September 18, 2015

Dehydration and Malnutrition in Nursing Homes – The Scary Statistics

The transition of a family member to a nursing home can be an emotional and confusing time for everyone involved. Relatives hope for the best possible care. However, the unfortunate truth is that many patients suffer from dehydration and malnutrition at some point during their residence in a nursing home. The most prevalent reason for this form of neglect is insufficient staffing.

Medical issues resulting from poor diet and dehydration include bone problems, tooth decay, low blood pressure and anemia, all of which can lead to death. One recent study revealed that an estimated 85% of nursing home residents do not receive proper nourishment. This study analyzed patients in over 17,000 facilities across the United States. The same study reports that 30% to 50% of residents are underweight. Family members can help prevent these types of neglect by knowing which symptoms to watch for, and by addressing any potential warning signs as soon as possible.

Nursing Home Reform Act of 1987

In response to the Institute of Medicine’s discovery of an epidemic of nursing home neglect in a 1986 study, the Nursing Home Reform Act became law in 1987. This act established the Residents’ Bill of Rights and ensured services to provide higher levels of physical, mental, and psychological wellness. Nursing facilities receiving Medicare and Medicaid income require compliance with certain practices in the Nursing Home Reform Act. These practices include:

Thorough care plans for each resident, to be assessed periodically
Full nursing care
Rehabilitation services
Pharmaceutical services
Nutrition services
Full-time social worker services for homes with more than 120 beds

September 18, 2015

Bridgewater Bicyclist Struck by Minivan – Airlifted to Hospital – Accident Under Investigation

by Altman & Altman

As the end of summer approaches many people are still riding their bikes to school and work. You always have to be keenly aware of bike riders, but especially during busy rush hour. A bicyclist suffered serious injuries Thursday morning after colliding with a vehicle in Bridgewater, Massachusetts. Preliminary reports for the accident reveal that at approximately 7:30 AM a bicyclist crashed through a window of a minivan after colliding with the front of the vehicle. The bicyclist was taken via medical helicopter to a nearby hospital following the accident.

Reports have indicated that the bicyclist has been identified as 38 year old Stephen Rogan who currently resides at 36 Howard Street in Bridgewater. Rogan had been riding his bike along the intersection of Pearl Street and Perkins Street when he collided with the front of a Dodge Caravan. Upon impact, Stephen Rogan crashed through a window of the vehicle and ended up somewhere inside the Caravan. According to Bridgewater Fire Lieutenant Bob Mancinelli, Rogan sustained head and facial injuries as a result of the collision. The severity of these injuries was not made immediately available.

The driver of the Dodge Caravan has been identified as 50 year old Michael Lee of Wedowee, Alabama. Lee was not injured as a result of the collision. Initial reports indicate that Lee had been stopped at a Stop sign on Perkins Street. Rogan had attempted to take a turn from Pearl Street onto Perkins Street when he collided with Michael Lee’s Caravan. Reports have not indicated whether or not Rogan possibly lost control of his bike or simply didn’t see Lee at the Stop sign. The exact circumstances surrounding the collision are currently under investigation by the Bridgewater Police Department as well as Plymouth County BCI. Continue reading

September 18, 2015

GM Agrees to Pay $900 Million Settlement for Defective Ignition Switch

by Altman & Altman

The car company giant General Motors have agreed to pay a $900 million fine in an effort to settle criminal charges placed against them following the announcement of defective ignition switches that have led to 124 reported deaths of GM customers. The Justice Department disclosed details of the GM settlement on Thursday. GM has since begun a recall of the vehicles in possession of the deadly ignition switch after they found that the switch could shut off while the car was being driven. If this were to happen, the airbags would become disabled and the driver would not have access to power safety steering or to their brakes. Reports have indicated that GM knew about the defect some 10 years prior to issuing the recall which has caused uproar from victims of the faulty ignition switch.

General Motors delaying their findings is the basis for the criminal charges being brought against them by various victims. The company and their CEO have acknowledged their fatal mistake and are willing to pay the price necessary to reach a settlement with the victims and their family members. Mary Barra, GM CEO, addressed her company and told them the blunt truth of the situation: “People were hurt and died in our cars.” Barra went on to say that the company is sincere in their apologies and are working toward making “substantial” changes to their vehicles.

