Gair, Gair, Conason, Rubinowitz, Bloom, Hershenhorn, Steigman & Mackauf is a New York Plaintiff's personal injury law firm specializing in automobile accidents, construction accidents, medical malpractice, products liability, police misconduct and all types of New York personal injury litigation.

Articles Posted in Wrongful Death

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New York City has one of the highest rates of traffic fatalities and serious injury in America and in the World. When looking at deaths only, NYC has a lower rate of traffic fatalities than its American peer cities. However when compared to other international cities such as Hong Kong, London or Stockholm, New York is still lagging behind.

traffic fatalities and injuries rates for selected cities
It is time for New York to improve these numbers! The NYC Department of Transportation just released its Strategic Plan 2016. A lot of focus is being directed to traffic safety and protection of bicyclists and pedestrians but is it enough?

Vision Zero continues to be the main program in terms of safety. The goals of the strategic plan 2016 is to integrate the program across all agencies and to improve data and analytics  related to Vision Zero objectives.  Street engineering is planned to continue in every boroughs, on high crash arterial roads and on roads to schools or near senior centers. The campaigns of awareness and education will continue. Among the new initiatives, the DOT will focus on evaluating left turn safety plans and implement recommendations from a previous study on bicycle fatalities and injuries. The DOT will also try to expand the speed camera enforcement which has proven to be very successful. The DOT will also push for mandatory seatbelt use, tougher regulation for drugs while driving, better data sharing with The NYPD in regards to crashes and work on new technologies to reduce crashes.

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accident sceneA 63 year old pedestrian was fatally hit by a car in New York. Barney Pink, an army veteran was crossing Morningside Ave mid-street near 124th street in NYC around 7:40 pm when a car hit him. The driver stayed at the scene of the accident. Barney Pink was rushed to the hospital but he could’t be saved.  Read more in the NY Daily News

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New York Construction SiteNew York has the sixth lowest construction worker injury rate in the U.S. according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Despite being among the safest cities for hard hats, working on a New York City construction site remains one of the riskiest occupations in the City.

According to “The price of Life, 2015 report on construction fatalities in NYC” released by The New York Committee for Occupational Safety and Health (NYCOSH), construction work accounts only for 4%  of employment but for 20% of occupational fatalities in New York State. As in the rest of the nation, falls to a lower level are the number one cause of death on New York construction sites. Almost half of the fatalities on NYC construction sites are related to falls from Heights.

Roofing and siding workers doing construction work at an elevation are the most at risk of a fatal fall.  These workers are often working in an unsafe environment. 80% of New York roofing and siding contractors who received a visit from an OSHA inspector between 2010 and 2012 received violations.

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accident sceneA 48 year old man died in a motorcycle accident in New York City last Sunday. Edison Torres was riding his motorcycle East on the Bruckner Expressway in the Bronx, NYC. As he was near Pugsley Ave in Unionport, he collided with a car driving in the same direction. He then lost control of his bike and hit the ground. He was rushed to the hospital but he couldn’t be saved.  Read more in the NY Daily News

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location of the accidentA 23 woman died in a car accident in New York City on Sunday morning. 6 other people were also injured in the accident.  The deceased victim, Desray Leroy and all the other people injured in the accident were riding in the same car.  They were celebrating the 21st birthday of Stephany Leroy, the sister of the victim according to ABC7 NY. They were coming back from a club and the 7 of them were packed in a 2004 Audi 6 sedan. The car’s maximum capacity is 5 people. Desray Leroy was sitting on the lap of one of the passengers. They were driving North on 120th Street in South Ozone Park, Queens. As they arrived at the intersection of Linden Boulevard, the driver allegedly ignored the stop sign and struck a Honda Civic. The Audi then veered into a wall and then flipped over. The driver of the Civic, a 53 year old woman identified as Ray Mouton, was arrested for aggravated unlicensed operation of a vehicle according to the NY Daily News. The 6 other passengers of the Audi were taken to the hospital with non life threatening injuries. The police are are still investigating the exact cause of the crash.

Picture: location of the accident, courtesy of Google Map

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In 2014,  a motorist plowed into a crowd in NYC, killing one person and severely injuring another. He was convicted at a Bench Trial in March. Yesterday he was sentenced to 18 years to life in prison.  Almost two years ago, 22 year old Kevin Weekes tried to crash a baby shower in Queens. He was thrown out and became furious. He got into a fight and was stabbed. He then got back into his car, made a U-turn and drove into a group of people standing outside the shower party.  He fatally struck 20 year old Kevin Lewis, who was dragged under the car for half a block and seriously injured 21 year old Antoinette Green.

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accident sceneA man died in a motorcycle accident in New York City last Friday. 26 year old Michael Ramnath from the Bronx was riding his bike north on the Cross Island Parkway in Queens when the accident occurred. According to the NY Daily News, the motorcyclist was attempting to switch lanes when he struck a car. He then hit the guardrail and got ejected from his motorcycle.  The young man was transported to the hospital in critical condition. He later died from his injuries. The driver of the car stayed at the scene of the accident and wasn’t charged.

Another motorcyclist was in critical condition after he hit a pothole in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn. The biker was riding South on Marcus Garvey Boulevard. As he was approaching Kosciuszko Street he hit a pothole and got ejected from his motorcycle. he was transported to the hospital in critical condition. It is obviously extremely dangerous to ride in The City. One has to deal with numerous roadway defects as well as drivers who are not alert to motorcycles. If you must ride keep within the speed limit, don’t expect drivers to yield and always be on the lookout for potholes and improperly laid metal plates, among other hazardous roadway conditions.

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accident sceneA bicyclist died after being struck by a minivan in NYC early Monday morning. The man was riding his bike on the left shoulder of the eastbound Grand Central Parkway near 111th Street in Corona, Queens. At one point he swerved into the traffic. He was hit by a minivan. The cyclist died at the scene of the accident. The driver of the minivan stayed at the scene of the accident. He wasn’t charged.

In New York City, bicycles are prohibited on highways. It is unclear why the bicyclist decided to use the highway. The investigation is ongoing.

Read more in DNA

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accident scene3 people died and 2 suffered personal injury in a car accident in Upstate New York last Saturday around 4:20 am. All the victims were in their 20ies. Nelson Osegueda, Ray Rivera, and Waner Nunez were riding in a car with two other young women on Route 6 in Southeast, NY, toward Danbury.  A deputy sheriff allegedly saw the car swerving over the center line and suspected the driver was intoxicated. He tried to pull the car over. As the driver didn’t comply, the deputy sheriff started to chase the car. The average speed of the chase was around 65 mph and twice went up to 80 mph. As the deputy sheriff arrived near the border of his jurisdiction, he alerted the Danbury police and slowed down. According to the deputy sheriff, the chased car then sped up. 15 seconds later the driver hit a utility pole.

The car was completely mangled. the 3 young men mentioned above died and the two young women were injured. One of them suffered serious leg fractures. They were transported to the hospital to be treated.

Read more in Newstimes

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accident sceneA 29 year old man died in a car accident in Long Island, NY. Navado Pratt was driving his car South on Peninsula Boulevard in Valley Stream when he lost control of his vehicle. The car hit a guardrail and barreled onto a grassy median separating the North and South lanes. It finally hit an electrical tower more than 100 feet away. The the driver was ejected from the car and landed in a nearby creek. The police are investigating the cause of the accident. Speed is highly suspected.

see video here and read more here