Child Injury

Published on: November 19, 2012

Bounce House Injuries and Death on the Rise

While bounce houses are popular for children’s birthday parties, they have led to a soaring number of injuries among children. Kids often overcrowd bounce houses and when jumping up and down, land on or crash into one another, causing serious injury. While in bounce houses, children are often flung into the air and they land in awkward and unnatural positions. Each day, almost 30 children are treated in emergency rooms for bounce house related injuries. Almost forty percent of the injured children are under five years old.

The number of bounce house related injuries has been climbing and has doubled since 2008. Almost 11,000 children under the age of 17 were treated for bounce house related injuries in 2010 alone. Most injuries are classified as non-life threatening and are typically broken bones. Most bounce house injuries are similar to trampoline injuries. However, product safety reports have revealed that several children died in bounce houses between 2003 and 2007. Bounce houses are often found at amusement parks, fairs, or at children’s birthday parties. During extreme wind and under certain weather conditions, bounce houses can collapse or take flight, injuring the children inside.

“There is no evidence that the size or location of an inflatable bouncer affects the injury risk,” said a safety commission spokesman. It is recommended that bounce houses do not become overcrowded and that older children and younger children take turns using the bounce house. Further, trained operators should only supervise bounce houses.

Bounce houses a party hit but kids’ injuries soar, www.miamiherald.com November 19, 2012.

Published on: October 23, 2012

Newborn Found Dead Aboard Cruise Ship, FBI Opens Investigation

by Friedland | Carmona

A newborn baby was found dead aboard Carnival Cruise Line’s The Dream cruise ship when the shop returned to Port Canaveral this past weekend. The FBI has undertaken an investigation as to what led to the child’s death. On Saturday, the FBI’s Evidence Response Team went about the ship to search for clues. According to Special Agent Dave Couvertier, “We received preliminary information of a deceased newborn on the vessel and we are investigating the matter.”

According to reports, an employee aboard the ship found the dead newborn in a guest’s cabin and informed authorities in St. Maarten. The mother, a twenty-year-old passenger, was detained in St. Maarten. However, she has not yet been charged, as the FBI is still obtaining facts and collecting evidence. The newborn’s mother is not from Florida and has not yet returned to the United States.

Report: Dead newborn found on cruise ship, www.miamiherald.com October 16, 2012.

Published on: October 17, 2012

Eight Children Hospitalized After Ellenton Bus Crash

by Friedland | Carmona

Early Monday morning, eight children were injured in a school bus accident while on their way to school. The students were heading to Virgil Mills Elementary School when a Ford Focus collided with the bus. Of the fifty-nine students aboard the bus, eight were taken to local hospitals. Seven were taken to Manatee Memorial Hospital and the other was taken to Lakewood Ranch Medical Center to treat minor injuries. Eighteen other students were evaluated at the accident scene.

According to Emergency Medical Services Lt. Jake Saur, the children were taken to the hospital as a precautionary measure. “It appears to be just minor bumps and bruises…if there’s any doubt at all, we’re sending them in to be evaluated.” The bus, which sustained minor damage, took the remaining students to the elementary school.

The driver of the car stated that the clutch of his car “got jammed” and that he was unable to stop at the stop sign. Even with the emergency brake on, he went through the intersection and turned left into the path of the bus. The bus driver attempted to avoid the collision by veering left but was unable to. Police charged the driver of the Ford with a failure to yield to the right of way. Police do not believe drugs or alcohol were involved in the crash.

School bus crash injures 8 students in Ellenton, www.miamiherald.com October 15, 2012.

Published on: October 10, 2012

Twenty-Three Passengers Injured When Bus Overturns

by Friedland | Carmona

Twenty-three passengers were injured when their tour bus crashed in New Jersey on Saturday. Five of those who were sent to the hospital in critical condition have since been released. Three others in critical condition have been upgraded to fair condition. Two of the victims are children, state police have confirmed. All injured passengers were taken to St. Joseph’s Regional Medical Center.

Police are unaware as to what caused the crash, but the bus overturned on an exit ramp on Interstate 80. The bus driver informed police that another driver had cut him off. The bus slid down the embankment and flipped onto its side. The bus was heading to New York City, coming from Toronto, Canada, and had fifty-seven passengers aboard.

