Maryland Accident Law Blog

Children At Psychiatric Hospital in Washington D.C. Might Be In Danger of Injury and Abuse

July 27, 2007 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

University Legal Services, Inc., an advocacy group for Washington D.C. children that have developmental disabilities, say that children at Riverside Hospital are in danger of “serious and persistent abuse and neglect.” City mental health officials will now begin to visit the hospital on a weekly basis to monitor the conditions there. Riverside Hospital treats youths up to 21 years of age.

The advocacy group’s report recounts incidents of physical violence (punching, slapping, choking, pushing) and verbal abuse by staff members and the use of physical restraints and seclusion to control patients’ behavior. Not enough supervision allegedly allowed teens to hurt themselves, steal bottles of medicine, and attack other patients. Treatment plans were supposedly not followed and living conditions at the facility were allegedly unsanitary and unhealthy.

Last December, one teen resident died at the hospital. The Department of Mental Health says the female teenager became ill last November and was sent to Georgetown University Hospital where she was placed on a ventilator. She was then taken by air to Inova Fairfax Hospital for cardiac surgery. She died the following month.

The department says that the hospital failed to order basic tests, document the teenager’s vital signs, tell a doctor that her condition was getting worse, or note down that she had a family history of heart disease.

Riverside hospital is a private, for-profit hospital.

When a person is seriously injured while staying at a hospital because of negligence on the part of any staff members, he or she may be eligible to file a personal injury claim or a medical malpractice lawsuit.

Doctors, nurses, and medical staff members are required by law to provide proper care to their patients—medically, emotionally and psychologically. If that care is abused or not properly given, the negligent party could be sued for negligence or malpractice—depending on the type of abuse or neglect that occurred.

Some causes for a personal injury lawsuit can include:

• Nursing home abuse
• Negligence
• Physical abuse
• Verbal abuse
• Neglect
• Sexual abuse
• Rape
• Financial abuse
• Wrongful diagnosis
• Failure to diagnose
• Failure to administer proper care
• Physician error
• Surgical error
Youth Hospital Faulted For Abuse, Washington Post, July 26, 2007

Related Web Resources:

Department of Mental Health, Washington D.C.

Riverside Hospital, Washington D.C., Hospital Data
University Legal Services

Maryland Natural Resources Police Says Boating Accident Critically Injures One Man And Kills His Cousin

July 26, 2007 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

A 30-year-old man was critically injured on the Elk River in Cicel County, Maryland, after the Jet Ski-type watercraft he was riding collided with a 42-foot-long, high performance boat. Christopher J. Leight, 30, was treated in Baltimore at the University of Maryland’s Shock Trauma Center for his injuries where he is still in critical condition.

Leight’s cousin, 21-year-old Kristy L. Szewczak who was also involved in the boating accident, died from her injuries.

Maryland Police are investigating the crash. The driver and passengers on the boat did not sustain any injuries.

Maryland has a number of safety regulations for passengers riding personal watercrafts:

YOU MUST…
• Be at least 16 years of age to operate.
• Wear a U.S. Coast Guard approved life jacket.
• Carry a certificate of boater safety education if born on or after July 1, 1972.
• Maintain 6 knots or slower within 100 feet of another PWC, vessel, shore, pier, piling, bridge structure, abutment or people in the water

• Have PWC equipped with an operating self-circling device or kill switch.

YOU MAY NOT…
• Operate above idle speed in water less than 18 inches in depth
• Operate between sunset and sunrise.
• Jump, or attempt jumping, the wake of another vessel within 100 feet of that vessel.
• Operate within 300 feet of people in the water or surf fishing activities in the Atlantic Ocean.
• Disturb waterfowl and wildlife.

• Operate in a reckless and/or negligent manner.

Maryland Natural Resources police say that 50 of the 163 boating accidents that occured on Maryland’s waters involved personal watercrafts. At least one person was injured in each of these accidents.

Even if you abide by these safety regulations, injuries and accidents can still occur.

Boating accident leaves man critical, Phillyburbs.com, July 26, 2007
Jet Ski Accidents Common on Md. Waters, WBOC.com, July 3, 2007
Personal Watercraft Safety (PWC), Boating in Maryland

Related Web Resource:

Accident Statistics, U.S. Coast Guard

Seven People Are Hospitalized in Maryland After Route 50 Bypass Motor Vehicle Collision in Salisbury

July 24, 2007 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

A motor vehicle collision near Naylor Mill Road in Salisbury, Maryland led to several people being sent to the hospital and traffic in the area being delayed for close to an hour.

