Miami Injury Lawyer Blog

Earlier this year a Palm Beach jury found Wellington polo mogul John Goodman guilty of DUI manslaughter and vehicular homicide for the drowning death of Scott Wilson. Earlier this week Goodman's attorneys revealed that Goodman had settled the pending wrongful death lawsuit with Wilson's parents, Lili and William, for $46 million dollars. Lili and William Wilson will each receive $23 million. Goodman's attorneys revealed the amount of the settlement in an attempt to get Goodman released from jail while he appeals his convictions. Following the settlement, the Wilsons dropped the wrongful death lawsuit before the criminal trial began.

Twenty-three year old Scott Wilson, a UCF engineering graduate, was driving his Hyundai home from his sister's birthday party in Orlando, when a drunken Goodman crashed his Bentley into Wilson. Wilson's car was shoved into a canal and he later drowned. Goodman drove away from the scene without checking on Wilson. Three hours after the crash, Goodman's blood alcohol level remained twice the legal limit.

The amount of the settlement was speculated for weeks as Goodman created headlines with his attempts to hide his assets from the Wilsons. While the Wilsons settled with Goodman for $46 million, Goodman's insurer will not pay out the entire claim. The Player's Club, the equestrian "hangout" where Goodman drank vodka cocktails and tequila shots before the crash, will pay the Wilsons $6 million to settle its claims with the Wilsons. Lili Wilson's attorney stated that she might use the settlement money to create a tribute to her son.

JAmount of Goodman settlement revealed: $46 million, www.palmbeachpost.com April 19, 2012.

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Michael Demella has to return to his Boston home alone. He will to open the door to find baby gifts and clothing and will have to face the reality that there is no baby coming home. He has to go to the room he once shared with his wife and face the fact that she is not coming home either. Michael's wife Alanna was killed when Rosa Rivera Kim lost control of her vehicle and plowed through a fence and into a cabana at the Riverside Hotel, knocking over two pillars. Alanna, seven months pregnant with a baby boy, was in the bathroom of the cabana when the car struck.

The Massachusetts couple was vacationing in Fort Lauderdale after winning the trip through their local church. Alanna, a third grade teaching assistant who worked with special needs children, and Michael were hoping to enjoy one last vacation before the birth of their son. The couple attended a marriage conference and opted to spend an extra day lounging by the pool at the Riverside Hotel. That extra day cost Alanna her life. Upon hearing the crash, hotel guests attempted to get to rip through the debris in an effort to try and reach her. Her husband was in the men's room at the time of the crash and came out to find his wife lost in the debris. She was dead when rescuers found her and they believe she and the unborn baby were killed instantly by the impact.

Rosa Rivera Kim does not remember the accident, according to Detective DeAnna Garcia. Kim lost control of her vehicle as she rounded a curve on SE 4th Street near Las Olas Boulevard in Fort Lauderdale. All Kim remembers is being removed from her vehicle. The police are continuing their investigation into the matter and may request a toxicology report. No charges have been filed.

Pastor: Pregnant Woman Killed By Car Won So. Fla. Trip Through Church, www.miami.cbslocal.com March 19, 2012.

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Last November, Joey Gratton and Stephen Page were racing towards victory in the Key West Super Boat World Championship when disaster struck in the final law of the race--Gratton and Page's 38-foot catamaran overturned as the drivers rounded the first turn. Page was able to exit the boat through an escape hatch built into the floor of the cockpit, but Gratton remained trapped by the harness system that was designed to keep him safe during races. The boat began to sink with Gratton trapped inside. Gratton drowned as the boat went under water.

Gratton's widow, Priscilla Gratton, has filed a wrongful death suit in Broward Circuit Court against John Carbonell, the President of Super Boat International Productions, Inc. and against the race's medical directors, Donald DiPetrillo and Brian Haff. The suit alleges that Gratton was alive and uninjured following the crash, but that Carbonell refused to deploy certified rescue dive paramedics in an effort to avoid their cost. Instead, the suit alleges, Carbonell ordered two "untrained, inexperienced and ill-equipped volunteers" on a nearby boat to respond to the crash. The volunteers took several minutes to reach the boat, and by the time they arrived, the suit claims, Gratton was already trapped inside, his emergency oxygen tank was depleted, and as a result, Gratton drowned.

In the complaint, filed with the Court in February, former president of the American Power Boat Association Michael Allweiss stated, "This should have been a routine, successful rescue, had Defendants merely followed standard industry practices, procedures and [Super Boat International's] own rules." Gratton's death followed the drowning deaths of two other racers at the event's opening two days earlier. The wrongful death suit also alleges gross negligence, claiming Carbonell prevented rescue personnel from conducting pre-race safety inspections in an effort to avoid liability in light of a crash.

Widow files suit over powerboat racer's death in Key West race, www.miamiherald.com February 20, 2012.

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A medical mistake cost Nadine Raphael's husband his life. In 2003, Raphael's husband, a patient at Palms West Hospital, suffered irrevocable heart damage when he was not given the anti-clotting drug Retavase while suffering a heart attack. He later died from the heart attack.