This bus accident is the latest in a series of bus accidents on American highways in recent years. Last year, thirteen people died when a bus crashed into a New York City guardrail, flipped over and hit a signpost that “sliced off the top of the bus.” The driver is facing manslaughter charges.

3 remain hospitalized after bus overturns in NJ, www.miamiherald.com October 07, 2012.

Published on: October 5, 2012

Florida Children Being Sent To Adult Nursing Homes, Federal Government Threatens Legal Action Against State

by Friedland | Carmona

Federal investigators have threatened legal action against Florida health officials if they do not work to resolve allegations that “children with disabilities are being sent to adult nursing homes unnecessarily.” The U.S. Department of Justice sent a letter to Florida officials saying that the state is violating the federal Americans with Disabilities Act because they have allowed more than 200 children and infants with disabilities to be sent to adult nursing homes, often without a “clear path to return home.”

In the letter, Assistant Attorney General Thomas Perez said, “We hope you will reconsider your unwillingness to cooperate with our investigation.” Investigators requested information from Florida health officials over nine months ago, but have received nothing from the state. Perez also stated, “If a mutually agreeable resolution is not possible, we will not hesitate to take swift and appropriate legal action.” The U.S. Department of Justice has resolved similar violations in other states, including Georgia, Virginia, North Carolina and Delaware.

State law officials deny the allegations against them. Agency for Health Care Administration Secretary Liz Dudek stated that she is “open to meeting with the DOJ to clarify the misunderstanding.” She stated that children are “receiving the ‘medically necessary’ services that they need.” She also stated that her staff met with the children’s parents so that they feel their children are in the best place and that the efforts were “well received.”

Federal investigators contend that they continue to receive panicked calls from parents and that the state has “slashed in-home medical services for disabled children,” leaving them no place to go other than nursing homes. “The state has cut funding for 24-hour in-home nursing and other home based services for children on ventilators, feeding tubes and other complicated technology,” and parents who are unable to care for their children have no choice but to send them to nursing homes that does not have the proper equipment or staff to help their children. Investigators visited several nursing homes and found that children were not exposed to “social, educational and recreational activities that are critical to child development.”

Feds threaten lawsuit over kids in nursing homes, www.miamiherald.com September 26, 2012.

Published on: September 14, 2012

Broward Daycare Worker Charged For Boy’s Death

by Friedland | Carmona

Four-year-old Jordan Coleman died because his babysitter left him asleep in the backseat of a hot SUV. On the day of his death, Jordan and seven other children from his daycare center, 3C Day Academy, were taken on a fun outing to the community pool in Lauderdale Lakes and to a park for lunch. After their outing, they were loaded into a hot SUV and taken to an apartment for their naps. Jordan never left the SUV. He remained asleep in the back while temperatures rose to 108 degrees and died in the sweltering vehicle. Now, one of the daycare workers who left him in the vehicle has been charged with aggravated manslaughter for her role in his death. For more information on the case, click here.

Nineteen-year-old Pairs Ward was arrested and appeared in court late yesterday afternoon to face the aggravated manslaughter charge. The indictment against her also lists the names of the other women who were in charge of caring for Jordan on the day he died, but the two women remain at large. According to news reports, Ward was in tears during her entire hearing, while her lawyer “emphasized at the hearing that his client, who had recently finished high school, was not a full-time employee of the day-care and had no criminal record before the arrest.” Ward initially lied to police about how Jordan died, claiming he “inexplicably collapsed” while climbing into the SUV but later revealed the truth. Jordan’s family wants all parties involved in his death “brought to justice–and this is the beginning.” Jordan’s family also believes that the Broward County child-care licensing authorities are partially responsible for the boy’s death. According to the family lawyer, “There were breakdowns across the board in this case, beginning with inspectors who did not enforce the law at that day-care center.”

Ward and another woman whose mother owned the 3C Day Academy took the children on the outing in an effort to avoid state-child care regulators. The regulators stopped by the Academy to follow up after a prior visit revealed that the Academy was caring for more children than allowed by its license. Investigators believe that the Academy’s owner ordered Ward and the owner’s daughter to take the eight children out for the day to avoid another citation for over-capacity. The Academy had been cited multiple times since it’s opening in 2008 for similar infractions. Additionally, after Jordan’s death, an investigation revealed that there had been only one safety seat in the SUV for the eight children, who ranged from months old to five years old. The Broward County Sherriff’s Office has shut down 3C Day Academy.

