South Florida Personal Injury Lawyers

Most cases of boats capsizing involve blatant overloading or some type of structural damage like a leak in the hull. However that was not the case on March 6, 2004 when the Lady D, a twin-pontoon water taxi cruising the Baltimore Inner Harbor, flipped over killing five passengers and injuring others. There were two crewmembers and 23 passengers on board, exactly what the U.S. Coast Guard had rated the vessel’s capacity. There were no leaks and no other structural damage. So what went wrong? A National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) report, released on March 7, 2006, uncovered plenty wrong. The investigation concluded that despite the Coast Guard Certificate of Inspection, the Lady D was in fact overloaded, causing it to capsize when it faced strong winds and waves. “This tragic accident happened as a result of a number of safety issues that fell through the cracks,” stated NTSB Acting Chairman Mark V. Rosenker, “Our recommendations will go a long way toward fixing those cracks and help ensure this type of accident does not happen again.” One area of concern was the Coast Guard was using out-of-date average passenger weight data to determine maximum capacity. The average weight of Americans has continually increased over the years but the standards did not reflect that gain, which led to the overloading, the report said. The NTSB recommended updating these standards, and reviewing them on a regular basis. The stability testing done for the Coast Guard Certificate of Inspection was inappropriate for two reasons. First, because it was deemed a “sister ship” of another boat, the Lady D was never actually tested. The investigation revealed that it had significant differences from its so-called sister ship, including structures on deck that made it more top heavy and therefore more likely to capsize in certain conditions. Second, the investigation showed that the stability testing was not appropriate for that type of pontoon boat anyway. The NTSB recommended that the Coast Guard implement stricter standards as to what a “sister ship” is, and review its stability testing. Weather also played a factor. The report found that the National Weather Service (NWS) did not accurately reflect the weather conditions at the time of the accident, and it has since developed “more aggressive” ways of tracking developing weather patterns. In fact, this case could involve sweeping changes to the commercial water transportation industry, especially those operating pontoon boats. If you have been injured in while traveling on a commercial ship, boat, or other water vessel, contact attorney David I. Fuchs at 800-570-2858 for a free no obligation consultation. 

Implantable defibrillators, which can detect abnormal heart rhythms and deliver a life-saving shock, have an erratic history of reliability, according to three studies being published today in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

The studies reveal an upsurge in the malfunction rate of implantable defibrillators in recent years after experiencing several years of relatively high reliability rates. The malfunction rate declined from 39 per 1,000 implantations in 1993 to 8 per 1,000 in 1996 but then increased to 36 in 2002.

William H. Maisel, a cardiologist at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, headed two of the three studies. The FDA asked Maisel to delve further into the problems associated with implantable defibrillators after one of his studies indicated a rise in the device’s malfunction rate.

For patients who currently have an implantable defibrillator implanted in their chest, doctors warn against hasty decisions regarding defibrillator replacement surgery since replacing the device may be more risky than leaving it as is.

In the third study, a cardiologist at the University of Western Ontario, Andrew D. Krahn, examined the rate of complications in patients who had been issued advisories regarding their defibrillators’ chance of failure.

Of the 3,000 patients who received the notice, 18 percent opted for a replacement of their implantable defibrillator. Six percent of those patients suffered complications with their implantable defibrillator and two died. Only three malfunctions occurred in the group of patients who decided against a replacement and none of those resulted in serious injury or death.

Implantable defibrillators are perhaps the most popular medical devices of the past decade. Over the past six years, the number of defibrillators implanted in Americans has more than tripled and sales are increasing 15 to 18 percent annually.

Some doctors attribute the rise in malfunction rate to technological advances being made to the device. “I believe the decrease in reliability was most likely due to an increase in device complexity,” said Maisel.

“There is always a balance of speed [in getting the product to market] versus safety,” he continued. “Most patients and physicians would say they want the newest technology as soon as possible. But people need to realize that sometimes comes at the price of reliability.”

Last year, Guidant Corporation of Indianapolis, one of the five manufacturers of implantable defibrillators, recalled three models after they discovered that deteriorating insulation contributed to two deaths in 42,000 devices.

