Salsa Bicycles is recalling about 8,600 bicycles because the handlebar stems can crack or break, posing a serious fall and injury hazard to riders. According to this news report in Consumeraffairs.com, Salsa Bicycles has apparently received three reports of handlebar stems breaking. One such incident ended up with a rider breaking his wrist.

The recall involves all CroMoto S.U.L. stems sold as individual aftermarket units as well as several models of complete Salsa bicycles: Ala Carte, El Mariachi, Casseroll Triple, Casseroll Single and La Cruz. The aftermarket bicycle stems are black and have the word “Salsa” painted on the extension. The recalled products, manufactured in Taiwan, were sold by specialty bicycle retailers nationwide from November 2007 through December 2008. They were sold for between $60 and $65.
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Five people were injured, one critically, in a Los Angeles County big rig accident after a tractor-trailer struck at least four vehicles in Rolling Hills Estates, CBS News reports in this article. Los Angeles County Fire Department officials believe the big rig’s brakes may have failed on a downhill slope just before the intersection of Crenshaw Boulevard and Palos Verdes North. The accident occurred the morning of February 24, 2009.

First of all, I’m relieved that this Rolling Hills commercial truck accident did not result in catastrophic injuries or death. I hope and pray that the person who was critically injured in this accident recovers from the injuries quickly and completely. Please keep these injured victims in your prayers.

California tops the list in the United States for the highest number of big rig accidents in any given year. According to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s statistics, in 2007, there were 361 large trucks involved in fatal accidents and 10.635 big rigs involved in injury accidents in California. Large truck accidents are notorious for causing catastrophic injuries or death because of the size and weight of these big rigs and the intensity of the crash. Occupants of smaller passenger vehicles are more likely to suffer a major injury or death in these big rig accidents.

In this case, if the news report is accurate, the tractor trailer lost its brakes while going downhill and was basically “out-of-control” when it struck the other vehicles. The fact that the big rig’s brakes failed tells me that the tractor trailer was either overloaded or not properly maintained.
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The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) has said it will require auto manufacturers to significantly increase the strength of vehicle roofs to receive the agency’s top safety pick ratings. The Institute conducts several crash tests each year and encourages auto makers to add safety features to reduce auto accident injuries and fatalities. The IIHS ratings are widely used by consumers to evaluate vehicles and by auto makers in their marketing efforts. IIHS has said that they will now require auto makers to have a 4.0 rating to win a top safety pick. Our source for this blog was this news report in Detroit News.

A study that was released by IIHS this month reaffirms the widespread belief among consumer advocates and personal injury attorneys that a 1.0 increase in roof strength will reduce the risk of fatalities in a single-passenger rollover crash by over 20 percent. It will cost auto makers just a few hundred dollars per vehicle to make that change. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has put off adopting a new standard that requires auto makers to improve their vehicles’ roof strength. The current standard is more than 35 years old now, which is appalling considering that nearly 10,000 people die in only rollover accidents each year in the United States.
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I’m happy to announce that our Orange County law firm has signed up to participate in a paid internship program for high school students from low income areas, which is coordinated by the Orange County Chapter of the Association of Legal Administrators. OC-ALA runs a program called Project SELF (Summer Employment with Law Firms). This is a summer internship program the group administers in collaboration with the Orange County Bar Foundation.

OC-ALA began with only 12 charter members, but now has a membership of more than 150 administrators. Their mission is to meet the needs of all members through “education networking and the exchange of information.” OC-ALA provides a lot of opportunities for leadership and helps enhance the visibility and credibility of the legal management profession through community service projects and partnerships with various legal associations.

What does Project SELF aim to accomplish? Basically, it provides high school students with the opportunity to become a paid intern at a local California law firm or law-related agency or business, giving them a unique and valuable educational experience. OC-ALA of course cannot achieve their goal of giving these youngsters this valuable opportunity without the willing participation of local law firms. Each law firm that signs up for this program can participate by employing one or more students for 30 hours a week during an eight-week internship at $2,000 per intern to cover the intern’s wages for the period of the internship. The program runs from June 22 through Aug. 14.
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American Honda is recalling about 420 of its 2009 model Odyssey vans to fix a problem with the brakes, Consumeraffairs.com reports in this article. Company officials say that incorrect brake hoses were installed during assembly. Over time, the hose can contact the caliper bolt potentially creating a hole through which brake fluid can leak. This could cause a sudden brake system failure and lead to a crash.

The recall has already begun and if you own one of these vehicles, you should start getting those recall notices in the mail. Dealers will inspect both the front brake hoses and replace them if they are defective. If you have any more questions, please call Honda at 1-800-999-1009 or the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) at 1-888-327-4236. NHTSA’s Web site also has basic information about this auto product defect recall.
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Six foreign students from the Bay Area were killed on February 19, 2009 after their 1993 Toyota Land Cruiser sport utility vehicle went out of control, rolled over and crashed into a tree. According to this article in the Santa Maria Times, the SUV’s driver, Jeanne Ostrowski, 19, drove into the median on the southbound 101 Freeway near Los Alamos and for unknown reasons overcorrected. The SUV then crossed the southbound lanes before rolling over and crashing. Two passengers were ejected and the vehicle burst into flames. All of the deceased victims were between 18 and 30 years old.

