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Patrice: Now winter months can mean treacherous to driving condi5ons, snow, sleet, ice, all lead to accidents and injuries if you aren't careful. Charles Gilman, with Gilman and Bedigian, and joins us this morning with a look at some steps to take to avoid accidents. And this is fortunately a perfect morning to talk about this. We're talking about icy condi5ons, seeing incidents already. Chaeles Gilman: Well, good morning, Patrice, and you're certainly right. Ice is prevalent, going to be prevalent today and this morning and it's going to affect their morning commute, what's leG of it at least. Patrice: All right. Let's talk about ways to minimize the chance that you'll end up in an accident. First of all, prepping for the winter months and what we know is to come - what kind of prepara5on should we do to our car, in our car? Gilman: Well, to your car, you want to make sure that you have good 5res. They are proper 5res for winter driving - 5res that have some tread on them. You keep your 5res properly inflated. Your brake lights are working, your headlights are working. Today most cars will tell you if one of those things is malfunc5oning or needs to be replaced. Inside your car, it's nice to have jumper cables, make sure your cell phone is charged before you get in your car. I'm a big advocate of puPng your cell phone down and away from you while you are driving, but you want to make sure it's charged if you do have an issue so that it's there and it's ready for you. And you don't have to worry about it being dead when you do need it. Patrice: And if you have some kind of accident, I guess it would also be good to have in your car the things that can alert people around you - flares, or just a shovel or the kiQy liQer, to get you out if you're stuck. Gilman: All those things are wonderful too. The kiQy liQer is great if you're stuck on snow or ice. You throw it under the 5res and it should hopefully give you some trac5on to get out of where you are. The flares are a good warning so that you don't get banged into by another driver or plowed into - all of those things. Anything that can help with the safety - a small cone that can advise people to watch out because you're stuck, and maybe somebody even pulls over and helps you. Patrice: And the best bet is to stay off the roads, but we know that isn't always the case for people. So just talk about some 5ps. If you have to be on the roads and it's those tricky condi5ons out there, what are some things to keep in mind? Gilman: There's a lot of websites you can go to now, and they give you pointers about how to drive, if you must drive in the snow. Like if visibility's low, turn on your hazard lights. Slamming on your brakes in the ice and snow is not always the smartest thing to do. Intui5vely, you think that's going to help you stop, when in reality, slamming on those brakes can just cause you to slide more. When pulsa5ng the brakes, or just trying to slow down a liQle bit, is a much safer decision than slamming on your brakes all at once. There's plenty of good guides out there on the internet. Even YouTube videos you can watch about winter driving. Patrice: You do your best. You try not to get into an accident, but say you do. What's your best course of ac5on there. I mean, you don't want to stay out on the road in the middle of the ice because somebody else could come along. How do you handle it if you're in an accident and what are the next steps? Gilman: The best thing to do is to exchange informa5on with the other person or people that are involved in the accident. You have your cell phone, hopefully, ready to go and charged. Take a few pictures. Move to a safe place because you're right. One of the worst things you can do is stay on the road. We actually represented a client that had that happen one 5me. He was in an accident in snow and

ice and it became like a 14 car pile-up because everybody was so focused on taking pictures and exchanging informa5on that nobody got out of the way. And the worst thing about those types of accidents are people outside of their car can get a lot more hurt than people inside their car. So the best thing you can do is exchange informa5on and pull over. If you can get out of the way before you even try to because that is the safest thing to do. Patrice: All right, Charles, thank you so much. We appreciate it. Gilman: Be careful out there.

Megan: It is 7:44 the holiday season is a time for joy. It is a time for celebration. You dont want to end up in the emergency room. According to the Consumer Products Safety Division, there are roughly 200 decorating-related injuries per day this time of year. This morning attorney Charles Gilman, with Gilman & Bedigian LLC, is joining us live with some tips to make sure you are protected. Charles, always great to see you. Thanks for joining us this morning. Charles: You as well and happy holidays, Megan. Megan: Happy holidays. You know, my dad is one of them. He fell putting up Christmas lights - he fell off the ladder. Unfortunately, it was his own error. How do you know if legal action should be considered if it was not your fault? Charles: Well, a lot of the lighting or ladder situations are going to be your fault or assumption of risk. So more to the point, what you have to do is be careful. Have a spotter make sure you have all the safety instructions. I know its odd to say the ladder comes with instructions but they do and you should read them before you use it if you are not a professional roofer or someone who is not climbing on a ladder on a daily basis. Just to remind yourself of all the safety risks and ways to prevent the injuries. Megan: What are some of the injuries that you have heard about that can often lead to a lawsuit? Are there any we should keep in mind? Charles: Often we hear of someone who climbed on somebody else's roof. For example, I am a professional decorator and I go out to decorate someone else’s house. I climb on their roof and my ladder was safe, but the roof was not safe, because it was too old and the roof fell in and me as the professional fell through the roof. That is what we hear a lot of is those types of injuries where the roof was just not stable. And they result in workers comp claims and potential claims against the homeowner if they knew or should have known about the condition about the roof. Megan: What about defective products? Do you hear about those this time of year? Charles: Oh yeah. Much more after the holidays than before because what happens is we are all buying gifts for our children or other people's children and just young people in general and now it's even harder. If you are going to buy online, you don't get to see it in store and see if it has small parts or parts that are likely to break or come apart. So I think after the holidays is when we are going to hear about all the claims from children swallowing pieces of toys or toys that were made defectively. I, think we are going to have a huge influx of those types of incidents after the holidays unfortunately. Megan: Yeah, unfortunately for sure and those kinds of things you can see how that could happen. If a toy says "choking hazard," would that protect the company from any lawsuits? Charles: It depends on exactly the nature of the warning. If it's a toy for a child under the age of six and a child of three picks it up, perhaps. But if a children seven or eight or six picks it up, perhaps not. Those things are so fact specific. That's why we urge everybody to call a lawyer if it happens to you or your family. Get a lawyer who knows what they are doing to review the facts and circumstances for you. Don't make a generalization.

Megan: Right. Charles Gilman, we appreciate it. Hopefully no one gets hurt and they won't be calling, but we appreciate your advice this morning. Chales: Happy holidays and we always hope that our phones are quiet and that everyone is happy and healthy. Megan: That's a good thing. Thank you, Charles. Charles: Thank you. Happy holidays.

Speaker 1: The following segment is sponsored by Gilman and Bedigian. Patrice: 07:45am and as the days get colder the use of space heaters in homes and on outside patios is increasing. While they may keep us warm and toasty the increase in injury or damage to your home and property is also something you need to keep in mind. Attorney Charles Gilman, from Gilman and Bedigian, joins us now on what you should do to stay safe and what to do if something does go wrong. Good morning. Charles Gilman: Good morning, Patrice. How are you? Patrice: I am doing well. Alright, so i have just bought some of these space heaters for the outdoor patio myself - you see them at all the outdoor dining. What do we need to know about these? Gilman: Well, at home, I think what you need to know is to keep them at least three feet away from the surface of your house or if you put them on a porch or a patio keep them away from the railings because all of those things are flammable. The other thing that you should do, especially at your house, is to make sure if something does catch on fire outside, you know how to get away from it - either run inside, run down the steps, run away from it. But don't run into it. I think that it's an important point in restaurants too, because if you are going to be outdoor dining, they have those massive space heaters out there and they are full of propane. When you sit down, you want to make sure that you plan a way to get away if someone's clothing catches on fire or something else catches on fire. Patrice: Okay, true, and you know what? For a lot of the outdoor restaurants and maybe your homes, they have these tents set up for you to sit under. Can you have those heaters under those tents? Gilman: I think it depends on which heater you buy, but any heater you buy is going to come with instructions from the manufacturer. You have to make sure you follow those instructions, because some of them could catch those tents on fire and other issues - maybe not enough ventilation, and then you have the fact of the gas, the propane or whatever, that's getting people sick. Patrice: And let's talk about indoor heaters. The first thing is that you shouldn’t bring an outdoor heater inside. That's not going to work. When you are looking for indoor heaters for your home, what do you need to keep in mind? Gilman: Keep in mind that you need to buy the one that's the right size for your room (or rooms) you intend to heat, and the other thing you might want to keep in mind is, don't turn the heater the whole way up, have a party, open the windows, and not expect a bad outcome.

You have to be careful of those as well. Keep them away from walls and if you going to use them inside, one of the number one recommendations is carbon monoxide detectors that you make sure work monthly, as well as smoke alarms in your house. Make sure the batteries are charged and you have tested those as well. Patrice:Alright. All just good reminders as everyone is transitioning to using those. Thank you so much for joining us. Gilman: Thank you for having me. Have a great day. Patrice: You too.

