Good Lawyers in Injury Divorce DUI

Oksana Grigorieva was strategizing with her lawyers in Century City today — getting ready for next week’s big custody hearing with Mel Gibson… but before she walked into the office, she told photogs that she’ll be tellin’ the whole story.   Mel’s lawyers have filed a motion to hold Oksana in contempt, because they believe she violated a restraining order by allegedly releasing the secretly taped conversations.  Oksana denies she’s the leak.

TMZ broke the story … Alexander Dalton is a key witness whom Sheriff’s investigators want to interview.  As TMZ reported, the 12-year-old boy has seen and heard various blowups between Mel and Oksana.  

Oksana’s dentist is on record– through a sworn declaration — saying when he saw Oksana the day after the incident, a veneer on one of her teeth was completely knocked off and another was broken in half.  The dentist says Oksana’s teeth were not damaged. 

Mel is being investigated for domestic violence, assault with a deadly weapon (allegedly threatening Oksana with a handgun) and child endangerment.  L.A. County Sheriff’s Department wants to interview the 12-year-old son of Oksana Grigorieva in connection with the Mel Gibson investigation, and they believe the boy has critical information about his mom’s volatile relationship with Mel.

After hearing what Mr. Gibson said on the tapes, his attitude is all to familiar.  This man obviously treats women as objects and has the need to control their lives, together with his religious beliefs, Mr. Gibson feels that he is god and has the right to say and do whatever he chooses. Mr. Gibson, this is your wakeup call.  Get help.

For  more information about domestic violence please see:

www.survivorsinaction.com

Washington (CNN) – Reese Witherspoon is getting serious.

Witherspoon told CNN’s Wolf Blitzer on Wednesday about her quest to stop violence against women around the world. She said she isn’t alone in her fight.

“I think when you have strong powerful women standing up and speaking out about these issues, not to mention how many women represent us in the Senate and the House of Representatives, you’re going to start to see a major change in these areas,” stated the actress.

The actress is in town to attend the 2010 International Women of Courage Awards along with First Lady Michelle Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

Witherspoon is a representative of the Avon Foundation and is partnering with the non-profit group Vital Voices to shine a light on the difficult issues women face as a result of abuse.

Authorities in Compton are still continuing their search for a mini van driver who struck and killed a bicyclist, and then drove off from the scene. The accident apparently occurred on Monday, and once again underscores the lack of respect for bicyclist rights in Los Angeles and California.

According to KTLA.com, three eyewitnesses at the scene have confirmed that they saw a minivan strike the bicyclist. The van driver checked on the victim, and then drove away. The victim sustained serious injuries. Compton firefighters tried hard to save his life, but he died. He was a male in his mid to late 30s. The van has been described as a silver or grey Ford van. Compton authorities are calling anyone with any information that could lead to the arrest of the hit and run van driver, to come forward.

To bicycle accident attorneys in Los Angeles, this accident once again underlines the kind of hostility that bicyclists face as they ride everyday. Bicyclists in Los Angeles and around California have always found it hard to cope in a state that is not friendly to bicyclists, and in a culture that believes the roads were designed for automobiles alone. Over the past couple of years, bicycle accident lawyers in Los Angeles have noticed that this harsh environment has gotten even tougher for bicyclists. More and more cases of bicycle accidents in California seem to be the result of undisguised hostility by motorists and failure to respect bicyclist rights.

Fortunately, all is not bleak on the bicycle safety front in California. Last year’s trial of a doctor who was ultimately found guilty of injuring two bicyclists in a fit of road rage has shun the spotlight on the lack of safety for bicyclists in California. The trial that ended in a 5-year sentence for the doctor has drawn the attention of California motorists, bicyclists, and accident lawyers, as well law enforcement agencies. The city of Los Angeles in particular, has been making efforts to address the unique concerns that bicyclists face in this city. There have been efforts made to collaborate with the bicycling community to come up with safety measures that can protect them on the road.

Unfortunately, investing in bicycling safety is not a major priority right now. The state continues to grapple with a financial crisis, and this leaves law enforcement agencies short of the funds they will need to increase awareness for both bicyclists and motorists. These investments may be tough, but are necessary in a situation where there are increasing numbers of bicyclists in California. Encouraging bicycling can be part of the country’s economic recovery, as the government tries to shake off dependence on foreign oil. However, encouraging bicycling is not going to be possible unless there are investments in bicycle safety. California’s bikers need to know that they can ride everywhere without fear that some ignorant motorist will hit them, and drive away without a second look back.

The Reeves Law Group is a law firm with offices throughout California dedicated exclusively to the representation of personal injury victims, including victims of bicycle accidents. Please visit our website at trlglaw.com. If you desire a free consultation on a personal injury matter, please call us at (800) 644-8000 or email us.

The Reeves Law Group is not acting as legal counsel for any party in the matters discussed in this posting.

A CBS News report is focusing this week on the state of aviation safety in the country. While many may believe that air travel in the country is in one of its safest periods ever, the fact is that passenger are constantly at risk from fatigued pilots, old and aging fleets, and an economic downturn that could compromise safety procedures and protocols.

