South Florida Personal Injury Lawyers

A septic truck collided with a sport utility vehicle carrying farm workers in central California on Tuesday, sweeping both vehicles into an irrigation canal and killing at least five people.

Authorities pulled the Ford Explorer out of the Delta-Mendota Canal late Tuesday night and removed four bodies, three men and one woman, from the vehicle, said California Highway Patrol Officer Mayolo Banuelos.

Officials were working to identify the four victims, who were traveling home to Lodi after working in an orchard south of Westley in Stanislaus County. Investigators had originally believed that six people were in the SUV based on reports from family and witnesses.

Divers pulled one male body from inside the septic truck late in the afternoon, Banuelos said. Initial reports suggested that two people had been in the truck, but investigators now believe there was only one.

The vehicles careened into the swift moving waters of the canal about 15 miles southwest of Modesto after the truck slammed into the SUV at 12:21 p.m. Tuesday, according to the CHP.

Distraught relatives and friends of the crash victims lined the canal banks Tuesday afternoon, sobbing as divers probed its depths.

“When we got the call I thought it could have been any of us there with them,” said Zenon Vargas, 34, who said he shares a home in Lodi with the SUV’s driver, Eulalia Garcia. “It’s been so many hours. It’s so frustrating.”

The canal runs about 17 feet deep and 100 feet wide in the area where the crash occurred, said Pete Lucero, a spokesman for the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, which operates the 117 mile canal that funnels water from a Tracy pumping plant to the western San Joaquin Valley.

United Site Services Inc., which owned the septic truck, wouwould not immediately release the identity of the driver, who had been cleaning out portable toilets in a nearby orchard before the crash, said Paige Dawson, a spokeswoman for the Westborough, Massachusetts based company.

The truck was carrying non-toxic, biodegradable material, and there was no evidence the contents of the truck’s tank had spilled into the canal, Dawson said.

Belen Martinez, 47, who worked in the same crew as Garcia, said she received a call that her friend, brother in law and nephew were involved in the wreck.

“They never had a chance to get home,” said Martinez, who is originally from the Mexican state of Guerrero, but now lives in Lodi. “We’re just sitting here hoping and waiting.”

A Rhode Island-bound flight with about 70 people on board made an emergency landing in Rochester, N.Y., because of smoke in the cockpit.

Emergency dispatchers tell the Democrat and Chronicle newspaper that the plane landed just after 10 a.m. Wednesday at the Rochester airport and no one on board was hurt. Emergency crews were called to the airport to assist.

Details about the plane’s operator and the flight’s origin were not immediately available. Calls to the airport’s director were not immediately returned.

A lawsuit brought against two Roman Catholic dioceses by five men sexually abused by a Catholic school teacher was dismissed Wednesday by the Wisconsin Supreme Court.

Although the diocese of Milwaukee and Madison knew about the teacher’s past, its failure to warn potential victims in other states did not constitute negligence, the supreme court said.

“Obviously I think it’s unfortunate because this is a teacher that molested students in two different locations and went on to do it again,” said Wendy Gunderson, the attorney for the men.

Attorneys and representatives for the dioceses did not immediately return messages seeking comment.

The men, who were abused in Kentucky, accused the Wisconsin dioceses of covering up the teacher’s abuse of dozens of children in the 1960s while he taught at Catholic schools in Madison and Milwaukee.

The men - Kenneth Hornback, Dennis L. Bolton, Ronald W. Kuhl, David W. Schaeffer and Glenn M. Bonn - were among 243 plaintiffs compensated under a $25.7 million church abuse settlement with the Archdiocese of Louisville. They were all under age 15 when they were sexually abused by Gary Kazmarek, a Catholic school teacher and coach in Louisville, between 1968 and 1973.

Kazmarek pleaded guilty in 2003 to sexually abusing the men and is serving a 13-year prison sentence in Kentucky.

After the settlement in Louisville, the men filed the lawsuit in Wisconsin claiming the dioceses in the state were negligent in failing to contact police or warn employers that Kazmarek was known for sexually abusing children.

The lawsuit alleged that Kazmarek abused more than two dozen children between 1964 and 1966 when he taught at a parish school in Milwaukee.

When the diocese learned of the abuse, church officials told Kazmarek to “leave Milwaukee quietly” despite promises to parents that he would get treatment and never have contact with children again, according to the suit. Kazmarek then went on to teach at a Catholic school in suburban Madison where he abused up to ten children before moving to Kentucky, the lawsuit said.

