Friday, June 27, 2014

The TOYOTA-GM Connection




GM Ignition Judge Names Lead Lawyers From Toyota Cases

June 26, 2014
 
The lead attorneys in lawsuits against Toyota Motor Corp. (TM:US) over sudden acceleration will take temporary charge of claims of alleged economic loss from General Motors (GM:US) vehicles that were recalled because of ignition-switch defects.

Steve W. Berman, Elizabeth Cabraser and Mark P. Robinson Jr., who helped arrange a $1.6 billion settlement with Toyota over lost vehicle value, will “initiate the process” in the GM litigation, U.S. District Judge Jesse M. Furman in Manhattan said in a June 24 order.

“These temporary designations are not a precursor of future appointments,” Furman said.


General Motors has recalled 2.59 million compact cars with potentially faulty ignition switches linked to at least 13 deaths. Customers have filed at least 87 proposed class actions seeking reimbursement for lost value of the recalled vehicles.

The suits are combined before Furman’s Manhattan court in a multidistrict proceeding that will address pretrial matters including evidence gathering. Furman set an initial conference to organize the suits for Aug. 11.

The case is In Re General Motors LLC Ignition Switch Litigation, 14-md-2543, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York (Manhattan).

To contact the reporter on this story: Margaret Cronin Fisk in Detroit at mcfisk@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Michael Hytha at mhytha@bloomberg.net Andrew Dunn, Joe Schneider




http://www.businessweek.com/news/2014-06-26/gm-ignition-judge-names-lead-lawyers-from-toyota-cases


Out Of Control Lexus Slams Into Store, Notice How They Include Driver's Age, Then Comments Close?


Car crashes into London pet store


By Craig Glover, The London Free Press
Firefighters watch as a tow truck operator uses a winch to pull a car out of a Pet Valu store after witnesses say an elderly woman drove into the storefront on Commissioners Road near Wellington Road in London, Ontario on Wednesday June 25, 2014.
 
Police at the scene say a clerk was in the store at the time, but both the employee and the driver were uninjured in the incident. Police were unable to give a damage estimate.
CRAIG GLOVER/The London Free Press/QMI Agency
 
 
A car slammed through the front of a pet store in London Wednesday afternoon.

A four-door Lexus crashed into the Pet Value at Wellington and Commissioners roads around 3:30 p.m.

Witnesses say the elderly woman driving the vehicle was parked in front of the store before the crash.

There was only an employee inside the business at the time of the crash, said police.
Nobody was injured.

Firefighters worked to remove the vehicle from the building.

No damage estimate was available.


http://www.lfpress.com/2014/06/25/car-crashes-into-london-pet-store#comment-1455760003

 

Wednesday, June 25, 2014

Cat's Out of the BAG!



Charlene Blake (@charleneblake)
Cat got your tongue, Mary Barra? The cat's out of the bag! Pardon the wrongfully-convicted GM owner! Toyota copycat?? jessiepowell.blogspot.com/2014/06/texas-…

Candace Anderson


This is Candace Anderson:



This is Candace Anderson's GM vehicle, note no airbag deployment:





June 24, 2014  

Texas Lawyer Asks GM CEO Mary Barra To Join In Pardon Request For Wrongly Convicted GM Victim


CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas, June 24, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Yesterday, Texas lawyer Bob Hilliard, one of the nation's key players in pursuing claims against General Motors for deaths and injuries caused by faulty ignition switches, asked GM's CEO, Mary Barra to join in his effort to seek a Pardon from Texas Governor Rick Perry on behalf of wrongly convicted GM victim, Candice Anderson. Mr. Hilliard asked Ms. Barra to provide a letter of recommendation to the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles who will then make its recommendation to the Governor's office.

BACKGROUND

Almost ten years ago Candice Anderson lost control of her 2004 Saturn ION while driving down a county road in East Texas. Candice's fiancé, Gene Mikale Erickson was her passenger that day and died when their vehicle left the roadway and collided, head-on, into a nearby grove of trees. Both Candice and Mikale's airbags failed to deploy due to the sub-standard ignition switch GM knowingly installed in millions of vehicles across the country. GM counts Mikale's death as one of the 13 confirmed fatalities linked to the faulty ignition switch.

