Category: Architecture, Construction, Engineering, Safety Forensic Engineering Investigation of a Long Span Wooden Truss Failure During Erection TASA ID: 1134 With about one third of the long span wood trusses in place for a 60' by 100' building being constructed as a convenience store, the trusses already erected fell over like dominos injuring three laborers. The three workers sued a number of parties involved in the project including the crane rental company and the manufacturer and supplier of the trusses, claiming that they shared responsibility for the accident and that they should have taken action to prevent the collapse. The author was retained as an expert witness for the crane rental company. Investigation and analysis of available facts established that the crane rental company was not responsible and should have had no liability. Read more
Category: Appraisals / Valuations The Impact of Damage TASA ID: 4642 Most legal cases I am involved with fall into two general categories. The first involves the fairly straightforward appraisal report for divorce cases wherein an aircraft needs to be appraised as part of the settlement or the appraisal is needed for the attorney's client who is purchasing an aircraft and the market value is required for financing. The market value may also be needed as an integral part of the initial Purchase Agreement or in negotiating the price itself. While these appraisal situations are fairly routine projects for me, I am always surprised to hear the attorney hiring me state that I was the only one who physically examined the aircraft and its records when developing my opinion of value. Read more
Category: Accident Analysis / Reconstruction Pitfalls for Low Speed Injury Defense TASA ID: 399 Imagine, for a moment, a rear-end collision takes place, where the plaintiff sitting in the driver's seat of his struck vehicle reports to have injuries similar to shoulder, neck and back strains. With no apparent damage to either vehicle, a collision reconstructionist estimates a collision speed of below 5 MPH. Read more
Category: Accident Analysis / Reconstruction The Ins and Outs of Vehicular Accident Reconstruction, From the Experts Point of View TASA ID: 417 In vehicular accident reconstruction, it is always a concern when attorneys wait until the eleventh hour to call in an engineering expert to first analyze a case. The accident reconstructionist will do his best work when there is ample time to visit the site as soon as possible in order to take measurements, observe the evidence, and analyze the case. Read more
Category: Articles, Law Enforcement & Corrections, Resources for Attorneys The Less Lethal Option for American Policing: Exploring Less Lethal Use of Force Whitepaper TASA ID: 3454 One of the most controversial policies regularly questioned in the public domain is police use of force. Through the news media, we are regularly apprised of situations in which police are alleged to have used excessive force during the apprehension of a suspect or an incident in which a suspect was killed as a result of police action. This essay is an attempt to enlighten the reader on various issues regarding police use of force and some of the choices police officers may face in which there is no desirable outcome but the use of force to preserve life. Read more