Day-care worker jailed in death of 4-year-old left in hot SUV, www.miamiherald.com September 14, 2012.

Published on: September 5, 2012

Jury Awards $7.8 Million After Doctors Fail To Diagnose Flesh-Eating Bacteria

by Friedland | Carmona

Imagine taking your child to the emergency room to treat a cut and leaving days later with your child suffering from brain damage. One family’s nightmare came true when they took their twelve-year-old son, Jonathan, to Dyersburg Regional Medical Center to treat a cut he received when he fell on an exposed nail head while playing laser tag at Upon This Rock Amusement. Dr. Joseph Flagge and Alan Hopkins, ARNP, treated him for the cut at Dyersburg Regional. He was discharged the same day, but returned two days later with extreme pain and redness and swelling that was “steadily moving up his leg.” Dr. Randy Isaacs treated him, but did not diagnose Jonathan with any other illness. Three days later, another doctor treated Jonathan, diagnosed him with a significant infection of flesh-eating bacteria (necrotizing fasciitis) and sent him to Lebonheur Children’s Hospital. The complaint, filed by Jonathan’s parents, alleges that he “suffer[ed] severe physical injuries from the hospitals’ negligence with most of the flesh from his knee to his groin decomposing, requiring extensive tissue removal and skin grafts, but he also suffered severe brain injuries.” As a result of his injuries, Jonathan fell into a coma and suffered a series of seizures that caused permanent brain damage.

Jonathan’s parents filed suit against Dyersburg Regional Medical Center; David Criswell, owner of Upon This Rock Amusement in Dyersburg; Dr. Joseph Flagge, and Alan Hopkins, ARNP. Their complaint alleges that the Dr. Flagge and Hopkins improperly treated their son and “failed to take proper precautions to avoid infection, including the failure to administer necessary and appropriate antibiotics and other medicines.” Their complaint continues to state that Dr. Isaacs failed to diagnose the flesh-eating bacteria that caused Jonathan’s symptoms.

The trial has been a long process for Jonathan and his parents. The accident occurred in 2004, and went to a civil trial in 2007 but the judge declared a mistrial. The case was heard again recently and after a 15-day trial, a jury awarded the family $7.8 million for Jonathan’s injuries. Prior to trial, Dr. Flagge and Hopkins settled with the family for an undisclosed amount. Halfway through the trial, the hospital also settled for an undisclosed amount. The jury allotted the fault as follows: David Criswell was 13% responsible, Dr. Joseph Flagge and Alan Hopkins were each 20% liable and the Medical Center was 47% responsible. The jury ultimately determined that Jonathan should receive $7,816,740 in damages, but the court has sealed the final settlement amounts.

Jury awards $7.8M in hospital negligence suit, www.miamiherald.com August 31, 2012.

Published on: August 3, 2012

Four Year Old Dies In Backseat Of Hot Car While At Sunrise Daycare

by Friedland | Carmona

Jordan Coleman, also known as JoJo, had turned four years old last week. On Wednesday, his mother sent him off to 3C’s Day Academy. He never returned home. Now his family is planning a funeral instead of a birthday party. JoJo had fallen asleep in the back of a Toyota Sequoia while in the Academy’s care and was simply left there. Forgotten by his day care provider, the child remained in the car for over two hours while temperatures reached over 90 degrees. By the time the day center realized that he was missing, it was too late. Despite a CPR attempt, JoJo was pronounced dead at Broward Health Coral Springs.

On the day over JoJo’s death, the Academy’s owner, Cecily Roberts, was trying to hide the fact that her home-based day care was over capacity and instructed her daughter to take eight children on a field trip, including JoJo and his cousin. Having been cited multiple times for caring for more children than allowed by her license and for leaving the children in the care of her eighteen year old daughter, the Department of Children and Family Services believe Roberts instructed her daughter to take the children in case DCF came to re-inspect the grounds. The children went swimming and were headed to an apartment complex when JoJo fell asleep in the back of the SUV, which had no child safety seats, and did not exit with the others. Hours later, JoJo’s cousin eventually realized he was missing and asked where he was. But it was too late.

