Personal Injury

Construction Accident:
Plaintiff, a cement mason, was working on the post-concrete deck of a parking garage under construction when his 24-foot aluminum bull-floating pole contacted a 20 KV overhead electrical line. The bull-floating pole was designed to clean swimming pools. Plaintiff was electrocuted and fell three stories. The electricity blew entry holes through both wrists and an exit hole through the top of his foot. Plaintiff’s injuries required multiple surgeries to save his hands and range of motion, and to reconstruct significant deformities that resulted when muscle tissue from his back had to be grafted to his wrists.

Wrongful Death/Elder Abuse:
Served as a court-appointed referee in this wrongful death/elder abuse action brought by the heirs of an elderly patient who was hospitalized with an orthopedic injury requiring knee surgery. The patient’s post-surgical skin assessment on admission to the hospital recovery unit confirmed no evidence of skin breakdown, pressure ulcers, or other skin-related problems. Approximately a week after admission, nursing staff discovered large full thickness pressure ulcers that penetrated through the soft tissues to the bone, and involved necrotic tissue with eschar. Plaintiffs requested discovery regarding Defendant’s financial assets under Civil Code section 3295.

Catastrophic Auto Accident:
Defendant caused a motor vehicle accident in a construction zone by striking a cement “K” rail, lost control of her vehicle and struck a van, causing it to overturn. As approaching traffic slowed, Plaintiffs’ decedent, an off-duty Deputy Sheriff, was unable to stop and struck the rear of a semi-tractor trailer. He died at the scene. The primary Defendants, a large construction company and the State of California, controlled the design and management of the construction zone. Both claimed the roadway was safe, and argued the driver was solely responsible for the accident.