News Blog Page 31 of 34 | Schmidt Kramer

Pennsylvania District Court Addresses Common Law Bad Faith

Posted on behalf of Schmidt Kramer on September 06, 2012 in News

What are the laws in your jurisdiction on statutory and common law bad faith? What are the statutes of limitations for both? Last week, in a the memorandum opinion in Katzenmoyer v. Allstate Ins. Co., 2012 WL 3764998 (E.D. Pa. Aug. 30, 2012) issues of the statute of limitations SOL) for a breach of contract common law bad […]

Second Mile Cannot Transfer Assets Until Civil Claims Resolved

Posted on behalf of Schmidt Kramer on September 05, 2012 in News

Below is the story by Annie McCormick of WHP CBS TV-21 in Harrisburg reporting on a trial judge Ordering that the Second Mile must delay their transfer of assets. For more on the story go to the WHPTV website at the link following the article. The decision comes as numerous lawsuits still loom against the charity […]

Pennsylvania Voter ID Update – Free ID Cards Available

Posted on behalf of Schmidt Kramer on August 28, 2012 in News

Posted on Aug 28, 2012 Starting today, voters who lack verification documents needed to get a non-drivers license identification card will be able to obtain a new Department of State voter identification card for free, according to a news release from the state Department of Transportation. Residents who want this new ID will need to […]

The Second Mile Agrees To Not Transfer Assets Until Civil Claims Resolved

Posted on behalf of Schmidt Kramer on August 28, 2012 in News

Posted on Aug 28, 2012 Harrisburg’s CBS affiliate WHP TV-21 reported last night on the latest events involving the Sandusky scandal and how the charity he founded will not transfer its assets to a Texas charity until any civil claims are resolved. Below is the report from Christina Butler. Go to the WHP website at […]

Disabled People Locked Up and Social Security Disability Checks Stolen

Posted on behalf of Schmidt Kramer on August 08, 2012 in News

UPDATE: Linda Weston was given a life sentence as a result of her actions. Posted on Aug 08, 2012 Linda Weston, her boyfriend Gregory Thomas, and Eddie Thomas face charges of kidnapping, conspiracy, assault, and more for allegedly keeping at least five mentally handicapped people locked up in attics, closets, and basements while they cashed […]

Penn State Hazing Scandal Results In Criminal Charges

Posted on behalf of Schmidt Kramer on August 08, 2012 in News

Posted on Aug 08, 2012 Annie McCormick of WHP-TV 21 in Harrisburg reported last night about the criminal charges filed as a result of the Penn State hazing incident back in the Spring. Below is her story as it appeared on TV-21. A victim of alleged hazing at Penn State University came to CBS 21 in […]

Ron Jaworski Heads 26th Annual UCP/Schmidt Kramer Golf Tournament

Posted on behalf of Schmidt Kramer on August 07, 2012 in News

Posted on Aug 07, 2012 On the gridiron, former Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Ron Jaworski put together quite an impressive career. Over 28,000 yards passing, the 1980 NFL Most Valuable Player award, and a trip to the Super Bowl are some accolades many people could only dream about. But Monday, none of that would help Jaws […]

Pennsylvania State Police in Schuylkill County Investigating Two Fatal Car Crashes

Posted on behalf of Schmidt Kramer on August 02, 2012 in News

Posted on Aug 02, 2012 The Pottsville Republican Herald is reporting on two fatal crashes which occurred earlier this week. Below is the item from the paper. If you have any information on either of the accidents please contact the Pennsylvania State Police. By FRANK ANDRUSCAVAGE (Staff Writer fandruscavage@ republicanherald.com) Published: August 2, 2012 State police […]

Lawyer Considers Sandusky Jury Selection Tactics

Posted on behalf of Schmidt Kramer on July 28, 2012 in News

Posted on Jul 28, 2012 With all of the media attention surrounding the Jerry Sandusky sex abuse trial, many questioned whether it was possible to seat an impartial jury in Centre County. Now that the trial is over and Sandusky has been convicted, it is interesting to look back on the initial jury selection strategies. […]

Lawyer Seeks Justice for Hazing Victim

Posted on behalf of Schmidt Kramer on July 26, 2012 in News

Posted on Jul 26, 2012 Asya Trowell pledged as a “little sister” in a group called “Omega Essence”—a group related to fraternity Omega Psi Phi—during her first year at Penn State University. “For me, it seemed like it was a good fit,” Trowel stated. “I liked hanging out with the Omegas.” Things changed on April […]

