Maryland Accident Law Blog

Maryland Board of Public Works to Pay $500,000 Settlement for Wrongful Death of Prisoner Pepper Sprayed by Police

January 2, 2009 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

In Maryland, the Board of Public Works has approved a $500,000 wrongful death settlement for the family of Ifeanyi A. Iko, an inmate who died in 2004 after being subdued with pepper spray at the Western Correctional Institution. According to the state medical examiner, his cause of death was homicide due to the “chemical irritation of the airways by pepper spray,” the use of a mask on the 51-year-old prisoner’s face, and the manner in which he was restrained.

The Nigerian immigrant was found asphyxiated following an altercation with police when he was removed from his cell, handcuffed at the wrists and ankles, put in a spit-protection mask, and sprayed with pepper. Other prisoners who saw the incident say that prison guards severely beat Iko and used three cans of pepper spray on him.

While an Allegany County grand jury did not indict the correctional officers involved in the pepper spray incident, the prison’s lead investigator in the case has admitted that key evidence, such as wet clothing and video footage, were not preserved. Also, two months after Iko died, the state prison commissioner issued stricter guidelines on pepper spray use. Now, officers need a warden or assistant warden to approve the use of the spray and anytime the spray is used, a full report must be prepared within 24 hours.

Maryland Receives B- Rating for Medical Emergency Care and is Ranked #4 Nationally

December 29, 2008 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

American College of Emergency Physicians has issued a report ranking Maryland #4 in the US for emergency care. While the state was awarded points for injury prevention and disaster preparedness, as well as an A for quality and providing a safe environment for patients and a B for injury prevention and public health, Maryland received a D – for its medical liability environment and a C- for emergency care access. The state’s average grade for medical emergency services was a B -, the same grade it received in 2006.

Grades were calculated based on data provided by each state. Washington DC, which also received a B-, was ranked second. Overall, the US received a C-. 90% of US states received failing or mediocre grades.

In Maryland, the ACEP found that crowded hospitals, coupled with not enough inpatient beds, was a problem. Also, there are not enough medical specialists in the state who can offer on-call emergency care. The report also found that Maryland did not enact adequate medical liability reform and that liability premiums and average malpractice damage amounts are above average.

The ACEP lauded Maryland for its emergency preparedness and its outreach to special needs groups. Another report by Trust for America’s Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation gave Maryland a 5 out of 10 for its emergency preparedness during a disaster. Their report found that Maryland had failed to limit the liability of emergency health workers or maintain funding.

US Emergency Rooms

According to a recent USA Today article, not enough specialists, long waits, and overcrowding are some of the problems affecting emergency rooms in the United States. Recent emergency room facts:

– 56 minutes is the average wait time.
– There were 119 million hospital visits in 2006.

– 1 out of 5 Americans visited an emergency room in 2005.

US states, as well as medical facilities, hospitals, ER’s, doctors, nurses, medical specialists, and other providers of emergency care are supposed to provide the proper care to all patients. When failure to provide that care results in injuries or deaths, the responsible parties can be held liable for medical malpractice, personal injury, or wrongful death.

Md. Emergency Care Ranks Fourth in National Study, Southern Maryland Online, December 9, 2008
U.S. emergency rooms find ways to fix what ails them, USA Today, December 14, 2008

Related Web Resources:

American College of Emergency Physicians

Trust for America’s Health

Court of Appeals of Maryland to Hear Lead-Paint Lawsuit

December 24, 2008 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

This year, the Court of Appeals of Maryland will hear Kelly v. N.B.S. Inc., a lead-paint lawsuit involving serious injuries to a now 13-year-old girl. In 2007, a Baltimore jury issued a Maryland personal injury verdict ordering the family’s landlord to pay the family of Kelly Green $2.3 million. Because of the state’s non-economic damages statutory cap, however, the judge that presided over the premises liability trial lowered the award to $515,000.

The case continues a years-long battle over the legitimacy of Maryland’s cap, which is $710,000 for claims filed after October 1, 2008. Claims filed before then have a non-economic damages cap of $695,000. Also at issue is whether the cap is preventing children who are seriously injured because of exposure to lead paint from recovering more compensation.

For example, in 2006, two children who experienced lead poisoning were awarded $7 million by a jury. Due to the non-economic damages cap, that part was lowered to $700,000. In 2003, a jury awarded two other kids $2.2 million for non-economic damages, which were also reduced because of the Maryland cap.

Kelly v. N.B.S. Inc.

In this latest case, Celestine Green was pregnant with Kelly when she moved into a residence on Montpelier street beginning January 1995. As a young child, Kelly would eat chips of lead paint off her home’s walls.

At 10 months, Kelly’s lead level was already just one unit below the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s “action level” of 10. In December 2006, her lead level readings registered at 12 and 15.

