South Florida Personal Injury Lawyers

On Aug. 25, 2003, plaintiff William J. Orton Jr., 41, a court bailiff, underwent a colon resection to repair a stricture. The procedure was performed by general surgeon Guillermo Ponce De Leon. Orton, who had Crohn’s disease, alleged that Ponce De Leon accidentally perforated his colon during the surgery and then failed to diagnose it. Ponce De Leon performed two subsequent operations: an open laparotomy on Aug. 27 and a fistula repair on Jan. 14, 2004.

In late April 2004, Orton’s family physician, a close friend, removed him from Ponce De Leon’s care and paid Orton’s airfare to see Dr. David B. Sachar, a gastroenterologist in New York. Sachar diagnosed a leak related to one of Ponce De Leon’s surgeries and referred Orton to abdominal surgeon Adrian Greenstein. Greenstein operated, and Orton’s condition greatly improved.

Orton sued Ponce De Leon for medical malpractice, alleging that, for eight months after the Aug. 25 surgery, Ponce De Leon told other physicians that Orton did not have a leak or perforation and that the multiple infections Orton developed were attributed to Crohn’s disease.

The defense denied negligence and argued that Orton’s complications resulted from Crohn’s disease.

From shortly after the initial operation until the one performed by Greenstein, Orton developed multiple abscesses, infections, phlegmons and fistulas, all of which Orton claimed resulted from Ponce De Leon’s failure to recognize an ongoing infection process. He was hospitalized for more than 100 days over the course of nine hospitalizations between August 2003 and May 2004 for treatment of these addition ailments.

Orton claimed past medical bills of $794,051.11, as well as $500,000 for past pain and suffering, $500,000 for future pain and suffering, $250,000 for past physical impairment, and an unspecified amount for future physical impairment.

Orton’s former girlfriend, another close friend and neighbor, and a former sheriff testified about how the injuries affected Orton’s life.

Orton’s attorneys asked the jury to serve as “police officers” in the case — to determine whether Ponce De Leon and his experts were “speeding with the facts” and, if they were, to “write them a ticket.”

The defense maintained that Orton’s problems resulted from Crohn’s disease, rather than an ongoing infectious process.

The jury found Ponce De Leon negligent and that Orton’s damages were $4,044,051.11.

William J. Orton, Jr.

$794,051 Personal Injury: Past Medical Cost

$250,000 Personal Injury: Past Physical Impairment

$2,000,000 Personal Injury: Future Physical Impairment

$500,000 Personal Injury: Past Pain And Suffering

$500,000 Personal Injury: Future Pain And Suffering

A Burger King spokeswoman says the fast-food chain is investigating allegations that a white employee in a northwestern Pennsylvania restaurant spat on a black man’s food.

But spokeswoman Denise Wilson says Miami-based Burger King officials have not been served with the federal lawsuit filed Tuesday by Glenn Goodwin, a trucker from Cleveland.

Goodwin claims one white worker spat on his food while another white worker obscured his view of the act when Goodwin stopped at a Burger King in Fairview in November 2008. The lawsuit says state police investigated and discovered saliva in Goodwin’s food, but police have not returned calls seeking to confirm the information.

Wilson says Burger King takes the matter seriously and strives to serve customers well, regardless of their race

A Jefferson County jury has awarded a former stripper $100,000 in a lawsuit in which she claimed the club that employed her failed to stop her from driving home after her on-the-job drinking. Patsy Hamaker of Bessemer was injured in a wreck after leaving work at The Furnace on Oct. 17, 2007. She said she can no longer dance because of her injuries.

Hamaker said the club disregarded its own safety rules when it let her drive home that night. Attorneys for the club argued that employees tried to keep Hamaker from driving away.

The Birmingham News reported that the jury award made Tuesday is for compensatory damages. No punitive damages were awarded.

Toyota acknowledged design problems with the brakes in its prized Prius, adding to the catalog of woes for the Japanese automaker as it reels from massive gas-pedal recalls in the U.S.

Toyota Motor Corp. said Thursday it found design problems with the antilock brake system and corrected them for Prius models sold since late January, including those being shipped overseas.

But the company said it was still investigating how to inform customers who had bought them earlier. Nothing was decided on that front for Prius gas-electric hybrids sold outside Japan, according to Toyota.

Complaints about braking problems in the Prius – the world’s top-selling hybrid – have been reported in the U.S. and Japan, combining to some 180, and come amid a global recall of nearly 4.5 million vehicles for faulty gas pedals.

“We are investigating whether there are defects in the Prius,” Toyota executive Hiroyuki Yokoyama told reporters at the automaker’s Tokyo headquarters.

Paul Nolasco, a company spokesman, said the time lag for brakes kicking in felt by drivers stem from the two systems in a gas-electric hybrid – the gas-engine and the electric motor.

When the car moves on a bumpy or slippery surface, a driver can feel a pause in the braking when the vehicle switches between the traditional hydraulic brakes and the electronically operated braking system, he said.

