Landau Injury Law

Speeding cars through a residential neighborhood where children play or wait for the school buys is every parent’s nightmare. When we lived in Franklin Farms, I would have liked a speed bump on the “straightaway” in our cul-de-sac community. There were dozens of children on the street in the summer after school let out. But we were informed there had to be a terrible accident, injury or death before we could get this traffic calming device. A recent news article discussed the fact that Montgomery County is considering rules that would mean more speed bumps on the county’s streets. “The traffic-calming tools have been contentious for years, creating the opposite effect of the usual not-in-my-backyard dynamic. Some residents want them on their streets so cars don’t whiz by their homes. But those who live elsewhere — or even a few streets away — don’t like humping over the bumps.”

Emergency responders have complained about the bumps, saying they can slow ambulances and firetrucks during emergencies and damage their equipment.  The ABRAMS LANDAU law firm has even tried a case involving a speed bump (or speed hump) injury.  The humps are allowed on roads that carry 100 vehicles per hour. To read the rest of the Washington newspaper article. There is now a proposal for a sliding scale that takes speed and traffic volume into account. As someone who has seen too many injuries from speeding cars and trucks in the DC Metro area as both an injury lawyer and as an eyewitness, I would be one of those people who favors more speed bumps on residential streets where there are lots of children or dangerous shopping center crossings near groceries, big box retailers, markets and other high-volume stores.

Defective products, especially those that find their way into our cars and trucks, can cause devastating and permanent injuries.  While not all of us drive cars as old as the one shown to the left, even newer tires can separate, leave the manufacturing plant with defects or be unsafe for other reasons. So, here is a quiz I saw in the Florida Bar newspaper:

Question: Which of these tires can put you or your loved ones at risk for a tread separation due to their age ?

1. The unused spare tire
2. Tires over 6 years old
3. Old tires with good treads
4. All of the above

The correct answer is #4.  If you or someone you know has been injured in a car or truck crash and there defective automotive products, issues of product misuse and abuse or unsafe tires as a cause, please contact us at once at 703-796-9555.

In most personal injury negligence cases, the Defendant is supposed to use “reasonable care” to prevent causing harm to the innocent victim. However, when the company causing the injury is a “common carrier,” then they are held to an even higher “standard of care” according to DC metro area injury lawyer Doug Landau, shown at left with his friend and fellow Injury Board member and train crash injury specialist Rick Shapiro. In yesterday’s post, we looked at what makes a “Common Carrier” and today we will examine why it is so important in subway, train, plane, and bus accidents.

A Model Jury Instruction may state:

Duty of Care Owed to Passengers Generally

The defendant is a common carrier. A common carrier has a duty to use the highest degree of practical care and foresight for the safety of its passengers, but it is not the insurer of its passengers’

If a common carrier fails to perform this duty, then it is negligent.

With this instruction, a judge informs the jury of the law regarding Common Carriers at the end of a personal injury trial. Virginia and DC Metro train, bus, plane and airport shuttle injury lawyer Doug Landau notes that this high burden placed on Common Carriers promotes safety to passengers and the traveling public. If you need assistance as the result of an injury on a train, plane, bus or other Common Carrier, please contact us at 703-796-9555, as there are strict time limits to bringing these kinds of cases.

A subway, train, railroad, ferry, bus and shuttle service are all generally Common Carriers. They convey passengers without refusal if the approved fare or charge is paid. The second definition in the Blacks Law Dictionary goes on to state that a Common carrier is “One who holds himself out the public as engaged in business of transportation of persons or property from place to place for compensation, and who offers services to the general public.”

Examples of common carriers are: trains, buses, subways, airplanes, Metrorail, airport terminal shuttles, VRE (Virginia Rail Express), Amtrak trains and trolleys. Virginia and DC Metro area injury lawyer Doug Landau notes that money or tickets do not have to change hands in order for a bus or train to be considered a “common carrier.” For example, when transferring from the DC Metro train to the Bus service, the fare has already been paid when entering the subway station, and only a receipt is needed to board the bus at the end of the train ride.