Individual executives for General Motors are not being specifically charged with any criminal matters. Attorney Preet Bharara indicated that laws restrict the ability to prosecute individuals in connection to an event of this nature. Bharara went on to say that the company was officially charged with failing to report information about a possible defect. Attorney Bharara went on to say that due to the nature of this crime it would be difficult to pinpoint exact individuals who may have had access to this information 10 years ago. He also stated that he met with family members of victims who lost their lives due to the defect and that he sympathizes with their disappointment toward not having individuals being held specifically accountable. “We apply the laws as we find them, not the laws as we wish them to be.” Continue reading

September 16, 2015

Box Truck Crashes Into Whitman Home – Two Injured – Driver Tasered and Arrested

by Altman & Altman

An Enterprise box truck crashed into a home in Whitman, Massachusetts early Wednesday morning, resulting in injuries to two individuals. The driver of the Enterprise rental truck was injured when his vehicle collided with the side of the Whitman home—but following the arrival of law enforcement officials on the scene, the driver of the vehicle became combative and was subsequently tased by responding police officers. The extent and nature of his injuries was not made immediately available.

Police officers have identified the driver of the Enterprise truck as 30 year old David Anderson of East Bridgewater. Initial reports for the accident have indicated that Anderson struck another vehicle from behind with the box truck, which caused the driver of the other vehicle to veer off of the road. Responding officers have stated that the other vehicle in question was a dump truck driven by 24 year old Isis Barbosa of Bridgewater. Barbosa sustained non-life threatening injuries following the accident and was transported to nearby Brockton hospital to receive treatment. An update on Barbosa’s condition has not yet been provided.

Police officers went on to say that the initial accident occurred when Isis Barbosa stopped the dump truck for a school bus ahead of Barbosa on the road, and it was at this time that David Anderson rear-ended the vehicle. The impact of the collision forced Barbosa’s truck off the side of the road where it stayed on the right shoulder of the road. Anderson’s Enterprise truck, however, careened off the road and struck the side of a garage of a home located on nearby Auburn Street. The garage suffered extensive damages as the result of the collision, and officers specified that splintered wood and debris from the roofing shingles littered the ground. The front of the Enterprise truck also suffered heavy damage. There are no further injuries reported for the incident aside from the injuries sustained by David Anderson and Isis Barbosa. Continue reading

September 15, 2015

Car Crashes Into Westgate Mall Entrance- Driver Flees – No Injuries Reported

by Altman & Altman

In a strange turn of events, a building has been the victim of a hit-and-run crash in Brockton, Massachusetts that took place in the early morning hours on Tuesday. The Brockton Police Department received an alarm from the main entrance of the Westgate Mall at approximately 2:40 AM. The mall, which is located on 200 Westgate Road in Brockton, suffered extensive damage as a result of the crash. Responding officers have stated that the driver of the vehicle fled on foot sometime after the accident occurred.

Upon their arrival on scene, Brockton Police Officers discovered that the Westgate Mall had sustained various degrees of damage to the entrance located near the Subway restaurant chain. Initial reports have indicated that two glass entryways to the mall had been completely smashed through by the vehicle. As a direct result of this occurrence, broken glass littered the ground surrounding the entryway and the metal frame supporting the doors had been damaged. Responding officers indicated that the metal frames had been bent and twisted as a result of the collision with the suspect’s vehicle. Continue reading

September 15, 2015

Motor Vehicle Whistleblower Act Aims to Reduce Defect-Related Accidents

by Altman & Altman

In the wake of several high-profile, and deadly, motor vehicle accident cases, the U.S. Senate has approved an incentive for automotive industry whistleblowers. The Thune-Nelson Motor Vehicle Safety Whistleblower Act encourages auto industry employees, contractors, and others to report vehicle defects and other safety problems that could result in serious injury or death. The incentive is quite substantial. In fact, if penalties are imposed by the Department of Transportation or U.S. Department of Justice, whistleblowers may receive up to 30 percent of penalties in excess of $1 million.

The intent of the act is to encourage auto employees, contractors, manufacturers, suppliers, and dealerships to report information that could prevent unnecessary accidents. The legislation is modeled after existing Internal Revenue Service and Securities and Exchange Commission whistleblower protections that help prevent tax fraud and illegal investment activities.