A federal investigation concluded Monday that the FDA offices responsible for monitoring drug safety lacked structure and organization. The report argued for a restructuring that will give the agency greater authority to order drug companies to conduct safety studies on their post-market products. Agency officials currently lack explicit power to order drug makers to conduct safety studies on drugs post-market drugs. Lawmakers are especially concerned about the FDA’s safety monitoring practices in light of the recent safety problems with Merck’s Vioxx and Pfizer’s Celebrex. Some lawmakers are charging that there is an inherent conflict of interest in the current structure. Officials who deem a new drug safe may be disinclined to call for a safety trial after the drug has hit the market since this would seemingly contradict a previous judgment. Advocates of a restructuring want to give the FDA more power to order drug safety trials for post-market drugs. Lawmakers also want to separate marketing of new drugs from the safety monitoring of already-marketed drugs since this gives rise to a conflict of interest. Agency leaders and drug manufacturers, however, have thus far resisted such a separation. President Bush has made his bid for a new permanent commissioner of the FDA, Andrew von Eschenbach, who is the current acting Commissioner of the FDA. If he receives confirmation by the Senate, he will undoubtedly confront many challenges. “The FDA needs to make big changes,” Senator Grassley, R-Iowa, told reporters in Washington D.C.

The statistics are startling. Since 1984 there have been 571 carbon monoxide (CO) poisonings reported on or near boats in the U.S., according to an interagency report. However, the investigators underline reported – they believe that there are many, many more that have gone unreported or listed as drowning. The engine is the most common source of CO in these poisonings, but cook tops and other fuel-burning products also pose a risk if not ventilated properly.

The report, released October 2004, was written by representatives of the National Park Service (NPS), the US Department of Interior, and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) at the request of the U.S. Coast Guard. It is a collection of data breaking down poisonings by year, state, and type of boat. The authors state: “This should not be viewed as a complete list of past poisonings and will continue to be updated with new information.”

The report gives no information as to why the data shows such a sharp rise in poisonings since about 1990. The first year of data, 1984, indicates that there were about four victims. There are no reported incidents in 1988 or 1989, but in 1990 there are over 20. The peak came in 2000 when there were over 70 reports.

Of the 571 victims, 113 or about 20% of the poisonings were fatal. About 53% of the incidents occurred inside the boat. Over 42% of the accidents were listed as occurring inside or outside of houseboats. And a relatively high amount, over 15%, had unknowns including unknown boat type, unknown location of the body, and “unclassified” data. A total of 19 incidents were reported in Texas.

It is clear from the data that not enough is known about CO and the dangers it poses to boaters. Called “the silent killer,” CO is tasteless, odorless, and invisible. Most people who die or are injured by the poisoning do not even know it is happening. Apparently it has only been since 2000 that the U.S. Coast Guard and other agencies are becoming aware of how widespread the problem is within the boating community.

Most of these injuries are occurring due to faulty products and unsafe use of products that consumers do not even realize are unsafe. Leaky exhaust systems play the largest part while inside the boat. Outside, it tends to be swimming under platforms dangerously mounted near the exhaust.

If you have been injured by CO poisoning on a houseboat or other type of watercraft, you may be entitled to compensation from several different companies. Contact attorney David I. Fuchs at 800-570-2858.

Merck suffered another setback on Friday when a Texas jury awarded $32 million in damages to the family of Leonel Garza, a 71-year-old Texan who died of a heart attack after briefly taking the prescription painkiller Vioxx.

Garza’s family sought more than $1 billion in damages arguing that the prescription painkiller Vioxx had caused the blood clots that led to his fatal heart attack. A cap on punitive damages under Texas law will reduce the award to $7.75 million, but Garza’s family is pleased with the verdict.

Garza had been taking Vioxx for less than a month when he died of a heart attack in April 2001. This is the first case in which a jury concluded that short-term use of Vioxx caused a heart attack. Attorneys for Merck, however, said they would appeal the case contending that Garza had a history of heart disease and should have never been prescribed Vioxx.

Merck currently faces over 11,000 Vioxx lawsuits and plans to defend each one individually. Merck has lost three of the five lawsuits tried thus far, each resulting in awards for damages of more than $10 million.

Vioxx hit the shelves in 1999 but was pulled five years later when evidence showed that it increased the risk of heart attacks and strokes. Documents have recently surfaced which suggest that Merck knew about the drug’s dangers long before it stopped selling the drug in 2004. About 20 million Americans took the drug during this time and the number of lawsuits against Merck continues to grow as the public becomes more aware of the dangers of Vioxx.

Kenneth L. Frazier, Merck’s general counsel, said that while they don’t expect to win every case that goes to trial, they do believe they have grounds for appeal. The victim’s family, however, remains optimistic. Joe Escobedo, the family’s lead counsel, said, “We thought that Mr. Garza’s case was a very, very strong case.”

