Avila.

Actor Sues Academy, Claims False Imprisonment, ABC News, April 26, 2010

Actor Demands $50 Million for Ticket Snafu, Courthouse News Service, April 27, 2010

Related Web Resources:
Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences

Personal Injury, Justia

Stephen Holloway and Michael McClelland have settled their Los Angeles personal injury lawsuit against Contemporary Services Corp. of Northridge, Live Nation Worldwide Inc., and Pavilion Partners Limited. Holloway and McClelland, who are both from Riverside County, had filed their Los Angeles inadequate security complaint in January 2008 for injuries they sustained at the July 2007 Ozzfest concert in Devore.

The plaintiffs claim that the security guards at the concert were "too young" and did not have the proper training to work as security guards at the heavy metal concert, which had been founded by Ozzy Osborne and his wife Sharon. Holloway says that he was attacked by several assailants while at the Glen Helen Pavilion. They grabbed his hair, kicked his face, and broke his jaw. He contends that the security guards at the concert told him and his girlfriend to leave and they refused to write a report about the alleged attack.

McClelland says that he sustained lacerations, bruises, and broke his jaw during a similar attack. He claims that when security at the concert was notified about the assault, they didn't want to get involved because they deemed the situation to be too dangerous.

The plaintiffs say that they did nothing to provoke the attacks. They also contend that prior to the assaults on them, security had known about other attacks that had already occurred to other Ozzfest attendees.

Los Angeles Inadequate Security Lawsuits
If you were a victim of a violent crime on someone else's property or at an event that you attended, you may have grounds for filing a Los Angeles premises liability lawsuit. Premise owners and event supervisors are supposed to make sure that there is adequate security on a property so that patrons, guests, residents, and visitors aren't assaulted, raped, robbed, or murdered. Failure to provide adequate security measures--especially if there was prior knowledge about past criminal activities on the premise--can be grounds for a Los Angeles personal injury lawsuit.

Examples of some of the safety measures a property owner or event supervisor may want to implement to provide the proper protections and ward off inadequate security cases (This will vary, depending on the premise and/or event):

• Security cameras
• Security personnel
• Secured gates
• Surveillance cameras
• Alarm system
• Doors and windows that are properly secured
• Adequate lighting
• Gated entryways
• Security screening systems and procedures

Settlement reached in lawsuit over injuries suffered at Ozzfest, Mydesert.com, April 21, 2010

Related Web Resources:
Premises Liability, Justia

Ozzfest

A Mexican national has filed a Los Angeles County sex abuse lawsuit seeking damages for the molestation he allegedly suffered at the hands of Father Nicolas Aguilar Rivera. Although allegations of sex abuse have followed Aguilar since the 80's, he was only defrocked last July.

The victim claims the alleged sex abuse incidents happened in the late 1980's. He is accusing Los Angeles Archbishop Cardinal Roger Mahoney and Mexico City Cardinal Norberto Rivera Carrera of covering up the alleged sex acts committed by Aguilar Rivera in an attempt to protect the Catholic Church from scandal. Rivera Carrera had asked Mahoney to place Aguilar Rivera in an LA ministry following an incident in Mexico involving boys who were beaten as punishment during an overnight stay in the Diocese of Tehuacan rectory.

Within nine months of arriving in the US, LA police had 26 reports of sex abuse involving the Mexican priest. Aguilar River may have abused up to 60 boys in Mexico.

The plaintiff is just one of a number of people to seek Los Angeles personal injury compensation for Aguilar Rivera's alleged sex abuse crimes and the church's failure to protect the victims and stop the priest from continuing to molest more people. Now age 25, the plaintiff is the first person known to employ the Alien Tort Claims Act of 1789 to seek a jury trial and request compensation for crimes that were committed abroad.

The Aguilar Rivera is currently a fugitive in Mexico.

