Miscellaneous News

TRAFFIC SAFETY – GOOGLE, INC. WORKING ON SELF DRIVING CARS

September 26, 2012 | by Robert Walch

In an attempt to try to reduce California car accidents in the future, self-driving cars are now allowed on California roads. Jerry Brown, the governor of California, just signed a bill that allows the testing of self-driving cars on California streets.

Yesterday, Gov. Brown, at a ceremony held at Google’s headquarters located in Mountain View California, signed into law, SB1298, which establishes guidelines for “autonomous vehicles” to be tested and operated on California roads. The bill was sponsored by State Senator Alex Padilla (Democrat from Pacoima). According to the Los Angeles Times, Senator Padilla said, “We are stepping on the accelerator when it comes to the Google Car.”

It is well known that the cause of most car and other motor vehicle accidents is human error. It is believed that “autonomous car technology” can reduce the number of accidents and, therefore, the number of injuries and deaths on California roads.

Google, Inc. co-founder Sergey Brin stated, “These vehicles have the potential to avoid accidents … We can save lives, create jobs and reduce congestion. I expect the self-driving cars will be far safer than human driven cars.”

This project is not exclusively Google’s. Caltech and others also have been working to develop cars that use radar, video cameras and lasers to safely navigate roads and safely operate in traffic conditions without any human assistance. Their contention is that these computer-controlled vehicles should eventually drive more safely than human operators.

Consumer Protection – Jury Scam

June 7, 2012 | by Robert Walch

There is a new identity theft scam preying on potential jurors that you should tell your friends and relatives about. As you may know, our judicial system, whether criminal (to decide whether a person is guilty or not guilty of a crime beyond a reasonable doubt) or civil (usually to decide monetary damages by a preponderance of the evidence for a civil harm or injury, such as damages resulting from a car accident), relies upon a sworn body of people convened in court to render an impartial verdict on a question or questions submitted to them by the court. This body of people or group, consisting of laypersons and not professional jurors, is called the jury.

Unfortunately, criminals have created a new scam or con, at the core of which is jury service. The con involves calling someone and advising there is a warrant out for that person’s arrest for not reporting as required for jury service. The person obviously protests and is scared, worried and caught off guard. The caller then explains that perhaps there is an error and it can be cleared up by providing the person’s full name and, for identification, their date of birth, Social Security number and one credit card number. This has been verified by the FBI.

This con is spreading fast so be prepared should you get this call. Most of us
take those summonses for jury duty very seriously, but enough people skip
out on their civic duty that this new kind of fraud has become prevalent.
The caller may claim to be a jury coordinator, city clerk or other official. If you
protest that you never received the summons for jury duty, the scammer
then asks you for your Social Security number and date of birth so he or
she may verify the information and cancel the arrest warrant. Give out
any of this information to this unknown caller and your identity was just stolen.
The fraud has been reported so far in 11 states, including California, New York,
Illinois, Colorado, Arizona and more. This con is especially
insidious because the callers use intimidation over the phone to try to bully
people into giving information by pretending they are with the government or court
system.

“Hot Coffee” – Documentary Exposes How Corporations Try to Deny You a Fair Trial

May 23, 2012 | by Robert Walch

We previously posted about the “Hot Coffee” documentary by Susan Saladoff, which exposes how corporations, like big insurance companies, spend millions of dollars so that injury victims do not receive fair trials and are not fairly compensated for their personal injury damages.

They have used one case, the “McDonalds coffee” case, to brainwash the general public (including jurors and politicians) into believing there are too many frivolous lawsuits and that lawsuits cause prices and insurance rates to go up.

For the truth, please watch this great documentary. You can watch it on HBO GO, or purchase the DVD on Netflix, from the “Hot Coffee” website or Amazon. It will also be able to be downloaded from iTunes in July.

“Hot Coffee” Documentary Addresses Corporate Brainwash of Consumers

May 22, 2012 | by Robert Walch

Recently, I had a client tell me that she felt there were too many “frivolous” lawsuits filed in the United States. When I asked her to back up her statement, she referred to the lady who sued McDonalds after suffering injuries from spilled coffee. When I asked for other examples, my client could not think of any, but still had this belief, from this McDonalds coffee case, that people can cause harm to themselves and receive millions of dollars. My client told me that she thinks that lawsuits such as these drive up the costs for everyone else.

