Chicago Injury Attorney Blog

The mom of a 13-year-old Hyde Park girl who was allegedly raped by 34-year-old Acurie Collier when broke into their home last year is suing both him and the Cook County Adult Probation Department for Chicago injuries to a minor. The woman contends that Collier should have been in jail at the time of the alleged attack. The girl’s mother says she walked in on her daughter and Collier right after the assault and restrained him for 45 minutes until police arrived.
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This is not the first time that Collier is charged with a sexual assault crime. Two years before, he was charged with aggravated criminal sexual assault and aggravated criminal sexual abuse of a child between 13 and 16 years. Not only that, but the Illinois State Police sex offender Web site lists him as a sexual predator. Before the alleged rape last summer, he was caught violating his probation up to 40 times.

Now, the girl’s mom is suing Cook County for failing to act following these violations. Named as a defendant of her federal lawsuit is acting chief probation officer Jesus Reyes, who she claims did not properly train and direct the probation officers responsible for monitoring Collier. For example, as part of the terms of his probation, Collier is not allowed to own a computer, yet he and the girl met online.

Chicago Injury Over Sexual Assault Crimes
Remember that as a victim of a sexual assault crime, you may be able to obtain Chicago injury compensation from your attacker. Also, if there were any other parties whose negligence contributed to your assault happening, you also may be able to claim damages from them even if they didn’t commit the actual crime. For example, other possible liable parties might include a security company that installed a faulty alarm system or the owner of the premise where the crime occurred.

Rape Victim's Mom Sues Attacker and Probation Chief, MyFoxChicago, January 26, 2011

Lawsuit: Man accused in girl's rape should have been behind bars, Chicago Tribune, January 26, 2011

Related Web Resources:
Sexual Violence

Illinois Sex Offender Information

Head trauma from a fall accident can be catastrophic for the victim—especially if the fall is from a high elevation and the victim is a young child. Yesterday, a 2-year-old by sustained severe head trauma when he fell 30 feet down an elevator shaft at the Plaza Hotel in Joliet. The Will County, Illinois fall accident happened at around 3:30 pm.

According to authorities the boy apparently left the hotel room he was staying in with his family and had wandered off alone. After getting into the elevator, he activated an emergency switch, which caused the elevator to stop between two floors. While the passenger cabin doors opened, the doors to the floors did not and that's when the Will County, Illinois elevator accident happened. The toddler fell through a 16-inch gap between the shaft’s concrete walls and the elevator car. He was admitted to a Chicago hospital.

Elevator Accident Cases
When an injury accident involves an elevator, it will be important to determine whether the elevator was defective or malfunctioned and if it was properly and regularly maintained and inspected. Common cause of elevator accidents can include mechanical break down, unbalanced leveling, an uncovered elevator shaft, faulty wiring, or a defective pulley system.

In addition to exploring whether the victim has grounds for an Illinois products liability case, there also may be reason for filing a Will County, Illinois premises liability claim against the owner of the property where the elevator is located.

Toddler seriously injured in fall from Joliet hotel elevator, Chicago Tribune, January 24, 2011

Related Web Resources:
Kids at Risk for Elevator Injuries, CBS News, June 19, 2007

Safe Ride? Older Elevators Causing Injuries, Deaths, ABC News

Continue reading "Toddler Injured in Joliet, Illinois Elevator Fall at the Plaza Hotel has Severe Head Trauma" »

The Cook County police brutality filed against the city of Des Plaines and 11 of its police force members filed by the mother of Krzysztof Kaczor has been moved to federal court. The 24-year-old’s mother, Elmwood Park resident Danuta Kaczor, is seeking damages for his Des Plaines wrongful death. The request to move the case to the US District Court was made by the city.

Kazcor died on December 21, 2010 after he was shot four times by police. While police say that he had threatened a cop with a long-handled ax, his mother’s Cook County wrongful death lawyer contends that her son did not pose an imminent threat and police shouldn’t have fatally shot him. Kazcor, who spoke limited English, may not have fully understood the police’s order to drop the ax.

Illinois Civil Rights Violations
Violation of a person's civil rights can be grounds for a Chicago personal injury lawsuit. Unfortunately, many victims don’t realize that they are even entitled to file a claim seeking damages. Even if charges are not filed against police, you may still be able to obtain financial compensation for the harm or injuries suffered.

Recently, the family of New Lenox 20-year-old Jessica Mejia filed a civil lawsuit against the Cook County sheriff’s department because officers allegedly removed the clothes off her dead body and took photographs of her at a crash site. Mejia died in a Chicago car accident on December 31, 2009.

The family is contending that not only did police fail to follow county medical examiner’s office guidelines, but also, they behaved without medical justification when they took the nude photos of Jessica in front of onlookers. They are seeking over $200,000 for distress suffered.

Wrongful death suit against Des Plaines cops moves to federal court, Daily Herald, January 9, 2011

Police deny claim nude pictures were taken, The Herald-News, January 4, 2011

Related Web Resources:
City of Des Plaines, Illinois

Chicago Police Brutality and Civil Rights Violations, Chicago Injury Attorney

If you were implanted with a DePuy ASR hip device a while ago and have been experiencing pain, swelling, and walking difficulties, you may have grounds for filing a Chicago products liability lawsuit. In August, Johnson & Johnson and DePuy Orthopaedics Inc. said they were recalling the ASR(TM) XL Acetabular System and DePuy ASR(TM) Hip Resurfacing System over concerns that patients were having to undergo a second implant surgery, also known as a revision surgery, to remedy difficulties they’d experienced with the medical devices.

Approximately 93,000 people have been implanted with one of these DePuy ARS devices. The recall was announced after unpublished information from the National Joint Registry (NJR) of England and Wales reported that there was a 13% revision rate for users of the ASR(TM) XL Acetabular System and a 12% revision rate for the ASR(TM) Hip Resurfacing System after five years. That’s not a lot of time before a patient would have to undergo a second hip implant surgery.

Hip Replacement Surgery
Hip replacement surgery is a major medical procedure, which can be painful and physically taxing. Full recovery can take months or even a year. This is not an easy medical procedure to undergo once let alone twice. As with any surgery, health complications and infection can arise—especially if the patient is older or suffering from other health issues. Ideally, a hip replacement device should last much longer than five years for a patient and should not cause him/her unnecessary pain and suffering.

Contact our Chicago DePuy Hip Implant Lawyers to determine whether you have grounds for a Chicago defective medical devices cases.

An Estimated 93,000 Depuy Hip Implants Patients In Danger, Nutrition Diet News, December 15, 2010

DePuy Orthopaedics Voluntarily Recalls ASR(TM) Hip System, Johnson & Johnson, August 26, 2010

Related Web Resource:
ASR(TM) Hip System Recall Guide

National Joint Registry (NJR) of England and Wales