On Monday afternoon, an SUV and another motor vehicle crashed into each other in the left lane while traveling east on the Route 50 Bypass. One of the motor vehicles had tried to merge in from the right lane.

The collision forced the SUV over the median where it then overturned.

Emergency personnel from fire departments in Hebron, Salisbury, and Delmar all rushed to the scene to take the injured persons to Peninsula Regional Medical Center.

Police have charged the female driver that tried to change lanes with improper lane change. At least one accident victim had to be pulled from the accident scene.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, a car accident takes place in the United States at least once every ten seconds. A motor vehicle-related fatality takes place in this country at least once every thirteen seconds. The majority of car accidents are caused by careless or negligent drivers.

Personal injury lawsuits can be filed against a negligent driver in a car accident if it can be proven that the motor vehicle driver acted carelessly and did not conform to the reasonable standard of care required by drivers in order to prevent car collisions.

If the persons who were injured by the negligent party can prove that the negligence or carelessness was the proximate and actual cause for the injuries, then liability in the personal injury case and the obligation to pay the victims compensation may result.

An actual cause finding shows that the motor vehicle victim would not have sustained those particular injuries unless the driver had acted negligently. Proximate cause shows that the personal injuries were naturally caused by the driver’s negligence or carelessness.

Bypass collision sends seven to hospital, Delmarvanow.com, July 24, 2007
Car Accidents Overview, Justia

Related Web Resource:

National Center for Statistics and Analysis of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

Maryland Teen Driver Is Accused of Killing Elderly Male Jogger in Salisbury

July 20, 2007 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Maryland State Police say that Robert Michael Littleton, 19, struck and killed a jogger on Tuesday night while driving on Union Church Road in Salisbury.

Fred Kiviat, 67, was jogging northbound near the southbound shoulder when he was allegedly hit by Littleton, who was driving a Pontiac Firebird. Police say that the teenager’s car crossed the centerline and hit Kiviat from the back. Kiviat was declared dead at the accident scene.

Littleton faces criminal charges for being a minor in possession of alcoholic beverages and possession of a controlled dangerous substance. A blood test has been administered to Littleton, and he could end up facing other charges related to the car accident.

In accidents where a person has been injured or killed because another person acted negligently, the victim or the family of the deceased may be able to file a personal injury claim (or wrongful death lawsuit) against the liable party.

A personal injury lawsuit is a civil lawsuit. Unlike a criminal case, a civil lawsuit is a civil action that allows a plaintiff to file a complaint and obtain legal remedies. The lawsuit is argued over in a courtroom by personal injury attorneys representing both sides (the plaintiff’s side and the defendant’s side). If the plaintiff wins the lawsuit, the judge is authorized to award damages, issue injunctions, and enforce the rights of the plaintiff.

Maryland Vehicle Law says that pedestrians have a number of responsibilities on the road that can help them stay safe, including:

• Not leave a curb or place of safety and walk or run into the path of a vehicle so closely that the driver cannot yield.
• “Use due care and caution” to avoid injury.
• Follow all traffic control signals, including not crossing once a signal light turns yellow.
• Yield if not crossing in a marked crosswalk, using “greatest care for his/her own protection.”
• Walk facing traffic if no sidewalk is available.

• Yield to emergency vehicles using audible signals.

Motor vehicle drivers must:

• Check for pedestrians “where they are expected”
• Warn pedestrians with a horn if necessary

• Exercise caution towards any child or “obviously incapacitated” pedestrian.

Jogger Struck and Killed by Car; Teen Driver Faces Charges, WBOC.com, July 18, 2007
Pedestrian Safety, City of Takoma Park

Related Web Resource:

Pedestrian Safety, FHWA Safety

School Bus And Car Crash in Baltimore County And 13 Children Are Sent to Maryland Hospitals

July 18, 2007 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

1 adult and 13 children were sent to local hospitals this morning after a school bus carrying 33 children to McDonough Day Camp collided with a Cadillac at Windsor Mill Road and Mayfield Avenue in Baltimore, Maryland.