Tom: Fall's already begun. Halloween's right around the corner. What we're used to, or the costume par=es and trick or trea=ng this year will most likely have to be different. In some jurisdic=ons are completely banning all Halloween ac=vi=es, while others are strongly discouraging it. Well, joining us this morning about the owner's responsibili=es, aCorney Charles Gilman, partner at Gilman and Bedigian Trial Lawyers. Good morning, Charles. Charles Gilman: Good morning, Tom. How are you? Tom: I'm doing well. Now we know trick or trea=ng and costume par=es are now against new social distancing rules - for some jurisdic=ons, trick or trea=ng, but for par=es almost all across the board. So how can people enjoy the holiday this year. What can they do to do it? Gilman: Well, Halloween's an interes=ng ac=vity because people are already wearing costumes and a lot of costumes already involved masks and gloves. So if you put, not a typical mask with a mouth outline on it, but if you can figure out a costume to wear with a mask that's COVID-safe or COVID-approved, add a pair of gloves and you can probably have a very nice =me with a small gathering. And hopefully outdoors, if it doesn't rain, and if within your neighborhood people have been crea=ng bubbles, you could certainly have a part. I don't want to call them par=es, but get togethers within your bubble. And that way, you know everybody in the circle, that way you know where most of them have been, and you know they're safe. That will relieve the owner of any responsibility legally, but more importantly, morally and and the way you feel about yourself, because you didn't allow the virus spread. Tom: Charles, what about if you are a homeowner and you decide to hand-out treats. Are there any possibili=es that homeowners will be facing responsibility for a trick or treater that says that they got COVID from you? Gilman: In Maryland, the answer to that is going to be "no" because there's an assump=on of risk doctrine. That stands for the proposi=on that if you do something inherently dangerous, and I don't want to call trick or trea=ng inherently dangerous, but if you do something that's likely to spread the virus and you're knowingly par=cipa=ng in it, you can't blame somebody when you get the expected outcome. Tom: Gotcha. What other poten=al dangers should we be looking out for? Gilman: Tom, it goes back to the Halloween segments I think you and I have done in the past - you s=ll have to watch out for drunk driving. You s=ll, if you're a driver, have to watch out for the children that might be running around their neighborhood in dark costumes. Hopefully, they're wearing glow-s=cks flashlights or some device to make them more visible, but those things are s=ll going to happen. Kids are s=ll going to be outside being kids on Halloween, so we s=ll have to watch out for those types of things. Tom: All right, Charles Gilman, with Gilman and Bedigian. Thank you so much for your =me. We appreciate it. Gilman: Thanks, Tom. Have a great day. Tom: You too.

Meghan: It is 7:45, the first day of school for the majority of districts across our region begins tomorrow online. But with Governor Hogan giving the green light for in person learning, many districts are now weighing the risks and benefits of going back in the near future. This morning, attorney Charles Gilman with Gilman and Bedigian, LLC, joins us live via Skype to weigh in on the legal liability, that is undoubtedly a factor. Charles, thank you for joining us this morning. Charles Gilman: Thank you for having me and happy Labor Day. Meghan: 'Thank you for "laboring" with us here this morning. I think the question many are wondering is, "Will schools be held accountable if kids or teachers get sick?" Charles: The answer is, it depends. One of the factors is going to depend on whether or not they follow the CDC guidelines or not. If a school follows the CDC guidelines and has a problem, I don't think they're going to have a liability issue. If they flagrantly disregard the CDC guidelines, most likely they're going to have a legal problem from both the teachers and the students. Meghan: And, you know, schools are used to preparing for this sort of thing. Even thinking of playgrounds, of getting hurt at a playground. Is this similar to that? Charles: It is in the sense that as you said, they can prepare- if they're properly prepared. For example, I know a school in Baltimore that has the teacher walking around behind the plexiglass shield. That's preparation. I don't think if that teacher got sick and she followed the school's protocol, that there would be much liability for the school. But if that teacher didn't have that shield and that students weren't wearing masks, it would be a very different story. Meghan: As districts prepare and plan for hopefully having some in-person learning here at some point, what do parents need to do to prepare and keep in mind? Charles: I think parents should be vigilant to protect themselves, their families, their kids, as well as everybody else. They should follow the rules. And if they hear from their child that the school's not following the guidelines, they may need to react and home-school, not home-school, but keep their kid at home for virtual learning or make the principal aware that the rules aren't being followed. It depends which rule and what the threat is as to how they should react. Meghan: Charles, if someone feels that something wasn't being followed, how does that litigation begin? Is it a short process or will it take some time to see through in court? Charles: It's going to take some time to see through, because these are cases of first impression, meaning that nobody's ever sued anybody else for contracting COVID yet. And if they have a lot of the courts shut down and we don't know how the courts are going to rule. So these are cases of first impression, which are going to take a while to work through the system. Meghan: All right, Charles Gilman, thank you so much for weighing in this morning to have a great rest of the holiday. Charles: You as well, Megan. Thank you.

Megan: While many in Northwest Bal5more people are coun5ng their blessings this morning, just to be alive a=er yesterday's massive explosion today, the cleanup begins and the damage is significant for so many residents in that area from broken out windows to blown indoors. This morning, aForney Charles Gilman, with Gilman and Bedigian, LLC, joins us live via Skype to walk us through how to file a claim. Charles, thank you so much for joining us. Charles Gilman: Thank you for having me, Megan. It's always a pleasure under these circumstances. Megan: Exactly. So many people, either having property damage or even injuries to themselves - how do you know if you're eligible, to even begin the filing of a claim? Gilman: Well, you don't need to know if you're eligible to file the claim. If you have an injury or a loss of property, you should file a claim. And then once the claim is filed, figuring out if you're eligible because a lot of 5mes you're eligible to file a claim, but the homeowner's insurance carrier or somebody will tell you that you're not eligible. Anybody can file a claim, but eligibility is something that, if you're being told the answer is "no, you're not eligible," then you should really talk to a lawyer about that. Megan: So the first step - calling a lawyer, filing the claim, you know, who is held responsible at the end of all of this? Gilman: That's an interes5ng ques5on. We have to wait un5l we get to the end of August to make a determina5on as to who caused it. For example, if it was somebody's stove that caught on fire and they were cooking, then they may be responsible. Or maybe it's a faulty gas pipe - I read or understand that a lot of these gas pipes in this area were late in the 1950s and 1960s and may have been failing. If there's a failure at the end of the u5lity company, the u5lity company is ul5mately responsible and liable for all the personal injuries and property damage that were caused. Megan: When you're trying to figure out who's responsible. We know some5mes that takes an inves5ga5on that can take 5me for those folks who need the money now to put windows back on their house or their homes. How long does it take normally to get reimbursed? Gilman: If they have homeowners insurance, and most people who have a mortgage in Maryland are going to be required to have homeowners insurance by the mortgage company, they can claim their homeowner's insurance, and hopefully, their homeowner's insurance will cover their losses. And then, if it's later determined that it was somebody else's fault, such as BGE or the u5lity or another u5lity company that laid the gas pipe, the homeowner's insurance company will pay now and seek reimbursement from the actual party that was liable later. We know from the other other gas explosions in our community, some5mes these inves5ga5ons take years to wrap up and have a conclusion as to who was ul5mately liable for it. So the goal would be to get your homeowners insurance to pay for it now, and then they'll seek the reimbursement because obviously, the insurance company has plenty of money while most people don't. Megan: Charles Gilman, thanks for shedding light on this. We appreciate it. Gilman: Thank you, Megan.

Tom: A major drop in emergency department visits across the US seems like a positive story. Right? However, it's actually creating concern for medical professionals as the CDC and they fear patients are avoiding hospitals at all costs due to COVID. But the facts don't add up. Joining us now, law partner for Gilman and Bedigian, Charles Gilman. Thank you so much for joining us, Charles. Gilman: Thank you, Tom. It's nice to be with you. Tom: Yeah this is a, this is a big question though. You hear it and you're like, Oh, okay. That's great. Emergency department visits are down. That means that people aren't getting into accidents. They're not hurting themselves as much. And they're the CDC is saying, no, it's just the opposite. In fact, we need to see more people in the hospital because this is going to create even bigger problems later on. What do they mean by that? Gilman: Well, Tom it's from a medical malpractice standpoint, what we see is people (or the Monday morning quarterbacks, if you will), we have people calling our office all the time and saying, "Look, this went wrong. My doctor should have done something for me." What we're discovering is people are having heart attacks, strokes, and issues like that that are typically easily cured or prevented if they take a trip to the emergency room. But people are so terrified of COVID and they don't think that the hospitals are safe. So rather than addressing what they think is a chest pain or something in their head, or something that's an indication of a very serious medical ailment. They're ignoring it. And they're creating a much bigger problem for themselves. The heart attack is a great example. If treated early and taken care of you, have a very high survival rate. If you don't go to the hospital and you ignore the chest pain or ignore whatever symptoms you have, there's a much better likelihood that you either have a very serious injury or die. Tom: Charles, let's talk about the possible lawsuits here that go on this related to anything medical here. So if a lot of people have businesses, they have to pass a test screening, they have to fill out forms to avoid any lawsuits on behalf of the commercial industry or whichever their employers are doing. Do you think that plays a little bit into the minds though, of somebody is saying, you know what? I don't want to go to the hospital, because what happens then maybe out of work for two weeks or not be able to come back until I get a positive test? Gilman: Absolutely, but those people should keep in mind that there's the CARES Act and various different other Acts that have been passed by the federal government that are forcing your employer to essentially pay you while you're out for COVID. It might only be 14 days of pay, but that's your typical quarantine period. So, you know, having a job is very, very important. I don't want to minimize that, not getting terminated is very, very important, but I think that employers in this day and age are willing to work with employees and understand that a quarantine is important. And you also have to keep in mind that if you don't take care of these ailments and head to an emergency room, work may not be an issue because if you don't survive a heart attack or stroke or something like that, then you don't need to work because you're not around to work. Tom: Alright, Charles Gilman with Gilman and Bedigian. Again, thank you so much for your time. Gilman: Thank you, Tom. It was good to see you. Tom: You too.

Megan: It is 7:45 am as businesses reopen some are requiring employees and even customers to sign waivers potentially releasing the business from any liability related to Covid-19 but are they valid, these waivers? Attorney Charles Gilman, the managing partner with Gilman and Bedigian, joins us live via Skype. Good morning. Thanks for joining us.

Charles: Thank you, Megan, and good morning.

Megan: Well, when you are singing these waivers, are you signing away your right to sue.

Charles: Yes and no. The answer is tricky. If you are signing a waiver to go to a nail salon, or gym, or even some of the political rallies, and the people organizing or running the gym or salon are doing everything they can that's reasonable, and they are taking all the right precautions, then you are probably not going to be able to sue them in Maryland if you have signed a waiver. However, if you have signed a waiver and the nail salon technician or gym and somebody who is an employee fails to wear the protective equipment or fails to clean something and fails to warn you, then that’s different. If you have signed the waiver and they do everything up to a reasonable person's standard you may be barred from suing them. Whoever just because you sign a waiver does not mean they can throw caution to the wind and behave any way they want. They will still be liable if they are negligent.

