New York Personal Injury Attorneys Blog

Published on: July 20, 2015

4 young women died and 4 others suffered personal injury after an alleged drunk driver crashed his pick up truck into their stretch limo in Long Island, NY

4 women are dead and 4 others are still in the hospital after being injured in a collision during which a pick up truck collided with their limo. The 8 friends were having a bachelorette party and had hired a limo to visit distilleries and vineyards from the North Folk Region. The limo was leaving Vineyard 48 winery in Cutchogue, Long Island, NY and was making a U turn when a pick up truck crashed into it. The collision was so violent that that the limo was almost sliced in half. Brittney Schulman, 23, and Lauren Baruch, 24, both of Smithtown; Stephanie Belli, 23, of Kings Park, and Amy Grabina, 23, of Commack all died in the accident. Joelle Dimonte, 25, of Elwood, L.I.; Melissa Angela Crai, 23, of Scarsdale, Westchester County; Alicia Arundel, 24, of Setauket, L.I., and Olga Lipets, 24, of Brooklyn, were all treated at local hospitals and survived. Both drivers were also injured and hospitalized. Steve Romeo, the driver of the pick up truck was charged with misdemeanor DWI. He pleaded not guilty. Read more in the NY Daily News

Published on: July 18, 2015

Babies treated with Proglycem for low blood sugar have a risk of suffering pulmonary hypertension, a serious lung condition

By GGCRBHS&M

To precribe Proglycem (diazoxide) to a baby with risk factors for pulmonary hypertension can be medical malpractice leading to severe personal injury. FDA MedWatch, the FDA Safety Information and Adverse Event Reporting Program recently released a drug safety communication to warn that 11 cases of pulmonary hypertension in infants and newborns treated with diazoxide, the active ingredient in Proglycem, have been indentified since the drug was launched in 1973. The drug is usually used in hospital setting after the birth of the baby.

Doctors should not prescribe this drug to babies suffering from meconium aspiration syndrome, respiratory distress syndrome, transient tachypnea of the newborn, pneumonia, sepsis, congenital diaphragmatic hernia, and congenital heart disease.

Babies with no risk factor for pulmonary hypertension should be closely monitored as well. Parents and caregivers should look for signs of difficulty breathing such as flaring nostrils, grunting, unusual movement of their child’s chest, rapid breathing, difficulty feeding, or a bluish color of the lips. They should stop the medication and contact their doctor immediately if they see any of these signs.

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Published on: July 18, 2015

After Takata, ARC Automotive is is the second company to be investigated by US Safety regulators for defective airbags

By GGCRBHS&M

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) just announced that they were probing another company for defective airbags. According to the document posted on the NHTSA website, ARC Automotive is being investigated for airbag inflator rupture following two reports of incidents during which two people were injured. A first incident of airbag inflator rupture was reported in 2009 but was considered an isolated case. However after KIA reported, this year, a product liability lawsuit for another airbag rupture from the same manufacturer, the US Safety regulators decided to probe ARC Automotive, Inc. The ARC probe will cover airbags in about 420,000 Fiat Chrysler Town and Country minivans from model year 2002, and 70,000 Kia Optima midsize sedans from model year 2004. Read more on the CNBC website

Published on: July 16, 2015

A third teenager died from personal injuries suffered in a NY Upstate accident between a truck and a driving school’s car

By GGCRBHS&M

16 year old Lucas O’Connor was one of five people in a driving school car that was struck by a tractor-trailer in Warwick, NY, after the driver, 16 year old Claudia Krebs, pulled into an intersection with a flashing red light on rural road 41. Two other students, Antonio Baglivo and Paul VanDoran died in the truck accident. The 4 students were all from Goshen High Schoool. They were participating in a summer driver’s ed program organized by Decat Driving School at the time of the crash. The police indicated that the truck driver who had the right of way couldn’t brake in time. They also mentioned that the intersection was dangerous and that it was not the first fatal accident at this location. There may very well be grounds for a lawsuit against the driving school. If the instructor was not properly trained and a rigorous hiring process not conducted and it can be established that the instructor was not properly qualified a negligent hiring case may be viable. Read more in the NY Daily News

Published on: July 15, 2015

In the Aftermath of Monday’s fatal bicycle accident, Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams asks the NYC department of transportation to redesign the dangerous intersection near the Barclays Center

By GGCRBHS&M

35 year old Alejandro Moran Marin died in a bicycle accident that happened two days ago at a dangerous intersection located near the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. Yesterday, Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams held a press conference at the site of the accident. To illustrate the dangers of the intersection, Adams started the press conference by taking journalists on a bike ride around the area. During the ride he was almost hit by a truck. Adams said that 3 bicyclists died in the area in the last three years. He urged the DOT to fast track the plans to redesign the area. Read more in the Mean Streets Section of the Brooklyn Paper