Los Angeles Sex Abuse Lawsuits
It is mind-boggling to think of the number of people that have been the victims of clergy sex abuse over the years. For the hundreds of people that have stepped forward to seek personal injury compensation and/or tell their story, there are hundreds more that have chosen to remain silent or have yet to remember what happened to them.

Sexual abuse or assault of any kind is a violent crime that is punishable under law. The plaintiff may also be able to seek Los Angeles injury compensation for physical, emotional, and mental injuries, and other damages.

Mexican man who says he was raped by priest files lawsuit naming Mahony, Mexican cardinal, Los Angeles Times, April 20, 2010

Attorneys Sue LA, Mexico City Cardinal Over Abuse, Associated Press, NY Times, April 20, 2010

Related Web Resources:
Archdiocese of Los Angeles

Alien Tort Claims Act, Global Policy Forum

Albert Chris Hanley has filed a Los Angeles County wrongful death lawsuit against RA Sushi and its parent company Benihana. Hanley's wife Drean, 59, sustained massive internal injuries, a spinal cord injury, became paralyzed, broke several ribs, and fell into a coma before dying seven days after the July 2, 2009 Torrance car crash. Hanley is seeking to hold the defendants financially liable for allegedly serving alcohol to a minor and letting him drive off drunk.

Paul Kyu Kim, 20 is accused of driving at speeds as high as 100 mph on the Long Island Freeway before rear-ending Drean's vehicle, which caused it to strike the concrete center divider. Kim has been charged with driving with a BAC of .08% or greater and driving under the influence causing injury. He has pleaded not guilty to the criminal charges. His criminal trial is scheduled to take place next month. If convicted, Kim faces a 10-year maximum jail sentence.

In his Torrance car accident lawsuit, Hanley accuses the restaurant of repeatedly serving alcohol to Kim even though he is underage. The complaint contends that even though the driver showed signs of being drunk, including glassy or bloodshot eyes, messy appearance, impaired judgment, and difficulty walking straight, none of the restaurant's employees prevented him from getting into his vehicle.

Los Angeles Drunk Driving Accidents
Drunk drivers usually have poor reflexes, may not even be aware that they are speeding or following too closely, and often don't realize that they are about to be involved in a Los Angeles car accident until it is too late. Drunk driving is illegal and can be grounds for both a criminal case and a civil case against the negligent driver. There also may be other parties that should be held liable for your drunk driving injuries, which is why it is a good idea to consult with an experienced Los Angeles injury lawyer.

Man files suit against Torrance restaurant after crash kills his wife, DailyBreeze.com, April 14, 2010

Related Web Resources:
Impaired Driving, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

Mothers Against Drunk Driving

Over 400 people are suing LA County and Exxon Mobil Inc. of Los Angeles wrongful death and personal injuries. The plaintiffs are former residents of the Ujima Village housing complex and the surviving family members of those that died from toxin exposure.

At least 38 deaths are being linked to gas and oil contamination, which caused vapors and made the soil toxic. Plaintiffs say that toxin exposure at the 300-unit complex caused rashes, cancers, asthma, miscarriages, and other health issues. They are seeking damages for wrongful death, personal injury, medical bills, back rent, and other damages and losses. They content that no one ever told them that they were living on contaminated land or that the soil and vapors might pose a health hazard.

The Willowbrook complex was constructed in 1972 on what used to be an oil tank storage site. LA County closed the housing complex in 2008. Exxon Mobil says that it didn't learn that there could be a problem with the soil condition until 2007 and that it has been working with numerous state and local agencies to conduct an environmental probe. The company says that regulators have determined that the toxins don't pose an immediate public health threat.

If you became ill or suffered other types of health issues because you were exposed to toxins or other hazardous substances, you may have grounds for filing a Los Angeles County personal injury or wrongful death complaint. You may even find that other people also have suffered as a result of the same exposure.

In addition to the party responsible for the toxic substances, you may also be entitled to file a toxic injury claim against a premise owner and other liable parties.