Megan: What if you don't sign that waiver? Can businesses fire you or get rid of you? Is there any way to protect employees on that end?

Charles: If any employee is asked to sign a waiver, most likely those types of waivers are going to be “contracts of adhesion,” meaning that if an employer says to an employee, “you can’t come back unless you sign this” and there are some unreasonable provisions in that waiver, it probably won't be upheld because the job market is tough right now and it's not like the employee has 100 different choices and say “I don’t want to sign your waiver. I will quit and go find another job.” They are going to be forced to decide between their job and an unreasonable waiver - and if the waiver is unreasonable, it probably is not going to be upheld.

Megan: Alright Charles, looking at the other side of this, from the business perspective, what can they be doing to protect themselves from these lawsuits. You know there are always people looking to take advantage of situations, so is there anything that they can do to make sure they are not taken advantage of?

Charles: They can have a waiver written out by a lawyer instead of one they have found on the Internet so that it’s Maryland specific, it will help the Maryland business owner. But the business owner has to remember that just because all their employees and clients are

signing waivers, that doesn’t mean they don't have to clean or disinfect or enforce the fact that people have to wear PPE and be careful.

Megan And that's a huge part of it. Alright Charles Gilman, thanks for weighing in. We appreciate it.

Charles: Thank you, Megan. Have a great day.

Tom: A week ago, Maryland small businesses were transitioning into the opening as COVID restrictions were being loosened. As we speak this morning, during the protests of riots, will businesses be held under the same standards, that remains the question joining us this morning via Skype managing partner with Gilman and Bedigian, attorney Charles Gilman. Good morning, Charles. Charles Gilman: Hi Tom. How are you? Tom: I'm doing well. This is, let's start with the confusion that's been going on for quite some time now because earlier you had the president saying certain things that he pushed it down to governors saying, okay, you guys make the calls. Governor Hogan took over. We're saying these are the restrictions. Then all of a sudden out of nowhere, a couple of weeks ago, he says, you know what? I'm going to let each executive make the call. So there's confusion because now business owners, small business owners struggling to do it under certain restrictions, they don't understand is it feasible for them to open up, still winning to get PPP or even to get some funding for it, all that stress and then they're going, okay, now if we open up and somebody happens to get COVID nearest, can they blame us? Gilman: Well, Tom, we've talked about this in the past and you know, six to eight weeks ago we said we weren't sure if anybody was going to be able to hold a business liable if they contracted COVID at that business. But I think now that we know much more about the disease and there are guidelines to follow, if a business opens, for example, whether it be a restaurant or a shoe store or whatever it may be, a dentist office, if they violate the guidelines and somebody can prove it, that every violation of the guidelines caused them to contract COVID, there may be a liability. We're still in a world of the unknown when it comes to COVID. But the thing that I think the business owners need to focus on is to keep everybody safe and follow the guidelines. The guidelines set up a "best-practices" situation and if you follow best practices, it's going to be very hard to be held liable if somebody can prove that they contracted the disease at your business. Tom: Charles, under those best practices though, it says reasonable measures taken. So can you explain, I mean reasonable sounds like it's very subjective? Gilman: It is and unfortunately for business owners and for all of us alike that they might patronize a business, the reasonable measures are changing day by day. It's six feet apart. It might change eight feet apart. It's wear a mask, don't wear a mask. It's very, very hard right now. So a business owner now has another job besides making payroll, besides paying rent, worrying about their PPP: they have to read the CDC guidelines that are applicable to their particular business every single day and see if there are any changes. For example, do restaurants have to move the tables further apart? Do shoe stores or dentists have

to react differently than they did the day before to protect their patients or clients or customers. It's a moving target, Tom, and we're all trying to do the best that we can but for these business owners to avoid liability, the best thing they can do is stay on top of these new guidelines, even though they're constantly evolving. Tom: There you go. You said it best right there. Thank you, Charles. We appreciate your time. Gilman: All right. Thank you, Tom. It was good to talk to you. Tom: Good to talk to you too. Charles Gilman with Gilman and Bedigian.

Megan: We know some environments are more prone to Coronavirus outbreaks including cruise ships, nursing homes, and if you can track in COVID-19 in one of those areas because of inadequate measures to prevent or contain the spread, you might have a lawsuit on your hands this morning. Attorney Charles Gilman with Gilman and Bedigian, LLC is joining us live via Skype with some guidance. Good morning. Thanks for joining us. Charles Gilman: Thank you, Megan, nice to be with you Megan: So I can at least see you and we're so glad you're able to join us. If people are dealing with this, what legal remedies are available? Gilman: Well, it's going to be very questionable. There's a lot up in the air right now. In a nursing home, which is a good example, typically when you have a nursing home case, you have to apply the reasonable person's standard of care to determine whether or not the negligence occurred or the nursing home did something wrong. Now we're dealing with a pandemic that is brand new, something we've never dealt with on a scale like this before, so we have to, as lawyers and as a legal community, figure out what the reasonable person should have done or could have done under the circumstances to determine if there's going to be a negligence case that arises out of the care of your loved one in a nursing home. Megan: Let me ask you this as well, Charles, because you know, looking at what's happening right now, my question is, is there a time allotment for, for actually filing the suit? We know that right now nursing home facilities are looking for protection from COVID-19 lawsuits for inadequate care. Do you need to follow your lawsuit now before that happens or is it all the same? If that happens? Gilman: Well, regardless of whether you file your lawsuit today or within the statute of limitations, which is three years in Maryland, if the legislature enacts some sort of law that protects or grants immunity to the nursing home, quite frankly, I don't think it's going to matter when you file the lawsuit. It's going to be dismissed based on that new law. Megan: Right what do you think will happen? Do you think that nursing homes, you know, will not be liable for some of these? Or what, what do you see looking into your crystal ball? Gilman: I think it’s going to be very interesting. I think the cruise ships that, for example, that took off later after COVID-19 was a risk and they already had ships at sea dealing with it - maybe that wasn't reasonable. But nursing homes, again, if you had an infection in the nursing home and the ability to control it by moving one or two patients and you failed to do so, there may be a claim there. Because of the incubation period and the fact that nobody knew there was COVID-19 in the nursing home, if that's how it's spread, there may not be a liability there. Just like everything that everybody's dealing with daily, it's all-new. We're going to have to figure it out as we go along. Megan: All right, Charles Gilman thanks for weighing in this morning. We appreciate it. Glad you're well.

Gilman: Thank you. You too, Megan. Had a nice day. Megan: You too.

Megan: If you are preparing to file a claim against your employer because you've been diagnosed with COVID-19 there are some do's and don'ts here this morning, attorney Charles Gilman with Gilman and Bedigian LLC is joining us live via Skype with some guidance for all of us. Thank you so much for joining us this morning. We appreciate it. Charles Gilman: Thank you, Megan, it's nice to Skype with you. Megan: Yes, you know from what I'm hearing from the research that you've been helping us with worker's compensation versus personal injury, those claims are two very different things. Gilman: Yes, if you're looking to file a claim against your employer, your exclusive remedy is going to be workers' comp. So if that was the specific question I was asked, “Are you going to be able to file a claim against your employer if you contract COVID-19?” Megan: You know-how, how difficult is this to prove? I would assume you need to prove that you got COVID-19 at work and that there was some negligence there. Is that correct? Gilman: Well, a worker's comp claim doesn't require the negligence element - all it requires is proof that it happened at work. I think at this stage with what we know with COVID-19, it's going to be very difficult to prove that your employer was the source of, or the cause of, your COVID -9, because if you went to the grocery store, the gas station or anywhere else, the argument could be if you contracted it at any one of those places and pinpointing it on your employer is going to be very difficult. Megan: Oh, I would think so too, with that said, is it worth it for someone who feels as though they did get it at work for them to go forward with this claim. Gilman: At this point, this is all new to everybody, so what I think you do is if you have a lawyer or you want to call us, you call and you give us your name, your number and your fact pattern and we work with you. We don't know what this is going to come out to be like. As I said before, we could determine in three, four, six months that there is a way to prove it. And if you can prove it, you have a claim and worker's comp, you have two years to file your claim. So there's no rush. You can wait a couple of months, wait six months, wait a year to decide as to whether or not you file that claim. Megan: Have you been hearing from a lot of people who are interested in pursuing this? Gilman: Not particularly this element, but we've been hearing a lot about people who are not being able to get into a hospital or people who had automobile accidents and can't get treatment or don't even want to get treatment, which I don't blame them for. You don't want to go to a hospital right now, as you know, with a back sprain or a neck sprain and end up with COVID-19. Megan: Oh, that's interesting. All right. Charles Gilman, we appreciate your time this morning, thanks for weighing in. Gilman: Thank you, have a nice day. Megan: Stay safe.

