La Jolla Community Says Goodbye to 9-year Old San Diego Girl

The La Jolla, California community gave their final good wishes and thoughts for young Ashley Heffington’s soul on Sunday. Ashley was a 9-year old girl who died 12 days after her family’s car was hit by an SUV near the San Diego Sports Arena on New Year’s Eve. Locals visited the La Jolla Presbyterian Church to honor the little girl’s memory and have started a memorial fund to help out the family.

Ashley suffered major bodily injuries from the serious car crash before she finally succumbed nearly two weeks later. The driver of the SUV is suspected of driving under the influence of prescription drugs at the time of the car crash. You can read more of the serious La Jolla car crash that took away this young girl’s life in this CBS8.com story.

We believe that tragic losses such as Ashley’s life are major eye-openers to everyone, reminding them about the importance of driving safely. It is important to be as clear-minded and as attentive as possible when driving, especially when traffic is the busiest. We hope and pray for Ashley Heffington’s soul to rest in peace and for the safety of all San Diegans.

If you or any of your loved ones are victims of a La Jolla auto accident and are in need of assistance, don’t hesitate to contact La Jolla car accident lawyer and the San Diego, CA personal injury lawyers for more information. You can also contact the San Diego accident attorneys for helpful information and a free initial consultation.…

San Diego Personal Injury Attorney Answers Client’s Question: How Much is My Injury Accident Case Worth?

Prospective clients to our San Diego personal injury law firm often ask, “How Much is My Personal Injury Case Worth?” It is the most frequently asked question besides, “How Long Will My Personal Injury Case Take?“.

Our San Diego injury accident law office takes pride in providing as much helpful and useful free information as we can to our personal injury clients and members of the public. We want to make sure the public is as educated as claims adjustors so we all can effectively fight the insurance companies and their hardball tactics.

San Diego Personal Injury Lawyer Answers Client Question: How Long Will My Personal Injury Case Take?

One of the most frequent questions our San Diego personal injury law firm receives from prospective clients is, “How Long Will My Personal Injury Case Take?“.

Our office takes pride in providing as much helpful and useful free information as we can to our personal injury clients and members of the public. Only by ensuring that the public is as educated as claims adjustors and insurance company employees can we help effectively fight them and their hardball tactics.

How Long Will My Personal Injury Case Take?

San Diego personal injury lawyer and car accident attorney answers a very common question of injury accident victims: How long will my personal injury case take?

Aside from asking “How much is my injury claim worth?”, this is probably the most frequently asked question our office receives.…

Fatal Mission Bay Cruise Leads to Death of La Jolla Man

San Diego’s Mission Bay had a deadly even this week when lifeguards and divers found the body of a 28-year-old La Jolla man in the bay on August 9, 2009, over 12 hours after he dove off the Bahia Belle cruise ship with two friends. He did not make it to shore and drowned.

Sean Rae and his friends jumped off of the tour boar during the night time cruise around 12:35 a.m. in the early morning of August 9, according to San Diego Lifeguard Lt. Andy Lerum. The San Diego Police Department released dive teams and joined with the Port of San Diego to search, along with a U.S. Coast Guard vessel, and even with lifeguards from the North County, to all search the waters. Before the body was found, Lerum was worried the area would be too large to search and successfully locate the body.

The Bahia Belle is a mock paddlewheel restaurant-bar cruise boat based at the Bahia Resort, which regularly cruises Mission Bay. Rae lived in La Jolla with his girlfriend.

If you or anyone you know has ever been injured or killed in a San Diego boating accident, please contact San Diego personal injury attorney. You may also contact these San Diego boating accident lawyers online here.…

Man Injured After Attack at San Diego House Party

A San Diego house party on July 18, 2009, turned dangerous when a man in attendance there was knocked unconscious before he left in the early morning hours, according to police. The Rancho Bernardo assault occurred around 5 a.m. when the assailant insulted the victim’s girlfriend at the party that was held on Grassy Trail Drive.

After the insult, the girlfriend threw her drink on the man and he pushed her. The woman’s boyfriend then grabbed the assailant and told him to leave immediately. Although the man left with his friends, they waited outside for the couple to leave. When they did leave, the attacker reportedly punched the victim in the face, knocking him to the ground. The assailant did not stop there, however, as he stomped on the man’s face and then fled. The man had to be taken to the hospital by his friends for serious injuries, although they were not believed to be life-threatening. You can read more about this San Diego assault and battery in this SignOnSanDiego.com story.

If you or anyone you know has ever been injured or killed in a San Diego private property injury please contact San Diego personal injury lawyer and the San Diego injury attorneys.…

New Court of Appeal Case: Horseplay Around Pool an “Accident” Under Homeowners’ Insurance

On Friday, the California Court of Appeals denied State Farm Insurance’s Petition for Writ of Mandate seeking to have the trial court issue judgment in favor of the insurance company. At issue in the case, titled State Farm Fire and Casualty Co. v. Superior Court, was whether the trial court erred in ruling that State Farm owed a duty to defend its’ insured from a lawsuit for personal injuries where its’ insured threw the victim into a pool, landing on an exposed step.

An insurance company’s duty to defend it’s insured is extremely broad. It is broader than the duty to pay a covered loss. The duty to defend applies to any claim that could possibly involve a covered loss.

In this case, the insureds’ 21 year-old son, who lived with the insureds, argued with another young man, Mr. Wright, at a party. When Wright went outside, the son grabbed Wright and picked him up and threw him into the shallow end of the swimming pool. Wright landed on the pool’s concrete step which was above the water line. As a result of this action, Wright fractured his right clavicle and was hospitalized for four days. The son apologized immediately to Wright and claimed that he was just horse-playing.

