Oakland Personal Injury Lawyer Blog

The family of a ten year old girl, Jazimen Warr, who was killed in a car accident involving a drunk driver has brought suit against the bar which served copious amounts of alcohol to the man earlier in the evening. The accident occurred in the state of Maryland in 2008. The bar, the Dogfish Head Alehouse served over 14 beers and two lemon drops to the inebriated customer over a period of six hours. Unfortunately, the family has a tough legal battle ahead of them as the State of Maryland has laws which protect bars against these types of suits.

The majority of states have some form of dram shop law. These laws will hold a bar or other proprietor of alcohol liable for injuries caused when they have served alcohol to obviously intoxicated customers who later get in their cars and injure or kill others on the highways.

In California, however, bar owners are for the most part protected against dram shop liability. The only current exception is if the bar owner serves alcohol to an obviously intoxicated minor (California Business and Professions Code section 25602.1) In that instance the bar owner, will be legally responsible for car accidents and personal injuries caused by the drunk driver.

Mothers Against Drunk Drivers (MADD) strongly supports drunk driving laws which hold bar owners liable. As an Alameda personal injury lawyer, I also feel families such as Jazimen Warr's should not be barred from recovery for wrongful death. A bar owner who repeatedly pushes drinks on a customer, makes a profit on it, and then sends him out onto the highways should not be allowed to walk away from a tragedy like this and bear no responsibility. I believe the laws in California should be strengthened in this regard.

Resources:

Washington Post, Bar Sued After Patron's Crash Kills Girl, December 14, 2010

Over the past several months, I have written about the dangers of injuries to children caused by drop side cribs. Finally, the Consumer Product Safety Commission has banned these dangerous products. At least 32 infant deaths are attributable to the dangerous cribs and they are the suspected cause of death in at least 14 other cases.

Drop side cribs are dangerous because the drop side rails can become detached. When this occurs, the baby may be trapped between the mattress and the side of the crib causing the infant to be injured or suffocated. The CPSC also announced new standards for cribs which require that the cribs have fixed sides. It is considered to be one of the strongest standards in the world.

As an Oakland personal injury attorney, I advocated for a ban on these dangerous products which can cause serious injuries or death to our children. See "Pottery Barn Pulls Drop Side Cribs: Infant Safety Must Come First." I am glad to say that the CPSC has made the right decision in taking these defective products off the market.

Resources:

Associated Press, After dozens of deaths, drop-side cribs outlawed, December 15, 2010

A young Hayward woman was severely burned in an auto accident fire on Sunday, December 12, 2010. The fire occurred after her 1991 Honda crashed into the center divide on the San Mateo bridge. Her passenger also suffered major burns. The California Highway Patrol is still investigating this San Mateo car crash.

Many car fires can and should be prevented by proper design of the automobile. According to the United States Fire Administration one in every four fire department responses is to a vehicle fire. Mechanical and design problems are the leading causes of such fires. Fires following car accidents are the leading cause of death in auto accidents. Each year auto accident fires result in an average of approximately 515 deaths, 3,000 injuries, and 1.1 billion dollars in property damage.

When an automaker puts a car out on the market that catches fire because it is defectively designed or manufactured, it is legally responsible for personal injuries and wrongful deaths caused by fires. Under California product liability laws, any manufacturer of a defective product, including an auto manufacturer is legally liable for damages caused by defective products sold to the public. In the past we have seen poorly designed gas tanks, filler caps, and locations of gas tanks as among the leading causes of such fires.

As an Oakland personal injury lawyer, I've witnessed the good that comes from our product liability laws. Starting with the Ford Pinto back in the 70's, personal injury lawyers representing victims of auto fires have taken on the auto industry in an effort to make cars safer for the driving public. Keeping the auto industry accountable is one of the most effective ways to improve the safety of our cars.

Resources:

Oakland Tribune, Hayward woman still critical after San Mateo bridge crash, December 15, 2010

United States Fire Administration, Highway Vehicle Fires, March 2002

Over ten years ago, an Air France Concorde jet liner crashed on takeoff from a Paris airport. The crash killed all 113 passengers and four people on the ground. The Concorde was known for its supersonic flight and the jetting of the rich and famous across the Atlantic.

