Potential Signs of Human Trafficking

Unfortunately, and incomprehensibly, we are growing accustomed to seeing daily news reports of human trafficking and exploitation of children and adults. Thanks to the internet, this multi-billion dollar industry, which boasts over 100,000 dedicated websites, is among the fastest growing online business sectors in the United States. At what point do we say enough already? The answer is NOW!

Human trafficking cannot be ignored or denied any longer. This topic can be extremely uncomfortable to acknowledge, but we can make a difference by being proactive. This is a matter of life and death!

Every one of us has the potential to discover and report a human trafficking situation. While some victims are kept behind locked doors, others are often hidden right in front of us in such locations as construction sites, restaurants, elder care centers, nail salons, agricultural fields, escort services, truck stops, and hotels. You can learn indicators of human trafficking and effective questions you can ask in order to empower yourself to act when your gut tells you that something is wrong and make a real difference.

Traffickers’ use of coercion — such as threats of deportation or physical harm to the victim or family members — is so powerful that, even if you reach out to victims, they may be too fearful to reach out for or accept your help. Therefore, it is important to recognize the enormous amount of courage it takes if a trafficked victim to reach out for help and action should be taken immediately to remove them from their abuser. When a human trafficked victim does reach out to someone, they probably want out now.

The suggestions set forth in this article are not exhaustive and are merely a starting point.  Starting the conversation and educating ourselves and others is the critical first step in ending human trafficking.

What to look for
Some key red flags to alert you to a potential trafficking situation that should be reported:

– Suspected victim is living with employer;

– Poor living conditions, including blocking windows so others cannot see inside;

– Multiple children/people in cramped space and rarely seen, with numerous adults coming in and out of the property;

– Inability to speak to a suspected victim alone;

– If you are able to speak with the suspected victim, the answers appear to be scripted and rehearsed;

– Employer is holding identity documents;

– Signs of physical abuse;

– Suspected victim appears submissive or fearful;

– Very little or no payment;

– Prostitution of children under 18.

Questions to ask:
Assuming you have the opportunity to speak with a potential victim privately and without jeopardizing the victim’s safety, here are some sample questions to ask:

– Can you leave your job if you want to?

– Can you come and go as you please?

– If you have tried to leave, have you been hurt or threatened?

– Has your family been threatened?

– Do you live with your employer?

– Where do you sleep and eat?

– Are you in debt to your employer?

– Do you have your passport/identification? Who has it?

Where to get help and education about human trafficking
If you believe you have identified someone currently in the trafficking situation, alert local law enforcement immediately by calling 911. You may also want to alert the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 1-888-373-7888, a national 24-hour, toll-free, multilingual anti-trafficking hotline. It may be unsafe to attempt to rescue a trafficking victim on your own. You have no way of knowing how the trafficker may react and retaliate against the victim or you.

If, however, you identify a victim who has escaped the trafficking situation, there are a number of organizations to whom the victim can be referred for help with shelter, medical care, legal assistance, and other critical services. Call the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 1-888-373-7888 to report a tip, connect with anti-trafficking services in your area, or request training and technical assistance, general information, or specific anti-trafficking resources. The Hotline is equipped to handle calls from all regions of the United States from a wide range of callers, including potential trafficking victims, community members, law enforcement, medical professionals, legal professionals, service providers, researchers, students, and policymakers.

Polaris, another nonprofit organization, provides human trafficking victims and survivors with critical support, local resources, training, and solutions to eradicate human trafficking. You can contact them to get help and stay safe through the BeFree Text line (text HELP to 233733) or 202-790-6300.

 

Everyone wants human trafficking stopped. Starting a discussion and educating others will make a difference! Will you accept this challenge?

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Can I Collect from a Car Wash Collision?

This week’s question comes from Karen in the East Bay, who writes:

Q: “Chris, I need your advice. I took my car to a neighborhood car wash. While I was going through the wash, the car behind me accelerated and rear-ended my car. At the time, I was reaching for papers in the glove compartment. The force from the collision, while not great, was enough to shove my head into the dashboard. I ended up with a nasty gash above my eye that required stitches and may leave a permanent scar. I also suffered a neck injury, which hopefully will heal through physical therapy. I don’t know how the driver of the car behind me hit me. It might not matter. He doesn’t have car insurance. The car wash owner claims he has no responsibility because there was nothing wrong with the car wash’s machinery. My friends joke that I got into a collision inside a car wash. I am not laughing. Incredibly, I am already looking at more than $10,000 in hospital and medical bills. What should I do?”

