On Tuesday March 9,2010 the housekeeper for the Leff family of Harrison (Westchester County), New York, reports that she was driving the family's 2005 Toyota Prius when the car started accelerating on its own, causing an accident. The car went down a long driveway, crossed a road, and struck the stone wall of a property across the road.

Air bags opened, stones were thrown around, and broken pieces of the Toyota were strewn over the ground. The car's front bumper was pushed in and its hood crumpled.

The 56-year-old housekeeper escaped serious injury.

Toyota has recalled approximately 8.5 million vehicles worldwide -- more than 6 million in the United States -- because of acceleration issues in different models and braking problems in the Prius.

Police were investigating the cause of the crash, but a floor mat issue claimed by Toyota to be behind many of the recalls did not appear to contribute to the accident.

This accident could have been much more serious; thankfully, the car did not strike any other vehicle.

Monday, March 8, 2010 at approximately 1 AM, Nedd Keon, age 17, was standing on the street when struck by a stolen car driven by three or four joyriding teenagers, who ran away like cowards, leaving the young man for dead.

The out-of-control green 1996 Honda Accord was weaving all over White Plains Road in the Bronx, crashed, and flipped over and onto Keon. He was pronounced dead at the accident scene.

Reportedly, the Honda Accord was stolen early Saturday from one Martiza Molina, while she was at a baby shower. She was horrified when cops told her that her car was involved in a fatal hit-and-run accident .

Police are investigating, and searching for the occupants of the car.

Monday, March 8, 2010, at around 1:35 in the afternoon, 29 year-old construction worker José Jerez accidentally lost his footing while working some 100 feet above ground level, on the fourth floor of One World Trade Center in Manhattan. He dropped fourteen feet onto a wooden floor.

There was a kerfuffle between Port Authority Police and first responders from the New York City Fire Department over access to the injured man, part of an ongoing turf war between the two agencies. Apparently, Port Authority personnel - acting territorially - restricted Fire Department access to the accident site.

Port Authority rescuers lifted Jerez out of the building in a wire basket and lowered him to the ground; a Fire Department ambulance then rushed him to New York City's Bellevue Hospital where he was treated for serious injury to his neck and back injuries.

Comment:  Construction workers are supposed to be protected from falls from heights by New York State's Labor Law, which has special legal protections from injury for those laboring on scaffolds, ladders, etc. The New York State Labor Law places an extra duty of care on building owners, and contractors doing construction, and using workers that are above ground level. I wait and see if we will hear how this accident happened and if any safety rules were ignored, or any safety devices failed to function correctly.

On Sunday March 7, 2010 at 2:45 PM in the parking lot outside Pyeong Ahn Presbyterian Church in Brooklyn, a 40 year-old woman was killed and four people injured when an S.U.V. Suddenly backed up into them. The four others hurt by the car were, two of whom are children, were taken to Lutheran Medical Center in Brooklyn.

After hitting the five people, the car crashed into a fence at the back of the parking lot, then struck a church van. The vehicle, a black 2010 Mercedes, was driven by a 72-year-old man who dropped off his passengers at the church. After the accident he remained at the scene. No arrests are expected; authorities are treating this occurrence as an accident.

Jennifer Esposito, age 39, has brought a medical malpractice lawsuit against her plastic surgeon, David Anthony Colbert, M.D., and his medical practice, the New York Dermatology Group. Her attorney claims that a laser treatment meant to "even out" her skin tone left the pretty blonde with red stripes on her face.

According to Esposito's lawyer, before the botched surgery she was quite the socialite, with a large wedding reported in The New York Times, her own interior design business, and a husband with a high-powered job at Goldman Sachs.

The lawsuit claims that because of her facial burns - strange, splotchy, striped patterns on both sides of her face - Esposito can't participate in social events critical to her business and to her husband's success.