Tom: Well believe it or not we are heading into spring in just a matter of weeks and with are trips to the park and more playing on playgrounds with various styles of playgrounds designed for certain ages. You need to be on the alert for injuries, here now on how to limit playground injuries Gilman Gilmann a partner at Gilman and Bedigan trial lawyers. Thank you so much for coming in. Charles Gilman: Thanks, Tom. Thanks for having me. Tom: We are talking about a whole lot of playgrounds that are out there i mean there are all sorts of things and you gave a list of some of the injuries that really that you deal with that you hear from different parents and they go through all sorts of things from dogs being in parks to kids playing with other kids and actually hurting other kids. What do you tell parents? Gilman: Well, obviously, the first thing is we tell them to be careful and we also tell them look with the Coronavirus out there when your kids are out there at the park now obviously wash your hands and wash their hands when you go home. But there are all sorts of parks but what amazes me the most was the number of injuries that children under fourteen sustain. Something like two hundred thousand injuries in emergency departments around the country per year for children under fourteen. Tom: And you are taking these numbers right from the CDC and where it is you know just regular trips of falls, scratches and scrapes all the way up to serious head injuries. Gilman: Ten percent of that two hundred thousand were traumatic brain injuries. Which was startling to me when I was putting this piece together because who would have thought there was twenty thousand TBI’s resulting from playground injuries. Tom: And these playgrounds you expect okay they are going to make them as safe as possible and there are various toys out there that are instrumental on the way the building materials are used. So you even saying one aspect of it is looking at the playground as a parent looking that even the ground is safe. Gilman: Correct. For example, if your child is going to be using the monkey bars, keep in mind that if they are shorter children, they are going to have a longer distance to fall. Make sure whatever they are falling on is going to pad their fall. Make sure that they are not going to bump their head if they fall off either end of the monkey bar on to something else, because obviously these TBI’s are occurring a lot i mean that's 10% of the injuries. Tom: What happens though if you go out to a playground or to a public space and your child is playing and all of a sudden an injury occurs, what do you do as a parent? Gilman: As a parent you obviously get your child the medical treatment they need and take care of them. If it's a head injury or a broken bone, you take them to the emergency room and get them the treatment they need. From a legal standpoint, we have got to look at it as the playground. Was it negligently designed? Was there appropriate safety equipment used or not, the appropriate equipment or not, etc. We are going to analyze it legally differently than we would medically and the first thing is to get your child treated.

Tom: Say it was a dog bite that happened because a lot more people are bringing their dogs to the playground say there is interaction there do you take a picture of the dog or do you just first worry about the safety of the child and getting that fixed before? Gilman: I think you always worry about the safety of the child first and you know pictures come second. Hopefully, you are busy taking care of your child because some dog injuries can be very gruesome. Hopefully, there is a witness there because it is a public place and someone will take a picture for you. Or if you are in a group someone will take that picture for you. But you should worry about getting the medical treatment because that's what comes first. Tom: There you go, Charles Gilman, thank you so much Gilman and Bedigan we appreciate it. Gilman: Thank you, Tom. Always nice to see you.

Megan Gilliland: You just got the perfect Christmas gift for your kid and now you have learned that toy is being recalled. This morning, attorney Charles Gilman with the law firm, Gilman and Bedigian is here to really walk us through what to do next if this happens to you this holiday season. Thank you for coming in. This is not something you always talk about. Charles Gilman: No, but thank you for having me Megan. It's not something you always talk about but it is something today that you have to be very cognizant of, and you almost have to be proactive to find out if the toy was recalled. Gilliland: That's what I was asking you - how do you know? Gilman: The Consumer Product Safety Commission, the CPSC, is probably the best website to go check and again, if you do have young children, you really should be proactive because when you go to Target, Walmart or wherever, or buy it online, nobody takes your name and address and registers it with a central database, like when you buy a car to say, "Hey, that widget you bought is being recalled" because it's a choke hazard, it electrocuted somebody or somebody got seriously injured because of it. Gilliland: So let's say you go on the website, you just got a great deal black Friday shopping, you don't want to get rid of it and you know your kid's gonna love it. Do you have to, you know, take it back once you see that it's being recalled? Gilman: It depends. Gilliland: Probably a crazy parent question because of course safety should come first. Gilman: It's a great question. But what you have to do is figure out why it's being recalled. If you have a seven-year-old that you're not worried about it is choke hazard - probably not going to be that important. But if it's something that you know, you have a young kid and it's a choke hazard, you don't have to throw it out, what you should probably do, take it away from the child and go get a refund from the website or the store where you bought it. Gilliland: And did, does the website that you mentioned, give all those details as to why it's being recalled. Gilman: Absolutely. Gilliland: Easy to figure it out. Gilman: It's a government website, it's, it's there for anybody to use, and it's a national database, a international database really, of all the toys or products that had been recalled. Gilliland: All right, let's say you did get a toy, you gave it to them early, or maybe this will happen down the road. They get injured what's the first thing you do? Gilman: Well then you call us or call a lawyer and we can walk you through the process. Some of the best examples are those bookshelves that some furniture makers were selling that were tumbling on top of kids because they weren't balanced and adequately fastened to the wall. We can certainly help with that. There have been lawsuits across the country with those types of products. So any type of product, if somebody is injured, call a lawyer. Gilliland: And that's regardless of whether it's being recalled or not. Gilman: Absolutely. You should call a lawyer anytime there's an injury because you may have a claim and obviously what you want is your child to be okay. But once you make sure that your child's okay, then it's time to call the lawyer and see if there's any compensation available to you. Gilliland: Does this happen a lot? Gilman: A lot more than we hope and think. Gilliland: All right thank you for coming this has been some, some helpful information we don't always talk about it thank you. Gilman: Thank you and happy holidays. Gilliland: Happy holidays.

‏Tom Rodgers: Yeah they are becoming more popular every year we're marketed it as a healthier alternative to cigarettes, but now e-cigarettes, they're making headlines for potentially creating fatal lung diseases. Let's see, FDA now, one's marketing of e-cigarettes to stop targeting teens who now for our legal ramifications. Charles Gilman with Gilman and Bedigian, thank you so much for coming in.

‏Charles Gilman: Thank you Tom, and good morning.

‏Rodgers: Good morning to you too this is something that we, we reporting about all the time now, 21 deaths now associated with e-cigarettes here across the nation. It doesn't sound like much there, but then when you tie in all the people that are getting illnesses that possibly going tied in here, the FDA doesn't know what to do. They're just saying stop using them until we find out more.

‏Gilman: Exactly. The FDA doesn't know what's going on, 100% the hospitals don't know what's going on, the doctors don't know what's going on, and more importantly, the parents don't necessarily know what's going on.

‏Rodgers: Interestingly, you brought that up cause I wanted to read a statement that just came out from the surgeon general talking about how, how large and populace has become. Their use has grown dramatically in the last five years. Today more high school students use e-cigarettes than regular cigarettes that's good news there right. We thought with the e-cigarette was a healthier alternative, but then it goes on to say the use of e-cigarettes is higher among high school students than in adults, but the e-cigarette companies are saying, you know, we never targeted the kids, we don't market to the kids but they were also saying, yes you do.

‏Gilman: Well I think that's baloney. I think what we're seeing now is with the Cocoa Krispy’s and the rainbow flavors.

‏Rodgers: Right.

‏Gilman: And the cereal flavors were intended to market towards children and being an attractive option for the children as to the real cigarette smoking.

‏Rodgers: And then when that happens as a parent, if you find out, okay, my kids have been using hiding it from me and using it because there's not much odor to it. You find that out. What can a parent do that finds this out? It says, okay, this is really unhealthy and possibly even fatal with some people.

‏Gilman: Well, there's the first element of it with your child. You have to educate your child. Maybe show them some of the news stories of the other children who had been sick and or even died from it. And maybe that'll deter them from using it legally. I suspect, and we know it's coming down the pike, there's going to be a lot of litigation over this type of marketing and the product use, the issue becomes is some of it is black market stuff and people are buying it off Alibaba and other websites and they're finding out that it is led, um, and other chemicals in it that just when they hit your lungs are toxic.

‏Rodgers: And that's the other part that we're starting to go. It's, it says a lot of people were buying, you're buying this off the street. You know, that's not legitimate. But yet still they don't know the FDA’s saying, we don't know everything that's involved in an e-cigarette. So Maryland though, the state of Maryland is just this part. October 1st you have to be 21 to be able to purchase an e-cigarette or regular tobacco products.

‏Gilman: And that's the way it should be, honestly, because then when they market to the 18-year-olds or you know, a 16 or a 15-year-old can fudge it and buy those things. And that creates the problems that we're seeing now.

‏Rodgers: Okay. All right. Uh, talk through the kids and then seek legal advice.

‏Gilman: Absolutely, and there's going to be a lot of legal advice out there when it comes to this topic and it's coming quickly.

‏Rodgers: All right Charles Gilman in with Gilman and Bedigian and thank you very much for your time.

‏Gilman: Thank you, Tom.

‏Rodgers: Appreciate it, John let's find out exactly.

Speaker 1: Oh it’s that time of year, fall sports getting underway quickly when school's back in session, if they haven't started already. And unfortunately though sometimes those sports can come with injuries. Attorney and Judge Charles Gilman and from Gilman and Bedigian is here with some of the rules of the law and when things go wrong and as parents for your kind of are always worried about this, when we take all the extra precautions that we can, especially around school sports. Charles Gilman: Yes and absolutely. We take all the precautions. We buy our helmets, we buy shin guards, we buy whatever protective equipment we think is necessary for the sport. Things still go wrong. Speaker 1: So when that does happen, when you do he get the call from the school nurse or you, you find out maybe even from the hospital that your child had been injured on school grounds, what are the first steps that you need to take? Gilman: Well, obviously make sure your child's okay. Listen to the school nurse. If you have to go, if it's that bad of an injury, go make sure your child is okay. Take your child for any necessary medical care. Right now concussions are in the highlight and everybody's watching out for those. So if you take your child to a pediatrician, there'll be a concussion protocol. They'll run on the child to make sure the child doesn't have a concussion. If the child does have a concussion, they'll tell you what you need to do to make sure the child is okay and ready to return to sports. Speaker 1: There's also we bringing up the concussion. I mean whenever you have impact sports or something that goes on, how long do you have? Say there is something wrong and it takes them months to figure this out. How long do you have to actually go to somebody like an attorney like yourself? Gilman: Well, you can go to a lawyer. Children are different than adults. In Maryland we have a three year statute limitations, but if you're under 18, that statute of limitations is extended. So basically anybody in high school or below is going to be at the point where they have at least three years and probably more. If you're talking about a middle school, they could have six, seven, eight, nine years before their claimed has to be filed. Now there are a couple of exceptions because there are the local tort claims acts and some of the schools, the public schools, are governed by those who you might only have six months to a year to put them on notice. Speaker 1: Okay and then we're talking about focus on sports, but it's not all injuries at school are not necessarily pertaining just to sports though I mean there's the injuries that can happen just in the building? Gilman: Yeah, absolutely. There's injuries from slip and falls. There's injuries from bullying. There's injuries from, forget about bullying, but just children playing and horseplay with each other. You know, boys will be boys, so to speak, and there'll be fights or wrestling matches on the playground and people are going - kids are going to get hurt. Speaker 1: Last question for you then how far out does this last? I mean, we're talking about walk home from the bus stop or getting dropped off at the bus stop. Gilman: Well, it depends, you know, the answer is it just depends. If it's a walk home from the bus stop, it's going to be a little bit more tenuous. If it occurred on the bus or at school, it's a lot less tenuous to figure out who may be liable. Speaker 1: Okay All right. Charles Gilman with Gilman and Bedigian always great to have you back here. And your kids are already back in school, right? Gilman: Yep they're already back in school and they're doing it this week. Speaker 1: That's it yeah okay. Gilman: Well, I'm nervous, but also like excited. Speaker 1: Parents, right? Yeah and kids too. Gilman: Absolutely.

