Houston Personal Injury Attorneys – Smith & Hassler

The Toyota Avalon sped through an intersection, crashed through a fence, rammed a tree and landed upside-down in a pond in Southlake, a suburb of Fort Worth. Four people, including the driver, were killed. It was the day after Christmas in 2009.

The horrific accident occurred after Monty and Linda Hardy had taken their vehicle to the dealership several times with complaints about unintended acceleration. The dealership, however, said nothing was wrong, according to their attorney.

“Money can’t bring back my husband,” Linda Hardy told ABC News. “I want Toyota to take care of these problems so no one else will die.”

Toyota defects have been linked to other car accidents and deaths not just in Texas, but in places across the country. Alarmingly, Toyota said it knew about an accelerator problem two months before the fatal accident in Southlake, but did not say anything publicly until a month after the accident.

Toyota recalls about 13 million cars

Since then, Toyota has recalled about 13 million of its vehicles because of possible defects, including sticky gas pedals in some models and floor mats trapping the accelerator in other models. Both of these defects are linked to cars racing out of control.

In the latest setback for the car manufacture, in January 2011 Toyota announced a recall of 1.7 million vehicles to address problems related to defective fuel pumps and fuel lines.

In December 2010, Toyota agreed to pay $32.4 million in fines to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) because the car company delayed reporting safety defects in its vehicles on two separate occasions.

Was your car part of the Toyota recall? Were you or someone you know injured due to a Toyota defect in Houston or elsewhere in Texas? Don’t hesitate to contact an experienced attorney who knows how to help victims of injured due to Houston Toyota defects. Smith & Hassler has experience in handling all types of product liability cases as well as wrongful death lawsuits.

Smith & Hassler can help those affected by Toyota recall

At Smith & Hassler, we can put our knowledge of the Toyota recall to work for you. Our attorneys understand how to apply Texas law to defective product cases, including a Houston Toyota defect. We have resources and expert witnesses who can help you build a strong case. We aggressively stand up to big corporations and their teams of attorneys and demand justice for our clients.

Car accidents happen fast and for a variety of reasons. We understand how devastating a car accident can be – especially when the accident is due to a car maker’s negligence. The attorneys at Smith & Hassler are dedicated to helping victims get the maximum compensation they deserve. Contact Smith & Hassler today for a free and confidential consultation. Tell them you mean business.

Wednesday January 26, 2011, Rosenberg, Texas: An SUV crashed into a Wingstop restaurant in Roseberg yesterday, injuring two women inside. The collision was shortly after 4:00PM in the 24600 block of the Southwest Freeway at Plaza Drive. According to police the 23-year old driver was leaving the restaurant when she accidentally hit the gas when she meant to hit the brake. Witnesses said the two injured women were eating when the vehicle crashed through the wall. According to media reports both women were taken to hospital with minor injuries, but nobody was seriously hurt. Police have indicated the driver was not charged with any crime. The SUV involved was a light-colored Jeep Cherokee: the Jeep was towed from the scene with front end damage. Hopefully the Jeep has the liability insurance required by Texas State law to cover the injuries and damages of the two women dining in the restaurant.

Damage to the Roseberg Wingstop caused by the SUV

Wednesday January 26 2011: Guillermo Carillo died in a one-car crash that happened in 20700 block of Westheimer near Fry Road in Houston at around 12:01AM, according to the Harris County Sheriff’s Office. A passenger in Carillo’s car was rushed to hospital, however that person’s injuries and status are unknown at this time. Carillo was apparently driving a 1997 blue-colored Honda Prelude northwest on Westheimer when the car veered into the median and smashed into a tree: the force of the impact was so great the car was snapped in two and Carillo and his passengers were ejected from the vehicle.

Five people were hurt in Houston this afternoon in a collision involving a truck that was being chased by police. The specific injuries of the five (which included a baby girl) are not currently available, however police have said none of the injuries was life threatening. The collision happened at around 2:00pm at Quitman and the Eastex feeder road. The vehicles involved in the crash were a beige truck and a station wagon/SUV.