JoJo’s family is trying to grieve the loss of their little boy. When they asked the Academy what had happened to JoJo, the day care providers lied and told them that JoJo has collapsed while playing. However, JoJo’s young cousin, who had been present when the boy died, told them a different story. Broward child-welfare services is investigating the incident and has temporarily shut down the day care center.

Sunrise child-care center shut after boy’s death in SUV, www.miamiherald.com August 03, 2012.

Published on: March 26, 2012

Ten Dead in Twenty Four Hours in Miami-Dade County

by Friedland | Carmona

In one of the deadliest nights in South Florida history, ten people and an unborn child were killed in motor vehicle accidents within a 24-hour span of time. The most horrific of the deadly crashes involved a head-on collision on the Gratigny Expressway, which left four people dead after the car erupted into flames early Sunday morning. A car and an SUV crashed head on, as the police believe that one of the drivers may have entered the expressway heading in the wrong direction. The fires in the vehicles left three passengers trapped in one car and the driver of another vehicle trapped in his. The victims’ bodies were unrecognizable and have not yet been identified.

A pregnant woman was using the restroom at a Fort Lauderdale hotel cabana when a car veered off the road and into the cabana, killing the woman and her unborn baby. A churchgoer was also killed slightly before 10 a.m. services when another churchgoer lost control of her vehicle and smashed into her. Eighty-eight year old Mary Sczepanski put her car in reverse and accelerated, going over the curve and running over 66 year old Luciana Porto. Porto was also dragged under the vehicle. She was pronounced dead at the hospital.

A 5-year-old girl was riding her Big Wheel in front of her home when a GMC van struck her. The driver fled the scene, but 19-year-old Erik Garcia was arrested shortly thereafter. Garcia was charged with leaving the scene of a crash involving death, not having a valid driver’s license and failure to use due care. A passenger in the car, Mario Argumedo, who also owned the van, picked the girl up after the crash and ran her over to her mother before jumping back in the car and leaving the scene with Garcia. He was charged with leaving the scene of a crash involving death, tampering with evidence and allowing an unlicensed driver operate a vehicle in his possession. The girl was pronounced dead at Broward General Medical Center. Another child was struck on Saturday–fourteen-year-old Brandon Campbell was riding his skateboard hen he was struck near a crosswalk by a Honda Accord. The driver stated he did not see the teen, but turned around and returned to scene when he realized he had hit something. Campbell was pronounced dead at North Broward Medical Center.

10 people killed in 24 hours in South Florida car accidents, www.miamiherald.com March 19, 2012.

Published on: January 30, 2012

Pompano Beach Child Remains In Critical Condition After Being Struck By Car

by Friedland | Carmona

Six-year-old Robert Glover Jr. lays in critical condition at Broward General Medical Center after being hit by a car as he was riding his scooter down the street. Marcus Permenter, 28, ran a stop sign and crashed into Chiledric Jacques’ 1991 Toyota Camry. Permenter’s car struck the young boy, a fence, a parked van, a tree and a pickup truck before coming to rest. Jacques’ car spun around multiple times before ending up in a yard near the intersection. The boy’s father watched the entire accident unfold.

According to neighbors, racing is a common problem in the area and many feel as though an accident like this was bound to happen. “Young guys out there speeding, building these cars to race. They need to put speed bumps in the residential neighborhoods. It needs to stop,” neighbor Rodney Martin stated and fellow neighbor Bernice Martin agreed. “Just slow down. This is not a speedway. This is a residential neighborhood and there are kids out, so everybody needs to take their time and slow down,” Martin stated.

Glover’s father, who witnessed his son being struck by the car, forgives the drivers. Conceding that mistakes happen, he stated that he doesn’t want Permenter to go to jail for the rest of his life over this accident. Glover’s main concern is praying for his son to get better. Bernice Martin summed up the tragedy of the day, commenting, “Little fella, he’s always riding up and down the street on his little thing. It’s sad.”

Boy, 6, Critical After Car Careens Into Him On Sidewalk, www.miami.cbslocal.com January 30, 2012.