Her lawyer claims that patients are briefly seen by a dermatologist, then without the patient's permission passed off to a non-physician esthetician who performs the procedure. Her attorney also claims that Esposito suffered a "permanent loss of pigment to her face as a result of the destruction of pigment-producing cells, and can never again expose her face to the sun."

Naturally, a spokesperson for the doctor denied wrongdoing.

The date: May 30, 2008

The place: 333 East 91st Street, New York City

The who: James Frank Lomma and his company, New York Crane, New York City's largest construction crane company. At the time of the crane accident discussed in this blawg, Lomma owned 11 of the 25 tower cranes in operation in New York City.

The what (then): Two of Lomma's cranes collapsed onto Manhattan sidewalks in terrible, horrible accidents, killing nine people overall, and injuring more. The second crane accident crushed to death and killed 27 year-old construction worker Ramadan Kurtij, who supported his family back home. The operator of the crane Donald Leo, age 30, was also killed, three weeks before he was to be married.

The what (now): Sources report that Lomma is about to be charged by the Manahttan District Attorney with manslaughter for the second accident, for using a crane that was so cheaply refurbished that it broke in half, dropping the crane boom, cab and engine twenty stories, with the crane operator, Donald Leo, trapped inside. Allegedly, the manslaughter charge in part concerns a poorly-done weld in the crane's "turntable," the bearing which allows the crane's cab and boom to pivot.

Civil injury lawyers for the estates of both victims have gathered records showing that when the "turntable" was severely damaged at a high-rise job on West 46th Street in May 2007 Lomma opted for a cheap repair.

The personal injury attorney for two of the families has argued in legal papers that Lomma considered an offer by an Ohio company, Avon Bearings, to weld the crack for $120,000 that wuold take about six and one-half months. Instead, Lomma accepted an offer by a Chinese firm, RTR Bearing, to weld the crack for $20,000 in three months.

Reportedly, RTR did the weld reluctantly:  after advising Lomma that the Avon Bearings was equipped to do a safer job, and after Lomma came up with more money. Lomma also ignored warnings from a New York City Department of Buildings inspector that the weld would be unsafe, the accident lawyer has said.

I am a New York City personal injury and accident lawyer. I handle injury cases in Queens, the Bronx, Brooklyn and around the greater metropolitan area. I do not represent people in matrimonial disputes. Divorce fights can get very mean and nasty and people tend not to be happy no matter what the result; usually because they are trying to hurt and destroy each other.

The case I want to blawg about today is in today's New York Law Journal (March 5, 2010) and comes out of Suffolk County, Long Island. The title of the case is changed in the Law Journal to only show the parties' initials - M.T. v. P.T. - to protect their identities. It's for you to decide if you think the husband (or almost former husband) is a dirtbag piece of crap.

Mr. and Mrs. T. settled every issue between them except their obligations as guarantors of college student loans taken out by the children while the T.'s were married.

The two married in 1984. They have four children. Two are over age 21 and considered "emancipated," or no longer their parents' direct financial responsibility. The third is 20 years-old, has a job and lives with her boyfriend. The fourth is a high school senior.

So what's the problem? Seems that the T.'s co-signed three of their kids' college loans. Mr. T. co-signed more of the loans than Mrs. T. and, now that they're getting divorced, wants the Court to order that Mrs. T. must stand as co-signer on some of the loans guaranteed by Mr. T., to even things out - because if the T.'s had stayed married they would have handled the loans as a team. Fair? Now pay close attention.

FIRST: Mrs. T. makes the most excellent point that the T.'s never intended to pay off the loans. They only guaranteed the loans and would only have to pay if one of the T.'s children defaulted in paying off his or her loan, and this hasn't happened.

SECOND: $100,000 was given towards the children's educational expenses and $70,000 was used to pay off marital debt, all this money from a prior lawsuit brought by Mrs. T. for medical malpractice suffered by her. Mrs. T. is permanently disabled and in need of braces to stand up, although she mostly uses a wheelchair. She needs her malpractice award money to maintain her living and medical expenses, which the divorce judge notes in her decision, "both of which are extraordinary."

