Archive for June, 2008

Promising Jacksonville artist dies in car crash

Tuesday, June 17th, 2008

5ptsJames Lehosit, a 27 year old promising Jacksonville artist died last Friday in a car crash in Clearwater, Florida. James was a graduate of the Douglas Anderson School of the Arts here in Jacksonville. The Grand Cherokee that James was driving in was hit by a car that ran a stop sign. The Cherokee then rolled over into the path of another car.

“The Dogs of Riverside and Avondale” a book of photographs that James collaborated on with his mom is about to be published. My law office is in the middle of the Riverside area of Jacksonville. I plan on getting a copy of the book and keeping it in my lobby to honor his memory.

SUV, truck and van rollovers account for more than 10,000 fatalities in the United States each year. The high number of rollover accidents are due in part to the popularity of sport utility vehicles (SUVs). According to NHTSA rollover statistics, SUV’s have the highest rollover rate of any class of vehicles with more than 90 percent of the rollovers occuring after the vehicle leaves the pavement and travels onto the shoulder, into a ditch or a ravine. If you have been involved in a rollover crash you should call an attorney as soon as possible to preserve the car or truck as evidence.

Jacksonville Trucker gets 7 Years in Prison for horrific crash

Tuesday, June 17th, 2008

232051_semi-truck_1Jacksonville truck driver Alvin Wilkerson was sentenced to seven years in prison for killing 7 children in a horrible trucking accident in Union County. Wilkerson fell asleep at the wheel of his tractor trailer before plowing into a car carrying 7 children from the same Florida family. The children’s grandfather, William Edward Scott, also died from a heart attack after learning of the deaths.

Wilkerson was 25 miles into his 85 mile trip hauling water from High Springs when he fell asleep. On average 5000 trucks a year are involved in fatal crashes. Of these accidents 2% are because of drivers falling asleep. Wilkerson was said to have been up for 36 hours when the crash happened. I can’t help but to think that with the price of gas being so high truckers maybe pushing themselves more and more to stay awake to get more jobs done.

Jacksonville Lawyers get ready for the new iphone

Monday, June 16th, 2008

imges-21-24-15The new iPhone is set to be unveiled in less than two weeks. I got my iphone the night it came out last year. I can’t imagine not having it. Clients can email me and get an instant message back even if I am out of the office. Thanks to the maclawyer.com for pointing out some great features for Jacksonville attorneys:

1. Browse Westlaw and Lexis Faster: 3G Connectivity

The new iPhone will run on a “3G” or third-generation network. While that translates to speeds of up to 42 Mbps, (think ten times faster than DSL or Cable), here in the United States, we likely see only a fraction of that. Initially, we will see speeds approaching the speed of your home DSL or cable connection. By the end of the year, speeds should increase five-fold. Even at the lower speeds though, the improvement over the current offering will be dramatic, and you will finally be able to access Westlaw or Lexis on your iPhone without waiting five minutes for a page to load. It will also mean you will be able to upload large documents and multimedia files quickly. Fortune reports that only 73% of the 3G network is currently in place, but AT&T is quickly rolling about the remainder of the network.

2. When You Can’t Be There in Person: Video-conferencing

The increase in speeds will allow the new iPhones to run full-fledged video conferences, something that the current model is not natively capable of. There are also rumors that the new iPhone may have a front-facing camera to support video-conferencing.

3. Getting Where You Need to Go: GPS

The new iPhone will have turn-by-turn GPS directions. The current model triangulates you position by using cell phone towers, but it can’t really pinpoint your position, it only gives you a rough idea of where you are. This new feature will allow you to get rid of yet another gadget: your GPS device, adding to list of things your iPhone replaces: your GPS device, you phone, and of course, your mp3 player.

Unfortunately, the iPhone is still only available for AT&T. The new iPhone is an exciting addition to the Apple family and Apple expects over ten million units to be sold.

Florida Cemetery Negligence causes Crypts to break open to reveal human skulls and remains

Friday, June 13th, 2008

951616_gravestonesFlorida cemetery negligence is causing crypts in the Hilltop Cemetery in Cocoa, Florida to break open and reveal the skeletons inside. Many of the gravestones are not even standing. Many of the graves have veterans of both World War I and II in them are sinking, buckling and cracking wide open.

City officials have not been able to contact the trust responsible for maintaining the cemetery. As deputy city manager, Wendy Wildman said ” It’s reprehensible. I wouldn’t want my family member to be exposed.

Under Florida Statute Chapter 497 the laws of Florida and many other states the families of those buried in the cemetery may have a claim for the intentional infliction of emotional damages. This cause of action is one of the only claims that can be made for damages without having to prove a physical injury.

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City Admits to Grave Mistake in allowing cremated body moved

Wednesday, June 11th, 2008

City officials in the town of Amherst, Ohio broke state law by allowing the cremated remains of a mother to be removed from a city cemetery and moved in 2002. The city is now being sued by the mother’s family for interfering with their mother’s dead body. Roberta Yates, the mother, was moved from Ohio to the Western Reserve National Cemetery without her family’s approval. By not getting a court order to move the remains the city violated Ohio law.
What struck me about this story was the fact that the person who paid the $70 to move the cremated remains was a complete stranger to the family. In Jacksonville only the next of kin are allowed to decide what can be done with a loved one’s dead body. Many states including Florida have laws that allow family members to sue for emotional damages when a family members dead body is abused.