Boston Injury Lawyer Blog

January 17, 2011

Massachusetts Student’s Family to File $120M Wrongful Death Lawsuit Over Fatal Police Shooting

Three months after police shot and killed 20-year-old Massachusetts local DJ Henry in his car outside a bar, his family has filed notice of claim seeking $120 million in wrongful death damages against the New York town of Mount Pleasant and the village of Pleasantville. Henry died last October.

According to police, on October 17, 2010, Henry, who is a student and football player at Pace University, allegedly struck two officers with his vehicle. Some witnesses, however, dispute this claim and contend that the 20-year-old was actually attempting to move his car at a cop’s request.

Henry’s parents, Angella and Danroy Sr., are calling his death a murder. They are claiming that not only were the police officers negligent in their use of excessive force, but also that they were inadequately trained.

January 13, 2011

Investigators Wonder Whether Height of Trees Caused Massachusetts Airplane Accident On New Year’s Day

by Altman & Altman

Investigators are trying to determine whether the height of the treetops close to the Orange Municipal Airport played a factor in the Massachusetts plane crash that claimed the life of one woman on New Year’s Day. The victim, Jessica L. Fay, was the daughter of Steven T. Fay, who was piloting the twin engine Cessna 310. Steven survived the crash with injuries.

The private plane crashed into a swamp as it approached the airport. The Federal Aviation Authority, which is investigation the Massachusetts aviation accident, says that the plane’s wings had separated from the fuselage right before impact. Investigators are looking into whether the landing gear hitting the trees may have caused Fay to lose control of the aircraft.

Witnesses found Jessica unconscious in the swamp. CPR was performed to try and revive her. Unfortunately, she died at the Orange, Massachusetts plane accident site.

January 12, 2011

Boston Wrongful Death Lawsuit Filed in Toddler’s Fatal North Attleboro Crib Accident

by Altman & Altman

The parents of Landon Zimmerman have filed a Boston wrongful death lawsuit against Crib manufacturer Simplicity, its successor company SFCA Inc., and retailer Hayneedle Inc. over the tragic crib accident that killed the 1-year-old. Landon died from asphyxiation when he became entrapped between his Simplicity crib’s frame and mattress.

His Massachusetts crib death was one of the reasons that the Consumer Product Safety Administration recalled all Simplicity cribs that have a mattress support frame made of tubular metal. According to Landon’s parents Lauren Zimmerman and Jeremy Fontaine, the retailer was grossly negligent because it failed to warn that the Simplicity Ellis Deluxe 4-in-1 Convertible Sleep System crib that it was selling had “dangerous and defective characteristics.” For example, In the event that one of the crib’s frames were to detach, bend, or cause a portion of the mattress to collapse, a space could get created that a toddler or infant might fall through or get stuck or entrapped in. Also, per the CPSC, the Simplicity crib’s defects made it a hazard for suffocation, strangulation, and fall accidents. The boy’s parents contend that Hayneedle failed to provide warning on what were the safe and proper ways to assemble, maintain, and use the crib. Simplicity and SFCA Inc. are no longer in operation.

Crib defects cause injuries every year. Because children are frequently left alone in cribs, it may be too late by the time that someone discovers that the baby or toddler that had been left sleeping has suffocated or strangled in a Boston crib entrapment accident. Crib manufacturers and retailers can be held liable for Boston products liability or wrongful death if negligence or errors on the part of the manufacturer and/or the seller contributed to allowing the crib accident to occur.

January 11, 2011

Boston Medical Malpractice?: Three Wrong-Site Surgeries Performed at Beth Israel

by Altman & Altman

Health officials say that during three unrelated spinal surgeries, surgeons at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center operated on the wrong vertebrae of each patient. According to the hospital’s health care quality senior vice president Dr. Kenneth Sands, each Boston wrong-site surgery (the first one occurred last September) involved surgeons who miscounted the vertebrae and instead operated on the one above or below the segment that was diseased. Two of the botched spinal operations were conducted by the same doctor.

Sands says that although human mistakes caused the Boston surgical errors, the surgeons involved did follow standard procedures, including taking a “time out” to confirm what type of surgery was to be performed and on what body part. The medical mistakes occurred even though the teaching hospital had taken preventive steps.

The medical errors were detected in post surgical X-rays. While one person’s back pain got better despite the wrong-site surgery, two patients had to undergo second surgeries. The Boston medical malpractice attorney for one of the patients says that his client, a 37-year-old female, now suffers from limited mobility and continues to experience pain.

Massachusetts and federal health inspectors have since cited Beth Israel Deaconess for problems with its surgical service. The hospital says that since these three Boston wrong-site spinal surgeries, it has already made improvements, such as adopting a checklist to help surgeons mark the right vertebrae and hiring an outside expert to assess the hospital’s spinal surgery procedures.