Bipartisan Act Will Encourage Automotive Workers to Report Safety Defects

The Thune-Nelson Motor Vehicle Safety Whistleblower Act was approved by the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation in November of last year. United States Senators John Thune and Bill Nelson introduced the bipartisan Act. “While I believe most manufacturers are dedicated to putting vehicle safety first, there have been disappointing examples where that did not happen and Americans died and sustained serious injuries,” Thune stated. “This legislation will be a powerful tool to help ensure that problems regarding known safety defects are promptly reported to safety regulators.”

“The auto industry needs to be held accountable if it makes decisions that result in serious injuries or deaths,” Nelson said, “ And, one way to do that is to encourage insiders to come forward and tell the truth.” Continue reading

September 15, 2015

Family of 24-year-old Drowning Victim Sues Boston Bar

by Altman & Altman

The family of Eric Munsell, the 24-year-old Boston man who drowned in Boston Harbor in February 2014, has sued the Financial District bar that ousted him.

According to Boston Globe staff writer Amanda Hoover and the wrongful death suit, Munsell was kicked out of the Market bar and lounge after a bouncer saw him drunkenly stumbling and bumping into other customers. Despite the below-freezing temperatures, the bouncers, allegedly, refused to allow Munsell to retrieve his coat or tell his friends he was leaving the bar. The suit claims that the establishment “kicked him out and left him to ‘fend for himself.’”

According to the suit, Munsell was celebrating his birthday with friends at his North End apartment, and walked to Market after consuming a number of alcoholic beverages. The group arrived at the bar around 10:20 p.m.; Munsell was kicked out about an hour later. Munsell reportedly wandered his way back toward the North End but was too disoriented to find his way, according to the lawsuit.

“It was foreseeable that ejecting Mr. Munsell from the bar to fend for himself in his intoxicated state and without a coat created a dangerous situation that placed Mr. Munsell at increased risk of injury and death,” the suit said, according to Hoover. The suit claims that the bouncer stood and watched as Munsell “stumbled off toward the street, weaving unsteadily,” and did not notify the victim’s friends of his departure or call the victim a cab. “Neither the bouncer who threw out Mr. Munsell nor any other Market employee made any effort to avoid or mitigate this unsafe situation,” the suit states, according to Hoover.

Munsell’s body was retrieved from the water near Long Wharf in April 2014, two months after he disappeared into the night.

According to the Boston Globe, the family is seeking an unspecified amount of damages from the owners and operators of the bar, JPC Venture Corp. and the Cronin Group. The family alleges that the defendants “did not have appropriate policies for removing drunk patrons and acted negligently by failing ‘to take reasonable steps to ensure his safety when removing him.’”

The Munsell family’s lawyer spoke openly about the suit, saying that the family hopes this lawsuit encourages other bars to take more care when ejecting drunken patrons.

While Market was not cited for any violation following the incident, a spokesperson for the establishment said that the company “takes its ‘responsibilities very seriously.’”

In conflicting reports, the city’s licensing board found Market with no violation for failing to provide aid to an intoxicated person. The board made the decision after hearing testimony from bar staff, who said Munsell was asked to leave because he offended a group of female patrons, and that they did not believe he was impaired (according to Hoover). He was reportedly asked by bar staff if he had a coat, to which he replied “no,” and subsequently left without incident.

September 9, 2015

Can Foreign Manufacturers Evade Defective Products Lawsuits?

by Altman & Altman

The 2015 Foreign Manufacturers Legal Accountability Act (FMLAA), proposed in the Senate this past July, is a bipartisan plea to hold foreign manufacturers responsible for any injuries or fatalities directly caused by their product in the United States. Unfortunately, legal loopholes exist that occasionally allow foreign companies to escape accountability for harmful, defective products. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission reports that plaintiffs can often get around these loopholes by settling with domestic partners of foreign companies, such as importers and retailers. However, this is not always possible. One of the most infamous catalysts for the proposed bill is the Chinese drywall recall that occurred in 2005 and 2006. The defective drywall resulted in billions of dollars in medical and financial damages,

What Exactly Is the Foreign Manufacturers Legal Accountability Act (FMLAA)?