Speaker 1: For your health tonight, for that worldwide breast implant recall we first told you about the recall last night, right here on WMAR 2 news at five o'clock, one of the largest breast implant makers, Allergade is recalling textured breast implants and tissue expanders worldwide. Again, just their textured implants, the FDA discovered the devices are linked to a rare type of cancer, but if you have these implants and don’t have any symptoms or problems you really don't need to do anything, but what if something happens down the road and you did nothing. Now we'll, we asked local experts in law for some clarity. Charles Gilman: What we know today is just a tip of the iceberg. What we're likely to learn over the coming years will be about how bad the products were and who knew about it. And how long ago did they know about it? - This is going to be entirely different than what we know today from a legal perspective. And knowing how history repeats itself, as a woman with one of these implants, you should absolutely get it checked out and make decisions that are best for you and your family. Speaker 1: Charles Gilman stresses again, these are just the textured implants. If you have any doubt, contact your doctor who will have the serial number for your implants to know if you are impacted.

Gilman & Bedigian on FOX45 Morning News July 1st, 2019

Sponsored by Gilman and Bedigian. Speaker 1: From sparklers to bottle rockets do you know what’s actually legal in Maryland before you set off any fireworks in the back yard. This week attorney Charles Gilman, with Gilman and Bedigian, with some rules and laws that keep your family safe, most importantly. Thank you so much for coming in. Charles Gilman: Good morning and thank you for having me. Speaker 1: Of course, sparklers are legal here in Maryland. Charles Gilman: Yes, absolutely. Speaker 1: So we can go ahead and do this but the safety risk is what you are here to talk about. Charles Gilman: Sparklers are legal, lots of thing are legal, but that does not mean they are necessarily safe if not used properly and by adults. One of the studies I read in preparation for today's talk was about how more and more states are allowing fireworks. They are legal now, but what happens is, as fireworks became legal, injuries increased. So if you had young children or if you are not sure what you are doing, you still have to be careful. Just because they are legal, it does not mean they are safe. Speaker 1: Right and sometimes they malfunction and they don’t work as the directions say that they should and the next thing you know is that you at the emergency room. Charles Gilman: Correct, and that’s another great point. One of the things you want to do is, just because you bought the fireworks, and it's legal, that doesn’t mean that’s its going to malfunction. So if you believe that you have fireworks that are not lighting properly or the fuse isn’t proper, don’t … Speaker 1: Don’t put your head in there! Charles Gilman: Definitely don’t put your head in and check it out. Maybe just throw it out and get rid of it and move on to the next one. Speaker 1: As far as you know, it’s not to say you can’t use the sparklers or the bottle rocket - there are ways to do this effectively and efficiently. Charles Gilman: Absolutel, - just use your common sense, follow the instructions, and now-a-days, with YouTube and videos, if you are not sure exactly of what to do, watch someone else do it first on YouTube or somewhere like that, and you can do it safely for your family, friends or community. Speaker 1: Legally, if you were to get hurt while setting off a firework can the company be found liable for any damages or physical injuries? Charles Gilman: That depends on exactly what went wrong: was it a malfunction? was it a manufacturer defect? or anything wrong like that? Call us and ask and we will be happy to answer those questions. Speaker 1: Any tips for us as we head into the 4th July? Charles Gilman: If you are going to be the one lighting the fireworks, stay sober, be safe, and if you are not sure what to do, get a blanket, a picnic and go watch somebody else - use an expert to light the fireworks.

Speaker 1: Thank segment is sponsored by Gilman and Bedigian.

Speaker 2: Top executives wait to give their children's cell phones until they are 14 with most not allowing data plans until 16 years of age. That's according to a recent New York Times report yet across the US the average age right now for a child's first phone is 10 what affects are smartphones having on their young brains. We'll hear now from Gilman and Bedigian. Charles Gilman, thank you so much for coming in.

Charles Gilman: Thank you Tom thanks for having me.

Speaker 2: Your, your um, law off is actually put together a couple of questions that parents should have there that they should be asking themselves to find the right age. I mean, it makes sense, pretty simple. This is your child, a loser belongings. Will they understand how to use a phone responsibly or the gentleman responsible kid? And are they capable of navigating social media responsibly?

Charles Gilman: Well, it's all part of a learning experience, but it also, you know, every kid is different. Every kid develops differently. Boy's, sometimes slower than girls and it could be vice versa. So I think it's, you know, every family has to ask the questions, all those questions and many more before they make a decision. Like, do I give a child a cell phone with a data plan or without a data plan?

Speaker 2: Uh, also, I know that another point is a lot of single parents will say, you know what, it's, it's vital because, um, if I can't make it somewhere, I need my child to have a cell phone to be able to find it just for the contact.

Charles Gilman: Absolutely. It makes it easier to get in touch with your child after school or while they're outside of school. Um, it makes it easier for you to find out where your child is because the one thing we all know about cell phones is they don't put them down.

Speaker 2: Yeah.

Charles Gilman: So there's a good chance if you're using one of those apps to attract some, it's actually on them and you can make sure they're where they're supposed to be and there's no bad things going on.

Speaker 2: Yeah. There's some pros that you guys have in here. You know, it's kind of like the apps for the phone that you'll be able to spy on your kids, find out exactly what they're texting. You can establish a lot of those parent guides on there and have them installed on their phone before you even hand it to them.

Charles Gilman: Correct.

Speaker 2: Okay.

Charles Gilman: I mean, we don't call it spying, but it really is.

Speaker 2: Um, it's more like monitoring.

Charles Gilman: Correct.

Speaker 2: There you go. That's a good word. You're the one buying the phone. Don't you have the right to be able to see what's being used?

Charles Gilman: Absolutely. It's your data plan It's your phone [02:00] and you should know what your children are up to because if they do need some education or talking to about what they're doing on social media or what they're not doing with it, you have the ability to do that because you've been tracking them.

Speaker 2: You also listed some of the cons here. One of the biggest factors, person that is the cost of it. I mean, these smart phones, are little computers right now and they get upwards of $1,000.

Charles Gilman: Absolutely. They're very expensive to buy and purchase. They're expensive to maintain and that the data plans can cost you 80 to $100 a month depending upon the carrier and, and you have to look at your family budget and see what's going to work best for you and how much is it worth to be able to do these things for your, or to watch your child.

Speaker 2: What about the cyber bullying aspect of it too? Because now, now they're vulnerable. If they do have a data plan and their own social media sites, it can quickly just backfire.

Charles Gilman: Oh, it can spiral out of control quickly. I think that's part of the education process. Just like we don't give kids cars or driver's licenses without driving school. So there is no social media school, if you will. But we can talk to them about it at home. And I think the school's, most of the schools now have topics and lectures on it and I think we have to come together as a community and teach them the benefits of the social media, but also the downfall so they don't fall into one of those traps.

Speaker 2; So we were saying in the beginning, a 10 year old is the average us. I mean, you could see that or you think you personally, do you think, uh, maybe wait a couple of years?

Charles Gilman: I think it, again, it depends on when your family situation. Um, you know, I have children and I recall when I was making the decision, my children are older now. Um, it was important to me because they were going to places outside, um, camps and I wanted to make sure that, you know, every, nothing nefarious happened. And if it did, I would probably know where they were.

Speaker 2: All right thank you very much Charles Gilman.

Charles Gilman: Thank you.

Charles Gilman: We appreciate your input on this too.

Speaker 2 Thank you.