The brakes start to work if the driver keeps pushing the pedal, but the driver may momentarily feel they aren’t working, he said. Fixing that included a software programming change, he said.

Whether a recall was in the works for the Prius is still undecided, according to Toyota, but the transport minister urged the company to consider it and is ordering an investigation.

A major Toyota dealership in Tokyo said the automaker had informed dealers that Prius brakes can sometimes fail to work for less than a second but it had not told owners.

“It is disappointing because the Prius was receiving such rave reviews,” said Hiroyuki Naito, a manager at the dealership. The latest model Prius hit showrooms last May and is only made in Japan.

In recent weeks, the automaker had answered questions about its overseas recalls for gas pedals with assurances that problems didn’t extend to Japanese vehicles, implying it was doing a better job with quality control in Japan.

But Prius owners were worried.

Akira Suzuki, 25, who makes surf boards and teaches surfing, was excited about the high mileage his recently purchased hybrid offers – but concerned about its possible problems.

“I’m not sure how safe it is. I plan to drive very carefully,” said Suzuki, who lives in a Tokyo suburb.

Despite snowballing problems with quality, Toyota reported Thursday a $1.7 billion profit for the October-December quarter, citing healthy sales of its green models including the Prius, and predicted it would return to profit for the fiscal year through March.

Toyota shares tumbled on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, falling 3.5 percent to close at 3,280 yen ($36) after plunging 5.7 percent the previous day. Since Jan. 21, when the U.S. recalls were announced, the stock has lost about 22 percent.

Earlier in Washington, U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood startled the public with a comment, which he later retracted, that Americans should park their recalled Toyotas unless driving to dealers for accelerator repairs.

The Prius was not part of the recall spanning the U.S., Europe and China over sticking gas pedals in eight top-selling models including the Camry. That recall involved 2.3 million cars in the U.S. alone.

Toyota senior managing director Takahiko Ijichi defended the automaker’s quality standards.

“We have not sacrificed the quality for the sake of saving costs,” he said. “Quality is our lifeline. We want our customers to feel safe and regain their trust as soon as possible.”

Toyota for the first time gave an estimate of the costs of the global gas-pedal recall. The $2 billion total represents $1.1 billion for repairs and $770 million to $880 million in lost sales.

Toyota is expecting to lose 100,000 in vehicle sales because of the recall fallout – 80,000 of them in North America.

The tarnishing of the Prius nameplate is also a serious setback for Toyota’s recovery from the global auto slump.

“It’s very unclear what the future will bring,” said Mamoru Katou, auto analyst with Tokai Tokyo Research. “Toyota’s image as a leader in hybrids has been hurt.”

The automaker has received 77 complaints in Japan about braking problems for the Prius. Separately, the Japanese government confirmed 14 complaints. About 100 complaints over Prius brakes have been filed in the U.S.

At least one accident has been reported in Japan suspected of being linked to faulty braking. In that accident, in July 2009, a Prius crashed head on into another car, slightly injuring two people, according to the transport ministry.

Toyota had looked into that accident and concluded there were no problems with the Prius.

In the U.S., harried dealers began receiving parts to repair defective gas pedals in millions of vehicles and said they’d be extending their hours deep into the night to try and catch up. Toyota said that would solve the problem – which it said was extremely rare – of cars unaccountably accelerating.

Toyota is set to face additional questioning from U.S. congressional and other government investigators. Toyota has shut down several new vehicle assembly lines and is rushing parts to dealers to fix problems with the accelerators, trying to preserve a reputation of building safe, durable vehicles.

The latest recall involves 2009-10 RAV4 crossovers, 2009-10 Corollas, 2009-10 Matrix hatchbacks, 2005-10 Avalons, 2007-10 Camrys, 2010 Highlander crossovers, 2007-10 Tundra pickups and 2008-10 Sequoia SUVs.

U.S. lawmakers who are now digging into the recalls say they would look into the Prius.

Many consumer groups have questioned whether Toyota’s gas pedal fix will work and have asserted it could be connected to problems with the electronic throttle control systems.

Yasuaki Iwamoto, auto analyst with Okasan Securities in Tokyo, said the big challenge for Toyota was rebuilding its damaged brand, especially in overseas markets.

“For all people who own Toyota cars, for all people with jobs related to Toyota, this huge sense of uncertainty simply isn’t going away,” he said.

A teal Acura crashed into two parked cars Monday night, sending one man to the hospital and leaving authorities looking for another.

Authorities received the call at about 8:30 p.m. that a car had crashed on Schneider Drive, which is off North Beal Extension.

When they arrived on the scene, they saw the car had hit a power pole and snapped it, leaving wires blocking the road.

They saw the car had also crashed into two vehicles parked side by side at the residence of 510 Schneider Drive.

The Acura totaled the first car it hit — a P.T. Cruiser — pushing it into a Chevy Avalanche with enough force that the Avalanche came to rest in a nearby fish pond.

