Orlando Shooting Raises Questions about Gun Control Laws, Manufacturer Liability
Two Floridians were killed in accidents over the July 4th weekend
Amber Colson, 28, died on the evening of July 4. Colson was a passenger in a 2006 Chevy Silverado driven by 29-year-old Levi Jernigan, also of Crestview.
Amtrak Train Slices Car in Half in Jacksonville
Amtrak Train Slices Car in Half in Jacksonville
Whistleblower Wins Federal Ruling on Contracting Violation Allegations
A biologist who was terminated from her job at Canaveral National Seashore has won a whistleblower retaliation ruling against the U.S. Department of Interior, in Atlanta.
A Florida woman was set on fire when a cell phone battery exploded at a Hialeah gym, CBS Miami reports. Jackie Marinas says she was working out at Planet Fitness when she became the victim of a “freak accident”. “I was going to get some water, I heard the boom,” Marinas told CBS Miami. “I thought it was a firecracker. It sounded kind of loud but then I felt the heat in my arm. Somebody yelled your hair is on fire.”
Florida’s All Children’s Hospital just agreed to pay $7 million to settle a whistleblower lawsuit that was brought over allegations the hospital violated anti-kickback laws.
Brooks Robinson, a former Major League Baseball (MLB) star and baseball Hall of Famer, is planning to bring a lawsuit against the Seminole Tribe of Florida over injuries he alleges to have suffered after falling at the tribe’s casino.
Two young girls and a Good Samaritan were killed after being struck by a car in Miami, Florida, this weekend. The driver of the car may have operating under the influence of alcohol.
A Consumer Reports study found that several hospitals in South Florida scored among the lowest when it came to patient safety rankings, but a few others were among the highest-scoring. The report, which gave a score between 1 and 100 based on five safety categories, compared over 2,500 hospitals nationwide. The categories were mortality, readmission, scanning (scanned twice for the same thing), infection and communication. The scores ranged from a low of 11 to a high of 78.
An Okaloosa County, Florida, jury just returned a $14.8 million verdict over the death of one man and a woman’s severe injuries that have been blamed on a gas explosion in their home.
Deaths and serious injuries associated with cruise line swimming pools have brought attention to cruise ship swimming safety.
A tragic crash in Florida killed a Duke University student and seriously injured another. The group of students was on their way back from a spring break trip, where they spent five days canoeing and camping on the Blackwater River in Florida, when their van was hit by a pickup truck on Friday. In a news release, Duke said that 21-year old Rebecca DeNardis was taken to a hospital in Creview, Florida and pronounced dead. Another student, 21-year old Joao Correia Marques, had to be airlifted to Pensacola hospital, according to Northwest Florida Daily News. Another student remained in a hospital as of Saturday, although Duke did not released information about the student’s identity or their condition.
Passengers who sailed on the cruise ship that lost power and drifted at sea for days are looking to get compensation for their traumatic experience and residual medical problems, Detroit Press reports. About three dozen people are suing Miami-based Carnival Corp. for alleged problems such as kidney stones, post-traumatic stress disorder and respiratory problems.
On February 7, 2013 the Triumph left Galveston, Texas for a four-day cruise, with a stop in Cozumel, Mexico. On February 10, a fire broke out at 5 a.m., causing the engine to lose power and leaving the shop without most of its electricity. Passengers were forced to drift at sea for five days, surrounded by sewage in the hallways, limited water, noxious odors and extreme heat.
The lawsuit has gone to trial and passengers have been testifying before Senior U.S. District Judge Donald Graham without a jury. Testimony finished on Wednesday after the three-week trial, and Graham said he would make a decision later.
Many of the 33 passengers said that the traumatic experience caused them to have emotional issues, such as PTSD, anxiety and depression. Some passengers allege that they suffered physical problems because of the foul conditions, including leg pain, diarrhea, upper respiratory issues and even aggravated hemorrhoids. Dr. Ernest Schiodo, an expert witness for the passengers, said that the health problems were “caused by the exposure or aggravated by the exposure” due to conditions on the ship, including exposure to human waste.
Larry Poret of Lufkin, Texas brought his then-12-year old daughter Rebecca on the cruise. He says he remains scarred by how frightened she was, especially when trying to sleep in the deck in the pitch black nights. “Something that was supposed to be so much fun turned out to be a nightmare. I felt like I let my daughter down…You just can’t get it out of your mind.”
Carnival says that at least nine other Triumph lawsuits are pending in South Florida federal court. One proposed class action lawsuit is looking to represent all of the passengers, roughly 3,000 people. Carnival is the world’s largest cruise line; tickets require lawsuits to only be filed in South Florida federal court.
A 68-year old West Palm Beach man was killed Tuesday morning at around 9.15 after being struck by a crane near the intersection of South County Road and Royal Palm Way. Police say that James Brennan died at the scene after the 40-ton vehicle turned form Royal Palm Way onto southbound South County Road. According to Capt. Jeff Trylch, the crane was driven by 49-year old Christoper Geroda, of Royal Palm Beach. Apparently, Geroda did not know that he had hit somebody and kept driving to a construction site on Jungle Road.
The crane was owned by Beyel Brothers Crane and Rigging of South Florida. The company has a local office in Riviera Beach.
Keith Nardone of Keith Nardone Painting was a witness and described the horrific scene to Palm Beach Daily News. “I saw this guy fall underneath the crane. And when he fell down, he tried to grab up the middle of the crane to pull himself up, and the crane started dragging the guy. I tooted my horn and tried to holler at the guy (Geroda) to stop, and by the time I opened up my door to get out and try to run in front of him to stop him, the guy (Brennan) let go underneath the crane.” He said.
Nardone also told Palm Beach Daily News that it looked like Brennan was not in the crosswalk. He looked like he was just waiting to cross the street but somehow fell near the middle of the crane towards the back tires.
“I don’t believe the driver of the crane had any clue there was a guy there…He was just standing at the curb getting ready to move across, and I think he just fell down underneath the crane. It was a horrific sight. It was the most horrible thing I’ve ever seen in my life.” said Nardone.
The accident closed traffic between Royal Palm Way and Brazilian Avenue until about 2:40 p.m.
This is the second vehicle-pedestrian death to happen in the 300 block of South County Road since 2000. According to the police records department, a woman died that year after being hit by a vehicle 18 feet north of the crosswalk between Brazilian Avenue and South County Road.
