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Recent Updates
May 14, 2008
Tort Reform Advocate Judge Bork Settles Slip and Fall Lawsuit with Yale Club
May 13, 2008
Family of Plane Crash Victim Files Wrongful Death Lawsuit
May 12, 2008
Wrongful Death Lawsuit Upheld in Robert Blake Murder Case
May 09, 2008
Lack of Safety Standards on US-Mexico Buses Raise Fear of More Bus Accidents
May 08, 2008
Updates on Two Orange County, California Drunk Driving Accident Cases
May 07, 2008
Tucson Border Patrol Agent's Family Files Lawsuit in Rollover Accident
May 06, 2008
Swimming Pool Accident Victim's Parents File Lawsuit Against Hotel
May 05, 2008
Dallas Woman's Family Sues Company in Truck Accident
May 02, 2008
Parents of Girl Injured in Car Accident Sue Turlock School District
May 01, 2008
Witnesses in Bakersfield Car Accident Case Testify
Food Poisoning
Orange County Considering Rating System for Restaurants
February 28, 2008
If a new proposed food rating system for restaurants under review by the Orange County Board of Supervisors comes into effect, you might never again have to worry if the diner you're stepping into uses clean dishes or plates, or if the delicacies at the Chinese eatery down the road includes roaches as one of its ingredients. Knowledge could be as simple as A-B-C!
That's the current food rating system practiced in San Diego and Los Angeles. In Orange County, on the other hand, you have had to be satisfied with visiting the website of the Orange County Health Care Agency to learn of any reported violations in restaurants in the county. You wouldn't normally visit the website to check up on violations unless you actually fell ill from eating at the place which is a little too late in our opinion. Diners need to have a rating system in place that can allow them to make seriously informed choices about the eatery.
No one can argue with the benefits of such a system. Some restaurant owners predictably are not too pleased at the prospects of such punitive screening of restaurants. If the new rating system comes into place, the rating will have to be displayed outside and the prospect has some owners skittish. They say that rules like this will punish the restaurants for conditions that are outside their control. We don't understand the reason for all this hand wringing. If basic hygiene and cleanliness standards are maintained, there is nothing preventing a restaurant from getting a shiny A rating which will obviously be very assuring to any diner who enters the restaurant. The only restaurants that might suffer from the rating system are those who have made a habit of violations and who risk getting a C on the rating card.
In any case, what restaurant owners think shouldn't be paramount to what's good for the public. We have seen too many videos of "When Chefs Attack" to take that shiny cutlery and the crisp tablecloth very seriously. The only way to guarantee that your soup has no rodent droppings might be to check for the rating of the restaurant on the way in. Food poisoning is just one of the illnesses a person who eats tainted food can suffer from, and if a person has the choice to avoid an eatery that doesn't practice the very highest standards of hygiene, they deserve to lose business.
Cleaner restaurants can be nothing but good for public health, and even if there are a few hiccups in the beginning stages, the plan bodes well for the county. While you could eat at a restaurant with less than perfect hygiene standards and still not fall ill, the risk of illnesses outweigh any good luck that you might have.
One of the rights of the public in a democracy is the right to information. This rating system will give OC residents exactly that - the information about the conditions under which their meal was prepared.
If you have suffered food poisoning from an ill-maintained restaurant, you need the help of a qualified California personal injury lawyer. Contact an attorney at The Reeves Law Group for a free consultation.
Wisconsin Company Recalls E. Coli Tainted Meat
January 15, 2008
A Minnesota-based meat products manufacturer has recalled 188,000 pounds of ground beef because of concerns that it may be contaminated with the deadly E. coli virus.
According to the US Agriculture Department's Food Safety and Inspection Service, the meat, which was produced in October and November 2007, was shipped to several cities around the country. These products have not been distributed to retail establishments, but were distributed to restaurants and other food service institutions.
The ripples of the beef recall are being felt in California too. County officials in San Diego, California are trying to trace restaurants where these contaminated beef products might have been distributed. A 17-year-old girl reportedly fell sick after dining at one San Diego restaurant although she didn't require hospitalization. She is reportedly doing well now.
Meat contaminated with this particular deadly strain of E. Coli can cause bloody diarrhea and severe abdominal cramps. It can also be fatal.