Suit blames deaths on housing site in LA County, Associated Press, April 13, 2010

Hundreds sue L.A. County over Ujima Village contamination, Los Angeles Times, April 12, 2010

Related Web Resources:
Los Angeles County

Exxon Mobil Inc.

Another woman who says Officer James Roberts III sexually assaulted her has filed a Huntington Beach injury claim against the city. Aileen Mignosa says she is an ex-girlfriend of the cop.

In her Orange County, California injury claim, the 27-year-old woman says that she suffered physical injury and emotional distress because Roberts, 33, had verbally, physically, and sexually assaulting her. She is accusing the city of Huntington Beach, its police chief, and a number of cops of trying to cover up the alleged sex abuse. She also claims that the Huntington Beach Police Department and 911 did not respond appropriately to her calls and did not discipline Roberts.

Last November, Roberts's ex-wife, Shannon Roberts, filed a Huntington Beach personal injury lawsuit against the city's police department, Police Chief Ken Small, James Roberts III, his supervisor (who also happens to be his relative), and another cop. Shannon claims that the police department and the cops named as defendants conspired to cover up the sex abuse.

Shannon says that her husband, who she was separated from at the time, began abusing her in June 2007. She says she filed for divorce and moved out of the state to avoid him. While she was away, she says that her husband used a propane tank to destroy personal belonging and furniture.

She also claims that he physically attacked her in front of her son and later raped her during a jealous fit. Shannon says that calls to 911 and police were dealt with in a manner that protected her husband instead of her.

Roberts, who is on paid administrative leave, has now been charged in connection with the alleged attacks against his ex-wife and ex-girlfriend. The initial 17 criminal charges against him included threats, aggravated assault, false imprisonment, domestic battery, vandalism, and dissuading a witness by force. Prosecutors also recently charged him with sodomy by force, spousal rape by force, ad forcible rape.

Not only can you sue for Orange County, California police brutality, but you also can file a personal injury complaint against a police officer and/or his/her police department if police negligence contributed to your injuries or a loved one's death.

Second woman claims abuse by officer, Huntington Beach Independent, March 18, 2010

Police officer accused of sex assaults, OC Register, March 18, 2010

Related Web Resources:
Huntington Beach Police Department

Kasandra and Juan Canon have filed Orange County, California personal injury claims against the county, as well as against the cities of Orange and Irvine. Juan sustained serious injuries on September 16 when he was involved in a head-on crash on Santiago Canyon Road.

In addition to head trauma, fractured legs, hip fractures, and rib fractures, Juan also broke his back. His medical expenses are expected to exceed $400,000.

The Orange County, California car accident happened as a woman motorist accidentally crossed the double yellow lines while swerving to turn on a curve. According to the Canon's California injury claims, the county and the two cities are to blame for the road's poor maintenance, design, and construction.

If you were injured in an Irvine car accident, you should contact an experienced Orange County, California attorney immediately. In addition to the negligent motorist, you may have grounds for filing a claim against the city if poor roadway design or maintenance contributed to the motor vehicle crash happening. Also, depending on where the traffic collision occurred, you may be able to hold the county liable for failing to clear debris, remove obstructions, trim trees, install pedestrian lights, traffic lights, and/or other stop signs, repair potholes, or set up safety parameters for highway construction zones.

Example of other road defects:

• Inadequate striping
• Dangerous road design
• Malfunctioning traffic control devices
• Improper embankment
• Inadequate shoulder area
• Lack of median barriers
• Poor drainage system
• Inadequate bridge railing
• Speed limit is too high or too low for road conditions and regular traffic
• Inadequately marked roads
• Poor sight lines
• Inadequate curbing
• Glare from street lights
• Poor visibility for drivers

Claim: Poor road conditions led to Santiago Canyon crash, Orange County Register, March 17, 2010

Related Web Resources:
City of Orange, California

City of Irvine, California

County of Orange

Continue reading "Cities of Irvine and Orange, and Orange County, California Blamed for Poor Road Conditions that Contributed to Santiago Canyon Road Car Accident " »

Huntington Beach bicyclist Anita J. Newman has filed an Orange County, California personal injury claim against the city. The 61-year-old claims that she sustained a head trauma, lost her sense of smell, and experienced memory loss, vertigo, and depression after she was hit by a parking lot gate arm.