A: Karen, I am sorry to learn of your injuries and how others have reacted. Often, an accident that can appear to some as only having caused a minor injury can actually have resulted in a significant injury.

At the outset, is there a police report? If not, go to the station nearest the car wash and have them fill one out. Insurance company that handle auto-related claims will want to see a police report.

You should reach out to the car wash’s liability insurance company. The manager should be able to give you that contact information. Since the incident occurred on their property, they most likely have medical payments coverage, which helps defray medical bills, regardless of who is at fault, for injuries suffered on the premises. There is no deductible for this coverage. Call now to get this benefit so your credit doesn’t get hurt for unpaid medical bills.

Hopefully you had auto insurance on your vehicle. Auto insurance falls into five basic categories: liability coverage, comprehensive coverage, collision coverage, uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage and medical payments coverage.

Liability insurance covers a driver who causes an accident. Comprehensive insurance covers damage or loss due to a non-accident, such as theft, falling trees and cracked windshields. Neither liability nor comprehensive coverage applies in your situation. However, the other three types of auto insurance, to the extent that your purchased them, are relevant.

Collision insurance repairs or replaces your car if it is damaged in an accident regardless of who is at fault. Your collision policy should cover the damage to your car, minus your deductible. If you get hit by an at-fault driver who has no insurance or inadequate insurance, uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage may pick up the difference to the level of your coverage. Uninsured/underinsured coverage will compensate you for past and future medical expenses, lost wages and your physical and emotional pain and suffering.

If your auto policy includes medical payments insurance, your auto carrier may help pay off some of your outstanding bills. Make sure that you confirm the limits and procedures for receiving reimbursement from your carrier.

Karen, I also suggest you consult with an experienced trial attorney to review your case. The damages you suffered may exceed the various vehicle policies particularly if you need plastic surgery to remove the scar above your eye or your neck requires injections or surgery. The culpability, if any, of the business needs to be evaluated.

Under California Civil Code, Section 1714, “Everyone is responsible, not only for the result of his or her willful acts, but also for any injury occasioned to another by his or her want of ordinary care or skill in the management of his or her property or person …”

All businesses owe a duty to protect their customers from unreasonable risk of harm or injury. It’s imperative that car washes inform customers — through either clear, visible signage or an attendant — when to enter, stop and place their vehicle into either neutral or park. Believe it or not, we have handled several serious car wash injury cases involving injury to the attendant as well as those involving harm to the drivers. In the wrong combination, cars, water, soap and machinery can be deadly.

A skilled trial lawyer should put the car wash on notice that an investigation is underway and request that all video and photos taken on the date of your injury be preserved. They should also inspect the car wash and develop a clear understanding of how the collision occurred.

This doesn’t require a law degree, just the cost of a car wash. An iPhone or GoPro can record the signage and sequencing. Often, car washes video record their operations. Your attorney should evaluate whether clear warning signs were displayed at drivers’ eye level at the entrance to the car wash. Were the instructions only in English? As we live in a multi-lingual society, the issue of language should be evaluated along with whether there was an attendant stationed near the entrance of the car wash to confirm the driver saw and understood the instructions and put the car in neutral.

We have seen situations where, in a fully automated system, the light said enter before the car in front had cleared the wash. We have also seen situations where the car wash attendant, being distracted, kept waiving a car to keep proceeding forward as the car hit the one in front of it. Likewise, we have seen situations where people feel the bump of the roller and, having left the car in drive, hit the gas (thinking they were breaking) slamming into the car in front of them.

Karen, I hope that you heal quickly. In the meantime, follow the instructions above to best protect and preserve your rights.

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Prop 213 Prevents Injured Drivers from Recovering Damages

This week’s question comes from Mayra B. in the Presidio, who asks:

Q: “I was recently rear-ended by a vehicle while I was stopped at a red traffic light. My car was wrecked and my leg was injured. I thought this would be an easy process as I didn’t do anything wrong. However, when I called my insurance company, they said my policy had lapsed. I was surprised to hear this because I always pay my car insurance on time; however I had recently moved to a new place and had not realized that I had forgotten to pay my insurance premium. After speaking to a lawyer, I found out that I could sue the other driver to get my car repaired, my hospital bills paid, and my time off work paid, but I cannot obtain compensation for my pain and suffering. How is this possible? It was not my fault.”

A: Mayra, thank you for your question. Unfortunately, the information your lawyer gave you is correct. In 1996, California voters passed the Personal Responsibility Act, known as Proposition 213, codified in the California Civil Code Sections 3333.3 & 3333.4.  Prop 213 bars uninsured drivers from recovering for non-economic damages if they were not insured at the time of the collision.