Although the products were not shipped to retail stores, consumers have been asked to take more care while preparing ground beef products. These precautions include cooking ground beef products like patties to an internal temperature of 167 degrees Fahrenheit. Food products should not be left lying around after being cooked, but should immediately be refrigerated within a couple of hours of cooking.
If you have been the victim of any type of dangerous food or E. Coli-laced product, you need the assistance of an experienced California personal injury lawyer. Contact an attorney at The Reeves Law Group for a free consultation.
San Antonio Recalls Lead-Tainted Mexican Candy
January 10, 2008
Mexico is quickly becoming to candy what China is to tainted toys. In recent months, California stores yanked hundreds of bars of tainted Mexican tamarind and fruit candy. Now comes news that another brand of candy has been recalled in San Antonio, Texas.
The candy manufactured in Mexico, and distributed by Villa-Mex Imports Inc., was found to contain high levels of lead after tests conducted by the Texas Department of State Health Services. The candy, Miguelito Azucar Salada Enchilada Acidulada, it was found, had lead levels ranging from 0.161 to 0.291 parts per million. The US Food and Drug Administration holds anything above 0.1 parts per million as having the potential to cause risk to a person's health.
This isn't the first recall that Villa Mex has been involved with. Earlier the company recalled two other products for the presence ofexcessive levels of lead - a syrup called Barrilito and a reddish brown paste called Tarritos.
Lead when ingested by pregnant women and children has especially harmful effects. It has been traced to mental and learning deficiencies in children as well as miscarriages in pregnant women. Pregnant women who might have consumed the tainted candy are urged to visit their doctor immediately.
If you live in California and have been injured by unknowingly consuming any dangerous foods, you need to consult an experienced California personal injury attorney. Contact The Reeves Law Group immediately for a free consultation.
More Recalls - This Time It's Frozen Pizzas
November 02, 2007
After the recall of Topps Meat Company's E. Coli contaminated hamburger patties, comes another line of popular food products being pulled off shelves. This time Totino's and Jeno's frozen pizzas have been identified as containing possible E. coli contamination. Close to 5 million frozen pizzas containing pepperoni toppings are included in the recall. The contamination came to light during investigations into 21 E. coli related illnesses across10 states. It was found that out of the 21, at least 9 persons reported consuming Totino's and Jeno's frozen pizzas just before they fell ill. These illnesses occurred between July 10 and October 20 and patients did not save the packages that contained the pizzas which is why General Mills, the company that owns the Totino's and Jeno's pizza brands, has no way of tracing the origins of the contaminated pepperoni. This is also the reason that the company cannot pinpoint the exact batches of frozen pizzas that may have been contaminated. The frozen pizzas were produced at General Mills' Wellston, Ohio plant, and were distributed throughout the country. The recall only includes frozen pizzas with pepperoni topping or pepperoni with combinations of other toppings. The company is still manufacturing frozen pizzas, only not with pepperoni toppings, a General Mills spokesman said. If you have suffered from any kind of food poisoning that may have resulted from consuming contaminated food products, remember to retain the tin or packaging of the product. This may be necessary to support your claim in court. For more information on how you can proceed with your case, fill out the form at the right to contact the California personal injury attorneys at The Reeves Law Group.
San Bernardino County Investigates E. Coli Infection
October 31, 2007
For a parent, there couldn't be many experiences more terrifying than watching your child fall suddenly and critically ill and not knowing what could be wrong. For San Bernardino resident Monique Bivins, that's exactly what happened when her one-and-a-half year-old son Ramon became violently ill on October 21st. When Monique rushed him to the emergency room at a San Bernardino hospital, he was suffering from incessant vomiting and bloody diarrhea. It took another hospital visit and a couple of days of investigation before Monique heard the two words guaranteed to strike terror in a parent's heart - E. coli infection. San Bernardino County officials are now investigating Ramon's day care center, KinderCare in Colton, Califorrnia. Representatives of the California Department of Social Services have confirmed that a complaint has been filed against KinderCare although they refused to identify the complainant. KinderCare meanwhile has rejected any suggestion that Ramon contracted the deadly infection when he was at their premises. They insist that Ramon was the only toddler in their charge who contracted the infection. Health officials however have told KinderCare to warn other parents to look out for the warning signs of an E. coli infection - fever, stomach aches and diarrhea. E. coli usually spreads through contaminated and improperly cooked meat, although vegetable too can provide a safe harbor for the virus. Over the summer, at least 40 people feel seriously ill after an outbreak of E. coli which was later traced to contaminated hamburger patties produced by the Topps Meat Company. If you or your loved ones have suffered from food poisoning due to the negligent safety and health practices of another, you might not be aware that you may have legal recourse to protect your rights. Call the California personal injury lawyers at The Reeves Law Group for a free consultation.
