Los Angeles Corridor of Law

2009-08-10T15:57:00.000-07:00

According to Crowley's report, Gates, who is black, angrily accused the officer of racism, was uncooperative, and was arrested for disorderly conduct, said Weinberg Law Firm, Texas Labor Lawyer. The charge was later dropped. The incident became headline news and a talk-show phenomenon after President Barack Obama said during a prime-time news conference that the Cambridge police "acted pretty stupidly" in arresting Gates after he had shown identification and proved he was in his own house. Obama later said he should have "calibrated" his remarks differently. He has since had both Gates and Crowley as his guests for beer and conversation at what has come to be known as the "White House beer summit."

Los Angeles Women drinking more, DUI arrests up, experts say

2009-08-10T12:58:00.000-07:00

LOS ANGELES – Another possible reason cited for the rising arrests: Police are less likely to let women off the hook these days, said Michael Bialys, Los Angeles DUI lawyer.

Nationwide, the number of women arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs was 28.8 percent higher in 2007 than it was in 1998, while the number of men arrested was 7.5 percent lower, according to FBI figures that cover about 56 percent of the country. (Despite the incomplete sample, Alfred Blumstein, a Carnegie Mellon University criminologist, said the trend probably holds true for the country as a whole.)

Inept doctor left deadly trail, brain injury lawsuit says

2009-08-05T10:19:00.000-07:00

John Q. Kelly, New York brain injury lawyer, was later asked in a deposition if there was anything he could have done to have changed the outcome of Lang's surgery.

His response: "I don't think there's anything that would have changed the outcome. The only thing I could have done was not do the operation."

A January 2006 independent "quality of care peer review" requested by Meadowview and on file in Mason Circuit Court concluded that "the standard of care was not met, with injury occurring or reasonably probable. In all probability, the injury/ligation caused the permanent stroke and death."

Court clerk claims sexual harassment by Weber County Justice Court judge

2009-08-05T09:53:00.000-07:00

And in May 2008, the judge accused Eisenhour of doing illegal drugs and being a bad employee, and he told other court employees about those accusations, Eisenhour said.

In early July 2008, the judge told Eisenhour she would have to get his permission to take vacation time, as well as tell him where she was going and with who she was going, Eisenhour said.

"That was the last straw," she said.

On July 10, 2008, Eisenhour spoke to Deputy Weber County Attorney Craig Allred, who launched an investigation, according to documents provided to The Tribune .

Even though the judge allegedly made admissions to sexual harassment lawyer Orange County, Eisenhour said she was told that because the judge was an elected official, they could take no direct action against him.

She said Weber County Attorney Mark DeCaria asked the Utah Attorney General's Office to take the case, but they declined to act.

Chicago Photographer Leibovitz sued for breach of contract

2009-08-04T15:23:00.000-07:00

In a statement, a contract lawyer Chicago for Leibovitz called the allegations "false and untrue."

The lawsuit said Leibovitz, 59, who has photographed everyone from Michelle Obama to Britain's Queen Elizabeth and a very pregnant Demi Moore in the nude, approached Art Capital in June 2008 about her "dire financial condition."

Suspected DUI motorist driving wrong way kills one, injures two

2009-08-04T13:59:00.000-07:00

Saturday, May 09, 2009
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

According to state police, Zachary Ryan Schell of Ledgeview Drive, Shaler, was traveling with a passenger, Robert Ritz Jr. of Uniontown, in the wrong direction on the Fort Duquesne exit ramp at 3:11 a.m. Their ages were not available.

As Mr. Schell drove his Cadillac onto the bridge, Mr. Randolph, who also had a passenger, was exiting the bridge onto the ramp from Interstate 279 North. Mr. Schell's vehicle struck the front of Mr. Randolph's Kia.

Hire a dwi defense lawyer pittsburgh today!

LA Personal Injury Lawyers Ringler Kearney Alvarez LLP

2009-07-31T14:22:00.000-07:00

Los Angeles class action law firm Ringler Kearney Alavarez LLP have established themselves as a premier law firm by providing clients with consistently excellent service. They pride themselves on their intellect, creativity and tenacity.

These Los Angeles personal injury lawyers have achieved victories in over 100 trials with total verdicts in excess of $250 million.

Ringler Kearney Alvarez LLP achieves their verdicts by utilizing their substantial financial resources to obtain the best result possible for each of their clients. This LA class action specialist law firm fights tirelessly for their clients, no matter the cost and no matter the foe.

Supergraphics a blight on Los Angeles

2009-01-22T13:10:00.000-08:00

From the Los Angeles Times:
SkyTag, which says that it produces images "so large they can be seen from space," filed court documents last week saying the city should not try to remove the company's supergraphics from high-rises in West Los Angeles, Koreatown and other neighborhoods until the ban litigation is resolved.

