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The National Transportation Safety Board has determined that the runaway Blue Line train that crashed into a westbound train last Monday, injuring dozens of people, had been left with its power on and in a setting that permitted its unmanned operation, at a CTA repair terminal. The setting that the train was left in apparently allowed the train to keep moving even though emergency brakes had been applied. The NTSB also found that unoccupied trains are routinely left powered on while stored in repair facilities with the settings that allow the trains to continue moving through a mechanical train stop mechanism after a momentary stop. Although the CTA is reported to be disputing the NTSB findings, it has issued a number of precautions to all of its railyard employees to make sure that trains undergoing maintenance stay in place. The NTSB has urged the CTA to review its procedures for storing unoccupied cars, and has recommended that the CTA disconnect the power sources to its trains while stored, and placing wheel chocks or “derails”, which would block the free rolling of the train’s wheels and force the car off-rail in the event of unwanted movement.

We’ll see what the CTA’s ultimate response and explanation for last Monday’s train wreck is. In the meantime, let’s all hope that the CTA pays attention to the NTSB’s findings and recommendations so that the thousands of CTA passengers who ride these trains each day are not exposed to the risk of unmanned runaway trains. Mass transit accidents can be devastating. To learn more about how you can protect you and your family in the event of a mass transportation accident, please visit our website.

If you or a loved one has suffered serious injuries as a result of a train crash, you may be able to take action. Please contact the attorneys of Lane Brown, LLC, or call us at 312-332-1400 to speak with us about your options. We can help. To learn more about Lane Brown, please visit our website at lanebrownlaw.com.

Don’t Neglect Yourself After Your Child Has Been Sexually Abused

The headline of this article may sound somewhat controversial. Why should you worry about yourself when your child has been seriously violated and hurt by a sexual predator? This is not about you, your feelings, or your recovery. Right now, you are focused on helping your child to get through this ordeal.

You Are Your Child’s Best Chance at Recovery

That is the reason why you need to take care of yourself. If you bury your emotions and fail to find an outlet for what has happened, it may be difficult to be strong for your child in the months and years ahead. Although everyone has a different way of dealing with strong emotions like grief, anger, and guilt, you may wish to consider the following:

Talking to your friends or a professional counselor. You may benefit from talking with someone whom you do not have to be “on” for or worry about upsetting.
Maintaining your typical routine. This may include work and exercise, for example.

You may also benefit, and thereby help your child, by being proactive about your child’s possible recovery.

Allow a Lawyer to Pursue a Legal Recovery

You may want to see justice done. An experienced lawyer can help protect your child by fighting for his recovery from sexual abuse injuries in a Chicago school, a Northbrook church, a Des Plaines locker room, or anywhere else in the greater Chicago area.

For more information, please contact us today. You may also wish to follow us on Facebook to stay current on important information for families of child sex abuse victims.

Category: Child Sex Abuse

We would like to report that 2014 will be the year when there are no driving fatalities in Illinois, but we won’t be able to do it. Despite the Illinois Department of Transportation’s “Driving Zero Fatalities to a Reality” campaign, there were 200 deaths from Illinois motor vehicle accidents between January 1, 2014 and April 22, 2014.

Why Is the Focus on Zero?

The Illinois Department of Transportation explains its campaign by emphasizing that every life counts. Even one death caused by a preventable accident is too many. It not only cuts short the life of someone who did not have to die, but it leaves family and friends grieving.

Thus, the state is encouraging drivers from the crowded Chicago Skyway to the rural parts of Illinois to work together to prevent car accidents. Everyone is encouraged to drive defensively, to drive without distractions, to drive sober, and to wear seat belts. While the goal of zero deaths is admirable, it depends on the cooperation of every single driver, which makes it difficult to achieve.

If Zero Is Unachievable, Why Try?

Not every driver is going to do what it takes to prevent a fatal car accident on I-90 or on the back roads. Yet when more drivers try, fewer fatalities may occur and fewer families may be left grieving.

As of April 22, 2014, there were 93 fewer deaths on Illinois roads than there were during the same period of 2013. That is a good thing, and if reaching for zero helps us save lives, it is a goal worth reaching for.

What do you think of the “Driving Zero Fatalities to a Reality” campaign? Please leave a comment in the space below and share your thoughts with us.

Five Things Your Friends Don’t Understand After Your Child’s Been Sexually Abused in Illinois

You are not keeping secrets. You may long for the understanding and support of your friends after your child has been sexually abused in Berwyn, Cicero, or anywhere else in the Chicago area. Your friends may want to support you and your family, but they might not know how because they might not understand what you are going through.

