Author Archives: Norman Gregory Fernandez, Esq.

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4 Year Old Boy killed in Hwy. 101 truck crash in South San Jose, California; driver is being held on DUI charges

James Lee is arrested in connection with a crash that killed 4 year old.

James Lee is arrested in connection with a crash that killed 4 year old.

A 4-year-old boy was killed Sunday night in South San Jose after an alleged drunken-driver returning from a heavy metal concert slammed into the back of the family’s broken down pickup truck.

 James “Jimmy” Francis Lee’s blood-alcohol level was “about twice the legal limit” of 0.08, said California Highway Patrol Officer Brien Rayner. “He said he fell asleep.”

About 6 p.m., the boy’s father had been unbuckling his 4-year-old son from the back of the family’s Chevrolet S-10, which was parked on the shoulder of southbound Highway 101 near Bailey Avenue when a Ford F-150 smashed into the truck. The boy’s mother and 12-year-old sister had already gotten out of the truck and were not injured.

Lee, 44, of San Jose was booked into Santa Clara County Jail on charges of felony DUI and vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, according to Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Sgt. Rick Sung. He has not yet been arraigned, and has until Wednesday to be formally charged if he remains in custody. 

The Santa Clara County coroner’s office identified the boy as Jose Cortes-Diaz of Gilroy. 

The names of his parents and sister were not made public. The boy’s father suffered a broken jaw and fractured rib, according to the CHP reports.

The CHP said the collision caused the Ford to roll over onto its roof and the Chevy to roll down an embankment. The CHP noted that the Ford had been traveling about the speed limit of 65 mph or 70 mph at the time of the accident. 

The crash sent a tool box from the pickup bed of the family’s Chevy flying right into Jose’s head.

“Oh Jesus!” Lee’s father, James Lee Sr., 64, of San Jose, said in an interview when he was alerted of the boy’s death by the Mercury News. “I am so sorry for that little boy. Everybody likes my son. He’s a great kid and a good-hearted guy. But he had no business driving.”

Lee Sr. said he believed his son was at a concert at Shoreline Amphitheatre in Mountain View on Sunday, where bands were playing in the Rockstar Mayhem Festival. Lee Sr. said his son, a father of two daughters, had recently bought a home in Gilroy. Father and son have worked for about three decades together as truck mechanics in San Jose.

Emergency crews said Jose was barely breathing when they arrived.

“The little boy was wedged behind the driver’s seat,” said San Jose fire Capt. Chuck Rangel. “He wasn’t doing too good.”

Firefighters pried him out with the Jaws of Life and hoisted him into a LifeFlight helicopter and flew him to San Jose Regional Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead, officials said.

At the time, Santa Clara County sheriff’s helicopter happened to be flying in the area. Pilot Rob Heyde and partner, Deputy Leo Gonzalez, saw there were injuries down below, and traffic was beginning to jam up. The two decided to make an emergency landing on 101, after clearing the freeway using their public announcement system.

“They really went overboard to help,” said Sung, of the sheriff’s office. They were joined by a San Jose police motorcycle officer who was also there by chance.

Lee Sr. said his son had been in jail perhaps 15 years ago, but he couldn’t remember for what. Lee Jr. has no criminal record as an adult in Santa Clara County. According to a records search by the Department of Motor Vehicles, Lee is a commercial driver who had a spotless driving record.

Lee Sr. said his son, who attended Del Mar High School in San Jose, had been trying to get his life together after a bad relationship. But according to his father, Lee Jr. didn’t have a known drinking problem.

“I wasn’t aware of one,” Lee Sr. said.

San Jose Car Accident Attorney Website / San Jose Truck Accident Attorney Website

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Distracted by cell phone, driver injured in Sutter County crash

Sutter County Car Accident Caused by Distracted Driver on Cell PhoneA Gridley woman who looked down to answer her cell phone in her car suffered major injuries Saturday in a Sutter County crash, the California Highway Patrol said today.