The report quotes a National Transportation Safety Board investigator who believes that, contrary to what Americans believe, air safety in the country right now, is falling behind. There are some areas of aviation safety that seem to have made major strides. However other areas continue to be a source of concern.

When you look at the statistics, you may believe that aviation safety shouldn’t even be an issue. After all, last year’s fatal Colgan Air crash in Buffalo, New York was the first fatal crash in more than 2 years. That’s a terrific record when you consider that America’s airports see more than 26,000 flights operating every day. However, there are several issues that continue to plague airline safety.

One of the biggest threats to plane safety in California and around the country comes in the form of a recession with no definite end in sight. The aviation industry has been hit hard.   For an industry that was on the brink of collapse post 9/11, the recession has proven to be a serious challenge. According to some figures, in 2009, the aviation industry sustained losses amounting up to $5 billion. That means that commercial airlines are increasingly cash strapped, and trying to leverage limited financial resources to hold on to their market share in a competitive market. Simply put, an airline that is struggling financially is less likely to put old and aged planes out of service. Some experts estimate that some of the planes in operation are more than 15 years old.

The National Transportation Safety Board is concerned about the fact that several of the aviation safety recommendations it has made over the past years continue to accumulate with no signs of implementation. These recommendations include dealing with deicing in icy weather. The NTSB recommends using research on icing to revise aircraft design and flight approval procedures in icy conditions. It also recommends that airplanes with pneumatic deicing boots activate as soon as the aircraft enters icy conditions. Neither of these conditions has been adopted.

The NTSB also has a number of other recommendations that focus on enhanced runway safety by requiring specific air traffic control clearance for each crossing, assessment of landing distances with safety margins and installation of moving map displays to alert pilots. Other recommendations include image recorders to allow for more focused investigations of plane accidents, dealing with accidents caused by pilot and crew fatalities, as well as errors by air traffic controllers and plane mechanics, and improved management of crews. None of these have been adopted by the Federal Aviation Administration.

California plane crash lawyers have been especially concerned about poorly paid, ill trained and insufficiently experienced pilots who may also have to deal with fatigue issues.

The Reeves Law Group is a law firm with offices throughout California dedicated exclusively to the representation of personal injury victims, including victims of aviation accidents. Please visit our website at trlglaw.com. If you desire a free consultation on a personal injury matter, please call us at (800) 644-8000 or email us.

The Reeves Law Group is not acting as legal counsel for any party in the matters discussed in this posting.

It seems Toyota has some friendly competition in its current international safety crisis. Japanese automaker Honda Motor Company is expanding its recall for airbag issues by over than 378,000 more cars.

As of now, the recall includes 822,000 vehicles.  These include 2001 and 2002 Accords, Odyssey minivans, Civic, CRVs and some 2002 Acura TL sedans.  The defect involves airbags that can deploy with excessive pressure, causing serious airbag injuries to the driver.  The company has announced that it will fix the problem by replacing the driver’s side airbag inflator in the affected cars. The company has confirmed that it has received reports of at least 12 incidents, involving such forceful deployment. Eleven of these resulted in injuries to the driver, and one ended in death.

That death involved a high school student from Oklahoma City. The victim had crashed her car just behind her school. When the airbag deployed, pieces of metal burst through the airbag mechanism. These shards pierced through the victim’s neck, causing her fatal injuries. Her death was ruled an accident caused by a sharp injury to the neck. She also had a penetrating injury on the right side of her chest.

In August, her family filed a lawsuit in Oklahoma against Honda Motor Company, the car that manufactures the Honda Accord’s seatbelt and airbag system, and a number of other Honda subsidiaries.

Honda’s announcement comes just as its Japanese rival Toyota is reeling under the effect of an international recall that has so far run into the billions of cars, recalled in the United States and around the globe. Toyota’s problems stem from a jammed accelerator pedal that can stick when the car is moving suddenly and without warning, causing the car to accelerate to high speeds. Complaints of sudden acceleration have been trickling in since 2002, when the company introduced Electronic Throttle Control Systems in its automobiles. This very blog has discussed these reports of unintended acceleration that seemed at the time to receive little media attention, and as we now know, barely bothered Toyota executives either.

Then in August last year, an accident in California made headlines around the world. The crash that killed off duty California Highway Patrol officer Mark Saylor and three other members of his family, would have been just another accident, except for 911 voice recordings made from the car that confirmed that it was accelerating to high speeds, and the driver wasn’t able to slow it down. Soon after followed an apology by Toyota’s chief Akio Toyoda, and a massive recall of vehicles that since has been expanded to include more vehicles. Production and sales of eight of the models involved in the acceleration problem have been halted. Toyota also dispatched repairs to be performed at its dealerships across the country.

The company has come off as being in turn, clueless, uncaring, uninvolved and now, secretive and conspiring to conceal information on the safety problems from federal regulators, its customers and product liability lawyers in California.

The Reeves Law Group is a law firm with offices throughout California dedicated exclusively to the representation of personal injury victims, including victims of motor vehicle defects, airbag failures, and product liability. Please visit our website at trlglaw.com. If you desire a free consultation on a personal injury matter, please call us at (800) 644-8000 or email us.

The Reeves Law Group is not acting as legal counsel for any party in the matters discussed in this posting.