Articles Posted in Wrongful Death

On October 20, 2006, Andy Polakowski, a freshman at Ohio State, was in the dorm elevator with 23 other students when it stopped on the third floor. As Andy tried to step off the elevator, it suddenly descended, pinning him between the ceiling of the elevator and the third floor. Tragically, he was pinned in…

A report released by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration finds that the number of people killed in traffic accidents on American roads dropped to its lowest level in more than 50 years. According to the report, 32,788 people died in car accidents in 2010, a 3% decrease from the previous year, and the lowest…

A 41-year-old Temecula woman is charged with second-degree murder after causing an auto accident that killed her 9-year-old daughter. According to reports, the woman, Karen Faye Honeycutt, may have consumed a dozen beers before getting behind the wheel of her SUV and speeding down the Vail Ranch Parkway in Temecula before losing control and striking…

A 77-year-old man driving a street sweeper fell asleep behind the wheel and veered into that path and striking a bicyclist on Friday. The cyclist, 44-year-old Suntat Peverley of Mira Mesa, died later that evening. According to reports, the street sweeper was traveling southbound on Genesee Avenue near Clairemont Mesa Blvd. when it came up…

A San Diego jury returned a $14.4 million verdict this week in favor of three young boys whose parents were killed in 2006 in an auto accident in Arizona. The wrongful death verdict was rendered against Mossy Ford, after a jury concluded that the dealership’s negligence in performing a tire repair caused the fatal accident.…

There is a very interesting legal story developing in Oceanside. Early on Christmas morning, 44-year-old Jimmy Misaalefua was gunned down in the cul-d-sac where he lived by his neighbor Robert Pulley. According to news accounts, Misaalefua was beloved in his community, a former Marine and college football player, who was an active volunteer in the…

The settlements of most personal injury cases are confidential. Usually a defendant agrees to pay a settlement under certain conditions. One, that no liability is admitted (e.g. we did nothing wrong, but will pay you to “buy our peace”), and two, that the settlement amount will be confidential. Most injured parties agree to these terms,…

A lawsuit was filed against a big-rig driver and his employer after the death of a 47-year-old cyclist. The complaint alleges that the driver, Gabriel Vera, was driving the truck negligently when he struck cyclist Lauren Perdriau Ward. According to news accounts, this is the third fatal accident Vera has been involved while working. Interestingly,…

Two Escondido men who hosted a party were charged with furnishing alcohol to a minor, who later lost control of her car and died in the ensuing accident. San Diego prosecutors charged Michael Love and Nick Bowser with three misdemeanors each, all alleging that they unlawfully provided alcohol drinks to a minor. According to reports,…

A diner at Troy’s Burgers on York Boulevard was killed when a car crashed into the restaurant. Investigators still don’t know why a 19-year-old man drove into the restaurant. The driver apparently passed a roadside sobriety test and has told police that he doesn’t remember what happened. As the dramatic video below shows, the family…