The accident happened about 3:30 p.m. on Larkin Road south of Brubaker Road, just south of the Butte County line.

The CHP said Virginia Hewitt, 31, was driving south on Larkin when her cell phone rang. Her speed was estimated at 50 to 65 mph.

As she looked down, her 1993 Ford Taurus drifted off the road and onto the gravel shoulder.

Hewitt attempted to steer back onto the road and lost control of the vehicle, which skidded across the northbound and southbound lanes, the CHP said.

The front of the vehicle struck an AT&T relay box. The car then jumped across an irrigation ditch, which paralleled the east side of Larkin Road, the CHP said.

The front of the car struck the east side of the ditch embankment. The impact propelled the car south, and it rotated 90 degrees counterclockwise.

The vehicle came to rest in a private driveway.

The CHP said Hewitt suffered major injuries. She was transported to Sutter Roseville Medical Center.

Using your cell phone while driving is dangerous. This accident is a perfect example of why you should not use your cell phone while driving.

What if this driver would have hit and killed someone simply because she wanted to answer her cell phone?

Sutter County Car Accident Attorney Website

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Two People are Dead in Agoura Hills Car – Truck Accident

Deadly Agoura Hills Accident on 101 Freeway on July 2, 2010AGOURA HILLS, California ― Two people are dead and a third is critically hurt after slamming into the rear of a big-rig on U.S. Highway 101 west of Los Angeles.

Two people are dead and a third is critically hurt after slamming into the rear of a big-rig on U.S. Highway 101 west of Los Angeles.

The California Highway Patrol says the pre-dawn crash shut down northbound lanes for about an hour.

Southbound traffic was halted briefly while a helicopter landed on the highway to airlifted the injured person to a hospital.

Television helicopter cameras showed the wreckage of a silver car wedged underneath the rear of the big-rig trailer, which was apparently parked on the shoulder at the time of the crash.

The 4:40 a.m. crash occurred just past the Kanan Road exit near Reyes Adobe Road, backing up morning commuter traffic and holiday getaway travelers getting an early start for the Fourth of July weekend.

Agoura Hills Car Accident Attorney and Agoura Hills Wrongful Death Attorney Website

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A Fatal Napa Valley Accident Tied to Speeding

A Fatal Napa Valley Accident Tied to SpeedingFour people who died in a horrible SUV versus big rig truck crash on Jamieson Canyon/Highway 12 Thursday morning have been identified as three generations of a family from Oregon and two eastern states.

The Napa County California Sheriff’s Office identified the dead as Matthew Jay Smith, 48, of Ashland, Ore., Laura Katharine Smith, 19, of Downingtown, Pa., and Richard Smith, 80, and Sally Smith, 74, both of Simbsbury, Conn.

Napa Sheriff’s Capt. Tracey Stuart said Sally and Richard Smith were on vacation in the Napa Valley. They were returning to Napa after picking up their son and granddaughter when the deadly chain-reaction collisions occurred.

The California Highway Patrol said a westbound big rig driven by Gustavo Lopez, 42, plowed into the back of the victims’ Suburu Forester that was stopped in heavy rush-hour traffic.

The Forester was pushed into the path of an eastbound tractor-trailer hauling concrete pipe. The big rig, driven by Woodland resident Luis Marabilla, 44, crushed the car, pushing it back across the westbound lane onto the shoulder of the road.

Lopez’s truck continued west and side-swiped a Chevrolet flatbed truck that Hilario Trujillo Jr., 33, was driving.

The victims were declared dead at the scene, the CHP said. Trujillo and Marabilla were uninjured, and Lopez was taken to Queen of the Valley Medical Center with minor injuries.

It appears Lopez was driving too fast for the conditions, based on the slow traffic and the size of the truck he was driving, CHP spokesman Jaret Paulson said.

Lopez told officers that traffic was stop-and-go as he traveled along Jamieson Canyon Road. 

He had stopped just prior to the crash, then accelerated through his gears. 

When traffic stopped again ahead of him, he had too much velocity to stop in time, CHP Officer Ryan O’Day said.

