Maryland Accident Law Blog

Injured Maryland Father Mourns the Deaths of his Wife and Four Children in Drunk Driving Accident

January 11, 2008 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Daniel Griffin Jr. may be physically recovering from the injuries that he sustained in a deadly car crash involving a drunk driver in Ohio on December 30, but his life will never be the same.

Griffin lost his wife 36-year-old wife Bethany and four of his children, Jordan Griffin, 10, Vadie Griffin, 8 weeks, Haley Burkman, 10, and Lacie Burkman, 7 in the fatal crash. Two of Daniel’s other children, Sidney Griffin, and Beau Burkman, both age 8, were taken to St. Vincent Mercy Children’s Hospital in Toledo, Ohio and later released.

Griffin and his family are from Parkville, Maryland. They were driving home after a holiday trip to Michigan when the minivan they were riding in was hit by a pickup truck driving the wrong way on Interstate 280.

The truck driver, 24-year-old Michael P. Gagnon, has been indicted on two counts of vehicular homicide and five counts of aggravated vehicular assault charges. Ohio police say that he blood-alcohol level was three times above the legal limit.

If convicted, Gagnon faces up to 50 years in prison.

Drunk driving is reckless, negligent, and dangerous behavior that can lead to serious injuries and the deaths of friends, family members, and strangers.

When a drunk driver injures or kills another person in a motor vehicle accident, not only will he or she face criminal charges, but the injured party or the family of the deceased can sue the driver for personal injury or wrongful death.

Don’t Drink and Drive

Obviously, if you are going to drink alcohol, the best way to avoid driving drunk is to not drive at all. In the event that driving is unavoidable, consider the following:

• Know your drinking limit.
• Accompany your drinking with food.
• Pace yourself.

• Avoid drinking anything if you are on any type of medication.

If your attempt to drink moderately fails, or when in doubt, consider taking a cab or asking someone else to drive you home.

Hundreds mourn Parkville family killed in crash, Baltimore Sun, January 11, 2008
Mich. man indicted in crash that killed 5, Baltimore Sun, January 11, 2008

Related Web Resources:

Impaired Driving, CDC

Drunk and Drugged Driving Prevention

Multiple Failures by Cedars-Sinai Led to Heparin Overdose of Dennis Quaid’s Twins, Says State Probe

January 10, 2008 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Movie star Dennis Quaid says that Cedars Sinai Medical Center was not forthcoming about its role in the accidental Heparin overdose of his newborn twins.

. Quaid’s allegations follows the California Department of Public Health’s release of a 20-page report regarding the medical center’s handling of pediatric patients.

In the report, state inspectors accused Cedars-Sinai of multiple failures in the incident, including its failure to follow set rules and procedures when administering medication. California inspectors found that the center’s unsafe medication practices put all of its patients at risk of injury or death.

Other errors cited in the report included the failure by Cedars-Sinai pharmacy technicians and nurses to check product labels before dispensing Heparin and not keeping up-to-date and thorough records of when the drug was administered. Cedars-Sinai has 10 days to respond to the report.

Quaid’s son and daughter were administered overdoses of Heparin, a blood thinner, because they were given the wrong doses. The vial of Heparin that each twin was administered had 10,000 united per millimeter of the medication—the dosage used for adults—rather than the 10 units prescribed for infants.

Now, however, new information reveals that the twins were overdosed a second time within an eight hour period.The twins had to be treated with protamine to reverse Heparin’s effects.

Quaid and his wife Kimberly have already filed a products liability lawsuit against Baxter Healthcare, the drug maker of Heparin. The lawsuit claims that the similar packaging of the different doses makes it easy for hospital workers to mix one dose with the other.

If you or your child was injured at a Maryland or Washington D.C. hospital because of a prescription overdose caused by the negligence of a doctor, nurse, medical technician, or any other health care provider you should contact a medical malpractice law firm immediately.

