Oregon Injury Lawyer Blog

The Virginia Tech Transportation Institute has issued new findings reporting that truckers who text message while driving their trucks increase their chances of getting involved in a truck crash or a near-truck accident by 23 times. The study also notes that while car drivers place themselves most at risk when dialing cellular phones while driving, a cell phone dialing truck driver is 5.9 times as likely to get into a truck crash—compared to a car driver, who is 2.8 times more likely to get involved in a car accident while dialing a phone.

Even just reaching for an electronic device increases the traffic accident risks for both truck drivers and car drivers. The trucker’s chances of crashing becomes 6.7 times greater, compared to a car driver, whose chances increase by 1.4 times.

The study used research conducted between 2004 to 2007. According to Rich Hanowski, the transportation institute’s Center for Truck and Bus Safety director, the greatest risk that text messaging poses for truckers and other drivers is that the motorists are looking at their phones or electronic devices and not the roads.

Hanowski says that studies show that drivers have been known to spend nearly five seconds with their eyes off the road when checking their phones or electronic devices—and while this amount of time may not sound very long, it is enough time for a catastrophic accident to happen. Just think, in 4.6 seconds a vehicle traveling at 55mph while have traveled an entire football field’s length—imagine how many vehicles the driver may fail to see while checking a text message.

Some 200 truck drivers from seven trucking fleets took part in two studies. One study was conducted in 2004. The second one was concluded in 2007. Most of the texting data came from the second study. 21 crashes and 197 near accidents occurred. Software was used to identify these incidents. Software identified 37 near collisions that occurred while the truck drivers were texting.

Truck drivers cannot afford to text message or talk on a cell phone while driving. If you were injured in an Oregon truck crash because the trucker was distracted, you need to speak with a Portland, Oregon personal injury lawyer as soon as possible.

How the Driving Tests Were Conducted, New York Times, July 27, 2009

More Details About the Findings (PDF)

Related Web Resources:
Virginia Tech Transportation Institute

Center for Truck and Bus Safety

Continue reading " Truckers Who Text Message Have a 23 Times Greater Chance of Being Involved in a Portland, Oregon Truck Accident " »

Posted by Matthew D. Kaplan | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Car Accidents , Motor Vehicle Accidents , Truck Accidents

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The hope that using hands-free cell phones while driving is safer than talking on a hand-held phone while operating a motor vehicle went out the window after news surfaced that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration withheld research as far back as 2003 showing that use of any kind of cell phone when driving is dangerous. Researchers even went so far as to draft a letter expressing concern that laws banning hand-held cell phones would not be enough to eliminate the safety risk.

Just talking on the phone is a form of distracted driving—it doesn’t matter whether you are holding the phone or using a headset. Talking on a cell phone slows a motorist’s reaction time and takes his or her attention off the road and away from driving and can cause a motor vehicle crash.

Apparently, NHTSA researchers knew as far back as 2002 that cell phone use while driving caused 240,000 traffic accidents and almost 1,000 motor vehicle deaths that year. Yet a former NHTSA head says he was encouraged to hold back the information so as not to anger Congress. The agency was warned to focus on gathering facts, rather than lobbying states to come up with tougher driving laws regarding wireless devices.

If only this information was made available to the public back then, talking on the phone and text messaging while driving may not have become unsafe driving habits that have grown to such epidemic proportion that some states have passed laws restricting cell phone use while driving. Now, even though motorists finally know how dangerous talking on a cell phone and texting while driving can be, many of them are finding it hard to stop.

How many lives could have been saved if this information had come to the surface six years ago? The traffic accident toll from cell phone use—currently about 2,600 fatalities, 636,000 traffic accidents, and 330,000 a year—has almost doubled in less than a decade. Even now, not all US states have laws banning hand-held cell phones. In Oregon, HB2377 was recently passed by legislators seeking to ban hand-held phones while driving. Hands-free cell phones, however, would still be allowed.

Each day, in many US states, hundreds of thousands of drivers continue to talk on hands-free cell phones while driving because they think that they are actually practicing safe driving habits. Meantime, one study from University of Utah psychologists equates cell phone use while driving to drunk driving.

Talking on any kind of cell phone while driving is considered a form of distracted driving that can cause Portland, Oregon car crashes, truck accidents, bus collisions, and pedestrian injuries.

Withheld research confirms driving danger of cell phone use, DelawareOnline.com, July 24, 2009

NY Times: Federal agency withheld warnings about distracted driving risks, Bikeportland.org, July 21, 2009

Related Web Resources:
US Wireless Communication Devices While Driving, NY Times, July 2003

Drivers on Cell Phones are as Bad as Drunks, University of Utah

Continue reading " NHTSA Held Back Information for Years that Using Any Kind of Cell Phone While Driving Can Cause Oregon Car Accidents " »

Posted by Matthew D. Kaplan | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: 15-Passenger Van Accidents , Bus Accidents , Car Accidents , Motor Vehicle Accidents , Pedestrian Accidents , Truck Accidents

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In Oregon, Portland residents Teresa and Jack Daggett are suing a Washington State clinic for their daughter’s overdose death. Their Multnomah County wrongful death lawsuit is seeking $1.3 million from Payette Clinic.