Lopez likely wasn’t speeding, but he was going too fast for conditions, Paulson said.

“It just looks like gross inattention at this point as to what caused the collision,” O’Day said.

Under federal law, commercial drivers must submit to a chemical test if they are in an accident. There was no sign that Lopez was under the influence of alcohol or drugs, O’Day said.

Lopez had started his trip in Woodland so he likely hadn’t been on the road long enough for fatigue to be a factor, O’Day said. Lopez wasn’t carrying a load so he wasn’t in a hurry, he said.

The CHP will decide whether to forward the case to the Napa County District Attorney’s office for prosecution. 

“Being that four people are dead because of inattention, I would be surprised if they didn’t press some sort of charges,” O’Day said.

They could range from reckless driving to vehicular manslaughter, he said.

Thursday’s crash brings the fatality total this year to eight victims from five crashes on Napa County roads.

The last time four people died in one crash was on Nov. 15, 2008, on Deer Park Road near Sanitarium Road outside of Angwin, O’Day said.

Napa County hasn’t seen a crash that killed more than four people since it started keeping records in 1999, he said.

The last time someone died on Jamieson Canyon Road was in December 2004, Paulson said.

Napa Valley California Truck and SUV Accident Attorney Website

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Memorial Day 2010; God Bless our Fallen Who Have Given Everything For Our Freedom

Memorial Day 2010Today is Monday, May 31, 2010. As of today over 1 million men and women have given their lives in the service or our nation. Today, Memorial Day, is the day we honor their sacrifice.

As of May 30, 2010, 4,387 men and women have died in Operation Iraqi Freedom, and 1,075 have dies Operation Enduring Freedom. (Afghanistan)

Freedom is not free. Those who have given their lives for our freedom paid for our freedom with all they had to give, their lives.

On May 24, 2010, 22 year old PFC. Christopher R. Barton Died in Operation Enduring Freedom, in Khowst province, Afghanistan, of wounds sustained when insurgents attacked his unit using small arms fire.

On May 24, 2010, 44 year old Major Ronald W. Culver Jr. Died in Operation Iraqi Freedom, in Numaniyah, Iraq, when insurgents attacked his vehicle with a makeshift bomb.

On May 22, 2010, 24 year old PFC. Jason D. Fingar. Died in Operation Enduring Freedom, in Durai, Afghanistan, of wounds sustained when his military vehicle struck a makeshift bomb.

On May 21, 2010, 26 year old Staff SGT. Amilcar H. Gonzalez Died in Operation Iraqi Freedom, Ash Shura, Iraq, of wounds suffered when insurgents attacked his unit with small arms fire.

On May 20, 2010, 26 year old Spec. Stanley J. Sokolowski, III Died in Operation Iraqi Freedom, in Kirkuk, Iraq, in a non-combat related incident.

On May 19, 2010, 38 year old Staff SGT. Shane S. Barnard Died in Operation Enduring Freedom, in Zabul Province, Afghanistan, of wounds sustained when he stepped on a secondary makeshift bomb.

On May 18, 2010, 46 year old PFC Col. John M. McHugh Died in Operation Enduring Freedom, Kabul, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when enemy forces attacked their convoy with a vehicle-borne makeshift bomb.

I have listed 7 brave men who have given their lives in the service our nation, for our freedom in the past week. To honor those who have given their lives for our freedom is to remember them and what they did for us.

To see a list, pictures, and details of all who have died in our latest wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, click here now. I know it takes a bit of time to go through each person by date, but it will bring home the true meaning of Memorial Day.

Today is not a day for picnics, and sales at the local mall, it is a day to honor those who paid for our freedom by giving their lives for us. It is a solemn day. Tell your kids what this day is for. Study it for yourself.

God bless the United States of America. God bless our fallen hero’s.

