California Legal and Regulatory News

The Unseen Danger of Riding the Train
By Michael Ehline

Each day thousands of people ride the train to work and for various reasons from the ease of transportation without dealing with city traffic, the savings of having one car that needs upkeep, insurance and gasoline in today’s high fuel market at the gas pumps. There is also connivance of not having to look for or pay for parking, so it is connivance along with saving money that have many people on the train five or six days a week. But the unseen dangers of riding the train are real and present at all times.

While driving a vehicle in the city can be dangerous and accidents occur several times a day on the streets, freeways and highways of Van Nuys. These same people do not realize the dangers that can be waiting for them any day of the week on the train.

Dangers can lurk anywhere from the train station to the train itself, when walking in the train station there are often wet floors that have recently been mopped that can be a hazard where a slip and fall injury can occur. There is the fact that once on the train the rider has no protection such as seatbelts in case the train comes to a halt quickly or if there is an accident of any type. The train is often crowded and this means that there are more possibilities of injury due to standing on the train, more people crowded while waiting for the train to board it leaves the possibility of being push, shoved and otherwise maneuvered where injuries are possible.

The unseen dangers of riding the trains are all around in Van Nuys, Marina del Rey, San Dieo and Los Angeles Counties, and with each ride it could end in severe injuries and when it does there will be medical bills, lost time from work and the passenger train rider and victim hit by the train needs to be compensated. This is why there are Los Angeles train accident attorneys that specialize in train accidents and know how to prepare a case that will bring the settlement the train injury victim deserves.

The types of injuries that can occur during an accident on a train are lacerations, cuts, scrapes, broken bones, back injuries, head injuries, spinal cord and brain injuries, and even worse at there are hundred of deaths associated with train accidents.

One problem with riding the train is that the train rider has no control and this means when an accident is going to occur there is no time to be prepared for the impact.

The experienced Los Angeles train accident attorneys typically are Los Angeles accident attorneys who understand there might be multiple injuries like brain injuries and anatomy and wrongful death when a person is involved in a train accident no matter how minor the accident is because they have no real protection. This attorney will also know the laws that are specific with trains as they are a form of public transportation so they have different laws that govern them than the laws that cover other traffic accidents.

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What would the new regulations do to help the state and the air in

   The plan that they had in place when given the waiver they expected by the Environmental Protection Agency would have been equivalent to approximately 6.5 million less current cars on the road by the year 2020.

   These figures are based on the law that the Air Resources Board developed in 2002 that set new standards for greenhouse gas emissions and beginning with 2009 regulations would be phased in to reduce the amount of greenhouse gas emissions by thirty percent by the year 2016.  Incidentally if you are in the greater

Okay, back to the article at hand, thanks for letting me plug such a wonderful firm.

   In order to meet these standards by the year 2020 would also need cooperation from California residents and especially the auto manufacturers who would be expected to manufacture more fuel efficient autos including cars, SUV’s and passenger trucks.

   According to analysts if every state were to adopt the emissions regulations that California wants to put in place in the estimated time given by the year 2020 the amount of autos no longer on the road would be 22 million and the amount of gasoline that would be saved would be near to 11 billion gallons a year. 

In news out of Sacramento, California sued the United States Environmental Protection Agency today for denying its first-in-the-country greenhouse gas limititations on various types of motor vehicles, challenging the Federal Government’s decision that individuals states should not be setting their own setting emission standards. Additional states such as Vermont and possibly New York are believed to be joining this suit, which was anticipated after the EPA on December 19 denied the Golden State’s request for a waiver, which is currently mandated.
The suit in question was filed in the 9th United States Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco. EPA Administrator Stephen L. Johnson denied California a waiver which would be required under the federal Clean Air Act to move forward with regulating greenhouse gas emissions from new cars and trucks.In announcing this decision, Johnson stated that the federal government was moving onward with a wider solution and dismissed California’s arguments that it faced unusual threats from the impending climate changes.Johnson said energy legislation will help to raise fuel economy standards around the country to an average of thirty-five mpg within about tweleve years or so. He thinks it is a better idea than a lot of state regulations. Meanwhile, EPA spokesman Jonathan Shradar said the federal Energy Independence and Security Act “is a more beneficial national approach…..” Meanwhile Golden State officials claim that the 2004 law is more strict than the new national standard. It would have required the auto industry to cut emissions by one-third in new vehicles by 2016 or reach an average of 36.8 mpg.   By the way, if you have been in an automobile accident and you require legal help, take a look at Los Angeles Car Crash Attorneys
and if you have been involved in a motorcycle mishap please take a look at los angeles motorcycle accident attorneys   The folks at Ehline law are quite simply some of the best los angeles criminal defense attorneys you will be able ti find and they cover a nimber of localities throughout Southern California including Burbank,Century City, Newport Beach, Redondo beach and Torrance.Incidentially 12 additional states including Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington — have adopted the California emissions standards and the governors of Arizona, Colorado, Florida and Utah have said they plan to in the near future. The rules also are under consideration in Iowa.

