Indiana Lawyers and Attorneys - Criminal Law

Men Arrested for Clean Air Act Asbestos Worker Protection Violations

Aug 232010

Charles Yi and John Bostick were arrested Wednesday for violations of the Clean Air Act’s asbestos work practice standards committed during the renovation of a 204-unit apartment building in Winnetka, Calif., in January through February of 2006, the Justice Department announced today.

The arrest follows a six-count indictment returned against Yi and Bostick by a federal grand jury in Los Angeles on July 22, 2010. The indictment also charged the defendants with conspiracy to violate the Clean Air Act.

The Clean Air Act requires those who remove asbestos from buildings to adhere to established work practice standards to ensure the safe removal, transportation, and disposal of the asbestos.

The defendants were high level officers of three companies that purchased the property and oversaw its renovation and conversion for sale as condominiums. The indictment alleges that, despite having knowledge of asbestos contained in the acoustical or “popcorn” ceilings of the apartment units, the defendants hired a company that was not licensed or trained in asbestos abatement to scrape the ceilings of the units without telling the company’s workers of the asbestos in the ceilings or providing them with adequate protective gear.
The indictment charges the defendants with violations of several asbestos worker protection standards, including failing to notify the government of the asbestos abatement project, failing to have a foremen on site trained in the asbestos regulations, failing to keep the asbestos waste material wet during the abatement, failing to contain the asbestos waste material in air tight containers and failing to dispose of the asbestos waste material at a hazardous waste disposal site.

If convicted, the defendants face up to five years in prison as well as a criminal fine of up to $250,000 for each count.
The allegations in the indictment are mere accusations and all persons are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

The case was investigated by the Criminal Investigation Division of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the California South Coast Air Quality Management District. The case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California and the Justice Department’s Environmental Crimes Section.

source: justice.gov

Common Causes of Indiana Truck Accidents

Personal Injury No Responses »

Aug 172010

Common Causes of Indiana Truck Accidents
Every year, there are roughly 140,000 accidents involving large “big rig” trucks. In addition, 8% of all fatal automobile accidents involved one of these trucks. Our Indiana semi-truck accident lawyers say there are many reasons for this, which are listed below.

If you or a loved one has been injured from an Indiana truck accident, contact our Indiana truck accident lawyers now!

Actions of Passenger Cars
Many motorists of smaller cars simply do not know how to drive in the presence of large trucks. In attempting to maneuver around them, smaller cars contribute to accidents involving large semi-trucks. Such actions include hastily changing lanes in front of a truck, misjudging an approaching truck’s speed at an intersection, being blown out of position by air turbulence after passing a truck, driving between two trucks, improperly merging into traffic in such a way that a truck is forced to slow down, and many others. In such cases, the car driver will likely be at fault. Even still, he should consult an Indiana semi-truck accident lawyer before making any mistakes.

Actions of Indiana Commercial Truck Drivers
While commercial truck companies take great pains to train their drivers, these drivers are nonetheless at fault in more than 50% of accidents. Our semi-truck accident lawyers in Indiana say that happens when big rig drivers have received mediocre training on how to drive defensively, or other safety concerns. Also, some Indiana trucking companies give their drivers unreasonable deadlines. In such cases, they feel pressured to speed, or to stay on the road even when they are tired.

Indiana semi-truck accident lawyers say this might be a reason for the growing number of commercial truck accidents. They point to statistics showing that 75% of all trucking accidents took place while the truck driver was making a delivery. Technology is also a contributor to accidents: when a truck driver sends or receives a text message while driving, he is 23 times more likely to get into an accident. In conjunction with this, some trucking companies install computers to help their drivers check orders, and find routes to get to their destination. However, these trucks are ten times more likely than their counterparts to get into an accident.

When to Hire an Indiana Semi-Truck Accident Lawyer
If you or a loved one has been involved in an accident with a big rig truck, you should consult with a semi-truck accident lawyer in Indiana. That is because there are many legal complications in these accidents. Sometimes the truck driver is an independent contractor who is making a delivery for his own business in addition to making a delivery for another company. In such a case, does the company he is contracting for share some liability? In addition, whose insurance carrier pays for the eventual settlement to those injured or killed in the accident?

These are among the difficult questions that semi-truck accident lawyers in Indiana have to face. But they also may have to deal with lawyers for the trucking industry who try to low-ball on settlements to accident victims. With that in mind, a semi-truck accident lawyer in Indiana eeds to know relevant case law well, and have solid negotiating skills as he fights for his client, who likely has suffered a life-altering, debilitating injury.