The son was later arrested for the incident and pled nolo contender to misdemeanor battery.

Wright then sued the son seeking compensation for his injuries. The claim was tendered to the parents’ homeowners’ insurance policy with State Farm. The policy covered “damages because of bodily injury…caused by an occurrence” with an “occurrence” being defined as “an accident…which results in a. bodily injury; or b. property damage.”

State Farm denied a defense to the parents on several grounds, including:

The claim against you does not meet the insuring agreement in the policy, as the actions do not arise out of an accident. Also, the policy specifically excludes damages which are either expected or intended by the insured or the result of willful and malicious conduct.” In short, State Farm treated the son’s actions as a willful assault rather than mere horseplay.

The Court of Appeals upheld the trial court’s ruling that State Farm acted improperly when they denied the parents with a defense to Wright’s claims. The Court found that under the stipulated facts, an “accident” did occur which would give rise to the duty to defend. The Court held that although the son intentionally picked up Wright and threw him at the pool, the son did not intend or expect the consequence (that Wright would land on a step). Therefore, the duty to defend existed because Wright’s injury was neither expected nor intended by the son, nor was it the result of a malicious act by the insured.…

Hot Coffee the Movie Shows the Ill Effect of Tort Reform

Remember the McDonald’s coffee case? A woman orders a cup of hot coffee. She puts the cup in between her legs as she drives. Then, the coffee spills, and she gets third-degree burns on very private areas on her body. Cha-ching!

Though, that is not exactly the whole story. Susan Saladoff, director of the documentary film Hot Coffee, which premieres on HBO tonight at 6 p.m. PST, shows viewers what really happened in the infamous “McDonald’s hot coffee” lawsuit. The movie looks at what actually happened to Stella Liebeck, why the case got so much media attention, who funded the effort, and who really profited from spilling hot coffee.

Hot Coffee is a “call to action.” It asks the question, What happens when access to court is so lopsided that the average person cannot gain access? And who really pays the price, the negligent party or taxpayers?

In the four cases the film documents, Saladoff shows how Americans are surrendering their Constitutional rights in all sorts of ways without even knowing it and how they are being screwed by the system –not taking advantage of it.

If you or someone you love has been injured or killed because of a defective product or negligent person, you are entitled to damages. The California personal injury attorneys will protect your Constitutional rights and get the money you deserve.…

Elderly Chino Pedestrian Injured in San Bernardino County Car Crash

67-year-old Luis Octavio Castillo was seriously injured in a Chino pedestrian accident that occurred on June 15, 2011, around 7:37 a.m. along the 3300 block of Riverside Drive. According to police officials, Castillo was walking through a construction area when he was struck by a 2007 Scion TC driven by 21-year-old Lissette Carolina Menijvar.

Due to a county construction project, the eastbound lanes of Riverside Drive had been temporarily diverted to the westbound lanes. Castillo was immediately airlifted to Arrowhead Regional Medical Center for medical treatment. The investigating officers need to determine if the diversion of roads and construction area had proper signs to guide drivers along.

From the facts set forth in the news story, it appears that Menijvar may have been at fault for causing this serious pedestrian crash. Under California Vehicle Code Section 21950(a), “The driver of a vehicle shall yield the right-of-way to a pedestrian crossing the roadway within any marked crosswalk or within any unmarked crosswalk at an intersection….”

However, the construction company may be held liable for the damages as well after a further investigation. Castillo needs to consult with a San Bernardino County pedestrian accident lawyer to obtain compensation to cover treatment, medical and hospitalization costs, and other accident-related damages.

Our personal injury law office sincerely hopes and prays that the injuries suffered by the pedestrian heal soon and do not prove life-threatening.…

San Diego Woman Seriously Injured After Falling from Encinitas Bluff

An unidentified woman in her 20s is currently in critical condition after falling nearly 100 feet down a cliff. The woman was a house guest at a blufftop home in Encinitas when she took the fall around 11 p.m., which left her with serious trauma to her back and head. The injury was reported as happening at a home on Neptune Avenue near Roseta Street, according to Encinitas Marine Safety Captain Larry Giles.

The woman suffering the San Diego County fall injury had been in a hot tub before she got out and walked to a hammock in the backyard, however, took a few steps too far and slipped off the cliff and ended up on the beach, about a half-mile north of Moonlight Beach. Alcohol was involved in her incident. When rescuers arrived she had no mobility and could not feel her lower extremities. She was taken by helicopter to a La Jolla hospital.…

Two Injured in Redlands Single-Vehicle Rollover Collision

Two people, both in their mid-40s, suffered serious injuries in a solo-vehicle rollover crash that took place on May 9, 2012, around 3:30 p.m. eastbound Interstate 10(I-10). According to California Highway Patrol Officer Mario Lopez, a green Ford Bronco went out of control and landed north of the 500 block of 11th Street, trapping a woman passenger.

Both the injured victims were immediately transported to Loma Linda University Medical Center for treatment. From the present facts, it is unclear as to how this traffic collision occurred. However, the driver reported a problem with a tire, suggesting that a blowout might be the cause. It seems that a vehicular malfunction may have contributed to this serious crash.

The injured victim in such cases could seek compensation to cover medical expenses, loss of earnings, cost of hospitalization, rehabilitation, physical therapy, and other related damages.

Our personal injury law office hopes that the injuries suffered by both the victims heal soon and do not prove fatal.…