Williams was a homeless Native American woodcarver and was partially deaf. Williams was shot by a Seattle Police Officer after failing to comply with commands to drop a knife. Williams died from the shooting.

Police arriving on scene found the knife was closed and the officer’s car camera showed only a short time passing between the commands being issued and shots being fired. The Seattle Police Department’s Firearms Review Board found the shooting to be unjustified.

The Seattle Police have had several high profile media stories detailing excessive brutality or force in the last year. It’s not surprising that the city decided to settle this case. Hopefully, the city’s police can put this case behind them and tone down the use of excessive force.

According to a Seattle jury for the case, Denny’s is responsible to the tune of $46.3 million.  This is the highest amount ever awarded in Washington state for a personal injury case reports the Kent Reporter.

Steve Tolenoa, a 31 year old Kent resident, was the man shot and paralyzed.  Frank Evans was the shooter.  Several other people were injured in the incident, but none as severe at Tolenoa and their awards were each less than $100,000.

Tolenoa’s attorney, Ron Perey, stated that Denny’s had a dangerous environment that they were well aware of and that they could have prevented the incident from occurring.  Perey’s brief stated, “If off-duty Kent Police officers, or private security were hired; or if the restaurant was closed during the bar rush; or even a strong, well-trained manager/authority figure manager was on duty, Evans would never been allowed into the restaurant-seating areas, would have been deterred from engaging in the fight, and would have been deterred from returning to the restaurant with a gun and from shooting the gun.”

Denny’s stated that they were not responsible for the incident in a statement, “We continue to believe that this tragedy was the result of a random act of violence that could not have been foreseen or prevented by the Company or its local restaurant personnel.”

Tolenoa and his attorney  agreed to a $13 million settlement the day before the verdict was announced.  Denny’s agreed to guarantee at least $5 million regardless of the verdict and also agreed to not appeal the case as part of the settlement.  So Tolenoa will receive $13 million (minus attorney fees) instead of the $46.3 million that the jury awarded.

The whole incident is a terrible tragedy and I feel really sorry for Steve Tolenoa.  His life is forever altered and he will probably always have to have assistance and special care.  But is Denny’s the party that is most responsible for this crime?  What about the shooter Frank Evans?  Or I hate to say it, Tolenoa himself?  Is going into a Denny’s at 2am something you would think is totally risk-free?

I think it’s clear that Tolenoa and Perey sued Denny’s because Denny’s is a national chain with lots of money.  Tolenoa didn’t file a lawsuit against the shooter, Evans.  But the message sent from the jury is clear…Denny’s is entirely responsible for this tragedy and should be held liable for $46.3 million.

Where does it end?  If someone robs me at an ATM, is the bank responsible?  If someone punches me at a Seahawks game is the stadium responsible?  If someone pushes me at a teriyaki restaurant and I fall is the restaurant responsible?  If someone steals my car is the gas station responsible for selling me gas which allowed a thief to drive off in my car?  If I spill hot coffee on myself in a McDonalds drive thru is McDonalds responsible?

The message from the jury and personal injury lawyer Ron Perey is clear.  Businesses beware.  If any crime or accident happens on your premises, we will hold you entirely responsible and will sue you for millions of dollars…and will probably win.

Well now that Fall has unofficially arrived. We can expect to see dark, rainy days for probably the next six months. Along with the wonderful weather we can also expect one of the most amazing things about The Emerald City. When it rains in Seattle, everyone seems to forget how to drive!

Ok, it might not be unique to Seattle, but it does seem surprising nonetheless. Rain in our wonderful city brings more bad traffic and more accidents. Which brings us to the whole point of this post.

When you have rain, you have decreased visibility and diminished traction. Those two combine for more car accidents and more injuries. Let’s all try to be a little more careful out there when it’s wet. Provide a little more following distance if visibility is diminished and drive the posted limit. It will really help bring the auto accidents down.

Three people were injured, including one who had to have CPR performed on him by firemen at the scene. One of two others injured was a toddler girl only 4 years old who was pulled from the car by a bystander. The girl and her father were pulled from a burning vehicle involved in the accident. All three that were injured were taken to a local hospital.

