A Chicago-area trucker is facing four felony charges for behavior leading up to a deadly wreck on I-88. The semi-truck accident occurred two weeks ago and claimed the life of a toll-way worker. It also left an Illinois State Trooper with critical injuries. As a result of his actions, the truck driver has been labeled an “imminent […]
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Severe Turbulence Causing Infant to Fly Out of Parent’s Arms During Flight Is a Reminder of the Dangers of the Infant Seat Exception
When a United Airlines flight from Denver, Colorado, to Billings, Montana, encountered severe turbulence yesterday afternoon injuring five passengers, an infant flew out of his or her parent’s arms and landed in another seat. Though the infant fortunately did not appear injured, the flight incident is but another reminder of the dangers inherent in children […]
Rapoport Sims Perry & VanOverloop, P.C., Attorneys Participate in American Association for Justice (AAJ) Winter Convention
Rapoport Sims Perry & VanOverloop partners David Rapoport and Michael Teich attended the American Association for Justice (AAJ) Winter Convention in New Orleans. AAJ, the world’s largest trial bar, is dedicated to ensuring fair and effective justice for people injured by the misconduct or negligence of others. The organization’s members work together to promote fairness […]
Drug Use And Fatal Car Wrecks
Recent polls conducted by CNN and CBS indicate that the American public supports the legalization of marijuana for the first time. According to a study conducted by Columbia University researchers, pot use is increasingly a factor in deadly car accidents. Over the past 10 years, the number of fatal crashes in which a driver had marijuana […]
Rapoport Sims Perry & VanOverloop, P.C., Retained by Victims of Semitruck Collision on Interstate 294 in Cook County, Illinois
On January 21, 2014 a semitractor-trailer jackknifed through several lanes of traffic on Interstate 294 in the suburbs of Chicago resulting in a violent six-vehicle collision in which numerous drivers and passengers were seriously injured. Rapoport Sims Perry & VanOverloop has been retained by one of the drivers and his wife and is investigating the […]
Rapoport Sims Perry & VanOverloop, P.C., Files Lawsuit Against Metra After Passenger Falls Down Defective Staircase
Rapoport Sims Perry & VanOverloop filed a lawsuit today in the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois, against Metra for serious injuries sustained by a 61-year-old woman when she slipped and fell while descending stairs at the 59th Street University of Chicago train station. The stairs and handrail which passengers must use to get to […]
Infant Child Safety Seats And Car Accidents
Properly installing and using child car seats is an important safety step. The national Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports that car accident fatalities can be reduced by 71 percent among infants and 54 percent among toddlers when child seats are used properly. Despite the safety gains made possible by car seats and other safety technology, car wrecks […]
Rapoport Sims Perry & VanOverloop, P.C., Files Medical Malpractice Lawsuit for the Wrongful Death of a 31-Year-Old Man
Rapoport Sims Perry & VanOverloop filed a lawsuit today in the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois, for the wrongful death of a 31-year-old man who died one week after surgery to repair an injured quadriceps tendon in his right leg. According to the lawsuit, the hospital and surgeon improperly failed to provide the man […]
Safety Group Releases Top 10 List For 2014
The National Transportation Safety Board has released its list of the 10 areas in which it will be focusing its advocacy in 2014. The list includes the areas the NTSB most wants to address to reduce transportation accidents. Three of the areas of focus which are likely to involve changes by the general public are: eliminating […]
Combination Drugs May Lead To Liver Damage
A pain reliever many people consider harmless can cause liver failure and even death if taken in excess. To reduce the number of dangerous overdoses of acetaminophen, the Food and Drug Administration has recommended that doctors put an end to prescriptions for certain combination drugs. A combination drug is a pain medication that combines acetaminophen with an opioid. […]
Snow And Ice Contribute To Unsafe Driving
The winter driving season contains many hazards for drivers. Driving too fast and tailgating are behaviors that frequently lead to car accidents when bad weather strikes. Another concerning behavior is on display many mornings during colder months: drivers who do not fully clear their windshields of ice before getting out on the roads. The failure to properly […]
Is Talking On A Cell Phone While Driving Dangerous?
The new ban on the use of hand-held cell phones by Illinois drivers has raised several interesting questions about the dangers of distracted driving. A new study has confirmed many of the dangers of distracted driving while producing a single surprising result: Talking on a cell phone while driving may not greatly affect the risk of crashing. […]
New Cell Phone Laws Now In Place In Illinois
January 1, 2014 marked the first day of the Illinois ban on hand-held cell phone use by drivers. The ban is intended to combat car accidents caused by distracted driving. The law has been criticized by some for arbitrarily separating hand-held cell phone use from the use of hands-free devices. Some studies have indicated that there is […]
Comparing Illinois Drivers Nationwide
A national survey comparing drivers from all 50 states ranked Illinois drivers number 22, in terms of safety. The survey used several different factors, including car accident fatalities per 100 million miles driven, to identify which drivers were the worst. Louisiana drivers ranked as the least safe in the country while the safest drivers were found in […]
Holiday Stress May Cause Car Accidents
Frustration is not an aid to safe driving. Along with bad weather and an increased incidence of drinking and driving, the holiday season brings out highly frustrated drivers who are more prone to car accidents. Recent studies have identified a sharp increase in car accidents in the days immediately preceding Christmas. Large numbers of people converge […]
Legislators Call For Greater Safety Measures After Train Derailment
In 2008, the National Transportation Safety Board recommended that all trains be equipped with video cameras to monitor track conditions, signal conditions, and train engineer actions in the event of an accident. The recommendations were made following a Metrolink train wreck in Los Angeles that claimed the lives of 25 people. The Metro-North Railroad derailment in the […]
Train Crash May Have Been Caused By Semi-Trance State
The transportation industry has long been plagued by a condition known as highway hypnosis or white-line fever. Some are claiming the condition was responsible for the commuter train crash on the Metro-North Railroad in New York earlier this month. The condition involves a driver, or in this case a train engineer, who is lulled into a semi-trance […]
New Laws For Compounding Pharmacies Following Meningitis Outbreak
The contaminated syringes that led to more than 750 cases of fungal meningitis and 60 fatalities were produced by a compounding pharmacy. Such pharmacies existed largely outside of the regulatory authority of the Food and Drug Administration. The tragic outbreak and massive recall of the contaminated products caused legislators to seek ways of monitoring these types of […]
Winter Driving Safety Campaign
Holidays lead to an increase in traffic volume. The ice and snow that accompany winters in Illinois lead to treacherous driving conditions and car accidents. The Illinois Department of Transportation is working with Illinois State Police and Illinois Tollway to put forth a safety campaign to help drivers deal with the dangers of winter driving. The […]
Illinois Troopers Target Dangerous Holiday Driving Practices
On November 26, 2012, Illinois State Trooper Kyle Deatherage was doing his job. He was in the process of conducting a traffic stop when he was struck and killed by a passing vehicle. In remembrance of this tragic accident, Illinois law enforcement personnel are conducting 24 consecutive hours of patrols seeking impaired drivers. The program, known as […]