By Norman Gregory Fernandez, Esq., 2010

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3 People Killed this morning In Crash On 101 Freeway In Sherman Oaks, California

3 People Killed this morning In Crash On 101 Freeway In Sherman Oaks, CaliforniaSHERMAN OAKS, Calfornia
Motorists exchanging information after a crash on the 101 Freeway in Sherman Oaks were hit by another vehicle, causing a second accident that killed three.

Authorities say motorists exchanging information after a crash on the Ventura (101) Freeway in Sherman Oaks were hit by another vehicle, causing a second accident that killed three.

The fatal accident happened at about 2:10 a.m. Sunday on the freeway near the Coldwater Canyon Avenue exit, CHP Officer Anthony Martin said.

The California Highway Patrol says three people had been involved in a prior accident and had stepped out of their vehicles to exchange information when they were struck by another vehicle. Three other people were injured.

The identities of the deceased were withheld pending notification of next of kin.

How much do you want to bet that the person or persons who hit and killed the persons on the side of the road exchanging information were drunk or under the influence of drugs and alcohol?

Sheman Oaks, Calfornia Car Accident Attorney Website

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Three Whittier California children killed in morning crash on the 5 Freeway

5 people killed in santa clarita / newhallSANTA CLARITA – Newhall,  California

Three of five people killed in a chain-reaction crash on the southbound 5 Freeway near the 14 freeway, early Monday were local children, authorities said.

Cynthia J. Hernandez, 9, Edgar A. Hernandez, 8, and Xochitl M. Hernandez, 5, all of Whittier, were killed after the car they were riding in collided with an overturned pickup truck at 12:14 a.m. on the southbound 5 just before the Balboa Boulevard exit, said California Highway Patrol Officer Jon Lutz.

Their cousin, Luis Villegas, 12, of Oakland was also killed.

The back of the Nissan the children were riding in caved in when the car was then rear ended by a Chevrolet Suburban, Lutz said. No one in the SUV was seriously injured.

The children’s mother, who is in her 30s, survived and was taken to an area hospital in critical condition. Another man in his 20s was also in the car and was taken to the hospital in critical condition, Lutz said.

John Blackburn, 54, of Frazier Park, who was the driver of the pickup truck that triggered the accident when it hit the center divider, spun out of control and overturned, was killed.

If you our your family has been injured in a car accident call us for a free consultation at 800-816-1529 x. 1.

Santa Clarita Car Accident Attorney and Wrongful Death Attorney Website

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Fiery crash in Winters California kills one Person

Fatal Car Crash in Winters CaliforniaThe California Highway Patrol is attempting to ascertain the identity of a motorist killed early Friday in a fiery car crash near Winters.

A CHP spokesman said the exact time and circumstances of the crash remain under investigation and, due to the fire that engulfed the car shortly after the early morning collision, neither the identity, sex or age of the driver could be confirmed.

Officer Marvin Williford said the crash occurred sometime before 6 a.m., when the car, a Mercedes-Benz, was traveling north along Winters Road south of Putah Creek Road. It apparently swerved out of control across the southbound lanes of the narrow rural roadway and ran off the pavement and into an orchard.

Traveling at an unknown rate of speed, the car slid sideways, sheered off a large walnut tree, then caught fire.

The smoldering wreckage wasn’t discovered until about 6 a.m. when a local laborer reported the crash. When firefighters arrived, they found the fire was out and the car had been reduced to a charred shell. One occupant was found in the wreckage.

Because of the extensive damage to the Mercedes sedan caused by crash impact and the fire, CHP investigators were not immediately able to determine the exact year, model or registration of the car. The most accessible vehicle identification numbers of the car also were obliterated.

On Friday night, the Solano County Coroner’s Office said the victim is believed to be a male, but other identifying information is pending further investigation.

Anyone with information about the crash can contact the Solano area office of the CHP in Fairfield at 428-2100.

Winters, California and Fairfield, California Car Accident Attorney

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EMT assisting at accident scene struck and killed by vehicle

Fatal Accident Victim Esteban BahenaOne accident turned into a second deadly accident Thursday morning on rain-soaked SR 163 just south of Robinson Ave.

