Wrongful Death

Published on: August 28, 2014

20 month old boy dies after being abused by child care provider who was recommended by the City of New York to the father even though she had 3 citations for lack of CPR and first-aid training

A toddler died of his injury in a Bronx day care after 40 year old Athena Skeeter, a child care professional licensed by the state “wrestled” with the boy. The woman was recommended by the city to the father to take care of his baby boy even though she was cited 3 times for lack of CPR and first-aid training (read more in the New York Daily News). She was licensed to run a family based day care for up to 7 children in her Bronx home.

The woman explained to the police that she flipped the boy onto a bed, lifted him by an arm and a leg and threw him onto the floor. She then stepped on his stomach 3 times. She was charged with manslaughter and endangering the welfare of a child in the death of Cardel Williamson, who suffered blunt force trauma to the head and torso, authorities said.

Read more on NBC News New York and see video below.

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Published on: August 26, 2014

The National Safety Council estimates that 400 people will die and 42,300 will suffer personal injury in a car accident during Labor Day week-end

By GGCRBHS&M

Based on previous statistics of car crashes, The National Safety Council (NSC) estimates that car accidents will kill 400 people and injure 42,300 this Labor Day week-end in the US. Here are a few safety tips to make your ride safer this week-end:

Buckle up. The NSC estimates that out of the 400 fatalities estimated for this long week-end, 144 could be avoided by buckling up
Do not use your cell phone while driving
Set up your GPS, radio or any info in-vehicle infotainment systems before you start driving your car
Give yourself plenty of time to arrive at your destination so you don’t get frustrated while you are driving
If you are planning to drink make sure there is a non drinking designated driver or simply avoid taking your car and plan for a taxi
Be cautious and drive defensively especially if the weather is bad.

Read more here

Published on: August 25, 2014

Speed suspected to to be at the origin of a car accident on a Long Island Highway during which 5 members of a family died

By GGCRBHS&M

A woman driving back from a family gathering with her 3 children and her mother lost control of her car killing herself and all the other car passengers on the Southern State Parkway toward Brooklyn Saturday night around 11:00 pm. The car veered off the road, hit a tree and burst into flames killing all occupants of the vehicle. The police are investigating the cause of the accident.

StarNetworks USA recalls its Magnicubes products because they can cause serious personal injury or death if they are ingested by children or teenagers

By GGCRBHS&M

As part of a settlement of an administrative case based on product defect filed by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) in December 2012, the company Star Networks USA announced a voluntary recall of all Magnicubes Spheres sets and Magnicube Cubes sets. These sets contains high power rare earth magnets that create a substantial injury hazard. The CPSC received numerous reports describing teenagers or children who died or suffered serious personal injury requiring surgery after ingesting the small magnets.

To read more about this recall click here

To read more about product liability click here

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Published on: August 19, 2014

Brooklyn medical students design a simple new device to prevent a women’s death from bleeding during child birth

By GGCRBHS&M

Post-partum hemorraging is the medical term for excessive bleeding after childbirth. It is the leading cause of maternal mortality in the world and accounts for 30% of deaths in Africa and Asia.

Mikail Kalam from Brooklyn, a 25 year old medical student at Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine in Harlem , New York, and his research team discovered that a condom filled with saline can put pressure on the uterus and reduce or stop the bleeding until the woman is transferred to a hospital. This could be a life saver for millions of women in poor countries including Bangladesh where Mikail is from and where 70% of women give birth at home assisted by midwives.

The device called tampostat, costs only $1.50 to produce. It allows the condom to be securely introduced into the uterus and filled with an amount of saline appropriate to the size of the uterus.

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Published on: August 18, 2014

32 year old woman dies in Brooklyn car accident involving two drunk drivers

By GGCRBHS&M

A young woman was killed in a car accident between two drunk drivers on Eastern Parkway, Brooklyn, NYC Sunday around 4:00 am. Michelle Migmot was sitting in the back seat of a car driven by 32 year old Herbert Gerrard and another 32 year old woman who suffered minor injuries was sitting in the front passenger seat. As they were turning left onto Troye Ave another car driven by 32 year old Richard Roman Santos crashed into them. Both drivers were arrested and charged with vehicular manslaughter and drunk driving. Additionally Gerrard was charged with driving with a suspended license. Michelle Migmot lived two streets away from the location of the crash. Read more in the New York Daily News.