NHTSA CONFIRMS GM DEFECT

In response to a recent request from Mikale Erickson's mom, Rhonda, NHTSA's Chief Counsel O. Kevin Vincent stated: "we understand that GM counts Mr. Erickson's death in its list of thirteen deaths."

FALSELY ACCUSED, TORTURED BY GUILT
At the time of the accident, GM knew of the faulty ignition, but kept that knowledge locked in the filing cabinets of its legal department and silently stood by, as Candice plead guilty to criminally negligent homicide, a state felony offense. The guilt of the accident has weighed heavy on Candice for nearly 10 years and the felony she has carried on her record remains a dark shadow at every turn in her life.

BARRA REMAINS SILENT TO HILLIARD'S REQUEST
Candice Anderson's attorney, Bob Hilliard sent an email to GM's counsel, asking that Mary Barra join him in an effort to obtain a pardon for Ms. Anderson by signing a letter of recommendation. In part the proposed Barra letter states, "We at GM have been aware of the issues involving these vehicles for quite some time. As the CEO of New GM, I feel it is my responsibility to right any wrongs that occurred as a result of these faulty ignition switches." Ms. Barra has not responded nor has she signed the letter.

GM'S ATTORNEYS RESPOND

Though Mary Barra remains silent her attorneys replied to Hilliard. "You should not make any representation that GM has assented or agreed to your request."

HILLIARD'S COMMENTS REGARDING THE REQUEST:

"GM's attorneys, many of whom got them in this quicksand in the first place once again throw another victim 'under the Cobalt'. Their response is as predictable as it is disappointing. Even though Ms. Barra has gone out of her way to assure the world generally, and GM victims specifically, that she is intent on doing the right thing, she remains silent. Ms. Barra wants to be known as the CEO of Change. She has stated: 'I realize there are no words of mine that can ease their grief and pain. But as I lead GM through this crisis, I want everyone to know that I am guided by two clear principles: First, that we do the right thing for those who were harmed; and, second, that we accept responsibility for our mistakes and commit to doing everything within our power to prevent this problem from ever happening again.' 'Whatever mistakes were made in the past, we will not shirk from our responsibilities now or in the future. Today's GM will do the right thing, that begins with my sincere apologies to everyone who has been affected by this recall, especially the friends and families who lost their lives or were injured. I am deeply sorry.'

"Well, Ms. Barra, this is your moment.

Not just as a CEO but as a human being. Step up. Show the courage and conviction of your words and at the same time help right this wrong, and lift this terrible cloud from a young woman's life. If you honestly want to do the right thing there is only one clear choice. Are you going to listen to your attorneys or are you going to listen to your conscious? If you remain silent and do not act we all know the truth we feared: GM has not changed and you are not willing to insist that it change. That truth will be just as difficult for you to live with as this wrongful conviction is for Candice to live with."
                                      
ABOUT HMG http://www.hmglawfirm.com/
Hilliard Muñoz Gonzales LLP (HMG) specializes in mass torts, personal injury, product liability, commercial and business litigation, and wrongful death. Hilliard Muñoz Gonzales LLP has been successfully representing clients in the United States and Mexico since 1986. Bob Hilliard obtained the Largest Verdict in the country in 2012 and the #1 verdict in Texas in 2013.
                                      
HMG is actively seeking to represent other victims of GM's defective vehicles.
To arrange an interview with Bob Hilliard, please contact
Lauren Gomezlauren@hmglawfirm.com
361-960-3146

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20140624/121131


http://www.marketwatch.com/story/texas-lawyer-asks-gm-ceo-mary-barra-to-join-in-pardon-request-for-wrongly-convicted-gm-victim-2014-06-24


While this chart is outdated, doesn't it illustrate the TOYOTA is equally as culpable and no one is asking why?

Recently, this TOYOTA PRIUS injured 3 teenagers, driver claimed BRAKES FAILED!




Recently, a RUN-AWAY TOYOTA SOLARA killed this little cherub. Lily Quintus who was at her Day Care:




Bob Hilliard helped free Koua Fong Lee from prison after his wrongful conviction caused by a RUNAWAY TOYOTA:




A TOYOTA RAV4 slammed into a library....watch the video and decide for yourself if this was TOYOTA'S SUDDEN UNINTENDED ACCELERATION :




Published on May 29, 2014
A day after a Toyota RAV4 crashed through the front of the public library, injuring six, the library director was overseeing the cleanup of the extensive damage.

