On April 20, 2011, Thomas Tornatore, then 51 years old, was wrestling with his nephew when he sustained an injury to the base of his neck. Five days later, Mr. Tornatore sought treatment from a chiropractor. After his fourth and final treatment, which included chiropractic manipulations, he had severe pain in his neck that radiated… Continue Reading
Category Archives: Neck Injuries
Subscribe to Neck Injuries RSS FeedVerdict Affirmed for Passenger Who Fell Inside Moving Bus
Posted in Back Injuries, Knee Injuries, Neck InjuriesOn April 2, 2012, at about 5 p.m., Apolonia Castillo boarded a city bus on 57th Avenue between 97th Place and 98th Street in Queens. After paying her fare, she fell and sustained injuries to her left knee and spine. Ms. Castillo, then 72 years old, sued the bus company claiming that the driver caused… Continue Reading
Jury Verdict Declining to Award Any Pain and Suffering Damages Upheld in Car Accident Case
Posted in Back Injuries, Neck InjuriesOn December 17, 2011, Ebony Stanford was a rear seat passenger in a taxicab that was involved in a crash with another vehicle in Manhattan on the FDR Drive near the 53rd Street exit. Ms. Stanford, then a 33 year old security officer at Harlem Hospital residing in the Bronx, sued both drivers seeking an… Continue Reading
Plaintiff in Car Crash Wins New Trial to Determine Additional Amount of Damages for Future Pain and Suffering
Posted in Back Injuries, Knee Injuries, Neck InjuriesOn November 9, 2011, Stenneth Knight, then 43 years old, was driving to work when he was stopped at a red light and his car was rear-ended on Rockaway Parkway in Brooklyn. After a trial on liability, Mr. Knight was granted a directed verdict finding the other driver fully at fault and the case proceeded… Continue Reading
Significant Award for Future Medical Expenses Affirmed despite Modest Awards for Pain and Suffering in Car Crash Case
Posted in Economic Damages, Loss of Consortium Damages, Neck Injuries, Shoulder InjuriesOn August 7, 2010, Anil Sehgal was preparing to stop at a red light at the intersection of Fifth Avenue and West 57th Street in Manhattan when his car was struck from behind by another vehicle. Mr. Sehgal’s wife, Renu, was in the front passenger seat. Both claimed serious injuries as a result of the… Continue Reading
Verdict in Neck and Knee Injuries Case Reduced on Appeal for Workers Compensation Benefits Received from Prior Accident
Posted in Economic Damages, Knee Injuries, Neck InjuriesOn June 2, 2010, Rosemary McKnight was a passenger in a city bus which rear-ended a tanker truck on Nostrand Avenue in Brooklyn. As a result, Ms. McKnight, then 48 years old, injured her neck and both knees. In her ensuing lawsuit against the transit authority and its driver, Ms. McKnight’s motion for summary judgment… Continue Reading
Pain and Suffering Awards Increased on Appeal for Man Run Over by SUV
Posted in Neck InjuriesOn May 26, 2010 Marshall Starkman was sunbathing on a beach chair when a City of Long Beach police officer struck him while driving his SUV patrol car. Mr. Starkman, then 43 years old, was thrown off his chair, flipped onto his stomach and then the vehicle ran over his back. In the ensuing lawsuit… Continue Reading
Excessive Force Case against Police Officer – $2,250,000 Pain and Suffering Award for Couple in Altercation; Punitive Damages Awards Vacated
Posted in Back Injuries, Neck Injuries, Punitive DamagesOn August 4, 2007 Herminio Pizarro and his girlfriend Olga Garcia were attending a block party on Brook Avenue and 138th Street in the Bronx. At about 7 p.m., Mr. Pizarro interceded when he saw a New York City Police Department (“NYPD”) officer questioning a 14 year old girl. An altercation ensued between Pizarro and… Continue Reading
Verdict Affirmed for Passenger in Car Crash who Sustained Neck Injury
Posted in Neck InjuriesOn February 23, 2006, Suzanne Kusulas was a front seat passenger in her boyfriend’s car which was stopped at a red light on 16th Street at its intersection with Prospect Park West in Brooklyn when it was hit hard from behind by a car owned and operated by Diane Saco. Upon impact, Ms. Kusulas, although… Continue Reading
Serious Injury Threshold and Punitive Damages at Issue in Drunk Driving Case
Posted in Neck Injuries, Punitive DamagesOn May 7, 2005 Sean Dernago was driving his employer’s box truck on the George Washington Bridge when, after weaving in and out of several lanes in fairly heavy traffic, he rear ended a pick-up truck and launched it into a minivan driven by Frank Chiara. His wife Venetia Chiara was a front seat passenger… Continue Reading
Spinal Injury Award Affirmed on Appeal
Posted in Neck InjuriesOn November 9, 2009 Vincent Taurone was a front seat passenger in a minivan on the Saw Mill River Parkway in Chappaqua. After his vehicle stopped because of a deer carcass in the roadway, another car smashed into the rear of the minivan propelling it 35 feet forward. Mr. Taurone, then 51 years old, had… Continue Reading
Spinal Injury Pain and Suffering Verdict Affirmed
Posted in Back Injuries, Neck InjuriesOn February 6, 2008, livery taxicab driver Alfonso Robles was involved in a crash with another car in Port Chester. He ended up in the hospital emergency room and in his ensuing lawsuit commenced on May 21, 2009 against the other driver and vehicle owner, on January 24, 2012, a Westchester County jury apportioned liability… Continue Reading