Kelly’s family claims that the girl has physical and mental impairments, as well as a decreased IQ, because of her exposure to lead paint. There is also the chance that if she has kids, they could be poisoned by the lead in her body.

Lead Paint Exposure

Exposure to lead paint can lead to serious injuries if the paint is ingested. Kids are not only susceptible to lead paint that can be found on older structures, but high levels of lead were recently discovered in many consumer products, including furniture and toys. Millions of toys and other products with high levels of lead have been recalled to prevent kids from becoming the victims of lead poisoning.

Lead-paint case the latest battleground in war over limit on non-economic damages, Maryland Daily Record, December 21, 2008
Related Web Resources:

Court of Appeals of Maryland

Lead Poisoning in Children, Family Doctor
Consumer Product Safety Commission

Anne Arundel County Settles Maryland Wrongful Death Lawsuit with Family of Naked Glen Burnie Man Shot by Police Officer

December 21, 2008 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Anne Arundel County has agreed to pay $90,000 to settle the Maryland wrongful death lawsuit filed by the family of Donald Coates. The 20-year-old was shot dead by Anne Arundel County Police Officer Tommy Pleasant in 2005.

Earlier this year, Coates’s family members filed federal and state lawsuits seeking millions of dollars in damages. They claimed that Pleasant, who was a rookie and had been patrolling solo for just a month when the incident happened, acted wrongfully when he shot Coates, who was naked and unarmed at the time.

The shooting incident occurred on May 24, 2005. According to witnesses, Coates had called 911 while he was smoking marijuana in his home. He claimed that someone was trying to kill him. He then fired several shots before leaving the premise.

Maryland Boy is Almost Strangled to Death by Seat Belt

December 17, 2008 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

A 5-year-old Maryland boy sustained critical injuries after the seat belt he was using got caught around his neck. The incident occurred in Prince George’s County on I-95 at around 6p on Monday evening. The child, DeAndre Harris, is in very serious condition at the Children’s National Medical Center in Washington DC.

A Maryland State Police trooper arrived at the scene after DeAndre’s mother, Yuko Harris, contacted 911. The trooper used a knife to cut the seat belt and administered CPR to DeAndre, who did not have a pulse. His heart started beating again while he was being transported to Laurel Hospital. He was later flow to the District.

Maryland State Police have impounded Harris’s vehicle, a Honda CRV. They do not know how the seat belt became wrapped around the 5-year-old’s neck to cut off his circulation. Although DeAndre is just 5, he was not sitting in a booster seat, which is required for kids under age 8 when riding in motor vehicles.

Seat Belt Injuries

Seat belts are supposed to keep a vehicle occupant securely fastened in the event of an auto crash. While seat belt injuries can occur as a result of user error, there are those injuries that can arise because of a defect in the seat belt’s design or an error that occurred during manufacturing. Such defects can pose a serious injury hazard during a motor vehicle crash and be grounds for a products liability claim or wrongful death lawsuit.

Examples of seat belt defects include:

• Latching defects
• Broken or cracked buckle release buttons
• Too much seat belt slack
• Webbing defects
• Skip lock defects

Seat belts can pose a strangulation hazard if used incorrectly or made defectively.

Boy, 5, is critical after seat belt cuts off breathing, Baltimore Sun, December 16, 2008
Boy, 5, Riding With Family on I-95 Is Critically Injured by Seat Belt, Washington Post, December 7, 2008

Related Web Resource:

Maryland’s Child Passenger Safety Laws, Maryland State Highway Administration

Teen Car Accidents May Be Reduced with Later School Start Time, Says Study

December 16, 2008 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

A new study shows that starting the school day a little later may reduce the chances of teen car crashes, personal injuries, and death. A later school start time allows teens to sleep more in the morning, which, researchers say, leads to more alert driving.

By moving the beginning of classes at local high schools by 1 hour from 7:30 am to 8:30 am, researches saw a 16.5% drop in teen auto accident rates.

Psychologist Fred Danner, who coauthored the study, says adolescents are biologically programmed to stay awake an hour later every night. Danner says teens in general need 8-9 hours of sleep. If teens gets an hour less sleep during school nights, by the week’s end, they can be as impaired as if they had stayed awake for 24 hours in a row.

The study surveyed 10,000 kids, in grades 6 through 12, to determine sleep habits, auto accidents, and daytime functioning. Surveys were conducted twice. In 1998, when the school start time was at 7:30am and in 1999, when school would start at 8:30am. The study appears this week in the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine.

According to the National Sleep Foundation:

• Driver fatigue is the cause of 100,000 motor vehicle crashes each year.
• More than 50% of the drivers involved in these crashes are young drivers, ages 16 to 25.
• 85% of teenagers get less than 8 ½ hours of sleep each night.
• Drowsy driving after not having slept for 18 hours is the equivalent of drunk driving with a BAC of .08% or more.

• Not getting enough sleep can impair a person’s ability to make decisions, think clearly, and pay attention. It can also impair one’s reflexes.