The couple’s 18-year-old daughter, Rachel Daggett, died last December after she smoked a synthetic narcotic pill. Oregon police traced the pill to two Troutdale brothers. One of the brothers, Ronald Zaloznik, says he became addicted to oxycodone after a nurse practitioner gave him a prescription. The younger brother, 18-year-old Tyler, says that he also used pills and opiates.

In their Oregon wrongful death complaint, the Daggetts are accusing the clinic of consciously disregarding the risks when it prescribed oxycodone to Ronald. The two brothers and Rachel’s friend, Shane Douglas Gill, pleaded guilty to possession and delivery of controlled substances.

In March, the Drug Enforcement Administration raided the clinic. The clinic owners, Kelly Bell and Scott Pecora, surrendered their licenses to prescribe controlled substances.

Since 2006, Doctors, pharmacists, and former patients are among those that have filed 41 complaints against Payette Clinic. The clinic is accused of liberally handing out pills. The Payette Clinic opened in 2005.

Weeks after Rachel’s death, Payette Clinic notified pain patients that Rite Aid and Kmart pharmacies in Vancouver, Washington would no longer fill prescriptions from the clinic. Payette Clinic also told patients of its plans to open a sleep center.

One former Payette Clinic patient says she overdosed on medication that the clinic had prescribed to her. She says that after she completed a residential drug treatment program, the clinic put her on the same dosage. She also says other clinic patients tried to sell her pills.

Portland, Oregon Wrongful Death Lawsuit
If you believe that your loved one died because another person or entity was negligent, you may have grounds for filing an Oregon wrongful death complaint against all liable parties.

Parents of OD victim Daggett sue Vancouver pain clinic, KGW.com, July 20, 2009

Teen's parents sue clinic over deadly overdose, The Seattle Times, July 19, 2009

Complaints against Vancouver pain clinic pile up, Oregon Live, March 13, 2009

Related Web Resources:
Payette Clinic

Drug Enforcement Administration

Posted by Matthew D. Kaplan | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Wrongful Death

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The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is reporting that there were 416 Oregon traffic deaths. This fatality figure is slightly lower than the 455 Oregon traffic deaths that occurred in 2007.

More 2008 Oregon Traffic Facts:
• 290 passenger vehicle occupant deaths
• 91 of the victims were unrestrained
• Alcohol was a factor in 136 traffic deaths
• 128 speeding-related deaths
• 48 Oregon motorcycle deaths
• 51 Oregon pedestrian deaths

Nationally, there was also a decline in US traffic fatalities, with 37,261 deaths last year compared to 41,259 traffic deaths that occurred in 2007.

More 2008 US Traffic Accident Facts:
• 11,733 drunk driver-related deaths
• 716 pedalcyclist deaths
• 4,378 pedestrian fatalities
• 5,290 motorcycle deaths
• 677 large truck fatalities
• 25,351 passenger vehicle deaths
• 2,346 traffic injuries
• 2,072,000 people injured in passenger vehicles
• 23,000 large truck deaths
• 96,000 motorcycle injuries
• 69,000 pedestrian injuries
• 52,000 pedalcyclist injuries (compared to 43,000 injuries the year before)

While there was a decline most kinds of traffic fatalities between 2008 and 2007, there was an increase in motorcycle fatalities—from 5,174 deaths in 2007—and pedalcyclist fatalities—from 701 deaths.

Common causes of 2008 Oregon motor vehicle crashes included:
• Drunk driving
• Drowsy driving
• Speeding
• Cell phone use
• Text messaging
• Driver inexperience
• Poor road conditions
• Defective autos

While the overall declines in Oregon and US traffic deaths are positive, there is always more that can be done to decrease the number of injuries and deaths that occur in the state and throughout the United States. One way to decrease the number of Oregon car crashes is for drivers and truckers and motorcyclists to drive responsibly and refrain from negligent conduct. Motorist negligence can be grounds for a Portland, Oregon personal injury claim.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood: Overall Traffic Fatalities Reach Record Low, NHTSA, July 2, 2009

2008 Traffic Safety Annual Assessment - Highlights, June 2009 (PDF)

Related Web Resources:
State Traffic Safety Information for Year 2008

Early Estimate of Motor Vehicle Traffic Fatalities for the First Quarter of 2009, June 2009 (PDF)

Continue reading " 416 Oregon Traffic Deaths in 2008, Says NHTSA " »

Posted by Matthew D. Kaplan | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Bicycle Accidents , Car Accidents , Motor Vehicle Accidents , Motorcycle Accidents , Pedestrian Accidents , Products Liability , Truck Accidents

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The parents of a 3-year-old boy that died after surgery have agreed on a $200,000 Portland, Oregon wrongful death settlement with the doctor that performed the procedure. Ian McClellan died from septic shock 8 days after Dr. Jayant Patel perforated the 3-year-old’s bowel while trying to insert a feeding tube inside him. The surgical malpractice incident took place on February 5, 1999.

