At a busy San Francisco Intersection of Market and Castro streets before 8 a.m. March 29, 2012, a 71-year old pedestrian, Sutchi Hui, of San Bruno was hit by a cyclist. Both the cyclist and Hui were hospitalized after the accident. The cyclist was released with minor injuries. However, Hui remained hospitalized and passed away on Monday, four days after the accident.

The evening of the accident, a comment was posted on the Mission Cycling Club Forum. Chris Bucchere identified himself as the cyclist responsible for the crash.   The message was detailed describing his early morning ride from San Francisco to the Main headlands and back. Part of the message reads:

“The light turned yellow as I was approaching the intersection, but I was already way too committed to stop. The light turned red as I was cruising through the middle of the intersection and then, almost instantly, the southern crosswalk on Market and Castro filled up with people coming from both directions…I couldn’t see a line through the crowd and I couldn’t stop, so I laid it down and just plowed through the crowded crosswalk in the least-populated place I could find.”

“I remember seeing a RIVER of blood on the asphalt, but it wasn’t mine. I really hope he ends up OK.”

Readers of the blog forum commented on the alleged actions of Bucchere. People have different reactions on the reckless riding of Bucchere. The post was ended like this, “In closing, I want to dedicate this story to my late helmet. She died in heroic fashion today as my head slammed into the tarmac… The moral of this little story is: WYFH.” Commenters expressed their reactions in this troubling statement.

The case is still under investigation and I do hope that the responsible person of the bicycle accident must be held accountable. Bicycling can be fun and is a popular way to get around San Francisco, however, every rider must take into consideration his safety and most especially the safety of pedestrian. In most incidents, bicyclists are not at fault, but from what I see this case may be different. In Kentucky, Hai’s estate would be able to file a wrongful death action against Bucchere and collect damages from Bucchere’s car insurance policy under motorist circumstances. The estate would also be able to make a claim under Hui’s car insurance policy. I would strongly suggest that the families contact the best California personal injury attorney they can find.

A blog posted by John Patzakis on the eDiscovery Law and Tech blog really caught my attention. The article discussed a case where an attorney and his client were both sanctioned for removing posts from the clients Facebook account. “A Virginia state judge ordered lawyer Matthew Murray to pay $522,000 for instructing his client to remove photos from his Facebook profile, and for his client to pay an additional $180,000 for obeying the instructions. According to the final order in Lester v. Allied Concrete Company.

Murray instructed his client to remove several photos on his Facebook account due to fear that they might prejudice his wrongful death case brought after his spouses’ fatal automobile accident. The instructions were made through Murray’s assistant. The assistant’s email to the client, Isaiah Lester, stated that, “We do not want blow ups of other pics at trial, so please, please clean up your Facebook and MySpace!” According to local press reports, Murray quit his job as managing partner of the largest personal firm in Virginia and he no longer practice law.

Facebook has now been widely used by lawyers, investigators, insurance company and even the police. Some information may serve as grounds for discovering cases of deceit that might win a case. An intentional hiding, altering or destroying of evidence relevant to a legal proceeding is considered spoliation of evidence. Parties who engage in spoliation may face legal consequences. In the situation of Murray, the case he handled costs him a large amount of money and ended his career.

As a personal injury attorney, everyone should be extremely careful as to what they post on social media sites. Their posts may do more harm than good. Once a post is made it is there forever!  Even if it is later removed there are ways to bring those posts back.  Education is the key to the proper use of Facebook.  I have told many accident victims who have came to me for their Kentucky accident case to never post anything that you would not be comfortable with their mother reading in the paper.  I guess that dates me, but you get the point.

The Kentucky Supreme Court is being asked to review a fetal death lawsuit which was brought by the future grandfather, Thomas Stevens, seeking damages for the death of a fetus in a car accident.

It was August 16, 2008,  when a 24-year-old Desiree Amber Stevens bearing a 14-week old fetus was heading east in KY 52, when another driver tried to cross the highway in front of her causing the terrible accident that killed Stevens and her unborn child. An Estill Country trial judge granted wrongful death damages for Desiree but not for the unborn child.

