Those of you familiar with Smith & Hassler‘s television commercials will know that for many years actor William Shatner has been Smith & Hassler‘s spokesperson. William Shatner has enjoyed a very long and fruitful career but is probably best known for his role as Captain James T. Kirk of the starship U.S.S. Enterprise, boldly going where no man had gone before in the TV show Star Trek. Shatner played the role of Capt. Kirk from 1966 to 1969. More recently Shatner has played the role of attorney Denny Crane in the TV series Boston Legal.
Shatner was born in Montreal, Quebec, Canada on March 22, 1931 making today his 80th birthday. Smith & Hassler wishes Mr. Shatner a happy birthday, and here’s to many more.
The Hi-Miler rollercoaster involved had both a lap belt and a locking safety bar: it is not thought that either of these safety features malfunctioned because both were still in place after the accident. According to Shafer the Hi-Miler ride, owned by carnival operator RCS since 1980, does not have a history of any serious problems. There has been only one reported injury on the ride since 1980 when a rider’s head hit the safety bar and they suffered a broken nose and cheekbone.
In 2010 riders got stuck on the Hi-Miler when a crank shaft bent and automatically shut down the rollercoaster: riders were stuck for about 45 minutes. A Youtube video shows carnival workers climbing onto the ride, the video is dated 03-21-2010. Mr. Greenhouse’s fiance was also riding the coaster sitting two cars behind him when he fell: no witnesses have been identified who saw Mr. Greenhouse fall as the coaster made a turn. Houston Police Department’s homicide division has taken over the investigation into the cause of Brian Greenhouse’s death.
The Houston Chronicle’s story on Mr. Greenhouse’s death is here. The Chronicle reports that nobody was monitoring the Hi-Miler ride at the time Mr. Greenhouse fell, however industry standards require such rides be monitored from start to finish. Mr. Greenhouse was one of five children, lived in Houston and worked for AT&T. The Chronicle reports that the Hi-Miler rollercoaster is owned by Ray Cammack Shows, Inc. of Arizona, which as contracted to run the Houston Rodeo’s carnival for the past 12-years.
ABC Channel 13’s story is here. Channel 13 states that its reporters spoken to a woman who rode the Hi-Miler last week with her 6-year old son and the safety latch came undone. The woman is identified in the article as Myra Rock. Ms. Rock told Channel 13 that during the ride she had to hold down the bar and hold on to her son at the same time, and that she reported the defect to the operator when she got off the ride, and the operator said he would take care of the problem.
Mr. Greenhouse was described by a family member in one article as a hard-working, Christian man. Our sympathies go out to Mr. Greenhouse’s fiance and family members.
The Santa Fe, Texas police department has confirmed that a collapse at a construction project at Santa Fe High School has claimed the life of 21-year old Richard Steinecke II of New Caney, Texas. Mr. Steinecke passed away at the University of Texas Medical Branch due to his injuries. Two other employees sustained leg injuries in the collapse: 26-year old Cody Key who is from Conroe and Escolastico Mendez who is from Houston. Sgt. Eric Bruss, a spokesman for Santa Fe Police Department, said Mr. Steinecke sustained massive internal injuries in the incident. The three men were involved in the second phase of an expansion project at Santa Fe High School when there was a partial collapse of the structure at about 9:35AM on Friday March 18th. Mr. Steinecke fell nearly 50 feet and was then pinned under a metal beam weighing thousands of pounds. A Click2Houston.com story reports that the three injured workers were employed by P&C Construction Erectors of Porter, Texas. The cause of the structure’s collapse is still under investigation. The construction project is to build a new auditorium: no children were present at the school at the time.
27-year old San Antonio police officer Stephanie Ann Brown was killed early Tuesday when a man on probation for a DWI charge drove his SUV the wrong way with the lights off down I-35, crashing in to Stephanie’s patrol car head-on. The collision happened at around 2:00am near McCullough Avenue as Officer Brown was responding to a call for officer assistance. The other driver, Christopher David Baldaramos, age 31, was pronounced dead at the scene. Public records indicate he had lived in the San Antonio area for about 5 years and his lawyer said he had served 8-years in the U.S. Army. Officer Brown has been with the San Antonio Police Department for 3-years and had been working the shift for a fellow officer: she died at 2:50AM at University Hospital according to the Bexar County Medical Examiner’s Office.
Officer Brown leaves behind a baby girl. She was dating a patrolman working at the SAPD‘s north substation. Her father Stanley Brown is also an officer with SAPD. An officer who witnessed the crash said he did not see any headlights of Balderamos’ 2004 Nissan Xterra before the collision. A receipt in Balderamos’ pocket was from a bar.