California Civil Code Section 3333.4 states: “in any action to recover damages arising out of the operation or use of a motor vehicle, no person shall recover non-economic losses to compensate for pain, suffering, inconvenience, physical impairment, disfigurement, and other nonpecuniary damages if . . . [t]he injured person was the owner of a vehicle involved in the accident and the vehicle was not insured as required by the financial responsibility laws of this state.” You may be wondering, “How could this be?”, especially for someone like yourself who only experienced a momentary lapse in insurance coverage. The answer is that Proposition 213 was framed as a law intended to punish drunk drivers and fleeing felons from obtaining compensation for pain and suffering. However, many voters did not realize that the proposition also sandwiched uninsured drivers between the drunk drivers and fleeing felons.  

As a result of Prop 213, California law now restricts damages for injured car owners and drivers in three situations: 1) where the driver themselves is convicted of DUI; 2) where the driver owns the vehicle and does not have the state minimum liability insurance at the time of the accident; and 3) when injury is sustained while committing a crime or fleeing from a crime which they are later convicted of as a felony.

Under Prop 213, an uninsured driver can still obtain compensation for special damages. Special damages are items that are quantifiable such as property damage, medical bills, and loss of earnings. However, the law restricts the uninsured driver from obtaining compensation for non-economic damages such as pain and suffering, physical impairment, disfigurement, inconvenience, and emotional distress.

There are some exceptions to the restrictions Prop 213 imposed. For example, a car owner or driver who does not have insurance coverage may recover for their non-economic damages if he/she was operating their employer’s uninsured vehicle, since the responsibility to insure the vehicle falls on the employer, not the employee driver. Another exception allows noneconomic damages when the accident occurs on private property, because state law only requires drivers to have auto liability insurance to drive on public roadways, not on private property.  Prop 213 restrictions will also not apply if a driver borrows a vehicle that does not have insurance coverage, but the driver did have insurance coverage on another car. Lastly, Prop 213 does not apply to a passenger who was injured while riding in an uninsured vehicle. Unfortunately, there is no exception for drivers who were uninsured due to an unintentional lapse in insurance, no matter how brief.

Due to the complexity of this law, it is important you contact a qualified trial lawyer to review the situation to see if one of the other exceptions applies to you.

If you were injured in an accident as a result of someone’s negligence, you still have the right to seek compensation for your economic damages such as your property damage, medical bills and lost wages, even if Prop 213 applies to your case. However the best practice is to make sure that you have insurance on your vehicle. Having vehicle insurance will protect you in the event that you harm someone else in a vehicle accident, but it will also allow you to be fully compensated if you are injured by another driver.

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The $150-Billion-a-Year Industry That Is Killing Our Children

“It ought to concern every person, because of our common humanity. It ought to concern every community, because it tears at our social fabric. It ought to concern every business, because it distorts markets. It ought to concern every nation, because it endangers public health and fuels violence and organized crime. I’m talking about the injustice, the outrage, of human trafficking, which must be called by its true name — modern slavery.” – President Barack Obama, Sept. 25, 2012

The most common forms of human trafficking are sex trafficking, forced labor and debt bondage. While any form of human trafficking is reprehensible and deserves attention, the focus of this article will be sexually exploited children. This is a difficult and uncomfortable topic, but denial and silence is killing and permanently harming our children.

Sexual exploitation of children by force, fraud, or coercion in the United States is misunderstood.  Many believe it happens in other countries, not right before our eyes in the United States.

The reality is that human trafficking is modern slavery that happens everywhere, affects every race and crosses all social classes, and is woefully underreported because the victims are not visible. Sex-trafficked children are often “reused” for rape sometimes more than 12 times a day. The United States Department of State documented a case of one child being raped more than one thousand times.

Not until 2003 did the first state, Washington, criminalized human trafficking. Despite federal and state legislation in ensuing years, the sex trafficking serpent has continued to proliferate at an alarming rate.

The latest federal law, the Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers Act of 2017, takes the important step of broadening the accountability net, providing an instrument to cut the head off the serpent and eventually put an end to this violence and abuse. Now, “facilitators” financially benefitting or receiving anything of value from participation in a venture which has engaged in sex trafficking can be held civilly and criminally responsible. Examples include truck stops, hotels, and social media advertisers receiving money through the sale of goods or services, leasing real estate or renting hotel and motel rooms. It is important that customers of these businesses keep an eye out and report to law enforcement any behavior or circumstances suggesting the presence of sex trafficking (see Red Flag Warnings, below).