I wonder if there are enough people that have been injured by being distracted by these things that they can get together and file a class action lawsuit. I'm pretty sure that there has been atleast one person who has been seriously injured enough to have hired one of those fancy Los Angeles personal injury lawyers.

Read the rest.

Los Angeles Based Catastrophic Injury Lawyer has Experience dealing with Train Disasters

2008-09-24T12:02:00.000-07:00

Metrolink worker sued Burlington Northern Santa Fe, saying his alcoholism returned after the fatal 2002 Placentia collision.

A metrolink conductor who said his drinking problems resumed after the Placentia train crash in 2002 will receive $8.5 million to settle his lawsuit against one of the nations largest railroads.

Patrick Phillips of Riverside agreed Tuesday to settle his suit against Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway Co. The case was set to go to trial next week in Orange County Superior Court.

Phillips, now 52, suffered minor head injuries the morning of April 23, 2002 when a Burlington Northern Freight train crashed into a Metrolink commuter train in Placentia. Three people died and more than 260 were injured in the early morning crash.

Though his injuries were slight, the conductor alleged that the trauma was serious enough to trigger a resurgence of his severe alcoholism, which he said he had controlled since rehabilitation in the early 1990's.

"I have never seen a case like this in 30 years, yet it is indeed what happened here," said Jerome L. Ringler, Phillips' attorney.

"We had extensive medical evaluations by a variety of neurological specialists. All were in accord that his injury, although minor, changed his behavior."

After the train crash, Phillips was hospitalized for evaluation but released about two hours later, Ringler said. In the months after the crash, however, Phillips allegedly resumed his alcohol abuse, resulting in at least two other hospitalizations.

Ringler said his client was finally diagnosed with alcohol-related dementia, a sever mental deficiency.

Phillips, who is now disabled after working 12 years for Metrolink, was unavailable for comment. He is living with a sister in Riverside.

Under terms of the settlement, Phillips will receive $8.5 million, including interest, paid out over 20 years. The amount is worth about $4.5 million in today's dollars.
Officials for Burlington Northern Santa Fe, one of the nations four largest railroads, confirmed the settlement but declined to discuss the case.

Phillips' lawsuit is one of more than 100 Civil cases stemming from the Placentia crash, which federal investigators said was caused by an inattentive Burlington Norther crew that missed a warning signal.

The lawsuits allege the collision could have been prevented by an automatic braking system, long sought by the federal National Transportation Safety Board.
They also contend that the freight train crew was fatigued by overwork and that the Burlington Northern conductor had a history of losing track of signals.

In December, an Orange County jury awarded Pamela Macek, 53, also of Riverside, about $9 million in damages for psychological and physical injuries suffered in the crash. Her case was the first to go to trial.

Los Angeles Based Personal Injury Lawyer, Jerry Ringler, Comments on Metrolink Train Wreck

2008-09-21T11:49:00.000-07:00

As a governmental agency, lawyers noted, Metrolink cannot be subjected to punitive damages in any civil action - a situation those lawyers said likely protects it from a bankruptcy situation. A spokesman for Metrolink said the agency would not be making any comments on potential legal issues.

Attorney Jerome Ringler, who served as lead counsel for victims of a Metrolink train derailment in Placentia in 2002, those in a Burbank derailment in 2003, and in the Glendale derailment in 2005, said the Chatsworth crash could expose further fault with Metrolink.

"I suspect the real reason these tragedies occurred is due to either simple inattentivenesss on the part of the engineers or a failure on the part of the railrood industry to allow these engineers adequate rest between shifts so that these kind of tragedies could be avoided," Ringler said.

"This is a horrible tragedy. They are facing hundreds upon hundreds of millions of dollars of exposure."

Prominent Los Angeles Personal Injury Lawyer Jerome Ringler Interviewed by FOX 11

2008-09-18T10:01:00.000-07:00

Trial Lawyer's Message to Survivors and Families of Victims of Chatsworth Disaster

2008-09-16T09:41:00.000-07:00

Special Message for Victims of Chatsworth Metrolink Disaster

On September 12, 2008, an unprecedented tragedy occurred in Chatsworth, California when Metrolink Train #111 struck a Union Pacific freight train which was traveling on the same tracks. Our hearts go out to the victims. But this tragedy should not have happened. It happened because of human error on the part of Metrolink employees. Unfortunately, as the lawyers of RKA know well, human error by railroad engineers is not at all unique as a cause of commuter rail disasters.

Jerome L. Ringler has greater experience in representing victims of commuter rail and freight train disasters than any other lawyer in the State of California, if not the country. He has served as lead counsel in every one of the largest commuter rail disasters which have occurred in Southern California in the past 10 years.