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$10,043,952.13 Personal Injury
Schmidt Kramer, P.C.partner Gerard C. Kramer won a personal injury action for $10,043,952.13 in Northumberland County on behalf of a volunteer firefighter who was the victim of Intentional Tort. The 50-year-old volunteer firefighter was seriously injured when a barn collapsed, causing a spinal injury which left him a paraplegic. The claim was brought against the arsonist who intentionally started the fire. It is believed that the verdict is the highest ever in Northumberland County.
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$4,034,000.00 Personal Injury
Yesterday a Judge in Union County (Lewisburg, PA) awarded a couple from New Berlin, Pennsylvania, over $4,000,000 because the husband was shot while turkey hunting.You might ask yourself, how does a turkey hunting accident end up with that type of verdict? In order to understand the verdict you would have to know our clients. They are good people who had their life wrecked. Plus, you would have to know the defendant, who should not have been hunting with a gun because he was prohibited after a previous criminal conviction.It is a good verdict, because the Judge was able to do two things with his decision. First, he communicated to two very good people that their losses were something that those of us on the outside could appreciate and value. Mike Hobbins (our client) is a 51 year old guy who lost his sight because a convicted felon --who should not have even possessed a gun-- went hunting illegally, and broke with impunity the most fundamental rule in hunting: identify your target before you pull the trigger. The Judge accepted the financial loss Mr. Hobbins' suffered, but listened closely to the evidence of less tangible losses. When Mike broke down on the stand, because his daughter would end up walking him down the aisle at her wedding, as opposed to how it was supposed to go, the Judge was listening. When Mike could not keep it together, because of how emasculating it was for him not to be able to provide financially for his family, the Judge was listening. It was facts like these that the Judge cited to support the $2,000,000 award for non-economic damages. Second, the Judge wanted to send a message. Union County is a hunting county. Many of the residents hunt there, and people from outside the area come to Union County to hunt. It was my impression, from the Judge's statements as he rendered his decision, that he wanted to send a message to the people in Union County to protect them in their sport. The rules in place to restrict people convicted of crimes not to have a gun are not to be broken. Hunting is serious and you have to identify your target before you shoot. When you turn your back on the rules that are set to provide safety in a sport, you risk being an example. Here, the $1,000,000 punitive damage award sends that message loud and clear.When it really comes down to brass tacks, the right action was taken against a Defendant who may never truly appreciate what kind of impact his reckless choices caused.At Schmidt Kramer, we are injury lawyers. That means we work with people who were hurt in car accidents, who were hurt by the neglect of nursing homes, or those that were seriously injured because of the reckless, thoughtless acts of others. If you or a loved one have been injured in Pennsylvania, we may be able to help. While the verdict yesterday is not one that is representative of every case we do, it does show that serious and dedicated representation can bring good results.Joe ChapmanJanuary 18, 2013
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$2,200,000.00 Auto Accidents
On Monday, January 6, 2014, Schmidt Kramer accident lawyer Scott Cooper obtained a verdict on behalf of his client who is the widow of a man who died in a fiery crash on Interstate 78 in Lebanon County. The awarded verdict of $2.2 million was in a nonjury proceeding before a federal judge in the Middle District of Pennsylvania. That verdict includes $100,000 in punitive damages assessed against the owner of the trucking company.Kamilah Claxton won summary judgment in November after the defendants, Sukhwinder Singh and the trucking company for which he worked, failed to file a brief in opposition to Claxton's motion, which was made in September. The verdict in Claxton v. Singh was issued after the court held a non-jury assessment of damages earlier this month."Mr. Sukhchan Singh, the employer, is liable on the basis of respondent superior, but was also grossly negligent in failing to maintain his vehicle in compliance with state and federal law, particularly with regard to having required safety inspections and correcting defects in its braking equipment," said U.S. District Judge William W. Caldwell of the Middle District of Pennsylvania in his opinion accompanying the verdict."He was also grossly negligent in entrusting his vehicle to Sukhwinder Singh, an inexperienced truck driver who had failed the written test and driving test multiple times before finally earning his commercial driving license," Caldwell said.