State cites safety drug lapses at Cedars-Sinai, Los Angeles Times, January 10, 2007
Drug mix-up outrageous, says Quaid, The Press Association, January 10, 2007

Related Web Resources:

Heparin Injection, MedlinePlus

Cedars-Sinai Medical Center

Motorcyclist Dies in Crofton, Maryland After Collision with SUV

January 8, 2008 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

In Anne Arundel County, Maryland, a 52-year-old motorcyclist died yesterday evening after being struck by a Toyota 4-Runner on Defense Highway in Crofton.

John Carlton Winner, a Bowie resident, was taken to Maryland Shock Trauma Center where he was pronounced dead. Karleen Jeane Talbot, the SUV driver, was not injured in the deadly collision.

According to Anne Arundel police, the accident happened when Talbott tried turning left onto Defense Highway (from Priest Bridge Center). The motorcycle was heading up Defense Highway from the opposite direction. Talbot turned her SUV directly into the path of the 2006 Harley-Davidson motorcycle, which caused Winner to be thrown off.

Motorcycle accidents can be deadly accidents for the motorcyclist—even if he or she is wearing a helmet and the proper protective gear.

2006 Motorcycle Accident Statistics from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA):

• There were 4,810 motorcycle fatalities in 2006.
• 88,000 motorcyclists were injured in accidents.
• Motorcyclists are 37 times more likely to die in a traffic collision than the occupant of car, truck, or bus, and eight times more likely to survive with sustain injuries.
• Speeding and drunk driving were among the most common causes of deadly motorcycle accidents.

• 47% of the people who died in motorcycle crashes were 40 years of age or older.

In Maryland and Washington D.C., anyone riding a motorcycle is required to wear a Department of Transportation-approved safety helmet. Across the U.S., 1,658 motorcyclists survived their crashes because they were using helmets.

Please contact a Maryland or Washington D.C. motorcycle accident lawyer if you or someone you love was seriously injured while riding a motorcycle because another driver was careless or reckless. The law entitles to you personal injury compensation. If you have lost a family member in a motorcycle crash, you may be entitled to receive wrongful death compensation.

Motorcyclist killed in crash in Arundel, Baltimore Sun.com, January 8, 2008
Motorcycle Crashes, Insurance Information Institute

Related Web Resources:

Maryland Motorcycle Roads

Motorcycle Riding Laws by State

Window Washer Who Fell 47 Stories Will File Personal Injury Lawsuit

January 4, 2008 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

The man who survived the force of gravity when he fell 47 stories while getting ready to wash the windows of a Manhattan building plans to file a personal injury lawsuit against the company that installed the scaffolding that broke, as well as the skyscraper’s management company.

37-year-old window washer Alcides Moreno says it just wasn’t his time to die after he dropped more than 500 feet to land on the ground and lived to tell his tale.

The catastrophic work accident occurred on December 7 while Alcides and his brother Edgar were cleaning windows on the Upper East Side. Edgar died of his injuries.

Doctors say the fact that Alcides even survived is a miracle. He has already undergone nine surgeries and is starting to talk. More surgeries are expected.

Alcides arrived in the ER at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center with brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, abdominal injuries, chest injuries, and fractures to his legs, ribs, and one of his arms. He received 19 blood plasma units 24 units of blood. Alcides is expected to make a slow but substantial recovery.

According to the Department of Buildings, the scaffolding the two men were standing on fell because the cables connecting it to the roof snapped. The two brothers had previously voiced concerns about the safety conditions at the building, located on E. 66th St.

Solow Management Corp is the building’s management company and Trachtel Group is the company that installed the scaffolding. The Moreno brothers worked for City Wide Window Cleaning.

If you are seriously injury in a work accident anywhere in Maryland or Washington D.C., workers’ compensation guarantees you benefits to pay for medical expenses. However, this does not mean that you should not speak to an experienced workers’ compensation attorney to make sure that you are receiving the maximum benefits for your injuries.

Although you cannot sue your employer for personal injury, there may be other parties that can be held liable for your injuries.

