South Florida Injury Attorney Blog

As a Broward County boating accident attorney, I was disappointed to see an article about a serious crash between two boats in Biscayne Bay. The Miami Herald reported Nov. 29 on the crash, which took place that day just after 1 p.m. Witnesses told the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission that both 30-foot-plus vessels were speeding, although it wasn’t clear how they came to collide. As a result of the crash, however, one man was airlifted to a trauma center and two others died at the scene. One of those who died was Steven Posner, a wealthy real estate investor whose family has been in the news for its battles over inheritance of large estates. Another victim was Posner’s cousin Stuart Posner, who was injured.

The initial crash threw at least some of the people on board the boats into the water east of Matheson Hammock Marina. Nearby boats saw the collision and called for help. A Miami-Dade Fire-Rescue boat responded. Rescue crews used the boat as a staging ground for the critically injured victim, who had to be lifted in a basket into the helicopter, which took him to the Ryder Trauma Center. Another victim suffered minor injuries and was taken by land to another hospital. The spokesman for the FWCC described the crash as “horrific.” He said it wasn’t clear whether all of the seriously injured people came from the same boat, but did say that all of the people aboard both boats had been accounted for. He also said autopsies would be performed.

Even without the business celebrity aspect, this story would have caught my eye as a Hialeah boat accident lawyer because it’s highly likely that some negligence was involved. In fact, if witnesses are correct that both boaters were speeding, both parties may be partly to blame for the crash. Many people in Florida don’t see boating as an activity requiring safety precautions, but it absolutely is. Just like cars, boats are (usually) motor vehicles capable of speeds fast enough to reduce reaction times to an unsafe level. And unlike cars, boats don’t usually have designated lanes or lane markings, meaning they can be less predictable and wander out of their intended paths more easily. That’s why the FWCC pushes boating safety so hard -- including warnings against speeding as well as warnings about boating under the influence and the importance of life vests.

Continue reading " Speed Blamed for Boat Collision in Biscayne Bay That Left Two Men Dead " »

As a Miami-Dade construction accident attorney,I was interested to read an article suggesting an unusual number of crashes in a construction zone on Interstate 75. The Sarasota Herald-Tribune reported Nov. 20 that the state Department of Transportation plans to review the safety of the work zone, following a fatal crash just after midnight on Nov. 19 involving a construction worker. The worker was not killed, but a motorcyclist was. The newspaper said the 9.4-mile stretch of Interstate 75 through Venice has seen many accidents since work started in May, although there are no statistics available to show whether it’s higher than average. More traffic is expected as winter brings more visitors to the region.

According to the article, the area has seen multiple accidents since work started, including crashes that closed the interstate entirely. One, in July, involved a tractor-trailer that spilled its diesel fuel and caught fire. The accident early Friday killed motorcyclist Curtis Haley, 51, of Venice. He hit a dump truck operated by Mark Glotfelty, 49, also of Venice. The accident also affected driver Kimberly Geaquinto, 48, of Deerfield Beach. Geaquinto and Glotfelty suffered only minor injuries, but because Glotfelty is an FDOT worker, that agency will do a safety review along with the FHP’s investigation. The crash happened during the night hours, when lanes can be closed and the speed limit is reduced from 70 mph to 60 mph. FDOT said everything it’s doing meets safety standards. Spokespeople for the AAA and the FHP advised motorists to slow down and be extra careful in construction zones.

That’s advice that could apply to any construction area. But as a Davie construction accident lawyer, I hope FDOT seriously considers whether this zone is particularly unsafe -- and if it concludes that more should be done, I hope it takes all of the necessary steps. There are risks in any work zone that places human workers on foot just a few feet away from speeding cars. But if the state has failed to prevent foreseeable accidents, it could be legally responsible for any accidents that result. That could include serious motorcycle accidents like Haley’s or other traffic crashes, as well as injuries to FDOT workers themselves. In either case, the state as well as any drivers who were negligent would be legally liable to the injured people, or their loved ones. Because suing the state of Florida involves many special rules, it’s especially important that these victims get in touch with an experienced attorney as soon as possible.

