Artwork caught in custody battle
February 21, 2010, Houston Chronicle
Joanne King Herring has proof she bought the piece. The man who now has it, she says, does not. Read More

Toyota Floor Mats Recall
Toyota announces largest recall ever. Toyota said Tuesday that it will recall 3.8 million vehicle floor mats because of a defect that may cause accelerators to become stuck. Read More

Bankruptcy law protects GM, Chrysler, but not accident victims
By Brad Woodard / KHOU.com,11 News
June 23, 2009
There are still millions of GM and Chrysler vehicles on the road, but a lot has changed for the people behind the wheel of those cars and trucks. Read More

Merck Vioxx win stands
By Mary Flood
June 4, 2009
An intermediate appellate court has denied an en banc hearing and replaced its opinion undoing a $26 million Angleton jury verdict against Merck in a Vioxx case.  Read More

$80 Million Settlement Reached
By Terri Langford, Houston Chronicle
$80 million settlement has been reached for families of passengers killed and others who were injured on a bus that caught fire while evacuating from Hurricane Rita in 2005. Read More

Hydroxycut Diet Aids Recalled After Warning
By NATASHA SINGER, The New York Times
Published: May 1, 2009
Federal drug regulators warned consumers Friday to stop using the popular Hydroxycut line of weight-loss products, citing reports of a death due to liver failure and other instances of serious health problems. Read More

Woman loses unborn child after hit and run wreck
By DALE LEZON Copyright 2009 Houston Chronicle
April 9, 2009, 7:24AM
Houston police are searching for the driver of a van suspected of a hit-and-run collision that is believed to have caused a woman to lose her unborn child earlier this week. Read More

Pilot indicated no sign of trouble in Montana plane crash
By MATT GOURAS Associated Press
March 23, 2009, 10:44AM
The plane that crashed in Montana, killing all 14 aboard, gave no indication to air traffic controllers that the aircraft was experiencing difficulty when the pilot asked to divert to the airport here, a federal safety official said today. Read More

Polk Jury Awards Woman $65 Million in 2007 Crash
By JASON GEARY The Ledger
March 18, 2009, 10:46PM
Decision for Kendra Lymon, injured in a 2007 crash, is considered to be among largest verdicts by a Polk county jury. Read More

Stanford exec sues for insurance to fund defense
By TOM FOWLER
Copyright 2009 Houston Chronicle
March 18, 2009, 10:22PM
Laura Pendergest-Holt was named in civil fraud charges filed by the Securities and Exchange Commission on Feb. 17 against the company and two other executives, Stanford Chairman R. Allen Stanford and Chief Financial Officer James Davis. Read More

Woman Paralyzed in Crash awarded $45 Million
A judge has awarded $45 million in damages to a San Mateo woman who was paralyzed when a wrecking and demolition company's truck ran a red light and hit her car. Read More

10 kids drink windshield wiper fluid at day care
By JON GAMBRELL Associated Press
March 13, 2009, 12:52PM
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. - Ten children at a day care center drank windshield wiper fluid after a staffer served it from a container mistaken for Kool-Aid and placed in a refrigerator, authorities said today. Read More

Fire races through high-rise mall in Bangladesh; 4 dead
By FARID HOSSAIN Associated Press
March 13, 2009, 12:44PM
DHAKA, Bangladesh A helicopter plucked survivors from the roof of Bangladeshs biggest shopping mall today as a fire raced through the upper levels of the high-rise complex, killing at least four people and injuring at least 50 others. Read More

Emilio pleads guilty to DWI in Houston bus crash
By BRIAN ROGERS
Copyright 2009 Houston Chronicle
March 13, 2009, 12:20PM
Tejano music star Emilio Navaira, in protective head gear because of severe injuries suffered in the crash of his tour bus, pleaded guilty to DWI in a Houston court. Read More

Smoking plane engine evacuates jetliner at Hobby
By DALE LEZON
Copyright 2009 Houston Chronicle
March 13, 2009, 9:25AM
Passengers were evacuated from a jetliner at Hobby Airport this morning after smoke was seen billowing from an engine, according to Houston fire officials. Read More

Helicopter Crash off coast of Newfoundland
(CNN) -- A helicopter carrying 18 people who work in the oil industry ditched Thursday in the frigid Atlantic Ocean off Newfoundland. At least one survivor has been recovered, a Canadian rescue official in Halifax told CNN. Read More