My heart goes out to the families of those who were killed in this horrific California SUV rollover crash as well as the driver, Jeanne Ostrowski, who has been hospitalized with major injuries. I offer my deepest condolences to the families and friends of all the young people who died in this crash. Please keep them in your prayers. I also wish Ostrowski the very best for a quick and complete recovery.

California Highway Patrol’s Multi-Disciplinary Accident Investigation Team, which is looking into this tragic accident, has determined that alcohol was not a factor and also that Ostrowski was not speeding at the time of the crash. However, they have not yet determined whether or not the occupants of the Land Cruiser were wearing their seatbelts at the time of the crash. Ostrowski’s life was saved because of Good Samaritan, retired Kings County firefighter John Duthie, who stopped and pulled Ostrowski out of the vehicle before it became fully engulfed in flames. He is no doubt a true hero.
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Nimisha Emmanuel Gohil, a 38-year-old San Bernardino County prosecutor, died in an auto accident on Highway 71 the morning of February 17, 2009, the San Bernardino Sun reports in this article. Deputy District Attorney Gohil was traveling north on the highway near Euclid Avenue when her vehicle rear-ended a tow truck parked on the right shoulder.

Shortly before the accident two other vehicles had lost control because of the rain and struck a concrete median. Both vehicles were stopped on the right shoulder. A tow truck with its emergency lights was parked on the shoulder when Gohil lost control of her 2005 Toyota Sequoia and struck the left rear of the tow truck. Gohil was pronounced dead at the scene. A California Highway Patrol officer, who tried to get her out of the vehicle, was unsuccessful because the Toyota Sequoia was extensively damaged.

I offer my deepest sympathies to the family and friends of Nimisha Emmanuel Gohil for their tragic loss. Please keep them in your prayers.

According to California Highway Patrol’s Statewide Integrated Traffic Reporting System (SWITRS), there were two Chino Hills auto accident fatalities and 93 injuries involving traffic accidents in 2006. In San Bernardino as a whole, during the same period, 351 deaths and 10,842 injuries were associated with auto accidents.
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Children’s product manufacturer Evenflo is recalling more than 200,000 of its ExerSaucer Children’s Activity Center because it poses a risk of fall hazard to young children. Apparently, when used as an activity table, the cap on one end of the product can loosen and detach. The company has received 11 reports of dislodged end caps that resulted in nine injuries. In one case, a child suffered a broken collarbone because of this product defect. Our source for this blog was this news report.

This recall involves the Evenflo ExerSaucer Triple Fun stationary activity centers manufactured in the United States between October 2006 and December 2008. The model number for these recalled products is 6231711. No other models are included in this recall because they do not use the defective end caps that spurred this recall. Also, company officials say the problem occurs only when the center is used as an activity table.
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Four people were injured in a Los Alamitos auto accident February 13, 2009 after an out-of-control Porsche struck a sport utility vehicle, the Long Beach Press Telegram reports in this article. The driver of the Porsche, who was heading east on Katella Avenue, lost control of the car. The vehicle jumped the center divider and knocked down a tree sending the car sideways into westbound traffic. The Porsche then hit the passenger side of a newer model silver Honda CR-V.

A man and a woman in the Porsche were taken to an area hospital with critical injuries while a mother and her son in the Honda SUV suffered moderate injuries. Police are saying that rain and speed may have been factors in this horrific Orange County auto accident. There is no mention in the newspaper article of whether alcohol or drugs could have played a part in this collision.

I’m relieved that this auto accident did not cause any fatalities although some of the victims have suffered critical injuries. I’m also glad that the child in the SUV was not seriously injured. I wish all the injured victims the very best for a quick and complete recovery.

According to California Highway Patrol’s Statewide Integrated Traffic Reporting System, there were two Los Alamitos auto accident fatalities and 111 injuries relating to traffic accidents in 2006. In Orange County as a whole, 199 deaths and 14,981 injuries were reported as a result of auto accidents during the same period.
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The Disney Store is recalling about 20,000 “Handy Manny” toy tool sets because it contains small parts that could pose a choking hazard to young children. The company has apparently received two reports of children who started to choke on the pieces. So far no deaths have been reported. Our source for this blog was this news report in the consumer watchdog Web site, Consumeraffairs.com.

The recalled Playhouse Disney Handy Manny tool set is a plastic, eight-piece toy set that includes a tool box, hammer, saw, pliers, wrench, tape measure and two screwdrivers. The name “Handy Manny” is embossed on one side of the tool box. The product’s UPC (#405144100614 or #422147400633), can be located on the packaging. These toys, manufactured in China, were sold exclusively at the Disney Store nationwide from October 2007 through January 2009 for about $15.
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