Category Archives: General Personal Injury
School May Be Liable for Student Blinded in Beating
A New York City eighth-grader who was blinded in his right eye after being beaten up by other students is suing the school system for $15 or $16 million for negligent supervision. On the morning of June 5th, 14-year old Kardin Ulysse was on his way to classes at Roy H. Mann Junior High… Read More »
Tractor-Trailer, Minivan, Both Damage Guardrail in New York Thruway Accident
On June 25th, a tractor-trailer and a minivan both struck the center guardrail on the New York Thruway near the town of Marcy between Utica and Rome in upstate New York, backing up traffic. While it appears the vehicles were not heavily damaged, the story continues to develop, and the most recent reports indicate… Read More »
NTSB Cites Speeding, Driver Fatigue in Fatal New York City Bus Crash
More than a year has passed since a New York City bus crash killed 15 people and injured 17 others last March, but the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has completed its investigation and finally released its report on the incident. According to the NTSB, speeding up to 78 miles per hour and driver… Read More »
Construction Worker Killed in Trench Wall Collapse
A construction worker at a Staten Island construction site in New York City died in June when the wall of a trench collapsed, causing severe head trauma and burying the worker under the collapsed wall. The Department of Buildings has issued a stop-work order for the site, and the contractor is expected to be… Read More »
Even the Most Simple-Looking Laws can be Complex
Sidewalks are notorious places for a New York slip and fall or trip and fall injury. They may be cracked, broken, uneven, icy or slippery from rainfall or from being hosed off. Who is responsible for maintaining sidewalks in good repair – the City or the property owner? More importantly, who is liable when… Read More »
Will the Supreme Court Open the Door to Retaliatory Arrests?
In a case argued before the United States Supreme Court on March 21st, the court may open the door allowing the police to arrest people in retaliation for exercising their First Amendments rights, so long as the police can show they had some other probable cause to make the arrest. The case heard by… Read More »
Civil Rights Under Bivens and Private Prisons
A federal statute, 42 U.S.C. 1983, provides the basis for civil lawsuits against state or local government officials who violate a person’s civil rights while acting under color of law. But what about federal government officials? Section 1983 does not apply to them, and there is no other comparable statute that would make liable… Read More »
Lawsuit to Stop Illegal Stops
A class action law suit is underway against the New York Police Department in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, challenging the constitutionality of its stop-and-frisk policies. This case, Floyd v. City of New York, has been actually been underway for several years. The latest action in the… Read More »
Can You Still Refuse to Consent to a Search?
In a stunning decision by the Supreme Court this January, the court seems to be saying that a homeowner’s refusal to give the police consent to enter the home can itself create probable cause allowing the police to enter the house without a warrant. If this is the case, can you ever again refuse… Read More »
Like the Floor, Hospital’s Defense of Slip and Fall Claim Was All Wet
This March, the Supreme Court in New York County denied the defendant’s motion for summary judgment to dismiss the case of Koutsos v. New York Presbyterian Hospital-Weill Cornell Campus, an action to recover damages for personal injury caused in a slip and fall accident that occurred during a snowstorm in March of 2007. The… Read More »