THIRD: Mr. T. had helped himself to over $85,000 in marital funds and gifts without Mrs. T.'s knowledge or consent.

Dear Readers: You'll be pleased to know that the judge DENIED Mr. T.'s request.

Basically, a child can be accidentally strangled by a hood with a drawstring. Waistband string must be short, or it can catch in closing bus or car doors, or playground equipment and such. How many children must be hurt before the companies importing these items get it? The latest U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, announced voluntary recalls:

FIRST:

About 2700 children's hooded sweatshirt sets with drawstrings, manufactured in Vietnam for LELE & Company Inc., of Los Angeles, California.

Hazard: The sweatshirts have a drawstring through the hood, which can pose a strangulation hazard to young children.

Description: This recall involves hooded sweatshirts sold under the "Maria Elena" and "Eddie" brand names; sold in children's sizes 8 through 14.

Sold at: Dd's Discount, Frine Solarzvo and Toro Wholesale stores in California, El Carrusel and Hana Hosiery in Georgia, Lacala Design in Illinois, and La Revoltosa stores in Florida from August 2008 through August 2009 for between $6.50 and $9. Hopefully these garments haven't found their way into New York.

SECOND:

About 75 boys' hooded jackets with drawstrings manufactured in China and sold by importer Ten West Apparel, of New York City, New York.

Hazard: The children's jackets have drawstrings through the hood which can pose a strangulation hazard to children.

Description: This recall involves Ten 1 West boys' jackets with a drawstring through the hood. They were sold in size 10/12 and are black cotton with a white fleece lining. "TEN 1 WEST" is printed on a hang tag on the center of the back neck.

Sold at: Burlington Coat Factory stores nationwide from November 2006 through September 2009 for about $12.

From: New York attorney Gary E. Rosenberg (personal injury and accident attorney and lawyer; serving Brooklyn Queens Bronx; Bronx accident attorney)

Many jobs today are inherently dangerous. Roadwork construction, home installation, stockroom supply and other laborious jobs can often result in at least one injury per year among employees. Other jobs may not have inherent or obvious risks to them, but that does not make you immune from getting hurt on the job by an unfortunate accident. Sometimes accidents are serious and employers fail to provide their employees with worker's compensation. This is when an injury attorney can step in to get you money you need to pay for medical bills and loss of work. If you live in New York in the Bronx, Brooklyn, or Queens area, and have received an injury in workplace accidents, you need to contact a New York City personal injury attorney immediately.

The reason to decide to look into an attorney when workplace accidents have occurred is because they can close the gap between your expensive medical bills along with your leave of absence and your employer's unwillingness to grant you compensation. The injury sustained is inconsequential. You may have suffered a fracture of a bone, concussion, or other injury. Also, the manner in which the accident occurred is also not critical. As long as you were injured on the job, it does not matter whether the employer was directly at fault or not. You can still receive your deserved compensation if you work closely with a qualified New York personal injury attorney.

While almost any injury sustained in workplace accidents can be deserving of compensation, consider the severity of it before you hire a lawyer. Serious accidents are the ones that will make hiring an injury attorney worth your time and effort. You will be much more likely to receive compensation for a fracture, for example, then simply a twisted ankle. Remember also that your worker's compensation insurance should be able to pay at least a portion of your rehabilitation and salary during your time out of work. For additional compensation when you have been hurt, you need a lawyer to represent you.

A qualified attorney will be able to deliver excellent representation in your workplace accidents case. The New York area is not devoid of such accidents. Because of this, you need to work closely with a Queens, Brooklyn or Bronx personal injury attorney that you can trust, one that has been in practice for many years and won their clients many cases. For a free initial consultation, visit the online offices of a reliable local law firm at www.moneyforpain.com.