Spinal surgeries can lead to serious injuries and complications, including disability, chronic back pain, nerve damage, dural tear, infection, bleeding, incontinence, and permanent disability. Patients that have sustained injuries because a surgeon or another medical professional was negligent may have grounds for a Boston medical malpractice lawsuit.

Beth Israel erred in 3 spinal operations, Boston.com, December 24, 2010
One Hospital: Three Wrong-Site Surgeries in Four Months, JDSupra

Related Web Resources:
Wrong-Site and Wrong-Patient Procedures in the Universal Protocol Era, Archives of Surgery
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center

Medical Malpractice, Nolo Continue reading

January 4, 2011

Boston Products Liability Lawsuits Filed Over DePuy ASR Hip Devices

by Altman & Altman

More than four months after DePuy Orthopaedics Inc. and Johnson & Johnson announced the recall of its DePuy ASR(TM) Hip Resurfacing System and ASR(TM) XL Acetabular System, our Boston hip implant defect lawyers continue to be available around the clock to offer a free consultation to those that may have reason for a claim. Altman & Altman, LLP is currently handling a number of Massachusetts products liability lawsuits related to the DePuy ASR hip replacement recall. Contact us immediately by sending us an email or by calling (877) 721-4824.

The hip replacement devices were recalled after a number of patients who had used the DePuy systems ended up having to undergo another hip replacement procedure. Revision surgery is not a painless medical procedure to go through and recover from once let alone a second time-especially if the patient is an elderly senior or someone who is suffering from other health issues. Yet even though about 93,000 people have been implanted with a DePuy hip system, the National Hip Replacement Registry reported last month that only 60% of DePuy hip implant patients had been told about the recall.

Per unpublished information from the National Joint Registry (NJR) of England and Wales, there is an approximately 12% five-year revision rate for the ASR(TM) Hip Resurfacing System and an about 13% revision rate for the ASR(TM) XL Acetabular System. The risk of a revision surgery appeared to go up if the patient was female or had been fitted with an ASR head size that was below 50 mm in diameter.

Signs that there may be problems with your DePuy hip replacement device include walking difficulties, swelling, and pain. While these symptoms are normal soon after receiving the hip implant, a patient shouldn’t experience them and they aren’t supposed to recur. If the symptoms do persist or resume, this may indicate that:

• The implant has come loose.
• The bone around the implant may have fractured.
• The parts of the implant that are supposed to move against each other may have become dislocated.

Also, over time, the metal components of an ASR Hip can generate small microscopic particles as they move against each other. Unfortunately, some patients may experience a reaction to these particles, which can cause joint swelling, pain, and may even damage the bones, muscles, and nerves in the hip area.

DePuy Orthopaedics Voluntarily Recalls ASR(TM) Hip System, Johnson & Johnson, August 26, 2010
Related Web Resources:
An Estimated 93,000 Depuy Hip Implants Patients In Danger, Nutrition and Diet News, December 15, 2010
ASR Hip System Recall Guide

National Hip Replacement Registry

DePuy Orthopaedics Inc.
Continue reading

January 3, 2011

Massachusetts Man Files Lawsuit Alleging Springfield Police Brutality

by Altman & Altman

Melvin Jones III has filed a federal lawsuit against the Massachusetts city of Springfield, its police commissioner, and six officers. He is alleging the excessive use of police force and the violation of his constitutional rights.

Jones, who is black, claims that he was beaten, kicked, pushed, and struck with a flashlight and called a racial epithet during a traffic stop over a faulty muffler in November 2009. He says that he was beaten unconscious, sustained broken bones and teeth, and was at least partially blinded in one eye. A witness captured the incident on video. Jones was charged with resisting arrest and drug possession.

Jones says that the six cops named in the Massachusetts police brutality complaint tried to cover up the assault on him. One of the police offices, Jeffrey Asher, allegedly struck him with a flashlight at least 15 times. Asher was fired from the job and faces criminal charges. The three other cops that were at the traffic stop, Officers Michael Sedergren, Theodore Truiolo, and Lt. John Bobianski were disciplined. Jones is seeking unspecified monetary damages and fees and wants a jury trial.

December 31, 2010

Propane Tank Involved in Deadly Norfolk Construction Blast May Have been Lacking Chemical Odorant

by Altman & Altman

According to the Boston wrongful death lawyer of William Nichols’ family, the propane tank that exploded to cause his fatal Norfolk, Massachusetts construction accident last summer did not have ethyl mercaptan, a chemical odorant used to warn when there is a propane leak. Nichols, a 48-year-old Blackstone electrician, was working on the air conditioning and heading system of a duplex under construction on July 30 when the tank explosion occurred. He ended up buried in debris for over 90 minutes.

Nichols’s family reportedly plans to file Boston wrongful death complaints against Smolinksy Brothers Plumbing and Heating Service, the company that installed the heating system and EnergyUSA, which was responsible for installing the gas tank. The reports, issued by State Police and the state fire marshall, appear to clear DCP Midstream LLC, which delivered the gas.