According to authorities, an emergency medical technician with San Diego Medical Services who was responding to an accident was struck and killed by a car.

Law enforcement said Esteban Bahena and his partner stopped to help a stranded driver on northbound SR-163 at around 7 a.m. While they were there, an accident happened in the same stretch of highway when a pickup truck and a Toyota Scion collided.

Bahena reportedly crossed the freeway to set up flares to let oncoming drivers know about that accident when he was hit by a Chrysler Sebring.

Bahena’s partner began CPR and after a nearby fire crew stopped to help, they loaded Bahena up and took him to Mercy Hospital in his own ambulance. He was pronounced dead at 8:32 a.m.

According to the California Highway Patrol, a fifth car might have been involved due to the fact the Sebring has rear end damage with blue paint left on the bumper. Officers say a blue car may have struck the Sebring but left the scene.

Bahena, who had been with the city as an EMT for two years, was the first EMT or paramedic to be killed in the line of duty in the company’s 13-year history as the city’s paramedic provider.

The driver of the Sebring was transported to UCSD Hospital in serious condition.

San Diego Car Accident Attorney and Wrongful Death Lawyer

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3 Phoenix Arizona Motorcycle riders mowed down and killed After Being Rear Ended in a Horrible Crash.

3 Phoenix Arizona Motorcycle riders mowed down and killed After Being Rear Ended in a Horrible Crash.PHOENIX — Arizona

A group of eight motorcycles stopped at a red light in north Phoenix were mowed down from behind by a dump truck early Thursday afternoon, killing three riders and injuring six others, at least one critically, authorities said.

The most seriously injured was an off-duty Phoenix Fire Department captain who was in very critical condition Thursday evening, said Phoenix police spokesman Detective James Holmes.

The motorcyclists were stopped behind a pickup and a small SUV at the red light when the truck driver rammed them from behind, he said. The truck ran over the motorcyclists and continued into the small SUV in front of them, Holmes said.

There was no sign the truck driver was impaired.

Some of the motorcycles burst into flames under the dump truck, while others ended up scattered behind the truck. Television images of the crash site showed a horrifying collection of mangled chrome Harley-Davidson bikes and scattered personal belongings, including pairs of riders’ boots laying in the roadway.

“It’s a horrific scene,” Phoenix Fire Deputy Chief Frank Salomon said.

Some of the injured were airlifted to St. Joseph’s Hospital in Phoenix, Salomon said.

The crash occurred about 1 p.m. at the intersection of 27th Avenue and the Carefree Highway. Holmes said at least one of the victims was a woman, but most were men.

Jarrod Cook, a worker at the nearby Ketzal Mexican Grill, said he saw several motorcycles wedged underneath the garbage truck, which caught fire.

“The first thing we saw was a big puff of smoke when the truck lit on fire,” he said.
Cook said he walked over and witnessed a chaotic scene with some of the injured lying on the ground.

Dozens of police and rescue personnel responded to the crash.

Phoenix Fire Department spokesman Jonathan Jacobs told KNXV-TV that witnesses reported seeing several of the motorcycle riders dragged 50 to 75 yards after impact. The three bikers killed were trapped under the truck, Jacobs said.

The 50-year-old driver of the truck was not injured and was being questioned by police. Those in the pickup and SUV also were not hurt.

The Carefree Highway was expected to be closed for several hours as police investigate the crash.

Although I am a California Motorcycle Accident Attorney and Biker Lawyer, I ride through Arizona all of the time. As a matter of fact, I will be riding through Arizona in a couple of weeks. I am absolutely appalled by this accident.

You tell me how a truck driver could not see 8 motorcycles parked at a red light, let alone the red light itself. Absent some catastrophic equipment failure that can be proven, the truck driver in this accident needs to be taken down by the man for murder or vehicular manslaughter.

This accident is absolutely atrocious and horrible.

California Biker Attorney and Motorcycle Accident Lawyer Norman Gregory Fernandez, 2010

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Another Fatal Metrolink Accident, 1 killed, 3 injured as train hits truck east of Los Angeles.

