February 8, 2010 – A suspected drunken driver is in custody after a woman was struck in a crosswalk in the East Village by a sport utility vehicle, leaving her with a fractured wrist.

The man was turning southbound on 13th Street from westbound F Street shortly before 5:30 p.m. Sunday when he struck the woman, said San Diego Police Officer Dino Delimitros.

He was arrested on suspicion of felony driving under the influence, Delimitros said.

February 8, 2010 – A huge oak tree estimated to be 150 years old fell onto and obliterated a house Sunday, but no one was hurt because the residence was empty, a Cal Fire captain said.

Firefighters were called around 1:30 p.m. to the house in the 13000 block of Fernbrook Drive, just southwest of Ramona, Capt. Nick Schuler said.

They found the house was completely destroyed by the oak, which was 30 feet tall and about six feet wide, Schuler said.

Heavy rain, sometimes accompanied by strong winds, in the past several weeks have resulted in numerous trees large and small being uprooted around the county.

February 8, 2010 – An autopsy was pending Monday on the body of 27-year-old San Diego woman who was struck by multiple vehicles while apparently standing in a traffic lane on I-805 in National City.

The woman, whose name was withheld, was struck around 12:30 a.m. Sunday on northbound I-805, north of SR-54, according to the San Diego County Medical Examiner’s Office. She died at the scene.

The woman may have gotten out of a sport utility vehicle found on the shoulder of the freeway prior to being struck, the California Highway Patrol reported. Her name was withheld pending family notification.

February 8, 2010 – A long line for the women’s restroom may have sparked one of several brawls early Saturday at a San Marcos nightclub, where three people were stabbed, one person was beaten, a security guard was hit in the face with a bottle, and two women were arrested.

About 1 a.m. a force of 15 deputies and supervisors raced to reports of a fight involving at least 20 people at the Jumping Turtle nightclub and restaurant at 1660 Capalina Rd., said San Diego Sheriff’s Capt. Don Crist of the San Marcos station.

Deputies found a large number of people in the parking lot and were told at least five fights had broken out inside and outside the nightclub. It took them a while to restore order so paramedics could enter safely, Crist said.

”Several people were trying to get into the restroom and were angry that they could not get into the restroom,” Crist said.

A female security guard was taken to the hospital with injuries from being hit in the face with a bottle, Crist said. He said the guard was hired to protect a rap singer performing at the nightclub.

The guard identified two women as her two attackers.  Irene Cardenas, 32, of Escondido, was arrested on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon, the bottle, and another Escondido woman, age 32, was cited on suspicion of battery and released, Crist said.

Two victims turned up at Palomar Medical Center in Escondido later in the morning, Crist said. A female victim told deputies she and the security guard had been dragged out of the women’s room and attacked.

She reportedly said she was hit and kicked in the hallway, then pushed into the parking lot and beaten by several males and females.

The other victim told deputies he tried to break up a fight in the restroom hallway and realized after being pushed into the parking lot that he had been stabbed in the abdomen and both arms.

A fourth victim, found lying on the front nightclub steps when deputies first arrived, was taken to a hospital with stab wounds to one leg. He told deputies he was attacked after he walked out of the men’s room and into a fight already in progress, Crist said.

Crist said one person who called the Sheriff’s Department to report the melee told them to send “as many cops as possible.”

Every deputy in San Marcos, and some from surrounding unincorporated areas, were dispatched: 10 deputies, two detectives, two sergeants and a lieutenant.

The restaurant and bar has been a frequent target of San Marcos city complaints.  The owner is appealing a decision by the city to revoke the club’s entertainment permit over code violations.

February 8, 2010 – A bizarre chain of events left two people injured and a San Francisco neighborhood soaking wet when a city bus struck a fire hydrant.

It all began Sunday evening when a Municipal Railway rider was exiting a bus using its extended wheelchair lift. Muni spokesman Judson True says the customer fell from the lift and was taken to the hospital with unknown injuries.

As the incident was being sorted out, the bus rolled forward and the wheelchair lift sheared off a fire hydrant, sending water gushing into the air three stories high. True says the hydrant struck a Muni inspector, who was treated for minor injuries at the scene.

Water from the hydrant flooded a building on the corner of Fillmore and Haight streets.

True says the bus driver has been placed on non-driving status as officials investigate the incident.

February 8, 2010 – A sheriff’s deputy was injured when a car rear-ended his patrol vehicle in Encinitas.