THE NUMBERS
1.6 Million homeless children on the streets at any one time, many having run away or been abducted. A large proportion of these children are victims of neglect or physical or sexual abuse.

1.5 Million sex-trafficked victims in the United States.

35.7 percent rise in sex trafficking in the United States between 2015 and 2016.

14 & 10 percent of girls and boys, respectively, under age 18 bought and sold every year and sexually violated.

The average age of commercially sex trafficked children is 11-14 years.

58 percent of LGBTQ homeless children are sexually exploited annually.

$650,000 is the potential annual earnings of sex trafficker violating as little as four children.

300,000 United States children at risk of becoming victims of  commercial sexual exploitation annually.

7 years is the average child’s life span beginning on the first day they are exploited (from all causes including suicide, physical violence, disease, malnutrition, and overdose)

SECRET CODE EXAMPLES TO HIDE TRAFFICKING
-Lot Lizards: Commercially sexually exploited victims brought in droves to nationwide truck stops and sexually exploited.

-Facilitators: Legitimate businesses such as hotels, airlines, bus and rail companies, advertisers like Craigslist.com, alternative newspapers, banks and other financial services companies, truck stops, landlords, social media including Facebook and Twitter, bars, strip clubs, massage parlors, escort services, and on and on and on.

-Quota: Amount often set between $300 and $2,000 a trafficking victim must make each night before she/he can go “home.”

-Leash: Narcotics, typically heroin and meth, used to control victims.

RED FLAG WARNINGS
-Physical Appearance – Injuries/signs of abuse such as burn marks, bruises, cuts, or unhealthy thinness; tattoo(s) displaying a man’s name, symbol of money, or barcode; sexualized behavior; provocative dress considering age group and/or weather conditions.

-Possessions – Very few personal possessions, no identification, multiple hotel keys or key cards, prepaid cell phone.

-Behavior – Talk about an older boyfriend, sex with an older man, making lots of money and/or wild parties; claims of being an adult; stories that do not add up; fear of authority figures; withdrawn, depressed, distracted or checked out affect.

-Unusual Circumstances – Twenty girls in one hotel room; groups of children outside trucks stopped at truck stops; multiple children living in a home with boarded up windows and numerous cars where the children are rarely seen.

If you see something, DO something! You just might save a life.

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Working Safely in Extreme Weather

This week’s question comes from Danny T., who asks:

Q: “I work in construction and a lot of times I work outside in the heat and cold. Other times, when I am in the shack doing paperwork, they keep it way too hot, like 80 degrees. Are there rules about this that I should know — like, can they make me work in the rain, or send me home with no pay if it is too wet to work?”

A: Thanks for your question, Danny.  It is important to know your rights in the workplace.  You didn’t mention whether you were a member of a union but, if you are, the first place to look for answers would be your Collective Bargaining Agreement.  If that doesn’t specify relevant terms, or if you are not a union member, then regulations administered by the California Occupational Safety and Health Administration (Cal/OSHA) and federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration would govern your situation.

I will address two issues you raise here: (1) Rules for working outside during weather events; and (2) Temperature requirements in indoor areas.

Working outside, as you know, creates a number of issues related to a worker’s health, safety and comfort, especially when workers are exposed to heat, cold, rain or snow. Heat illness can be deadly. In 2005, California became the first state to adopt a heat illness prevention standard to protect outdoor workers. Under California Code of Regulations, Title 8, Section 3395, employers are required to provide employees who work outdoors with free and reasonably cool water, a place of shade, cool-down rest breaks, and training on how to recognize and prevent heat illness.  When the heat is more extreme, over 95 degrees, employers must implement special High-Heat procedures to monitor workers.

Cold weather can also present serious dangers to outside workers.  Cal/OSHA recognizes and warns of the dangers cold-stress presents, particularly hypothermia, frostbite and trench-foot.  However, unlike heat, there are no specific standards or requirements employers must follow at either the state or federal level. However, under the General Duty Clause, Section 5(a)(1) of the federal Occupational Safety and Health Act, employers are required to provide their employees with a place of employment that “is free from recognizable hazards that are causing or likely to cause death or serious harm to employees.” California also has a catch-all standard, California Code of Regulations, Title 8, Section 3203, that requires most employers to establish and implement an effective Injury and Illness Prevention Program (“IIPP”).