Continue reading " FDOT to Review Safety of Sarasota Work Zone After Motorcyclist Hits Dump Truck " »

An article about a death from a serious auto accident caught my eye as a Weston wrongful death attorney. The South Florida Sun-Sentinel reported Nov. 22 that a man has died, ten days after his car was hit by a driver who failed to pass safely. Brian Walters, 56, was hospitalized in critical condition after a Nov. 10 accident west of Delray Beach. Walters suffered unspecified serious injuries after another driver attempted to pass in oncoming traffic on Military Trail. Marilyn Weiss hit the car she was attempting to pass, causing her vehicle to careen into oncoming traffic, hitting another vehicle before it hit the car driven by Walters. Weiss and another driver were hospitalized.

The Palm Beach Post said the crash took place on South Military Trail, just north of Golf Road. Weiss, 68, of Delray Beach, was heading north when she tried to pass a car driven by Kely Maurice, 47, of Delray Beach. Weiss cut back into the lane too soon and hit the front right side of Maurice’s car, sending the Toyota driven by Weiss into the oncoming traffic. There, she hit a vehicle driven by Jacqueline Rodriguez, 33, of West Palm Beach. The Ford was pushed into the same lane that Walters was using, causing him to rear-end the vehicle. Walters, Weiss and Rodriguez were all wearing seat belts, but nonetheless, they all sustained serious injuries. No charges or citations were reported for any drivers involved as of Nov. 22.

As a Boca Raton wrongful death lawyer, I suspect that charges may still be filed, depending on how well Weiss and Rodriguez recover from the crash. If the description of the crash in these articles is correct, it seems likely that Weiss would be judged at fault. However, law enforcement may wish to wait and see whether Weiss recovers well enough to be charged. How well Rodriguez recovers could also be an issue, because Florida prosecutors can file different charges for traffic deaths than they would for serious injuries. Regardless of whether prosecutors choose to file any charges, however, Weiss would probably be legally liable for negligent driving in civil courts. That means the victims of this accident, including the immediate family of Brian Walters, would be able to hold her responsible for causing the crash, even if the state does not.

Continue reading " Boynton Beach Man Dies From Injuries Sustained in Head-on Crash Involving Passer " »

As a Dania Beach motorcycle accident lawyer, I was disappointed to read about a serious injury to a young man hit while riding his motorcycle. The Naples News reported Nov. 21 on the vigil being held at a hospital by family and friends of John Mowery, age 20. Mowery was northbound last Thursday when a southbound driver turned left in front of him, causing his motorcycle to hit the side of her car. Mowery’s mother, Kelly Mowery, told the newspaper her son had a substantial brain injury as well as other serious injuries. As of the day of the article, he was hospitalized in the surgical intensive care unit at Lee Memorial Hospital. The driver and her passenger both suffered minor injuries, and the driver was cited for failure to yield when turning.

According to the article, Mowery was heading north on Airport-Pulling Road in North Naples at around 4:50 p.m. Nov. 18. As he approached a green traffic light at the intersection with Old Groves Road, a car pulled into his path to make a left turn. That car was driven by Dorothy Pollard, 89, of Naples. Mowery’s motorcycle struck the right side of Pollard’s car, throwing him from the bike. He was wearing a helmet, but still sustained serious injuries and was airlifted to Lee Memorial Hospital. Pollard and her passenger, 76-year-old Helen Lutz, were taken to a different hospital with minor injuries. The article does not say whether police are investigating the accident further. Mowrey’s mother told the newspaper that the family is hoping for a “miracle” in his recovery.

Some may blame the driver’s age for this crash, but as a Cooper City motorcycle crash attorney, I know drivers of any age can cause this kind of accident. Most often, the problem is failure to pay close enough attention to the road to see and react to the motorcycle. Studies have shown that drivers’ failure to see motorcyclists is a leading cause of motorcycle accidents -- and they don’t single out any demographic group as culprits. In fact, a left turn in front of oncoming traffic is a classic at-fault situation. That isn’t to say that left turners are always at fault, but unless they have a green arrow, they are always required to check for oncoming traffic before completing their turns. If the police believe they were not as careful as they should have been -- which seems to be the case here -- they would be assigned much or all of the fault in any criminal or civil case.