Scrap metal from passing truck kills woman in E. Texas
Associated Press
Feb. 27, 2009, 12:05PM
PITTSBURG, Texas - An 18-year-old pregnant woman died at the wheel of her car when a piece of scrap metal flew from a passing truck and into her car. Read More

A Push to Spell Out a Drug’s Risks and Benefits
By NATASHA SINGER
Published: February 25, 2009
WHAT if consumers could calculate the benefits and risks of taking a prescription drug as easily as they can gauge the carbs and calories of an Oreo cookie? An ad for the sleep drug Lunesta. Sepracor, the drug’s maker, spent about $293 million on advertisements for the pill in 2007. Read More

Drug Maker Is Accused of Fraud
By BARRY MEIER and BENEDICT CAREY
Published: February 25, 2009
The Justice Department charged the drug maker Forest Laboratories on Wednesday with defrauding the government of millions of dollars by illegally marketing the popular antidepressants Celexa and Lexapro for unapproved uses in children and teenagers. Read More

10 Dead as Turkish Plane Crashes Near Amsterdam
CAROLINE BROTHERS and SEBNEM ARSU
Published: February 25, 2009
A Turkish Airlines passenger plane lay broken in a field after it crashed while attempting to land at the Schiphol Airport near Amsterdam. Read More

New Rule Enacted by Bush Administration Impedes Cases Against Nursing Homes
By Cindy Skrzycki
Tuesday, February 24, 2009; Page D02
The Bush administration shut off a source of information last fall about abuse and neglect in long-term care facilities that people suing nursing homes consider crucial to their cases. Read More

Salmonella outbreak strain also linked to TX plant
By MIKE STOBBE and GREG BLUESTEIN Associated Press Writers © 2009 The Associated Press
Feb. 24, 2009, 10:15PM
ATLANTA — Tests have confirmed that peanut butter made from peanuts processed at a Texas plant contains the same strain of salmonella blamed for sickening hundreds in a national outbreak, federal officials said Tuesday. Read More

Driver dies after crashing into tree near Rice University
Copyright 2009 Houston Chronicle
Feb. 23, 2009, 7:33AM
Houston police are investigating a one-vehicle crash in which a man died early Sunday near Rice University. Read More

Evidence of bird strike found in Louisiana chopper crash
By MICHAEL KUNZELMAN Associated Press
Feb. 23, 2009, 3:35PM
NEW ORLEANS - Investigators have found evidence that a bird may have struck a helicopter before it crashed into a Louisiana swamp last month, killing eight people, the National Transportation Safety Board said today. Read More

Head-on crash caused by a suspected drunken driver
Jony Ventura was going to work at a doughnut shop about 2 a.m. Saturday when his car was struck by a driver heading the wrong direction along northbound Texas 249... Read More

SEC charges Stanford, others with fraud
Agency alleges schemes dealing with CDs, mutual fund
By KRISTEN HAYS and TOM FOWLER Copyright 2009 Houston Chronicle
Feb. 17, 2009, 11:03PM
Kelly DeHay, an investor with Stanford Financial Group, talks to reporters. "I feel betrayed. I'm not angry, just very betrayed," he said. Read More

Drunken driving suspected in fatal NW Houston wreck
HOUSTON CHRONICLE
Feb. 15, 2009, 11:50AM
A driver is facing a charge of intoxication manslaughter after a wreck in northwest Harris County early this morning killed a passenger in his car, authorities said. Read More

Commuter plane crashes
From staff and wire reports
Feb. 13, 2009, 11:12AM
50 are killed in fiery accident near Buffalo Read More

All peanuts from Texas plant are recalled
By JANET ELLIOTT
AUSTIN BUREAU
Feb. 12, 2009, 10:19PM
Dead rodents found at Plainview plant prompt the recall. Read More

HPD: Pickup driver in fatal crash may have been drunk
By MIKE GLENN Copyright 2009 Houston Chronicle
Feb. 12, 2009, 12:15PM
A pickup driver may have been intoxicated late Wednesday when his truck collided head-on with another pickup in southeast Houston, killing the other driver, police said. Read More

Subcommittee investigates salmonella outbreak, families testify
The Los Angeles Times (2/12, Cole) reports, "A congressional subcommittee investigating a recent salmonella outbreak released e-mails Wednesday revealing that the owner of a peanut company discounted warnings that nuts were infected with the deadly bacteria." Read More

FDA said to need "shot in the arm" from Obama
A St. Petersburg Times (2/10) editorial argues that the FDA deserves a "White House rebuke" for its failures in the salmonella outbreak. Read More

