Chicago Injury Lawyer Blog

After a decade of consistent increases in Motorcyclist deaths, the statistic made a dramatic fall last year, potentially due to motorcyclists being budget conscious and riding less. (J. Lowry, Washington AP, 4/22). The study, which is “set for release Thursday, indicates a 16 percent drop in U.S. motorcycle fatalities through the first nine months of 2009 compared to the same period in the previous year. It projects at least a 10 percent decline in fatalities over the entire year, or about 530 fewer deaths.”

The study is authored by James Hedlund, a former National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration official, who is now a safety consultant. Hedlund said, “There is nothing in the data to indicate the cause of the sudden decline, but it is most likely due in part to a cutback in recreational driving by motorcyclists. When economic times get tough, recreational acitives are the first to go.

Some disagree that overall motorcycle usage is down since high gas prices have driven sales of the smaller vehicles. As a personal injury attorney in Chicago, I am please to hear that motorcycle fatalities are declining. I would, however, caution all riders to continue to operate their vehicles safely and to always wear a helmet.

Two witnesses say that crossing lights and gates were not working when an Amtrack train hit an SUV killing Katie Lunn, a dance instructor at a crossing in University Park. (Chicago Tribune, 4/18, J. Gorner). One witness, who is also a Cook County prosecutor, was driving the car in front of Lunn as they were leaving a dance competition, and asserted that the train missed her by just a few feet. She said that there were two sets of tracks and, “there was no way for a car to know the train was coming. No indication whatsoever, until it honked.”

Witnesses agreed that there was no indication that a train was approaching. The gates were not down and were not coming down, there were no warning bells, and the intersection was not well lit and those who knew it well said it was difficult to navigate. Work crews spent Friday clearing the wreckage and installing new signal arms.

This incident is disturbing to all Chigoans who cross train tracks daily, relying on signals for work, and as a personal injury attorney in Chicago, I’m hopeful that all cities will ensure that their crossing signals are functional property to avoid injuries in the future.

As a personal injury lawyer in Chicago, I am both saddened and disappointed in the West Virginia Mine explosion that caused 25 needless deaths. Quickly after the explosion, news surfaced that the Massey Energy coal mine had a less than stellar record for safety, which appear to have been more like slaps on the wrists than actual orders to change.

This week, reports suggested that “The Massey Energy coal mine where 25 people died in an explosion was cited for violating for two federal safety violations on the day of the blast” (T. Huber, AP Charleston, WV, 4/7). Mine Safety and Health Administration records do not indicate whether the citations were issued before or after the explosion, but emphasizes the carelessness surrounding the deaths.

Underground coal mines are required by law to have detailed escape maps showing escape routes, oxygen caches, and refuge chambers, and records show “one of the violations involved inadequate maps of escape routes from the Upper Big Branch mine. The other involved an improper splice of electrical cable on a piece of equipment.”

Unfortunately, a continuous pattern of rule breaking was not addressed appropriately, and an unnecessary tragedy occurred. I sincerely hope changes are made swiftly to ensure the safety of the mining industry at large.

A former FDA employee scientist asserted, “His job was eliminated after he raised concerns about the risks of radiation exposure from high-grade medical scanning.” (Matthew Perrone, AP, 3/30). Dr. Julian Nicholas told an audience of imaging specialists that he and other FDA staffers "were pressured to change their scientific opinion," by managers in the agency's medical device division. As a medical malpractice lawyer in Chicago, I am appalled that profiteering attitudes infiltrated the scientific community thereby allowing excessive imaging and exposing many to unwarranted risks.

Dr. Nicholas, who is currently a physician in San Diego, states he and eight other FDA employees raised their concerns with the division director last fall. "Scientific and regulatory review process for medical devices was being distorted by managers who were not following the laws," Nicholas said, and a month later Nicholas' position was "terminated.”

Now, the FDA is launching a campaign “to reduce radiation exposure from medical scanning. The agency is seeking input from physicians and manufacturers on additional safety controls and training to improve CT scanners and other medical imaging devices, [as] Hundreds of studies have linked certain types of radiation, including the type used in medical imaging, to cancer that can surface decades later.” Hopefully, scientific opinion will no longer be suppressed, and the FDA will take whatever steps necessary to reduce radiation exposure.

Federal health experts are now saying that additional restrictions are needed” to protect teenagers from the cancer risks of tanning beds, including a potential ban for people under 18. “ (Gaithersburg, MD, AP, 3/25). As a personal injury and products liability attorney, I strongly supports additional guidelines and limitations on tanning bed use, especially for teenagers.

As a possible solution, the Food and Drug Administration recommends “the agency put tighter controls on artificial tanning, ranging from requiring parental consent forms to banning the practice in younger teens.” This recommendation takes into consideration the lack of any demonstrated benefit of artificial tanning, something that has become a phenomenon among the high school aged population. Other experts, however, assert that at this point the evidence is not strong enough to support to total ban. Regardless, several studies have linked artificial tanning to skin cancer, thus the FDA is rightfully evaluating possible regulations.