New York Personal Injury Attorneys Blog

Published on: April 19, 2014

In an effort to prevent pedestrian accidents on the Upper West Side NYPD cops will not issue jaywalking tickets anymore but will teach pedestrians how to respect traffic laws

After several pedestrians died in traffic accidents on the Upper West Side in NYC, the cops have been cracking down on jaywalkers in sensitive areas such as W. 96th street and Broadway (picture). Earlier this year cops in the neighborhood were instructed to give tickets that could go up to $150 to pedestrians caught jaywalking. The cops went after the pedestrians in such an aggressive way that they ended up knocking down and roughing up an 84 year old man who tried to walk away when the cops were issuing him a ticket. The old man hired a personal injury lawyer who is now suing the city for $5 million.

Last week NYPD Commissioner Bratton told cops to use discretion with the elderly and handicapped and Marion Larin the Captain of the UWS 24th precinct replaced the ticket blitz by an information blitz campaign during which officers will teach jaywalkers to follow the law in order to protect themselves from dangerous traffic accidents.

Young female pedestrian dies after being struck by two yellow cabs in Uptown Manhattan

By GGCRBHS&M

Another pedestrian fatality happened last weekend in New York. A 22 year old woman who was crossing York Ave on the Upper East Side of New York was struck by cab that threw her in the opposite traffic lane where a second cab struck her. She was rushed to the hospital where she died. Read more in the New York Daily News

According to NYC Crash mapper over the last 31 months there were 21 collisions at the location of the accident (EAST 84 STREET and YORK AVENUE). As a results of these collisions 3 pedestrians, 1 bicyclist and 1 motorist suffered personal injury. According to locals, the visibility is limited for pedestrians and drivers as York Ave crests at 84th street and declines to 85th street.

Published on: April 17, 2014

Young man suffers severe personal injury in Brooklyn car accident

By GGCRBHS&M

A 32 year old man was critically injured in a bizarre car accident in Brooklyn, NYC, last night. The man was driving in the wrong direction on the road and while he attempted to make a left turn his car overturned.

To reduce the risk of hospital acquired infections, a recent sudy demonstrates that it is usually safer for patients to administer a blood transfusion after the hemoglobin falls bellow 7 or 8 g/dL rather than below 10g/dL

By GGCRBHS&M

Hospital-associated infection can be medical malpractice. 5% of hospital inpatients develop an infection during their stay. As a result patients who develop an infection usually have to extend their stay in the hospital. Hospital acquired infection if not diagnosed and treated properly can also lead to the death of the patient. .

Blood transfusion is a very common hospital procedure during which the patient has a risk of developing an infection.

Hospitals have different strategies as to when a blood transfusion is required. Some have a liberal strategy which means that they will administer red blood cells to a patient when the patient’s hemoglobin level falls below 10 g/dL and some have a more restrictive strategy and will give a blood transfusion to the patient once the level of hemoglobin is below 8 or 7 g/dL.

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Published on: April 16, 2014

Adequate tire pressure is essential in preventing motor vehicle accidents but many drivers are not familiar with the Tire Pressure Warning icon

By GGCRBHS&M

To prevent vehicle accidents related to inadequate tire pressure, since 2008 all vehicles in the US are equipped with a tire pressure monitoring system (TPMS). If the icon on the left is appearing on a car dash board it means that the pressure in the tires has reached a dangerous level and action is required by the driver. Unfortunately according to a recent consumer study 42% of drivers don’t know what this icon means, additionally 10% of drivers ignore the warning and continue to drive.

Published on: April 10, 2014

New York Construction Accident Lawyer Anthony Gair: State of NY Labor Law Section 240(1) in 2014

By GGCRBHS&M

Our partner, New York Construction Accident Attorney Anthony Gair was recently invited by the New York State Bar Association to speak about New York Labor Law Section 240 also commonly known as the scaffolding law. Here is his presentation.
To learn more about Construction Accident Law in New York visit our website

Published on: April 9, 2014

Simple measures that could significantly reduce personal injury and wrongful death related to tractor-trailer truck accidents

By GGCRBHS&M

To reduce personal injury and deaths related to tractor-trailer truck accidents the National Transportation Safety Board sent a letter last week to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration urging the agency to take the following actions:

Address Blind Spots

Blind spots are a major cause of accidents between large trucks and other motor vehicles as well as more vulnerable road users such as motorcyclists, bicyclists and pedestrians. The rate of fatal accidents is particularly high among vulnerable road users. Research from the NTSB show that 16% of pedestrians and bicyclists involved in a truck accident will die. This ratio is of 12% for motorcyclists, 1% for passenger vehicle occupants and 0,2% for the tractor-trailer occupants.
Blind spots for large trucks are much bigger than blind spots for regular cars and exist in the front, in the back and on both sides of the truck. According to the study “Prioritizing Improvements to Truck Driver Vision” by Matthew P. Reed, Daniel Blower and Michael J. Flannagan from the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute , the blind spot on the right of the cab of the truck is the most dangerous. During a lane change, most collisions with another motor vehicle happen in this spot. It is also the spot where most pedestrians and bicyclists are struck during start-up and right turn crashes.
dangerous%20blind%20spots%20around%20a%20truck.jpg

Countermeasures to mitigate blind spots include enhanced mirror systems as well as more advanced technologies such as sensors to detect vehicles and vulnerable road users in blind spots.
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Published on: April 8, 2014

The recent GM massive recall demonstrates how personal injury lawyers play an important role in protecting consumers from defective products and safety hazards

By GGCRBHS&M

When a Personal Injury Lawyer is representing a plaintiff in a Product Liability case he usually works with a team of experts including engineers who will have to demonstrate that the injuries or the death of the plaintiff were the result of a defective design in the product or a flaw in the manufacturing of the defective product.

In a perfect world manufacturers supervised by regulatory agencies would be making sure that the products they sell are not in any way defective or dangerous to consumers. In reality manufacturers tend to put profits before safety and underfunded regulatory agencies are often too weak to assume their mandate of protecting the consumer.

29 year old Brooke Melton was driving a 2005 General Motors Chevrolet Cobalt when the engine suddenly shut off causing an accident that resulted in her death.

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Published on: April 7, 2014

Preventing Medical Malpractice by involving patients and families

By GGCRBHS&M

Engaging patients and their families can prevent medical errors and reduce harm to patients. In their latest report “Safety Is Personal: Partnering with Patients and Families for the Safest Care” the National Patient Safety Foundation’s Lucian Leape Institute is advocating for the inclusion of patients and families in clinical activities, health care design and delivery as well as policy development.

The report points out that the actual health system makes it difficult for patients and families to partner with care providers in order to improve patient safety. Lack of access to health records, intimidation or fear of retribution promoted by a generally paternalistic professional culture as well as a lack of easy to understand tools and checklists are among the many barriers that prevent a positive collaboration between the medical staff and the patient’s family.

The report calls for targeted education and training for health care clinicians and staff to give them skills to better engage patients in decisions and management of health problems and to redesign processes and systems to facilitate patient and family partnerships.

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Published on: April 4, 2014

Several Pedestrians suffer Personal Injury in an accident between a Van and a MTA bus in Manhattan

By GGCRBHS&M

Several pedestrians were injured in an accident during which a van crashed into an MTA bus sending both vehicles into a group of a dozen pedestrians at a bus stop and ending their course in a pizza parlor. The bus accident happened in NYC in Washington Heights, on Broadway and 155th Street.

Both the bus – which had no passengers – and the van were heading north when the van side-swiped the bus causing it to lose control and plowing through about a dozen people waiting at an M4 stop, city officials said.