Blog
Are E-Bikes Dead in New York?
New Yorkers are no strangers to the aggravations of widespread e-bike use. Up until last year, pedestrians frequently dealt with e-bikes taking up the sidewalk, while many drivers experienced e-bike riders heading the wrong way into traffic. That’s why, after over a decade of virtually unenforceable legislation, New York finally cracked down on e-bike use. […]
Baby Powder Linked to Cancer in $72 Million Johnson & Johnson Trial
Jacqueline Fox used Johnson & Johnson products as part of her feminine hygiene routine for 35 years. It wasn’t until her cancer diagnosis 3 years ago that Jacqueline learned of the link between talcum powder and ovarian cancer. Unfortunately, Jacqueline didn’t live long enough to see the result of her lawsuit against the world’s biggest […]
1 in 5 Vehicles on the Road is Defective, Says Carfax Report
In 2014, automakers set a new record for the number of car models recalled because of safety defects. In 2015, they obliterated that record. Nearly 900 models were recalled last year, translating to 64 million recalled cars in the US. More frightening than this, however, is the fact that many drivers never get their cars […]
Most Dangerous Cities in America 2016 List Released
While big cities like New York, Los Angeles and Chicago are often associated with the threat of violent crime, none of these cities made this year’s Most Dangerous Cities List. The list, compiled by neighborhood search engine NeighborhoodScout, is based on the most up-to-date reports of violent crimes from all law enforcement agencies. Violent crimes […]
Cancer Charities Spend $187 Million on Cruises, Disney World Vacations
Nobody wants to hear that the money they donated to a charitable cause has gone to waste, but that happened on a massive scale last spring when the Federal Trade Commission charged 4 cancer charities with fraud. The Breast Cancer Society Inc., the Children’s Cancer Fund of America, Inc., Cancer Support Services Inc., and the […]
Alleged Rapist and Bikram Yoga Founder Finally Taken Down by Civil Lawsuit
Bill Cosby. Bryan Singer. Dominique Strauss-Kahn. Now we can add Bikram Choudhury, founder of Bikram Yoga, to the growing list of powerful men thrust into the spotlight in recent years for allegations of sexual abuse. The 69-year-old hot yoga guru, whose followers include former presidents Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton, as well as celebrities Madonna, […]
Complaints of Rashes, Lead Exposure by Residents Went Ignored for Months
“Government failed you — federal, state and local leaders — by breaking the trust you place in us,” Michigan Governor Rick Snyder conceded in his State of the State address last week after months of ignoring Flint residents’ complaints about contaminated water. “I’m sorry, and I will fix it.” The Governor’s apology, and the $28 […]
When Will Chipotle Be Safe Again?
It started last July in Seattle, when 5 Chipotle customers reported symptoms of the bacterial infection E. coli. The following month, 234 people contracted norovirus after eating Chipotle in Simi Valley, California. Then it was salmonella in Minnesota. 64 infections. 9 hospitalizations. Then again in Boston. 140 cases of norovirus recorded in December.
Guilty Volkswagen Execs Hiding Behind German Privacy Laws
Last fall, Volkswagen admitted to installing illegal software on its diesel vehicles in order to cheat pollution emissions tests, defrauding the purchasers of up to 11 million vehicles worldwide. CEO Martin Winterkorn resigned in the immediate wake of the scandal, and 9 VW executives were suspended. The US Justice Department has since launched a lawsuit […]
Bronx Man Crushed by Falling Elevator
One of the most heroic acts of 2015 took place in the year’s final moments, on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. Just a few minutes before midnight on New Year’s Eve, 25-year-old Stephen Hewett-Brown helped a woman climb safely out of a stalled elevator before being crushed to death by the malfunctioning elevator car. […]
NYC Public Advocate Fights Back Against Bad Landlords
New York City Public Advocate Letitia James introduced several new bills this week that would increase the city’s power to fight back against negligent landlords. One bill would expand the scope of the city’s public nuisance law to allow city officials to bring landlords to court for maintaining unsanitary or dangerous living conditions. “This new […]
Highway Guardrail Maker Sold Defective Rails For Years
At least nine motorists are dead because of a design change in the highway guardrails produced by Texas-based Trinity Industries Inc. In 2005, Trinity changed the design of its ET-Plus guardrail systems in order to cut production costs, but in doing so the company created an added danger for the drivers and passengers of cars that collided with […]