Newman told the Orange-County Register that the accident happened on September 6 close to the First Street parking lot. The gate arm struck her arm, before bouncing up to strike her chin. She fell off her bicycle and that is when her head struck the ground.

She says that not only was she hospitalized for a week but there was bleeding in her skull and she can't remember the accident. Newman says that there should have been a warning to let her know that the gate arm was coming down. She also points out that the sign barring bicycles from the area is small and hard for cyclists to read.

Huntington Beach Premises Liability
Property owners must exercise reasonable care to ensure that all hazards on a premise are either fixed or taken off the property. If anything is a possible hazard, then adequate warning signs should be put up to prevent injury or death. Victims of property hazards may have grounds for filing an Huntington Beach, California personal injury lawsuit.

Examples of Premise Hazards:

• Inadequate security
• Falling merchandise
• Wet liquids on the ground
• Debris on the floor
• Poorly lit hallways
• Broken steps
• Electrical hazards
• Swimming pools that lack covering
• Unsecured, heavy objects
• Sidewalk defects
• Toxic substances
• Defective machinery, equipment, or furniture

Unfortunately, premise hazards can exist anywhere, including in restaurants, parks, private homes, apartment complexes, offices, hotels, bars, amusement parks, offices, grocery stores. To file an injury lawsuit against an Orange County, California city for premises liability, you must first file a claim notifying of your intent to sue.

Claim: Bicyclist hit with gate arm lost sense of smell, The Orange County Register, March 10, 2010

Related Web Resources:
The Basic Liability Rules for Premises Accidents, Nolo

City of Huntington Beach, California

Jaycee Dugard, the woman who was kidnapped and held hostage for 18 years, has filed a claim notifying California's Department of Correction that she is intending to file a personal injury lawsuit. Her two daughters, who are minors, and her mother, Terry Probin, have also filed their injury claim forms.

Dugard was 11 when Nancy and Phillip Garrido kidnapped her outside her South Lake Tahoe residence in 1991. They held her hostage in a backyard compound and she eventually gave birth to two children by Phillip, who is accused of raping her. The girls are now 12 and 15.

Dugard and her daughters were discovered last August after campus security at UC-Berkeley saw Phillip and thought he was acting strangely. His parole officer brought him in for questioning and he admitted to kidnapping Jaycee.

In California, plaintiffs have six months from the date that an incident occurred to file a personal injury lawsuit. Dugard's California injury claim forms note that she is seeking over $25,000.

The California Corrections Department was supposed to closely monitor Phillip, who became a registered sex offender after he was convicted of raping a 25-year-old woman. He was under parole supervision from 1988 to 1999.

The Office of th Inspector General has determined that the state of California immediately erred in the way they handled Phillip's parole. They mistakenly classified him as a low-risk offender, and an agent who visited Phillip's residence took at face value the parolee's account that the girl who was there was a niece.

The Garridos are charged with kidnapping and raping Jaycee.

In certain California personal injury cases, there may be parties that can be held liable even if their actions or inaction only indirectly contributed to causing the injuries.

Dugard, Family File Claims Against Calif Officials, NY Times, February 26, 2010

Jaycee Dugard Found After 18 Years, Kidnap Suspect Allegedly Fathered Her Kids, ABCNews, August 27, 2009

Jaycee Dugard, Family File Claims Against California, Fox News, February 26, 2010

Related Web Resources:
Jaycee Dugard Abduction Timeline

California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation

Continue reading "Jaycee Dugard, Her Two Daughters, and Mother File California Injury Claim Against the State's Department of Corrections" »

All but one of the 186 complaints filed against Metrolink over the 2005 train derailment accident on the Glendale border has reportedly been tentatively settled for $39 million. 11 Los Angeles County wrongful death settlements and 15 out of 16 California personal injury settlements have been reached. The rest of the cases involve persons who sustained non-serious injuries.