15 states plan to intervene on California’s behalf, including 13 of those that have either adopted or are in the process of adopting the rules. Delaware and Illinois, which have not passed the standards, also are part of the lawsuit.
The EPA’s decision was a big victory for auto manufacturers in general, which had hoped that they would not be forced to limit their selection of automobiles and raise prices in the states which adopted California’s standards.It was the first time the EPA had fully denied California a waiver under the Clean Air Act since Congress gave the state the right to obtain such waivers in 1967.
The auto regulations are an integral part of California’s global warming law, which has the goal of reducing emissions by a full quarter within the next twelve years.
 Auto emissions account for about almost twenty percent of the state’s proposed reductions.

As 2008 begins in a few days, literally hundreds of legal changes will take effect in California to usher in the new year. Law changes include an automobile smoking ban, minimum wage hike and a mandate for more efficient lights, among numerous others.
The smoking ban is simply the latest effort out of Sacramento to protect individuals from the hazards of secondhand smoke.
As it stands now, the Golden State already forbids such smoking in enclosed working areas such as bars and clubs, or within twenty-five feet of a playground. This law underscores the touph stance the
state has on smoking. After all, only 2 other states—Arkansas and Louisiana—have such laws whiich forbid the smoking of cigarettes within automobiles in which
kids are passengers, according to the San Jose Mercury online newspaper. This laws initiator,
state Senator Jenny Oropeza, a Democrat from Long Beach, has agreed that there must be another reason for the traffic stop to ensure the approval in the Assembly.
Yet another law aimed at drivers, the use of hand-held mobile phones while driving—goes into effect on the first of July. For drivers under the age of eighteen,
it also extends to the handsfree use of cell phones as well. Pretty strict stuff, but there really have been a lot of safety related complaints about
this activity and calls for it’s regulation.
Among some of the other notable changes include
Legislation presented by the democratic Assemblyman Jared Huffman from San Rafael, which will basically gives the California Energy Commission
until the end of next year to develop tighter efficiency standards for all general purpose lights. Other bills by him include allocating a quarter billion dollar subsidy
to promote the installation of solar water heaters and also mandate water-efficiency standards for the design of all new buildings.

In safety technology news as initially reported by the CNN money network website,
The FuelCell Energy Corporation, which is a top producer of high-efficiency, super-clean power plants for commercial, industrial and utility customers, today announced that its DFC1500MA(tm) has received 3 certifications which confirm the 1.2 MW power plant meets the Golden State’s
 emission regulations as well as complies with both requirements
 for connecting to power grids plus federal safety standards. As it stands now,
this is definately the biggest of the various Distributed Generation Power Plants which are currently Certified for the California Market. The firms
system has met the relatively strict (and rightly so) standards as set by the California Air Resources Board while at the same time being certified by
 the Rule 21 Working Group for specific standards for interconnecting with the state’s power grid infrastructure. In addition to that, approval was granted
 by the organization known as CSA International for compliance of the srather substantial safety standards. As it stands now, these particular
power plants can be located quite near to where the electricity is most urgently required since they significantly lower noise, NOX, SOX and matter
 related to more common methods of electrical generation like combustion engines, as an example. Furthermore, these power plants are capable of running on a somewhat broad assortment
 of fuels such as biofuels. These are excellent since they are totally renewable. Also, they can substantially improve overall efficiency levels through combined heat and power applications

There are many ways burn injuries can occur in Los Angeles and other California cities and counties. In this article, Los Angeles injury lawyers discus preventing burn injuries in children. To begin with, burns caused by fire, friction and electrical sparks not only char the skin, they also damage the dermis and epidermis and if an electrical related burn, can even cause nerve and brain damage. This problem is compounded when a small child suffers a burn injury.

The Steps To Take in Avoiding Burns In Children

* You should make sure either you or your landlord has provided smoke detectors in all rooms and floors of your dwelling, especially where you and your child sleeps. Make sure to follow manufacturer instructions and test these smoke detector gadgets at least one time every month. You will also need to put new batteries in the smoke detector gadgets at least once per year, assuming they are not electrically powered. Most manufacturers suggest the smoke alarms be replaced at least every 10 years or so. There are also ten-year lithium batteries and smoke alarms that are set up to use them if you want to go more maintenance free.