The adult—a woman—was taken to Maryland Shock Trauma Center for observation. Four of the children were taken to North West Hospital. Nine children were brought to Sinai Hospital. All of the injuries are reportedly not fatal.

2002 statistic from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration: 19,000 people were injured in bus accidents. 9,000 school bus-related injuries were reported in 2000. 16 of these injuries resulted in deaths.

Also, in 2002, the NHTSA says that “On average, over the past 11 years, school buses have been involved in over 26,000 crashes, resulting in less than 1,000 incapacitating injuries and slightly more than 7,000 non-incapacitating injuries and possible injuries to passengers.”

If a person is injured in a school bus crash because the bus driver, the bus company, another driver, or another party was negligent, the injured victim may be able to file a personal injury claim or lawsuit against the negligent party. Causes of school bus accidents can include driver negligence, a defective vehicle, improper maintenance, DUI, and inadequate safety.

Accidents involving school buses can be more complicated then injury accidents involving only cars or motorcycles, which is why it is so important to retain the services of an experienced personal injury lawyer.

School Bus Crash Sends 14 to Hospitals, Washington Post.com, July 18, 2007
Youths hurt in Balto. Co. school bus crash, Baltimore Sun.com, July 18, 2007
School Bus Fatalities and Injuries, NCSBS.org

Related Web Resources:

The National Coalition for School Bus Safety

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

Maryland Driver Indicted In the Death of Montgomery Police Officer

July 17, 2007 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Ruel Dempster, 19, has been charged in the manslaughter death of Montgomery County police officer Luke T. Hoffman.

Dempster is accused of DWI (driving while impaired) on April 25, 2007 in Wheaton, Maryland. Police officers tried to pull him over but he kept driving until he crashed his car in a parking lot. Dempster then got out of the car and ran. The officers pursued him on foot.

Officer Hoffman, who was one of the police officers pursuing Dempster through a dark area filled with trees, was struck by a police cruiser driven by Officer Stephen J. Wolsey. Hoffman died from his injuries related to the car accident.

Dempster is charged with reckless endangerment, failure to stop and provide identification after an accident involving an unattended car, fleeing and eluding police, and driving without a license.

According to police, Dempster says he did not stop when police ordered him to because he does not have a driver’s license. Police officers say that they could smell marijuana in his car. A cigar tube that contained marijuana was later discovered in Dempster’s apartment.

If you or someone you love has been critically injured in a car accident that was caused by another person, you should speak with a personal injury lawyer right away to see if you can hold the other party liable.

Legal liability in personal injury accidents stems from someone acting carelessly or negligently enough that an accident ended up taking place. The law then applies a basic rule: if someone in an accident acted less carefully than another person in the accident, the person who was less careful must pay for at least part of the damages sustained by the more careful person.

In addition to this rule of carelessness, legal liability is determined by at least one of the following simple propositions (Nolo):

• If the injured person was where he or she was not supposed to be, or somewhere he or she should have expected the kind of activity which caused the accident, the person who caused the accident might not be liable because that person had no “duty” to be careful toward the injured person.

• If the injured person was also careless, his or her compensation may be reduced by the extent such carelessness was also responsible for the accident. This is known as comparative negligence.

• If a negligent person causes an accident while working for someone else, the employer may also be legally responsible for the accident.

• If an accident is caused on property that is dangerous because it is poorly built or maintained, the owner of the property is liable for being careless in maintaining the property, regardless of whether he or she actually created the dangerous condition.

• If an accident is caused by a defective product, the manufacturer and seller of the product are both liable even if the injured person doesn’t know which one was careless in creating or allowing the defect, or exactly how the defect happened.

Man Charged in Montgomery Police Officer’s Death, Washington Post, July 14, 2007
General Rules for Proving Fault in Accidents, Nolo.com

Related Web Resource:

Types of Personal Injury Damages, Justia

Maryland Man Dies After Motor Vehicle Crashes Into His Motorcycle In Charles County

July 10, 2007 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Abraheim Mohamed Zarti of Bryans Road in Charles County, Maryland died on Friday when the motorcycle that he was riding in was hit by a 1998 Toyota Camry at Southbound Maryland Route 210 near Matthews Road. Zarti broke his neck and died from his injuries.