The flipping Acura came to rest on its roof in the front yard of 514 Schneider Drive, two doors down.

Shannon Bingman heard the commotion from her living room and said she was at the scene within 60 seconds. Bingman saw the driver of the vehicle walk away from the accident as his friend climbed out of the passenger seat.

Larry DiAmco, captain of Fort Walton Beach Fire Department Engine 7, said his crew found one person lying in the road.

“He was on the outside of the vehicle when we got here, and he was conscious,” said DiAmco, adding the man was in serious condition and taken to Fort Walton Beach Medical Center.

A Florida Highway Patrolman said they were looking for another person believed to be in the vehicle.

A witness who did not want to be named said he saw a man involved in the crash exit the scene. The witness said the man, who walked right past him, appeared to be intoxicated.

A power company worker said the downed lines were cable lines. The road remained blocked until crews could come to restore them

Lee County drivers won’t be ticketed based on red light camera footage any time soon.

Commissioners decided today to have staff continue monitoring dangerous intersections, but not to put up cameras to catch red light runners.

“I’m certainly not ready to say Lee County needs to jump on this ordinance at this time,” said Commissioner Tammy Hall.

Commissioners expressed concern over a lawsuit brought against 13 municipalities, including Collier County. The lawsuit questions the constitutionality of the red light cameras.

Commissioners Brian Bigelow and Frank Mann have said they do not support the cameras. Commissioner Ray Judah is for them.

“If that’s the perception that it’s an intrusion then so be it,” as long as it’s saving people’s lives, Judah said

A Jacksonville man has been charge with DUI manslaughter in a crash that left a St. John’s County deputy dead.

A 4-year-old boy and his grandmother were struck and seriously injured when a car rammed into them this morning, authorities said.

The accident occurred just after 9 a.m. near the intersection of Nineteenth Avenue and Monroe Street, according to Hollywood Fire-Rescue Div. Chief Mark Steele.

The grandmother was walking the boy to school when a driver struck them, Steele said.

The boy was taken to Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital and the grandmother was taken to Memorial Regional Hospital, where both are recovering from injuries that were described as serious, but non-life threatening, authorities said.

The driver of the car was also taken to Memorial Regional Hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

It was not immediately clear whether the driver of the car would be facing any charges.

On May 17, 2006, plaintiff Rashauna Vasquez, 25, a waitress, was stopped at a red light on Los Gatos Boulevard, near the intersection of Los Gatos Almaden Road in Los Gatos. Reportedly, she was rear-ended by John D. Kettenburg, who was intoxicated. Both vehicles were totaled.

Vasquez sued Kettenburg for motor vehicle negligence, alleging that he was deliberately under the influence of morphine, ambien and alcohol.

Eyewitnesses testified that Kettenburg was driving at speeds between 50 mph and 60 mph in a 35-mph zone and ran a red light at the previous intersection. They additionally testified that he struck Vasquez after momentarily breaking, hitting her at a speed of at least 50 mph.

Kettenburg contended that he had a serious cancer condition which caused him intractable pain and prevented him from sleeping. On the day of the accident, after several nights of no sleep, he reported that he took a double dose of ambien with alcohol in order to sleep. He claimed that he awoke without realizing it and drove his vehicle. He alleged no memory of the incident.

The defense pharmacology expert testified that Kettenburg had taken so much ambien, morphine and alcohol that he was not fully aware of what he was doing when the accident occurred.

The lawyers also argued that there was no evidence that the impact speed was anywhere near 50 mph.

Vasquez claimed soft-tissue injuries to her neck and back, and that her children sustained minor lacerations and abrasions. The plaintiff was taken to a hospital via ambulance and her injuries were addressed via 43 sessions of chiropractic and physical therapy over a period of five months.

She claimed ongoing back and neck pain, emotional distress and anxiety from the experience of having her children trapped in the back of the car. The plaintiff psychiatry expert opined that Vasquez experienced traumatic psychiatric injury.

Vasquez was out of work for one week following the incident.

In terms of punitive damages, plaintiff’s counsel noted that Kettenburg was subsequently arrested twice for driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol in the same area and had deliberately overdosed on prescription drugs and alcohol in his vehicle twice prior to the accident. The court ruled that similar misconduct conduct after the incident was inadmissible, even on the issue of punitive damages, because it occurred 16 and 23 months after the subject accident.

Vasquez sought $9,500 in medical expenses, past and future pain and suffering and punitive damages.

The defense orthopedics expert testified that Vasquez’s injuries did not meet the threshold of serious injury.

Defense counsel claimed that, due to Kettenburg’s condition, he did not have the requisite despicable conduct and conscious disregard for the rights or safety of others necessary for punitive damages.

This was a test case to determine whether a voluntary intoxication defense can be used against punitive damages in civil DUI cases and whether subsequent similar misconduct is admissible on punitive damages.

The jury found for Vasquez and awarded $17,100, including $9,500 in medical expenses.

The jury found that the defendant was not liable for punitive damages.