Premises Liability

Two Dead from Havre De Grace Fire at Harford County, Maryland Apartment Building

October 25, 2010 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

A second person has died from injuries sustained during a fire in Havre de Grace, Maryland. The victim is 70-year-old Helen Bernice Logan. She died of smoke inhalation.

The deadly fire broke out at about 4:30am last Tuesday in Logan’s apartment. Some 25 firefighters were called to quell the fire, and they were able to keep the flames contained to her unit. Logan’s companion, 60-year-old Keith Richard Dowden, died at the accident site.

Investigators say that the fire started in Logan’s apartment, which is located in a Victorian-style building that had been converted into several rentals. A male resident from one of the other units was transported to the hospital for treatment of mild smoke inhalation. The cause of the fire is not yet known.

The apartment building had working smoke alarms, but it unclear at this time whether the one in Logan’s unit were working. Approximately 10 people have been displaced by the fire.

Apartment Fires

If you or someone you love was injured in a fire at an apartment complex or another common-living environment, it is important that you explore your legal options as you may have grounds for a Baltimore premises liability claim or another type of Maryland injury case. The owner of the building and/or the management company may have acted negligently so as to create (or fail to remove) a fire hazard on the property that placed people’s lives at risk. There also may have been a defective smoke alarm, fire alarm, or another appliance or item that could have caused the blaze. The condition of the building may not be up to current fire safety code standards. Or, there may be another party that acted carelessly or recklessly, such as a negligent tenant, visitor, or maintenance worker/company.

Maryland burn injuries can be very painful and medical and recovery expenses can be very costly.

Woman dies of injuries suffered in Md. fire, WTOP, October 20, 2010
Man, 60, dies in Havre de Grace fire, The Baltimore Sun, October 19, 2010
Related Web Resources:
Burns, MedlinePlus
Apartment Fires, WhatHappensNow

Maryland Mental Hospital Patient Charged with Murder of Fellow Patient

September 27, 2010 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Maryland State Police have charged El Soudani El-Wahhabi, also called Saladin Taylor, with first- and second-degree murder. El-Wahhabi, who is a patient at the at the Clifton T. Perkins mental hospital, is accused of killing Susan Sachs, who was also a resident at the Jessup facility.

According to the Washington Post, Sachs’ dead body was discovered on Sunday morning by her roommate. There was string around the 45-year-old woman’s neck. State investigators later arrested El-Wahhabi, who authorities say admitted to strangling and kissing Sachs.

Sachs had been suffering from paranoid schizophrenia. She and El-Wahhabi lived in separate rooms in the same hallway in a medium-security wing of the hospital.

Maryland Upholds Non-Economic Damages Cap in Anne Arundel County Wrongful Death of Boy Who Drowned

September 24, 2010 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

The Court of Appeals has upheld a state law that limits how much plaintiffs can receive for pain and suffering. They issued their decision regarding Maryland’s damages cap in the Anne Arundel County wrongful death case involving Connor Freed, the 5-year-old boy who drowned in a swimming pool at the Crofton Country Club in 2006.

A jury had awarded Connor Freed’s parents, Thomas Freed and Debbie Neagle-Freed, about $4 million against DRD Pool Service Inc., the company that provided lifeguards to the pool. However, because of Maryland’s cap on non-economic damages, the payment was reduced to about $1 million. The Freeds then filed a claim contending that the cap was unconstitutional since it does not give equal protection to all people.

In its ruling, Maryland’s highest court said that the cap’s existence has a legitimate purpose as it keeps liability insurance affordable. The court did, however, side with the Freeds regarding their claim that the original jury should have been given the opportunity to consider additional damages for their son’s conscious pain and suffering prior to his death.

Maryland Fall Accident?: Police Probe Death of Man Discovered in Trash Chute

August 16, 2010 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

An autopsy conducted on the body of a man found in a downtown Baltimore apartment building trash chute indicates his injuries are “consistent with a bad fall,” says the police department and reports the Baltimore Sun. Also, police spokesperson Anthony Guglielmi says that if another person had inserted the body into the chute, there would have been “more signs {of a struggle} on the body.” Homicide detectives and the state medical examiner are continuing to investigate his death.

Building employees found the man’s body on Thursday morning. According to police, the man seems to have fallen into the chute from around the 20th floor. The 26-floor building, located on N. Charles Street, houses offices and apartment units.

According to ex- and current tenants, each of the building’s trash chutes have a spring mounted door that must be pulled. The chute opening is approximately 3 feet high by 2 feet wide. It opens at an angle. One resident says that he usually must “push a little” to get a regular-sized garbage bag to go through the chute opening.

Trash Chute Accidents

In the event that someone falls through a garbage chute because it was poorly designed or faulty in some other way, the injured party may have grounds for a Maryland products liability and/or Baltimore premises liability. Property owners must make sure that there are no hazards on the premise that could cause serious Baltimore personal injuries.

Unfortunately, this is not the first time that someone has been injured from falling down a trash chute. In February, a 38-year-old man accidentally fell into his apartment complex trash chute. According to the county coroner, the man was trapped upside down in the chute for a long time and died from suffocation. Last year, another man died after falling down a narrow garbage chute. He was drunk at the time.

Police: Man found dead in trash chute may have fallen, Baltimore Sun, August 13, 2010
Central IL man’s trash chute death an accident, KMOV, February 5, 2010
Jersey City man plunges 25 stories to death down NYC trash chute, NJ.com, April 13, 2010
Related Web Resources:
Products Liability, Nolo
Premises Liability, Justia

Woman Claims Maryland Fall Accident Left Her with a Russian Accent

June 3, 2010 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Robin Vanderlip says she suffers from Foreign Accent Syndrome because she was injured in a Maryland fall accident three years ago. The 42-year-old says that because a handrail at the conference center in Chevy Chase was faulty, she fell backwards down a staircase and hit her head.

