San Francisco Injury Lawyer Blog

Guardrails: When a Safety Device Becomes Dangerous

September 19, 2014 | Gregory J. Brod

They are supposed to be there for our safety. Guardrails can help prevent an out-of-control vehicle from careening over a cliff or other hazardous terrain and can also keep such vehicles away from opposing traffic. In these roles, they save lives. However, guardrail accidents can also be a serious danger and our Oakland highway crash attorney is closely following developing studies on balancing the role of guardrails as safety devices and the potential for guardrails to be roadside hazards.

FHA to Conduct Study Following Research Showing New Guardrail Design Raises Risk of Serious Injuries and Death

This week, ABC7 News reported that the Federal Highway Administration (FHA) is looking into the safety of guardrails after multiple reports of people losing limbs or dying in pain because a guardrail pierced their vehicle. The focal issue in the planned research study is whether the “guardrail heads,” the start/end piece of a rail, can absorb a head-on impact at up to 62mph in real life conditions. A team of public and private highway engineers as well as other subject-matter experts will conduct the FHA research.

Public Event in Emeryville Time to Remember Lost Daughter, Raise Awareness Over Railroad Safety

September 18, 2014 | Gregory J. Brod

Any time a parent has to be reminded of the loss of a child is an extraordinarily difficult and painful experience. But sometimes parents who have lost a child due to a tragic incident decide to revisit the issue out a sense of public service, in order that the children of other parents do not lose their lives in the same way. That is why San Francisco train accident attorney Gregory J. Brod salutes Dena Betti for stepping forward to speak publicly about the death of her daughter, Jenna, who died March 2 when she was struck by a freight train in Martinez.

According to the San Francisco Chronicle, Betti joined representatives from Caltrans and Amtrak for a public event at the Emeryville train depot in order to raise awareness about rail safety. Betti has been involved with educating the public about train safety since Jenna, 14, was struck and killed about one block away from her home by an eastbound train. Jenna and a friend were carving their initials in the wooden rail ties and jumped away from the tracks when they heard the freight train coming. However, Jenna returned to the tracks to try to recover her cellphone and was hit by the rear of the train and pulled under its wheels.

The tragic accident occurred in a stretch of rail between Martinez and San Jose that Caltrans officials have said is especially dangerous because both freight and passenger trains pass through the densely populated area 24 hours a day. The amount of rail traffic in this corridor is expected to increase as the economy steadily improves and especially as a greater share of the nation’s freight is transported by rail.

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Design improvements may have made trains quieter, which is a blessing for the neighborhoods through which they lumber, but a less audibly noticeable train can sweep upon pedestrians or motorists in their cars more unsuspectingly. And even if a train engineer sees a pedestrian or a motor vehicle on the tracks, it takes one mile for a train moving at 55 mph to stop, making the pedestrian or motorist’s chances of escaping unscathed very slim.

Statistics show that deaths of pedestrians on railroad tracks have been on the rise in the United States. According to the Federal Railroad Administration, fatalities suffered by so-called “trespassers’ in the United States went from 187 in 2011, to 195 in 2013, to 262 to date in 2014. Those figures do not include trespassers, typically those in motor vehicles, who died while at a railroad/highway crossing. For that category, an additional 59 died in 2011, 54 in 2012, 70 in 2013 and 72 in 2014 with months left on the calendar.
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Playground Injuries: When It Is More than an Everyday Childhood Stumble

September 17, 2014 | Gregory J. Brod

If asked to point to a scene that truly defines the word “joy,” we’d be hard-pressed to find a better image than that of children at play on a playground. On the playground, the kid next to you can become your best friend, at least for the duration of your visit. The sound of laughter fills the air. Sometimes, however, there’s a different sound – a child crying. Playground injuries, and we’re talking about injuries that require more than a small bandage, ice pack, and Mom’s magical kiss, can be a serious matter. Terrible injuries and even deaths can stem from faulty equipment, negligent supervision, improperly constructed play areas, and other legally actionable wrongs. When such injuries strike a child in Northern California, our Oakland playground injury attorney is ready to help.

IKEA Recalls Swings Due to Fall Hazard

The swing is one of the iconic pieces of playground equipment and companies have adapted swings for home use. One such swing is being removed from the market due to a fall hazard. ABC7 News reports that Ikea issued a recall for its Gungung swing. The swing was sold for $20 at Ikea stores across the U.S. and online. The swing, made for children ages 3 to 7, includes a green polyester fabric seat, suspension fittings and steel hooks and marketed for both indoor and outdoor use.

Wrong-Way Accidents, Catastrophic Consequences

September 16, 2014 | Gregory J. Brod

Picture yourself driving along a highway, a high-speed roadway with a physical median, a route you know by heart. Traffic is light and you may have wearied of seeing yet another bumper sticker, more brake lights, but you are still unprepared for a different image — Headlights. It is an image that would frighten even the most adept of drivers. Wrong-way drivers are a relatively rare sight, but wrong-way accidents are frequently catastrophic and often fatal. With specific experience dealing with catastrophic accidents, our Palo Alto car accident attorney is prepared to help innocent parties left injured or grieving by these terrifying crashes.

