While working on the elevator, a mechanic shut down the mechanism, which was designed to stop lifts from operating while the doors were still open. The mechanic claims he made sure to put the safety circuit back in place, but those investigating determined that the device "was apparently bypassed at the time of the fatal accident, thereby allowing the car to move with its doors open."
]]> The owner of the elevator repair company involved had his license suspended by the Buildings Department. "The investigation starkly showed elevator safety protocols were ignored," said the Department of Investigation Commissioner.The repair company is fighting the findings and is saying that the accident is simply a tragedy.
The executive was going to her office when she tried to enter a lift in the lobby of her building. As it rose with the doors open, the executive was caught between the wall and the elevator.
"These workers and their supervisors failed to follow the most basic safety procedures, and their carelessness cost a woman her life,'' said the Buildings Commissioner.
According to the regulatory body, the workers failed to put the lift back in service with the necessary clearance. The repairmen also omitted using caution tape and other safety precautions.
"If these safety measures were in place, this tragedy would have been prevented,'' the Building Commissioner explained.
The building owners and the company that is contracted to maintain the elevator may be liable in court to the injured person in a wrongful death claim brought by loved ones.
Source: Officials: Safety Device Was Disabled on Deadly Elevator
]]>A study of Canadian hospitals found that drug-related errors accounted for about a quarter of all preventable patient injuries. Pharmacists in the study estimated that between 10 percent and 15 percent of prescriptions contain errors.
]]> These errors may seem out of place in today's digital age. In addition to illegible handwriting, many prescriptions use confusing trade names for drugs and abbreviations for timing and dosage.Researchers say that the health care systems of Canada and the U.S. have the least developed information technology for patient record-keeping, prescriptions and other medical tasks. According to Dr. Richard Alvarez, the most significant barrier for electronic record-keeping is not financial costs, but rather the traditional work habits of medical professionals.
Some medical professionals are embracing Dr. Alvarez's efforts to reduce prescription drug errors. By computerizing the process, mistakes caused by poor handwriting, abbreviations and dosage errors could decrease substantially. Computer software could require doctors to double-check orders. A pharmacy would receive a computer printout of prescription information rather than an illegible note. Errors could still happen in manual entry of data, but in far fewer numbers.
Dr. Alvarez argues for the use of information technology across the health care system to allow any medical professionals, including emergency room doctors, to instantly view a patient's medical history for treatment purposes. This technology would allow pharmacists to check whether a doctor's prescription is inconsistent with a patient's other medical conditions, allergies or prescriptions, and alert the doctor of the problem. This is particularly important for older patients with longer medical histories and more frequent need for drug prescriptions. In addition, doctors would more easily be able to track whether patients were correctly filling prescriptions.
]]>But that doesn't mean our hypothetical slip-and-fall case cannot be addressed through the legal system. The Seminole Tribe of Florida, for instance, requires that prompt written notice be given to its Risk Management Department.
You must give prompt notice, generally within three years of the date the incident occurred, and if settlement cannot be negotiated within one year since you gave notice, you can file a lawsuit in a Florida courthouse.
In any case, there's a four year statute of limitations, under the 2010 Gaming Compact Law. If you miss this date, you are likely barred from bringing your claim against the tribe and getting any compensation whatsoever for your injuries.
Cases involving Native American tribes are obviously dealt with on a case-by-case basis. What works in one case may not work in another. But the moral of the story is this: If you think you may have a case against a Native American tribe, speak to an attorney who is knowledgeable in this area, and can advise you about your rights.
]]>If it works as it's supposed to, there are many underwater homeowners across the U.S. who could benefit from a reduction on their mortgage principal, staving off the possibility of home foreclosure, and getting their heads above water.
]]> As Noguchi reports, here's how this latest settlement differs from past efforts:1. Partial loan forgiveness. The settlement involves principal reductions on mortgages, and under the terms of the settlement, the banks will be required to enter into reductions.
2. Compliance is not voluntary. Because it's a legal settlement, the banks will be required to follow its terms, meaning that this particular development has some teeth.
But we'll have to wait to see how sharp those teeth are.
"There is a level of frustration out there," says one housing counselor, as Noguchi reports, "not only among the community, but also amongst the housing counselors. Because to do it right, and to do it in a way that's really beneficial in a real way, takes time. Time takes money. We don't have it."
In other words, what that housing counselor is saying is that the $25 billion - the staggering figure set forth under the terms of the settlement - will take its time trickling down before it will help underwater homeowners.
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Across the nation, deaths involving teen drivers have decreased dramatically, and graduated licensing programs are given much of the credit. In 1995, about a thousand 16- and 17-year-old drivers were in fatal motor vehicle accidents. In 2010, the number dropped to less than half that many, only about 400. By comparison, in the same time period deaths in accidents involving drivers over 20 declined by less than 25 percent, from 19,006 to 14,597.
