Orange County Woman Alleges Sexual Assault While Patient at Hospital

A former female patient at St. Joseph Hospital in Orange has alleged that she was the victim of a sexual assault by a male hospital employee, according to a news report. The unidentified woman alleges that she was the victim of a sexual assault while she was in the hospital’s emergency room.  She reportedly identified…

U.S. Supreme Court Immunizes Vaccine Companies Against Many Lawsuits

The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that vaccine manufacturers are shielded against certain types of personal injury lawsuits due to a 1986 law that established a no-fault compensation system for injuries linked to childhood vaccines. The case of Brueswitz v. Wyeth LLC involved a Pennsylvania family that sued drug manufacturer Wyeth, alleging that their daughter…

Distracted Driver Pleads Guilty in Pedestrian Fatality

A driver reaching for his laptop who rear-ended a truck, sending it into a crosswalk and killing a baby in a stroller, has pleaded guilty to misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter. According to a news report, Robert Anthony Casares, 50, of Huntington Beach received a sentence of three years of informal probation, and was ordered to perform…

Man Arrested in Hit-and Run Accident That Injured Motorcyclist

A 47-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of hit-and-run and driving on a suspended license, as well as an outstanding DUI warrant from an unrelated case, after leaving the scene of a traffic accident that left a motorcyclists with serious injuries, according to a news report. Huntington Beach police arrested DeAndre Curtis Hill at…

Radiation System Flaw May Cause Woman to Lose Breasts

A 58-year-old woman being treated for cancer at Newport Beach’s Hoag Hospital may lose her breasts because of a flaw in a new Xoft Inc. radiation system at the hospital, according to a news report. The unidentified woman was undergoing treatment to her left breast when a shield used with the system shed tiny tungsten…

Anaheim Woman Gets Six Years for DUI Fatalities of Sisters

A 23-year-old woman who pleaded guilty to killing two sisters when she crashed into them in her truck after driving the wrong way on the 91 freeway while intoxicated has been sentenced to six years in prison, according to a news report. Jessica Lynn Shekell entered a guilty plea to two counts of vehicular manslaughter…

Five Killed in Plane Crash at Long Beach Airport

Five people were killed when the twin-engine plane they were in crashed during take-off from Long Beach Municipal Airport, according to a news report. A Federal Aviation Administration spokesman said the twin-engine Beechcraft King Air was headed for Salt Lake City, and was owned by local developer Thomas Fay Dean, the owner of most of…

UC Irvine Kidney Dialysis Center Under Scrutiny for Unsafe Environment

State health inspectors say that UC Irvine’s kidney dialysis center has failed to provide quality care in a safe environment, according to a news report. Inspectors from the Department of Public Health conducted an inspection last November as part of the facility’s recertification process for Medicare and Medicaid.  The inspectors found a number of violations…