In the Placentia Commuter Rail Disaster of 2003, Mr. Ringler was appointed by the Court as lead counsel for all of the Plaintiffs. He was requested by all of the lawyers representing individuals injured or killed in that incident to try the first case. That case resulted in the largest verdict for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder ever rendered by a jury in the United States. That verdict, which was for $9 million, is detailed below in the multimedia section.

In the Burbank Commuter Rail Disaster, which also occurred in 2003, Mr. Ringler was again appointed by the Court to serve as lead counsel. In that capacity he was given the responsibility to try the entire liability (i.e., fault) case for all of the victims. In other words, every one of the dozens of lawyers who represented individual victims in that disaster trusted Mr. Ringler to try the liability phase for them, knowing that their clients would only recover if Mr. Ringler was successful. He was. In fact, Mr. Ringler not only obtained a favorable verdict for all of the plaintiffs, he obtained a $12 million verdict for his own client as well. This verdict was the largest in the State of California for a person with the type of injuries Mr. Ringler's client had suffered. This verdict is detailed below in the multimedia section.

Mr. Ringler is currently lead counsel for all plaintiffs in the Glendale Metrolink Derailment Disaster of 2005. This incident was, before September 12, 2008, the largest Metrolink disaster in history. Interestingly, in that case (which involves 11 deaths and dozens of serious injuries), Mr. Ringler has, against all odds, developed testimony proving that, even though a mentally-ill person placed a jeep across the tracks that the Metrolink train was traveling upon, human error on the part of the Metrolink engineer prevented him from stopping the train before hitting the jeep, which caused the train to derail. In other words, while the jeep certainly never should have been on the tracks, the Metrolink engineer would have been able to stop the train before ever striking the jeep had he only been paying proper attention. That case is scheduled to go to trial on June 8, 2009, with Mr. Ringler as lead counsel.

The verdicts detailed on this page all relate to railroad litigation. However, Mr. Ringler has achieved enormous, record-breaking monetary awards across California in a variety of complex areas. Those accomplishments are detailed elsewhere in this website. To see them, click here.

If you or a loved one has suffered injury or death as a result of the horrific Chatsworth Metrolink Disaster, we are available to discuss your rights with you confidentially and at no charge.

Please feel free to contact us at your convenience. Ask for Mr. Ringler,or any of his partners, at (213) 473-1900.

www.rkallp.com

Prominent Los Angeles Based Attorney Defends Alleged Gang Member

2007-10-24T11:04:00.000-07:00

From: Newsweek.com

The federal charges name 61 alleged F13 members in two indictments. The gang-violence charges came in a 53-count RICO (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations) indictment against 24 alleged gang leaders, charging them in a conspiracy to sell drugs, possess weapons illegally, and assault and kill black gang members and civilians. In the second indictment prosecutors charged the rest of the men on federal drug-distribution charges. More than 40 of the defendants pleaded not guilty at arraignments Tuesday, according to prosecutors. Michael Khouri, an attorney for Luis Aguilar, 35, says his client left the gang "several years ago" and served recently as a gang negotiator. "Mr. Aguilar will plead not guilty, and he is not guilty," says Khouri. Fifteen of the accused remain fugitives.

The indictments provide a telling snapshot of the changing nature of gangs in south L.A. According to federal prosecutors, F13 has grown into a tightly controlled gang of 2,000 members in 30 cliques led by convicts and parolees who are members of the prison-based Mexican mafia. It's a far cry from the '80s, when the black drug gangs, including the Crips and the Bloods, predominated, mining the crack epidemic with ruthless efficiency. Compared with looser Latino gangs that were seen as turf-conscious fighters, the black gangs were organized and disciplined. "The stereotype was that [the black gangs] were all about the [drug] business," says gang researcher Cheryl Maxson, an associate professor of criminology at University of California, Irvine. With the black gangs, "there was a millionaire in every neighborhood" perched at the top of the crack distribution pyramid, adds gang expert Alex Alonso, who edits streetgangs.com.

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Los Angeles Health Care Defense Attorney Defends Prominent San Diego Plastic Surgeon

2007-05-14T10:35:00.000-07:00

From: 10news.com

SAN DIEGO -- A prominent North County surgeon could be in trouble with the state medical board and learned he could lose his license, 10News reported.

Dr. Dennis Nigro is the subject of a hearing at the state building in which he is accused of having sex with a patient.

Nigro admitted to having a brief affair with a woman in 2003, but said she was no longer in his care during their relationship.

Nigro’s attorney, Michael Khouri, said, “The woman does not believe Dr. Nigro was her doctor when the sex occurred.”

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