Chicago Accident Lawyer Blog

Speeding Driver on Chicago’s Far South Side Causes Pileup

Mon, 30 Jan 2012 12:13:59 -0600

As reported in Speeding Car Causes Multi-Vehicle Crash on Far South Side, a driver traveling at a high rate of speed south on Ewing Avenue caused a 4 vehicle pileup. Witnesses say the 1992 Oldsmobile Sierra possibly reached a speed of 100 mph. The Oldsmobile collided with a Dodge Durango headed east on 106th Avenue. Police News Affairs officer John Mirabelli said, “That set off a chain reaction that included a Cadillac CTS and a Chevrolet Malibu.” The accident which occurred at the intersection of 106th street and Ewing Avenue left two people in serious to critical condition. One of the injured was the driver of the Oldsmobile.
The car accident which occurred around 7:30 Sunday morning caused major traffic delays. The streets were blocked to allow police to conduct an investigation and as a result the CTA South Chicago bus route, No. 30, had to be rerouted. According to the CTA the No. 30 buses were back on schedule as of 10:25 a.m. Police investigated the crash and no citations or charges have been issued as of 10:30 a.m.
Accidents such as these can be avoided if drivers reduce speed and abide by the rules of the road. Such measures allow people to save money on personal injury lawsuits and save lives. The careless actions and negligence of the Oldsmobile driver have caused damages against himself and another person, damages that the victim should not be responsible for.

Attempted Rescue: Police Officer and Tow Truck Driver

Wed, 25 Jan 2012 13:44:03 -0600

In relation to our last post about fire ordinances, there was a fire early Tuesday morning at an 3-story complex on 130th street, near the far south side of Chicago. Sergeant Mike Saladino, a veteran of 11 years, was on a routine patrol early Tuesday morning around 3:15 a.m. when he heard there was a fire about two blocks from his location. He responded immediately and arrived in a matter of minutes. A tow truck driver, who was originally there to repossess a car, was already on the scene and had just smashed open the jammed door of the first floor apartment. The tow truck driver had a fire extinguisher in hand and was attempting to put out the blaze. Two small children were reportedly trapped in the burning building. The American Burn Association state that there are approximately 1.1 million burn injuries in the United States each year severe enough that they warrant medical attention. Experienced accident and injury attorneys Zneimer & Zneimer p.c. understand the immediacy and sensitivity required in handling cases that involve burn injuries.

Chicago Fire Ordinance Failure

Tue, 24 Jan 2012 10:08:01 -0600

Let’s rewind back a few years to 2003, when a fire killed six people trapped behind locked doors in a stairwell in the Cook County Administration Building located in the Loop. This fire prompted Chicago Tribune analysis of city records, of the 700 residential high-rises required to step up their fire safety measures as required by a 2004 ordinance, 369 still haven’t made the necessary improvements, or submitted approved plans. That’s more than half of high-rises still not up to code. The experienced personal injury team at Zneimer & Zneimer p.c. helps people who have suffered chemical, heat burns, or fire burns. They can also help you with personal injuries sustained from old residential buildings hazards; such as elevator doors not up to code that may crush your arm.

Bridgeport: Teen Youtube Beating

Fri, 20 Jan 2012 16:02:24 -0600

By now, many of you Chicagoans have heard about the 7 teenagers that beat up and robbed an Asian high school senior this past Sunday. This is mainly because one of the teens recorded the beating with their cell phone and the video has gone viral via Youtube. The teens involved in the beating were all under the age of 18. There was one 17 year old boy, two 16 year old boys, three 15 year old boys, and a 15 year old girl. The girl allegedly lured the victim into the alley on the 2700 block of South Shields, where the boys waited to beat him. All the teens, except 17 year old Raymond Palomino, are being charged with juvenile delinquencies. While accident injury attorneys Zneimer and Zneimer do not typically handle these types of cases, they do handle personal injury cases caused by assault. Typically, insurance companies will not cover these types of acts unless the act is forseeable

Chicago Man Sentenced for Fatal DUI Accident

Fri, 20 Jan 2012 14:30:17 -0600

The Sun-Times Media has reported that Cecil Conner (24) was sentenced today in Will County Court to 9 ½ years in prison for a fatal DUI crash that claimed the life of his girlfriend’s 5 year old son last May of 2010. Conner was facing from three to 14 years in prison after being convicted of two counts of aggravated DUI. Chicago accident and injury attorneys Zneimer & Zneimer p.c. have handled cases involving auto accidents, with excellent results for their clients. They can help give you peace of mind by dealing with the insurance companies and medical care providers first hand.