Metrolink commuter train crash in Los AngelesLOS ANGELES — California

A Metrolink commuter train hit a maintenence truck parked on a set of railroad tracks in the San Gabriel Valley on Saturday, killing a railroad worker who was sitting in the truck and leaving three train passengers with minor injuries, authorities said.

The person killed was an employee of the Union Pacific Railroad who had been doing maintenance work with a crew on freight tracks, said Metrolink spokesman Francisco Oaxaca. The area where the collision occurred is a mix of Union Pacific tracks and tracks maintained by Metrolink.

When the commuter train hit the Union Pacific Railroad maintenance truck at about 9:20 a.m., it was on Metrolink tracks, traveling east of Los Angeles along the border of the city of Industry and the unincorporated community of Bassett.

Authorities said there were many reasons why the worker would be in the area, but investigators were trying to determine why the truck was on the tracks. They do not believe it was suicide.

“There is nothing to indicate that this person intended to be struck by the train,” Oaxaca said.

Union Pacific spokeswoman Lupe Valdez said the crash “appears to be an accident.

Three Metrolink passengers were taken to the hospital with minor injuries, said Metrolink spokeswoman Angie Starr. An engineer and conductor, two sheriff’s officials and 138 passengers were on board the train, Oaxaca said.

There was only minor damage to the train, which was led by a locomotive with another engine behind it.

Valdez said the employee has worked for Union Pacific for about 30 years. His name has not yet been released.

In recent years Metrolink has experienced several major crashes.

In December, a commuter train from the Southern California agency struck a pickup truck that drove into its path, injuring six people.

In 2008, 25 people were killed when a Metrolink train collided with a freight train. Investigators believe the Metrolink engineer ran a red light seconds after he was text messaging on his cell phone.

In 2005, 11 people died and about 180 were injured when a man who later claimed he was suicidal parked his sport utility vehicle on the tracks in suburban Glendale. The driver of the SUV was convicted of murder.

California Train Accident Attorney and Metrolink Accident Lawyer Website

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March 21, 2010, a Historic Day; Health Care Reform is Passed and will Soon Become Law.

Health Care Reform is now the law of the land.Whether you are for, or against health care reform, one thing is certain, health care reform will become law of the land.. The House of Representatives passed the Senate version of Health care reform last night, and President Obama is expected to sign this bill into law. The House also passed a bill which seeks to modify or fix the original bill, which if passed by a majority vote in the Senate, will also become part of the health care reform bill.

As you can see the country has not come crashing down, the sun has risen. (Except if there is bad weather in your part of the country) America is a great country, and we have just become even greater.

Many of you probably already have read my previous article on supporting health care reform here. You can also read the truth about the health care reform from the official government website here.

I am not going to go into the politics of this historic bill, I will just say this; it now appears that immediately children can no longer be denied health insurance due to pre-existing conditions, parents will now be able to keep their children on their health insurance plan to the age of 26, and senior citizens who need prescriptions will now be able to get medications which are presently not covered.

In 2014, the ban on denying coverage to individuals with pre-existing conditions will take affect for all. Insurance companies will no longer we able to deny anyone from getting insurance just because they have a pre-existing condition. Furthermore, insurance companies will no longer be able to terminate someone’s insurance, just because they become sick and actually need to use their medical insurance. Furthermore, there is no more life time cap on insurance, 30 million uninsured American’s will now get medical insurance. On top of that, individuals and small business will be able to join pools of others to buy low cost insurance.

When a Senator who promised to kill health care reform was elected in Massachusetts, Anthem Blue Cross, the largest health care insurance company in the nation, told Californians with individual plans that their insurance rates would increase by 39% this year. I think this is what broke the camels back so to say. I thank Anthem Blue Cross and their greed for helping us to get health care reform.

