Archive for July, 2009

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Excessive Force by Corona Police Using a K-9

Friday, July 31st, 2009

The Law Offices of Samer Habbas was hired to represent the plaintiff in an excessive force lawsuit against the Corona Police Department.

Joseph Erik Villa, 25, was taken to a Corona-area hospital for treatment of puncture wounds to his armpit and shoulder from a police dog, said Lt. Shawn Dredla of the Corona Police Department. Dredla said Villa refused a police order to show his hands.  – www.pe.com

Read the full news article.

If you or your loved one has been the victim of excess force by your state or local police agency, please contact out firm for assistance.   Please call 888.848.5084 or fill out the form to the right.

Mortuary Worker Given 10 Years for Trafficking Body Parts

Thursday, July 30th, 2009

An article in the Sacramento Bee reports that a former mortuary worker convicted of dismembering cadavers donated to the UCLA medical school and selling the body parts was sentenced to serve ten years in prison and pay more than $1.7 million in unpaid taxes, fines and restitution. Jurors in the California mortuary malpractice case found that Ernest Nelson, 51, was guilty of various crimes, including grand theft and tax evasion. The jury found that Nelson and Henry Reid, the former director of UCLA’s Willed Body Program, conspired to sell body parts from cadavers donated to the university for personal gain.

The prosecutor in the mortuary malpractice case—Deputy District Attorney Marisa Zarate—said that Reid was complicit in the crimes; Nelson was the person who walked into the freezers where the cadavers were stored, dismembered the bodies, packaged the parts and delivered them to buyers across the country. The buyers included hospitals and research firms. According to the investigation, Reid and Nelson’s scheme went undetected for five years and the pair pocketed $1.5 million from the scheme.

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California Legislators Pass Nursing Home Quality of Care Measure

Tuesday, July 28th, 2009

A recent California Chronicle article reports that California legislators passed a measure to confront the failing quality of care in California nursing homes. Measure AB 1457 passed on a vote of 77-0 in May 2009. The measure requires each licensee of a skilled nursing facility disclose with each abbreviated contract of admission and contract of admission, the name of the owner and licensee for the facility, along with the name and contact information of a single entity that is fully accountable for all aspects of patient care and the operation of the facility.

Assemblyman Mike Davis (D-Los Angeles)—author of AB 1457—said, “The California Legislature understands the special attention to the needs and problems of elderly persons, recognizing that these persons constitute a significant and identifiable segment of the population and that they are more subject to risks of abuse, neglect and abandonment, which makes them a disadvantaged class that have a particular need for assistance. AB 1457 provides California an opportunity to address a serious problem detailed in dozens of investigations by reports in the media. Each resident should know who is in charge of delivering services in every facility. This measure will require appropriate notification that will help to ensure quality care in nursing homes.”

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California Auto Insurance Requirements and Consequences

Thursday, July 23rd, 2009

In California, you are required to have a certain amount of liability insurance. The importance of liability insurance is so great that a state program exists to give low income drivers access to affordable liability coverage, as reported at SmartBrief.com.

Liability insurance is necessary because it pays for damages caused by your vehicle in the event of an accident. Basic liability car insurance offers three types of coverage:

  • $15,000 minimum bodily injury liability coverage per person to cover personal injuries caused by your vehicle
  • $30,000 minimum bodily injury liability per accident. If more than one person is injured by your vehicle, the combined coverage for all injured parties is $30,000.
  • $5,000 minimum property damage coverage to offset the costs of any property damaged by your vehicle.

If you do not have liability coverage for your vehicle, you will get a citation and a small fine for a first offense. You will also have your license suspended until you can submit proof of insurance. If you cause an accident in a vehicle without insurance, the California tort system could find you at fault and therefore liable for all of the damages you caused in an auto accident.

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How Auto Insurance Works

Tuesday, July 21st, 2009

For an example of how auto insurance is not supposed to work, please refer to a story printed by the Sacramento Business Journal. Two Northern California residents associated with the sovereign citizen’s movement were convicted by federal investigators of operating a fraudulent insurance scheme along with other charges.

The pair operated a bogus insurance company that did not comply with California or United States insurance laws. To make matters worse, the pair paid out insurance claims based on their interpretation of social and religious values. For example, the fraudulent insurance company refused to pay for pain and suffering caused by injury car accidents because pain and suffering were part of a divine plan.

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