The saving grace for Allen and the first-responders is no one died in the crash, which happened around 7:40 p.m. Tuesday.

The injured include a 15-year-old girl who got hit and pinned under the vehicle

. Police said she was released from Westchester Medical Center on Wednesday.

The driver, Jean Lycee, 58, has been released from Nyack Hospital, Spring Valley police Lt. Jack Bosworth said. No charges have been filed; detectives are investigating Lycee's claim that mechanical trouble caused the car to speed forward out of control.


"I see what looks like a bomb hit the library," said Finkelstein Memorial Library Director Tracy Allen. "We have glass everywhere. We have a huge pile of wood and computers. It's pretty devastating."

The sport utility vehicle shattered the building's double glass front doors and cut the long circulation desk in half, smashing several desks and computers.

Allen, who became director of the county's largest library some 20 months ago, said there's no timetable for reopening the library, a longtime community center for people living in Spring Valley and the surrounding area.

As cleaning crews worked and the library's entrance remained boarded up, Allen said the repair costs will be determined by the library's insurance adjuster.


Are drivers just playing Russian Roulette with these vehicles?





Texas Lawyer Asks GM CEO Mary Barra To Join In Pardon Request For Wrongly Convicted GM Victim





GM and Toyota are cut from the same cloth! Bob Hilliard along with Trudy Baltazar and others were instrumental in freeing imprisoned Koua Fong Lee, Toyota owner whose Camry suddenly accelerated and crashed, killing several members of one family. Koua Fong Lee served four years of his eight year sentence after he was wrongfully convicted. He missed the birth of one of his children. He is so honest that he refused to cut a deal by admitting fault.



Toyota did NOTHING. Unfortunately, Koua Fong Lee is far from alone. An embedded software expert. Michael Barr, has found the ECTS-i in Toyota and Lexus vehicles has poorly designed software and glitches can lead to an ELECTRONIC sudden unintended acceleration with an ineffective fail-safe. Translation: a runaway Toyota with ineffective brakes. Problem? Mr. Barr's 300-page report is court-sealed. It was a big part of the Oklahoma Bookout vs. Toyota SUA case won by the 2005 Toyota Camry owner.





TOYOTA RAV4

Toyota and Lexus vehicles continue to violently accelerate from parking lots and stopped positions and crash into storefronts, buildings, and homes where deaths have resulted. Jail time has been served. Lives have been forever changed. Vehicle owners continue to complain to Toyota but Toyota says the vehicles are fine...no traceable problem found. BUT...does Toyota know the truth and is it keeping it secret?

TOYOTA Silencing the TRUTH in TOYOTA'S own Memos....?????


No public corporate response has been given to Toyota whistleblower and translator, Betsy Benjaminson's publicly-disclosed Toyota internal documents which show evidence that Toyota knows what's happening. However, Toyota is currently attempting to stop Betsy's actions behind-the-scenes via legal motions. Is Toyota more customer-responsive as promised or more public information-suppressive as historically-demonstrated?




It seems that Mary Barra may follow in Toyota CEO, James Lentz's footsteps. Denial is so much easier. Blaming the vehicle owners is more lucrative and less damaging to the self-lauded public image, after all. What the public doesn't know can't hurt it...or can it?


As we've seen with both GM and Toyota, the vehicle owners and their families have to become vocal and organize in order to be heard by the automaker. Even then, the automakers dance around the issues and choose words carefully in order to escape full responsibility. What's wrong with this picture? Why isn't NHTSA protecting the vehicle owners instead of the automakers?



The system is severely broken and needs repair. It will take public outrage about the lack of safety standards in vehicles before change is impacted. Unfortunately, the public is in the dark thanks to the automakers and the beholden media. Couple this with an in-the-back-pocket government regulatory agency and you've got a runaway train, right? Add Reputation Management Companies and on-line suppression of vehicle owner complaints and dialogue and you've got criminal culpability, don't you?



Until the fix is in effect, vehicle owners are the "test pilots." Driving these vehicles with unsafe parts and poorly designed software is like playing Russian roulette, isn't it?

