"I think Toyota has even more reason to want to settle these cases," said Keating, the William T. Dalessi Prof.iphone 5 refurbished of Law and Philosophy. "I think Toyota's fundamental intent is in putting this behind the company so that they can restore their good name."
Toyota, Justice Department Reach $1B Settlement
Some 90 such civil cases await trial in California alone, by the count of Century City attorney Moses Lebovitz, who is representing plaintiffs in two of them, including Dushane v. Toyota, next up for trial.
In that case, Janice Dushane suffered severe head injuries when her 2005 Prius allegedly accelerated on its own as she was exiting the 101 freeway in Oxnard in 2010, and the Prius became airborne. One witness saw brake lights activated, according to Lebovitz. Lebowitz is studying the federal agreement with Toyota to determine its impact on the Dushane case.
Many of the civil cases allege a flaw in vehicle electronics. Other problems are acknowledged by Toyota in the agreement, but not in electronics. Justice Dept. primarily concerns Toyota's conduct during 2009 10 in responding to evidence that some of its vehicles had flaws that resulted in them accelerating on their own.
Toyota Recalls 1.9 Million Prius Cars for Software Glitch
In one 2008 case, an off duty California Highway Patrol Officer at the wheel of his family's Lexus was unable to stop the car, and he and three others died in the resulting crash. During the final moments, he had called 9 1 1, and his description of the recording and the sound of the impact were heard on the recording.iphone 5 refurbished Keating, was the revelation that company officials were aware of problems for periods of time and deliberately delayed implementing fixes in an effort to avoid disclosure. In the case of the sticky pedal, for a period of at least several weeks, "they were installing a part they knew to be unsafe," Keating said.
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The Federal Statement of Facts, which Toyota accepted as truthful, included a quote from an unnamed employee speaking out against deception. "Idiots! Someone will go to jail if lies are repeatedly told. I can't support this," the employee said during a discussion that followed a meeting between Toyota and its regulator, according to the document.
"In the more than four years since these recalls, we have gone back to basics at Toyota to put our customers first," reads a part of statement released Wednesday by Torrance based Toyota Motors North America, and attributed to Christopher Reynolds, Chief Legal Officer. customers."
"Not a helpful statement," commented Keating.
In response to a request for comment Wednesday, the media office for Toyota Motors Wednesday referred to the statement and declined questions. The Attorney General deferred prosecution as part of the agreement.
The high dollar amount of the settlement reflects the Justice Department's intent "to make an example of Toyota," Keating believes. But why did Toyota agree to it?
"I think the alternatives may be more than paying $1.2 Billion," said Keating.
In recent weeks, General Motors has acknowledged delay in responding to an ignition switch flaw that can lead to the engine turning off while the vehicle is in motion, leaving the safety air bags without means to deploy in event of an accident.
During the Attorney General's briefing, he declined to discuss potential actions against GM, which the federal government had rescued from bankruptcy after the economic meltdown in 2008.iphone 5 refurbished But GM should not count on that as a shield against a federal enforcement action, Keating said.Fire officials said seven families were inside the 12 unit apartment building at 198 Wilson St. When firefighters arrived, heavy flames were coming from the building's back porches.
"I arrived three minutes after the 911 call," District Chief Mike Gamache said. "The west side of the building, which is the back side of the building, was fully involved. There were some people in the street indicating that there were people that were trapped."
Investigators searched for evidence Monday evening, using K 9s as they attempted to determine what started the blaze.
View raw video from the scene.
The flames engulfed the porches on the second and third floors in the back of the building. Knowing that people were inside the burning building, firefighters set up rescue efforts.
"The initial companies really made a valiant effort to get in there," Chief Dan Goonan said. "They removed the first two victims very quickly under heavy fire conditions without a line."
The fire forced firefighters out of the building until they could get a hose line going.
"A few minutes later, we went back in, made another attempt to get into the second floor apartment, and we located two more bodies," Goonan said.
Neighbors said the two adults and two children were a family who lived in a second floor apartment.
Related: Community mourns fire victims
It took firefighters a couple of hours to finally get the fire under control. Investigators are now trying to determine the case.
Because the fire was fatal, the New Hampshire Fire Marshal's Office is leading the investigation, but federal help has been brought in as well.
"(The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives) provides resources to assist with mapping of the building," Fire Marshal Bill Degnan said. "If it ends up we need an electrical engineer, they have one on staff."
Degnan said the investigation is just beginning, and it may be some time before a cause is known.
"It's certainly tragic. It's tragic for us. It's tragic for the families. It's tragic for the neighborhood and the city," said Manchester Fire Chief Dan Goonan.
One firefighter suffered a moderate injury, and another firefighter suffered a minor injury, officials said. Both are expected to be OK.
Autopsies are scheduled for Tuesday morning. The victims' names will be released after the autopsies are completed.
