November 14, 2007

Southern California Wrongful Death

In Southern California, a lawsuit is being brought against Los Angeles County for the death of a 43-year old woman. The personal injury case seeks $45 million, claiming negligence, wrongful death, and medical malpractice against the county-staffed Martin Luther King Jr.-Harbor Hospital.

According to reports, the woman, Edith Rodriguez, was at the Los Angeles hospital’s emergency room, withering in pain for 45 minutes. During this time she was screaming for help and vomiting blood, but was refused to be seen. Instead, she was discharged and placed on a bench located outside of the hospital. County officers brought her back inside to try and get help, but Edith was again not seen.

Edith eventually became unresponsive and was, at last, taken into be seen. Sadly, this step was too late. Edith died in the emergency room from a perforated bowel. The hospital has since been downsized since this incidence as it was found not to meet Federal health standards.

Unfortunately, horrible situations like the one above do occur. Wrongful death arises when someone unintentionally causes another person to die, because of their own negligence or misconduct. It is a horrible situation to lose someone who could have lived if another person had acted accordingly. If someone you love died because of another person’s negligence, please call me at the Law Offices of Moseley Collins.

Web Resources:

Family of woman who died after US hospital workers refused to treat her files $45M lawsuit, Find Law

November 14, 2007

Product Recall: Aqua Dots Metabolize Into Dangerous Drug

There has been a world-wide recall of a toy called Aqua Dots. It is always frightening to find a toy recalled because of defects or a choking hazard, anything that may bring harm and injury to our children immediately send parents racing around the house, removing the invading toy threat. The recall of Aqua Dots is especially terrifying as researchers have found that the coating on the colorful toy beads, when ingested, metabolize into gamma hydroxy butyrate, better known as the date rape drug.

So far, at least two children in the United States and four in Australia have been hospitalized after swallowing the toy beads. One 20 month old boy, from Arkansas, starting stumbling around, throwing up and eventually passed out, after swallowing Aqua Dots. After several hours in the hospital he was released. The date rape chemical components are dangerous even to adults. According to an article by Find Law, the date rape drug “can induce unconsciousness, seizures, drowsiness, coma and death”.

According to reports, Aqua Dots were planned to be produced using a non-toxic chemical that can be found in glue, but would up being made with a toxic chemical called 1,4-butanediol. This chemical was declared a Class I health hazard in 1999 by the Food and Drug Administration, indicating it can cause life-threatening harm.

Product recalls are a serious issue. If a product causes injury to a person because of a design defect, manufacturing defect, or a failure to warn, liability will fall into the hands of the person or company responsible for that product. Manufactures, supplier, distributors, and retailers all have the responsibility in putting a safe and danger-free product into the market. Liability for a dangerous product can come in several different forms, including negligence, strict liability, and breach of warranty.

If you or someone you love have ever been seriously injured because a product did not live up to this standard of safety, you should contact a lawyer who can lead you in the right direction. Please give me a call at the Law Offices of Moseley Collins, I am here to help.

Web Resouces:

CPSC Orders Aqua Dots Off Store Shelves, Find Law

Product Liability, Wikipedia

November 3, 2007

Food Contamination Causes Outbreak of Salmonella

Walking into one of our Sacramento grocery stores nowadays, I find myself wondering if I am going to be purchasing another product that will show to have some sort of bacteria attached to it, and after consumption, find that it has been recalled. Food poisoning is not the most pleasant of experiences. To add to this badgering thought, today I came across yet another article in the paper, talking about a recalled food product. This time we are presented with salmonella-tainted pot pies, yum yummy.

The maker of these pies, ConAgra Foods, have recalled the product after the pies were linked to a nationwide outbreak of the infection. Reports from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are showing that more than 200 cases of salmonella infection have been reported this year, covering 34 states. This salmonella infection shows to be all from the same strain.

A federal lawsuit is being carried out against ConAgra Foods, representing two classes. One class is a consumer class, representing people who bought and/or ate the infected pies. The second class is called an injury class, which will represent all those who after eating such infected pies, became ill.

All food manufacturers have standards they are required to work by. When these standards are violated and/or neglected, the company can face serious liability issues. A food manufacturer has the responsibility of producing a product that is safe to its consumers. They also have a responsibility to ensure that the working area at the manufacturing plant is kept in a way that is safe and free from disease. Plaintiffs in this case are arguing that ConAgra violated these issues.

If you or a loved one have ever been seriously injured because of a food contamination, please call me at the Law Offices of Moseley Collins.

Stay safe and be wary of those pies.

Web Resource:

Salmonella-Tainted Potpies Produce Class-Action Lawsuit , Andrews Publications