Charlene Blake

Tuesday, June 24, 2014

TOYOTA, LEXUS, PONTIAC VIBE RECALL










RECALL Subject : Passenger Side Air Bag Inflator may Rupture

Monday, June 23, 2014

Toyota Prius Crash Driver Was On Her Way To Get Gas Pedal Checked Out



Toyota Prius Crash Driver Was On Her Way To Get Gas Pedal Checked Out


Prius
                 
 
 


HARRISON, N.Y. — Police say a New York woman who claimed her Toyota Prius accelerated on its own was on her way to have its gas pedal checked at the time of the accident.
 
Harrison police Capt. Anthony Marraccini said Thursday the driver had not experienced previous problems with acceleration. But he says she had arranged a check because of publicity about sticky gas pedals.
 
The driver, a 56-year-old housekeeper, told police she was easing down her employer's driveway north of New York City on Monday when the car began to speed up. She said she did not know whether the gas pedal stuck.
 
She says that she applied the brakes but that the car lurched across two lanes of traffic and into a stone wall. She was not seriously injured.









TOYOTA: Sudden Unintended Acceleration Events








UPDATE:
So the car went in for its ‘diagnostic check’ today. It was always going to have been an interesting day. I just didn’t realise HOW interesting it was going to turn out!

Background:
I spent the last week trying the reproduce the SUA with no success. I even found an old spare car mat and doubled up on the existing mat (secured with cable ties) for a few days just to test out Grumpy’s experience, as he is the only person who has posted an experience like mine.

I also tested out all several situations of shifting from Drive to Neutral to see if I could get the yellow triangle and alarm to come on. Tried it while accelerating briskly, while accelerating in Cruise Control and also with ‘Resume’ on C.C. Same result each time – the car just ‘pips’ once, no alarm and no yellow triangle.

Today, I prepared the car as I always do before a service. I emptied it of all contents; checked the mat again and took a reading on the trip meter, before driving it to Jemca.

At the Garage:
I decided my best strategy was to focus on the problem with the yellow triangle & alarm, which I said happened when I shifted from Drive to Neutral. Then, when asked why I was doing that, I *first* explained that I was an experienced Prius driver who really believes in these cars, but I had experienced some unexpected events and then went on to describe the SUA; including the fact that one of them was experienced by another driver, so not just me. I could sense that this was not going down well....

End of the day:
So I get a call that the car is ready for collection…..

The good news:

a ) they have taken the opportunity to fix the recent recall issue.

b ) all diagnostic checks are clear and they cannot find any problem with the car. (I think we all expected this!)


The bad news:

c ) they tell me that when they found the car, one side of the drivers mat had come off its clip and the whole mat was found rotated and slipped under the accelerator!

You all know from my previous postings how aware I was that the mat is always to be blamed first. The journey to the garage was 4.6 miles. I had checked the mat obsessively over the last 2 weeks *and* before I left the house. There was *no way* I would have left the mat in a position like that, let alone without realising it!

d ) they tell me that they took the car for a good test drive and nothing happened. I checked the reading on the trip meter when I got home. The round trip was 9.2 miles. That test drive would have been less than the measurement error of 0.1 miles!

e ) they then tell me that I should not have shifted the car from Drive to Neutral. They say a ‘senior engineer’ has looked into this and you ‘always’ get an alarm and yellow triangle if you shift to Neutral when driving! They then 'advised' me not to do this again. I said I had been testing this extensively over the previous weeks and then explained what I found normally happens when you do. The service rep said, ‘well I hear you say one thing, by my senior engineer is telling me something else’.


Summary:

So there you have it. Good news is that I can now reassure my mother-in-law that the car has been *fully* tested and there is *nothing* wrong with it (she was a passenger for two of these events, one with me driving, the other when my wife was driving)!

Sad news is that (going in with *absolutely* no intention if picking a fight, and actually asking for help) I now realise what it feels like to come up against Corporate Toyota! They certainly DO NOT want to know!


http://www.toyotaownersclub.com/forums/topic/158898-sudden-unintended-acceleration-events-prius-gen-3-2011-model-in-uk/page-2

Sunday, June 22, 2014

Discredit! Discredit! Discredit! #4


The NEXT Celebration of parting from ROUTE 44 TOYOTA'S LEMON is approaching....