What Your Friends Don’t Know

Right now your every waking thought may be about your child who suffered sexual abuse. Your friends who have, thankfully, never faced similar situations may know that you are sad, but they may not know that you feel:

Guilty.
Scared.
Embarrassed.
Responsible.
Lonely.

They might not know that the sexual abuse of your child is all that you think about and that it is difficult for you to think about anything else.

It’s Okay to Let Them In

You don’t want to burden your friends and you hope that they never experience this kind of pain first hand. However, it is important to remember that your friends love you and genuinely want to help you through this difficult time.

Accordingly, it is important to communicate with them in any way that you can. You can tell them each what you need, you can tell one person and authorize her to share your needs with specific other people, and you can share this blog post with your friends so that they have a better understanding of what you are going through.

Do you have any tips for communicating with your friends after your child’s been sexually abused? Please leave a comment and share your tips with others who may be facing similar situations. Your comment may help make this difficult time a little easier for someone else.

The Victims of Taxi Accidents May Suffer Severe Head and Facial Injuries

When you slide into the back seat of a cab after a long day at work, you probably don’t see the plastic or glass divider between you and the driver as a threat. However, if something goes wrong on the road or an accident happens, that partition could be the source of extremely serious injuries to your face and head. In fact, these kinds of injuries are surprisingly common in taxi accidents, and the risk may be bigger than you think.

Why Are Head and Facial Injuries So Common in Taxi Accidents?

Cab drivers are known for aggressive driving, sudden stops and starts, unexpected lane changes, and other dangerous driving behaviors. While not every cabbie is reckless, many Chicago commuters have stories of at least one or two rides in their lifetimes that featured some questionable choices on the part of the driver. Unfortunately, when a cab stops suddenly or collides with an object or person outside, the jolt can mean that the cab’s passengers are thrown forward with a remarkable amount of force. In a regular passenger car, anyone in the back seat would impact the headrests or open air. However, in a cab, back-seat occupants can be thrown directly into a sheet glass or metal edge.

The partitions that separate drivers from passengers in a cab are usually made of thick glass or very hard plastic. They usually don’t have much “give,” so passengers’ heads or faces may be severely injured. This is a real risk, even with minor accidents or unexpected maneuvers on the road. Passengers in a cab may be shocked at just how badly a minor accident can hurt when they make contact with the partition, the credit card machine, dispatch devices, cup holders, metal edges, or other hard surfaces inside the vehicle.

Types of Injuries to the Head and Face That Result From Cab Accidents

Passengers in the back seat of a cab can be very vulnerable when a sudden stop or accident throws them head-first into a hard partition or sharp object. Their injuries might include:

Tooth fractures
Broken noses and facial bones
Cuts, bruises, and scarring
Brain injuries

While their recovery from these potentially serious injuries may be very costly, some victims have a hard time convincing the drivers, cab companies, and insurance companies of the cost and severity of the accident. This is part of the reason why it’s so important to get an attorney involved with your case as soon as possible after you’ve been hurt.

Getting Help If You or Family Member Has Been Hurt in a Taxi Wreck

Head and facial injuries can be severe and disfiguring, sometimes requiring multiple surgeries and long-term treatment. In some cases, victims can struggle with chronic pain and continuing symptoms for years following the accident. Because these types of injuries can have such a big impact on a victim’s life, and because facial injuries often require the skill of medical specialists and plastic surgeries, the treatment can also be extremely costly.

While victims can’t change what has happened to them, they do potentially have the right to hold the cab driver or company responsible for acting recklessly and causing their injuries—but they will need experienced legal help to have the best chance at success.

If you have pressing questions about something that has happened to you or a family member in an accident with a Chicago cab, contact our experienced attorneys at 312-332-1400 today.

Three Things Every Brain Injury Victim Needs to Know After a Truck Accident

We cannot tell you, in a blog post, how much money you should be able to recover for your injury, when you will get a legal recovery, and what your future will be like. Those things are unique to each person who has suffered a brain injury in an I-90 truck accident, and we would be happy to talk to you about them individually.

Right Now There Are Three Things We Want to Tell You

If you have suffered a traumatic brain injury in a Chicago Skyway truck accident, you deserve:

Medical treatment. This includes not only emergency care, but also ongoing care. You deserve this whether or not you have health insurance and whether or not you have the means to pay for it.
To know what happened to you. You should know what caused the accident that resulted in your injury.
To understand your legal rights. You deserve to know whether you have the right to pursue a recovery for your injuries.

There should be no exception to these rules.

Want to Know More About Your Specific Case?

It is not enough to get medical treatment, to know what happened to you, and to understand your legal rights. You also need to know more about bringing a possible lawsuit and more about your possible financial recovery. Please contact us today via the live chat button on this page or by phone to learn more.

Category: Truck Accidents

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