KBR pleads guilty in Nigeria bribes case
Houston-based KBR pleaded guilty today to federal criminal charges alleging it paid millions of dollars in bribes to Nigerian officials to win contracts to build a massive natural gas project in the country. Read More

Madoff's wife withdrew $15 million just before his arrest
BOSTON — The wife of disgraced money manager Bernard Madoff withdrew more than $15 million from a firm co-owned by her husband — including $10 million on the day before his arrest on charges he ran a $50 billion Ponzi scheme, the top security regulator in Massachusetts said today. Read More

Salmonella-tainted products knowingly shipped
Private lab tests show there may have been salmonella at a second plant operated by the peanut company at the center of a national outbreak, but the potentially tainted products were not sent to consumers, Texas health officials said Tuesday. Read More

Hospital Acquired Infections
Many in the healthcare field are skeptical of initiatives designed to reduce hospital-acquired infections among patients. Read More

Pfizer joining other large drug makers in disclosing payments to doctors
The Wall Street Journal (2/10, Johnson) reports, "Pfizer Inc. said Monday that it will become the latest drug maker to publicly disclose the payments it makes to doctors, as the industry has come under fresh fire for its undue influence and could face toughened legislation. Read More

Tests show possible salmonella at West Texas plant
Feds relying more on states for food-safety inspections ATLANTA - Private lab tests show there may have been salmonella at a second plant operated by the peanut company at the center of a national outbreak, Texas health officials said today.Read More

Six Americans Missing After Plane Crashes Off Puerto Rico
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (CNN) -- Search operations resumed Monday for six U.S. citizens missing since their small plane crashed Sunday evening off the north coast of Puerto Rico. Read More

Exposing CALA's Real Agenda
CALA (Citizens against lawsuit abuse) and their ilk just can't help themselves. Bar owner and CALA President Clay McPhail penned an op-ed about the need to extend their corporate immunity agenda to more wrongdoers.Read More

Texas Electricity Rates Soar Under Deregulation
AUSTIN — In the decade since Texas deregulated its retail electricity market, rates have skyrocketed higher than any other state with such open competition, according to a report released today. Read More

Mold Caused Kids' Deaths, Parents Claim
A Florida hospital was negligent in the death of three young leukemia patients, a lawsuit filed by their parents claims.Read More

Madoff Whistleblower Critical of SEC
A whistleblower told lawmakers Wednesday that the Securities and Exchange Commission largely ignored nine years of warnings that Bernard Madoff was engaged in fraudulent activities. Read More.

FDA Got Approval from Company Before Recall
Federal health officials had to seek permission from the company blamed for a nationwide salmonella outbreak before they could initiate a recall, the New York Times reports. Read More.

Hearings to Address Medical Helicopter Safety
When a medical helicopter crashed near Chicago in October, killing three adults and a baby, it was more than a tragedy. It was part of a trend. Read More.

Three feared dead in plane crash near Anahuac
Three people are believed to have died after the experimental plane they were in crashed this afternoon near Anahuac.Read More.

Salmonella update
Internal tests at a Georgia peanut butter plant linked to a nationwide salmonella outbreak revealed at least a dozen instances of salmonella contamination during 2007 and 2008, federal health regulators announced yesterday. Read More.

NE Houston car crash kills at least one
Houston police are investigating a fatal crash this morning near Bush Intercontinental Airport.Read More.

Salmonella poisoning reported in Harris County and Galveston County
The Texas Department of State Health reported today that six cases of salmonella poisoning have been reported in Texas. Read More.

More companies pull items made with peanut butter
MILWAUKEE - General Mills Inc. and grocers Kroger Co. and Safeway Inc. have joined the growing list of food companies and retailers pulling items made with peanut butter amid a salmonella outbreak. Read More.

Salmonella Update
The Washington Post reports, "The federal government is advising consumers to avoid cookies, cakes, ice cream and crackers made with peanut butter or peanut paste while it continues to investigate an outbreak of salmonella illness that is believed to have killed six people and sickened at least 485 others across the country." After the CDC identified a factory in Georgia as the source of the outbreak, a number of the country's largest food manufacturers and retailers followed the lead of Kellogg's last week and acted to voluntarily recall products. The Post notes that "a list of recalled products is being kept and updated by the government," and "major-label peanut butter is not suspected to be contaminated with salmonella and is considered safe to eat." Read More.

Foreign Drugs
WASHINGTON — In 2004, when Bristol-Myers Squibb said it would close its factory in East Syracuse, N.Y. — the last plant in the United States to manufacture the key ingredients for crucial antibiotics like penicillin — few people worried about the consequences for national security. Read More.