Appellate Court Slashes Jury Verdict in Neck Injury Case
Posted in Neck InjuriesAt 5 p.m. on Thursday January 11, 2007, Christopher Cicola was stopped for a red light on Route 112 in Medford when a Suffolk County Sheriff’s car struck his 2004 Honda in the rear. The impact jolted the seat-belted Mr. Cicola forward and back but he was able to get out of his car on… Continue Reading
Appellate Court Reduces Pain and Suffering Award in Multi-Trauma Car Accident Case
Posted in Back Injuries, Knee Injuries, Neck Injuries, Shoulder InjuriesOn June 25, 2007, at about 8:30 a.m., Melody Sweet was driving her 1986 Mustang convertible on Innis Avenue in Poughkeepsie at a speed of 25-30 miles per hour when Christopher Rios pulled his sport utility vehicle out of a parking space on the side of the road and collided with her vehicle. A red… Continue Reading
Appeals Court Affirms Substantial Award in Excessive Force Case against State Trooper
Posted in Facial Injuries, Neck InjuriesOn December 20, 2001, at about 8:30 a.m., David Reynolds was driving on Ridge Road in Wolcott, New York when he was pulled over and arrested by a New York State trooper for driving without a valid license. An altercation ensued (there was a 10 year old history of hostility between Reynolds and the trooper) … Continue Reading
Appellate Court Dismisses Neck Injury Verdict – Plaintiff Failed to Prove Need for Cervical Fusion Surgery Not due to Prior Accident
Posted in Neck InjuriesAgnes McDonald, a 55 year old elevator operator, was a rear seat passenger in a two car accident in Manhattan on January 20, 2005. She was injured but did not seek medical treatment until four days later when she saw a physician at a local medical clinic, complaining of a stiff neck and a burning… Continue Reading
Significant Pain and Suffering Verdict Dismissed on Appeal in Car Accident Case
Posted in Back Injuries, Neck InjuriesCharles Bacon, a 23 year old mechanical engineer, was driving in Manhattan on August 17, 2007 when he was stopped at a red light and his car was struck in the rear. A week later, Bacon sought treatment with an orthopedic surgeon for complaints of neck and back pain. MRI reports later showed herniated discs… Continue Reading
Pain and Suffering Award Affirmed in Slip and Fall Case Despite Plaintiff’s Active Lifestyle
Posted in Back Injuries, Neck InjuriesOn September 2, 2009, Yvan Lemoine slipped and fell down an interior stairwell at the premises of Planet Fitness in Astoria. Yvan, then 28 years old, had been walking from the second to the first floor when wet, just-mopped stairs caused him to slip and fall down 14 stairs. He had intense pain in his… Continue Reading
Appeals Court Affirms $2,000,000 Pain and Suffering Verdict for Neck Injury
Posted in Neck InjuriesOn January 13, 2006 at about 1 p.m., Mohammed Kayes, then 44 years old, was walking with his three year old daughter on the sidewalk adjacent to Queens Boulevard near 34th Street in Long Island City. Suddenly, a transit authority truck backed up and pushed over a 40 pound stop sign and pole that then… Continue Reading
Another Significant Verdict Affirmed for Non-Surgical Spinal Injuries
Posted in Back Injuries, Neck InjuriesOn November 23, 2003, at about 8 p.m., Alicia Rutledge was boarding a city bus at the corner of 125th Street and Seventh Avenue in Manhattan. She claimed that the bus driver closed the doors on her when she was on the first step. Her arms were pinned by the doors of the suddenly moving… Continue Reading
Bulging Discs Verdict Reduced on Appeal
Posted in Neck InjuriesOn January 10, 2001, Ludnila Sulich was stopped at a red light on Bainbridge Avenue in the Bronx when her car was struck by a city bus. Her head hit the left side window in her car resulting in significant neck pain. When the 43 year old Ms. Sulich got out of her car the… Continue Reading
Verdict Affirmed for Non-Surgical Spinal Injuries
Posted in Back Injuries, Neck InjuriesOn June 15, 2006, at about 2:30 p.m., Cornelius James was walking on the sidewalk at West 66th Street between West End and Amsterdam Avenues in Manhattan. Two cars collided and one car mounted the sidewalk and struck the pedestrian. Mr. James, a 31 year old attendant at a blood bank, was thrown eight… Continue Reading
Court Orders Substantial Reduction in Pain and Suffering Damages in Severe Orthopedic and Brain Injury Trauma Case
Posted in Back Injuries, Brain Injuries, Leg Injuries, Neck Injuries, Wrist InjuriesA 26 year old restaurant deliveryman was was bicycling in the Bedford-Stuyversant section of Brooklyn on June 4, 2005, on his way to make a food delivery from King’s Men Restaurant, when a car struck him from behind. Jing Xue Jiang flew through the air and the next thing he remembered was waking up at… Continue Reading
Spinal Injuries from Kidney Donor Surgery Result in Significant Pain and Suffering Award
Posted in Back Injuries, Medical Malpractice, Neck InjuriesOn March 23, 2005, Darnell Backus underwent a donor nephrectomy – (surgery in which a healthy kidney is removed to be transplanted in another person). He did this for his mother who had been suffering from kidney failure and would otherwise have required a lifetime of dialysis. Left side lateral decubitus position for kidney donor… Continue Reading