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 ~" »

Have you or a loved one been seriously injured or killed in an accident? If so, you should consult with an experienced San Diego personal injury lawyer to find out what your legal rights are and what your next step should be.

San Diego personal injury attorney A. Jason Kerckhoff knows how serious and life-changing accidental injuries can be, and how frustrating it is to try to obtain relief from insurance companies and other responsible parties.

Choosing A San Diego Injury Attorney

After a vehicle 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.

Unfortunately, sometimes people are negligent, reckless, or violent, and their irresponsible or wrongful behavior causes injuries. When these tragic, expensive injuries happen to you or a loved one, the person or company who caused the injuries should be held responsible.

The types of skills required to successfully handle a serious accident or wrongful death case are very specific. Our San Diego personal injury law firm is dedicated to assisting injury victims in obtaining the maximum financial compensation they are entitled to, so that they can move on with their lives.

Have you or a loved one been seriously injured or killed in an accident? If so, you should consult with an experienced injury attorney to find out what your legal rights are and what your next step should be.

San Diego personal injury attorney A. Jason Kerckhoff knows how serious and life-changing accidental injuries can be, and how frustrating it is to try to obtain relief from insurance companies and other responsible parties.

Choosing A Cardiff-By-The-Sea Injury Lawyer

After a vehicle 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.

Unfortunately, sometimes people are negligent, reckless, or violent, and their irresponsible or wrongful behavior causes injuries. When these tragic, expensive injuries happen to you or a loved one, the person or company who caused the injuries should be held responsible.

The types of skills required to successfully handle a serious accident or wrongful death case are very specific. Our Cardiff By The Sea personal injury law firm is dedicated to assisting injury victims in obtaining the maximum financial compensation they are entitled to, so that they can move on with their lives.

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has voted unanimously to approve new mandatory standards for full-size and non-full-size baby cribs as mandated by the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008 (CPSIA). The federal crib standards hadn't been updated in almost 30 years, so the new rules are expected to help create a safer generation of cribs.

Effective June 2011, cribs manufactured, sold, or leased in the United States must comply with the new federal standards. Effective 24 months after the rule is published, child care facilities, such as family child care homes and infant Head Start centers, and places of public accommodation, such as hotels and motels, must have compliant cribs in their facilities.

Once effective, the mandatory crib standards will: (1) stop the manufacture and sale of dangerous, traditional drop-side cribs; (2) make crib hardware more durable; (3) make mattress supports stronger; and (4) make safety testing more rigorous.

The CPSC has recalled more than 11 million dangerous cribs since 2007. The detaching drop-side rails were associated with at least 32 infant suffocation and strangulation deaths since 2000. Additional deaths were caused by faulty or defective hardware. The new standards aim to keep babies safe and prevent tragedy.

For more information on crib safety and safe sleep environments for babies, visit the CPSC's crib information center at: www.cpsc.gov/info/cribs/index.html.

Continue reading "CPSC Approves New Crib Safety Standards To Ensure A Safe Sleep For Babies & Toddlers ~" »

The State of California has been held partially responsible for a mudslide at a church camp near Crestline, California which killed 14 people.

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A jury in San Bernardino County held that CalTrans' faulty design of Highway 18 was partially responsible for the flooding and subsequent mudslide at St. Sophia Camp on Christmas Day in 2003. The jury found the State 31% liable for the deaths, holding St. Sophia Church 69% liable. The church settled its cases with the victims' families in 2008 for $13 million, then sued the State.

Jurors must now decide how much money the State should pay. The church is asking for $3.9 million, while CalTrans estimates its liability at $2.2 million.

CalTrans has only made minor changes to the design of Highway 18 since the mudslide.

Continue reading "California Held Partially Liable For Deadly Mudslide In Crestline ~" »

Today it has been reported that the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) are warning consumers to stop using infant sleep positioners. Over the past 13 years, both agencies have received twelve reports of infant deaths (between the ages of one to four month and 4 four months). The infants reportedly died from suffocation while sleeping in sleep positioners, or they became trapped and suffocated between a sleep positioner and the side of a crib or bassinet.

Most of the infants suffocated after rolling from a side to stomach position. In addition to the above-reported deaths, CPSC has also received dozens of reports about infants who were placed on their backs or sides in sleep positioners, only to be found later in potentially hazardous positions within or next to the sleep positioners.
Parents and caregivers are urged to stop using the sleep positioners, due to the dangerous situations and possible death that may result from using them.

