Illinois Injury Law Blog

The Chicago Tribune recently reported that a case of Chicago nursing home neglect and abuse has been allowed to worsen at a facility charged with the care of disabled children -- despite the knowledge of state regulators regarding the conditions.

A 4-year-old boy died in the facility when he had problems breathing and no one responded to the alarm. Less than a month later, nearly the same thing happened to a 4-year-old girl. State regulators found the alarms had not been properly set and had been turned so low they could not be heard.

Such lax care standards have repeatedly put fragile children at risk in the Aiden Village North facility. Our Chicago child injury lawyers were appalled by the report and encourage anyone with a loved one at the home, or with knowledge of its conditions, to contact a law firm experienced in dealing with nursing home neglect and abuse cases.

The Tribune found records dating back decades that detail the same problems. Even as the owners of the homes changed, the dangerous conditions persisted: Illnesses ignored, life-support alarms unanswered, and residents left without proper care. Instead of cracking down, regulators have allowed the problems to worsen.

Which brings us to a primary consideration when choosing a nursing home. Sure you can check a home's ratings. And you can review past inspections. But relying upon a bureaucratic system of the state or federal government's is no sure way to ensure the safety of a loved one. It is incumbent upon each one of us to police the system and do what is necessary to protect the most vulnerable among us when neglect or abuse is occurring unabated.

The Tribune reports the state's oversight is so week -- and relies upon self reporting -- that it cannot gauge the care being received by residents in 300 facilities for those with developmental disabilities.

In 2008 alone, five children died at Aiden within three months and yet thorough investigations were not conducted.

Continue reading " Disabled children subject to neglect at Chicago nursing home facility " »

A 93-year-old driver remains in the hospital after crashing his car into a Metra train in Northbrook on Monday. The car was cut in half and came to rest in two pieces alongside Dundee Road. Investigators believe the driver somehow circumvented the crossing gate, which was down with signals flashing at the time of the Chicago car accident, the Chicago Tribune reports.

Just last week a 17-year-old Taft High School sophomore was struck and critically injured after he ran across the tracks at Northwest Hwy. and Nagel Ave. with a group of friends. According to the Chicago Tribune, students frequently race across the tracks whether the caution lights are flashing or not. From 2005 to 2009, there have been six Chicago vehicle-train accidents at Nagel, which is considered one of the most dangerous crossings within a six-county Chicago region.

In March, a 34-year-old woman and the one-year-old child were killed after being struck while crossing the tracks in front of an inbound Metra commuter train in North Chicago, WGN-9 reports.

In a separate story, WGN-9 reports that Metra engineers have been cited in at least two derailment incidents between 2003 and 2005 that killed two and injured more than 160. At least $30 million has been awarded in separate verdicts to injured passengers.

Operation Lifesaver is a non-profit organization that aims to reduce the incidents of collision, fatalities and injuries at rail crossings and along train tracks through public awareness campaigns. They offer the following safety tips for drivers:

FOR DRIVERS:
~ Never stop on a train track, once you enter a crossing, keep going – even if lights are flashing and gates come down. With that said, NEVER drive around downed crossing gates.

~ Treat every rail crossing as if a train were approaching whether you see one or not. Never assume you have the right-of-way. If you do stop at a rail crossing, be sure you are at least 15 feet from the nearest rail.

~ If your car stalls out or gets stuck on a train track, get everyone out of the vehicle immediately and walk in the direction of the train at a 45-degree angle until you have put considerable distance between yourself and the track. Remember, trains travel at rates of speed up to and in excess of 60 m.p.h. and can take more than a mile to stop. In short, debris from a vehicle-train accident can and will travel a surprising distance. To avoid being struck by crash fallout, get away from the track.

~ Once you have gotten a safe distance from the track, call 911.

Of course, pedestrians should ONLY cross tracks at designated pedestrian or roadway crossings. They should NEVER attempt to out-run an approaching train, or use a train track as a walk path.

Continue reading " Chicago train accidents endanger drivers, pedestrians, passengers " »

After her mother was killed by a driver distracted by his cell phone, one 36-year-old Oak Park woman found herself suddenly on a mission, the Chicago Sun-Times reports. Her goal: to educate the public that hands-free is simply not safe enough when it comes to cell-phone use while driving. “There is no study out there that shows hands free is safer,” she told the newspaper.

As our Chicago car accident lawyers noted in an earlier post to our Chicago Car Accident Lawyer Blog, despite an alarming increase in fatal car accidents linked to cell phone distraction nationwide, 10 percent of the 8.5 million registered drivers in Illinois admit to regularly using their cell phones while driving.

These days, however, thanks to aggressive nationwide law enforcement, legislative and public education effort, few people would suggest that driving while texting or chatting is a wise choice when behind the wheel. Unfortunately, while most support more restrictive legislation that limits cell phone usage while driving, they think the rules should apply to drivers other than themselves.

With that said, the perception of cell phones as a potentially deadly distraction has become a huge concern for drivers and passengers who, more than ever, feel less safe while driving. In fact, an overwhelming number of respondents to a recent AAA Foundation survey on road safety issues admitted the reason they feel less safe is due to driver distraction caused by cell phone use. Almost 90 percent of those polled said they considered text messaging and emailing a “very serious threat to their personal safety."

Yet the urge to stay connected, even while driving, is a challenge to suppress. Even the young woman who lost her mother admits that the act of getting on her cell phone while driving was a hard habit to break. Yet she persists. These days, when she gets in the car she tucks her cell phone in her purse and out of reach. Making what she calls a potentially life-saving decision.

Continue reading " Hands-on or hands-free aside, many argue that using cell phones while driving increase chances of an Illinois car accident " »

An apartment fire off W. Jackson on the Near West Side left one elderly woman trapped upstairs in the rear of the building. Fire crews were able to locate and rescue the 80-year-old, who was transported to Mt. Sinai Hospital and remains in critical condition. A second uninjured victim was also rescued, the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

Chicago premises liability lawyers know that more than 3,500 American are killed and another 20,000 are injured each year in home and apartment fires that are, in most cases, utterly preventable.

With winter quickly approaching, now is the time for landlords, property managers and homeowners to perform annual maintenance on fire safety equipment such as smoke detectors, fire extinguishers and sprinklers, and have furnaces and ventilation systems checked. It is also a good time for tenants and family members to review – or make – a fire safety plan that includes an exit plan and a meet-up point a good distance from the structure. If there are children in the home, hosting a mock fire drill can be a fun family exercise.

In the U.S., fire claims a life every 162 minutes and most victims succumb from smoke inhalation. Lit tobacco products is the most common cause for residential fire-related deaths and cooking equipment is responsible for most home fires and home fire injuries. In 2006, fire departments responded to 412,500 residential fires that claimed 2,620 lives and injured almost 13,000 Americans.

The Federal Emergency Management Administration and FireSafety.gov offer several tips to help families prepare, plan and respond in the event a fire erupts:

~ First and foremost: get out – now is not the time to worry about gathering material possessions. It takes less than 30 seconds for a small fire to become a killer.

~ NEVER re-enter a home or structure that is on fire.

~ NEVER open a door that is hot to the touch.

~ Smoke, toxic fumes and heat are far more dangerous than the fire itself. Heat can cause clothes to melt to skin and fumes can render a victim unconscious or damage lung tissue in a matter of seconds.

~ Expect darkness – fires are bright, but smoke is dense and dark – be prepared to find your way out in total darkness.

Continue reading " Apartment fires can lead to premise liability issues for Chicago landlords " »