Pedestrians with Headphones Have Greater Chance of Injury

Thu, 19 Jan 2012 15:38:09 -0600

As you walk through the streets of Chicago, everywhere you look fellow pedestrians all have on ear buds or head phones. This is especially true with joggers. These people may want to turn their music down next time they go for a jog or walk because according to University of Maryland researchers, use of iPods and other MP3 players make people much less aware of their environment, including oncoming traffic. This is particularly startling because almost everyone has a smart phone these days which have MP3 player capabilities. It’s as if people are deafly walking through the streets, unaware of all the impending dangers the city has to offer. The Chicago accident and injury firm Zneimer and Zneimer p.c. handle cases related to pedestrian injuries, whether caused by car, truck, or slip and fall. Please contact their office with any questions.

Expert Predicts Chicago Officer was Intoxicated at Time of Crash

Thu, 19 Jan 2012 14:54:20 -0600

This past Friday, January 13, expert toxicologist Jennifer Bash told jurors she feels Chicago Police Officer Richard Bolling was legally drunk at the time of his May 2009 crash, per The Chicago Red Eye. Richard is currently on trial for aggravated DUI, reckless homicide, and leaving the scene of a fatal accident. Officer Richard allegedly hit and killed a 13 year old boy on a bike, with his Dodge Charger. Richard was off duty at the time of the hit and run, and was pulled over shortly after for driving the wrong way down a one-way street. Prosecutors alleged that Richard’s car had blood on it, a cracked windshield, and an open bottle of beer in the front console. Chicago accident attorneys Zneimer and Zneimer p.c. are experts in auto accident cases. Many of which are hit and run cases and DUI cases.

Pit bull Attacks Police Dog

Fri, 13 Jan 2012 11:11:04 -0600

Yet again, pit bull attacks are in the news in Chicago. Thankfully this time, the attacks were not on a human. According to the Chicago Tribune, last Friday, January 6, Chicago Police Officer Kevin Keel took his police dog, Vvorra, out for training near South Loop. As they walked by a make shift shelter around 4 in the afternoon, two unleashed pit bulls darted out and attacked the 3 year old Belgian Malinois police dog. While two pit bulls darted out of the structure, only one of them managed to bite the police dog. The dog owner was nowhere in site. Vvorra was rushed to the emergency room after being bit on the thigh and nose. Her nose bled profusely. Officer Kevin broke the dogs up just in time. His police canine did not bite the pit bulls back. She had never been in a fight with other canines before.

Texting While Driving Increase

Thu, 12 Jan 2012 12:01:40 -0600

In this day and age, everyone has a cell phone, from children to senior citizens. They certainly are a convenience since you can use them to listen to music, text, surf the internet, check your email, take photos, play games, and the list goes on and on. What is alarming however, is that today more and more people are driving while texting. Texting while driving has gone up 50% last year despite many states rushing to ban it. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration measures this by staking out certain stoplights and intersections and counting the people using cell phones and other hand held devices. As it turns out, at any given moment, approximately 1% of people are manipulating their cell phone while driving. While that number may seem low, it is basically saying that 1 out of 100 cars that drive by you today may hit you because they were busy texting. Cell phones have certainly added to the number of distractions drivers already have while behind the wheel. A distracted driver is a big problem since they may be more likely to cause an accident. Chicago injury attorneys Zneimer and Zneimer handle distraction related auto accidents on a regular basis. It’s estimated that in 2010, 3,092 deaths in crashes were caused by distractions.

Instant Soup Can Kill You

Wed, 11 Jan 2012 13:40:46 -0600

As far as winters in Chicago are concerned, this has been a fairly mild one. Although, we all know how quickly the weather can change here in the windy city. Freezing cold weather is just around the corner. Along with the cold weather, people like to enjoy warmer treats such as soup and hot chocolate. There is however, a hidden danger that comes along with the instant soups. Doctors in burn units of hospitals see at least 2 out of 3 patients a week that have been burned by instant soup. Most of the time, these patients are small children and toddlers who accidently tip the cups over on themselves. Many of these patients are treated for burns all over their entire bodies. According to NPR, 8 of 12 hospitals nationwide claim they see this type of injury several times a week.

The Chicago personal injury firm Zneimer & Zneimer handles cases involving burn related accidents. We will assess your situation and explain to you your appropriate choices and options.

It is not difficult to understand why the cups are tipping. The cups tipping over can be attributed to the way they are designed.

Chicago Dangerous Dog Ordinances

Tue, 10 Jan 2012 09:18:23 -0600

Let's continue with last weeks dog related theme seeing how there has been alot of dog and animal related discussions in the news lately. In the last post I explained a little about Chicago's leash ordinance,which again, basically means dogs must be kept on a leash or confined when outside their owners property and in the public sphere. Today let's focus on the dangerous animal ordinance and what defines a dangerous animal.