FORT WAYNE, Indiana The United States Attorney's Office

Criminal Defense No Responses »

Aug 102010

Laura A. Wass, 21, of Hamilton, Indiana, was sentenced by Judge Theresa Springmann to 12 months and one day imprisonment and three years of supervised release after pleading guilty to count one of an indictment charging her with manufacture of a controlled substance, namely, 100 or more marijuana plants. This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Ashley Police Department, the Indiana State Police, the Hamilton Police Department and the the United States Postal Inspection Service. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Anthony Geller.

If you or a loved one has been arrested in Indiana, contact our Indiana Criminal Defense Lawyers now!

Jose Zapata, 38, of Marion, Indiana, plead guilty before Judge Theresa Springmann to count one of an indictment charging him with receipt of material involving the sexual exploitation of a minor. This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation Cyber Crime Task Force, the Fort Wayne Police Department, the Indiana State Police, the Allen County Police Department, and the Hamilton County Metro Crimes Against Children Task Force. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Lesley Miller Lowery.

The specific sentence in each case to be imposed upon conviction will be determined by the judge after a consideration of federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.

Pot Found on Bret Michaels Tour Bus by Indiana Law Enforcement

Criminal Defense, Traffic Tickets 1 Response »

Jul 242010

According to the Fort Wayne News-Sentinel Tour buses carrying Bret Michaels were subjects of a motor vehicle traffic stop on Interstate 69 in DeKalb County Indiana around midnight Wednesday. The probably cause for the stop was reported to be an inoperative equipment. One of the vehicles license plates lights didn’t work.

If you or a loved one has been charged with a drug possession, contact our Indiana criminal defense lawyers or attorneys now!

After taking the driver’s licenses and registrations of both drivers, law enforcement officers conducted a search of the first bus with the police dogs. Further investigation using police k9’s revealed marijuana and other unspecified drugs onboard.

No physical arrests were made, but charges were forwarded to the DeKalb County Prosecutor’s Office.

Bloomington Physician Charged with Health Care Fraud and Unlawful Drug Distribution

Criminal Defense No Responses »

Jul 162010

INDIANAPOLIS—Kamal Tiwari, age 58, a medical doctor practicing in Bloomington, Ind., has been indicted by a federal grand jury sitting in Indianapolis with health care fraud, health care fraud resulting in serious bodily injury, and 11 counts of unlawful drug distribution. The indictment, returned Wednesday, was unsealed today following Tiwari’s arrest. These charges are the result of a more than two-year investigation by the Inspector General of the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Indiana Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, Office of the Indiana Attorney General, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

If you or a loved one has been charged with health care fraud, contact our Indiana fraud lawyers now!

Tiwari does business as The Pain Management Center of Southern Indiana, P.C., The Pain Management & Surgery Center of Southern Indiana, Inc., Southern Indiana Anesthesiology, Inc., P.C., formerly known as Kamal, Inc., P.C.
The indictment alleges that Tiwari required patients to undergo medically unnecessary injection procedures, such as facet blocks, trigger point injections, radiofrequency ablations, and epidurals, as a condition of receiving narcotic controlled substance prescriptions, such as methadone, Percocet, Oxycontin, and oxycodone, Schedule II narcotic controlled substances. The indictment alleges that the injection procedures were performed in a frequency and pattern that was not medically necessary, and was outside the bounds of medical practice and not for a legitimate medical purpose. The indictment also alleges that Tiwari prescribed controlled substances as part of a scheme to defraud, in such dosage frequencies, combinations of controlled substances, and in such amounts to drug-dependent patients as were likely to cause and did cause those patients to submit to unwanted an unnecessary injection procedures and other services, and to cause those patients to become dependent on the medically unnecessary procedures.
The indictment sets out 16 patients that specifically illustrate the medically unnecessary procedures and improper drug prescriptions. The indictment goes on to allege 11 counts of illegal drug distribution by setting forth 11 prescriptions of Schedule II controlled substances that were not for a legitimate medical purpose and beyond the bounds of medical practice.
The indictment alleges that Tiwari defrauded health care benefit programs, including Medicare, Indiana Medicaid, and Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield. It alleges that from 2002 through 2007, Tiwari was paid approximately $21,617,687 by these three health care benefit programs alone.
“The allegations in this matter go well beyond the healthcare billing fraud we usually see. In this situation a physician not only used patients as pawns for profit, but actually compromised the health of some of Indiana’s most vulnerable citizens. The HHS Office of Inspector General (OIG) will continue to work with our local, State, and Federal partners to ensure that these types of crimes are investigated and prosecuted,” said Lamont Pugh III, Special Agent in Charge of OIG’s Chicago Region, which includes the State of Indiana.