Family, NYC hospital officials describe window washer’s ‘miracle’ recovery, Newsday, January 3, 2008
Hurt window washer will sue, NY DailyNews, January 2, 2008

Related Web Resources:

Solow Management Corporation, NY Bites

Maryland Court Rules on Cancer Patient’s Wrongful Death, Saying There Was No Negligence in Missed Cancer Diagnosis

January 3, 2008 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

A divided Maryland Court of Special Appeals says there is insufficient evidence to show that medical malpractice caused the death of Sherri Schaefer, who died of uterine cancer in 2005. She was diagnosed with the disease in 2001.

Schaefer’s husband, Charles Marcantonio, filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Dr. Melissa Moen, a gynecologist at Women’s OB/GYN in Parole, Maryland.

In his lawsuit, Marcantonio claimed that Moen and Anne Arundel Diagnostics Inc.’s Dr. Paula Decandido did not conduct enough tests when his wife was first diagnosed with the disease.

Schaefer first went to the hospital in 2002 because she was experiencing heavy vaginal bleeding. Dr. Moen attributed the bleeding to hormone-replacement therapy. The bleeding continued for seven months. Following a biopsy, the ovarian cancer was discovered.

Marcantonio claims that Moen and Decandido missed a 1.5 cm. ovarian mass on the sonogram. Decandido is the one who interpreted the sonogram. Because of this, Schaefer’s diagnosis was delayed. Marcantonio says his wife’s chances of survival went down to 50-60 % from 80%.

Maryland’s second highest court, however, disagreed, and said that the plaintiff was unable to prove that any of the defendants acted negligently—resulting in Schaefer’s death.

According to Judge James P. Salmon of the Court of Special Appeals, “The major issue to be decided is whether proof that a health care provider was responsible for a twenty- to thirty-percent reduction in the decedent’s chance of survival is sufficient to prove that the malpractice caused the death. We shall hold that it is not.”

Medical malpractice and wrongful death cases can be challenging to prove. This is why it is so important that you hire a Maryland or Washington D.C. personal injury attorney to take on your case.

Losing someone you love is hard enough without having the cause of death be the carelessness or negligence of a physician. A wrongful death lawyer can file a lawsuit on your behalf to hold the negligent party or parties financially responsible.

Missed cancer diagnosis not negligence, The Daily Record, December 31, 2007
Wrongful death case hinged on mass allegedly missed in sonogram, Capital Online, December 28, 2007

Related Web Resource:

Liberia RPCV Sherri Schaefer dies in Annapolis, PeaceCorps, May 23, 2005

Family Says They Will Sue Cigna HealthCare for Daughter’s Transplant Delay

December 28, 2007 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

The family of Nataline Sarkisyan, a 17-year-old teenager who died just hours after CIGNA HealthCare reversed its decision and agreed to pay for her liver transplant, says they will sue the health insurer for her wrongful death.

Nataline had been fighting leukemia. Her liver failed because of a complication she developed after receiving a bone marrow transplant from her brother. Nataline had been in a vegetative state for weeks.

On December 11, Doctors at UCLA asked CIGNA HealthCare to approve her transplant. CIGNA HealthCare denied the request. They said the transplant procedure was experimental and not within its scope of coverage. Her family took her off life support on December 20.

Protestors stood outside CIGNA’s Glendale, California office to complain about their decision not to pay for the transplant. The healthcare company then changed its mind and decided to pay.

The survival rate of patients whose liver transplants were performed in the U.S.:

• The 1 year survival rate for patients who have a liver transplant is 85% in the US (University of Southern California’s Center for Pancreatic and Biliary Diseases)

• The 5 year survival rate for patients who have a liver transplant is 70% in the US (University of Southern California’s Center for Pancreatic and Biliary Diseases)

If you believe that a person or business contributed in any way to the death of your loved one, you should speak with a wrongful death lawyer right away. A wrongful death lawyer will know the proper steps to take to maximize your changes of recovery for the death of your loved one.