The Camry was driven by Sharon Leta Glisson, 67. Police say that she failed to yield the right of way when she turned in front of him. The motorcycle collision caused Zarti to be thrown from his motorcycle.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says that the number of motorcycle deaths in Maryland increased by 60%—from 53 to 85 fatalities a year—from 2001 to 2005.

When involved in motor vehicle crashes, motorcycle riders tend to be more vulnerable to serious injuries than the passengers and drivers of cars, buses, and trucks. Motorcycle riders do not wear seatbelts to keep them safe, nor do they have the body of a vehicle around them to prevent them from being thrown from their motorcycle or crushed by other vehicles.

Despite the size of their motor vehicle, motorcycle riders have the same rights as everyone else on the road.

A few common instances when A motor vehicle driver might get into an accident with a motorcycle rider:

• A motorcyclist is making a turn in the driver’s blind spot
• Hazardous road conditions may compel a motorcycle rider to turn or swerve unexpectedly
• The driver of the motor vehicle is turning left in front of the rider

Motorcycle riders who are seriously injured because of another driver’s negligence on the road should contact an experienced personal injury lawyer who can investigate your accident and file your personal injury claim for you.

If you have lost a spouse, parent, or child in a motorcycle accident that was someone else’s fault, a personal injury lawyer can file a wrongful death lawsuit for you.

Bryan’s Road Man In Fatal MotorCycle Accident in Charles County, Southern Maryland Online
Motorcycle Deaths Renew Calls for Safety Measures in Maryland, Insurance Journal.com, June 13, 2007
Tips for Sharing the Road, The Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles

Related Web Resources:

2007 Maryland Motorcycle Safety Program, MarylandMVA.com

Pool Drain Sucks Small Intestine From Six-Year-Old Girl; Maryland Residents Push For Tougher Pool Safety Laws

July 9, 2007 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Calls for better pool safety laws continue in Maryland, in the wake of a serious accident involving 6-year-old Abigail Taylor from Minnesota.

Taylor was swimming in a wading pool when the pool’s drain sucked up her intestines and ripped a hole in her rectum. The little girl passed out and fell onto the pool deck.

Abigail is being fed through a tube. She will have to wear a colostomy bag and receive nutrition through a port for as long as she lives.

An attorney representing Abigail and her family says that the drain was not covered properly.

According to Federal researchers, there are three other reported cases where a pool drain has disemboweled a person. 74 people have reportedly been trapped by drains.

Each year, one out of five children sustains serious injuries while in a swimming pool. Former U.S. Secretary James Baker, whose granddaughter drowned after getting caught in a spa drain, previously tried to pass a law making it mandatory that pools have multiple drains. The bill failed.

A child or adult can get trapped in a pool or spa drain when part of the person’s body or swimsuit (or any other clothing) gets stuck in the powerful suction.

In the US, at least 33 kids, ages 14 and under, died from 1985 to 2004 after being trapped in a pool or spa, while nearly 100 kids sustained serious injuries.

If you or someone you love has been injured in a pool/spa drain-related accident, you should contact a personal injury lawyer. There may have been a defect in the construction of the drain that led to your serious injury. Your personal injury lawyer can determine whether you or your injured loved one has grounds for a products liability case and can file a lawsuit on your behalf.

Pool Drain Pulls Small Intestine Out Of Young Girl, WJZ.com, July 6, 2007
Girl hospitalized after swimming pool drain tears out part of her intestinal tract, NCTimes.com, July 5, 2007
Former Secretary of State James Baker speaks in support of legislation intended to prevent accidental drowning, USA Safekids.org May 2, 2006

Related Web Resource:

Spas, Hot Tubs, and Whirlpools, U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission

Two Fireworks Crew Members Injured In Washington D.C.’s National Mall After Forth of July Fireworks Show

July 6, 2007 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Authorities say that two people were injured in Washington D.C. on Wednesday when fireworks that had been leftover from the big show on the National Mall went off. The injured persons are fireworks crew members. One of them was treated at the accident scene while the other worker has serious burn injuries.

In Vienna, Virgina, a D.C. suburb, seven people were hurt during the community’s fireworks exhibit. Five of the injured persons were children. Some of the fireworks had gone off and hit crowd members at an elementary school. The Fairfax County Fire Department says two of the victims sustained serious injuries.