Unfortunately, this is a commonly held belief of many Americans, who hear about a sensational case on the news, and think there is an epidemic. This is no different than people watching the news, hearing about one crime, and immediately concluding that there is too much crime and feeling unsafe, even if overall crime is going down.

The media does not report about how much safer our lives are due to the fact companies are held financially responsible for their unsafe behavior. Without this regulation, companies would act with impunity, neglecting the safety of consumers, as can be seen by the unsafe business practices in many other countries. Instead, sensational stories get the headlines and attention.

Susan Saladoff’s documentary film, “Hot Coffee,” attacks the brainwashing that corporate America, especially very large billion dollar insurance companies, has inflicted on the American public. This film gives us the facts that many people do not know about the McDonalds coffee case. For instance, many people forget that this one incident occurred in 1992, over 20 years ago, but they still think that it represents an epidemic of lawsuits. Further, prior to this incident, McDonalds received hundreds of complaints that they were serving their coffee too hot, but did nothing to rectify it.

[For all the facts of the McDonalds coffee case, including answers to frequently asked questions, click here.]

St. Patrick’s Day – Los Angeles Car Accident Warning

March 16, 2012 | by Robert Walch

This Saturday is Saint Patrick’s Day, a holiday recognizing Saint Patrick, a patron saint of Ireland. As the holiday is often associated with the lifting of restrictions on drinking alcohol, this is a day that many people will be drinking throughout Los Angeles County. This holiday, combined with the rain showers that are expected throughout the weekend, can lead to heightened car accident dangers on the roads.

We at Gary K. Walch, A Law Corporation, wish to remind our readers to be extra cautious when driving this weekend. As with most holiday weekends, there will be people drinking and driving. It is important to remember that no matter how short the trip, or how costly the transportation, never drink and drive. If you plan on drinking, make sure you have a designated driver or can arrange for a taxi or other transportation. The cost of a taxi is always cheaper than a DUI arrest or, even worse, a drunk driving car accident.

If you are intoxicated and cause a Los Angeles car accident, not only will you be financially responsible for any personal injuries you cause, you may also be subject to criminal liability, which may include jail or prison time. It is anticipated that the Los Angeles Police Department will set up checkpoints throughout the city to try to preemptively stop drunk drivers, before they cause a car accident in Los Angeles.

Driver Convicted in Truck Accident Deaths on Angeles Crest Highway

July 29, 2011 | by Robert Walch

Marcos Costa, the Brazilian truck driver who was blamed for a tragic truck accident on Angeles Crest Highway, has been convicted of vehicular manslaughter, for the death of two Palmdale residents who were in a bookstore when they were hit by the big rig truck.

In addition to the two people who died in the La Cañada Flintridge truck accident, other vehicles were also hit by the truck. The jury found Costa not guilty on the 2nd degree murder charges he faced, which would have carried much steeper prison sentences.

According to the Los Angeles Times and Glendale News Press, criminal charges were filed in the truck accident case because the driver allegedly ignored warnings about the brakes on the truck and also went down a steep path that was not appropriate for big rig trucks. Costa was also convicted of reckless driving causing injury.

Be Very Careful — Avoid Traffic Tickets in Los Anageles

January 26, 2011 | by Robert Walch

A client of ours just forwarded to us an email based on information from the Los Angeles Times about California using traffic ticket revenue from Los Angeles, the San Fernando Valley and other areas to collect money to try to balance its budget. The email states:

THE LOS ANGELES TIMES HAS AN ARTICLE ON THE SUBJECT:

Please be extremely careful in your driving and car registration & insurance matters. State of California is broke and it is trying hard to squeeze all of us hard to collect money.

Effective immediately, if you do not stop at a red light, be ready to pay $436 in fines or if you pass a school bus with flashing red signals, you will be charged $616. The state of California is going for blood, so be extra careful in driving. It has been reported that the Calif. Highway Patrols are under pressure to issue a lot more tickets than last year with at least 30% increase in fines over 2009, so beware of radar guns, highway and traffic cameras and the tougher enforcement of parking rules.
Just for your info, the next time you park in the handicapped zone, even for a minute, you could be looking at almost $1000 in parking tickets, so don’t do it!