In 1999, the most recent year for which data are available, more than 6 million crashes occurred on U.S. highways, killing over 41,000 people and injuring nearly 3.4 million others. Rear-end collisions accounted for almost one-third of these crashes (1.848 million) and 11.8 percent of multivehicle fatal crashes (1,923). Commercial vehicles were involved in 40 percent of these fatal rear-end collisions (770), even though commercial vehicles only comprised 3 percent of vehicles and 7 percent of miles traveled on the Nation’s highways. Between 1992 and 1998, the percentage of rear-end collisions involving all vehicles increased by 19 percent. In 1999, 114 fatal crashes in work zones involved rear-end collisions, about 30 percent of the multivehicle fatal work zone crashes. Of these, 71 collisions (62 percent) involved commercial vehicles.In the past 2 years, the National Transportation Safety Board investigated nine rear-end collisions in which 20 people died and 181 were injured (three accidents involved buses and one accident involved 24 vehicles). Common to all nine accidents was the rear following vehicle driver’s degraded perception of traffic conditions ahead. During its investigation of the rear-end collisions, the Safety Board examined the striking vehicles and did not find mechanical defects that would have contributed to the accidents. In each collision, the driver of the striking vehicle tested negative for alcohol or drugs. Some of these collisions occurred because atmospheric conditions, such as sun glare or fog and smoke, interfered with the driver’s ability to detect slower moving or stopped traffic ahead. In other accidents, the driver did not notice that traffic had come to a halt due to congestion at work zones or to other accidents. Still others involved drivers who were distracted or fatigued.

Regardless of the individual circumstances, the drivers in these accidents were unable to detect slowed or stopped traffic and to stop their vehicles in time to prevent a rear-end collision. According to a 1992 study by Daimler-Benz, if passenger car drivers have a 0.5-second additional warning time, about 60 percent of rear-end collisions can be prevented. An extra second of warning time can prevent about 90 percent of rear-end collisions.

As the Safety Board reported in 1995 and further discussed at its public hearing, Advanced Safety Technologies for Commercial Vehicle Applications, held August 31 through September 2, 1999, existing technology in the form of Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) can prevent rear-end collisions. ITS, capable of alerting drivers to slowed or stopped traffic ahead, have been available for several years but are not in widespread use. The technology to alert drivers to traffic ahead includes adaptive cruise control (ACC), collision warning systems (CWSs), and infrastructure-based congestion warning systems. ACC detects slower moving vehicles ahead and closes the throttle and applies the engine brake to slow the host vehicle to a comparable speed. CWSs detect slower moving vehicles ahead and warn the driver of the host vehicle about the object ahead so the driver can take appropriate action. Infrastructure-based congestion warning systems use variable message signs to give drivers detailed information about the location of traffic queues. In the nine accidents investigated by the Safety Board, one (and sometimes more) of these technologies would have helped alert the drivers to the vehicles ahead, so that they could slow their vehicles, and would have prevented or mitigated the circumstances of the collisions.

The Safety Board addressed implementation of such systems for commercial vehicles in its 1995 special investigation of collision warning technology and recommended that the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) sponsor fleet testing of CWSs for trucks. On August 10, 1999, the Board classified the recommendation “Closed-Unacceptable Action” due to inaction by the DOT on testing of the CWS for trucks at that time. (See the “Related Report and Consequent Recommendations” section of this report for further information.)

Because of the lack of progress in deploying rear-end CWSs, the Safety Board addressed the issue at its summer 1999 public hearing focusing on advanced safety technologies for commercial vehicle applications to determine what had been done since its 1995 report. (See “Public Hearing” section of this report for further information.) At the hearing, representatives of Eaton VORAD Technologies, L.L.C. (Eaton VORAD); U.S. Xpress Enterprises, Inc. (U.S. Xpress); Greyhound Lines, Inc. (Greyhound); and the DOT provided information regarding the CWS and the status of various tests and deployments. As became clear during the public hearing, private industry is beginning to deploy vehicle-based safety systems. The CWS and ACC developed by Eaton VORAD are available as an option on trucks produced by all major manufacturers in the United States. Automobile manufacturers in Europe and Japan have begun to offer ACC on their high-end models, and Lexus and Mercedes are doing the same on their 2001 luxury vehicles in the United States.