MR. ALBANY ROUTE 44 TOYOTA has his paralegal studying the text while he prepares for his next vacation.....




....Pretending: OMG! The LEMON LADY must be on drugs!.....


...the wheels are turning....

 
 
 

....the ATTACK!.....




.....THE INSPIRATION! .....




....Oh! Yes! When the LEMON LADY complained about her ROUTE 44 TOYOTA LEMON....





...where was she.....? ...did THE LEMON LADY consume ALCOHOL?.....







.....THE LEMON LADY was at 1000 WASHINGTON STREET....THE INSURANCE COMMISSION BUILDING......




...do these folks look like they're drunks who would serve alcohol at a PUBLIC meeting?.....





.....wasn't the LEMON LADY sitting behind this man and his cohorts before his.....MALFEASANCE became public? .....





.....WHY DOESN'T TOYOTA simply fix their TOYOTA VEHICLES to keep us safe?



JUST MY OPINION!

Discredit! Discredit! Discredit! #3 MR. ALBANY TOYOTA and TIMBER TRUST PASS

All part of the disingenuous TOYOTA CORPORATION PLAYBOOK instead of fixing the LEMON LADY'S  BRAND NEW TOYOTA! 


THE LEMON LADY has NEVER been accused of not speaking clearly, not articulating her words as if she has a mouth filled with dog biscuits......



In MR. ALBANY ROUTE 44 TOYOTA's deposition instructions, MR. ALBANY ROUTE 44 TOYOTA instructed the LEMON LADY to ask for clarification if a question was unclear. 




WELL.....shouldn't the same hold true for MR. ALBANY ROUTE 44 TOYOTA [WHATEVER]? 




MR. ALBANY ROUTE 44 TOYOTA [WHATEVER] gets to that part about maybe there was some stuff in the Boston Land Court that involved the LEMON LADY. 

What's it in reference to???? 

LEMON LADY offers TIMBER TRESPASS [M.G.L. statute below] since MR. ALBANY ROUTE 44 TOYOTA [WHATEVER]'s dog ate his homework....





MR. ALBANY TOYOTA [WHATEVER]  asks the LEMON LADY about TIMBER TRUST PASS because MR. ALBANY TOYOTA [WHATEVER] apparently can't HEAR clearly in addition to his previously itemized memory problems.....





 

THIS IS THE PROBLEM WITH MASSACHUSETTS RECIPROCITY! [another issue]...remember when MR. ALBANY ROUTE 44 TOYOTA argued with a judge because MR. ALBANY ROUTE 44 TOYOTA screwed up?




















...maybe it was because THE JUDGE was FEMALE...ya think he has a problem with women in addition to his other emotional problems?..... 




 

POSTED HERE: Will Toyota U.S.A. Notice????




MR. ALBANY ROUTE 44 TOYOTA [WHATEVER]  throws his well-controlled hissy fit...






....when the LEMON LADY corrects MR. ALBANY ROUTE 44 TOYOTA [WHATEVER]  because he never listens.....






...MR. ALBANY ROUTE 44 TOYOTA insists the LEMON LADY should interpret the statute.....






....isn't that what attorneys go to law school for? Isn't that what they get paid for? .....









Massachusetts General Law Chapter 242 Section 7

Section 7. A person who without license willfully cuts down, carries away, girdles or otherwise destroys trees, timber, wood or underwood on the land of another shall be liable to the owner in tort for three times the amount of the damages assessed therefor; but if it is found that the defendant had good reason to believe that the land on which the trespass was committed was his own or that he was otherwise lawfully authorized to do the acts complained of, he shall be liable for single damages only.



You see this has ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO DO WITH THE BRAND NEW ROUTE 44 TOYOTA THAT IS THE SUBJECT OF THIS LAWSUIT!










IN MY OPINION!

Did ya hear about .....?


MR. ALBANY ROUTE 44 TOYOTA floods the Plymouth Court with stacks of unopened paperwork....sent overnight mail.....





ROUTE 44 TOYOTA ATTORNEY DAN VIERA too busy defending a case that's a LOSER  instead of returning the lady's car because someone else is paying his fees.....






Did ya hear about the LEMON LADY'S ATTORNEY winning a $1.2 MILLION jury verdict after offering to SETTLE?