The police chase began when an off-duty officer saw two men pull up outside Top Dollar Pawn on East Little York. The off-duty officer considered the men to be suspicious when they didn’t get out of their truck. The officer followed the truck when it left the parking lot of the pawn shop and determined the truck was stolen and the men went to the pawn shop to pawn tools they were carrying that were probably stolen also. When HPD units caught up to the officer and the truck, the activated lights and sirens and the chase was on. The truck ran a red light when it exited Quitman, colliding with a Chevrolet HHR that was headed westbound on Quitman. Emergency responders took two women and a baby from the HHR; they were taken to Memorial Hermann hospital. The fleeing thieves were taken to Ben Taub.

Unfortunately the injured occupants of the Chevy HHR will probably find themselves making an uninsured motorist claim on their own auto insurance policy (if they have that coverage) or will have to pay their own medical bills. Because the truck the thieves were driving was stolen, they were not what is termed “permissive users” of the vehicle, which in turn means the insurer of that vehicle will likely not provide coverage for the damage done by the thieves in the collision. If you have been injured due to the negligence of an uninsured motorist, call the attorneys at Smith & Hassler for a free consultation.

Monday January 24, 2011: At 9:00AM Deanne Erdmann, assistant professor at Baylor College of Medicine was killed when she was pinned by her own SUV in the Texas Medical Center. Prof. Erdmann was exiting the parking area of the McGovern campus in the 2400 block of Holcombe. Erdmann exited her white Cadillac Escalade to swipe her access card but apparently failed to put the vehicle in park. The Cadillac then rolled forward, pinning her between the SUV and a metal pole near the access gate.  Sadly Professor Erdmann died at the scene. Houston Police Department Captain Roger Goralski said that there was only two inches between the SUV and the metal pole.

If you use dentures, you may have exposed yourself to dangerous amounts of zinc. You may not even be aware of what’s causing your pain, since the ingredient was not listed on many common brands of denture cream.

Common brands of denture cream, including Fixodent and Super PoliGrip, use zinc as an ingredient to aid in both adhesion and odor control. Zinc is an essential mineral for humans, but too much zinc can lead to a reduction of copper in your body. A copper reduction can lead to neurological disorders.

Denture creams are listed as Class 1 medical devices by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). This means they do not have to list their ingredients on the packaging.

However, the denture cream makers have a duty to inform consumers that zinc is an ingredient. And they have a duty to warn users about serious side effects of denture cream zinc poisoning!

Common side effects of zinc poisoning related to denture cream use include:

Hands and feet feeling numb (paresthesias)

Difficulty in walking

Paralysis in some cases

Abnormal sense of touch or painful sense of touch (dysesthesias)

Loss of sensation

What would you do if you experienced any of these potentially debilitating symptoms? You may be unable to work. You may be unable to pay your bills. You may feel overwhelmed.

While zinc poisoning from dangerous denture cream can turn your life upside-down, you do have options. You may be entitled to compensation. Turn to a Houston law firm experienced in handling complex zinc poisoning cases. At Smith & Hassler, we understand Texas’ complex legal system. Our aggressive products liability attorneys can scrutinize your case and pursue justice for you!

Don’t hesitate to contact us for a free and confidential case review. At Smith & Hassler, we put our experience and resources to work for clients who have been injured due to denture cream zinc poisoning. Our attorneys are not intimidated by insurance companies and their teams of lawyers.

Don’t let a zinc poisoning injury ruin your life. Demand justice. Call 1-877-777-1529. Contact Smith & Hassler today. Tell them you mean business.

An accidental shooting in northeast Houston on Sunday has left a 16-year old boy in critical condition. The teen was with three other persons in a bedroom of a home in the 7600 block of Teesdale, playing with a handgun and a shotgun at around 1:40am, according to Houston police. Another teenage boy was unloading the shotgun, which he believed to be empty, and pulled the trigger: the gun discharged striking the 16-year old in the head. The case has been referred to a Harris County grand jury; the shooting is believed to be unintentional.

The Houston Chronicle’s article did not provide any information on how the boys got the guns they were handling. Depending on the specific facts, accidental shootings sometimes occur due to negligence on the part of the homeowner. Acts of homeowner negligence leading to injury to another person or their property are covered under homeowner’s insurance policies.