Driver killed in Gulf Freeway rollover accident
Houston police are investigating a one-vehicle accident in which the driver was killed as he exited the Gulf Freeway late Thursday. Read More.

USAir Update
NEW YORK (CNN) -- Chesley B. "Sully" Sullenberger III was "the right guy at the right time at the right moment" to guide a jet safely onto the surface of the Hudson River, a neighbor and friend said. Read More.

Another USAir Crash
Another USAir airliner has crashed. The plane is an Airbus 320, US Airways flight 1549 from LaGuardia to Charlotte. There were 146 passengers on board the flight, along with 5 crew members. There is no report on their conditions. Read More.

Crash kills one, injures two in south Houston
A young woman was killed this morning and two men were taken to a hospital after a minivan ran a red light and collided with a car on Houston's south side, police said. Read More.

Houston Workplace Death / Injury Lawyer
A man was killed Thursday morning, January 8, 2009. after being run over by a forklift in a business near the Houston Ship Channel. The man was riding on the forklift about 7:40 a.m. when he jumped off and was run over by the forklift operator, according to Houston police. The business is in the 9600 block of Clinton. The identity of the victim is pending identification by the Harris County Medical Examiner's Office. Read More. 

Aviation Law
Helicpter crash in Louisiana
Eight people were killed and a ninth was reported critically injured after a helicopter bound for the offshore oil fields crashed Sunday afternoon in marshlands about 100 miles southwest of New Orleans. Read More.

Study finds the FDA may have conflict of interest in investigating procedures
Government investigators for the Department of Health and Human Services have found that the Food and Drug Administration does almost nothing to police the financial conflicts of doctors who conduct clinical trials of drugs and medical devices in human subjects. Read More

1 killed in helicopter crash at Texas A&M
5 others, all non-students, injured in College Station
One person was killed when an Army ROTC helicopter crashed at 3 p.m. Monday on the Texas A&M University campus in an open field next to the dining hall used by the school’s Corps of Cadets, university reports said. Read More

King Nut Issues Peanut Butter Recall
There has been yet another instance of salmonella contaminating the food supply. The following news release was issued by the FDA. Remember, if you or one of your family are having symptoms of food poisoning after eating this peanut butter, make sure you inform your doctor so that the information will be recorded in any medical record. Read More

Spring soldier dies from copter crash injuries
A Texas National Guardsman from Spring has died of injuries suffered in Monday’s Black Hawk helicopter crash on the Texas A&M University campus. Read More

Information sought in death of pedestrian near Highway 6
Authorities are asking for the public’s help in locating the drivers responsible for fatally striking a man as he walked along a west Houston highway in November. Read More

NW Houston wreck kills one, injures two
A high-speed car crash in northwest Houston early today killed one man and sent two other people to a hospital, authorities said. Read More

Girl dies in suspected DWI wreck on Westpark
A man is facing an intoxication manslaughter charge after a 5-year-old girl died in a head-on collision in southwest Houston on Tuesday night. Read More

Elevator fall injures worker
Deborah DeRouen was critically injured Dec. 9 in an elevator freefall at 717 Texas. Since then, she has been a patient at St. Joseph Hospital. She has undergone several surgeries. Read More

PRICARA RECALLS 50 mcg/hr DURAGESIC (fentanyl transdermal system) CII PAIN PATCHES
Raritan, NJ - December 31, 2008 - PriCara, Division of Ortho-McNeil-Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc., said today that one lot of 50 microgram/hour (mcg/hr) DURAGESIC (fentanyl transdermal system) CII patches sold by PriCara in the United States and one lot of 50 mcg/hr fentanyl patches sold by Sandoz Inc. in the United States are being voluntarily recalled as a precaution from wholesalers and pharmacies. The recall is being conducted in cooperation with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).Read More

Listeriosis Class Action Settled for $27 Million
A $27 million settlement has been reached between Maple Leaf Foods of Canada, and the plaintiffs in a class action suit.Read More

Fentanyl Patch Recall Expanded
ROCKVILLE, Md., Feb. 18 -- Another manufacturer has recalled fentanyl patches, this time in doses ranging from 25 to 100 mcg/hour, the FDA said today.Read More

Family of boy assaulted at Wal-Mart files lawsuit
By DALE LEZON, Houston Chronicle
August 3rd, 2007
The family of a boy who was sexually abused at a Wal-Mart store by an employee has sued the company. Read More