Investigations Reveal Company Ignored Crucial Health Safeguards
October 25, 2007
In the aftermath of the Topps Meat Factory beef recalls this year, the second largest such recall in history, health officials have been prompted to look more closely into what went wrong. As millions of Americans prepared to see summer through with family barbeques, Topps Meat Company, it is revealed, increased output of their frozen hamburger patties to meet increased demand from retail stores. This spike in production resulted in some serious lapses in health safety checks. Three batches of hamburger patties were discovered to be contaminated with e. coli bacteria with more than 40 people falling prey to the dreaded infection. While Topps itself is now out of business, the New York Times reports that federal health regulators now acknowledge there were serious flaws in the system. This year alone there have been 16 meat recalls connected to e. coli contamination. In the Topps case, the company failed to mandate safety checks by suppliers and performed its own checks just 3 times a year. Additionally, Agriculture Department inspectors who were present at the inspections did not bother to cite the company. The Agriculture Department, fighting allegations that it was a mute spectator to blatant violations of health safety checks by the meat industry, has now directed its officials to conduct a nationwide survey to determine the measures that meat processing plants had in place for preventing e coli contamination of their products. Critics of the Department are unimpressed, saying its approach to problems was "haphazard, catch as catch can." E. Coli contamination of food products causes serious infection and illness, in some cases even leading to death. If you have suffered as a result of consuming a contaminated meat product, consult the experienced lawyers at The Reeves Law Group.
Botulism Poisoning Reaches California Shores
August 09, 2007
The botulin toxin, which is marketed by plastic surgeons by its more common name of Botox, can be the best friend of people looking to reduce the lines and wrinkles of aging. However, in an uncontrolled environment, the toxic bacteria can cause botulism, which can lead to muscular paralysis, respiratory failure, and even death.
Traces of botulin toxin were found in cans of chili sauce, hot dog sauce, and other canned food products manufactured by Castleberry's Food Products, which is owned by San Diego, California based Bumble Bee Seafoods. Four cases of suspected poisoning have previously been reported from all over the country, and on July 27th California health officials confirmed the fifth case occurred in San Diego. An unidentified 51-year-old resident was hospitalized for close to 10 days with symptoms of botulism before being discharged.
The threat of botulism is so severe that California health officials issued warnings urging citizens to safely dispose of all Castleberry's canned products that they have in their homes or in stores. With contaminated Castleberry's products dating as far back as a couple of years, millions of these deadly cans are believed to still be on supermarket store shelves and in household cupboards. While most food sellers have been responsive, health officials admit they are experiencing difficulties getting the message across to small town grocery shops and mom-and-pop stores.
The levels of contamination are reported to be so severe that unopened cans of Castleberry's products have started to bulge and literally burst at the seams with the gas produced by the botulin toxin. When the internal pressure becomes too great for a can of infected food, it can fracture and release the deadly bacteria into the air. The possibility of further spread of botulism through inhaling of these potent gases is further alarming health officials.
Castleberry's Food Products has now admitted that a malfunction in its sterilization equipment led to the botulin bacteria infected cans.
There is enough reason to worry that food safety procedures in this country are getting lax due to oversights by the FDA. July's Castleberry scare was not the first instance of food products being pulled off store shelves because a company did not responsibly ensure their products were suitable for consumption before they left the cannery.
The symptoms of botulism usually appear about a day after eating contaminated food, and include double vision, slurred speech, difficulty swallowing, dry mouth, and muscle weakness. If you believe you have been infected by botulin toxin, go to a hospital immediately. If caught early enough, doctors may be able to administer an antitoxin that can prevent the botulism from worsening.
If you feel you have been poisoned by unsafe products and want to seek legal action, be sure to save the can that the product came in and call the experienced personal injury attorneys at The Reeves Law Group for advice on further course of action.