* Never ever leave your child by him or herself under any circumstances. This holds especially true when it comes to a kitchen with an oven, or a bathroom with hot water that could scald an infant or small child. This means even if your infant or baby is in the tub and you need to leave to answer the phone or what not you should take the child along with you till you can return to supervise.

* It goes without saying that flammable liquids like lighter fluid, lighters, matches, gas both natural and liquid, and other flammable material needs to be kept in a secure area and high enough so a child cannot reach it. Pyrotechnics like fireworks should always be kept out of reach of children in all events.

* Anyone with kids can prevent a burn deglove injury or serious scald by simply setting their water heater thermostats to one hundred and twenty (120) degrees Fahrenheit or less. There are also faucet and shower head gadgets that are equipped with anti-scald features.

* Always always keep hot liquids and hot food up and away from the edge of a table or counter and under no circumstances should carry a child when you are also carrying hot items.

* If you plan on cooking, use the burners on the stove located at the rear and make sure to turn the pot handles inwards so a child cannot grab them. Cover electrical outlets with safety gadgets and use cord cover gadgets to cover electrical cords so a child cannot bite into it and receive a shock and burn to his or her mouth. Obviously, if a cord is plugged into a hot device gadget like a George Foreman Grill for example, you need to prevent a child from grabbing it and pulling the hot device into his or her little body.

We hope you have enjoyed this article wherein Los Angeles injury lawyers discus preventing burn injuries in children. If you or someone you know has suffered a severe burn injury not the fault of your own, you should immediately contact experienced burn injury attorneys to see if you have a negligence claim to help you pay for the costs of surgery, medical care, pain and suffering, plastic surgery, skin grafts, and lifetime pain medication.

Since burn injuries can result in a wrongful death, you need to be prepared for the wore until the burn injury is stabilized.

In a recent article in the San Jose Mercury news it was reported that the California Governor and also the
Attorney General have sued the Federal Government so as to permit the state to set a substantially toupher tailpipe emission standard than the the Feds would like and in the process might
 have given rise to a strange political alliance.
Essentially, the state’s lawsuit is seeking permission to impose toupher standards, beginning two years from now, on vehicle emissions which are contributing to the global warming problem.
“We’re taking another big step forward in battling against global warming,” said the Governor.
Schwarzenegger has made major headlines for his efforts to increased regulations to reduce emissions.
At Thursday’s Capitol news conference, he and Attorney General Brown were both present.
The governor stated that he and the AG were “going to continue working on this together”……
By the way if you require a lawyer and are located in the greater Los Angeles area take a peak at Los Angeles Personal Injury Attorneys
meanwhile, Representative Jerry McNerney, a Democrat from Pleasanton, stated he emphasized, saying “the EPA has dragged its feet for far too long.”
The goal of the golden State’s 2003 law - lowering the harmful emissions from motor vehicles by some 1/3 from 2009 to 2016 - is a piece of the State’s actions to lower global warming.
 To implement the standards, the state needs a waiver from none other than the EPA
With thirty two odd million registered motor vehicles in the Golden State, it is estimated that the emission goal in question would be about lie taking 6.5 million motor vehicles off the road by the year 2020.
Various relevent officials still maintain that automakers could offer better motor vehicles by perhaps 2009, if the EPA grants the waiver requested in the past.
For their part, they have already granted many such waivers in the past they have stated that they have plans to act on this particular request by the end of 2007.
well, try not to be in too much of a hurry guys, it’s only the future of the planet that apparently hangs in the balance, lol.
The state’s lawsuit is in fact just one facet of a much larger legal battle.
Motor vehicle manufacturers have long since sued to overturn the 2003 law, citing the severe costs involved.
In the meantime, representatives of environmental groups recently stated that if the EPA refuses to comply with California’s new lawsuit and denies the waiver request, they also will file a lawsuit, according to the San Jose mercury news report.
One relevent Poll appears to indicate that state residents believe the problem is indeed very critical.
All in all, 43% of the poll respondents believe that global warming need timely action and 32% think that something must be done.
There will be a lot more legal news on this one coming out soon.