In 2005, according to the National Fire Protection Association:

• U.S. hospital E.R’s treated 10,800 fireworks-related injuries
• Children ages 10 to 14 had the highest injury rates
• 19 out of 20 injuries were related to fireworks that consumers are legally allowed to use
• Fireworks is an extremely high-risk consumer product

The CDC’s Web site offers the following information about Fireworks-Related Injuries:

About 60% of all fireworks-related injuries in 2005 occurred between June 18 and July 18. During that time period:

• Fireworks-related injuries most frequently involved hands and fingers (31%), eyes (25%), and the head and face (20%) (Greene & Joholske 2006).

• More than half of the injuries were burns. Burns were the most common injury to all body parts except the eyes. In the eyes, contusions, lacerations and foreign bodies occurred more frequently (Greene & Joholske 2006).

• Fireworks can be associated with serious injuries such as blindness, third degree burns, and permanent scarring (Smith et al. 1996).

• Fireworks also cause life-threatening residential and motor vehicle fires (Greene & Joholske 2006).

• Between June 18 and July 18, 2005, Firecrackers (26%), sparklers (17%), and rockets (17%) accounted for most of the injuries seen in emergency departments (Greene & Joholske 2006).

• Sparklers were associated with more than half of the estimated injuries for children under five (Greene & Joholske 2006).

• Between 2000-2005, more than one third of the fireworks-related deaths involved professional devices that were illegally sold to consumers (CPSC 2006a).

If you or someone you love has injuries related to fireworks because another party acted negligently or carelessly, do not hesitate to call a personal injury law firm immediately.

Fireworks injuries in DC and suburbs, July 5, 2007
Fireworks, National Fire Protection Association
Fireworks-Related Injuries, Centers for Disease Control

Related Web Resources:

National Fire Protection Association

19-Year-Old Driver Was DUI in Maryland Car Collision that Killed 17-Year-Old Sunderland Teenager

July 5, 2007 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Kevin Stavely, a 17-year-old teenager from Sunderland, Maryland, died last Saturday in a single car accident in Huntington. Stavely was riding in a car being driven by 19-Year-old David M. Clark. According to police, Clark was driving under the influence of alcohol when the accident happened at Shelley’s Crossing and Walnut Creek Road.

Authorities say that Clark lost control of his 2000 Subaru, which left the road and hit the edge of a driveway before flying into the air, sliding across the road, hitting a curb, and landing in a ditch. Stavely, who was not wearing a seatbelt, was thrown out the back windshield. He was later declared dead at the accident scene. Clark and another passenger had both been wearing seatbelts and were not hurt in the crash.

Clark was allegedly speeding and intoxicated. He has been charged with homicide by motor vehicle while under the influence, as well as 10 other charges that include failure to reduce speed to avoid collision and DUI.

Rocky Mountain Insurance Information Association Offers the Following National Teen Driving Statistics for 2005:

• Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for teenagers.
• 16 year-olds have higher crash rates than drivers of any other age.
• 16-year-olds are three times more likely to die in a motor vehicle crash than the average of all drivers.
• 3,467 drivers age 15-20 died in car crashes in 2005.
• Drivers age 15-20 accounted for 12.6 percent of all the drivers involved in fatal crashes and 16 percent of all the drivers involved in police-reported crashes in 2005.
• Graduated drivers license programs appear to be making a difference. Fatal crashes involving 15- to 20-year olds in 2005 were down 6.5 percent from 7,979 in 1995, to the lowest level in ten years.
• The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) estimates the economic impact of auto accidents involving 15-20 year old drivers is over $40 billion.
• According to a 2005 survey of 1,000 people ages 15 and 17, conducted by the Allstate Foundation:
o More than half (56 percent) of young drivers use cell phones while driving,
o 69 percent said that they speed to keep up with traffic
o 64 percent said they speed to go through a yellow light.
o 47 percent said that passengers sometimes distract them.
o Nearly half said they believed that most crashes involving teens result from drunk driving.
• 23 percent of teen drivers killed in 2005 were intoxicated, according
to NHTSA.

• Statistics show that 16 and 17-year-old driver death rates increase with each additional passenger (IIHS).