The accident was investigated by a French Court which recently ruled that Continental Airlines was responsible for the airline crash. It found that a fire was caused by a series of mishaps that began when a tire on the Concorde exploded after running over a 16 inch metal strip on the runway. The court found that the metal strip came from a Continental flight which took off minutes before the Concorde. It ruled that a Continental jet mechanic was responsible for attaching the metal strip. Continental Airlines vehemently opposes the ruling.

As an Oakland personal injury lawyer, I am familiar with how airplane accident investigations are conducted. The National Transportation Safety Board investigates airplane crashes in California and throughout the United States. It is not uncommon for investigating agencies to find more than one contributing cause to an accident. Often there may be negligent maintenance issues, defective product issues, and pilot error components to the crash. Under California law, when there are multiple causes of an accident, each negligent party is responsible for the accident.

Therefore, if there is an airplane crash in the State of California, all parties who are found to be negligent are responsible for the wrongful death of any victims of the crash. If the negligence can be apportioned, the non-economic damages for the loss of life will be divided according to the percentage of fault. With regard to economic damages, each negligent party is responsible for all of the financial loss caused regardless of the percentage of fault attributable to that party. The findings in the French Court may cause Continental Airlines to be legally responsible for the wrongful deaths claims brought by heirs in American Courts.

Resources:

Washington Post, Continental Held Liable in Crash of Concorde, December 7, 2010

An eighteen year old driver drove her car into two pedestrians, a mother and her two year old child in Rohnert Park, California on Friday, December 3, 2010. The child was killed and her mother was seriously injured. The cause of the motor vehicle accident is still under investigation. Unfortunately, as an Oakland personal injury lawyer, I have observed that serious teenage car crashes appear to be rising. New brain research provides a potential explanation for these car accidents.

Teenage drivers have much higher rates of car accidents, and citations. The citation rate for 16 year olds is 1.8 times higher than that for drivers of all ages according to the California Department of Motor Vehicles. The crash rate for teenagers is a whopping 3.7 times that of crashes for the driving population in general. Many of these result in serious personal injuries for innocent victims.

There may be many reasons for the higher accident rates involving teenagers. Brain development may be an important factor in such accidents. A study by the National Institute of Health suggests that brain immaturity may explain the higher incidences of car accidents among teenage drivers. The study shows that the area of the brain that inhibits risky behavior is not fully formed until age 25. This also helps explain why teenagers are more likely to drink, take drugs or commit crimes than older individuals.

Such brain research may be useful in drafting appropriate laws governing teenage driving, including age limits, the use of cell phones, and the transportation of passengers in order to reduce such accidents. More study needs to be done in this area to help stem the tide of increasing auto accidents involving teenage drivers.

Resources:

ABC News, Teen driver strikes two pedestrians, killing toddler, December 3, 2010

California Department of Motor Vehicles, Teenage Driver Crash Statistics

Washington Post, Brain Immaturity Could Explain Teen Crash Rate, February 1, 2005

The San Francisco Chronicle reported on the 25 deadliest streets for Bay Area cyclists. Oakland's Foothill Blvd ranked number 20 out of 25 for the most bicycle accidents resulting in fatalities and severe injuries. During the period from 1997 to 2007, there was one fatality and six severe injuries on the Oakland street. Market Street in San Francisco ranked number one in the Bay Area with three bicycle related deaths and sixteen severe injuries during that same time period.

As a personal injury lawyer in Oakland for many years, I have personally seen the great harm that can be caused in accidents involving bicycles. Recent reports have shown that bicycle accidents in Oakland are increasing. As a motorist we must take care to share the road with cyclists. As cyclists we must do all we can to minimize the risk of injury to ourselves when riding.

Motorists should be familiar with and follow the rules relating to use of bike lanes as stated in the California Vehicle Code section 21209. Bicyclists who are injured in accidents should know their legal rights if they are injured in an accident. By knowing and following the rules of the road for bikers we can all do our part to help reduce these fatalities and serious injuries.

Resources:

San Francisco Chronicle, Bay Area's 25 deadliest roads for cyclists, March 16, 2008