The Supreme Court of Wisconsin on Wednesday ruled that a homeowner’s insurance policy does not cover a wife’s negligence in not preventing her husband, who was covered by the same policy, from sexually abusing a child. With a 4-3 decision in J.G. v. Wangard, the Supreme Court upheld the decision of the Waukesha County Circuit Court that Deborah Wangard’s alleged negligence was not covered by either of the couple’s homeowner’s policies issued by Great Northern Insurance Co. or Pacific Indemnity Insurance Co. because her husband, Steven Wangard, caused injury through an intentional act. The Court rejected the wife’s argument that the language of the insurance contract was ambiguous and that she had a reasonable expectation of coverage. Following precedents and referring to the express language of the policy, the Court explained: We agree with the analysis in Taryn E.F. and conclude that Great Northern and Pacific’s use of the phrase “any covered person” in the policies’ intentional acts exclusions, like the phrase “any insured” in the Taryn E.F. policy, unambiguously precludes coverage for all insureds.

The policies in question unambiguously state that personal injury damages “arising out of” the intentional acts of “any covered person” are excluded from coverage. Deborah cannot reasonably argue that this policy language should be construed to cover the damages arising out of the intentional sexual contact with J.G. by her husband Steven, a covered person. In addition, as the court of appeals recognized in Jessica M.F., an insured cannot reasonably expect coverage for harms resulting from sexual assaults committed by one’s spouse. In October 2004 Steven Wangard plead guilty to second-degree sexual assault of a child. He admitted to having sexual contact with a minor, referred to as J.G., from 2000 to 2003 at two residences that were insured by polices from Great Northern and Pacific Indemnity insurance companies. Steven Wangard was sentenced to five years in prison for the offense, while a civil lawsuit against the couple in Waukesha county is set to resume in August.

Plaintiff Christopher Irwin, 16, was visiting friend Bryan Heath at his home. Both of Heath’s parents were at work. Heath called Irwin to come over to see something “cool.” Heath had a World War II M-1 Carbine rifle. Bryan proceeded to load a clip into the rifle, chamber a round, and point it at his friend. Christopher felt uncomfortable, left the room, and began to go down a hallway to the bathroom. As he turned to go into the bathroom, the gun accidentally discharged and hit Christopher in the hip.

Bryan claimed that he had not put a clip in the weapon, that he thought it was unloaded, and that the weapon accidentally fired as he checked to ensure it was not loaded. However, law enforcement officials investigating the accident scene found a live cartridge chambered in the M-1 Carbine, a fact consistent with a clip having been in the weapon at the time it discharged. With a clip in the weapon, it would have automatically chambered a new live round as part of its firing cycle.

Christopher and his parents sued Bryan, Bryan’s parents, Robert Heath and Tracy Heath, and Bryan’s grandfather, Richard Priest. Prior to trial, all claims were settled except for Christopher’s negligent entrustment claim against Priest.

Two years before this incident, a World War II veteran who was a friend of the grandfather gave the M-1 Carbine to Bryan and his younger brother. There was no ammunition for the weapon and Bryan’s father stored it in his closet with instructions to his sons not to touch it without his permission. The day prior to the accident, Priest and Bryan were sorting through the World War II vet’s possessions, which had been given to Priest. Among those possessions, Priest found two loaded clips of ammunition for the rifle. He gave the ammunition to Bryan with instructions to take it home and give it to his father. Bryan testified that he took the ammunition home and put it in his father’s closet, but forgot to tell his father. The next day Bryan’s parents went to work unaware there was ammunition in the home. The accident occurred several hours later.

Priest’s counsel argued there was no negligence in entrusting the ammunition to a responsible 17-year-old to take home to his parents.

Plaintiff’s counsel argued that federal law prohibits people under the age of 18 from purchasing ammunition and Florida law bars them from possession of loaded firearms, except under certain limited circumstances. Those statutes exist to protect minors from their own misjudgments. Plaintiff’s counsel argued that ammunition should not have been entrusted to the minor without first obtaining his parents’ permission or, at a minimum, notifying those parents so that they could take steps to secure the ammunition.

The bullet entered Christopher’s left side, passed through his intestines, and shattered his right hip. He also sustained nerve damage in his hip. He was airlifted to the hospital where 14 inches of his intestines were removed. Open reduction surgery was performed on his right hip. He remained in the hospital for two weeks and was bedridden at home for about two months. He underwent two months of physical therapy and both of his parents took off significant time from work to care for him around the clock.

Prior to the accident, Christopher was a good athlete and played soccer and basketball. Subsequent to the accident he never regained his former physical abilities. Medical testimony established that Christopher will need a hip replacement within the next five years and probably two more hip replacements over the course of his life expectancy.