]]> Now the Governors Highway Safety Association is concerned about recent statistics showing that the decline in teenage accident fatalities has stopped and even reversed. Data from the first half of 2010 and 2011 were compared, revealing a slight nationwide increase in deaths involving 16- and 17-year-old drivers, from 190 to 211. In contrast, meanwhile the overall fatality rate among all drivers decreased. Alarmingly, deaths in Florida went up from 9 to 15, making the Sunshine State one of the top four in the country for growth in the number of teenage driving fatalities.Officials will continue to watch the trend in traffic deaths. One reason why the decline in teen deaths seems to have ended may be that the benefits of graduated licensing programs have leveled off. If that is the case, measures can be taken. States have refined their programs over the years, and could add restrictions to deal more effectively with texting and distracted driving.
Source: Fatalities Among Teenage Drivers Rose in First Half of 2011, Study Finds
]]>While saying that he is seeing some bipartisan support for housing reform, Geithner says we still have a long way to go in housing reform. This is reform that would help prevent home foreclosure and related problems, like stagnant buying and selling.
]]> There have been proposals to get rid of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, but it's not clear in the report whether this has widespread support.Geithner and the Obama administration (as well as lawmakers) clearly feel the need to continue to address housing reform, without adding to the existing burden on the real estate market.
It's also not clear whether Geithner feels that being behind on housing reform is a U.S.-only issue, in terms of something that should have been addressed long ago, or whether the U.S. falls behind other countries with housing problems.
Source: Geithner says U.S. far behind on housing finance reform
]]>Because the CrossFit regimen is so broad, it lends itself to some of the best all-around fitness levels that can be achieved, at least according to diehard fans. But while many people claim to have recovered from injuries because of CrossFit, others have gotten injured because of it, and allege things like negligent personal training.
As Camille Lamb writes for the Miami New Times, a man named Nick Valencia works out at CrossFit Miami Beach. The combination of CrossFit and a vegan diet has transformed his physique from unhealthy to chiseled.
]]> "During many of my workouts at CrossFit Miami Beach," Lamb writes, "I've noticed Nick Valencia, a tanned and shredded little guy, smiling, sweating, and tearing up the black rubber floor with his aggressive approach to the W.O.D. (CrossFit speak for 'workout of the day')."This post is by no means a dig on CrossFit, or those who participate in it. CrossFit has clearly paved the way to a better life for Valencia, a man who used to eat whatever was put in front of him and who probably skipped plenty of workouts.
But while everyone jumps on the CrossFit bandwagon, it pays to be mindful that not everyone is ready for what CrossFit has to offer, and gyms and personal trainers shouldn't get you into something you're not physically prepared to handle.
Source: Nick Valencia's Sexy (and Spiritual) "Plant-Based Body"
]]>Two people have come forward to split the winnings. A third person also came forward with a winning ticket. She worked at a McDonald's in Maryland and is said to have called her workplace the day after the lottery numbers were announced to say that she'd won.
]]> The problem is that 37-year-old Mirlande Wilson is likely not to be the only winner at this particular McDonald's - she was part of a workplace lottery pool - and is now saying that she purchased a "separate" ticket, as Lynch reports, a ticket separate from those tickets purchased as part of the pool.No one knows at this point whether her winning ticket was part of the pool or not, or whether, as Lynch writes, Wilson even won at all.
"I was in the group," Wilson says, "but this was separate. The winning ticket was a separate ticket."
Ferrer Shane's own Eric Shane has been featured in various media outlets lately, like this MSNBC segment with Dylan Ratigan, speaking about how to protect yourself if you are part of a lottery pool.
One of Shane's pointers: make photocopies.
In the McDonald's lottery pool case, a photocopy of all tickets as part of the pool would go a long way toward proving (or disproving) Wilson's claim.
Source: Mega Millions mess: Maryland woman in office pool draws suspicion
]]>"This case should bring awareness to Florida of the problems that texting while driving have done, and will continue to do. It has to stop. It's a tragic situation that kills," says the personal injury lawyer who represented Lopez's family in her wrongful death case.
As Jon Silman reports for the Miami Herald, a Miami-Dade jury agreed with the lawyer, awarding $8.8 million to her family.
Texting while driving, just one species of distracted driving (which includes talking on a mobile phone, watching videos, fiddling with the radio, etc.), can take your eyes off the road for five seconds or more with each text.
Some studies indicate that texting while driving is similar to drunk driving in terms of the potential for causing a car wreck. Which makes us think: If we're driving, it's time to put the phone down.