A 2006 survey found that 51% of high school students have driven a motor vehicle when they were drowsy. Out of 262 college students that were surveyed, 17% of them admitted to falling asleep while driving.

Later School Start Time Cuts Teens’ Car Crash Risks, Washington Post, December 15, 2008

National Sleep Foundation

Related Web Resources:

Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine

NHTSA

Maryland Police Targeted in Two Separate Police Brutality Lawsuits

December 15, 2008 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Two recent Maryland lawsuits have brought the topic of police brutality to the media forefront. Last week, a judge ruled that teenager Eric Bush can sue the city of Baltimore for Maryland personal injury even though he had missed the deadline for letting the city know he intended to sue. The judge said Bush showed good cause for why his notice that there would be a lawsuit was late.

Bush became a YouTube star after footage of Officer Salvatore Rivieri putting the then-14-year-old skateboarder in a headlock and chastising him for calling the cop “dude” was posted on the popular Web site. The altercation took place in 2007 at the Inner Harbor.

Bush says he never heard Rivieri give him an order about skateboarding. Rivieri, a police veteran, was suspended after the video footage of the incident was brought to the Baltimore police Department’s attention.

Roche Loses Drug Litigation Lawsuit and Is Ordered to Pay Almost $13 Million to Three Accutane Users

December 11, 2008 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

A jury in the United States has ordered drug manufacturer Roche to pay $12.9 million to three Accutane users who say they developed chronic bowel disorders from using the popular acne drug. The jury determined that the Swiss drug maker failed to properly warn of the side effects that can result from using Accutane.

The patients began using Accutane more than 10 years ago when they were teenagers to treat their acne. As a result of using the acne drug, two of the patients say they now require long-term drug rehabilitation and the third patient has to have his colon removed.

This is not the first drug litigation lawsuit filed against Roche that links Accutane to inflammatory bowel disease. This is the fourth IBD civil trial the Swiss Drug maker has lost.

Baltimore Police Department Sued for $10 Million in Maryland Wrongful Death Lawsuit

December 9, 2008 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

The Owings Mill mother of Damon D. Smith, the Maryland man who committed suicide by jumping from the top of Mercy Hospital, is suing the Baltimore Police Department for wrongful death. Hazella White’s lawsuit seeks $10 million in damages from the police department, the city of Baltimore, and Officer Wilbert Perez.

On October 26, 2007, Smith crashed his motor vehicle on Interstate 795 and was picked up by Maryland state police. A police check determined that Baltimore police were looking for the 27-year-old in connection to his ex-girlfriend Veronica Fludd’s murder. Smith also appeared to have self-inflected injuries.

According to White’s Maryland wrongful death lawsuit, Officer Perez knew that Smith was suicidal yet loosened his restraints before he went to the bathroom. The complaint also contends that Perez had been working too many hours in a row and should have called medical workers.

Washington DC Man Dies After Paramedics Diagnose Acid Reflux

December 8, 2008 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

In Washington DC, a 39-year-old man died at his home on Wednesday, just hours after paramedics told him that he was suffering from acid reflux and didn’t need to go to the hospital. Now, authorities are trying to determine whether Emergency Service workers misdiagnosed Edward Givens’s condition and if this contributed to his death.

Givens’s mother, Lolitha, says that on Tuesday night, Edward told family members to contact 911. He was on the floor complaining of pains in his chest. He also said he was having problems breathing. At 11:40pm, an ambulance and fire truck from Engine 30 arrived at the home carrying three firefighters, who had emergency training, and a firefighter-paramedic.

The firefighters reportedly checked Givens’s vitals and conducted an electrocardiogram. Findings were normal. When the EMT’s found out Givens had eaten a burger, they recommended that he take antacid. They left soon after.

Lolitha says the paramedics refused to take her son to the hospital because they didn’t think his symptoms required additional care. Not even six hours later, however, family members contacted 911 again after they saw that Edward had stopped breathing.

Givens’s relatives say that the father of two might still be alive if EMT’s had followed procedures and taken him to the hospital. The DC Medical Examiner’s Office is expected to conduct an autopsy and issue its findings into his cause of death. According to DC Fire and Emergency Medical Services protocol, paramedics are supposed to take any patient who wants to go to the hospital.

Wrong Diagnosis

If a medical professional gave the wrong diagnosis of your loved one’s condition or failed to give him or her the proper care, your loved one may have grounds to file a medical malpractice claim for damages. If your loved one died because of medical negligence, you may have grounds to file a Washington DC wrongful death lawsuit.

Man Dies at Home After Paramedics Diagnose Acid Reflux, Washington Post, December 4, 2008
Misdiagnosis May Have Been Death Sentence for District Man, WJLA, December 3, 2008

Related Web Resources:

DC Fire and Emergency Medical Services

Rosenbaum Lawsuit Settled, Washington Post, December 21, 2007