The two main types of infant sleep positioners are flat mats with side bolsters or inclined (wedge) mats with side bolsters (see photos below).

Consumers are urged to do the following:

STOP using sleep positioners, because using a positioner to hold an infant on his or her back or side for sleep is dangerous and unnecessary;

NEVER put pillows, infant sleep positioners, comforters, or quilts under a baby or in a crib; and

ALWAYS place an infant on his or her back at night and during nap time.The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends reducing the risk of SIDS by placing infants on their backs (and not their sides) to sleep. Howe

The American Academy of Pediatrics does not support the use of any sleep positioner to prevent SIDS.

CPSC is interested in receiving incident or injury reports related to these products. To file a report, please visit https://www.cpsc.gov/cgibin/incident.aspx.

Continue reading "Safety Recall Of Infant Sleep Positioners ~" »

Have you or a love 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.

Jason Kerckhoff is an experienced Del Mar accident lawyer with over 28 years of experience providing legal representation to accident victims in southern California, including Del Mar, Solana Beach, Carmel Valley, Torrey Pines, and La Jolla.

Have you or a loved one suffered a personal injury due to the negligence of someone else?
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 An Encinitas Personal Injury Lawyer

After an automobile accident, 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.

Jason Kerckhoff is an experienced Encinitas accident lawyer with over 28 years of experience providing legal representation to serious accident victims in southern California, including Encinitas, Carlsbad, Cardiff-By-The-Sea, Solana Beach, and Del Mar.

Have you or a love one been injured by someone else's negligence in an El Centro 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 An El Centro Serious 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.

Jason Kerckhoff is an experienced El Centro accident lawyer & Imperial Valley personal injury lawyer who has over 28 years of experience providing legal representation to serious accident victims in southern California, including San Diego, Riverside, San Bernardino, Orange, and Imperial Counties.

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) and Baby Matters LLC (of Berwyn, Pennsylvania) have announced a voluntary recall of 30,000 Nap Nanny® portable baby recliners. The CPSC is investigating the report of a 4-month-old baby girl who resided in Royal Oak, Michigan who died in a Nap Nanny® that was used in her crib. The infant was in her harness and found hanging over the side of the product, caught between the Nap Nanny® and the crib bumper.

The Nap Nanny® is a portable recliner for babies designed for sleeping, resting and playing. The recliner consists of a foam base with an inclined indentation for the infant to sit in, and a fitted fabric cover and three-point harness. The first generation model of the Nap Nanny® can be identified by the absence of "D"-rings in the foam base. In second generation models, the harness system has "D"-rings in the foam base and Velcro™ straps inside its fitted fabric cover.

The CPSC and Baby Matters are also aware of another incident in which an infant became entrapped when the Nap Nanny® was used in a crib (which is contrary to the product instructions). In that incident, the infant fell over the side of the Nap Nanny®, despite being harnessed in, and was caught between the baby recliner and the side of the crib. The infant sustained a cut to the forehead.

There have been 22 reports of infants, primarily younger than 5 months old, hanging or falling out over the side of the Nap Nanny®, despite most of the infants being placed into the harness. Infants apparently can fall or hang over the side of the Nap Nanny® even while the harness is in use.

Consumers with a first generation Nap Nanny® model (without "D" rings) should immediately stop using the recalled baby recliner and contact the firm to receive an $80 coupon towards the purchase of a new Nap Nanny® (which will be shipped for free). Consumers with a second generation Nap Nanny® model (with "D" rings) should immediately stop using the product until they are able to visit the firm's website to obtain instruction.

Continue reading "Safety Recall Of Nap Nanny Recliners Due To Infant Death ~" »

Have you or a loved one been seriously injured in an accident in Cardiff-By-The-Sea? If so, you should consult with an experienced, aggressive attorney to find out what your legal rights are and what your next step should be.

Choosing A Cardiff-By-The-Sea Serious 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.

Our Cardiff-By-The-Sea accident lawyers are experienced trial lawyers and have in excess of fifty years combined experience providing legal representation to serious accident victims in southern California, including San Diego, Riverside, San Bernardino, Orange, and Imperial Counties.

Continue reading "Cardiff-By-The-Sea Serious Accident Lawyers ~ Cardiff By The Sea Injury Attorneys " »