On Tuesday, February 16, 2010 at 1:34 PM, a rollover traffic collision occurred near Dublin Boulevard and Powers Boulevard. A 1998 Nissan Maxima had been traveling north on Powers boulevard in the left lane of traffic when it lost control and veered into the center median. The vehicle overturned and entered the southbound travel lanes of Powers Boulevard, rolled over, and was struck by a southbound 2002 Mazda Tribute. The lone occupant of the Maxima was the driver and was arrested for suspicion of DUI. The Mazda was occupied by the driver who sustained injuries that were deemed serious bodily injury by treating physicians, and a 2 year-old female, properly restrained in the rear of the vehicle, sustained only minor injuries.

IOn Wednesday, February17, 2010 at approximately 10:30PM a male attempting to cross the northbound lanes of the 700 block of South Academy Boulevard was struck by a motorist who appears to have been obeying all traffic laws. The pedestrian was transported to memorial hospital and is listed in critical condition. The drive of the vehicle did not sustain any injury and impairment was not suspected.

Since Toyota Motors Inc. issued its massive recall three weeks ago, the number of deaths from the sudden-acceleration problem has continued to climb, reaching 34 total earlier this week. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and members of Congress are currently investigating the problems and Toyota�??s claims, and some legislators say the current death numbers may just be �??the tip of the iceberg.�?� The NHTSA has also received reports of fatalities involving cars not listed in the recall, which raises the question, is another recall coming in the near future?

A wrongful death lawsuit has been filed against the U.S. Coast Guard after one of their rescue boats crashed into a family�??s boat in San Diego Bay in December, killing an eight-year-old boy. According to the lawsuit, a Coast Guard boat was rushing to help a grounded boat at night when it crashed into another boat in the bay watching the San Diego Bay Parade of Lights. The family of the young boy said in their lawsuit that the boat operators weren�??t properly trained and that accidents like this have happened before. They are seeking unspecified damages.

In an effort to improve response time in investigating nursing home complaints, the Texas Department of Aging and Disability Services has put together teams tasked only with looking into those claims. According to state statistics, only about 35 percent of �??high potential of harm�?� complaints have been addressed within the 14-day window over the past few years, a number state officials say they need to improve upon. In February, the department says they plan on investigating more that 1,500 complaints at 330 facilities.

Larimer County, Colo., has agreed to pay $4.1 million to settle a lawsuit by a man who served 10 years of a murder sentence that was overturned in 2008 by DNA evidence. Tim Masters filed a lawsuit against the county and Fort Collins city officials for wrongful imprisonment after he was released. “I’m pleased with the settlement and look forward to resolving this case completely,” Masters said in a statement released through his attorney.

A New Jersey jury has awarded a man $25.16 million in a lawsuit against Swiss drug-maker Roche Holding AG in which he claimed that taking the drug Accutane caused his inflammatory bowl disease. Andrew McCarrell claimed that when he got sick in 1995 after taking Accutane, an acne drug, he needed five surgeries and had to have his colon removed. The verdict was the largest of six for Accutane users who won awards totaling $56 million.

Toyota’s President Akio Toyoda today thumbed his nose at coming to the USA to attend congressional hearings – saying he “wanted to focus on improving quality worldwide.” Yea sure and if you believe that, call me as I own this great bridge that serves the island of Manhattan that I will sell you for pennies on the dollar.

We would wager a goodly sum that if the US told Toyota that it could no longer sell it’s product within the US that the dude would be on the first plane to the US. To quote Arthur Miller’s “All My Sons”: “In War and Peace its nickels and dimes.”

The Corolla is the world’s best-sell car (or at least it was until now) – and with Toyota trying to salvage its reputation over the alarming disclosures that the firm produces hunks of junk, another recall could be the straw that breaks the back of Toyota. The finger pointing has already started as Toyota looks for someone other than itself to blame: its the tires, no its the steering, no its the software – oh, heck, we don’t know what it is, but its certainly isn’t us (or, perhaps, just don’t care, in spite of the apologies.)

The Colorado State Patrol reports that a Walsenburg Police officer clipped a van carrying six children shortly after 8pm on Tuesday. Six children and the driver of the van only had minor to moderate injuries.

The family of an Arizona boy killed by a drunken driver in 2008 was awarded $40 million last week by a Pima County jury. Jose Rincon Jr. was killed in January 2008 by a woman who crashed into him after a night drinking at a local Chuy’s restaurant. The jury divided up the settlement payments equally between the driver, the restaurant and the city of Tucson. The lawsuit claimed that certain repairs that had been planned for the road the accident occurred on by the city could have prevented the accident, but the city had scrapped the plans earlier the previous year.