The death toll stemming from a six-car Metro train crash in Washington, D.C. tonight has risen to four, with multiple other injuries. At least 6 people were killed in the crash, which occurred at the height of tonight’s rush hour. The crash took place on the red line, the 40 year old Metro system’s busiest. Crews were cutting train cars open to get passengers out, according to a Wall Street Journal report. Several hundred emergency responders were dispatched to the scene to help injured train riders.

Driving home from the Landau Law Shop, I heard over the radio the tragic news of that a Washington, D.C. subway train derailed and smashed into another train on the outskirts of the city, in the vicinity of the Takoma Park Metro Station. The city’s fire chief said 70 people had been treated for injuries so far, as well as two emergency responders.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is the lead investigating agency on the scene. DC Mayor Adrian Fenty emphasized that it is important to find out what happened first. After securing the victims of this terrible Metro Subway train crash, officials intend to investigate this deadly crash and assess the safety of the Metro system. If you have questions about your rights as the result of a train crash or other public transit accident, you may call our office.

Working in emergency medical settings requires a rapid method of assessing the situation and distributing resources to help those injured victims who can be helped effectively. InjuryBoard member Doug Landau has worked with a number of doctors and emergency rescue workers who are required to employ triage techniques regularly. Triage is the sorting of and allocation of treatment to patients.

Triage is often employed for battle wounded and disaster victims according to a system of priorities designed to maximize the number of survivors. Television shows about emergency rooms and medical practices refer to “triage” when there is a sorting of patients according to the urgency of their need for care. A coding system may consist of “coding” victims of a crash, explosion or other disaster affecting many potential patients. Green, Yellow, Red and Black tags are used to quickly inform ambulance and transport personnel about the order in which injured people should be removed from the scene and/or treated by medical professionals.

The S.T.A.R.T. Disaster Triage system was created by Emergency Room doctors, Trauma surgeons, Nurses and Paramedics. It is designed for multi-casualty emergencies, to be used by both professionals and non-professionals. S.T.A.R.T. stands for “Simple Triage And Rapid Treatment.” This simple formula quickly detects potentially life-threatening conditions. The purpose of Triage is to quickly identify those who need help first and give the basic life-supporting treatments as soon as possible to prevent worsening or death. The injured persons marked “Immediate” or having a Red tag will be looked at first for transport to a medical facility; the Yellow tag “Delayed” people will be helped next.

WHAT THE CATEGORIES MEAN:

“I” for “Immediate” category (Red tag) means rapid treatment is necessary because of life-threatening injuries or conditions, such as shock, breathing problems, uncontrolled bleeding, serious head injuries, etc.

“D” for “Delayed” category (Yellow tag) means these injuries though more than minor are not life-threatening. Examples might be sprained ankles, possible broken wrist, ankle, shoulder, or bruises, minor bleeding that has been controlled.

“M” for “Minor” category (Green tag). These are the “Walking Wounded” with only minor injuries or none, and will be tagged last, after triage is done. You will use them to assist you as Helpers and Messengers.

“U” for “Unsalvageable” /deceased (Black / White tag, or write “DECEASED” on whatever tag.) Those with massive irreversible injuries (or) not breathing even after you open their airway.

Doug Landau and the team at ABRAMS LANDAU has seen clients assisted by rescuers using this triage system. We thank those first responders who quickly and effectively employ triage when coming on the scenes of truck crashes, explosions, multi car collisions, train wrecks, plane crashes and other injury producing disasters.

Doug Landau traveled to Florida in order speak on “Hip Fractures in the Elderly” at the InjuryBoard meeting in St. Petersburg. Utilizing his laptop to give the presentation, the Loudoun Fairfax injury lawyer shared strategies for successfully representing older clients whose lives have been altered due to broken hips caused by the negligence, carelessness or recklessness of others.

Hip fractures can occur due to slip and falls, car crashes and defective products. Landau and the ABRAMS LANDAU trial team have helped clients with their cases throughout the United States, and stand ready to help you or a loved one if a broken hip or fractured pelvis have taken away good health, independence and pain free living.