Over 200 people got hurt when a Metrolink train hit a Jeep Cherokee that Juan Manual Alvarez had left on the train tracks close to Chevy Chase Drive. Until last year's Chatsworth train accident that kill 25 people, the 2005 Glendale train collision was the most catastrophic accident in Metrolink's history. Alvarez is serving 11 life sentences for causing the train derailment.

Recent Los Angeles Train Accidents
On Sunday, a man died in Los Angeles when he was hit by a Metro Blue line train. 65-year-old Ramon Villanueva was standing on the tracks at around 10 am when the deadly train crash happened. The crossing-gate bar, the bell, and lights should have prevented him from crossing the tracks.

Last Wednesday, another 14 people were hurt in a San Fernando Valley train crash when a Metrolink commuter train hit a pickup truck. The truck had just collided with a car before driving into the path of the train.

Six people who were riding in the vehicles were injured---two of them (one of them a baby) were in critical condition. 8 train passengers said they were hurt, but only two victims appear to have been transported to hospitals for minor injuries.

Train Crashes
Each year, about a thousand people are killed in US train crashes. Common causes of train crashes include:

• Negligent train operators
• Train accident with another train
• Engineer errors
• Train defects
• Defective railroad tracks
• Poor maintenance
• A negligent pedestrian or motor vehicle driver
• Toxic or hazardous cargo
• Texting while operating a train

Metrolink reaches tentative $39-million settlement, Burbank Leader, December 30, 2009

Man Killed by Metro Blue Line Train Identified, KTLA, December 28, 2009

LA commuter train hits truck in freak accident, Google/AP, December 23, 2009

Related Web Resources:
Metrolink

California Department of Transportation

Continue reading "Metrolink Tentatively Agrees to $39 Million Los Angeles County Train Accident Settlement Over Deadly 2005 Glendale Derailment " »

Two more claims have been filed against the city of Huntington Beach over a catastrophic boating accident under the Gilbert Drive Bridge that killed two boaters and injured a third on June 27. Shawn Wilson and Caleb Steele died after their inflatable boat hit one of the bridge's beams. The third boater, James Geekie, sustained serious head injuries.

In November, Wilson's wife Deanna filed an Orange County, California wrongful death lawsuit against Huntington Beach, the county, and the state of California. Deanna's previous claims seeking $5 million in damages for herself and another $5 million for her 3-year-old daughter with Wilson were denied.

Last week, Steele's parents, Patricia and Scott Steele, filed separate wrongful death claims against Huntington Beach. Like Deanna Wilson, the two of them claim dangerous bridge conditions, including poor lighting and failure to warn boaters of how the tides can impact navigability, caused the wrongful death.

It was high tide when Wilson struck the bridge beam. If the men had known to duck, they would have avoided striking the bridge beam.

On Tuesday, the only boater to survive the Huntington Beach boating crash, James Geekie, filed his Orange County, California personal injury claim against the city. Geekie, who sustained brain injuries, a concussion, and fractured his skull, also contends that poor conditions on the bridge contributed to his California boating accident injuries.

Orange County, California Premises Liability
An Orange County, California city can be held liable for premises liability if there was a hazard on the public property that should have been remedied but instead was not repaired or removed and caused injury or death. Public and private property owners or those in possession of the premise owe a duty of care to keep a property safe so that visitors, patrons, and others do not get hurt.

Another claim over deadly boat crash, OC Register, December 23, 2009

Relatives ask for $2 million in bridge death, OC Register, December 23, 2009

Widow Sues Huntington Beach, Orange County, and State of California for Wrongful Death Following Husband's Deadly Boating Accident, California Injury Lawyers Blog, November 10, 2009