A recent article in the San Jose Mercury online News has reported that narcotic use by motorists
is being put under more of a microscope, with brand new
legislation announced yesterday that would stop drivers with any detectable amounts of various illegal narcotics like cocaine or heroin from operating a motor vehicle vehicle.
This seems like a no-brainer to me since drivers have long faced having the book thrown at them for driving while drinking. The glaring absence of a counterpart law for driving under the influence of narcotics has always seemed odd to me.
I mean, you throw someone in the slammer because they were on their way back from their parents house on thanksgiving after taking one sip too many but
the crack-head recklessly swerving along somehow get’s a free pass?
In any case,  Assemblyman John Benoit is trying to stop all of that.
Under the law as it stands now, drivers suspected of being under the influence of banned narcotics may be arrested. However, successful prosecution is apparently not very easy since most jurors are used to a numerical standard such as the blood-alcohol level to determine the particular level of impairment.
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At this time it is not fully known just how many such motorists get away with these crimes in California. However, a Maryland research study has cited that there, driver injuries in crashes which involved narcotics were caused by drivers who were high almost two times as much as often as those who were drinking.
The proposed California law, AB 1215, requests the Legislature to set numerical values based on blood & urine analysis to judge just how buzzed a motorist is. Yet after a hearing by the Assembly Public Safety Committee after the news conference, it
was stated by the assemblyman that a rather draconian “zero-tolerance” law was instead being considered. Very harsh indeed but probably needed in this case, in my
humble opinion.

According to an article posted in the Vancouver Sun Newspaper, a ten-year
old boy has allegedly admitted to igniting one of the biggest of the wildfires to strike California, officials have stated.
He apparently told them it was an accident. The fire in question, known as the Buckweed fire, began on October 21, in Agua Dulce, which is a rural area in LA County.
 Fanned by the intense winds and very dry weather, it spread fast, forcing some fifteen thousand individuals from their houses and wiping out twenty-one
 houses and twenty-two other structures while injuring 3 individuals to boot. All in a day’s work for this kid I suppose. In the meantime
investigators from the LA County Sheriff’s Department spoke with the child, and he eventually “acknowledged that he was playing with matches and accidentally, his words, set the fire.”
For the time being the boy is in the custody of his mother and father while waiting to find out whether or not he would be prosecuted.
Incidentially if you happen to be in the lake arrowhead area and were affected by the wildfires you should take a look at
lake arrowhead disaster reconstruction for help.
If the answer is in the affirmative he will apparently be tried in the juvenile justice system and will not be tried as an adult. As of today it was not known
whether or not his parents would be held responsible for monetary damages that were caused by the fires. As of today these particular fires have been contained completely.
At least that is good news. In the meantime junior has started to play with his new woodburner kit. Just kidding. In addition to the kid,
some adult arson suspects have likewise been apprehended in the 7-odd counties affected by the wildfires. As if all of this was not bad enouph, USA today has reported that
big wildfires such as the ones that have been scorching California recently substantially boost carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere. According to the report,
can actually give off as much carbon dioxide as vehicles in certain American states. Under usual circumstances, carbon dioxide emissions from wildfires are about five percent
of the man-made total in the country. But during the major fires, the proportion of fire contributions to carbon-dioxide emissions can increase dramatically, according to the study.

Much the information for the following article was gleamd from the AP and Forbes.com….
The outlook for universal health care in the golden state does not appear too great at this particular point in time,
 and some analysts believe that a failure could set back similar efforts around the whole country for at least several years more, unfortunately.
All in all, a formidable federation of trade Unions, physicians & similiar power brokers are arrayed against the  Governors twelve billion annual plan to
 make health insurance a requirement. He has threatened to veto the Democrats’ alternative and take his own plan to the ballot.
A faceoff is possible by tomorrow, when the the Democrats plan to put the Governator’s proposal to vote in the Assembly. The goal would be to prove how little support it really has.
Of course, what happens in the California may have major ramifications elsewhere, since it is the countries biggest state in terms of population.
Following the course set by Massachusetts, which passed universal health care into law last year, Schwarzenegger stated his particular plan last January to provide everyone in the Golden State
with health insurance. Nearly seven million people in California, or a staggering 18.5 percent of the people, are uninsured here.
The reason there is so much opposition is because his plan would call for new fees on physicians, hospitals and also employers.
 The uninsured would have to to purchase coverage in the same way as you need it in order to be able to drive legally. Meanwhile, the poorest individuals would be subsidized.
The Dems have devised an alternative written up in such a mannor that it needs only a simple majority. It would make employers spend a minimum of 7.5 percent of their payroll on health care,
 or instead pay that amount into a state-run pool. That is almost fifty percent of what the governor has himselfproposed, and he has already warned them that he will veto it if necessary.