Family plans to sue Cigna HealthCare, STLtoday.com, December 22, 2007
Teen’s family plans to sue health insurer over transplant delay, Examiner.com, December 21, 2007
Prognosis of Liver conditions, WrongDiagnosis.com

Related Web Resource:

CIGNA

Truck Safety Advocates’ Lawsuit Wants to Limit the Number of Hours Truckers Can Work

December 27, 2007 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

In Washington D.C. on Thursday, truck safety advocates asked a federal court to block a ruling by the Transportation Department that lets commercial truckers work longer hours.

The Bush Administration had upped the number of hours that truck drivers could work without going on a break to 11 hours (prior to this rule, truck drivers were required to stop and rest after 10 hours). They are also allowed to drive up to 70 hours a week.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s Web site lists the Hours-Of-Service Rules for Truck Drivers:

• Commercial Motor Vehicle Drivers can only drive 11 hours maximum after 10 hours off duty.
• CMV Drivers cannot drive after the 14th hour on duty.
• CMV Drivers cannot drive after 60/70 hours on duty within 7/8 workdays in a row.

• CMV drivers with a berth in their truck have to take 10 hours off. They can split the time in the berth in two, although both times must not last less than two hours.

Truck safety advocates convinced a federal court to block the implementation of this rule. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, however, was still able to implement an interim rule, which places the maximum number of hours a day that a trucker can drive at 11 hours. Advocates now want a federal court to block this rule.

Driver fatigue is a primary cause of truck accidents that can lead to serious injuries and the wrongful death of innocent motorists, motorcyclists, passengers, and pedestrians.

Lawsuit seeks to limit truckers’ hours, CNN.com, December 21, 2007
Hours-of-Service Regulations, FMCSA

Related Web Resource:

Truck Safety Coalition

Pedestrian Fatalities Spur Call for Maryland Counties to Implement Safety Initiatives

December 23, 2007 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

In 2006, 96 pedestrians died in traffic accidents on Maryland’s roads. There are four areas where 70% of the fatalities occurred: Montgomery County, Baltimore County, Prince George’s County, and Baltimore City.

Maryland law mandates that drivers yield to pedestrians. However, this doesn’t always happen, and many pedestrians are injured or killed in car accident, motorcycle crashes, or truck collisions as a result. Out of the four problem areas highlighted, only Montgomery County has a plan to combat the problem of pedestrian accidents.

In Baltimore City, there were 16 pedestrian fatalities in 2006. 14 deaths took place in Baltimore County. 18 pedestrian fatalities occurred in Montgomery County, with 16 deaths occurring so far this year.

Installing new traffic signs, pedestrian traffic signs, and pedestrian countdowns, and adding education initiatives are some of the ways that pedestrian injuries can be reduced.

The high number of pedestrian deaths in Montgomery County inspired an initiative there that will include better pedestrian signals, the construction of several miles of sidewalks, and targeting careless drivers and jaywalkers.

Ways to Implement Pedestrian Safety in Your Area:

• Ask your delegate to create better crosswalk laws
• Teach children to cross roads safely
• Organize a pedestrian safety campaign

Although there are safety measures that all of us can take to avoid becoming injured in a pedestrian accident, there will be times when a negligent car driver, motorcyclist, or truck driver causes an accident that injures or kills a pedestrian. Traffic and pedestrian signs may malfunction or a motor vehicle may be unable to stop in time because of defective breaks.

If you are injured in a pedestrian accident anywhere in Maryland or Washington D.C., you should speak with a pedestrian accident lawyer right away.

Pedestrian deaths spur new initiatives in some counties, Gazette.net, December 20, 2007

Related Web Resource:

Maryland Strategic Highway Safety Plan

Pedestrians, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

Family of Slain New York Times Reporter David Rosenbaum Settles Medical Malpractice Lawsuit with Howard University Hospital in Washington D.C.

December 21, 2007 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

In Washington D.C., Howard University Hospital and Daniel and Dorothy Rosenbaum, the adult children of deceased New York Times reporter David Rosenbaum, have reached a settlement in the medical malpractice and negligence lawsuit filed against D.C. emergency workers and the hospital.