The pictures of this accident are horrendous. The center car underneath the pickup is absolutely crushed. Hopefully, the three people that were injured are able to walk away from this terrible accident.

Duane decided to get in front of the truck and let the truck rear-end him so that he could try to slow it down before it crossed an intersection. He was successful and was able to stop the truck and the unconscious driver. No one was injured.

The unconscious driver was Bill Pace, who had a heart attack a couple days before the incident causing him to lose consciousness with his foot on the pedal. Bill’s insurance company, State Farm, covered all the damage to Duane’s van and thanked him for his brave actions.

Duane almost definitely averted a bad accident and he did it instinctively. It’s good to know that we have some local heroes driving out there in the Seattle area.

The report said that the police cruiser had lights flashing and sirens blaring. You would think that people would know by now that you are supposed to pull over to the right and stop when you see police lights and hear sirens behind you.

According to the statement, a very sick infant being transported to Children’s from Evergreen was administered drugs without consent from a physician. The infant later died. The statement stresses that the infant may have died independently of the drugs and that the incident is being investigated.

The statement also mentioned that an adult was administered the proper drug but in an improper way. The patient recovered after further care.

The hospital is obviously providing a great deal of information to the public about any mistakes they are aware of. The website for Seattle Children’s has a link directly to the statement on the homepage.

The Washington State Department of Health is investigating one of the incidents now. Hopefully the added scrutiny will improve the policies and procedures at the hospital.

There will no doubt be an onslaught of medical malpractice claims as a result of the severity and frequency of these errors. We can probably expect to hear about a lot more errors now that people will be looking for them.

Apparently, a 15 year old died last year at Children’s after accidentally receiving too much pain medication. Two fatalities due to accidental dosing in two years is quite a lot. The hospital promised to review its policies as a result of the mistake last year. Apparently, they didn’t review them enough.

A parent has enough to worry about when they take their kid to the hospital. The last thing they need is to worry about is the staff that is supposed to be helping them making a fatal mistake with their child. These mistakes do not happen very often but when they do they shake the very foundation of our trust in doctors and nurses.

Hopefully, the amount of money Children’s Hospital will have to pay to the victims and their families will make the hospital realize that it has to change its policies and procedures to ensure the trust of the public.

The rider failed to negotiate a left curve on the 2700 block of Westlake Ave North, then lost control and collided with the guardrail.

Motorcycle collisions happen due to negligent riding, dangerous road conditions, incorrect tire pressure, or defective motorcycle parts. Most fatalities happen at high speeds and on the freeway. In this case the victim was on city streets.

The Washington Motorcycle Safety Program (WMSP) is designed to provide riders with real world life saving safety training. The program is available to all rider levels. Course pricing starts at $99 dollars for beginners. Completion of the course can one helps in avoiding and preventing accidents.

This year most motorcycle fatalities have occurred on the freeway at high speeds which means this rider was either under the influence or the city of Seattle failed to post proper safety signs.

In 2009 there was 69 fatalities related to motorcycle accidents. 23 of those had a BAC level of .08% or above. 23 of those were impaired by drugs. With those statistics its safe to say people under the influence should not be riding on the streets.

Washington State does not have a helmet requirement law, however cities and counties do. King county adopted the helmet law in 1993 and in 2003 it was updated to include Seattle.

The League of American Bicyclists has named Washington the top bicycle friendly state for the third year in a row.

It was not clear whether or not the victim’s bicycle had the proper lighting and reflectors. Bicycles traveling at night must have a white light in front visible for 500 feet and a rear red reflector.

 According to state law, bicycles are governed under the same vehicle laws and may be fined for the same violations. For instance if a bicyclist runs a red light, he or she is breaking the law and may be fined.

Negligent drivers are usually liable for all medical expenses and law suits if they are found guilty. In this case it appears the bicyclist ran the red light and therefore he would not be able to file a claim against the driver of the truck.