Published on: July 15, 2015

3 people suffered personal injury in a building collapse in New York City

By GGCRBHS&M

3 people were injured after a building collapsed at 1438 Fulton St. near Brooklyn Ave in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, NYC yesterday afternoon. The building was set to be demolished and was vacant except for a beauty supply store at the bottom floor. Thankfully no one was inside at the time of the accident. 55 year old Terry Charles who was riding his bike near the building at the time of the collapse was injured after he fell off his bike. Two other pedestrians were also injured. Read more and see Surveillance video obtained exclusively by NBC 4 New York

Published on: July 15, 2015

Our partner, New York Police Brutality Lawyer Anthony Gair explains to the New York Times why the settlement amount was higher in the Gardner case than in the Diallo case

By GGCRBHS&M

Our partner Anthony Gair who represented the mother of Amadou Diallo, who was shot at 41 times by NYPD officers was quoted in an article from the New York Times related to the $ 5.9 million settlement received by the family of Eric Garner from the City of New York.

The case of Mr. Garner’s death differed from other killings by the police because of video capturing his final pleas for breath and because of the number of children who could claim damages. Five are named in the release forms. “I was dealing with someone who left no dependents and there was no conscious pain and suffering because he died instantly,” said Anthony H. Gair, the lawyer for the family of Amadou Diallo, killed in hail of police bullets in 1999. The city made no significant offer “until the very, very end,” he said, ultimately settling the case for $3 million. This amount is the largest amount that has ever been paid by the city of New York in a wrongful-death action for the death of a single individual with no dependents.

Published on: July 15, 2015

The NYPD are still looking for a hit and run cyclist who seriously injured a 67 year old pedestrian in Manhattan last month

By GGCRBHS&M

The police are hit and run cyclist looking for a cyclist who struck a 67 year old female pedestrian on the Upper East Side of Manhattan and fled the scene of the accident leaving the victim lying on the road in critical condition.

The bicycle accident happened on June 9th as the 67 year old woman was crossing the bike lane at the intersection of First Ave and E. 87th Street.

The police are still looking for the reckless bicyclist and recently released a video showing the man riding away after he struck the woman.

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Published on: July 15, 2015

A 24 year old drunk driver is suspected of having caused the Long island car crash that killed a Queens father and his two sons

By GGCRBHS&M

3 people died in a car accident in Long island, NY, early morning on Monday. The Ostanes, a Queens family from Haiti, were coming back from a gathering with relatives when a drunk driver who was also speeding crashed into their car. As the car burst into flames, Lucnie Bouaz-Ostane, the 35 year old mother who was in the passenger seat was able to escape. She tried to rescue the rest of the family but was unable to open the doors. Her husband, Ancio Ostane, 37, her daughter Sephora, 4, and her son, Andy, 8, all died in the accident. The drunk driver fled but the police were able to apprehend him. 24 year old O’Neil Sharp was arrested and charged with DWI and leaving the scene of an accident. Sharp pleaded not guilty and Today authorities said a second man was arrested and awaiting arraignment. 23 year old Demetri Stewart was charged with leaving the scene of a death, fourth-degree criminal facilitation and third-degree hindering prosecution. Stewart apparently was riding another car just behind Sharpe when the accident happened. Read more in the NY Daily News

Published on: July 15, 2015

An out of control SUV driver killed a bicyclist yesterday morning near the Barclay Center in Brooklyn, NYC

By GGCRBHS&M

A bicyclist was killed in an accident Monday during the early morning traffic rush in Brooklyn, New York City. The bicyclist was riding south on Fourth Avenue near the Barclay Center when he was hit by an out of control SUV. According to the police, Claudio Rodriguez, the 37 year old driver of the SUV, may have had a seizure. Rodriguez was travelling North on Fourth Ave when he first struck a car at a red light at the Dean Street intersection. The SUV then jumped the concrete median and crashed into the bicyclist who flew in the air and landed on the hood of the SUV. The bicyclist was carried several blocks on the hood of the SUV before he fell onto the pavement in front of the Atlantic terminal where he died. Rodriguez hit another car before crashing on Flatbush Avenue. 5 other people were injured in the accident. The police are waiting for the blood test results to determine if a medical condition caused the accident. According to the Post “Rodriguez admitted to cops that he had forgotten to take medication on Monday to control his seizures, law-enforcement sources said.”