Continue reading " Naples Motorcyclist Suffers Brain Injury After Driver Turns Left Into His Path " »

As a Pompano Beach nursing home abuse lawyer, I was dismayed to see a recent article about a nursing home fined for lax oversight of its patients. According to a Nov. 15 article in the Palm Beach Post, Homewood Residence was fined $7,500 by the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration after a patient there died from drinking dishwashing detergent. Michael Gruen, the patient, was 93 and suffered from advanced Alzheimer’s disease when he got into the kitchen of the dementia unit and drank the solution, which was made of lye, a caustic chemical that causes burns on contact with skin. The facility admitted no responsibility when it reached the fine agreement with the state, but a spokesperson had previously said the facility could not have anticipated Gruen’s actions. It faced a fine of up to $10,000.

According to the article, Gruen got into the kitchen unsupervised late in December of 2009, while staff members were busy with another patient. The spokesperson said Gruen must have gotten into a cupboard and detached the dishwashing solution from the machine. A staff member found him standing over the container and asked if he had swallowed any, but he didn’t answer. He was rushed to a hospital, where he died 18 hours later of severe burns to his esophagus. Gruen’s case was the third leading to a fine for Homewood within two years. In 2009, the facility had paid a $3,000 fine for allowing a virus outbreak affecting 10 patients and a $1,500 fine for questionable treatment of bedsores. State records from 2008 show that inspectors had already warned Homewood about unsafe conditions in the dementia unit, where residents had access to dangerous objects like hot coffee pots, curling irons and chemicals.

I am extremely disappointed at the article’s suggestion that unsafe conditions have been allowed at this nursing home. But as a Tamarac nursing home abuse attorney, I’m also disappointed that the state hasn’t fined Homewood more harshly for Gruen’s death and its other safety violations. The average cost of nursing home care is $50,000 and rising, according to the AARP. If that’s true at Homewood, the $12,000 it’s paid in fines over two years is just under one-quarter of one resident’s yearly payment. Fines are intended to give shoddy nursing homes an incentive to change their ways, but fines this low are unlikely to make bad homes change their ways -- and they’re little comfort to victims. Nursing home patients and their families may be forced to seek justice and meaningful penalties against unsafe nursing homes by filing their own lawsuits in civil court, regardless of any professional or civil consequences the home faces.

Continue reading " Delray Beach Nursing Home Fined for Allowing Patient to Drink Deadly Dish Detergent " »

A headline from Miami caught my eye as an Opa-Locka auto accident attorney. According to the Miami Herald, a 75-year-old woman and her baby granddaughter were injured Nov. 15 after a driver plowed into the Shenandoah Post Office just before 9 a.m. that day. Fortunately, no one was seriously hurt, although the grandmother and baby were taken to the hospital for treatment of cuts and bruises. The child’s grandfather also suffered cuts while leaping over the wreckage to get to his family. The incident was blamed on an unnamed driver, an elderly woman who lost control of her car while leaving the post office. She was not hurt. Customers were trapped inside the post office by the incident, but the office resumed normal business a few hours later.

The unnamed driver was leaving the post office in a champagne-colored Toyota Camry when the accident happened. For reasons the article does not go into, the driver lost control of her car and drove through the parking lot, knocked down a newsstand and plowed into the front doors of the post office. The front of the car struck the woman and the baby, who is nine months old, before hitting a wall and stopping. A spokesman for Miami Fire Rescue said the woman and the baby were lifted up by the car rather than smashed into the wall, causing the baby to fly out of her stroller. Her grandfather was walking with them, but just missed being hit. The article said the driver was hysterical until she was that the baby was not seriously hurt, but otherwise fine. She was checked for injuries at the scene.

No mention was made of an investigation or charges, but as a Miramar car accident lawyer, I wouldn’t be at all surprised to find that police are investigating. Driving into a building is most certainly a form of negligence -- severe carelessness -- that would make the driver legally responsible for causing the crash. Because the driver is described as elderly, some of the investigation will undoubtedly focus on whether she was too confused to drive safely. Because the vehicle was a Toyota, investigators may also look into whether it suffered from the same entrapped gas pedal issues that made the news in 2009 -- and are blamed for multiple deaths. Only time and careful investigation will tell. But regardless of whether investigators end up criminally charging the driver, she (or Toyota) could also be held legally responsible for the crash with a civil lawsuit.