According to a March 2000 TRW press release, industry analysts predict the market for ACC, CWSs, and headway control will grow from $11 million in 1998 to $2.4 billion in 2010. In 1999, the DOT commenced operational tests of ACC and CWSs for both cars and trucks. Several States also have projects under way to deploy infrastructure-based technology that alerts drivers to the location of the end of the queue in work zones or congested areas.

The work being done by private industry and the Government is encouraging, but the pace of testing and of standards development for all vehicles and of deployment for commercial vehicles is cause for concern, given the increasing number of rear-end collisions and the number of fatalities when commercial vehicles are involved. Therefore, the Safety Board is again addressing subjects related to ITS, both vehicle- and infrastructure-based, for the prevention of rear-end collisions. The Safety Board has explored the issues involved in deploying technological solutions in this special investigation report, which focuses on some of the challenges, including implementation, consumer acceptance, public perception, and training associated with the deployment of such systems.

If you, a family member or friend are involved in a rear end car crash due to negligence of another driver and have suffered either a death in the family or sustained serious bodily injuries, medical bills and lost wages call attorney David I. Fuchs at 800-570-2858 for a free no obligation consultation.

A jury awarded $1.7 million Friday to a woman who was spanked in front of her colleagues in what her employer called a camaraderie-building exercise.

The jury of six men and six women found that Janet Orlando, 53, was subjected to sexual harassment and sexual battery when she was paddled on the rear end two years ago at Alarm One Inc., a home security company in Fresno. The jury said Orlando did not suffer from sexual assault, as she had alleged.  

Jurors awarded Orlando $10,000 for economic loss, $40,000 for future medical costs and $450,000 for emotional distress, pain and suffering. They awarded her an additional $1.2 million in punitive damages.  

Orlando’s attorney, Nicholas “Butch” Wagner, did not immediately return calls for comment.  

K. Poncho Baker, an attorney for Alarm One, said it was excessive.  

“I think the jury was so upset at Alarm One that they went overboard,” Baker said. “Not to say that what Alarm One did was right, but this allows her to manipulate the system.”  

Orlando quit in 2004, less than a year after she was hired, saying she was humiliated during the company’s camaraderie-building exercises.  

Sales teams were encouraged to compete, and the losers were made fun of, forced to eat baby food, required to wear diapers and spanked with a rival company’s yard signs, according to court documents.  

Lawyers for the company said Orlando and others took part in the exercises willingly. The company has since abandoned the practice.  

During the trial, company attorneys revealed that Orlando had sued a previous employer, also claiming that she had been sexually harassed.  

If you, a family member, friend, loved one, or co-worker has been the victim of work place sexual harrassment or abuse contact attorney David I. Fuchs at 800-570-2858 to schedule a free no obligation consultation.

Everyday, Americans frequent numerous public buildings such as grocery stores, restaurants, hotels and offices. These common daily activities are rarely associated with danger. But unexpected disasters like fires or explosions can and do occur, often causing many unnecessary casualties. This was tragically demonstrated on Feb. 20, 2003, when a pyrotechnics fire at The Station nightclub in West Warwick, RI claimed the lives of 100 people, including 7 employees and 93 patrons. Many survivors were left suffering serious burn injuries and severe emotional trauma.

A nation was left to question how a tragedy of such magnitude could have occurred. For many, it was an abrupt wake-up call. Too many of us take for granted that the owners and managers of public buildings have effective emergency procedures in place.

Organizations such as the Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) recommends advocating for your own safety when entering all public buildings. This can be as simple as noting the location of fire exits and planning an escape route. HHS recommends becoming familiar with the building and viewing posted evacuation plans.

But what happens when an escape route is blocked, or no evacuation plans are provided? Even the most safety vigilant individuals are jeopardized when building operators fail to comply with established fire and emergency safety standards. The Occupational Safety and Health Association (OSHA) is one body that monitors and maintains building safety standards. Although their focus is on worker safety, it also protects patrons and visitors to these buildings.

In the case of the West Warwick nightclub fire, OSHA cited The Station owner and operator with a startling number of fire safety violations related to building exits. For starters, an exit door installed within’ the exit route did not swing in the direction of travel. Another exit door was not clearly marked and indistinguishable from the walls. And yet another exit door was surrounded with highly flammable material. These violations alone contributed to panic, trampling, elevated death tolls and unnecessary burn victims.

If you or a loved one has suffered serious burns or even death due to a fire or explosion in a public building, ensure that your rights are being protected. Contact attorneys David I. Fuchs at 800-570-2858 for a free consultation. If all fire safety, evacuation and emergency standards were not met, you could be entitled to compensation for on-going physical and emotional damages, lost wages, and your medical bills. 