Basically we have told the medical insurance companies to go screw themselves. They tried like hell to prevent this reform from passing. Hell there was a doomsday commercial message every commercial break on CNN, MSNBC, and FOX news for the past week. We even heard members of a certain political party claim that our nation was not good enough to ensure that all of us have health care, just like other industrialized nations in the west.

It does not matter if you are a Republican, a Democrat, and independent, or other, you or your family too will benefit from health care reform. Because you see the health care industry abuses that are happening right now do not care what political party you are from. When you are sick and shit out of luck with no insurance or no way to see a doctor, you political views, or voice don’t mean anything. All that matters is getting you or a family member better.

The reform bill is not perfect. I believe that there should be a public option as well. However, this will do for now.

In this economy where millions of Americans are out of work, or working in jobs that give them little or no health care, our nation is coming through. In a few years you will no longer have to look in the mirror and wonder how you are going to see a doctor if you get sick. Hallelujah.

By Norman Gregory Fernandez, Esq., © 2010

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A Bus hits and kills Horse in Morgan Hill, CA

horse killed by valley transit authority busA Valley Transit Authority bus carrying 18 passengers collided with a horse in a north Morgan Hill residential neighborhood about 7 p.m. Thursday, according to the California Highway Patrol. The horse did not immediately die, which made for a horrific scene as it flailed around for about 45 minutes until animal control officers arrived with a lethal injection.

California Highway Patrol officers arrived at the scene on Hale Avenue south of Kalana Avenue and determined it was unsafe to shoot the horse to put it out of its misery, according to the California Highway Patrol. They immediately called animal control and tri-county officers arrived before 8 p.m.

“Usually we do, however it was very close to a residential area,” CHP officer Jaime Rios said. “We didn’t feel that it would be safe at the time.”

He said if an animal is suffering and it’s on a freeway or in a rural area, officers will euthanize it. Rios said passengers did not see the horse once it was hit and suffering.

Rios said the bus on southbound line 68 was traveling about 40 mph when it struck the horse.

VTA spokesperson Jennie Hwang Loft said the horse ran loose from a group of horses in a pasture when it ran in front of the bus. She said the bus driver suffered minor injuries.

A VTA bus stop is located at Hale and Kalana avenues, but authorities are unsure how near it was to where the accident occurred. The roadway was closed for about 90 minutes and the bus was eventually towed away. The horse was taken away by tri-county officers. Passengers were eventually picked up by another VTA bus and taken to their destination.

No passengers reported any injuries, but the bus sustained extensive damage, according to the VTA. Rios said no drugs or alcohol were involved.

Authorities are still working to locate the owner of the horse and plan to contact neighbors today. There will not be any criminal charges filed because no passengers were injured. Rios said he can’t say if there would be any civil charges filed.

A man who drove by the incident, but did not want to be identified, said the horse was laying in the middle of the street, flopping around.

“I’ve seen a lot, but that was pretty brutal,” he said.

All animal owners in California are strictly liable for the acts of their animals. If any of the bus passengers, or the bus driver was injured in this crash, the animal owner would be liable for their injuries because they failed to contain their animal, and let it get loose.

All California animal owners must ensure that their animals are not let loose and are contained. Had the owner of the horse not let the horse get loose this potentially devastating accident woudl not have happened, and the horse would still be alive.

 Morgan Hill Bus Accident Attorney

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Toyota sued over deaths in horrendous California crash

Toyota Product Defect AttorneyLos Angeles – California

Relatives of a California state trooper and three family members whose fatal car wreck helped spark Toyota’s wide-ranging safety recall have sued the automaker for defects they say caused the vehicle to speed out of control and crash.

The lawsuit, filed on Tuesday in San Diego Superior Court, was the latest in a wave of product-liability cases and other legal action brought against Toyota Motor Corp over complaints of sudden, unintended acceleration in its vehicles.

But the fiery August 28 crash near San Diego of a Lexus ES 350 sedan driven by off-duty California Highway Patrol Officer Mark Saylor drew intense media attention and renewed government scrutiny of safety problems that led to the recall of some 8.5 million Toyota vehicles worldwide.