Continue reading " Grandmother and Infant Granddaughter Hurt After Older Driver Plows Into Post Office " »

As an Aventura medical malpractice attorney, I was very interested in a report on a claim filed by the widow of a man who fell seriously ill after surgery at the Mayo Clinic Florida. According to a Nov. 9 article from First Coast News, Peggy Wolford of Stuart is suing the clinic for medical malpractice leading to the wrongful death of her husband, Dennis Wolford, in 2008. Dennis Wolford received two liver transplants at the clinic, in 2006 and 2008, but was allegedly infected with hepatitis C while a patient there. Peggy Wolford’s suit claims the most likely source of the infection was an employee at the clinic who was fired and criminally charged for stealing patients’ IV drips of a painkiller in order to get high. Peggy Wolford’s suit says the medical expenses related to the transplants and infections have cost her the couple’s home and forced her to declare bankruptcy.

The clinic made news in August when it released a press release saying an employee had caused a hepatitis C outbreak. Steven Beumel, 47, was a radiation technician at the clinic before he was arrested for stealing drugs to feed his painkiller addiction. He is accused of injecting himself with Fentanyl, a painkiller, intended for patients undergoing invasive procedures. After he was done, he would allegedly replace the drug with plain saline solution, but re-use the needle he had used on himself -- exposing patients to anything he had in his system and depriving them of the painkiller. A report from September says at least three people were believed infected with hepatitis C, and at least two have died. Wolford’s lawsuit alleges that her husband died from hepatitis C acquired at the clinic, almost certainly from Beumel.

As a Davie medical malpractice lawyer, I suspect Peggy Wolford will have a strong case. The hepatitis C outbreak at the Mayo Clinic Florida was an important story for the local press at the time, and one report suggested that the clinic and health authorities knew about the outbreak long before they figured out where it came from. Affected families can reasonably argue that the clinic failed to supervise Beumel or take as much corrective action as the situation required. In most situations, employers are legally responsible for the actions of their employees while at work, and for supervising those employees adequately. Dennis Wolford’s situation was particularly horrifying because hepatitis attacks the liver, and Wolford was in the clinic to receive a liver transplant. In that situation, the clinic would have a special duty to prevent anything that weakens the liver and immune system further.

Continue reading " Stuart Woman Files First of Expected Hepatitis Lawsuits Against Mayo Clinic Florida " »

A recent news item caught my eye as a Broward County motorcycle accident attorney. According to the St. Petersburg Times on Nov. 3, a motorcyclist died in Clearwater that day after being rear-ended as he crossed the Bayside Bridge. The bridge, which connects Largo to Clearwater, resembles a highway, with a 55-mph speed limit and no cross traffic during the time it takes to cross Tampa Bay. It was while crossing that bridge that Michael E. Reckenwald, 54, was seriously injured. He was admitted to St. Joseph’s hospital for serious trauma, but died later on the day of the crash. The driver of the car that reportedly hit him, Christopher Donovan of Tampa, suffered only minor injuries.

The accident took place around 8:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 3, according to the Times. Reckenwald was traveling north on a 2003 Yamaha motorcycle. According to the Florida Highway Patrol, Reckenwald was hit from behind by a 2008 Scion driven by Donovan, 29. The collision caused both vehicles to flip over. Reckenwald was thrown from his motorbike and suffered unidentified trauma serious enough to merit admission to the hospital as a trauma alert patient. Donovan was wearing a seat belt and was not seriously injured. As of the article’s publication, the Florida Highway Patrol was investigating, but no charges had been filed. It was not specified whether either vehicle was speeding or who might be at fault.

I’m hesitant to assign blame without more details about the crash, as the FHP probably was. But as a rule, fault for rear-end accidents is almost always assigned to the driver in the rear. That’s because motorists are required by law to watch what’s going on around them and leave enough following distance to stop in case of something unforeseen. For that reason, Donovan would need to offer a very good reason why he was not at fault -- for example, that Reckenwald cut him off suddenly and without signaling. Unfortunately, my experience as a Miami Gardens motorcycle crash lawyer suggests it’s more likely that Donovan wasn’t paying enough attention to the road. If that’s the case, he could face some very serious consequences for Reckenwald’s death. Donovan could be criminally charged with vehicular homicide, which is a serious felony, even if he was not driving under the influence. And regardless of any criminal charges, he could also face a motorcycle accident lawsuit from Reckenwald’s family.