If passed, the FMLAA would ultimately control the regulation of product safety for all imported consumer goods, as well as ensure the legal involvement of a foreign manufacturer in a defective product lawsuit. The following factors apply:

The FMLAA requires that all foreign corporations pursuing business in the U.S provide a legal agent to represent that corporation in the event of a U.S. civil suit or regulatory claim. This would place all legal matters under U.S. jurisdiction.
Legislation would pertain to products including pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, devices, biological products, consumer products, chemical substances, and motor vehicles and vehicle parts. All of these products would be regulated by the Consumer Product Safety Commission, Environmental Protection Agency, and Food and Drug Administration.
If a foreign company chooses not to comply, the act would ban their products in the United States.

September 8, 2015

Prep School Rape Trial Now Over – Will the Culture Now Change?

by Altman & Altman

A former prep school student faced a lengthy rape trial this summer for an incident that took place just two days prior to his graduation in May of 2014. Owen Labrie, a 19 year old from Tunbridge, Vermont, was facing charges for allegedly raping a 15 year old girl as part of a longstanding tradition at the St. Paul’s School in Concord, New Hampshire. This tradition, coined as the “Senior Salute” encouraged senior male students at the prestigious prep school to compete in order to see who could have sex with the greatest number of underclassmen females prior to graduation. The entire trial unfolded as a he-said, she-said ordeal stemming from the Senior Salute invitation that Labrie extended to the alleged victim prior to the incident. Owen Labrie maintained that the two never engaged in sexual intercourse, but the unidentified victim has stated that she repeatedly told Owen “No” during various stages of their intimacy. Labrie was found not guilty of the felony rape charges he had been facing, but he is still currently awaiting sentencing on lesser sexual assault charges following the jury’s decision. They believed that Labrie had been lying and that the two did engage in sexual intercourse; an act that was illegal due to the girl’s age at the time of the encounter.

The spotlight surrounding the Labrie case has highlighted an issue that could possibly plague further prep schools in the future. Due to the nature of these schools, experts believe that students who receive their education at a boarding school may be at a greater risk to encounter sexual assaults. The children do not have legal guardians present during after-school hours—they experience a greater level of freedom than children who live at home while they are going to school. As one senior, Thomas Chou, from the Phillips Exeter Academy in New Hampshire has stated, “Our parents aren’t with us. We’re living in dorms.” This simple fact has caused a number of prep schools in the surrounding area to reevaluate the plans they have in place to prevent sexual assaults from occurring on their campuses. Continue reading

September 4, 2015

Understanding School Playground Liability in Massachusetts

by Altman & Altman

As children settle into the new school year, school playgrounds are once again being put to the test. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that an estimated 200,000 children under the age of fifteen visit emergency rooms for playground injuries every year. The most common reasons for the high number of playground-related injuries are improper maintenance, faulty equipment, and lack of proper supervision. Depending on the individual circumstances of a particular case, fault may lie with either the property owner or the manufacturing company responsible for the design of the playground equipment.

Lack of Proper Playground Equipment Maintenance

Schools are responsible for keeping playground equipment properly maintained, conducting regular safety inspections, and staying in compliance with regulations. With consistent daily use, school equipment in particular is highly susceptible to wear and tear. Rust from exposure to the elements can cause screws and bolts to loosen. Slowly rotting wooden floorboards on climbing equipment can break during use if not checked regularly. Nails and other sharp edges may begin to protrude over time, resulting in safety issues. Daily maintenance by staff should include assessing the safety of slippery surfaces and checking for potential hazards, including those mentioned above. If a child is injured because of any type of preventable hazard on school property, the school may be found negligent.

Dangerous Design and Construction of Playground Equipment

As with all types of product liability, one aspect of fault may lie with the design of the equipment. School districts generally hire a construction company to build playgrounds designed, or supervised by, a specific design company. If either party has overlooked safety issues that ultimately result in an injury, one or both parties may be held liable for damages. Examples of faulty design include a climbing structure without a regulated railing to prevent a child from falling and breaking a limb. Additionally, playgrounds should have specific surfaces with higher levels of shock absorption. If a child is hurt due to lower quality surfaces, there may be a case for product liability. The Consumer Products Safety Commission provides safe design standards for playground equipment. Continue reading