Florida Child Injury Law Blog

Archive for the ‘Wrongful Death’ Category

In a heartbreaking accident  in Titusville this month, a 19-month-old boy was killed when he fell from a trailer being pulled by a riding lawn mower and was then struck by the mower.  The child’s grandmother was driving the mower, according to several media outlets. The toddler was taken to Parrish Medical Center where he was pronounced dead.

 This case is still under investigation and the names of those involved are being withheld.

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission reports that about 75 people are killed annually and about 20,000 are injured on or near riding lawnmowers and garden tractors. One out of every five of those fatalities is a child. 

The American Academy of Pediatrics in a 2001 article in the journal Pediatrics, which was reaffirmed in 2010, states that “many of these injuries can be achieved by 1) design changes of lawn mowers to enhance safety, 2) appropriate age and maturity guidelines for mower operation, and 3) education of parents, other child caregivers, and children regarding the hazards associated with lawn mowers.”

Florida Child Injury lawyer Jim Dodson provides this information to increase consumer safety and awareness. It does not imply that an attorney client relationship exists nor is it to be considered legal advice to any viewer.

Imagine this scenario: In a pleasant subdivision in Florida, where everyone knows everyone else and people feel secure allowing their kids to play outside with friends, the neighborhood kids, ranging from five and up, all seem to be having fun. One of the younger children tries the door to her mother’s car, parked in the driveway. It is unlocked, so she climbs in and starts playing around with the controls.  There is no key in the ignition, and the parking brake is on.  She leans her head out the window to wave at her older brother, and in doing so presses on the automatic window button. The window begins to rise.  She can’t stop it, and in seconds, her neck is trapped.  She tries to call for help, but can’t get enough breath to speak, and so she groans.  The other kids laugh, thinking she’s just fooling around, pretending.  Within minutes, she’s dead.

Does this seem farfetched? It isn’t. Injuries and deaths from power windows are not uncommon. The story above is true. Since 1990 over 50 children have been killed by power windows, and the number of child injuries caused by these windows is in the thousands—serious injuries, including traumatic brain injuries and amputations of fingers—and most  of the victims are three years old and younger.

How could this terrible tragedy have been prevented?  What if the automatic windows in the car had reversed when coming into contact with the child, much the way elevator doors do if they close on someone? 

Consider these facts about automatic reversal technology:

• ARS technology would only cost around $6 per car window. 
• Eight out of ten new vehicles sold in Europe and most American cars sold overseas include ARS technology, but fewer than half of the vehicles produced by major US automakers and sold in the United States have this technology.

 In 2009, the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration conducted a study aimed at deciding if they should require automatic reversing systems (ARS) technology in cars manufactured or sold in the United States. NHTSA decided ARS is not necessary. At the time, the information now available had not been completely assembled.

 Not necessary? If even one child injury or death is caused by a power window, we contend that preventing this unnecessary harm is absolutely necessary.  And one might ask how it is that European children deserve this protection more than our own.  Who among us would be unwilling to pay an additional $24 when buying a car to assure that our nation’s children are safe from these devastating injuries?

In a news release this past week, a Florida couple has won a $6 million civil verdict nearly seven years after their 16-year-old daughter was killed in a fatal car crash. 

 Carlos Pozo, serving a 5 ½ year prison sentence for vehicular manslaughter, was speeding at 100mph on a rain slicked road when he lost control of his car. Kaitlin Kazanjian’s was killed in the crash.  Pozo has no way of paying the verdict. 

 The victim’s father, Palm Beach County Sheriff Office Sgt. John Kazanjian, says it doesn’t matter and it was never about the money, stating:  “I just wanted to get everything on the record.  To this day he thinks this was an accident, “It wasn’t an accident. It was his fault. He killed my daughter.”

 Attorneys for Pozo say he has been “incredibly remorseful” since the day of the accident, writing letters to the Kazanjian’s and tearfully apologizing at his sentencing.  

 For over twenty-five years the Dodson Law Firm has been representing clients seriously injured in accidents as well as families affected by wrongful death.  To speak directly to Jim Dodson about your injury claim,  please call our office toll free at (888) 340-0840 and set up a time to discuss your case at no obligation. Read our No Fee Promise.

What can be done to enhance the safety of students in and around the bus stops of the Pinellas County School District?  School officials are asking themselves that after the death of 17-year-old Nora Hernandez-Huapilla killed just before the winter break.

A news article reported the tragedy occurred at the 66th Street and 70th Avenue N stop when the teen attempted to reach an “arterial” bus stop by darting into traffic against the light.  Friends of Nora’s say she was worried she’d miss the bus. 

 In Pinellas County there are 125 arterial bus routes. Students who elect not to attend their neighborhood school are required to take an arterial route if they need transportation.  Currently, more than 12,000 students are doing this.  These stops are typically alongside busy roads, according to a report published in the St. Petersburg Times.

Parents have been concerned about the Pinellas arterial bus stops for sometime now.  Just 4 months ago, a report by WFTS-TV quoted one parent, Lisa Johnson, as saying, “I’m really angry. I’ve been on the phone at least twice a week since school started about this and nobody’s come out to do anything about it,” Johnson said.

 In the aftermath of the accident that killed 17 year-old Nora Hernandez-Huapilla, a notice has been sent to parents reminding them of a policy: “Parents are expected to transport to/from the bus stop.”  The word “transport” does not have to mean by vehicle, Associate Superintendent, Michael Bessette said Monday.  It could also mean parents giving students permission to travel by bike, or helping them discover a safe walking route.

 District officials plan to visit 28 different stops throughout the rest of the week between Tarpon Springs and St. Petersburg High in order to collect data.   The information will then be turned over to an advisory group made up of parents, students, bus drivers and district staff.

A recent study from the  Tampa Tribune states Florida reports 200 cases of child abuse which tragically resulted in death.

The deaths from 2008 from 2007 show a 20% increase in deaths from child abuse. The study shows a strong link to unemployment and drug abuse.

According to the article, “Florida has one of the highest per-capita rates of child deaths reported to the state abuse hotline in the country, partly because its figures count such events as car accidents, drownings and suicides, which aren’t included in most other states.”

The Department of Children and Families serves as a hotline for child abuse cases. We all woud like this number to be less and less every year.