Did the Woman Killed at Drag Race Assume the Risk of Being Struck by Crash Debris?

Spectators Assume Certain Risks at Sporting Events, But Is the Risk Foreseeable?

Lawsuit Abuse Article in NY Daily News Raises Interesting Questions

Does "Lawsuit Abuse" Exist? It Surely Does, And A Great Example is The District of Columbia Judge Who Sued His Dry Cleaner for $54 Million for a Pair of Lost Pants. But Don't Jump to Conclusions on the Issue of "Lawsuit Abuse" Just Yet

Woman Attacked by Chimp Has Reasonable Argument for Large Award Against State of Connecticut

Why State of Connecticut May HaveDropped the Ball

Lawyers Are Not the Problem With Our Health Care System

     I understand that the unseemly conduct of certain personal injury attorneys,  through actions and their cheesy advertising, make lawyers an easy target for ridicule and blame.  However, blaming lawyers for the high cost and other ills associated with our health care system is wrong and inaccurate,
     The primary complaint in this regard is that the threat of lawsuits and lawyers is the reason why doctors order "unnecessary tests".  Just what is an unnecessary test?  I wish one of our politicians who complain about these procedures would define just what an "unnecessary test", is.  In my family, and in yours, if our doctor recommends a test to rule out a desease or potential health problem with one of our family members, even though the chances that the illness is present are very, very small, we are going to accept that test.  Why do we do this?  Because we want the best care and treatment possible.  Then just what  is an "unnecessary test", then?  It is a test performed on someone other than you or a member of your family.
     So, unless you stop all testing for your family for potentially life threatening deseases when the probability that your child  or spouse actually has that illness is less than say, 10%, stop blaming the lawyers and start blaming the person looking back at you in the mirror.

Dram Shop Case Against Waterfront Bars May Be On Target

     I believe folks  need to take personal responsibility for their actions, particularly when they screw up.  The family of Cori Mitchell, a 28 year old father of four children, and their lawyer, believe that four waterfront bars along Lake Ontario, near Rochester, New York, screwed up in serving alcohol to Howard Eddy, the night he crashed his speed boat into a pier on Lake Ontario near the mouth of the Genesee River.  Eddy was highly intoxicated at the time of the accident, killing three passengers, including Mr. Mitchell.  Mitchells' family has sued the bar owners, claiming they are responsible for his wrongful death.
     The law in New York provides that any establishment that serves alcohol to a visibly drunk individual may be liable for the personal injuries, including death,  that may be caused subsequently by the drunk.  This is known as the Dram Shop Act, set forth in the General Obligations Law.
     If newspaper accounts of Mr. Eddy's actions are correct, at least four different bars served him alcohol sometime between 11:00p.m. on June 27, 2008 and 2:00a.m on June 28th, just prior to the crash.  Mr. Eddy plead guilty to manslaughter in Monroe County Court concerning that incident (he had a blood alcohol level of .20), and was sentenced to state prison.   Will Mr. Mitchell’s family win?  Probably not against all four of the bars, but he might have a good argument against  those bars who served him just prior to the boat trip.  While no amount of money will bring Mr. Mitchell back or assuage the grief of his family, perhaps it will cause bar owners and employees to think twice before serving the next Howard Eddy.
     What do you need to learn from this?  Well, if you are a bar or restaurant owner or employee, make certain you do not serve anyone whom you believe may be intoxicated.  Err on the side of caution and cut the customer off, with a smile.  For the rest of you, if a family member or loved one is injured by a drunk, either on the water or on the road, and you believe the drunk may have become intoxicated at a bar or restaurant, it is critical that a detailed, immediate investigation must be conducted of all customers and employees at the bar/restaurant upon learning of the accident.  Competent experts must also be retained. 
     By the way, under the Dram Shop Act, you can’t sue the bar or restaurant owners for your own injuries caused by your intoxication.  If you get drunk and hurt yourself, its your fault.  Deal with it.

Justice Served Again In Case Involving Death of Geneseo Student

     There was another guilty plea in Livingston County Court this week in the drinking death of SUNY Geneseo student Armen Partamian.  Daniel Welch of Erie County plead guilty to Unlawful Dealing With A Child, a misdemeanor, for which he will pay a fine and perform three weekends of community service in the County jail program.
     The original charges against Welch and two other Geneseo students, Criminally Negligent Homicide and Hazing, would have been extremely difficult for the District Attorney to prove.  While some argue that Welch and the others should not have been charged at all because of this accident, as Partamian voluntarily chose to becomehighly intoxicated, I disagree.  Providing alcohol to your friends when you know they are A.) already highly intoxicated, and B.) intent on drinking until they pass out, is reckless and dangerous and no different than providing them a loaded gun with which to play Russian roullette.
     Was justice served?  Yes, assuming the message is getting through that the type of irresponsible behavoir that Partamian, Welch and the others engaged in will not be tolerated.
     The next step?  Civil actions against the  college and the greek organizations on campus for the wrongful death of Partamian, with a claim by the injury lawyer invovled for punitive damages for knowlingly tolerating this type of behavoir in the past.   Maybe then serious action will be undertaken to stop this recklessness.