Source: Miami Herald, "Miami Dade jury awards $8.8 million to family of woman killed in crash," by Jon Silman, 12/20/11
]]>Infuse was approved by the FDA for use in surgeries where there is a single-level anterior lumbar spinal fusion of degenerative disc disease from L2-S1. Many surgeons, however, have used it "off-label," or in ways other than its intended one. Off-label usage of Infuse has had significant impacts, both negative and positive. Studies have suggested that off-label use of BMP could increase complications, prompting the FDA to issue warnings.
A study published in the Spine Journal indicated that Medtronic's initial release of data from the Infuse studies may have lacked complete information about its complication rates.
And another controversy surrounding Infuse is the fact that several positive studies were not random, double-blind, controlled studies, which is the highest standard for producing legitimate results - many Infuse studies were sponsored by Medtronic, which had the most to gain from positive outcomes.
Many doctors agree that, although knowledge of BMPs is limited, a key aspect of BMP usage is the dosage. Complications are more likely to occur when a patients receives too much BMP.
As with most innovations, there are setbacks and leaps forward, and BMP usage is no different. The conversations regarding Infuse and its issues will serve as a catalyst for more research and development of similar products, likely producing a more refined product and different usage guidelines.
Source: Becker's Spine, "Where Infuse Stands: 6 Points on the Controversial Spinal Fusion Product," by Laura Miller, 10/25/11
]]>You may think that the police will take you at your word if you kill someone in self-defense. Unfortunately, that rarely happens. The police will investigate. Charges against you might be filed. Whether or not that happens will depend on the facts of the case.
Our client, for example, gave a full confession to the police, believing that he had justifiably acted in self-defense, but still he was charged with murder in the second degree.
And he spent more than two years behind bars leading up to trial.
]]> No Such Thing as an Impossible CaseDiana Gonzalez, Esq., a criminal defense attorney with Ferrer Shane, won an incredible victory on Oct. 28 when the jury handed down its verdict: Not Guilty.
The stakes were high: He faced life in prison (with a 25-year mandatory minimum sentence because he protected himself with a firearm).
It would have been easy to arrange a plea bargain that would have allowed for a reduced sentence; instead, Ms. Gonzalez and her client persevered during a grueling jury trial that lasted two weeks.
There were more than 10 different issues in the case, including the Stand Your Ground law, in which Ms. Gonzalez successfully demonstrated to the jury three things:
On top of that, there was a lack of forensic evidence linking our client to the crime, which gave the jury plenty of reasonable doubt.
As Ms. Gonzalez says, "There's no such thing as an impossible case."
Now, after more than two years behind bars, our client sleeps at home in his own bed, rather than in a jail cell.
Congratulations to Ms. Gonzalez and Ferrer Shane for the victory.
]]>As the Associated Press reports, state budget cuts and other forms of dried-up funding have left many organizations in the criminal justice system - from prosecutor and public defender offices to nonprofits - unable to provide adequate service to those who have been accused of crimes.
But, in our opinion, as long as there is a criminal defense lawyer - public or private - willing to defend the rights of those who have been accused of crimes, the criminal justice system does not face a crisis.
]]> In some cases, the upshot of state budget cuts (if you can call it that) is that some people accused of certain crimes (such as drug possession) are on occasion getting a better result than they otherwise would have because of the strain in the criminal justice system.As the Associated Press reports, some defendants are even getting charges against them dropped, even in murder cases; in one case it took four years for prosecutors to bring formal charges against the suspects in a shooting case after they'd been arrested.
The National Legal Aid & Defender Association's Ed Burnette says, "If you don't have enough lawyers to handle the cases [referring to public defenders], it leaves them open to speedy-trial challenges and ineffective assistance of counsel."
Source: Associated Press, "Criminal justice system faces crisis due to state budget cuts," 10/26/11
]]>In Florida, as in many other states, hanging was one of the earliest forms of state-sanctioned execution. Florida lawmakers later replaced hanging with the electric chair, but "Old Sparky" is no longer the primary method of execution - that honor now belongs to lethal injection, a drug cocktail that stops the condemned's breathing and heart.
In 2010, Martin Grossman, convicted of homicide, was the latest Florida man to suffer the death penalty.
]]> Putting Innocent People to DeathThe methods of execution may have changed, but one important question remains: Are we sure that we aren't putting innocent people to death? In several cases, DNA evidence has cleared many people who awaited execution on death row.
So the question goes beyond whether or not you support the death penalty.
If we put just one innocent person to death - as it appears the state of Georgia might have done with the recent execution of Troy Davis - that one death casts doubt on the entire business of capital punishment.