Circuit Judge Thomas Jones wrote that, “Harsh as it seems, damages for a non-viable fetus are not recoverable.”The Kentucky Court of Appeals affirmed that ruling last month.  Stevens and his lawyer, J.T. Gilbert of Richmond are asking the Kentucky Supreme Court to reconsider the suit.

Gilbert said in interviews that Kentucky Courts since 1955, have allowed compensation for the wrongful death of a viable fetus. He also argues that in other areas of the law, the Kentucky Assembly has proclaimed that life begins at conception.

However, in July 29 Court of Appeals judges said that the law considered in Steven’s case is Kentucky’s wrongful-death statute, which says damages may be recovered only for the death of a “person.” Lawyers for Progressive and Flynn’s lawyer noted that Kentucky courts have rejected damages for nonviable fetus, generally those that are less than 24 weeks.

According to Chicago-based Americans United for Life, only nine states permit recovery for the wrongful death for fetuses before viability and most states allow it only for viable fetuses, as Kentucky does.

Stevens’ case doesn’t involve abortion, but a ruling for the family could have effects on state’s abortion laws and would likely affect how auto insurance works.

Gilbert said that Stevens is still emotional about the deaths and that Stevens filed the claim on behalf of his daughter’s fetus “to honor that he had a grandchild” and to protect her rights. Desiree Steven’s mother also said that “He wasn’t just a fetus to us – he was a boy and he had a name, Logan Dylan.”

I urge the Kentucky Supreme Court to expand Kentucky’s wrongful death law. Every life has value and our laws should allow compensation if it is taken away by the negligence of another.

Monet Parham, a mother of two, from Sacramento, California filed a lawsuit last December that accuses McDonald’s Corporation of unfairly using toys to entice children into their restaurants.  She charges that McDonalds advertising violates California consumer protection laws.  She is represented by the Center for Science in the Public Interest, a nutrition advocacy group.

McDonald’s Corp. stated that this lawsuit is trying to stop their Happy Meal promotion. McDonald’s argues that the case is about toys offered in a certain Happy Meal and must be dismissed since it’s the parents’ choice to buy the meal for their children.  In fact, Parham has admitted that she often refuses to buy Happy Meals for her children.  McDonald’s added that she was not misguided by any advertising, nor did she rely on any information from them. 

According to a litigation attorney for the public interest group, Stephen Gardner, McDonald’s approach to dismiss the lawsuit is to blame Parham. They state that Parham is at fault if she doesn’t force her children to disregard McDonald’s advertisements.  He added that the company’s strategy in making a lot of money is by marketing directly to kids. 

The U.S. food industry has successfully defended obesity-related lawsuits for years. Would this type of case be successful in Kentucky?  I doubt it. Kentucky already has a statute that prohibits a lawsuit against the fast food industry for a wrongful death caused by eating fatty foods at fast food restaurants. These child obesity cases would not be considered a child injury accident.

The marketing McDonald’s does is very effective.  Parents should refuse to buy the Happy Meal for their children.  If more parents put their foot down, obesity would not be a major health concern among our children.  Am I the only person that believes in parental responsibility?

            Without evidence you will not be successful in pursuing your Kentucky accident claim. Whether it is a car accident, a truck accident, a bicycle accident or a wrongful death case you must be able to prove what happened. I know this is a harsh statement to start this article off with but it is the truth.  Without witnesses, pictures, medical proof and other documented evidence you are not going to be successful in prosecuting your Kentucky accident claim.  I use the word prosecuting because as an accident victim you are in a position of being required to prove your claim to the insurance company. Yes, much as a prosecutor does in a criminal case when he is arguing for a conviction. 

In the past few weeks I have had numerous clients come into my office who have been injured in auto accidents.  The facts have been somewhat strange and bizarre. They include:

·        Hitting parked cars

·        Cars illegally parked

·        Cars in front going into reverse and backing up for seemingly no reason. 

·        Buses swerving over the center line

You might think that this is a no?brainer. How could anyone not believe these people?  Isn’t it easy to show whose fault these accidents are? This is not always the case.  You never know what the other side is going to say, what reasoning they’re going to give or what they’re going to say about you. Believe it or not they may not tell the truth.  I have had to decline representing people in the last few weeks because:

• There were no photos to prove the position of the vehicles at the time of the accident.
• There were no independent witnesses to verify my potential client’s story.
• The police investigation was inadequate.  There were no diagrams or measurements made as to the positioning of the vehicles. 
• There was not immediate medical treatment.