Eastern Parkway is a dangerous corridor where many car crashes happened previously. It was recently turned into a “Slow Zone” and the authorized speed was reduced to 25 mph as part of the Zero Vision Initiative to reduce traffic fatalities and personal injuries in New York City.

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Picture source: NYC Crashmapper Car crashes statistics between August 2011 and February 2014

Published on: August 14, 2014

Following two recent pedestrian fatalities, CB7 Transportation committee approves the NYC DOT proposal to improve pedestrian safety on West End Ave

By GGCRBHS&M

61 year old Jean Chambers died on July 10th after being struck by a driver making a left turn at the intersection of of West 95th Street and West End (see previous blog). Earlier this year 9 year old Cooper Stock was crossing the street in the crosswalk and holding his dad’s hand when a taxi turning from 97th Street onto West End Ave struck them. His dad only sustained minor injuries but the young boy died (see previous blog). 96 pedestrians, 41 cyclists and 160 motor vehicles occupants have been injured in traffic accidents on West End between W 75th Street and W 106th Street from 2008 to 2012. West End Ave is dangerous because it is a large 4 lane avenue located in a residential area with schools and seniors center that handles a lot of traffic entering and exiting the Henry Hudson Parkway between 95th and 97th street.

To calm traffic and make it safer for the residents, the Community Board 7 Transportation Committee accepted this week a Road Diet proposal form the NYC Department of Transportation. The proposal includes the reduction of the number of lanes from 4 to two with turn bays, flush median and several pedestrian islands but no bike lanes. The proposal also bans two left turns where traffic exit and enter the Henry Hudson Parkway:Northbound left at W 97th St and Southbound left at W 95th St. The next step is to get the endorsement of the CDB7 full board meeting on September 2nd.

Download the complete DOT Proposal

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Published on: August 11, 2014

To prevent death and personal injury related to subway accidents the MTA is testing several “track intrusion” detection systems

By GGCRBHS&M

Last year in New York 151 people were struck by subway trains and 53 of them died. There are many reasons why people are being injured or killed by a train: they fall on the tracks after feeling ill, they are pushed by someone else, they loose something on the track and try to go pick it up or they jump in front of the train to commit suicide. To stop the staggering amount of injuries and deaths happening on its tracks, the MTA is testing sensors and video systems that would prevent people who fall on the tracks to be struck by a train. The systems use high-tech devices to alert the driver if someone falls on the tracks. The tests look promising and the MTA executives are planning to install such systems in subway stations between 2015 and 2019.

Young boy dies after falling from a window in the Bronx, NYC

By GGCRBHS&M

A two year old boy died after he fell out of a window early Sunday morning on Gerard Ave in the Bronx, New York. The window guards were installed as required by New York Law but the 2 year old boy may have climbed over them. The toddler woke up in the middle of the night and went into the kitchen while his grandmother was asleep in another room. According to ABC news the boy moved a pot and climbed on it to reach the window. He died from severe injuries at the hospital.

Source: New York Daily News

Published on: August 6, 2014

The number of pedestrians who died in traffic fatalities in NYC is down by 24% but the number of fatal bicycle accidents is up 33% for the first six months of the year

By GGCRBHS&M

There were 18,321 motor vehicle accidents in New York City in June according to the recent statistics published by the NYPD. This is the highest number of accidents per month in one year and the second consecutive month that this number is above 18,000. A similar increase in vehicle accidents was also observed for the months of May and June last year. During these two months this number was also above 18,000. The total number of motor vehicle accidents for the first six months of 2014 is 8068 compared to 8828 in 2013, a decrease of 9.1%.

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4950 people suffered personal injury in a motor vehicle accident last June compared to 4621 in May and 5046 in June 2014. During the first six months of the year 24,383 people suffered personal injury in a vehicle accident compared to 26,119 for the first six months of 2013, a decrease of 7%.

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For the first 6 months of 2014 there were 117 traffic fatalities compared to 121 in 2013. 20 people died in traffic accidents in June compared to 25 the previous month and 22 in June 2013. The number of motorist deaths was higher than usual for the last two months.

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