SAPD police officer Stephanie Brown died in a wrong way collision with a driver on probation for DWI
KHOU.com is reporting a driver was seriously injured late Monday March 14, 2011 in a multi-vehicle wreck in downtown Houston. The man was driving a Chevrolet Camaro westbound on Runnels at Chartres around 11:30pm when he failed to yield at a stop sign: the Camaro was then struck in the side by a pickup truck. Another pickup truck was unable to slow down quickly enough and crashed into the already wrecked vehicles. The driver of the Camaro had to be cut out of his vehicle by firefighters and was transported to hospital in serious condition.
ABC Channel 13 (KTRK) is reporting that the two people killed in the Ship Channel Bridge hit-and-run car accident in Houston on Saturday have been identified as 34-year old Luz Campos and her 13-year old son David Campos. Luz and David were killed when a Chrysler Sebring car collided with the Chevy Astro van they were riding in on the Ship Channel Bridge: the van hit the guardrail causing Luz and David to be ejected: they fell an estimated 120 feet to the ground below. Police have not said whether they have identified the driver of the Sebring who ran away after the collision, however they are using the license plate of the vehicle and fingerprints in an effort to establish who was driving. The KTRK report indicates that Luz Campos was pregnant when she died, making an already tragic story even more so. The police investigation of the hit-and-run continues: anyone with any information on the driver and passenger of the Sebring is urged to contact the HPD Vehicular Crimes Division at 713-247-4072.
Click2Houston.com is reporting a serious rear-end collision between a driver leaving the Houston Rodeo and had been drinking and Texas Department of Public SafetyTrooper Justin Duck, age 28. Trooper Duck was issuing a citation during a routine traffic stop on Kickapoo Road near the Northwest Freeway Sunday afternoon, March 13, 2011. A woman traveling at a high rate of speed in a pickup truck left the roadway smashing into the rear of Trooper Duck’s DPS patrol car. The photograph from Click2Houston’s web site shows that it was an extremely severe collision, with the trunk of the patrol car being pushed forward almost to the driver’s seat where Trooper Duck was sitting. The injured Trooper had to be cut out of his patrol car and was taken by helicopter life flight to Memorial Hermann Hospital. Officials reported Trooper Duck was conscious and responsive when he was taken to the hospital but he had no recollection of the car accident. The Trooper had a broken nose and needed stitches to a laceration on his face. Detectives said the woman was on her way back home after the Houston Rodeo and admitted she had been drinking: she refused a breathalyzer at the scene so a mandatory blood draw was performed. The woman’s name has not been released. Trooper Justin Duck has 6-years of service with the Department of Public Safety in Montgomery County, Texas.
DPS Trooper Justin Duck's patrol car sustained severe rear-end damage when hit by a pickup truck driver who had been drinking
The Houston Chronicle is reporting that a cyclist was killed attempting to cross the Gulf Freeway in southeast Houston early this morning. The crash occurred on I-45 near Griggs Road at around 12:30am according to HPD. The man died at the scene; his name has not been released. Police say the man tried to cross I-45 riding from west to east. He rode his bicycle into a passing vehicle and then was hit by a second vehicle.
Smith & Hassler’s attorneys practice only in the area of personal injury and the Smith & Hassler law firms represents hundreds of clients each year injured in automobile accidents. Not everyone involved in a car accident needs to retain an attorney though. Call Smith & Hassler for a free consultation and an attorney will discuss with you how we may be able to help.
KTRK is reporting a car accident on the East Loop bridge and Manchester that killed at least 2 people. At around 6:00PM a car and van were traveling north on the bridge when the car hit the van and knocked the van into the guardrail. Two people in the van were ejected and died. Four other people traveling in the van were taken to the hospital. Two people in the car ran away leaving their car behind. The wreck shut down the northbound lanes on the East 160 Loop for around two hours until emergency crews could clear the scene.
Update: KTRK has updated their story and added that the two passengers riding in the van who were killed were a woman and a teenage boy who were ejected from the vehicle and thrown over the side of the Ship Channel bridge.
ABC Channel 13 Eyewitness News has posted a brief report of a car crashing into a bayou in northwest Houston. The Thursday night wreck happened at West TC Jester and the 610 North Loop. Police say the driver of the vehicle was speeding when he left the roadway and struck a pole, causing the vehicle to roll over once, travel down the bank of the bayou and land near the water. According to the report the occupants of the vehicle suffered minor bumps and bruises but will be okay.
In another story KTRK reports firefighters cutting a man from the wreckage of his pickup truck after a single vehicle accident in southwest Houston. Police say the driver was on Dunlap near Clarewood when he took a turn too fast and struck a tree. When firefighters arrived at the scene the driver was pinned inside the truck and they had to cut him free. Unfortunately the man was badly injured and is in serious condition.