Injured in the Norfolk propane blast were 72-year-old Foxboro resident David Bethel and 43-year-old Franklin local Robert Dena, who were both working for Deno Electric, Inc., 25-year-old Norfolk resident and Prevett Heating and Cooling employee William Prevett, 17-year-old Wrentham resident Thomas DiPlacido, and 58-year-old Norfolk local Mary Jackson, who lived in the adjacent condo. Firefighters John Zajac and David Payne were also injured.

December 29, 2010

General Motors Recalls Affect More than 180,000 Vehicles

by Altman & Altman

General Motors Co.’s Cadillac division is recalling approximately 95,927 CTS sports sedans in its 2005, 2006, and 2007 model lines to repair a possible problem with the sensing system in the frontal passenger seats. The sensing mat is supposed to detect the relative weight of the passenger, control airbag deployment, and give warning when a briefcase or heavy handbag is on the seat. However, with some of the vehicles, flexing the mat repeatedly can cause it to bend, kink, or fold. This can break the mat’s electrical connections and cause the sensor to fail and possibly disable the air bag, which can prove fatal during a catastrophic Boston car accident.

GM is also recalling more than 97,000 2011 model vehicles because of a problem with the safety belt buckle anchor on the front seats. Breakage close to the seat attachment can occur during a car crash, which can result in serious injuries. Local GM dealers will inspect the seat belts for free. GMC Terrain vehicles, Cadillac SRXs, and Chevrolet Equinox autos are affected by the recall.

Meantime, the US government is looking at whether about 384,000 Saturn ION compact cars should have been part of an earlier recall. That recall involved over 1 million GM vehicles over a power steering issue. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says it has received hundreds of complaints over this issue that has, in some instances, resulted in traffic collisions.

December 23, 2010

Winter Weather Tests Massachusetts Slip and Fall Ruling by SJC

by Altman & Altman

With weather conditions sure to deposit more snow in the region, property owners will have to work extra hard to make sure that Massachusetts slip and fall accidents do not happen on their premises. While preventing this type of premises liability accident is a challenge every winter, the Supreme Judicial Court recent ruling that overturned Massachusetts’ legal standard for snow and ice cleanup on private property may make it easier for an injured party to hold a negligent owner liable.

Under the previous standard, a Massachusetts slip and fall accident victim claiming injury had to prove that the landowner was negligent and that man-made or “unnatural” causes caused the snow hazard. Now, the injured person only must prove that the landowner was negligent or neglected to use reasonable care to remove the hazardous snow or ice conditions. It doesn’t matter whether nature or a human caused the slip hazard. Public sidewalks and streets, however, are exempt from the ruling.

The SJC ruling involves a Danvers, Massachusetts slip and fall accident. In 2002, plaintiff Emanuel Papadopoulos fell and fractured his pelvis at the Liberty Tree Mall parking lot in front of a Target Corp. store. In addition to revising the “reasonable care” standard, the SJC overturned earlier rulings that favored Target and the snow removal company and returned the case to a lower court for consideration under the now new standard. The Danvers premises liability lawsuit has yet to be resolved.

As our Boston personal injury law firm has said in the past, slip and fall accidents can result in extremely painful injuries. Broken bones, hip injuries, shoulder injuries, back pain, neck injuries, traumatic brain injuries, and death can be among the more serious outcomes.

Storm’s aftermath tests court ruling, Cape Cod Times, December 22, 2010
SJC upends 100 years of slip-and-slide law, Boston Business Journal, July 26, 2010

Related Web Resources:
Slip and Fall Accidents, Boston Injury Lawyer Blog
Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court

Slip and Fall, Nolo Continue reading

December 21, 2010

$2M Worcester, Massachusetts Medical Malpractice Verdict Awarded Against St. Vincent Hospital Over Delayed Cancer Diagnosis

by Altman & Altman

A Worcester jury has awarded Laura M. Ginisi and Joseph A. Ginisi nearly $2 million for Massachusetts medical practice in their case against St. Vincent Hospital. Joseph, 63, is now legally blind and cannot walk without assistance.

In their Worcester, Massachusetts medical malpractice complaint, the couple claims that the hospital misdiagnosed several of Joseph’s strokes and delayed the treatment he required for cancer. They claim that he sustained physical and mental injuries after going to the hospital for medical care in January 2004. Since that year, Joseph, an ex-trucker, has lived at the Millbury Health Care Center.

Joseph told his wife that he was feeling unwell on January 23, 2004. He went to St. Vincent where he underwent a CT scan. Doctors thought that the scan showed old lesions. They diagnosed him with vertigo, told him to take medication and follow up with a doctor, and discharged him. However, results from an MRI that he later took showed that he recently suffered strokes.