Traffic Ticket Fines (Effective 01/06/2011)

VC 12814.6 $214 Failure to obey license provisions.

VC 14600(A) $214 Failure to notify DMV of address change within 10 days [Note: The fine may be reduced with valid proof of correction].

Officials Aim to Reduce Glendale Car Accidents by Placing Traffic Signs in English, Spanish and Armenian

January 13, 2011 | by Robert Walch

City officials are trying a new measure to help reduce pedestrian and car accidents in Glendale, they are putting signs in English, Spanish and Armenian. One such sign, which says “LOOK” in all three languages, will be placed at numerous intersections, a warning to pedestrians to look for oncoming traffic before crossing the street.

According to the Glendale Police Department, there were 2,300 Glendale car accidents last year. Of those collisions, there were 660 that resulted in injuries. There were also six fatal Glendale accidents last year. Of the 2,300 car accidents, 64 involved pedestrians.

Glendale Mayor, Ara Najarian, said that the city has reached its limit of such accidents. Najarian said that traffic safety needs to be one of the communities top priorities because “we are losing children, elderly and disabled people, and babies in baby carriages are getting hit, and drivers who are the ones who failed to yield are having their lives ruined.”

This street sign campaign to reduce Glendale pedestrian accidents has also reportedly been used in both England and Ireland.

Seat Belt Use Rises and California Car Accident Deaths and Injuries Decrease

January 6, 2011 | by Robert Walch

A new report from the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows that California has the second highest rate of seat belt users in the United States, only slightly behind Oregon. According to the report, 93.2% of Californians say they always use a seatbelt. This seatbelt data shows that California car accident injuries and deaths have been reduced due to increased seatbelt use.

California is one of the states with strict seatbelt enforcement laws, where a driver can be pulled over when police see an occupant of the vehicle without a seatbelt on.

The Center for Disease Control’s report also found that between 2001 and 2009, the injury rate for occupants of a motor vehicle dropped by 16%. This correlates with the report’s finding that seatbelt use rose 4% from 2002 to 2008.

In news that would come as a surprise to many, the report showed that in 1982, only 11% of residents of the United States said they used seatbelts. This huge increase in seatbelt use is a big reason why car accident deaths and serious injuries have decreased. This should cause a reduction in California wrongful death and injury claims.

Using data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the CDC said in its report that in 2009, 450 lives would not have been lost if vehicle occupants were wearing their seatbelts. In addition, 12,000 car accident injuries would have been prevented.

California Injury Lawyers Launch Blog

November 11, 2010 | by Gary Walch

After handling injury claims for over 30 years in Los Angeles and surrounding counties, including Ventura, Orange and San Bernardino and throughout California, we are launching our blog site to give assistance to consumers in California who have been the victim of someone’s negligent conduct.

One never knows when an unfortunate accident will occur. Look at the people on the Carnival cruise ship Splendor who thought they were off for a fun filled cruise down the California and Mexico coasts, when a fire broke out stranding their ship off the Mexican coast. Nearly 4500 people were stranded. Fortunately, as this is being prepared, we learn the passengers and crew are happily disembarking in San Diego.

One woman passenger was quoted, “It’s been like a nightmare. There’s been no food, no power, no electricity, no flushing toilets. I spent the night tossing and turning in my cabin in the dark.”

Another passenger, Joey Noriega, told ABC’s “Good Morning America” on Thursday, “We’re eating spoiled turkey sandwiches and warm milk and warm yogurt. Everything smells like it’s spoiled. … Nothing’s cooked. It’s all sandwich meat. It’s disgusting. You’re afraid to eat it ’cause it’s been left out and touched by everybody else on the ship.”

Fortunately, the United States Coast Guard was there to escort the nearly 1000 foot ship back to San Diego, and the United States Navy flew in emergency food for the passengers and crew. It also was reported that many passengers helped those in need and crew members did their best to assist, including cleaning cabins by flashlight. You can read more about this on msnbc.com.