Toyota President Akio Toyoda, grandson of the company’s founder, extended his condolences to the Saylor family in an apology he delivered to a congressional hearing last week.

Saylor was driving his wife, their 13-year-old daughter, and his brother-in-law on a family outing when their car “began to accelerate on its own” and sped out of control despite Saylor’s attempts “to apply the brakes and otherwise do everything possible to stop” the car, the lawsuit says.

The car reached speeds of up to 120 miles per hour before it struck another vehicle, plowed through a fence, hit a berm and flew through the air, then rolled several times into a field and burst into flames.

The family’s final moments before impact were captured in the recording of a frantic 911-emergency cell phone call placed by Saylor’s brother-in-law, Christopher Lastrella, in which he is heard telling the dispatcher, “Our accelerator is stuck … We’re in trouble … there is no brakes.”

Others in the car are heard saying, “hold on” and “pray” as the call ended, the lawsuit said.

The suit names Toyota, its U.S. division and other corporate entities as defendants, along with the Lexus dealership where Saylor was given the doomed car as a “loaner vehicle” while his own Lexus was being serviced.

Although the suit makes no specific allegations as to the root cause of the unintended acceleration, it says the car in question “was defective when it left the control of each defendant” and that “adequate warnings of the danger were not given.” The suit seeks unspecified monetary damages on behalf of the parents of Saylor and his wife.

Toyota officials have said they do not comment on pending litigation.

San Diego County Sheriff’s investigators concluded the crash likely was caused by the gas pedal becoming stuck in an all-weather rubber floor mat designed for a larger vehicle but placed by the Lexus dealership in the sedan loaned to Saylor.

But the accident report said “other avenues of unintended acceleration could not be explored,” mechanical or electrical, due to catastrophic damage to the vehicle.

The report also revealed that another driver who had been loaned the same car a few days earlier told investigators the vehicle raced out of control on him when the gas pedal jammed in the floor mat, which he managed to free after placing the gear shift into neutral.

He complained to a dealership receptionist when he returned the car, the receptionist told investigators she alerted the detail specialist on duty, but the detailer claimed never to have received such a complaint, the report said.

Toyota has recalled more than 5 million vehicles in the United States for slipping floor mats. Another 2.2 million U.S. recall notices were issued for sticking accelerator pedals.

The Transportation Department has said that complaints of unintended acceleration in Toyota and Lexus vehicles are linked with more than 50 U.S. crash deaths under investigation over the past decade.

If you or your family have been the victim of a car crash in a Toyota due to sudden acceleration or other product defect anywhere in California call us for a free consultation at 800-816-1529 x. 1, or go to http://www.thepersonalinjury.com

Toyota Product Defect Attorney

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Two Accidents snarl Highway 101 traffic in Novato, California

Novato California car accidentJust minutes after the roadway on northbound Highway 101 was cleared when a big-rig overturned early Monday morning – snarling traffic for several hours – a second four-vehicle wreck in Novato jammed traffic in the same direction.

The second accident occurred at 11:38 a.m. just north of Atherton Avenue and blocked the two left lanes, said Officer Peter Van Eckhardt of the California Highway Patrol.

The wreck involved blue and silver pickup trucks, a small sedan and a gold Lexus. The sedan was lodged under the blue truck, trapping two people, Van Eckhardt said. They were transported to a local hospital; additional details were unavailable.

The single-vehicle big-rig accident at 6 a.m. blocked one lane of traffic that remained closed till 11:30 a.m. while workers emptied a load of vegetables, Van Eckhardt said.

The accident occurred when the Save Mart Supermarkets big-rig overturned just north of San Antonio Road, Van Eckhardt said. The cause of the wreck was under investigation.

The driver suffered minor injuries and was taken to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital, Van Eckhardt said.

If you or your family have been the victim of a truck crash, car crash, or other motor vehicle accident in Novato or anywhere in California call us for a free consultation at 800-816-1529 x. 1, or go to http://www.thepersonalinjury.com

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