An as yet unnamed 34 year-old Bronx man and his wife were moving into a building located at 1749 Grand Concourse , Bronx, New York late Monday night, March 1, 2010. The man was carrying a mattress when he backed towards an elevator without looking, but when the elevator door opened, but there was no elevator car. The man plunged to his death down the open elevator shaft.

The man was taken to Saint Barnabas Hospital in the Bronx and pronounced dead early Tuesday morning.

Authorities are investigating.

Amiri Zeqiri, age 17, was taking out the garbage behind a Dunkin Donuts in Smithtown, New York, on Sunday night, February 28, 2010 when he fell in an open cesspool and died as a result of the accident.

Usually there was a cover over the cesspool, which is an in-ground sewer pit that collects waste from toilets and sinks.

Zeqiri's younger cousin, who also worked at the donut shop, went looking for him when he didn't return from throwing out the trash. The cousin saw the victim in sewage water and ran for help. By the time he got back to the cesspool Zeqiri, who lived in Central Islip, had slipped below the surface.

Suffolk County police officers pulled the dead teen from the cesspool and took him to a nearby hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Authorities are investigating why the cover was left off the cesspool.

There was no immediate statement from Dunkin' Donuts.

Comment: There have been several cesspool drownings in Long Island over the years. Most New York City neighborhoods have connections to a central sewer system-so no cesspools.

Ice falling from the 32^nd floor of New York's 37-floor Sony Building, located at 550 Madison Avenue in Manhattan, struck and shattered two 3' x 5' glass panels at around midnight on Saturday February 27, 2010.

At the time, in progress was a party celebrating the Jewish holiday of Purim.

Some fifteen partygoers were injured; some of those hurt were taken to New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center and Roosevelt Hospital..

The owners of the building were cited by The New York City Buildings Department for failing to properly maintain the building. The Buildings Department had issued an advisory to the building owners in New York City on Friday to remind them to properly clear away snow or ice that might fall off after the snowstorm.

Comment: The building's owners could be fined up to $25,000. And of course we expect those injured to bring lawsuits. Three are always lawsuits by those hurt in accidents such as this.

Giving birth is an extremely traumatic event for both the mother and the infant, even when everything goes perfectly according to plan. Complications are much rarer now than in days when medical procedures were less refined and advanced. However, birth injury is still not unheard of today. There are many causes that can lead to birth injury, one of which is simply a twist or compression in the umbilical cord, which causes a deprivation of oxygen to the child as it enters a world filled with air. This is an incident that can occur before the baby has even left the womb, meaning it is completely out of the doctor's control. Other reasons, such as an improper use of tools, misread of fetal strips or other negligent acts of medical malpractice are enough to, perhaps, cause you to consider contacting a local personal injury or medical malpractice attorney if you live in New York.

Being the mother of a child that is born hurt due to a medical accident is devastating. Caring for an infant that has suffered a birth injury can be both difficult and expensive. Speaking with a lawyer who specializes in birth injury law is your best bet for receiving top-quality service for your money. Whether you reside in the Bronx, Brooklyn or Queens, inside or outside of New York City, a local personal injury attorney will be the right kind of lawyer - one with experience working on birth injury cases.

Locating a lawyer who works with these kinds of accidents and injuries can make the difference between affording proper care for your family and being required to somehow foot the bill yourself or through Public Assistance. The quality of life your infant can enjoy by receiving care quickly can be made possible when you receive proper compensation from those at fault. From an experienced attorney who works with a long-standing legal office, you can benefit from strong legal representation regarding your child's injury.

Birth injury is a serious matter that affects thousands of new mothers in the New York area. If your baby has been hurt due to malpractice or other medical accidents, neglect or carelessness, now is the time to act and increase the chances that your infant will make a financial recovery without you losing your life savings. Simply speaking to a lawyer who is employed by a renowned medical malpractice-birth injury legal office will not cost you anything, and obtaining a free consultation is the first step to getting you the compensation you deserve. Visit www.moneyforpain.com to learn more and to receive your free, initial consultation.