Continue reading " Motorcyclist Dies After Being Rear Ended on Tampa’s Bayside Bridge " »

Last year, I wrote about the very sad drowning death of a two-year-old boy who wandered into an apparently unsafe backyard near his home. Isaac Dieudonne, 2, walked out the front door of his new home and into the pool area of the next-door neighbor’s home, which was vacant. At least two gates leading to the pool were reportedly open, despite laws requiring self-latching gates intended to prevent this type of accident. At the time, the case attracted my attention because of speculation that the home was vacant due to foreclosure. On Oct. 29 of this year, that speculation was confirmed by a McClatchy article about the Dieudonne family’s struggle to hold someone responsible for Isaac’s death. Because the home is in foreclosure, it isn’t clear whether the mortgage holder, mortgage servicer or maintenance company should be responsible.

According to the article, the Dieudonnes’ Miramar premises liability attorney wasn’t even sure who owned the property at first. The title had changed hands several times; some documents were fraudulent or had serious errors; and was at one point being foreclosed on in two cases at the same time. As a result, the family has named 20 defendants in the case, including owners, servicers, maintenance companies and a company that was holding the title for an owner. Some of the defendants claim they didn’t own the property at the time of Isaac’s death. All of this has already complicated the case, with an unnecessary move to federal court, and with 20 corporate defendants, more delays are likely. The Dieudonnes claim that neither the side gate to the home’s backyard nor the gate into the pool were fitted with self-closing spring locks, as required by Miramar city code -- and that they’re still unsafe today.

Unfortunately, drowning in swimming pools is a well known risk for toddlers and young children, which is exactly why cities have laws about self-latching gates. Under normal circumstances, a property owner’s failure to follow those laws can expose him or her to a premises liability lawsuit like the one the Dieudonnes are pursuing. Florida law gives everyone who owns or operates a property a legal obligation to ensure that the property is safe. This includes protections against foreseeable dangers, including the danger that a small child could get into a swimming pool without supervision. In my experience as a Lauderhill premises liability lawyer, handling this in a private home is usually a matter of handling the homeowners’ insurance company. But when it’s not even clear who owns the property, the entire process gets dragged out -- and the family’s suffering unfortunately gets dragged out along with it.

Continue reading " Family’s Swimming Pool Accident Lawsuit Complicated by Pool Home’s Foreclosure " »

The high-profile DUI vehicular homicide trial of Jim Leyritz is taking place here in Broward County, and one aspect of it attracted my attention as a Fort Lauderdale wrongful death lawyer. According to a Nov. 8 article from the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, the prosecution’s case against Leyritz, a former New York Yankee, is faltering. Eyewitnesses are not giving the testimony jurors were led to expect, the newspaper said, and jurors have also learned that the victim was about as drunk as Leyritz was during the crash. Those developments could hurt the state’s chances of convicting Leyritz. But fortunately for the family of the woman killed, they have already reached a settlement in a separate wrongful death case against Leyritz, ensuring that they will be fairly compensated no matter what happens in criminal court.

Leyritz, who helped the Yankees to a 1996 World Series victory, is accused of killing Fredia Ann Veitch. The 30-year-old mother of two was crossing a Fort Lauderdale intersection at 3:19 a.m. on Dec. 28, 2007. The prosecution alleges that Leyritz was drunk when he ran a red light and hit Veitch’s SUV, pushing the vehicle into a pole and causing Veitch to be thrown into the road. However, testimony at the criminal case suggested that the light may have been yellow when Leyritz entered the intersection. That passenger and a police officer also testified that Leyritz didn’t seem very drunk. Perhaps more importantly, testimony established that Veitch was also drunk -- a medical examiner found a BAC of 0.18 after she died, and a friend testified they’d been drinking together that evening. In addition, the jury has not heard testimony establishing that Veitch was using her phone just before the crash, driving without headlights and not wearing a seatbelt.

If the jury sees this the way the Sun-Sentinel clearly has, it’s true that this case would be an uphill battle for the prosecution. Only time will tell if that’s true. However, as a Hialeah wrongful death attorney, I’d like to emphasize that the outcome of this trial is completely independent from the outcome of the wrongful death lawsuit filed by Veitch’s family, which was settled earlier this year. In fact, the outcomes would be legally distinct in any case, but the fact that the lawsuit settled first means the outcome of the criminal trial couldn’t have affected potential jurors in the civil case. That means families that lost a loved one under unjust circumstances can use the civil courts for a second chance at justice -- even if they lose in criminal court or prosecutors choose not to file any charges.

Continue reading " Leyritz Criminal Prosecution Falters Even Though Wrongful Death Suit Already Settled " »