This is not the first Oregon medical malpractice lawsuit naming Patel as a defendant. Also, in 2000 the Oregon Board of Medical Examiners barred the surgeon from working again in the state. He eventually moved to Australia where he kept performing surgeries. He has been charged with manslaughter in that country over the deaths of three patients. Patel has been called “Dr. Death.”

Per Matthew and Anna Maria McClellan’s Oregon medical malpractice involving fatal injuries to minors lawsuit that they filed in Multnomah County Circuit Court, Patel discovered the perforation the day after the surgery when he opened up their son again. They say that Patel and the hospitals told them that Ian died because he developed a postoperative infection. It wasn't until April 15, 2005 when the Oregonian began publishing a number of articles about Patel’s work that they discovered the real reason their son died. The McClellans had originally sued Patel and the hospitals for $1.55 million.

Patel was employed by Kaiser Permanente in Portland. However, he operated on the boy at HSU Doernbecher Children's Hospital. According to a 2005 article published on MSNBC.com, Kaiser banned Patel from performing certain operations in 1998 after reviewing 79 of his cases. In addition to no longer being allowed to perform pancreatic and liver surgeries, he had to ask for a second opinion when dealing with more complicated cases.

Surgical Malpractice
Surgical mistakes can be fatal for the patient on the operating table. Some examples of surgical errors that can be grounds for Oregon medical malpractice or wrongful death claims include:

• Operating on the wrong organ or body part
• Using unsanitary surgical tools
• Leaving surgical instruments in the patient’s body
• Puncturing an organ
• Performing the wrong surgery

Parents of Oregon boy settle in surgery lawsuit, Google/AP, July 2, 2009

Australia's 'Dr. Death' linked to 87 fatalities, MSNBC, May 26, 2005

Related Web Resources:
Medical Malpractice and Surgical errors/complications, Wrong Diagnosis

Medical Malpractice, Justia

Posted by Matthew D. Kaplan | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Injuries to Minors , Medical Malpractice , Wrongful Death

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Last December, our Portland, Oregon personal injury law firm blog post about a wrongful death case filed against the city of Sandy and a number of individuals over the police shooting death of a Gresham man. This week, an announcement was made that the family of 27-year-old Fouad Kaady has reached a $1 million settlement with the Oregon city and former police officer William J. Bergin.

Kaady was burned, naked, and bleeding when Officer Bergin and Clackamas County sheriff's Deputy David E. Willard approached him on September 8, 2005. Kaady reportedly was behaving erratically and would not cooperate with police. He had also just rear-ended three motor vehicles and damaged the vehicle he was driving. According to witnesses, Kaady, who has a history of mental illness, was making wolf-like sounds.

To apprehend Kaady, police at first used a stun gun and shocked him several times. They then shot him seven times after he jumped on top of a police car.

Kaady’s family says that the reason he was in such a disturbed state was that the can of gas he was transporting caught on fire, which caused him to hit another motor vehicle. He ripped his clothes off to get away from the flames and was in need of help. The 27-year-old's family believes that he sustained head injuries during the crash that caused him to behave strangely.

The plaintiffs have accused police of not knowing how to deal with someone coping with mental illness. Their Oregon wrongful death lawsuit accused police of excessive use of force and civil rights violations.

By settling, the city of Sandy is not admitting liability. The family's Clackamas County wrongful death lawsuit against the County and Willard is still moving forward.

Police Brutality
Police are never supposed to use excessive force in any situation. Police brutality is a civil rights violation and an abuse of police power that can be a reason for why a victim or his or her family might choose to file a Portland, Oregon personal injury lawsuit or wrongful death claim.

Just last week, the Multnomah County Board of Commissioners gave its stamp of approval for a $925,000 Portland, Oregon wrongful death settlement to be paid to the family of James Chasse for his police brutality-related death in 2006.

Police chased down Chasse after they spotted him urinating in public. There are conflicting reports as to how they apprehended him. However, he sustained 16 broken ribs and a punctured lung. Chasse died while being transported in a police car to a hospital. Chasse suffered from schizophrenia.

Multco board approves $925,000 payment for Chasse's family, KATU.com, July 2, 2009

$1 million settlement reached in 2005 shooting near Sandy, OregonLive.com, July 1, 2009

Oregon Wrongful Death Trial Alleging Police Brutality Toward Unarmed Portland Man Can Move Forward, Says Federal Judge, OregonInjuryLawyerBlog.com, December 1, 2008

Related Web Resources:
Clackamas County, Oregon

Multnomah County

Truly Reforming Law Enforcement-Ending Police Brutality!, OregonLive.com, March 18, 2009

Posted by Matthew D. Kaplan | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Police Brutality/Civil Rights Violations , Wrongful Death

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