Speaker 1: It is 07:45 you know we tell you about food recalls all the time where to return it how to get your money back. But what happens if you are actually injured because of that product? This morning, attorney Charles Gilman with Gilman and Bedigian is here to talk us through, walk us through the steps if you bought something that has recently been recalled. Thank you so much for coming in. Charles Gilman: Thank you for having me good morning. Speaker 1: Good morning to you. It's an interesting thing because we hear about these food products that have often been recalled. How do you know if maybe you could get some compensation for something of that? Charles Gilman: Well, it depends, you know, first of all you want to be healthy and second of all, if you're not, then you deal with the compensation issue. But it's, its simple. If you've, if you've digested or ingested a recalled food product and you have the symptoms that are consistent, consistent with what it was recalled for, you might be entitled to damages in your damage, it would include any time you've missed from work loss wages and medical bills you've incurred. And then that magic number that nobody really knows what it is, it's kinda touchy feely, that pain and suffering number that's associated with all the inconvenience or all your trips to the bathroom hospital or whatever it may be. Speaker 1: So how do you find out more? Where do you go to find out that the details of the, you know, what you, what you could be feeling from this recall? Charles Gilman: Um, well right now it's, you know, the Internet's a great resource. You have to be careful which website you go to. But first step would be to figure out if you have a recalled product. A lot of the grocery stores or food stores have it on their website. The FDA has it on their website. So there's plenty of places to figure out if you've, if you have a recalled product. And then the next step would be if you have peculiar symptoms after you've ingested a recalled product would be to seek medical attention. I don't want to tell people to Google it cause doctors tell you to go to the doctor rather than Google it. But Listeria for one and some of the other food borne illnesses do have common elements to them. Speaker 1: And you'll want to get some paperwork to document your illness that this actually in fact happened cause something when you talk about a pay out, you're going to start seeing recall chasers, [02:00] people who are trying to, to actually get thick and get some money. Charles Gilman: Absolutely. I mean, and look, you can't, and nobody’s going to be able to prevent that. Um, but you hope nobody does that intentionally because it's not worth the pain and aggravation. But you are going to want to receive a, sorry, save the container that the food came in your receipt if you still have it. And you know, when you go to the doctor patient first or the hospital, they're going to run some tests on you or they're going to make notes of the symptoms you had. Um, and they're either going to be consistent with the type of recall or disease or ailment or they're not. And that's how you can prove in a case like this, whether or not you are a true victim. Speaker 1: Aside from those people who are trying to take advantage of the system, this is something that can be really helpful for people who really have gotten heard besides just getting a stomach bug. There can actually be serious issues if you've digested, you know, pieces of metal or plastic. Charles Gilman: Oh yeah. If you, if you digest a piece of metal or plastic, you can do a lot of damage. You can cut your tongue, you can cut your mouth, the stitches may be necessary. Um, there, there's a lot of damage that gets done by foreign objects in food, in people's mouths. And it's not necessarily that you're suing them, it's just you're, you're getting money from the recall, … while you're making a claim against the manufacturer who was negligent in allowing that foreign object to get into your food. Speaker 1: Gotcha thank you for shedding some light on this. Charles Gilman: My pleasure thank you for having me. Speaker 1: All right. Looking at seven 48 on this Monday morning, we want to turn it over to meteorologists Jonathan …

Speaker 1: St Patrick’s Day is coming up and it is a popular day for partying but tragically its also the holiday most associated with drunk driving and fatal accidents. From 2012 to 2016 there were 269 drunk driving deaths on St Patrick’s Day in Maryland, Chares Gillman with Gilman and Bedigian joins us with things you can consider before you go out to celebrate the holiday, good morning. Charles: Good morning. Speaker 1: So let’s talk about there are so many traffic related accidents on St Patrick’s Day because people are drinking. Talk about the blood alcohol content its better if you don’t drink at all but talk about the blood alcohol thing again. Charles: Well in Maryland a 0.4 to a 0.7 is a driving while toxicated a 0.8 and above is a driving while under the influence. Speaker 1: And I never knew there was a distinction. I just thought drunk driving was drunk driving. Charles: Absolutely well there was a distinction in the law I suppose because the rational is they don’t want people driving a little buzzed and certainly not a lot buzzed as driving under the influence. Speaker 1: And its considered what they say for men that’s about five drinks. Charles: Yeah well over a couple of hours. Speaker 1: Okay and for women just under that four drinks but you got to know yourself because you can’t just go by that and 21 to 34 years olds that’s the biggest place we are seeing this. Charles: When we looked at statistics over St Patrick’s Day yeah the 21 to 34 year old’s were the biggest problem, or the biggest problem area we were seeing statistically the most drunk driving accidents and … Speaker 1: We should know all of this that we are about to talk about now but its always good to have a reminder, but its always good to have a reminder. Have a plan for getting home. Charles: Correct and now its even easier there are Taxi cabs there are some free rides out there and certainly there is Uber, Lift and all those other rides share apps and one of the other things we encourage people to do is to start out with a designated driver and if something happens to your designated driver weather they end up drinking or leaving then you fall back on Uber, lift or a taxi cab or something. A lot of these drunk driving occur they occur pretty close to home. So its not like you are taking a very expensive Uber or Lift ride it’s a question of actually doing it. Speaker 1: Stop others from driving drunk as well you want to be that friend who takes care of your friends. Charles: Absolutely if you happen to notice one of your friends has drank too much and wants to drive take the keys call them an Uber you know sort it out the next morning but be safe and be thoughtful first and foremost so that this does not happen and then you are arguing the next day about who put him in an Uber not going to a funeral. Speaker 1: Exactly. And also this is the harder part be alert for others on the road you are the sober one but you don’t know the condition of everybody else out there. Charles: No and quite frankly in my experience doing what we have done over the years as a lawyer unfortunately the people that get hurt the most in a drunk driving accident are not the drunk drivers they are usually the innocent victims that are on the road and being in the wrong place at the wrong time so if you see someone driving erratically and you are on the road, pull over get out of the way and call 911 but get out of there way first and foremost. Speaker 1: Alright Charles thank you. Charles: Thank you. Speaker 1: Hopefully nobody needs to call you in this holiday but I know you ….

Many questions remain unanswered tonight after a city police school police officer is caught on video slapping and kicking a student and now a group is calling for major changes to Baltimore school police policies. WJZ is live outside, city school headquarters [inaudible] with the demands of the latest on the investigation Ava Joy.

Ava Joy: Well Vic that advocacy group has been calling for a change on how school police officers operate inside schools for a long time now. Now that video has surfaced the demands are even louder.

Reach partnership High's now synonymous with this video police officer slapping and taking a tenth grader the result the officer landing the hit home and the officer standing by both of them on administrative leave, along with the city's police chief.

Student: I just think what he did was messed up and the price of what happened to him happened to him. Your job is to protect us not hurt us.

Ava Joy: Days after that video service there's still of question that the school system still has not answered. Like what happened before the video what, happened after the video and why were the chief of police city school police who wasn't even on the video also placed on administrative leave? While the public waits for those answers the sixteen year old lawyer tells WJZ his injuries sent him to the hospital.

Attorney: And you hope that that's never your child and that when your child goes to school that that child is respected and appreciated and that the people that take an oath to protect those children never turn around and do what that officer did to my client.

Ava Joy: Right now a Maryland based advocacy group is calling for swift changes where Baltimore school police officers would have limits on what they can and cannot do while they're on the job.

Attorney: We don't know what happened right before this incident, that's true, but no matter what happened that officer's behavior was inappropriate. The attorney told WJZ that her client had a bruised rib and also injuries to his face, reporting live Ava Joy Brunette WJZ news.

Anchor: Ava Joy thank you.

Tonight legal action against St Joseph Medical Center and a cardiologist who worked there an attorney at the law firm Weiss and Vogelstein says he filed a six count complaint it alleges medical negligence and fraud the medical center says former patients of its cat lab may have received stents that were not medically necessary Hospital officials say they do not believe the patients are at immediate risk but they're notifying them of the situation.

Interviewee: In our case, our first case in particular, there were two stents placed one was medically indicated and we do not dispute that. The other one however was completely unindicated it was an unnecessary procedure. My client actually got word of this from his own cardiologist.

Anchor: The attorney says he's seeking both com…tory and imputative damages for his clients … physician performed the cardiac catheterization is no longer employed by the hospital.

Anchor: On to a big story now tonight at five o'clock, more fallout over medical procedures performed in a Tausan hospital that patients didn't need. And now one patient is suing Saint Joseph Medical Center and the doctor at the center of the controversy.

Female anchor: Eleven news eye team reporter Barry Sims live tonight in Tausan with that story, Barry.

Barry: Well an attorney for one of the victims calls it a breach of trust and a lawsuit seeks a financial remedy.

Attorney Briggs: To send a person for a single vessel bypass. Seems to me this seems to be a bit like hitting a fly with a sledgehammer.

Barry: Dr Mark Maday appeared on WALT.V. several times to explain health issues involving the heart but a patient complaint led to questions about procedures he performed a federal investigation and hospitals review found hundreds of cases where he placed stents in patients arteries that weren't medically necessary now at least one victim has filed a claim with a health care alternative dispute resolution office. Attorney Briggs Bedigian represents Thomas Jaffe senior of Finksburg.

Attorney Briggs: There were two stents placed, one was medically indicated we do not dispute that the other one however was completely unindicated it was an unnecessary procedure.

Barry: The complaint is against Dr Maday and St Joseph Medical Center it alleges medical malpractice, fraud, negligent hiring and retention and negligent supervision by the hospital.

Attorney Briggs: And we don't know is whether we have truly just a rogue physician, who is out there for his own financial benefit or whether we have a more implicit scheme if you will where we have seen St Joseph's hospital gain financial benefit from all of these unnecessary procedures.

Barry: In response a St Joseph's spokeswoman says the physician is no longer employed or affiliated with the hospital she says St Joseph's was guided by the belief that it has a moral and ethical responsibility to inform these patients of what happened this is consistent with our mission and core values it was the right thing to do. Questions about potential liability remain to be resolved S J M C takes its responsibility to patients very seriously which is why we conducted a review and notified patients and physicians, our focus has been and will continue to be to put patients first.

Now we attempted to reach Dr Maday we were told that he is not ready to comment just yet reporting live from Tausan Barry Sims WBLT.V. eleven news.

Speaker 1: Hello I'm Jeff Bart.

Speaker 2: And I'm Karen parks a surgical scandal a man filed suit against a Baltimore area hospital claiming he underwent an unnecessary surgery.

Speaker 1: Crime just reported joy the Paula tells us money may have fuelled this surgery.

Speaker 3: Dr Mark Medi once considered a well-respected cardiologist now at the centre of a civil lawsuit that could cost him and St Joseph Medical Centre millions.