Palo Alto Wrong-Way Crash Leaves One Dead, One Seriously Injured

Last Thursday, as detailed by the Contra County Times, a Palo Alto wrong-way crash claimed one life and left another person facing major injuries. At 12:52 A.M. on September 11, police received reports of a wrong-way driver heading north in the southbound lanes of Highway 280 by El Monte Road. Less than ten minutes later, the driver collided with another vehicle near Page Mill Road. Twenty-three year old Brian Devoto of Santa Clara died in the crash and an unnamed female driver suffered serious injuries. As of Friday morning, police were still working to determine which of the drivers was the wrong-way traveler and also looking at whether alcohol or drugs played a factor in the deadly incident.

SFFD Fine Against Property Owner Points to Example of When Seemingly Minor Infraction Can Lead to Major Disaster

September 12, 2014 | Gregory J. Brod

In the scheme of things, a fine or a single building code violation leveled against a landlord may not seem to be mean much to the layman, and there are plenty of responsible property owners who will properly attend to remediating the cause of the fine or violation. However, as San Francisco landlord-tenant law attorney Gregory J. Brod would point out, sometimes even a seemingly minor infraction can be the basis for a major incident.

That was the case, it turns out, with respect to at least one property in San Francisco recently. According to the San Francisco Chronicle, the San Francisco Fire Department issued two citations to a company that owns a Civic Center property in which the sprinkler system was improperly removed. The Build Group, Inc., of San Francisco was fined $1,000 for removing or disabling sprinklers at the former Renoir Hotel, which was consumed in a big fire August 4 that injured seven construction workers.

Build Group has been managing a $30 million renovation of the closed Renoir Hotel, which is slated to become a “high-end boutique hotel with 135 rooms,” two restaurants, a conference center and a rooftop bar, according to the company’s website. Construction work at the seven-story, 83,300-square-foot building has included seismic upgrades as well as remodeling.

The fire occurred when a spark, ember or flame from a welding torch spread from the second-floor crawl space and throughout the building at 45 McAllister St, according to SFFD spokeswoman Mindy Talmadge.

The SFFD issued Build Group a second $1,000 citation for removing the sprinkler system at another one of its construction sites, this one at 218 Buchanan St. Talmadge said that the company was instructed to leave the sprinkler systems at both of it sites intact.

Build Group, however, is appealing the citations because it believes it was following SFFD instructions and that it “never received a directive instructing the company to not remove fire sprinklers.”

One thing that is quite clear it that the SFFD believes that bringing the fire under control at the former Renoir Hotel would have been a much easier task had the sprinklers been in place, according to Talmadge. And since that is what sprinkler systems are designed for, the Fire Department’s assessment is not an unreasonable one.

Municipalities have building codes, fire regulations and other safety-related ordinances for a very valid reason: to help safeguard the lives and protect from harm the people who live or work in and visit their city. A seemingly minor infraction can, if not adequately addressed by a landlord, lead to unnecessary injuries or even deaths. In addition, a violation of the so-called implied warranty of habitability, a fundamental concept of landlord-tenant law that, under California law, mandates that every tenant has the right to a habitable unit, can be the basis for a tenant pursuing legal action against the landlord.
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Intracranial Hematomas: Looking at a Dangerous Brain Injury

September 12, 2014 | Gregory J. Brod

In yesterday’s blog entry, we discussed the tragic death of a woman injured in the Napa earthquake. While that post looked at the cause of that injury, a television toppling over during the quake, this blog entry takes a closer look at the injury itself, a subdural hematoma. Intracranial hematomas are a type of brain injury that can be fatal or can have lifelong consequences. They often result from a blow to the head, such as might occur in a traffic accident, a serious slip and fall, or even an assault. As a Northern California brain injury lawyer, Attorney Greg Brod represents clients who have faced these difficult injuries and families who have lost loved ones to this sometimes quiet killer.

Brain Injury Leads to First Reported Death Tied to Napa Quake

As detailed by the San Francisco Chronicle, Laurie Anne Thompson has become the first reported person to die as a result of injuries incurred in last month’s 6.0 magnitude earthquake. At home when the quake struck, Thompson was hit in the head by a television that fell from its stand. Although she was briefly knocked unconscious, Thompson refused to seek treatment immediately, saying she only had a dull headache. The next day, however, family members noticed she had become disoriented and seemed to be speaking slowly. They persuaded her to go to the doctor, but she wanted to shower first. Thompson then collapsed and suffered a seizure.

San Mateo Collision Is Example of Perils for Pedestrians That Go Beyond Crosswalks

September 11, 2014 | Gregory J. Brod

As we have seen on these pages numerous times, the act of being a pedestrian is not an easy one, at least not on American streets. But as San Francisco pedestrian accident attorney Gregory J. Brod would point out, there are multiple perils that can prove dangerous for a pedestrian that go beyond our city streets and crosswalks. Indeed, as we saw on Wednesday morning in San Mateo in one of the more bizarre incidents, pedestrians can even run the risk of getting hurt when they are on the sidewalk.

