Month: November 2008

Woman Convicted of Computer Fraud After MySpace Taunts Leads to Young Girl’s Suicide

The woman accused of using MySpace to bully a vulnerable teenage girl who subsequently killed herself has been found guilty of three misdemeanor charges. Lori Drew created a fake MySpace profile in the name of Josh Evans and used the persona to flirt with a thirteen year old girl named Megan Meier, who her daughter had previously fallen out with.

After weeks of flirting Drew then sent her message which said: “You’re a shitty person, and the world would be a better place without you in it.” About 20 minutes later, Tina Meier found her daughter hanging from her belt … Read the rest

3 LIRR Train Accidents So Far This Year Isolated Incidents or a Pattern to Beware?

There have been three accidents thus far in 2008 at Jamaica Station, the Long Island Rail Road’s busiest station. Two of the train accidents have occurred within the last week, including one on November 23, 2008 that is being considered the worst accident in 15 years.

In that accident, an eastbound train entering Jamaica Station derailed as the eighth car passed over a switch. Three rear cars derailed, one jackknifing over three separate tracks. This accident damaged 4 of the 8 tracks at Jamaica Station. The week before, on November 19, 2 westbound trains bumped each other as they pulled … Read the rest

Metrocard To The Rescue

We have written about how the New York City Transit Authority has taken to request claimants in personal injury suits produce the Metrocard that they used to board a bus or enter the subway system at the time that their accident occurred. It just happened in one of our cases yesterday morning. This past week it was reported that a murder suspect used his Metrocard to establish his alibi – that he was not present at the location of the murder.

Jason Jones was arrested, along with his brother, in a fatal shooting in the Bronx in May. He told … Read the rest

CPSC Releases Its Toy Safety Tips For Holiday Shopping

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has its list for the holidays, that is its annual holiday safety messages. Parents and gift buyers are encouraged to check it twice.  Released on November 12, 2008, CPSC, joined by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and Safe Kids Worldwide, reminded parents to be diligent when making holiday shopping choices.

For 2007, the Commission has reports of 18 toy-related deaths and CPSC staff estimates that there were about 170,100 hospital emergency-room treated toy-related injuries to children under 15. Most of the deaths were associated with airway obstruction from small toys, drowning, or … Read the rest

Recalls of Children’s Toys for Lead Paint Issues Fly Under the Radar In This Last Holiday Shopping Season Before Tough New Safety Standards for Toys Take Effect

Although the publicity was much greater last year, 45 children’s toys have been recalled due to lead paint issues so far this year. The toys include Casper the Friendly Ghost Halloween Figurines, xylophones, jewelry and classroom reading and math aids. But overall, toy recalls are down 46 percent from last year, it was announced at the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC)’s annual toy safety news conference this past week on November 12.

According to the CPSC, toy recalls had dropped to 74 in 2008 from 138 in 2007. Toy recalls in 2007 included children’s toys containing lead paint, … Read the rest

Falls: A Common Occurrence with Wildly Different Outcomes

Common falls can have an unpredictable impact on the bodies of older people. Falls are now recognized as complex, often preventable events with multiple causes and consequences, calling for a wide range of interventions, both psychological and physiological, that many patients never receive. Even falls that cause only minor can be a real warning sign that something serious is wrong.

A recent article in the New York TImes by John Leland on November 7, 2008, contained an interesting discussion about falls and the various outcomes that can result from them.Each year, 1.8 million Americans over age 65 are injured in … Read the rest

Proof of Dangers of Plastic Chemical Bisphenol A (BPA) Gets Stronger

In an earlier blog, we wrote about conflicting conclusions being drawn concerning the safety of bisphenol A, or BPA. The National Toxicology Program (NTP), which is part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), found that BPA is of “some concern” – the midpoint of a five-level scale – for developmental effects of the prostate gland and brain and for behavioral effects in fetuses, infants and children. In contrast, this past August the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) concluded that the small amounts of BPA that leach out of containers and into food or milk are not dangerous.… Read the rest

Death of New York Rangers Star Prospect Sparks Attention to Adequacy of Emergency Medical Presence at Sporting Events

When New York Rangers prospect Alexei Cherepanov suddenly collapsed on the bench during a Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) hockey game at a Moscow region arena on October 13, 2008, the lack of preparedness for such an occurrence was startling.  The player was carried from the bench area without a stretcher, and no ambulance or working defibrillator was available.  The absence of a rink-side stretcher, on-duty ambulance and working defibrillator, as well as a 15-minute wait for the arrival of a hospital ambulance, have been cited as evidence of an exceedingly poor level of organization that may have cost the young … Read the rest