San Francisco Dog Owner Gets 15 Years to Life In Jail Sentance

More than seven years ago, on Friday January 26, 2001 in San Francisco, Diane Whipple was killed after her neighbors two dogs attacked her outside of her apartment. The dogs had apparently dragged their owner down a hallway in an attempt to attack Diane Whipple. The owner of the dogs, Marjorie Knoller, was unable to restrain the two dogs who have a combined weight of 233 pounds. It took Knoller 5 minutes to pull her dogs back from attacking Whipple's throat. Whipple underwent extensive surgery to repair veins and arteries in her neck that were severed when she was attacked. Seventy minutes after her surgery she died.

Diane Whipple was only 33 years old, she was a lacrosse coach at St. Mary's College. Her partner of seven years filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the owners of the dogs as well as the owners of the apartment building they lived in.

On Monday September 22, 2008 Marjorie Knoller was sentenced to 15 years to life in prison. The Los Angeles Times reported that the second-degree murder conviction was reinstated last month by Superior Court Judge Charlotte Woolard. Evidence collected from Knoller and her husband, Robert Noel, led investigators to believe the dogs may have been trained to attack.

Lederer & Nojima, LLP, have experience in dog biting incidents such as this. If you or someone you know has been the victim of a dog biting attack or a wrongful death, please contact our office to speak with an attorney. Our firm has experience with cases such as this in addition to other various areas we specialize in. Feel free to visit our website at http://www.lederernojima.com/

Two Victims of Friday Afternoon's Metrolink Crash Had Survived the 2005 Glendale Crash

Unfortunately, for two commuters Friday, the Metrolink crash was deja vu after surviving the 2005 Metrolink crash caused by an attempted suicide. However, this time around Gregory Lintner and Richard Myles were not as lucky. Tragically Gregory Lintner was killed the second time around and Richard Myles suffered a broken neck but is in stable condition at Kaiser Hospital. According to the Los Angeles Times, Mr. Myles still had not mentally recovered from the 2005 crash and now must absorb Friday's accident as well. After surviving the Glendale crash three years ago he took increased safety precautions for commuting by train, but with the recent surge in gas prices, the train became more popular making it harder to travel accordingly to the safety precautions he developed. He began sitting in the last car on the mezzanine level, as well as facing the opposite direction while seated to avoid being thrown forward in the event of a collision. Friday he was unable to take these safety measures due to the high capacity of travelers commuting along with him that frightful afternoon. He is now considering the idea of not commuting by train anymore, and his wife said that if he did not want to drive himself to work everyday, she would drive him herself. Right now the Myles family is wondering if they are unbelievably lucky to have survived two Metrolink crashes, or if they are terribly unlucky to have been involved in two Metrolink accidents within three years.

Unfortunately, a crash like this is preventable when precautions are taken and signals are abided by engineers and conductors. However, many innocent victims wrongfully lost their lives and over 140 others are injured, many in critical condition.

If you or a friend has lost a loved one in this accident please contact us at The Law Offices of Lederer & Nojima, LLP. Our attorneys specialize in wrongful death cases and have the experience in wrongful death lawsuits you need if you would like to file a claim. No matter what type of accident caused the victim's death, you and your family may qualify for financial compensation due to the damaged caused by your tragic loss. Please feel free to contact our office for a consultation. We have many years of experience handing such cases, as well as various other personal injury cases. Even if you, a friend, or loved one was injured due to Friday afternoon's Metrolink crash you can still file a claim for injuries sustained in the devastating accident. You may also visit our website to see the other types of cases we handle as well. We certainly hope for a speedy recovery of those victims left injured and our sympathies for the families and friends of those who were killed on Friday afternoon's crash.