As Nathan Thornburgh reports for TIME, clemency boards in pro-death penalty states like Texas, Georgia and Florida, are designed to act as legal "safety valves" for those whose guilt is not beyond a reasonable doubt. "It's a last resort," Thornburgh writes, "not to retry a case, but to ensure that a conviction is so ironclad that there is no doubt that it merits the ultimate punishment."
Whatever you want to call it - call it human error or out-and-out bias - clemency boards and governors do not always dispense justice based on the law and facts. Too often, it appears as though politics trumps fairness.
In Davis's case, who was convicted of murder more than 20 years ago, and whose case has wound its way through the system to today, there appears to be plenty of reasonable doubt. And maybe he was guilty. Maybe he wasn't. Was he a "bad" man? Was he "good"?
Does it matter?
Thornburgh writes a big black zero for the number of pieces of physical evidence actually linking Davis to the crime. And yet Georgia's clemency board refused to alter course.
Source: TIME, "Troy Davis' Clemency Denial: The Failure of a Legal 'Safety Valve,'" by Nathan Thornburgh, 09/21/11
]]>Prosecutors ordinarily have a higher burden of proof in the criminal justice system - hence the "innocent till proven guilty" thing.
At least it was that way until the Florida legislature got rid of the duty of a prosecutor to prove guilty knowledge in alleged drug offenses with its Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Law of 2002.
]]> Wayward Burden of ProofAccording to federal judge Mary Scriven, the law violates due process.
"Not surprisingly," she wrote, as Stanley reports, "Florida stands alone in its express elimination of mens rea as an element of a drug offense. Other states have rejected such a draconian and unreasonable construction of the law that would criminalize the 'unknowing' possession of a controlled substance."
Scriven then ruled the law unconstitutional, causing "one of the largest potential effects on criminal law in the past decade," says one defense lawyer.
The Case That Started it All
33-year-old Mackle Shelton was busted for drugs (delivering cocaine) and convicted in 2005, serving out his 18-year sentence in Florida prison, because the jury in his case was instructed to find him guilty if he delivered cocaine - not if he intended to deliver cocaine.
As Harvey Silverglate writes for Forbes, the issue is "far from a technicality." Silverglate writes, "It is a staple of our civilized criminal justice system that you cannot be convicted of committing a crime unless you knew what you were doing and realized that it was against the law."
Shelton's attorney said, "It takes the presumption of innocence and throws it in the garbage can," referring to the 2002 Florida law. And Silverglate seems to back that statement up in his Forbes piece, where he highlights the rise of strict liability crimes that do not require the age-old burden of proof in which the accused is innocent till proven guilty.
With Scriven's ruling, hopefully we can take the presumption of innocence back out of the garbage can.
Sources: Forbes, "How a Floridian busted for cocaine possession may save future white collar defendants," by Harvey Silverglate, 08/05/11
St. Petersburg Times, "Federal judge rules Florida drug law unconstitutional," by Kameel Stanley, 07/29/11
]]>Austin Nowakowski, Esq., of Ferrer Shane PL in Miami, with his trial advocacy and perhaps a stroke of good luck, has defeated what we call the Scary Foreclosure Monster. We call it that because it's easier to say than the name of the thing that tried to foreclose on the Morales family, Austin's client.
The thing was called the HIS Asset Securitization Corporation Mortgage Pass-Through Certificate 2006-HE1 (a.k.a. "Scary Foreclosure Monster"), and the monster was evidently so intent on foreclosing on the Morales family - on snatching away their home - that it violated its own rules against taking mortgage notes from one place to another.
]]> The Morales FamilyThe Morales family bought their home in 2006, taking out a mortgage with WMC Mortgage Group. Then, as has happened to more and more hard-working Floridians, the Morales family fell behind on their mortgage payments.
If you haven't followed the news lately, it's enough to say that the housing crisis - as well as the economic downturn as a whole - was caused in part by shady mortgage lending practices.
In 2008, long after the Morales family's mortgage had been sold and resold, packaged and repackaged, and sliced and diced into groups of thousands of mortgages that could be sold as "investments," along came an entity that claimed to own the Morales family's mortgage.
Now it wanted the home.
And Ferrer Shane went to court to prevent that from happening.
Austin sent the other side a request for admissions, legal-speak for questions that he wanted answered, such as whether the monster actually owned the mortgage and had it in its possession.
Austin got absolutely no response, so he showed up in court to ask the judge to get rid of the foreclosure action against the Morales family. The monster's attorney didn't bother to show.
And the judge ordered that the foreclosure action be cancelled.
The Morales family now owns their home free and clear. No more monthly mortgage payments. No more worries about home foreclosure.
This is great news for the Morales family, and for other hard-working families in Florida who fall behind on their mortgage payments, and now have to deal with foreclosure monsters. As for us, we are very proud of the result.
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