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has shown that the risk of rollover in 15-Passenger vans is real, and has issued several cautionary warnings about these vehicles over the last few years. Most states have already banned 15-passenger vans for public school use because of the increased risk. However many organizations including sports groups, church groups, rental agencies, tour companies, and others continue to use them.

The best policy is to avoid using these vehicles at all. But if it is unavoidable, here are seven ways to help reduce the risk of injury.

Reduce the Maximum Load – Studies have shown that 15-passenger van carrying a maximum passenger load are five times more likely to roll over in an accident than with the driver alone. Operating at half-full with all passengers sitting in front of the rear axle reduces this risk to two times.

Do Not Replace People with Gear – Filling remaining seats with cargo defeats the purpose of reducing the number of passengers. A full load of gear can weigh just as much as a full passenger load.

Do Not Add Weight to Roof – Do not install a roof rack or otherwise carry gear on the roof. This will add to the top-heavy, back-heavy stresses on the vehicle which increases the risk of rollover.

Ensure All Passengers Wear Seatbelts – One report showed that 75% of the people killed in a 15-passenger van rollover were not properly restrained. On the other hand, 92% of those wearing proper seatbelts did survive.

Ensure Your Driver is Experienced – In several accidents studied, it was found that the driver was inexperienced and/or not familiar with the handling of a 15-passenger van. These vehicles do not handle the same way as a car or even a mini-van – even professional test drivers can lose control of these vehicles because of their rollover tendencies. If possible, ensure that the driver is trained or has a good amount of experience driving these vehicles. At the very least, select a driver with several years experience driving normal vehicles, and ensure that they know the problems that can arise. Much of this information can be found at the NHTSA website.

Check Your Tires – Ensure that tires are properly inflated, and that the tread is not worn down. Because of the excessive forces these vehicles can experience even in normal driving, tires may wear down faster than may be expected.

Maintain a Safe Speed – Most fatal accidents involving 15-passenger vans occur on high speed roadways (50+ mph). These vehicles need more room to stop, and do not handle well in emergency swerving or shoulder-drop situations. Ensure that the driver is awake and alert, and drives according to road and weather conditions.

If you have been injured in a 15-passenger van accident, the question of liability can quickly become complicated. Call attorney David I. Fuchs at 800-570-2858 for legal counsel and guidance.

Doctors around the country are complaining about the rising costs of medical malpractice insurance, spurred on by political groups and even their own American Medical Association (AMA). The answer, they say, is to limit the amount of money that can be awarded for “non-economic” damage (e.g. pain and suffering). In this misguided theory, reducing payouts will reduce insurance premiums. This is just not true, and this myth has been disproved in several independent studies.

But rather than protect doctors from “frivolous” patient lawsuits, government and industry organizations should be focusing on preventing malpractice from occurring in the first place. Every year, 44,000 to 98,000 hospitalized Americans die from preventable medical errors, according to a report released by the Institute of Medicine (IOM). These errors range from misdiagnosis to medication mistakes to surgical procedures on the wrong body parts. The Annals of Internal Medicine reported 27 instances of invasive procedures performed on the wrong patient between April 1998 and December 2001 in New York State alone.

The cost of these medical errors to patients, their families, and the economy is astounding. Based on IOM study data, preventable medical errors result in an estimated $17 billion to $29 billion in damage each year. (In comparison, medical malpractice insurance costs only $9.6 billion for all health care providers.)

What makes these stories and figures more horrifying is that a relatively small amount of offenders make up the vast majority of cases. The National Practitioner Data Bank reported that from September 1990 to the end of 2003, 5.4% of doctors were responsible for 56.2% of medical malpractice payouts. Further, just 2% were responsible for almost one-third of the payouts. 83% of all doctors did not make a payout of any kind.

Yet only 5% of doctors who had two or more malpractice payouts have been formally disciplined by their state medical board. Although the percentage of disciplinary actions goes up with each additional settlement against a doctor, less than a third of doctors who had 10 or more payouts were disciplined. And unlike car insurance, malpractice insurance does not tend to go up as sharply after a payout. Clearly, there is no incentive for these doctors to clean up their act – and no real threat of removing them from practice and away from innocent victims no matter how incompetent their practices.

If you or a loved one is a victim of medical malpractice, you need to have expert representation. Call attorney David I. Fuchs at 800-570-2858.