Los Angeles Metrolink Crash

On Friday afternoon September 12, 2008 Metrolink 111 collided with a Union Pacific freight train making it one of the nation's worst commuter train accidents in the last fifty years. Sadly, the outcome has left many families and friends mourning the loss of 26 passengers on board, including one Los Angeles Police Officer. The crash has also left approximately 140 victims injured. Investigators are still searching for possible causes for the crash. However, Metrolink spokeswoman Denise Tyrrell announced that Metrolink has blamed the train's engineer for the crash, saying, "We want to be honest." She has since resigned. Speculations have been made that the engineer driving Metrolink111 may have been text messaging on his phone at the time. The engineer, who died in the crash, was said to have missed or driven through a red light signal alerting him to stop the train. Reports state that it is very unusual for such an experienced engineer to have run a red light, as obeying signals on the track is the engineer's responsibility at the helm of the train. The engineer's negligence for taking the appropriate action at the track signal caused devastating consequences.

Unfortunately, a crash like this is preventable when precautions are taken and signals are abided by engineers and conductors. However, many innocent victims wrongfully lost their lives and over 140 others are injured, many in critical condition.

If you or a friend has lost a loved one in this accident please contact us at The Law Offices of Lederer & Nojima, LLP. Our attorneys specialize in wrongful death cases and have the experience in wrongful death lawsuits you need if you would like to file a claim. No matter what type of accident caused the victim's death, you and your family may qualify for financial compensation due to the damaged caused by your tragic loss. Please feel free to contact our office for a consultation. We have many years of experience handing such cases, as well as various other personal injury cases. Even if you, a friend, or loved one was injured due to Friday afternoon's Metrolink crash you can still file a claim for injuries sustained in the devastating accident. You may also visit our website to see the other types of cases we handle as well. We certainly hope for a speedy recovery of those victims left injured and our sympathies for the families and friends of those who were killed on Friday afternoon's crash.

Metrolink Crash with Freight Train

KNBC reported that on September 12, 2008 at approximately 4:23 p.m. a Metrolink train collided with a freight train. The collision occurred near Heather Lee Lane, south of the Ronald Reagan (118) Freeway and east of Topanga Canyon Boulevard in Chatsworth, California. The incident occurred in an area that borders Los Angeles County Line and the Ventura County.

Although the cause is unknown, authorities state this was a head on collision between the Metrolink train and a freight train that was traveling very slow or was at a complete stop. The Metrolink train was traveling from Union Station to Oxnard where is collided with the freight train. A triage has been set up where officials are working to assist people out of the train wreckage and provide medical treatment. Officials are working from both counties as they carry people out of the wreckage or assist the fortunate ones who are able to walk. The number of passengers is unknown at this time, but at least two casualties have been confirmed.

As a result of the collision, approximately 7 other trains have derailed, with at least one laying on its side. New reporters are standing live as they watch the effort of officials assist people out of the wreckage.

Lederer & Nojima LLP have assisted various passengers who have been injured aboard Metrolink or MTA buses/trains. Our firm understands the serious injuries one can sustain when injured aboard a large vehicle/train. We investigate all circumstances involving the crash and ensure you are compensated for your injuries. Contact our firm for a free consultation.

Accelorator Mistaken For Brake Pedal Injures Starbucks Patrons

On Tuesday September 2, 2008 the Glendale News Press released an article reporting six injuries caused at a local Starbucks. The motorist was identified as 50 year-old Caroline Puglise of La Crescenta. She had apparently lost control of her Honda Civic and accidentally stepped on the accelerator instead of the brake pedal. As a result her car came up on to the sidewalk and hit six Starbucks patrons, four were sitting outside and two others were inside. Glendale Police are ruling the incident as accidental because "Pugliese accidentally stepped on the wrong pedal....It was an unfortunate accident," according to Sgt. Tom Lorenz. The injured patrons were taken to nearby hospitals, but the driver remained unscathed suffering no injuries at all, only inflicting them.

Tragically many accidents like this have injured and even killed numerous citizens of Los Angeles due to driver negligence. Accidents happen, but we must remember that when we sit behind the wheel we not only put ourselves at risk but others around us as well. Drivers need to make sure they have prepared themselves for accident-type situations to ensure safety on the roads and prevent harm from others.

If you or someone you know have been injured in an automobile accident, please contact Lederer & Nojima, LLP for a free consultation. Our firm specializes in seeking monetary settlements for the injuries sustained by our clients, whether it resulted from an automobile accident, a dog bite, or a slip and fall. Please visit our website for more information.