Texas Tribune Daily Brief
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| Sibling Seeking Justice For Disabled Sister's Hot Car Death | | On July 23, 2013, Rebekah was driven from her group home to the Sean Ashley House, a day center for adults with disabilities. Autistic, Harkins was not verbal. That day, she did not get out of the van and go inside. Instead, somebody left her in the van. Nearly two years after their sister's death, no one - not the driver, not anyone who ran the Sean Ashley House - has faced criminal charges.The family cannot even sue for wrongful death. According to their attorneys, Texas law only allows parents, spouses and kids to do so. As an older person with disabilities, Harkins has none of those. Her parents are long gone, and she never married and had children. Her surviving siblings say they want to change state law so that in the future, if criminal charges aren't brought, families like theirs can have some legal options.
Miya Shay , KTRK-TV 06/15/2015   
| | Read Article: KTRK-TV |
| In North Dakota's Bakken Oil Boom, There Will Be Blood |  | Across the Bakken, deeply entrenched corporate practices and weak federal oversight inoculate energy producers against responsibility when workers are killed or injured, while shifting the blame to others. Oil companies also offer financial incentives to workers for speeding up production - potentially jeopardizing their safety - and shield themselves through a web of companies to avoid paying the full cost of settlements to workers and their families when something goes wrong. On average, someone dies about every six weeks from an accident in the Bakken - at least 74 since 2006, according to an analysis by Reveal, the first comprehensive accounting of such deaths using data obtained from Canadian and U.S. regulators. The number of deaths is likely higher because federal regulators don't have a systematic way to record oil- and gas-related deaths, and the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration doesn't include certain fatalities, such as those of independent contractors.
Jennifer Gollan (Reveal), The Center for Investigative Reporting 06/15/2015 | | Read Article: The Center for Investigative Reporting |
| Growing Oil Train Traffic is Shrouded in Secrecy | | Railroads are moving 40 times more oil now than in 2008 due to an oil boom in the Bakken formation of North Dakota. Bakken crude oil contains high concentrations of volatile gas, with a flashpoint as low as 74 degrees Fahrenheit. Derailments and explosions have occurred around North America since the oil boom began. This has prompted emergency responders to call for more information from railroad companies about oil train traffic patterns and volumes. The railroads mostly have refused; they say that releasing that information could put them at a competitive disadvantage.
Ashley Ahearn (Reveal), The Center for Investigative Reporting 06/15/2015 | | Read Article: The Center for Investigative Reporting |
| Milford Settled Suit over Ebola Fear for $30,000 | | The cityof Milford's insurance carrier paid $30,000 to settle a lawsuit filed by the family of a third-grader who was banned from her school last fall for several weeks because school officials feared she might transmit the Ebola virus, according to a document released this week. Stephen Opayemi, the father of the 7-year-old girl, had protested she was at a family wedding in Nigeria last October and that Ebola was limited to three other African countries. A federal lawsuit filed on the family's behalf against the school system and the city of Milford noted the girl never exhibited any symptoms of the virus.
Randall Beach, New Haven Register 06/15/2015 | | Read Article: New Haven Register |
| Purina Backs Beneful Dog Food as Lawsuit Expands Allegations | | Pet food giant Purina launched a national campaign in support of its Beneful brand last week — just as an ongoing lawsuit against the brand expanded its allegations that the popular feed is making dogs sick. The amended complaint against NestlÊ Purina PetCare Company's Beneful dry kibble dog food was filed on June 8 in California federal court, adding 26 additional pet owners from states spanning coast to coast. The lawsuit now alleges that Beneful contains toxins and that Purina has been offering cash settlements in exchange for silence from those who voice complaints about the brand.
NBC News, NBCNewYork.com 06/15/2015 | | Read Article: NBCNewYork.com |
| Judge Orders New Trial in Bus Crash Lawsuit | | A California judge has granted a new trial in a lawsuit filed over a fatal bus crash that took place in 2010. The Fresno judge vacated the previous ruling, saying that the crash, which ended in six deaths, was due to the negligence of the Greyhound bus company and its driver. The judge ruled that the crash took place because the driver was not wearing his glasses at the time of the accident. The crash took place when the bus driver plowed into an overturned SUV while on the way to Sacramento. The three women in the SUV, along with the driver and two bus passengers, were killed in the crash.
Matt Hamilton, LA Times 06/08/2015 | | Read Article: LA Times |
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