The incident in question occurred at about 10:30 a.m. when, according to the San Jose Mercury News, a group of five teachers and 15 students from Hillsdale High School were walking on the 300 block of West Hillsdale Boulevard in San Mateo on a school field trip and one student teacher and three special needs teenage boys, ages 15, 16 and 18, were struck by a car that inexplicably veered onto the sidewalk.

The student teacher, a 28-year-old woman, suffered head trauma and broken bones. The three teenage students suffered minor injuries, including abrasions and lacerations. The four were about one block from their school when a car driving west on west Hillsdale by a 53-year-old man suddenly turned onto the sidewalk, striking the quartet.

According to San Mateo police, the driver was driving through the neighborhood west on Hillsdale Boulevard when he failed to follow a curve on the roadway, ended up on the sidewalk, and hit the teacher and trio of students as well as a lightpole. Police said that the motorist followed an erratic course not to miss a roadway hazard, and the crash does not appear to have been an intentional act.

The crash is still under investigation and police do not yet know what caused the motorist to take an errant course. Both the driver and the pedestrians were taken to area hospitals. The driver remained in police custody, but he has not yet been arrested on any specific charges. Police have also not indicated whether they believed that drugs or alcohol were a factor in the collision.

There are some sobering statistics on the perils that pedestrians face on the streets and sidewalks in the United States, including these from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration:

There were 4,280 pedestrians who died in traffic crashes in 2010, a 4 percent increase from the total reported in 2009.
In 2011, an estimated 69,000 pedestrians were injured on streets and sidewalks; 11,000 of those were children age 14 or younger, and males accounted for 65 percent of that total.
In 2009, 16 percent of all traffic fatalities in the United States were suffered by people 65 or older.

The Dangerous Mix of Earthquakes and a Negligent Lack of Preparation

September 11, 2014 | Gregory J. Brod

Living in California, we all know that earthquakes are a threat. Still, nothing can truly prepare you for feeling the ground shake beneath you, especially to the degree it moved during the history-making 6.0 quake that hit Northern California on August 24, 2014. Given our region’s propensity towards earthquakes, it is important to take steps in advance to help avoid earthquake injuries or death. If you or a loved one is hurt or a close relative is killed because another person/entity negligently failed to prepare for an earthquake, our Napa earthquake attorney may be able to help you hold those responsible liable and recover money damages in civil court.

Woman Hit By Television Becomes First Fatality of Napa Earthquake

On Friday September 5, a woman became the first reported death linked to the recent earthquake. The San Francisco Chronicle reports that 65 year-old Laurie Anne Thompson was asleep on a recliner in her home when the quake hit. A television toppled off a stand, hitting Thompson in the head. Although she was knocked unconscious, she did not seek treatment immediately. The following day, family members noticed a sudden decrease in cognitive ability and later, while preparing to go to the doctor, Thompson collapsed and seized. Doctors diagnosed a subdural hematoma and began treatment using a tube to drain blood and fluid from the brain. After Thompson improved for seven days and the tube was removed, she began to decline and eventually passed away. The coroner listed intracranial hemorrhage as the cause of death.

Representing the Victims of Motorized Scooter Accidents in Northern California

September 10, 2014 | Gregory J. Brod

Modern day travel involves more than just cars. On a given day, a stretch of roadway might see travelers on bicycles, motorcycles, trucks, roller skates, and their own two feet. Motorized scooters are another form of travel and, like many other travelers, operators are vulnerable to reckless drivers. When a driver puts a rider at undue risk and harms the more vulnerable traveler, our Oakland scooter accident lawyer can help recover monetary compensation for the injured party. Motor scooter accidents are a real danger and the mix of prevention and representation are key to reducing the threat.

Police Investigating a Fatal Sunnyvale Scooter Accident

A 50 year-old Los Altos man lost his life on Friday following a scooter crash detailed in the San Jose Mercury News. Brian David Lazara was hit by two cars while riding a motorized scooter in Sunnyvale. The crash occurred just before 9 A.M. at the intersection of Central Expressway and Mary Avenue. Emergency responders arrived to find Lazara injured and lying in the roadway. They performed CPR and took him to Stanford Hospital’s trauma center where personnel declared him dead. Both auto drivers are cooperating with the ongoing investigation.

Californians Will Legally Be Able to Take Dogs to Dinner in 2015

September 6, 2014 | Gregory J. Brod

While it may come as a surprise to some, California currently bans dogs and other animals from all restaurants, inside or out. Of course, this ban has long been ignored by many restaurants and their patrons, and it is not uncommon to see dogs-both big and little-resting alongside their owners at many San Francisco area restaurants. However, as of January 1, 2015, California pooches will be legally allowed to visit outdoor areas if certain conditions are met.

Governor Brown Signs Law Allowing Dogs To Legally Be Present On Outdoor Patios

On August 21st, Governor Jerry Brown signed Assembly Bill 1965, which gives restaurants the option to allow pet dogs in their outdoor seating areas under specified conditions unless a local ordinance determines otherwise.