One Dead, Four Hospitalized in Tour Bus Crash

A Wolf’s Bus Line tour bus crashed through a guardrail and slid down a 45 foot tree-covered embankment on Interstate 270 near Bethesda, Maryland recently. The bus driver, Joseph A. Clabaugh Jr. was found dead at the scene. All eleven passengers, including five children, were injured in the crash and treated at local hospitals. Four…

PG&E Found Negligent in Electrocution Death of California Worker

The Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) has been ordered to pay a $176,000 fine for the electrocution of employee Maximiliano Martinez in Benicia, California earlier this year. Martinez, a PG&E utility worker, was killed while upgrading an underground transformer with 12,000 volt power lines feeding into the vault that held the transformer. Martinez, age…

Ohio Security Guard Killed at Work by Forklift

Ohio security guard Pedro Alvarez was killed by a forklift at the Charles Jones Produce plant where he worked. Alvarez, the night security guard at the tomato processing plant, walked in front of the forklift and was hit when the driver did not see him. Alvarez was pronounced dead at the scene. The forklift driver…

Callahan and Blaine file $40 million Wrongful Death Suit for Family of California Skating Rink Victim

Cherylynn Tang was ice skating at a temporary rink at Great Park with her family on February 14th, 2010 when she slipped on the ice and struck her head. She tragically died of her injuries two days later. Callahan & Blaine has filed a $40 million wrongful death lawsuit against the city of Irvine, California…

Update on Deadly Huntington Beach, California Crosswalk

Huntington Beach residents have been concerned for many years that the intersection at Springdale and Croupier is unsafe.  The intersection has a decades-long history of fatal and non-fatal pedestrian accidents. Despite this, parents of children at Clegg Elementary School and Stacey Middle School learned September 7th that due to budget cuts, a crossing guard would…

Could the US Government be Liable for Exploding Gas Pipeline Injuries and Deaths?

In the wake of the gas pipeline blast in San Bruno, California last month, citizens are asking some tough questions about where potentially dangerous pipelines are located and why they do not have access to the information. Before the September 11th, 2001 attacks it was relatiely easy to find out where pressurized gas lines were…

Huntington Beach, California Residents Beg City Council for Crosswalk Signal at Deadly Intersection

Residents who live in Huntington Beach, California near the intersection on Springdale Street and Croupier Drive say the intersection has been a dangerous crossing for many years. The danger was only highlighted when seven month old Ruby Rose Gould was struck and killed in the crosswalk at the beginning of September. She was being pushed…

Tougher Drunk Driving Laws May Contribute to Increase in Hit and Run Accidents in California

Driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol (DUI) is a crime that leads to thousands of deaths every year. Groups like Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) have made great strides in reducing the number of alcohol related deaths by lobbying for tougher punishments. Unfortunately, their valiant efforts to curtail drunk driving may have had…

How to Check a California Charter Bus Company’s Safety Record

According to the US Department of Transportation (US DOT), the number of bus crashes has climbed in recent years. In the United States as a whole, there were 13,195 accidents involving buses in 2007 (the most recent year for which statistics are available), up from 8,555 in 2003. In those same five years, 1,651 people…