Immediately following an accident the adrenaline is flowing.  Your brain is foggy.  You’re almost on auto pilot.  You are not concentrating on what is necessary to prove your case. You have no idea that any of this will be an issue. This is the furthest thing from your mind. Over the next several months you may find that without these items it is impossible to prove your case. The insurance adjuster may not be as friendly when you are finally asking to be compensated for what you have been through.  

You need to make sure you protect yourself by:

·        Obtain the names of witnesses to the accident.

·        Take pictures of the damage to BOTH vehicles. 

·        Document the position of the vehicles with photos.  You can do this with your cell phone or a camera in your pocket. You can use a sketch pad. But get the information!

This is just at the accident scene.

            I was speaking to an insurance adjuster today about a client’s claim. We will call her Sarah.  A witness that was in a yard next to where the accident happened had given a statement to the police. This witness claims that Sarah struck the car in front of her before she was rear ended.  The impact from behind was definitely more severe and we will be able to collect on the claim.  However, the adjuster wants to deduct for Sarah’s contributory negligence. He is arguing that Sarah is partly to blame for her injuries, based on the witness statement.  This may in fact occur. It is a jury issue. But Sarah has a fighting chance. She was on the ball enough to get the names of two independent witnesses who were not listed on the police accident report. They were on the front porch of the house next to where the accident happened. They observed the accident and can verify that Sarah did not run into the car in front of her until she was propelled into that car by the rear impact.

Sometimes this is just luck but having the awareness to document the evidence can save your Kentucky accident claim.  We have a fighting chance to prove that Sarah is right.

The insurance company is looking for any reason they can to:

·        Deny your claim

·        Defeat you claim

·        Lower the amount of money they are going to have to pay out on your claim. 

This is their job.  This is why they make the money they do. That is why insurance companies are profitable. That is why they have the lobbyists in Frankfort arguing their position. 

Protect your Kentucky accident case by documenting and documenting and documenting from the time you’re in an accident to the time you have finished treating and finally settle your claim. You must document.  By doing this your Kentucky bicycle accident case will be successful! Your Kentucky motorcycle case will be successful! Your Kentucky truck accident case will be successful!  Do not get caught into the trap and think that somebody else will do it for you.  Take matters into your own hands so that you can successfully prosecute your claim.

Just when you think you have heard everything you read a story about the death of a two year old that just turns your stomach. It makes you think how could this happen?

The Rasansky Law Firm out of Dallas, Texas has filed a wrongful death lawsuit on behalf of the mother of a 2-year-old girl who choked to death at The Woodbridge Day School, a northeast Dallas daycare center, one year ago. The wrongful death lawsuit alleges that the daycare worker had no first aid training and the daycare owned by Neyse and Robert Hall, knew it. According to the lawsuit, employees at the Woodbridge Day School did not notice when 2-year old Isabella Estep started choking on a small rock. The child then collapsed inside the school. Despite employees being all around the unconscious child, five to 10 minutes passed before anyone noticed something was wrong. Tragically, Isabella passed away after being transported to a local hospital.

Now here is where it gets worse. It is alleged that the owners of the daycare sold the daycare a short time after the death. This was in an effort to prevent a report to the Texas licensing board according to the lawsuit. Jeff Rasansky said. “They have not been truthful about their role in this child’s death, and they have taken steps to prevent parents of other children from ever learning about their involvement.”

This is a tragedy that sounds like it could have been prevented on several levels. Those being hiring and training. Also, what procedures were in place for monitoring a two year old? Why was the child put in an area without a care giver where he had access to small rocks?  My sympathies go out to the family. I hope they get the answers they deserve. My daughters were in day cares from the time they were infants so my wife could work. You place your trust and leave our most valued possession with them. It is very sad when a daycare does not live up to the trust you put in them.

We will follow this case as it progresses with hope of preventing this sort of tragedy from happening in Kentucky.