Smith & Hassler previously posted a blog entry regarding the tragic accident involving Fort Bend County Sheriff’s deputy John Norsworthy and the severe injuries he sustained.  Sadly Deputy Norsworthy ultimately succumbed to his injuries in hospital and passed away, leaving a wife and two children. Texas DPS officers investigating the deputy’s crash have now concluded that two factors may have contributed to the deputy’s accident: another motorist’s failure to yield the right-of-way to the deputy’s cruiser and debris in the roadway.

The accident happened two days after Christmas when Deputy Norsworthy was closely following another cruiser on northbound FM762: the deputies were en route to assist with the stop of what was believed to be a stolen car. The DPS has released a statement that video footage from the dashboard cameras of both cruisers show a 4 foot square board, probably made of a thick cardboard type material used as sound-deadening material, had fallen from a truck and was in the middle of the two-lane road as the cruisers approached.

In addition to the road debris a green-colored Ford Expedition failed to yield the deputies by pulling over to the shoulder to the right to allow them to pass. The driver of the Expedition was later tracked down thanks to a tip and she signed a statement that while the car accident happened in front of her she did not think she was involved so she kept going. The lead patrol car cut to the left to go around the Expedition and in doing so drove over the board, the draft of the passing police car causing the board to lift up off the roadway. When Deputy Norsworthy tried to pass the Expedition, the board gave the appearance of a barrier so he swerved to try to avoid it, but his car left the roadway, entered a ditch and crashed into a tree, pinning him for more than an hour. He died of his injuries a week later on January 4, 2011.

State transportation records show that debris on Texas’ roadways has contributed to 2,728 vehicle crashes in the past 5-years.  In fact former mayor of Dallas Ron Kirk was injured when a ladder left on I-30 was sucked-up by a passing 18-wheeler and smashed through his windshield. During that 5-year span, 756 injuries and 9 deaths have been caused by road debris accidents. Investigators are trying to determine how the board, which was manufactured by Bison Construction, got onto the roadway, but acknowledge they may never find out.

ABC News Channel 13 is reporting that a driver crashed into the front of the Montrose area business in Houston on Friday January 21. The car accident happened at around 9:00am at West Alamaba and Cummins. Its not entirely clear what caused the driver to collide with the building, but from Channel 13’s video footage it appears a four-door Volkswagen sedan, either a Passat or a Jetta, mounted the curb in front of a Goodwill donation center and a convenience store and hit the front wall of the buildings. The driver was taken from the scene of the accident via ambulance to be treated for injuries. Fortunately there are no reports of injury to any pedestrians inside the store or on the sidewalk out front.

Early in the morning of Thursday January 20, 2011 Clayton Sieverton was heading southbound along FM484 near Ferris Green Road in Porter, Texas when his Ford F-350 pickup truck crashed into a Toyota Celica head-on, according to DPS Troopers. Sieverton is suspected of being intoxicated at the time of the crash. Alicia Sanchez, 43-years old, was riding in the passenger seat of the Celica and was killed on impact. Sanchez’ injured 20-year old daughter was transported to an area hospital in critical condition. Sanchez and her daughter were driving to work at a donut shop at the time of the collision.

Both vehicles sustained very heavy damage in the crash; according to DPS Troopers after the collision Sieverton got out of his vehicle and ran away. Shortly after the accident a man drove up to offer help to Sanchez and her daughter and when he did so he recognized Sieverton’s vehicle: the two men had been out drinking together the night before and Sieverton had dropped the man off at his own car shortly before the collision. Montgomery County Sheriff’s deputies were able to use tracker dogs and a DPS helicopter to track down Sieverton 3 miles north of where the crash happened.

Sieverton suffered minor injuries and is now facing multiple serious charges, including intoxication manslaughter, intoxication assault, and failure to stop and render aid. He remains in the Montgomery County jail.

Drunk driving collisions, deaths and injuries are an epidemic in the Houston area and have been for years. The selfishness of those who choose to get behind the wheel of their vehicle while impaired by drugs or alcohol causes families to experience unimaginable tragedies on a weekly basis. If you or a loved one have been injured by a drunk driver, talk to an attorney at Smith & Hassler about your legal rights and remedies.  Insurance companies know jurors take a hard line with drunks who injure others and try to settle DWI-related claims quickly and for much less than the claims are worth.