Vanderlip, who is American, claims that because of her head injury, she had a stroke and now can only speak with a Russian accent. She also suffers from fatigue and memory problems.

The single mother of two is seeking over $1 million in Maryland personal injury compensation from the National 4-H Council. Meantime, she continues to undergo treatment at the University of Maryland and the National Institutes of Health. Vanderlip says that her daughter is embarrassed by her foreign accent.

Cecil County Townhouse Fire Kills Three Young Children and Leaves Mother with Maryland Burn Injuries

May 15, 2010 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Investigators are trying to determine what caused a fatal fire to break out at Cecil County townhouse early Saturday. While 29-year-old Jewel Johnson was able to escape through a second-story window, three of her four young children were not as lucky.

Neighbors say they couldn’t rescue the children, who were screaming for help, because the flames were too high to walk across. Johnson’s oldest son, age 10, wasn’t there that night.

Following her rescue, Johnson was transported to Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center where she is being treated for smoke inhalation and burns. She was admitted in critical but stable condition.

According to Maryland State Fire Marshal spokesperson Bruce Bush, the fire started in the first-floor living room. The townhouse, built in 1974, did not have sprinklers. Fire crews have yet to determine whether the smoke detector alarms went off after the blaze broke out.

Maryland Premises Liability

Property owners are supposed to make sure that there are no fire hazards on a premise. Appropriate fire prevention measures and warning systems must also be in place so that in the event a fire does break out, residents, patrons, visitors, and others can attempt to douse the flames and/or escape in time. You may be able to file a Maryland premises liability lawsuit against a negligent landlord, business owner, or another responsible parties.

Burn Injuries

Burn injuries are incredibly painful and disfiguring and can also lead to nerve damage, internal injuries, respiratory injuries, muscle injuries, shock, depression, electrolyte imbalance, infections, physical deformity, and death. The medical treatments required can be extensive and costly.

3 children killed in Cecil Co. townhouse fire, Baltimore Sun, May 15, 2010
3 Children Die In Cecil Co. Fire, WJZ, May 15, 2010
Related Web Resources:

Burn Survivor Resource Center

Smoke Detectors and Sprinkler Systems, Peoples-Law.org

Family of Girl Electrocuted at Druid Hill Park Softball Field Revisits Maryland Wrongful Death Lawsuit Against the City of Baltimore

May 12, 2010 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Four years after a 14-year-old girl was fatally electrocuted at a softball field on Druid Hill, her loved ones are considering whether to seek a motion asking a court reevaluate its decision to dismiss the Maryland wrongful death lawsuit against the city of Baltimore. Green, a Deer Park Middle School student, died on May 5, 2006 when she was electrocuted while stretching against a steel fence before a church league softball game.

The fence was in contact with an underground power line. Green grabbed hold of another fence and her body completed completed an electrical circuit. She was knocked down immediately and never regained consciousness.

In 2009, Green’s family filed a Maryland wrongful death complaint against the city of Baltimore, Del Electric Inc., and Baltimore Gas and Electric Company. A judge later dismissed the case against the city and BGE.

Nine-Year-Old Boy Dies from Injuries Sustained from Falling Tree at the Hashawha Environmental Center in Westminster, Maryland

January 6, 2010 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Noah Asid, the 9-year-old who was injured on December 29 when a large hickory tree fell on him at the Hashawha Environmental Center has died at a Baltimore hospital. Asid, who was attending a nature camp, was getting ready to go hiking with a group of children and counselors when the tragic accident happened.

According to reports, the 60-foot tree fell against a maple tree. This caused the maple branches to give way and the hickory and a number of large branches to hit the ground, striking Asid and another child. The girl, 10, has been released from Carroll Hospital Center.

The Carroll County sheriff’s office is determining what caused the tree to fall. Winds hitting speeds of up to 35 mph on the day of the accident may have been a factor.

Family Says Maryland to Blame for Faulty Bay Bridge Construction that Contributed to Truck Driver’s Wrongful Death

December 14, 2009 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

The family of truck driver John Short has amended their Maryland wrongful death complaint to include the state as a defendant. Short died in a truck crash in August 2008 when he swerved his tractor-trailer to avoid another vehicle, crashed into a bridge wall, and drove off the Chesapeake Bay Bridge.

In June, the 57-year-old trucker’s family filed a $7 million Maryland wrongful death lawsuit against 19-year-old Candy Lynn Baldwin, who had fallen asleep while driving.

While Baldwin, who had been drinking before the tragic Maryland truck crash, did not have a blood alcohol level high enough for her to be charged with drunk driving, Short’s family says her results would have been different if authorities had tested her BAC right after the truck collision. They have pointed to her MySpace page, which included pictures of Baldwin, a minor, drinking alcohol. One photo shows her holding a bottle of alcohol while she’s seated in the driver’s seat of a motor vehicle.

Maryland Jury Awards $2.5 Million Baltimore Lead Paint Verdict to Siblings

November 5, 2009 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

More than 15 years after Dontae and Searra Wallace’s mother moved them into a City Homes rental in an effort to protect them from additional lead exposure, a Maryland jury has awarded the siblings over $2.5 million for their Baltimore personal injuries caused by lead poisoning.

Searra, 17, and Dontae, 20, sustained permanent behavioral and cognitive disabilities. They are unlikely to graduate from high school or get a GED, and their IQ’s are below average. Dontae dropped out of school four years ago and Searra failed two grades.

Their mother, Tiffini, says that the family moved out of a rental that used lead paint into a City Homes Inc. home. She says the nonprofit group told her the Baltimore City row house was safe.