Bus Crash

Hoover Dam Crash Victims Retain Jim Vititoe of Masry and Vititoe
LAS VEGAS NEVADA, Feb 22, 2009- Families and victims of the deadly Hoover Dam tour bus crash have hired famous California Attorney Jim Vititoe to represent them. If Jim Vititoe sounds familiar, it’s because he is the President of Masry and Vititoe, the firm that successfully handled the famous Hinkley water contamination case profiled in the movie Erin Brockovich.

The crash which took seven lives occurred 27 miles south of the Hoover Dam on January 30 at 4 pm. The bus was returning a group of Chinese tourists to Las Vegas from the Grand Canyon. A tour guide and six Chinese tourists were killed in the crash; the driver and nine others were injured. Fifteen of the seventeen passengers were ejected through the windows.

NTSB lead investigator Peter Kotowski told reporters, “We know [the driver] was distracted by that door…the door was ajar, the door was open” and the driver, Han Dong of Rosemead, Calif. “indicated he was blinded by sun glare” before he lost control. The bus veered into the right shoulder and Han Dong overcorrected before losing control, crossing the median and overturning.

Vititoe is a veteran litigator and has handled major bus accidents lawsuits, although he said, “This is one of the worst I’ve ever seen. It’s unfortunate that our government hasn’t taken some action requiring mandatory seatbelts in buses. If, in fact, seatbelts had been used, I don’t think there would have been anywhere near the severity of injury that we see here.” Vititoe explained that “this is a case where negligence is involved. The driver being distracted could be a target of legal action, along with the bus manufacturer and the tour company.”

About Masry and Vititoe
The Masry and Vititoe firm defends the rights of the victims of wrongful death, negligence, and personal injuries in mass transit accidents such as airplane, bus, helicopter and train crashes. As in the Hinkley case on which the movie “Erin Brockovich” was based, the firm is known for pursuing the rights of individuals who have suffered injury. They represent thousands of injured persons throughout the country, from Hawaii to the East Coast, and internationally; and on their behalf have fearlessly combated and prevailed against some of the world’s largest corporations, including Fortune 500 companies, public utilities and oil companies.

For Details, Contact:

Masry and Vititoe Attorney Michael Killackey
Law Offices of Masry and Vititoe
5707 Corsa Ave., Second Floor
Westlake Village, CA 91362
Phone: 818-991-8900 or 800-561-5500
Fax: 818-991-6200
Website: http://masryvititoe.com
Email: new at masryvititoe.com

About George Hatcher

These days I am still working with lawyers. I consult in various aspects of personal injury, wrongful death litigation cases, such as Toxic Litigation, Crisis Management and of course, Air Disaster litigation. The lawyers I work with are top quality "Super" lawyer firms (if you will pardon a little industry jargon) whose names you would recognize if I were to drop them here. We deal with issues regarding the cumulation of the investigation of aviation accidents and the judicial process. Concerns include culpability, insurance, liability, safety and the lack thereof . Many of the cases that I work with involve cross-border civil litigation, and include cases such as Air France Flight 447 where locally (as in France) criminalization is also part of the legal mix. The industry is working toward developing a legally defensive safety management system, and still working out processes between air accident investigation and the judiciary which conflict in various courts. I offer my clients my experience and the experience of my experts regarding proceedings in air accidents. How did a guy who is not a lawyer end up running a management consulting firm for lawyers? For decades I was an independant consultant for the Law Offices of Ed Masry, starting with the founder, Edward Masry in 1967. When Masry & Vititoe was formed 32 years ago, I continued consulting in the same capacity. In 1987, I spent a year writing and developing some law firm management programs that even today are still running the office. If the name seems familiar to you, it is because Masry & Vititoe is the law firm portrayed in the Academy Award winning film “Erin Brockovich”. 20 years in two sentences--there's a lot of experience covered in those two lines.
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