California Personal Injury Blog

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has launched an investigation into air brake systems in semi-trucks that are reportedly causing fires.

According to a news report, in a July 16 NHTSA notice, the agency confirmed it has launched a probe into Haldex Gold Seal GC3030LCW air brake chambers installed in model year 2015 to 2020 trucks.

The investigation was launched after complaints of air loss resulting in multiple vehicle fires. …Read the rest »

Grimmway Farms has announced a recall of baby, petite, and shredded carrots because they may be contaminated with salmonella.

According to Consumer Reports, the problem was discovered during a routine internal company test. No illnesses have been reported so far.

The recalled products were bagged and sold in stores under the Bunny-Luv, Cal-Organic, Grimmway Farms and O Organics brands with “best if used by” dates between Aug. 9 and Aug. 20. …Read the rest »

Give and Go Prepared Food Corporation is voluntarily recalling select muffins over concerns of food poisoning.

According to a USA Today news report, the muffins that were sold nationwide under various brand names including Uncle Wally’s and store brands including at Walmart, 7-Eleven, and Stop & Shop could have been contaminated with listeria.

Eating contaminated foods can have dangerous side effects, even causing severe illness or death in extreme cases. …Read the rest »

Pfizer is recalling batches of its anti-smoking drug Chantix after an increased level of impurities that can cause cancer were discovered in the medication.

According to a report on People.com, the nationwide recall includes two lots of Chantix 0.5 mg tablets, two lots of Chantix 1 mg tablets and eight lots of a Chantix kit of 0.5 mg/1 mg tablets.

Prolonged ingestion of the discovered impurities can result in serious long term damage and drastic side effects. …Read the rest »

Ford Motor Company is recalling about 675,000 Ford Explorer SUVs because of concerns that the rear suspension could fracture and potentially cause in a crash.

According to Consumer Reports, the recall includes vehicles from the 2013 to 2017 model years. The fracture of the suspension could be triggered by a cross-axis ball joint that seizes, causing a rear suspension link to crack.

If the component breaks apart it could compromise the vehicle’s steering, putting drivers, passengers, and other road users in danger. …Read the rest »

Britney Spears: Inside her conservatorship

Britney Spears has been a global superstar since she was a teenager, dazzling fans with catchy tunes and dance moves for more than 20 years. Her spectacular career has encompassed everything from chart-topping mega hits to very public breakdowns.

But in recent years, the former teen idol has hit the headlines for the controversial court-appointed conservatorship that seemingly now controls her every move.

The Spears conservatorship has become a groundbreaking case, sparking fan outrage and intense media and public scrutiny, with new developments breaking all the time as the saga rumbles on.

In this article, we take a deep dive into this controversial legal constraint. We cover what a conservatorship is, how it works, how a conservatorship can be abused, and all other legal issues surrounding this system, with a focus on Britney’s struggles. …Read the rest »

Lawsuits filed in California are seeking potential class-action damages from Dow Chemical and its successor company over a widely-used bug killer that has been linked to brain damage in children.

According to a KTLA news report, chlorpyrifos is approved for use on more than 80 crops including oranges, berries, grapes, soybeans, almonds, and walnuts even though California banned sales of this pesticide last year and spraying of it this year.

Exposure to the chemical, either direct or secondhand, has the potential to cause serious issues, such as neurological damage. …Read the rest »

Hyundai and Kia are recalling 37,327 vehicles to address a problem with the fuel pump and fuel rail, which could pose the danger of a fire.

According to Consumer Reports, the recalled vehicles include Hyundai Santa Fe and Sonatas, as well as Kia Sorento and K5 SUVs and sedans from the 2021 and 2022 model years.

A faulty fuel pipe connection could cause a blaze to break out within the car. …Read the rest »

A 7-year-old boy was killed in a home elevator accident at a beach rental home in North Carolina just three days after federal regulators pushed another major elevator manufacturer to fix a similar problem.

According to a report in The Washington Post, the boy was trapped between the bottom of the elevator car and the home’s upper doorframe. His neck was crushed after he appeared to have gotten between the moving elevator’s inner accordion door and an outer door.

The boy’s family was reportedly visiting from Canton, Ohio, and arrived earlier that day to begin their vacation. Investigators are still looking into what precisely happened here, but they say it fits a pattern of children being crushed by residential elevators after they get trapped in a small space between two elevator doors. …Read the rest »

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has filed a lawsuit against Amazon saying it is selling dangerous products to its customers.

According to a CNN news report, the federal safety watchdog is suing Amazon to make it stop selling these products in its online marketplace.

Among the dangerous products cited in the lawsuit are carbon monoxide detectors that fail to warn, children’s pajamas that could catch fire, and nearly 400,000 hair dryers that could electrocute people if dropped in water. …Read the rest »