The crash occurred about 10:34 p.m. Sunday at the intersection of Chesterfield Drive and South Coast Highway 101, said Sgt. William Dreyer of the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department.

Deputy Steve Johnson was stopped at a red light when a car smashed into the back of his patrol car and sent it into the intersection, Dreyer said.

The driver of the car, Troy Otillio, 45, was arrested at the scene on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol, he said. Johnson was transported to a local hospital with minor injuries.

The patrol car sustained moderate damage.

February 5, 2010 – According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Office of Defect Investigations (ODI), Dorel Juvenile Group (DJG) is recalling certain Maxi-Cosi Mico Infant Child Restraint Systems, Models 22-371 HFL, JUC, LMD, PNG, and ORE; 22-372 TTH; and Maxi-Cosi Mico Infant Child Restraint System – base only, Model 22-515 BLK, produced from February 18, 2008 through June 28, 2008.

Interference between the mounting bracket and the base caused by warping of the base or inadequate mating between the shell and the base mounting bracket can result in difficulty attaching or detaching the shell from the base.  If the shell is improperly mounted to the base, the child could be injured in the event of a crash.

At the Gomez Law Firm, we have extensive experience representing the victims of auto defects, including roof crush, tire defects and rollovers.  If you or someone you love has been the victim of any defective product, call or write a personal injury attorney  at the Gomez Law Firm today.

February 5, 2010 – According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Office of Defect Investigations (ODI), Honda is recalling certain Model Year 2007-2008 Fit vehicles.

Under severe conditions, water may enter the driver’s window and reach the master power window switch.  If the master power window switch is damaged as a result of the water intrusion, overheating and failure of the switch may result.  An overheated switch can cause smoke, melting and fire.

At the Gomez Law Firm, we have extensive experience representing the victims of auto defects, including roof crush, tire defects and rollovers.  If you or someone you love has been the victim of any defective product, call or write a personal injury attorney  at the Gomez Law Firm today.

February 5, 2010 – No charges will be filed against two Escondido Police officers for the death of a parolee who was high on methamphetamine as they struggled to take him into custody, the District Attorney’s Office announced Thursday.

Officers Jeffrey Dodds and Guy Yost tried to arrest Nathan Paul Sanderson, 53, of Escondido, on Sept. 21, 2008, for smashing a window with his fist, driving erratically, trying to take his elderly father out of a care facility and triggering a fire alarm as he ran from police.

While restrained, Sanderson passed out. The officers tried to revive him with CPR, but he was placed on life support at a hospital and died four days later.

An autopsy determined that Sanderson died from lack of blood and oxygen to his brain as a result of being given CPR while being restrained “for agitated and bizarre behavior.”

District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis said the officers not only had the right but a duty to restrain Sanderson.

In a Jan. 21 letter to Escondido Police Chief Jim Maher that was released today, Dumanis outlined the events leading to Sanderson’s death.

She said a friend of Sanderson called police about 6:20 p.m. on Sept. 21, saying Sanderson, just out of prison, was “wigging out” on methamphetamine. Sanderson’s mother also called police, telling dispatchers, “he’s gonna hurt somebody.”

A final call to police came from the Life Care Center on Felicita Road in Escondido, where staff said Sanderson had arrived soaking wet, bleeding, and wanting to remove his elderly father. When officers arrived, Sanderson set off a fire alarm and ran outdoors.

When Dodds and Yost arrived, they held Sanderson facedown on the ground and radioed for backup and paramedics. They realized Sanderson wasn’t breathing after they handcuffed him, so they began CPR. Paramedics took Sanderson to Palomar Medical Center, where he died after four days on life support. Blood tests revealed methamphetamine and marijuana in his system. Sanderson also had Hepatitis C, liver and lung disease and could have suffered a heart attack even without drugs in his system, according to Dumanis. The officers “had both a duty and an obligation to detain and arrest” Sanderson “as well as a duty to restrain him from harming himself or causing injury to themselves or anyone else,” Dumanis wrote.

February 5, 2010 – Anthem Blue Cross has told some customers it will raise their health insurance premiums as much as 39 percent beginning March 1.

The increases, reported Friday by the Los Angeles Times, involve as many as 800,000 customers who buy individual coverage. People with group coverage aren’t affected.

In a statement, the Woodland Hills-based insurer declined to specify the size of the rate changes or how many people will be affected. The company — which is the largest for-profit health insurer in California — blames the increases on rising health care costs. It says its prices may be adjusted more frequently than its typical annual increases.

Anthem’s rates are under review by the state insurance department.