Raphael filed a medical malpractice suit two years after her husband's death and asked for the damage award to include compensation for her pain and suffering. She was awarded $10.3 million dollars for her loss. Lawyers instantly appealed the decision because three months after Raphael's husband died, the Florida Legislature placed a $1 million cap on the amount juries can award in medical malpractice cases. The new law caps pain and suffering awards at $150,000 per person. The lawyers argued over whether the new law would apply to Raphael's case. Raphael's lawyers argued that the law was inapplicable to her case because it was not in effect when her husband died. Lawyers for Dr. James Schecter, the emergency room physician who cared for Raphael's husband, argued that the law should apply because the law was in effect when Raphael filed her case two years after her husband's death. In 2009, the Fourth District Court of Appeal refused to allow the law to be applied retroactively and upheld the award for Raphael. The Florida Supreme Court also upheld the $10.3 million award, referencing an earlier decision in which it refused to apply a law retroactively.

Unfortunately, because Dr. Schecter has a $1 million limit on his insurance policy Raphael will not get her award right away. Her attorneys plan to file a bad faith claim against Dr. Shecter's insurer, claiming that the insurance company should have settled the case before trial and because it failed to do so, should pay out the entire $10.3 million award.

Supreme Court lets stand $10.3 million award in Palm Beach County medical malpractice case, www.palmbeachpost.com November 9, 2011.

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Two people died in a Homestead car accident on Saturday, January 29, 2011, after a SUV lost control and crashed into a house in Homestead. The location of the Homestead car accident took place at The Fairways which is a gated community in Homestead, Florida. Witnesses told the investigating police officers that the SUV crashed through the community gate of the Homestead community and drove through several yards eventually colliding into a community home.

The driver was a 61 year old female who was operating a Suzuki Tracker. The driver of the SUV Homestead car accident was pronounced dead immediately at the scene. In the passenger seat was the driver's 93 year old father who was airlifted to the Ryder Trauma Center where he died. The police have yet to identify the names of the deceased since the family of the Homestead car accident has yet to be notified.

There was one person inside the home of where the Miami car accident occurred. Luckily, there were no injuries to the person inside the home. The SUV caused severe damage to the Homestead property. Police officers are awaiting the results of the toxicology report to see if the driver was under the influence.

Two Die in Homestead After SUV Crashes Into Home, www.miamiherald.com, January 30, 2011.

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It was the day after Christmas, on December 26, 2010, when a hotel maid found five Miami teenagers dead in a Hialeah motel room. Teenager, Juchen Martial wanted to celebrate his 19th birthday with four of his best friends. They decided to rent a room and celebrate Sunday night at the Hotel Presidente located at 1395 S.E. 8th Ct. near Miami International Airport and off of Okeechobee Rd.

The five teenagers are believed to have passed away due to being poisoned from carbon monoxide fumes. The five victims who passed away in this tragic accident were Martial, who was celebrating his 19th birthday, Evans Charles- 19, Jonas Antenor-18; Peterson Nazon- 17 and Jean Pierre Ferdinand- 16. The five teenagers were all really close friends from their Little Haiti neighborhood. When Hialeah police and firefighters entered the hotel room Monday afternoon, they observed a red Kia Optima that was left running.

Earlier that Sunday night, the red Kia had been giving the teenagers some car problems when the battery died. One of their friends, 18 year old Maxon Ofea, needed to give the red Kia a car jump. The five teenagers picked up McDonald's and were sitting around their hotel room eating fast food. Apparently, the friends were planning on going out after they ate and left the car running. The red Kia was left running in the bottom floor garage of the hotel room and they had left a hall door slightly opened which led to the rest of the hotel room on the second floor. As a result, the odorless, deadly fumes went up stairs where the five teenagers were eating. "They thought the car wouldn't start. That's the reason it happened," said Ofea who grew up with the five teenagers.

Five Teens Found Dead inside Hialeah Motel; carbon monoxide could be killer, www.miamiherald.com, December 27, 2010.

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Miami fashion model identified as hit and run driver in the fatal accident of UM student, Jared Paul Jones. On November 13, 2010, Jared Paul Jones, a 21 year-old English major was struck by a car at around 7:20 p.m. while crossing the intersection of Red Road and Blue Road in the Coral Gables/South Miami area. The car that struck Jared Paul Jones fled the scene of the accident. Initially, the driver of the hit and run was believed to be an elderly man. The following morning Miami fashion model, Valentina Andrews Hubsch, 45, contacted police authorities stating that she was the driver who struck Jared Paul Jones in Coral Gables, Fl. Unfortunately, Jared Paul Jones was pronounced dead the following morning on November 14, 2010.

Two weeks following Jared Paul Jones hit and run fatal car accident, Taylor William Emmons, a sophomore at the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Florida was struck by a car while crossing San Amaro Drive on campus. The location of the Miami car accident occurred near the Sigma Chi fraternity house. This was another tragic car accident in the Miami, Florida area.

"We feel terrible. It was tragic, it was traumatizing, it was a reality check. You have to be safe." - UM Freshman Justin Engle.

These two accidents have left the University of Miami community mourning after losing two of its students in the past two weeks. As proud alumnus of the University of Miami School of Law both partner, Jonathan R. Friedland, Esq. and associate, Michael J. Carmona, Esq. of the Friedland Law Group have taken these two tragic pedestrian accidents to heart.

"It is always painful to see two young men with promising futures pass away at such an early age." - Michael J. Carmona, Esq.

UM Student Struck, Killed While Crossing Street on Campus, JustNews.com, December 5, 2010.

Continue reading "Second University of Miami Student Killed in Coral Gables Crash in the Past 2 Weeks" »