San Diego Personal Injury Lawyers Blog

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission has reported that in less than two weeks, a new generation of safer cribs will be for sale in retail stores across the country. Starting June 28, 2011, anyone that manufactures or sells baby cribs will be required to meet new and improved crib safety standards approved by the USCPSC.

The USCPSC voted 4-0-1 to extend the length of time that short-term
crib rental companies have to comply with the new mandatory standards for
full-size and non-full-size baby cribs. This extension will give crib rental
companies until December 28, 2012 to update their inventory with compliant
cribs, which is the same deadline for the public accommodation facilities that
these companies serve.

The December 28, 2012 deadline was also extended to child care facilities, such
as family child care homes and infant Head Start centers, and places of public
accommodation (hotels and motels).

The new mandatory standards will usher in a safer generation of cribs. These mandatory standards will: 1) stop the manufacture and sale of dangerous, traditional drop-side
cribs; 2) make mattress supports stronger; 3) improve slat strength, 4) make
crib hardware more durable; and 5) make safety testing more rigorous.

These new safety standards aim to keep children safer in their cribs and prevent
deaths resulting from detaching crib drop-sides and faulty or defective
hardware.

To report an unsafe product, go to www.SaferProducts.gov

Continue reading "Safer Baby Cribs Will Now Be Sold After June 28th ~" »

The San Diego Union-Tribune has reported that Emako Mendoza (75 years old) was mauled at her Paradise Hills home by her neighbor's two pit bull dogs.Saturday morning. She was transported to Scripps Mercy Hospital, underwent one leg amputation, and may lose her left arm, according to her husband and authorities.

The dog bite attack occurred at approximately 6:30 a.m. while Mrs. Mendoza was inside the fenced back yard of her home in Paradise Hills. Her husband, Frank Mendoza, was asleep as his wife went to the back yard to get the paper, which she did every morning. He was awakened by the constant ringing sound of his doorbell. He ran outside, found his wife lying bloodied on the ground, and called 9-1-1.

The neighbors' dogs had apparently entered the Mendozas' backyard through a hole in the fence. The put bulls were subsequently surrended to San Diego County Animal Control and euthanized.

Pit Bull Attacks & Legal Rights

Dog bite injuries are unfortunately common with certain breeds of dogs - in particular, pit bulls. These dogs cause serious injuries and attack people, often because of their aggressive nature and the power of their bite. Typically, a pit bull does not bite just once, but continues to attack until its prey succumbs.

California has a strict liability dog bite statute which states that the owner of a dog is liable for damages (injuries) inflicted by his/her dog if it b ites a person who is either in a public place or lawfully in a private place, including the property of the owner of the dog, regardless of the former viciousness of the dog or the owner's knowledge of such viciousness (California Civil Code Section 3342).

The dog owner is strictly liable, regardless of whether the dog had ever bitten before or shown aggressive tendencies. In California, a dog does not get "one bite free."

Continue reading "San Diego Woman Attacked By Pit Bulls ~" »

Have you or a loved one been injured by someone else's negligence in a Del Mar accident? If so, you should consult with an experienced, aggressive attorney to find out what your legal rights are and what your next steps are.

Choosing A Del Mar Personal Injury Lawyer

After an automobile crash, dog bite attack, slip/trip-and-fall incident, bicycle injury, motorcycle injury, or any other event involving serious injury or the wrongful death of a loved one, it is very important to work with a law firm that specializes in personal injury.

The types of skills required to successfully handle a serious accident or wrongful death case are very specific. Don't be fooled by choosing a lawyer who dabbles in these types of cases, rather than one who handles them exclusively, as we do. Making a bad choice in getting the wrong attorney can be one of the most regrettable decisions you can make, and may significantly reduce the outcome you might otherwise be able to achieve.

Continue reading "Injured In A Del Mar Accident?" »

Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) is damage to the spinal cord that results in a loss of function such as mobility or feeling. Frequent causes of damage are trauma (car accidents, gunshot wounds, falls, etc.) or disease (polio, spina bifida, Friedreich's Ataxia, etc.).
The spinal cord does not have to be severed in order for a loss of functioning to occur. In fact, for most people with SCI, the spinal cord is intact, but the damage to it results in loss of functioning.

Almost 11,000 people in the U.S. sustain a traumatic spinal cord injury each year, resulting in temporary or permanent sensory deficit, motor deficit, or bowel or bladder dysfunction. In this country, more than 250,000 people live with paralysis caused by SCI.

More than half the people who sustain an SCI are between the ages of 16 and 30. More males than females sustain this type of injury - the ratio is more than four to one. The most common cause of SCI is a motor vehicle crash, accounting for at least 36% of these injuries (broken down as follows: no restraints used - 20%; restraints used - 13.7%; motorcycle - 7.4%; accidents involving pedestrians - 5.2%; other - 2.1%).

Violence-related SCIs have been steadily increasing over the past two decades, and today, violence is associated with 29% of SCIs. Falls and sports injuries result in 21% and 7% of SCI cases, respectively.

Damages In SCI Cases

The amount of damages that may be recovered against a party responsible for causing SCI injury is substantial. The average out-of-pocket cost of coping with a spinal cord injury in the first year can be as high as $741,000 for the most severe injuries. For each year after that, the average cost is approximately $132,000. These amounts don't include indirect damages (which averaged $60,000 in 2006) such as:

If you or a loved one has sustained an SCI due to the negligence of another party, you may want to consult with an experienced SCI attorney to find out what your legal rights are.

Continue reading "Spinal Cord Injury?" »