Illinois Woman Dies in Pedicab Accident

Pedicabs are common scenery at downtown San Diego. Surely, pedicab is enjoyable but it is hard and dangerous as well.

Moreover, pedicab drivers are mostly young and untrained.

On July 4th, a pedicab accident took the life of 60-year-old Sharon Miller, a retired teacher from Sherman, Illinois. Miller was in San Diego to attend the National Education Association convention.

Authorities said that Miller flew off from the pedicab when the driver, 23-year-old Sukru Safa Cinar swerved quickly. Cinar was driving unsafe and performing serpentine pattern which lead to Miller being swayed from side to side.

Police said the accident occurred on an area where pedicabs and bicycles were prohibited.

Cinar may have a permit to drive a pedicab but he could still face a misdemeanor manslaughter charge.

Other passengers said that some pedicabs have seatbelt while others have not. Some travel for 5 miles an hour while others exceed. Some have a maximum of 3 passengers while others have more. This only means that a pedicab as means of transportation must be regulated. Certain standards must be implemented to prevent further waste of life.

For the victims of negligent operation of pedicab, personal injury lawyers could ensure that you are properly compensated and your rights are protected.

Los Angeles Braces for Jackson’s Memorial

It is official, music icon Michael Jackson’s memorial will be held on Tuesday at the Staples Center in downtown Los Angeles.

AEG Live, Jackson’s promoter (also incidentally the owner of Staples Center) and the Jackson family publicist have announced that a motorcade will go from Forest Lawn Mortuary in L.A. to the Staples Center complex in downtown Los Angeles.

According to Randy Phillips, AEG's chief executive, it will be a public memorial and that about 11,000 tickets will be given away free of charge for the 20,000-seat arena. Actual distribution of the tickets however, was not discussed.

While fans who hoped for a public memorial at the famed Neverland ranch are coping with the disappointment (and the fear of not getting a last look at the musician), Los Angeles officials are fretting over what may be a huge and potentially uncontrollable outcome.

In fact, Los Angeles City Councilman Dennis Zine has said the Jackson family should consider delaying the public memorial to allow more time to plan. Given the current financial meltdown of California, he also said the city can't afford to pay police overtime.

If the nationwide and worldwide outpouring of grief for the singer’s death is any indication, people will be coming in at droves and in hundreds of thousands at the memorial just to see the late great Jackson.

He also said that the memorial announcement took the worst timing as things are also busy over the July Fourth holiday weekend. Zine said that, “If you can imagine 100,000 people show up and you have 20,000 capacity (at the Staples Center), there is not sufficient room. Now you have a crowd-control problem.”

Indeed, with a motorcade also in the works, traffic is bound to be equally horrible as well. The organizers and local authorities will have to pull something short of miracle to keep things peaceful and orderly.

Hopefully, the activities for Tuesday as well as the crowd will not be anything like the aftermath riot following the Lakers’ championship. Authorities will have to be on the look-out, not just for unruly crowds but also for people who may take advantage of the situation by inciting fights, doing property damage, or even drinking and stealing.

Emotional situations such as the death of a music legend can bring out the best and the worst out in people. Since the number of actual policemen on duty will be far outstripped by the masses, the fans (bystanders, onlookers and the simply curious) should pay their respects to the legend by abiding the law and avoiding accidents.

The Awful Truth

Trains are one of the primary means of transport for millions of Americans but after the deadly DC train crash, the awful truth is out.

More than a third of the trains of the largest transit systems are in poor or marginal condition. In fact, according to a report from the National Transportation Safety Board, these old subway cars lack “survivable space” and experience the worst damage.

It can be recalled that the train which caused the crash was an older 1000 Series running on automatic mode when it hit the stopped train. In one report, 50 feet of the 75-foot length of the lead car of the moving train was mangled.
All of the nine fatalities from the crash came from the moving train.

NTSB has warned Metrorail, as far back as 2006, to phase out the old fleet because of concerns over how well it would fare in a crash and how it has a tendency to compact in intense collisions. However, because NTSB’s power is merely regulatory and investigative, it lacks the capacity to force the implementation of its recommendations.

But transit officials say the lack of money has constrained them from implementing NTSB’s recommendation. It was estimated to need $888 million to replace the 296 rail cars that were built more than 30 years ago. It also claimed that since they couldn’t afford to replace the older models, they’ve taken steps to keep the train cars in good condition.

Nine people have died and more than seventy other passengers were injured after the crash. The Metro's board has approved of a $250,000 hardship fund to provide financial relief for victims of the collision, to assist them with their medical, funeral and other immediate expenses.

It is an unfortunate fact that safety is now a luxury for train passengers. Because of the high costs of facility and train upgrade, there is a high risk for railway accidents.

Commuters now have to pay the price for these transit system’s inaction but in the end, what Metrorail have cut in costs will become victims’ compensation.

Jury Deliberates in a Road Rage Accident

The jury found it hard to reach a decision in a case of gross negligence discharge of a firearm filed against police officer Frank White. White was involved in the road rage incident that injured a woman and her son.

The jury seemed to need more time as deliberations was set to continue the next day instead of giving it on the scheduled day.

White’s lawyer Rick Pinckard, as closing argument, said that his client was only defending himself from what he believed a threat to his life and that of his wife. Thus, he pulled a gun as a consequence. He said further that White was not aware that a boy was on board the car at the time he pulled the trigger of his gun.

Every case has two sides, that of the plaintiff and that of the defendant. Each party tries his best to convince the jury to side with him. While the jury never witnessed what happened, pieces of evidence presented by each party are scrutinized and evaluated as a way of knowing the truth or an approximation thereof.

This case showed the advantage of having a good personal injury lawyer to lead a party from pursuing his interest – a lawyer who would do everything to argue at his client’s advantage.

Everyone hopes that at the end of all this true justice would be served to whoever mostly deserves it.

Girl Dies of Car Accident at the Border

For many, United States has always been the land of dreams. Consequently, many people stay at US-Mexico border waiting to cross the US. They employ whatever means possible even to the point of risking their lives.

A Mexican mother and her 4 year old daughter had the same dream – to cross the border posing as vendors selling items to drivers about to cross the border.
However, the unfortunate happened. The child was hit by a Chevrolet Suburban and died at Chula Vista hospital.

The female driver who was a legal resident of the US claimed that she did not see the child walking beside her vehicle.

Mexican authorities said that their action against the driver would depend on the result of the investigation of the accident.

If the female driver would be found negligent, a wrongful death case may be filed against her for negligent driving.

The little girl’s loved ones may claim for damages because of her death. While no monetary value could ever replace her life, expenses incurred may at least be approximated.