New York Personal Injury Attorneys Blog

Published on: March 12, 2014

New York County Supreme Court: in the aftermath of the Fukushima Explosion, two class actions seek damages based on product liability against GE

Two Summons with Notice have been filed in The New York County Supreme Court alleging that GE’s failure to properly design and maintain the Fukushima plant hurt more than 100,000 people. Lead plaintiff Mitsuru Okura demands at least $3 million per plaintiff and the second plaintiffs Sasaki Body Ltd. and Mihana Ltd are seeking $5 million in damages per class member. If successful these class actions could wipe out GE whose market capitalization is estimated at $260 billion.

Okura claims that GE’s negligence caused the explosion and the meltdown at the plant and that the radiation released from this accident caused class members “personal injury, mental anguish, emotional distress, property damage, business interruption, loss of business, loss of income, economic injuries, and ongoing long-term physical, mental and emotional health problems,”

Read more in the Court House News Service

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Published on: March 12, 2014

Chrysler recalls the 2012-2013 Jeep Grand Cherokee and Dodge Durango for a defective braking system and the 2014 Fiat 500L for a defective transmission system

By GGCRBHS&M

A defect in Chrysler’s Ready Alert Braking system is causing a diminished break pedal feel in the 2012-2013 Jeep Grand Cherokee and Dodge Durango models. The defect didn’t lead to any accidents or injuries as Chrysler pointed out that the brake function was never lost nor was it out of compliance with regulations. The recall affects more than 25,000 cars in North America.

Chrysler also announced a separate recall for its 2014 Fiat 500L model because of a glitch in the transmission software that prevents some vehicles from shifting readily out of park. No accident nor injury have been reported. The fix consists of a software update and affects a little less than 20,000 cars in North America with some 20% of them remaining on dealer lots.

How to prevent bicycle accidents on dangerous Jay Street Bike lane in Brooklyn, New York?

By GGCRBHS&M

The risk of being involved in a bicycle accident on the Jay Street bike lane in Brooklyn is higher than on most bike lanes in New York City. Last year the bike lane was voted scariest bike lane in Brooklyn by the readers of the Brooklyn Paper.

Yesterday night Transportation Alternatives organized a brainstorming session to find solutions to protect bicyclists from potential accidents. Among the proposals the idea to physically separate the bike lane from the road was the most successful. Other ideas included better road markings, pedestrian overpass and outright parking bans.

8 People suffered Personal Injury in a Car Accident during which a car plowed into a store in the Bronx, NYC

By GGCRBHS&M

A car crashed into a store in the Bronx injuring 8 people. According to a witness it seems like the driver who was parked in front of the store hit the gas pedal instead of the break.

Last weekend in New York two pedestrian accidents killed one and severely injured another

By GGCRBHS&M

A pedestrian was killed and another one suffered severe personal injury in two separate car accidents.
64 year old Kumar Ragunath was crossing Northern Blvd at 40th Road on Saturday night when he was struck by a SUV driver as he was crossing out of the crosswalk. The driver didn’t stop and the pedestrian died at the hospital shortly after the accident. The police are looking for a dark colored Chevy Blazer. Read more in DNA Info New York.

In an another accident a pedestrian who was crossing Rockaway Parkway was struck by a SUV driver who was trying to pass a vehicle making a left turn. Read more in the New York Daily News

Published on: March 10, 2014

After Ariel Russo, a 4 year old girl, was struck causing her death by a reckless SUV driver, a New York Street is renamed after her.

By GGCRBHS&M

Ariel Russo was killed in a car accident last June as she was walking to school with her grandmother. The two pedestrians were on Amsterdam Ave at 97th street when a 17 year old driver with a learners permit jumped the curb and hit the young girl causing her death. The young man was charged with manslaughter. Today Ariel would have been 5 years old. In her memory the city renamed west 97th Street between Amsterdam Ave and Broadway “Ariel Russo’s Place”.

Metro North worker struck and killed by a train

By GGCRBHS&M

Just a few months after a Metro North train accident killed 4 and inured more than 70 people, a Metro North worker who was standing outside of the approved work zone was hit by a train on Monday morning. The worker,a 58 year old man from Yonkers was pronounced dead when he arrived at the hospital.

Several people suffered personal injury in a crash between a school bus and a taxi

By GGCRBHS&M

An accident between a school bus and a taxi severely injured the taxi driver and sent the bus driver and several other kids to the hospital today in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, NY. The collision was so hard that the bus toppled over onto its side. The bus was transporting nine students when the accident happened.
Read more in the New York Daily News

Published on: March 10, 2014

Product Liability – Failure to Train Patients and Caregivers on new Heart Pump model causes 5 personal injuries and 4 deaths

By GGCRBHS&M

4 patients died and 5 others suffered significant personal injury after Thoratec, a heart device manufacturer launched an updated version of a left ventricular assist device (LVAD), the HeartMate II LVAS, without providing sufficient information and training to patients and caregivers especially those who were originally trained on the older model.
The manufacturer issued a worldwide Urgent Medical Device Correction Letter to update its labeling and training material regarding the use of the HeartMate II® LVAS Pocket System Controller. The FDA issued a safety alert urging patients who are using the HeartMate II LVAS Pocket Controller to immediately contact their doctor for retraining and receive updated information on how to properly use the pump.

A new audit confirms that the FMCSA’s CSA program is not doing enough to reduce truck accidents by keeping bad commercial carriers off the road

By GGCRBHS&M

To reduce the number of truck accidents on American roads by keeping unsafe trucking companies off the road, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) launched in 2010 a program called CSA which stands for Compliance, Safety, Accountability.

The FMCSA has not fully implemented this program yet and was previously criticized by the Government Accountability Office and by the American Trucking Association for being too lax (see previous blog) about it. A recent audit by the Office of Inspector General which was made public at the end of last week reinforces these concerns.

According to the audit, the quality of the data received by the States is improving but only half of the commercial carriers have provided this data. Adding to that the FMCSA has not yet implemented a data correction process to make sure the information received is accurate and correct it if necessary. In regards to the implementation of CSA at State level, only 10 States have fully implemented CSA enforcement intervention process. THE FMCSA is unable to provide a deadline as to when the program will be fully implemented in the 41 other States. The audit also reveals that the FMCSA is not adhering to Information technology best practices and Federal Guidance in regards to its safety measurement system.

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