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$1,200,000.00 Personal Injury
A Dauphin County jury has awarded a $1.2 million verdict to the parents of a 5-year-old who had an anoxic brain injury and stopped breathing after he had a tonsillectomy.2012-06-26 10:00:00 AMDate of Verdict: June 19. 2012Court and Case No.: C.P. Dauphin County No. 2009-CV-14003-MMJudge: Scott EvansType of Action: Medical malpracticeInjuries: Anoxic brain injuryPlaintiffs Counsel: Terry S. Hyman, Schmidt Kramer, HarrisburgPlaintiffs Experts: Dr. Anna H. Messner, liability; Lucille Packer, Pediatric Otolaryngology, Palo Alto, Calif.; Terry P. Leslie, vocations and earning capacity, Lancaster; Dr. Hilary B. Berlin, pediatric psychiatry, Great Neck, N.Y.Defense Counsel: Andrew H. Foulkrod, Darlene K. King, Foulkrod Ellis, Camp Hill, PADefense Experts: James C. Reilly, Pediatric Otolaryngology, Wilmington, DEComment: A Dauphin County jury has awarded a $1.2 million verdict to the parents of a 5-year-old who had an anoxic brain injury and stopped breathing after he had a tonsillectomy.The entire verdict came against Dr. Andrew M. Shapiro, the doctor who plaintiffs Reginald Graham and Tykeisha Metz alleged chose to have the boy monitored at a pediatric ward. The plaintiffs argued Shapiro failed to tell nurses caring for the baby about, and how to care for, the boy's enhanced risk for respiratory failure.The jury came back on June 19 and awarded Reginald Graham and Tykeisha Mets $500,000 in non-economic damages and $686,170 in loss of future earning capacity, according to the plaintiffs counsel.According to the statement, the baby's mother brought him to Shapiro because she was "'afraid that he might stop breathing during his sleep,'" the plaintiffs' pretrial statement said. Shapiro performed a sleep study and observed the baby's Apnea Hypopnea Index to be 43 — four times higher than what's considered severe. A tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy were performed.According to the plaintiffs, the baby's sleep study results put him at an increased risk for post-operative respiratory complications. Despite this, they argued in the statement, Shapiro ordered the pediatric nurses at the Harrisburg Hospital general pediatric ward to observe the boy as they would any other patients — about once every four hours.The pretrial statement said that one in four children who have an AHI in the 40s and oxygen desaturation below 80 have some type of respiratory problem. The younger the child, the greater the risk of a respiratory problem, the statement said.According to the statement, Shapiro took off the child's pulse oximeter, the finger-mounted device used to measure blood oxygen, and ordered a heart and respiratory rate monitor. The child was 11 months old at the time.The plaintiffs pled that the baby was last seen at 4 a.m. There was no record of his oxygen saturation for the next hour and 45 minutes. He stopped breathing a 6:40 a.m., and his brain was without oxygen long enough to cause demonstrable injury on an MRI."Immediately prior to his surgery, [the child] was a normal child, who could say mama, eat finger foods, and was just on the verge of walking," the statement said. "After his code, [he] was like a newborn. He could not lift his head or sit up. He could not talk. He could not move."In his pretrial statement, Shapiro argued that he recognized the child's pre-operative sleep study showed he was driven to breath by decreased blood oxygen saturation, which he said was typical in patients with obstructive sleep apnea.He argued the American Academy of Otolaryngology dictates that admission to the intensive care unit is not the standard of care. In the statement, he said nurses did not observe signs of respiratory distress. No alarms sounded until the child arrested, the statement said.He said the baby likely arrested as a result of hypoglycemia and/or an acute aspiration, which he argued would not have been identified by blood oxygen saturation.— Ben Present, of the Law Weekly
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$1,024,040.80 Auto Accidents
Scott Cooper settled a wrongful death case on behalf of the widow of a police office who was killed in a car accident in the line of duty for $1,024,040.80. The claim against the other driver was amicably resolved before suit was filed for the entire available policy limits for the other driver. The case took place in Adams County, PA.
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Badreddine Saadoune
Michael Kosik was great, I couldn't have asked for a better lawyer. He worked to make sure my medical bills were adjusted appropriately to state law (since I was a victim) and worked hard to make sure I got an appropriate settlement. He is a very kind and understanding person who took the time to explain everything to me in great detail.
Darryl
Jessica Mitchell is lovely, she took care everything in a wonderful way. Definitely I would recommend her.
Mogart Febres
Abbie Trone!! I love her!! She’s amazing! She made everything easy. She was very nice to me! She took very care of my case & If need be i will use her again!!
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