According to the Chicago Red Eye, Chicago defines a dangerous animal as "any animal that bites, inflicts injury on, kills, or otherwise attacks a human being or domestic animal without provocation on any public or private property." This definition includes animals that are trained to chase and have an attitude of attack, such as dogs trained for fighting. This ordinance also covers dogs used in the commercial venture to guard public or private property. However, Chicago does not include govermental or law enforcement canines in this definition.

Pit bull Attack Leaves Chicago Residents Divided

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 14:00:24 -0600

As previously mentioned in our last post, the pit bull attack on Chicago resident Joseph Finley has caused quite the controversy. Per the Chicago Red Eye, it has sparked a conflict between Chicago dog owners, and residents who feel attacks such as this are reason enough to ban dog breeds such as pit bulls from the city limits. It has left our city divided. Everywhere you go, someone has an opinion on the matter. Even users of the popular social networking site facebook.com have begun circulating a petition not to ban pit bulls in Chicago. It is targeted toward Ward 2 Alderman Robert W. Fioretti and has a goal of 1000 signatures, but is already nearly 3000 strong.

Chicago already has several ordinances in effect to impose penalties on irresponsible dog owners. Some of which include the leash ordinance, the dangerous animal ordinance, and the bite ordinance. A little more about the leash ordinance after the jump.

Two Pit bulls Leave Chicago Jogger in Critical Condition

Tue, 03 Jan 2012 11:40:43 -0600

A horrible start to the New Year for a 62-year old Chicago jogger left in critical condition after being attacked by two pit bulls while jogging along the lakefront near Rainbow Bridge Park early Monday morning. According to the Chicago Tribune, the dogs bit the jogger all over his entire body, including his face, arms, and especially legs. An eye witness, Stanley Lee, overheard the joggers screams for help from his nearby apartment and attempted to stop the dogs. He hit them repeatedly with a baseball bat, but the dogs would not let go. Their jaws were locked in place. Luckily the police arrived soon after and shot both dogs.

Authorities have stated that the dogs' owner has been ticketed for failing to restrain them and for not having city dog licenses. He could be facing fines of up to $2000 dollars. In addition, under the Illinois Animal Control Act, dog owners are strictly liable for injuries caused by their animals. The owner claims the dogs got loose when somebody left his gate open. The owner should have been responsible enough to ensure that this gate was closed considering such large dogs where being housed. While the dogs did have collars on, they did not have identification tags on the collars, or microchips embedded underneath their skin. The owner came forward as the owner of the dogs in good faith.

Another Oxygen Mask Catches Fire During Surgery: Possible Negligence Suit

Tue, 13 Dec 2011 13:05:52 -0600

As reported by Fox News, last week Tommy Beams (Seattle, Washington) went into surgery to get a bump removed from his head. What he thought would be a short- routine procedure, has become a nightmare. During the procedure, his oxygen mask burst into flames while he was under anesthesia. Tommy believes the fire was ignited by a cauterizing tool used during surgery, but the hospital is still investigating the cause.

“It’s just surreal, to see skin melted off your face, and look in the mirror and see chunks of skin hanging from your face, it’s not a pretty sight,” exclaimed Tommy. He describes the feeling of being burned as extremely painful, and is brought to tears on a daily basis. The burns on his face should be healed in about a year according to doctors, but I believe the horrific events will haunt him for the rest of his life. One tends to always have second thoughts before going into surgery, but you never expect such an awful experience to happen to you.

Lake Shore Drive Crosswalk Open Again

Tue, 29 Nov 2011 22:50:56 -0600

The pedestrian crosswalk from Buckingham Fountain to the Chicago lakefront is open again after 6 years. The city removed the chains that blocked pedestrians from crossing Lake Shore Drive to reach Lake Michigan at Queen's Landing. The crosswalk was originally installed in 1988 after a 13 year old girl was stuck and killed by a car attempting to cross Lake Shore Drive to reach Queen's Landing. In 2005 the crosswalk was closed and chains were put along the sidewalk to speed traffic on Lake Shore Drive. People still crossed Lake Shore Drive at that location to reach the lake. Two young festival goers were seriously injured during Lollapalooza when they attempted to cross Lake Shore Drive at that location and we hit by a car.

Luann Hamilton, CDOT deputy commissioner stated in the Chicago Tribune:"Traffic flow is important. But pedestrian safety is No. 1 priority and we have to make sure this location is safe for all users."

The move is part of Mayor Emanuel's goal of making the city of Chicago safer for pedestrians and bicyclists. Chicago's first protected bike lanes were opened this summer on Kinzie Street downtown.