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• School Bus Accidents Studied in Virginia News Story

  David Lowe | August 06, 2007 7:46 AM | 0 CommentsMilwaukee, WI

  Yesterday the Virginia-Pilot published a story by Marc Davis reporting that local municipalities paid about $7.5 million to more than 1,700 victims of accidents in 2004, 2005 and 2006 for wrecks caused by city cars, buses and trucks. About a third of the accidents involved school buses. The story makes the point that reliable data are not kept about the frequency of such accidents. But the...

• Collapsed I-35W Bridge Had History of Problems

  Paul Jacquart | August 03, 2007 9:14 AM | 0 CommentsMilwaukee, WI

  While various government spokespersons have taken to the airwaves to calm the nerves of American drivers after the tragic collapse of the I-35W Bridge in Minneapolis, the media are already examining bridge inspection and maintenance records bearing upon whether officials knew or should have known that the bridge was in poor condition, with one early report making some rather unsettling...

• Lakeside Foods Recalls French Style Green Beans Due to Possible Contamination

  Jenny Albano | August 02, 2007 11:14 AM | 0 CommentsMilwaukee, WI

  Lakeside Foods Inc. is recalling 15,000 cases of 14.5 ounce French Style Green Beans because a number of the cans may have been under processed and some of the cans may have leaked. Because of the leaks and under-processing, the green beans could be contaminated with harmful organisms, such as Clostridium botulinum, which causes botulism.As of now there have been no reported injuries and no...

• FDA Panel Recommends That Avandia Remain On Market

  David Lowe | August 01, 2007 7:49 AM | 0 CommentsMilwaukee, WI

  The FDA panel reviewing cardiac safety concerns about diabetes drug Avandia has recommended by an overwhelming 22 to 1 vote that the popular drug should remain on the market. Some panel members recommended that its warning label be strengthened. The recommendations of advisory panels such as this are highly influential but not binding on the FDA.News of the recommendation resulted in a rally...

• California Jury Awards $2.5 Million For Surgical Malpractice

  David Lowe | August 01, 2007 12:00 AM | 0 CommentsMilwaukee, WI

  A story in the Merced Sun-Star reports that a California jury has awarded $2.5 million to a patient who lost control of his bowels due to medical malpractice during routine surgery to remove a cyst from his buttocks. The patient alleged that his surgeon negligently cut a nearby muscle while attempting to remove the cyst. But this medical malpractice victim will likely face another painful cut...

• That's Not My Mortgage!

  Paul Jacquart | July 31, 2007 12:33 PM | 0 CommentsMilwaukee, WI

  The Washington Post reports that a man in Arlington County Virginia was surprised to receive notice that he had overpaid his second mortgage http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20044213/ because . . . he did not have a second mortgage. It turns out that a thief had stolen his wallet a year earlier and had used his identity to buy a $419,000 house with no money down! Fortunately, this identity thief...

• Operator Error Blamed For Amusement Ride Death

  David Lowe | July 30, 2007 1:45 PM | 0 CommentsMilwaukee, WI

  Error by the amusement ride operator, rather than ride malfunction, is being suggested as the cause of the tragic amusement ride death of a 16 year old Neenah girl according to by an investigative report issued by the Wisconsin Department of Commerce. Sixteen year old Elizabeth Mohl died on Juy 14, 2007 after falling 40 feet from an amusement ride called Air Glory at a Christian Music Festival...

• Pilots Killed at Two Air Shows

  Jenny Albano | July 30, 2007 11:30 AM | 0 CommentsMilwaukee, WI

  A stunt pilot died after he crashed during a Dayton, Ohio air show on Saturday, July 28. This occurred only a day after another pilot was killed in an accident in an air show in Oshkosh, Wisconsin.A pilot named Jim LeRoy died on the way to the hospital after his S2S Bulldog biplane crashed on the runway of the Dayton International Airport. The plane had been performing loop-the-loops to...

• FDA Panel To Consider Removal of Diabetes Drug Avandia

  David Lowe | July 30, 2007 7:39 AM | 0 CommentsMilwaukee, WI

  I previously wrote about the FDA's issuance of a safety alert about Avandia following publication of a report in the New England Journal of Medicine about the increased risks of heart attack from use of this diabetes drug.Today a panel of outside experts convened by the FDA is meeting to consider removal of Avandia from the market, or at least restrictions on its use. According to a slide...

• Defective Products from China and Product Liability Here

  Paul Jacquart | July 25, 2007 3:36 PM | 0 CommentsMilwaukee, WI

  The Chinese government has recently taken some radical steps to shore up the reputation of its exports, including the execution of its chief food and drug regulator and the shutting down of three companies linked to putting poisonous ingredients in medicine and pet food. The Chinese government's actions may prompt some change there, but they do little for an injured consumer here, which led...