In researching the Moore v. Bertuzzi case, Loudoun, Leesburg and Fairfax injury lawyer came across a Virginia workers comp case involving a professional hockey player. In the case of the Norfolk Admirals vs. Ty Jones, the Court of Appeals held that a pro hockey player did not engage in deliberate misconduct when he was told to go in and “get” a player on the other team. He dutifully entered the game, got into a fight with the other player, and came away with a debilitating shoulder injury. He filed a comp claim against the team (the Norfolk Admirals). The team defended on the basis that he deliberately got into a fight. The player responded, “But that’s what the coach told me to do.” The Virginia Court of Appeals ruled that he was entitled to the benefits, since he was following the employer’s directives.

My friend (and preeminent Appellate lawyer) Steve Emmert was interviewed about the case and told the AP “The court finds that fighting is an integral part of hockey. Thirty million Canadians could have told you that.” While the Virginia Court’s opinion is unpublished, you may contact ABRAMS LANDAU for a copy.

Anyone who has seen the video of Todd Bertuzzi’s cowardly attack of Steve Moore during an NHL Hockey game knows that such conduct should not be part of any activity in which “good sportsmanship” is a part. As Moore was skating away from the Vancouver Canucks goal and Bertuzzi, Bertuzzi: (1) dropped his stick, (2) grabbed Moore’s jersey from behind, (3) “sucker punched the former Harvard captain in the back of the head, and (4) drove Moore’s head down into the ice. Moore remained unconscious on the ice for some time and was taken to the hospital. He sustained massive injuries as a result of the assault including a broken neck with fractures to the C3 and C4 vertebrae and a T1 avulsion fracture. He has not played in the NHL since the incident. Yet Bertuzzi and his team were fined, but he has been allowed to return to play according to BizofHockey. It is one thing to sustain an injury when players are facing each other; it is quite another when there is a cowardly attack from behind.

Steve Moore and his parents have sued NHL tough man Todd Bertuzzi, the Vancouver Canucks and the partnership which owned the Canucks for this on-ice incident which occurred between on March 8, 2004. Bertuzzi was charged with assault by Canadian authorities and eventually plead guilty to “assault causing bodily harm” in British Columbia. Steve Moore gave a victim impact statement which is common in criminal cases. I have read it; it is compelling reading.
Bertuzzi received a conditional discharge and was ordered not to play (more…)

In a word, “no’ according to Herndon injury lawyer Doug Landau of ABRAMS LANDAU, Ltd.  The Fairfax, Leesburg and Loudoun injury lawyer belongs to 5 state bars, so sees the difference between the various jurisdictions.  In most states, a lawyer must belong to the state bar association, pay annual dues and attend a minimum number of “Continuing Legal Education’ classes (”CLE”).  the best lawyers belong to a number of bar associations that have educational and practicer oriented programming, but who lobby on behalf of injured workers, victims and their families on Capitol Hill.  Since the injured victims and their families have no “lobby,” as is the case in the courtroom, the trial lawyers associations are their only “voice.”

Many lawyers, unfortunately, just attend this minimum number and belong to only the “mandatory bar associations.”  They do nothing else.  Either they are too cheap, too lazy, too swamped with cases they should not be handling or a combination of those factors.  They do not learn: the latest changes in the law, trial techniques, technical advances or changes in the Code of Ethics.  Landau believes so strongly in continuing legal education, that he not only takes many more hours of CLE than is required in all the states where he practices; the firm also pays for staff to attend these all-important programs.

Furthermore, Landau also belongs to various “voluntary” bar associations.  Landau belongs to the American Association for Justice, the Virginia Trial Lawyers Association, Workers Injury Law&Advocacy Group and other organizations that help injured victims and their families.  Landau is shown here before his speech (on fractured hips and elderly clients) with another “second generation ATLA member” Stephen Herman of New Orleans, Louisiana at the InjuryBoard meeting in Florida.  Landau and Herman shared insights into the handling of personal injury cases and how best to help their cleints, just as their fathers did before them.  Both know it is important not just to pay the dues, but to actually participate, teach and share their knowledge in order to help those who have been injured or lost loved ones due to the negligence or reckless conduct of others.