First Dept.

Admitted to Bar: 2001

Discipline imposed: Attorney resigned from (quit) the bar, giving up his law license; his resignation accepted by the Court on 2/18/2010 nunc pro tunc (retroactive) to 11/30/2009.

This naughty lawyer case starts with juicy press coverage and an FBI press release on October 15, 2009.

FBI "Operation Bad Deeds" charged 41 defendants in New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and North Carolina - including six lawyers, three mortgage brokers, and seven loan officers - with fraudulently obtaining $64 million in home mortgages on more than 100 properties in eight separate cases.

Attorney Roy was only named in one of the cases: United States v. Danny Siony, et al. In Siony, four defendants were charged in a twelve-count indictment involving over $6.8 million in allegedly fraudulent home mortgage loans obtained through a mortgage brokerage firm called Joshua Funding Corp.

Lawyer Roy and others allegedly recruited "straw" (fake) buyers for properties won at foreclosure and other types of auctions. Home mortgage loans were obtained by submitting falsified documents and earnings statements, and phony title reports and contracts of sale.

The criminal defendants told their lenders that a company controlled by one of the defendants. named Australian Open. was selling the properties to the straw buyers (at inflated prices), when Australian Open did not hold title to the properties at that time and, in most instances, never held title to the properties at all.

Once the defendants had obtained home mortgage loans for the straw buyers based on the inflated price, the loan proceeds were used to pay off the auction price, the properties transferred to the straw buyers, and the rest of the money split among the defendants.

Attorney Roy was paid to represent some of the straw buyers at New York real estate closings and obtained a power of attorney for at least one of the straw buyers he recruited to the scheme and signed documents on the straw buyer's behalf.

Layer Roy resigned his law license before he could be disbarred. The Appellate Division (higher court) noted:

In June 2009, the Departmental Disciplinary Committee charged respondent with 38 charges, covering six matters, including two unrelated real estate transactions in which he represented the seller. In the first real estate matter, respondent inflated the sale price to obtain a higher mortgage and pocketed the excess. In the second, he allegedly converted client escrow funds.

After his arrest, lawyer Roy tried to stop the attorney disciplinary process until the Federal prosecution against him ended, but he was denied.

After a disciplinary hearing on November 10, 2009, rather than face the lawyer disciplinary authorities, attorney Roy resigned.

On June 16, 2009, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) warned consumers to stop using and to discard three zinc-containing Zicam nose sprays. The products may cause a loss of sense of smell.

This warning does not involve oral zinc tablets and lozenges taken by mouth. Dietary zinc is also not subject to this warning. Zinc is an important trace mineral that is an essential part of the human diet. Among other things, Zinc is needed for a healthy immune system (the body's defense), and is critical for normal growth. Zinc primarily comes from food. The best way to get the daily requirement of essential vitamins and minerals is to eat a balanced diet that contains a variety of foods.

The FDA took action because it received more than 130 reports of anosmia--the loss of sense of smell--associated with use of Zicam products.

Many people who experienced a loss of sense of smell say that the condition occurred with the first dose, although some people have reported loss of sense of smell after later doses. FDA is concerned that the loss of sense of smell may be permanent.

A New York City man is suing Mattrix Initiatives, the maker of Zicam Cold Remedy Nasal Spray in New York City Federal Court for $75 million. The products liability case claims that Zicam is a negligently designed product, and that it took away his senses of smell and taste.

Plaintiff Paul Buck Jr. said he used the over-the-counter zinc-filled spray from 2006 to 2009, and now suffers from "anosmia" - a loss of taste and smell, according to his Manhattan lawsuit.

The litigation claims that Buck worked for a food vendor at New York City's Metropolitan Museum of Art; as such, he his senses of taste and smell for his job.

The lawsuit alleges that the defendant described the spray as "doctor recommended," "safe and effective" and a "patented homeopathic" remedy, all terms designed to "lull consumers.