Speaker 4: This was a tremendous breach of trust it's the ultimate violation of a physician.

Speaker 2: its suspected Medina was putting stents in patients who didn't need them and this particular case Tom Shafi needed one stent but he came out of surgery with two.

Speaker 4: This is a gigantic business I mean the finances, finances clearly could be a motive in this case.

Speaker 2: This marks the first civil lawsuit to be filed but the attorney suspect's it won't be the last there is also a federal investigation into possible Medicare fraud.

Speaker 5: And it worries me, whether I have a stent in me and I really didn't need one.

Speaker 2: It was back in two thousand and eight Bill Butka received a stent at St Joseph, at the time he didn't think anything of it.

Speaker 5: When they told me that I had a problem a blockage surely you're going to trust your doctor that there's a problem and you've got to get it done quick so I just more or less did everything that they say.

Speaker 2: And now this lawsuit has been filed Bill has his doubts of whether the procedure was needed.

Speaker 5: I wanted to find out exactly did my stent.

Speaker 2: So far there is no evidence Bill was a victim in this scheme and that comes as good news for this father.

Speaker 5: I got a little boy I got to take care of.

Speaker 2: Joy Appola fox forty five news at ten.

Speaker 1: And tonight St Joseph released a statement saying in part that it does not believe patients getting the stent are at immediate risk.

Apple tossing I Phone four users a bone admitting there is a problem but Apple says it's not what you've been complaining about for days.

Speaker 2: Hundreds of thousands, you just moved thousands, to get your hands on the new I Phone four and instantly it looks like the reception stinks that's the key according to Apple it looks bad but they say it's not company put out a letter to owners of the fast selling smartphone following a flood of lawsuits Stacey Cohen is here now to break down the story Stacy.

Speaker 1: Well Brian in just the first week of sales the i Phone four has found its way into one point seven million hands around the world but wrapping those hands around the new product seems to block out the phone function of the i Phone four. Well now the company says the reception problem is really a perception problem.

Speaker 3: Remember this apple addicts and new converts camped out all night here and around the globe to be the first to handle the i Phone four it was instant gratification. But for some the infatuation was fleeting i Phone four users began to complain of dropped calls and poor reception Apple chairman Steve Jobs initially blamed users for holding the phone in a way that blocked the exterior antenna and this is the response. One Maryland man says he got when he called to complain.

Speaker 4: Mr McAfee for example caught a TNT from the apple store the day he started having problems and they said. Sure you can bring it back but you have to pay a forty five to sixty five dollars restocking fee.

Speaker 3: Temonnium attorney Charles Gilman now represents Kevin McCaffrey and others in a class action lawsuit against Apple a California firm has also issued a call for angered I phone users amidst the i Phone fury the company has now released a response that says in part gripping almost any mobile phone in certain ways will reduce its reception by one or more bars and. Upon investigation we were stunned to learn that the formula we used to calculate how many bars of signal strength, is displayed is totally wrong the company goes on to explain the failed reception is really a problem of displaying a strong signal with several bars in areas where actually the reception is poor and Apple promises a software update in a few weeks, Charles Gilman is underwhelmed.

Speaker 4: To me it doesn't fix the problem because whether or not the phone shows one two three or four or five bars it doesn't matter what people want to do is make phone calls.

Speaker 3: Apple's reportedly allowing users to return phones without that restocking fee but that has not slowed complaints nor stemmed the interest in the class action lawsuit Moreen.

Rod: Good evening I'm Rod Daniels.

Mary: And I'm Mary Anne- Banister former St Joseph Medical Centre cardiologist Marc Ma Day is already facing civil lawsuits over questionable stents, but tonight the state board responsible for licensing doctors has now weighed in a live news reporter George lettuce has more now on the boards findings.

George: The Maryland Board of Physicians says Dr Ma Day convinced patients to undergo procedures based upon falsified information. Five years ago Frank Ward was a heart patient at St Joseph's Medical Centre now he's a plaintiff in a lawsuit targeting the renowned hospital and its former top cardiologist Dr Mark May Day for giving him expensive. And risky treatment doctors now say he didn't need.

Frank: Betrayed, disappointed in that he would take, and put somebodies life at risk.

George: Now the Maryland Board of physicians is involved releasing the charges it's filed against Dr Ma Day, unprofessional conduct gross overutilization of health care. Will-fully making a false report and failure to keep good medical records, it said he recommended and ultimately inserted heart stents into hundreds of patients that did not need them stents are tubes that help prevent artery blockage. Frank Ward says he had too many stents in his heart he eventually had bypass surgery.

Frank: With them being, you know highly recommended, we went with it.

George: An investigation revealed some of Dr Ma Day's patients actually had a thirty to forty percent artery blockage not the eighty percent Ma Day reported Ward's attorney claims it was all about profits over patients.

Speaker 5: We don't know how deep through the system this runs it just after Ma Day administration it was ordering Dr Ma Day to do it.

George: Ma Day has maintained his innocence supporters have started a website on his behalf one of his former patients writes, I consider him to be an outstanding professional doctor and surgeon and would not hesitate to have him as. My surgeon again for any heart related care Meanwhile Ward is not sure what's next for his health or if he can ever trust a doctor again. Now St Joseph's hospital has no specific comment tonight only to say it is cooperating with the board of physicians as it relates to information about Dr Ma Day's work there in the newsroom George Lettuce. TVL, TV eleven news.

Mary: George a quick question for you does this mean that criminal charges most likely will be coming next?

George: Could be, but we do know tonight that these charges open the door for him to lose his license to practice medicine back to you.

Nationwide the number of people sickened by a deadly meningitis outbreak has now reached one hundred nineteen including eleven deaths. New numbers from Maryland are out as well, there are eight confirmed cases in this state and one death reported. Kathleen Cairns about tells us why we could be seeing even more cases for weeks to come.

Interviewee: I was so sick.

Kathleen: From patient stories.

Interviewee: I literally felt like I was dying.

Kathleen: To new statistics.

Interviewee: Maryland has eight cases of the infection.

Kathleen: Seven clinics in Maryland use the tainted steroid before it was recall exposing hundreds of patients to the possibility of fungal meningitis. Complicating this case even more, health experts now say that the incubation period may be longer than four weeks so people who were exposed to this may not have any symptoms of meningitis until well after the time they were exposed.

Interviewee: We are worried about additional cases because of the incubation period and at this time we don't have an upper limit for how long people could be incubating. So most of the cases have been up to four weeks after but we do have concerns that it could be longer.

Kathleen: While the medical community studies it, the legal arena debates it.

Interviewee: Well how did it happen?

Kathleen: Product liability attorney Briggs Bedigian says the compound manufacturer may have never tested the product before it was shipped out.

Briggs: Unfortunately these compound in pharmacies are not drug companies they are not F.D.A. regulated.

Kathleen: He predicts there will be a flood of lawsuits.

Briggs: There will be causes … 1:30 brought against the company it will be done in my opinion on an individual basis and on a class basis because everybody's damages are going to be different everyone's going to be affected differently by this.

Kathleen: But says the legal fight may take years.

Briggs: This will not be resolved quickly.

Kathleen: In Baltimore County Kathleen Cairns, Fox forty five, news at ten.

Anchor: Patients who have been tested for meningitis have to wait several days to get the results from the laboratory.

Surgery scandal, several hundred heart patients at a local hospital may have had unnecessary operations.

Tonight the new law suit the doctor at the center of the investigation and what one of his patients is saying.

Hello everybody I am Denise Coke and I am Vic Carter here is what people are talking about.

Denise: St Joseph's in Tausan sent letters to hundreds of patients who may have unnecessarily received stents. A tip to federal investigators sparked the investigation, WJZ is live in Pikesville where lawyers outlined the first civil lawsuit filed in this scandal, Mike Helgrin has some reaction tonight, Mike.

Mike: Denise those lawyers for one of the patients say the doctor and hospital breached their clients trust now the hospital says it has thoroughly looked into all of this and has notified any patients who may have been affected.

A stent can be a lifesaver, opening up clogged arteries but the operation carries risks a patient complaint to the federal government led officials at St Joseph's Hospital to review thousands of stent patient's records, they found more than three hundred who may have unnecessarily had the procedure.

Interviewee: In the months that ensue after a stent is placed there's …

Mike: The only doctor implicated was one of their stars Mark McKay, he no longer works at St Joseph's. Briggs Bedigian is suing him and the hospital.

Briggs Bedigian: Of all the places in your body to be putting unnecessary medical devices in a patient's heart with a high degree of complications that come with stents is the ultimate violation of patient trust.

Mike: He expects more lawsuits St Josephs tells W.J.Z. questions about potential liability remain to be resolved as J. M. C. Takes its responsibility to patients very seriously which is why we conducted a review and notified our patients and physicians our focus has been and will continue to put patients first.

Peggy: If I needed another stent I would want Dr McKay to do it.

Mike: You believe he saved your life?

Peggy: Yes I do.

Mike: Dr. Maday put Stens in on Peggy Landon got this letter from the hospital and was informed some may not have been necessary.

Peggy: Doctor Maday said I had a ninety percent blockage and whoever did the subsequent rating said that I was less than fifty percent blocked. So you know I just said to him well how do you know who's right?

Mike: Doctor Maday told W J Z's media partner the Baltimore Sun he's confident he acted in the best interests of his patients.

Peggy: He put two stents and almost immediately I felt relief.

Briggs: By no means contending in this case that Saint Joseph all of the stenting procedures that were placed at St Joseph's Hospital were done so unnecessarily.

Mike: The Hospital encourages any patients with questions to contact them right away.

Mike: But they don't believe there's any immediate risk now St Joseph has done about one hundred thousand of these operations since 1980 and some of the prominent people around the country you've had stents placed to include former Vice President Dick Cheney and comedian Drew Carey reporting live in Pikesville Mike Helgrin, W J Z Eyewitness News.