The 63-year-old reporter, who had just retired after 30 years of working for the Times, was seriously injured during a street robbery in Northwest Washington D.C. on January 26, 2006. Rosenbaum’s son and daughter filed their medical malpractice and negligence lawsuit a year ago last November after the D.C. inspector general’s office found that paramedics, firefighters, police, and hospital personnel failed to treat Rosenbaum.

Emergency workers found Rosenbaum on the sidewalk in a barely conscious state. The report, however, says that they did not realize he was seriously injured. They thought he was drunk. The ambulance he was riding in took Rosenbaum to Howard University Hospital, instead of a hospital located closer to the crime scene, because one of the workers had personal business in that area.

Rosenbaum was placed on a gurney at the hospital where he was left unattended. A doctor did not examine him for over 90 minutes. He was finally given a neurological exam nearly four hours after he arrived at the hospital. He died two days later.

Rosenbaum’s children were also upset that police did not follow up on a lead related to a beating crime that occurred several weeks before their father was assaulted. One of the men convicted of attacking Rosenbaum was also the attacker in the earlier assault.

Rosenbaum’s children say the failures to act by emergency workers, police, and the hospital were partially responsible for their father’s death. Rosenbaum’s children reached a settlement with the District in March. They agreed to forgo financial compensation as long as the city revised the way its emergency medical response system works. The details of the agreement with Howard University Hospital remain confidential.

If someone you love died because of the negligence of a hospital, police, emergency workers, a nursing home staff, or anyone else, you should contact a Maryland or Washington D.C. personal injury lawyer right away.

Hospitals are supposed to administer patients with a reasonable standard of care. Failure to do so is medical malpractice and grounds for a claim or lawsuit.

Rosenbaum Lawsuit Settled, Washington Post, December 21, 2007
Family of slain New York Times reporter settles medical malpractice lawsuit with D.C. hospital, IHT.com/AP, December 21, 2007

Related Web Resources:

Slain Journalist’s Family Files $20 Million Lawsuit, Washington Post, November 21, 2006

Howard University Hospital in Washington D.C.

Runaway Trailers Cause Catastrophic Injuries and Accidents in the United States

December 20, 2007 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

The Los Angeles Times says that there have been some 540 serious motor vehicle accidents involving runaway trailers in the United States since 2000. Hundreds of people have sustained injuries in these crashes, which usually involve at least one helpless victim getting caught in the wake of an out-of-control trailer. At least 164 fatalities have occurred in runaway trailer crashes in the last seven years—although statistics may be higher because news sources don’t always report these types of accidents.

The Times reviewed runaway trailer accidents involving trailers for transporting boats, gardening tools, horses, cars, and household goods. Many of these trailers were medium- or light-duty in size and owned by businesses or individuals.

Causes of runaway trailer crashes included failure to properly secure the trailer or follow other safety precautions due to ignorance, negligence, or carelessness.

Recent tragic trailer accidents include:

• In September, a motorist died in Florida when a runaway trailer struck her car.
• A Montana man was killed in August when a runaway trailer hit his pickup in a head-on crash.

• In 2006, Spencer Morgan and two of his 4-year-old triplets died when a 3-ton wood-chipper on wheels crashed into his mini-van. The third triplet, Ethan, survived his injuries, including a fractured skull.

The Federal Highway Administration says that there were 15.9 million light-duty trailers on U.S. roads in 2005. The Times says that the United States does little to prevent runaway trailer accidents from happening. A driver’s license is all that is required to tow a small or medium-sized trailer. No special training is required.

Accidents involving any kind of truck or trailer can lead to catastrophic injuries. The size and weight of a truck or trailer and the speed that it is going at the time of the collision can result in spinal cord injuries, traumatic brain injuries, massive internal injuries, and wrongful death. Drivers whose carelessness or negligence caused a trailer to come loose are liable for any injuries caused to other motorists, car passengers, bicyclists, or pedestrians.

Runaway trailers leave random victims, Los Angeles Times, December 9, 2007

Related Web Resources:

Personal Injury in Maryland
Questions To Ask A Personal Injury Lawyer During Your Consultationw, Buzzle.com