The jury found Priest to be 40 percent liable. It awarded $1,681,597.91 which was reduced to $1,231,591.91. Before the judgment was entered, the parties settled for $1.2 million.

Christopher Irwin

$931,598 Personal Injury: economic damages

$750,000 Personal Injury: noneconomic damages

Those who helped assist in the rescue, recovery and cleanup efforts of the World Trade Center destruction, have an extended deadline of August 13, 2008 to register with the New York State Workers’ Compensation Board.

The law has been changed to allow for claims by those that have 9/11 related illnesses.

The change applies to workers and volunteers that may not be sick now, but how become sick in the future due to toxic exposure following 9/11.

To ensure eligibility, all workers and volunteers must register before August 13, 2008 to preserve your right to file a claim in the future.

Workers and volunteers who assisted in cleanup work, recovery and rescue should register as soon as possible, to avoid the deadline. Those who were exposed to psychological trauma and/or toxic dust should protect their rights by filing a claim. If you are not sure if you qualify to make a claim, registering is suggested.

Detailed information can be found by visiting the NYCOSH website at www.nycosh.org or by calling 1-866-WTC-2556 24-hours a day

A man, arriving early for a meeting at Whataburger, notified the cashier that the floor was slippery. During the meeting, he went to refill his drink when he slipped and fell, striking his head on the floor.

His wife, who also happens to be a registered nurse, saw him unconscious on the floor with blood beneath his head. Using a spoon she was able to create an airway for her husband to begin breathing which allowed him to regain consciousness.

Emergency services arrived and transported him to the hospital where he was found to have head injuries that included a three-inch laceration. He was discharged after receiving three staples to close the injured area.

The Colorado couple filed a personal injury lawsuit in the Marshall Division of the Eastern District of Texas, against the Longview Whataburger, alleging the restaurant failed to maintain the floor in safe condition.

The lawsuit seeks damages for mental anguish suffered, medical bills, physical impairment, physical pain, loss of earning capacity, loss of consortium along with pre-and post-judgment interest.

A San Jose woman was killed Saturday in a SUV rollover accident that happened in Colorado.

The accident reportedly also claimed the life of a friend who was following the woman driving the SUV.

Verna File, 65, had driven from California to Missouri with her husband Bill to attend a dog show with close friends, Royce and Vickie McFadden.

According to a fellow dog breeder, the couples met when the Files sold the McFadden’s a puppy from one of their liters.

Bill File was driving the SUV, which was a 2000 GMC Yukon, when it drifted into the median before rolling over twice.

Verna File and Royce McFadden were instantly killed in the accident, while Bill File and Vickie McFadden endured serious injuries and were transported to a nearby hospital.

Their injuries were so serious that after being treated at the hospital, they were transported to the Swedish Medical Center near Denver.

“Alcohol, drugs and speed were not factors,” states Gilbert Mares, a Colorado state trooper.

A police officer and his family have won $40,000 in their lawsuit against a restaurant that had served them food tainted by an employee’s spit and urine.

A jury on Friday ruled in favor of Sidney police Officer Keith Andrew, whose two sons, then 4 and 7, were sickened by the food they ate at a KFC/Taco Bell in October 2005. Sidney is a town of about 6,000 in western Nebraska.

The younger boy became violently ill with gastroenteritis and dehydration, vomited for hours and was forced to spend time in a hospital, the family’s lawsuit said.

The lawsuit, filed last year in Cheyenne County District Court, named the restaurant’s owner, North Platte-based Mid Plains Food and Lodging.

The jury found the restaurant negligent, said the family’s attorney Andy Snyder. He said of the restaurant owner, “I’d advise them to get a better class of employees.”

A KFC spokesman, Rick Maynard, said KFC is committed to the highest levels of food safety.

“Our franchisee does not agree with the court’s verdict, and they are looking at their legal options,” Maynard said Monday.

Workers who saw a fellow employee taint the family’s food reported it to management, but the managers didn’t inform the family, the lawsuit alleged.

The suit also alleged that Andrew, his wife and their children were victims of an employee scheme that targeted police officers.

“Employees maintained ’special servings’ of food reserved for … officers,” the lawsuit said. “The ’special servings’ had been urinated in or spit in by KFC/Taco Bell employees.”

The employee accused of urinating and spitting in the Andrew family’s food, Casey Diedrich, pleaded guilty last year to violating the Nebraska Pure Food Act and fined $100, according to court records. The prosecution was for the same incident described in the lawsuit.

A company spokesman said last year that Diedrich eventually was fired for missing work but not for any of the incidents the lawsuit cited.

There was no listing under Diedrich’s name in Nebraska.