New questions tonight about the death of a woman in Baltimore County two days after she fell from a stretcher in a county ambulance are Eye team uncovered this story lead investigative reporter Jane Miller's live in the newsroom with an update Jane.

Jane: Kate the county executive took on a question today about this case as a lawyer for the woman's family says there's no question what happened during the transport led to her death.

Interviewee: At what went wrong, we know something went wrong because the result is out of the ordinary.

Jane: Charles Gilman is a lawyer for the family of the seventy two year old woman who died two days after being injured when the stretcher she was on fell while being loaded into a Baltimore County ambulance. The woman was a diabetic the reason Gillman says the ambulance was called to the Randallstown nursing home where she was living, but the fall he says caused a serious injury.

Lawyer: We have a woman that was transported from a nursing home to a hospital and en route ended up with a head injury that's the extent of our knowledge and we believe that the head injuries ultimately what killed this woman.

Jane: The County in a statement issued to us called the injuries the woman suffered minor. Gillman says the woman complained of headaches that two days she was hospitalized before her death.

Gilman: One of her sons told me that she was seeing spots which to me is an indication of a head injury which is consistent with what the children do know she did not have a head injury when she went left the nursing home and she did when she got to North West.

Jane: A source familiar with the incident says the stretcher and patient may have fallen because of previous damage to the stretcher preventing the stretcher from locking in place. The county executive who is today asked should all of the counties ambulance equipment be inspected.

Man: We are you know obviously saddened for the family for their loss. But right now we're currently doing an investigation as to what the course of events were I mean we don't know that the fall resulted in the unfortunate demise.

Jane: We have requested from the county inspection reports for the counties ambulances not available we're told because of the investigation reporting live tonight from the newsroom I'm Jane Miller W B A L T V eleven News.

Speaker 1:The young woman responsible for a friend's death in a horrific drunk driving crash will have to spend two years in prison tonight the victim's mother says she does not believe that the driver is sorry for what happened back in two thousand. And she's making some shocking accusations as well Christian Schaffer filed this report earlier tonight.

Speaker 2: Every day never stops the pain never, goes away.

Speaker 1: This morning seventeen months after the crash that killed her daughter Jan Roberta sat in federal court in Virginia and watched twenty three year old Maria Espinosa of Howard County receive a two year sentence plus three years' probation. In court Espinosa said quote I'm not a bad person but I made a bad choice I should have shared the same fate as Ashley if not traded places with her Jan Roberta didn't buy it.

Speaker 2: I think she was sorry, that day and maybe it was for herself, because right now she's going to prison.

Speaker 1: In fact Jan Roberta, has been saving pictures like this which show Marie Espinosa out drinking and she says they were taken after the crash.

Speaker 2: One month, to the day after the crash she was out doing shots.

Speaker 1: And prosecutors say Espinosa was even out drinking at least three times after pleading guilty to involuntary manslaughter in November.

Speaker 2: I just don't understand, if I had my best friend she should consider a friend die. And I had blood on my hands, I can't imagine not changing my life.

Speaker 1: Ashley Roberta's family is suing Maria Espinosa along with the bar in Washington where she was drinking they're seeking millions in damages.

Speaker 3: Jan is not going to rest until she exhausts every remedy that's available to her and this is just one of the remedies.

Speaker 1: Jan Roberta's says it's like a nightmare you never wake up from.

Speaker 2: Every day I think about my daughter and tell her, how much I love her and how much I miss her.

Speaker 1: Two years in prison for the women responsible in prison for her daughter's death won't change that reporting for Baltimore County Christian Schaefer A.B.C. two News.

The Hunt Valley family is stunned, meantime tonight after the sentencing of a drunk driver responsible for a fatal crash that killed a loved one Keith Daniel says the sentence is not enough for the family Keith.

Speaker 2: Right Jeff a judge say's the drunk driver in the crash sent to two years in prison the family pleaded for the maximum sentence but did not get it when Jan Roberta talks about her daughter Ashley it's difficult. A Pleasant mood can be turned sombre Ashley's death devastated a family.

Speaker 3: My husband's the bravest man I know, and it just broke us both crying like a baby night, after night.

Speaker 2: The family blames Maria Espinosa Ashley best friend for the pain. Espinosa was legally intoxicated nearly double the legal limit as she drove her two thousand and seven infinity, with Ashley on the George Washington Parkway in two thousand and nine. She ran off the road, the crash killed Ashley she was twenty two years old a judge sentenced Espinosa today in Alexandria Virginia to two years in prison, Ashley's mother.

Speaker 3: I just wanted justice for my daughter.

Speaker 2: Pleaded with the judge to give Espinosa forty seven months the maximum sentence allowed but the judge handed down a lesser penalty.

Speaker 3: There's nothing I can do now I wanted to fight so hard for my daughter we did. But that was the result I have to live with it.

Speaker 2: Ashley's mother says it's not over.

Speaker 3: She was drunk.

Speaker 2: She met today with the family's attorney they're now considering a civil lawsuit against Espinosa and.

Speaker 4: We're looking at claims against infinity for a potential products liability claim because the car if you saw the pictures literally split in half. We believe there may be some liability on the bar that had the event where Maria was drinking because of her blood alcohol level.

Speaker 3: It was excessive speed that killed her and a drunken driver, Maria Espinosa.

Speaker 2: While after prison Espinosa will face a three year supervised probation period we should also note Charlie Davies a member of the D.C. soccer team was also in that crash he survived Keith Daniels forty five News at Ten.

Speaker 1: Hi Keith thanks so much our quest of the day all day today we asked you do you agree with this sentence ninety one percent of you say no Octavia writes on Facebook Nope it should have been much longer Tammy writes. After the death of her friend she was already sentenced for life go to Fox Baltimore dot com and tell us what you think you can sound off through Facebook send us a tweet text your answer to forty five to zero three then a fox forty five A for yes Fox forty five B. For no, and your response may or tonight at eleven on the late edition.

We see them a bait fires they are the support team for police and fire fighters and tonight A.B.C. Two News Cheryl Connor is learning about financial trouble for the central alarmer's, Cheryl.

Cheryl: And Jamie members have a club going, they are all volunteer they love the serve and they operate primarily on donations the central alarmers are out more than fifty thousand dollars it's a setback that could change how they are able to respond.

Alarmer: The canteen truck has fired up for seventeen years to keep all the hot dogs in the freezer until we're ready to use them.

Reporter: Volunteers including the cooks Jeanette Kamsky are always ready to respond when you see police and firefighters able to work endless hours here is their backbone.

Jeanette: Granola bars.

Reporter: The central alarmers in Baltimore county runs the food truck that responds in Hartford County and into Pennsylvania, food and dehydration keep first responders on top of their game.

Jeannette: The firefighter he goes into a building he comes out he's dehydrated or a lot of people don't even realize that they get hungry.

Reporter: Now the central armors are the ones hungry for help, they place the fifty two thousand dollars down payment on the new food truck and the P.A. Company Cremise custom body can't finish the job or give them a refund. Attorney Charles Gilman is doing the legwork for the alarmer's.

Charles: They're not going to be able to recoup it he had no insurance at the time and he's got no bank accounts or no assets for us to attach to to get that money back.

Reporter: The phone numbers to reach Cremise are disconnected the central armors ordered the first struck from the company without a problem but they noticed business starting to change a few years ago at this point they don't expect a return of their money but these volunteer members aren't giving up.

Member: I don't know. We might never see it.

Reporter: And the central alarmers have secured another loan for a new food truck it will arrive next month but as they think about other aging trucks they say that fifty two thousand dollars loss sets them back about two years, live in the newsroom Cheryl Conner A.B.C. Two News.

Alright updating you now in breaking news from tonight three times the legal limit that's how much alcohol police say was in state delegate Don Dwyer system when he crashed his boat back in August.

Speaker 2: Dwyer and six other people including five children were injured in that crash and in a surprising move Dwyer's not the only one facing charges tonight A.B.C. to his Christian [00:20] has been following the story, he's here live with the very latest Chris Kelly that operating under the influence charge the delegate is facing is very serious but the driver of the other boat was also charged tonight his attorney tells me it doesn't make any sense at all. Five children who were on or riding on a float behind this boat back in August are said to be doing okay including a five year old girl whose skull was fractured in the crash on the maggothie river the day after it happened delegate Don Dwyer of entering the County held a news conference outside the Trauma admitting he had been drinking.

Dwyer: it is true that I was drinking while operating my boat yesterday it's also been reported that, nmy blood alcohol level was [01:01] now the Department of Natural Resources Police believes say's his blood alcohol level was actually point to four and they have charged Dwyer, with operating a vehicle under the influence of alcohol along with reckless operation and negligent operation D.N.R. police also charged this man Mark Randy Harben who was the driver of the other boat that crashed his attorney tells A.B.C. two News that's ridiculous.

Speaker 3: The accident wouldn't have happen had the Dwyer boat not cut in front of the harpoon boat.

Speaker 2: He says according to witnesses the delegates boat the remains of which you see here was going too fast when it cut off Randy Harben's boat but a news release from the Department of Natural Resources Police reads quote both operators contributed to the accident when neither operator adjusted speed nor took the necessary action with ample time to avoid a collision Randy Harben is charged with the rules of the road violation and negligent operation his attorney says he plans to fight those charges.

Speaker 3: Sooner or later it's going to get educated in a court of law and a judge is going to look at this. And we're very confident that Mr Harben is going to be fully exonerated and that the Dwyer boat will be held at fault for this accident.

Speaker 2: If you total up all the charges filed against delegates Dwyer today the maximum penalty he could receive his one year in jail and a nineteen hundred and forty dollars fine the delegate did not respond to our request for comment tonight live the news from Christian Schaefer A.B.C. two News.