These general standards are also applicable to rain and snow.  An employer can require that people work outside in the rain, but if the weather conditions make the outdoor worksite too dangerous, the employer has a responsibility to cease the work.  If the cancellation occurs part way through the work day, you may be entitled to “reporting time pay,” or compensation for 50 percent of the time you had been scheduled to work. This requirement is subject to exceptions for utility failures and “acts of God,” such as earthquakes. Unfortunately, if work is cancelled prior to the start of the work day, there is no obligation to pay affected workers.

There is also no current mandated standard for indoor workplace temperature at either the state or federal level.  The United States Department of Labor does, however, make a recommendation in its technical manual: employers should maintain indoor temperature in the range of 68-76° F, with humidity in the range of 20 percent — 60 percent.  The Cal/OSHA appeals board has also upheld citations against warehouse operators whose prevention program failed to address indoor temperature regulation, leading to employee injury. (National Distribution Center, Cal/OSHA App. 12-R6D2-0391, 12-R6D2-0378, Decision After Reconsideration (Oct. 5, 2015)).

The concern over the lack of specific rules for indoor workers is increasing.  In 2016, then Gov. Brown signed a bill directing Cal/OSHA to draft and propose standards for indoor worksites “that minimizes heat-related illness and injury among workers working in indoor places of employment.”  A draft standard was circulated to Advisory Committees in October of last year that proposed requiring employers, when indoor workplaces rise above 82 degrees, to provide cool-down places, make policies requiring or providing appropriate clothing, and implement training and a heat-illness plan.  However, this standard has not yet been enacted.

If you are ever asked to work in an environment that is unsafe, it is a good idea to document your opposition in writing to your employer and Cal/OSHA. The law protects workers who oppose unsafe working conditions: California Labor Code 6310 makes it unlawful for an employer to retaliate against a worker who makes this type of complaint.  If you do suffer retaliation for opposing an unsafe work environment, immediately reach out to a quality employment lawyer, such as those at Dolan Law Firm, PC.

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If you’re in the stands, keep your eye on the ball

This week’s question coincides with baseball season, which is the perfect time of year for me to remind readers of an important legal issue relating to their enjoyment of America’s pastime:

Q: “Who is responsible if someone gets hit with a line drive, foul ball or broken bat while watching a game?”

A: As a lawyer — and a big Giants fan — I like to start off the season by reminding people to put down your cellphone and keep your eye on the ball during play. A distraction can lead to serious and even life-threatening injury.

 

Balls and bats leaving the playing field and entering the stands are not uncommon. Indeed, Bloomberg reported in 2014 that roughly 1,750 spectators a year are injured by batted balls at all of the major league ballparks throughout the United States. The study showed spectators were much more likely to be hit with an errant ball than a player was to be hit with a pitch. While most injuries, thankfully, are minor, there are reports of severe injuries and even death due the use of wooden bats and presence of 90 mph fastballs.

In a 2015 Boston Globe article, baseball statistician Edwin Comber said about 73 percent of foul balls go into the stands. A 2000 lawsuit against the Boston Red Sox revealed that during a five-year period in the 1990s, 36 to 53 fans per year were hit by balls outside the field of play. Indeed, there have been reports of serious head injuries, skull fractures and even brain injuries as a result of bats and balls entering the stands.

As fans demand to be ever-closer to the action, and as high-priced seats are moved closer to the field, the risk of injury goes up — just as fast as the price.

The issue of liability for fans’ injuries was addressed by the California Supreme Court in 1935, in the case of Quinn v. Recreation Park Ass’n. The court held that one of the natural risks assumed by fans attending major league games is that of being struck by batted or thrown balls. The court ruled the franchise and/or park owner/operator is not required, nor does it undertake, to insure patrons against injury from such source. All that is required is the exercise of ordinary care to protect patrons against such injuries. Management is not obliged to make each seat safe from flying balls. The court pointed out that many patrons prefer to sit where their view is not obscured by a screen. The duty imposed by law is performed when screened seats are provided for as many as may be reasonably expected to call for them on any ordinary occasion and if a spectator chooses to occupy an unscreened seat or is unable to buy a screened seat and chooses to occupy one that is not protected, she/he “assumes the risk of being struck by thrown or batted balls; and, if injured thereby, is precluded from recovering damages therefore.”

In Neinstein v. Los Angeles Dodgers Inc. (1985), the Court of Appeals held “the quality of a spectator’s experience in witnessing a baseball game depends on his or her proximity to the field of play and the clarity of the view, not to mention the price of the ticket. As we see it, to permit a plaintiff to recover under the circumstances here would force baseball stadium owners to do one of two things: One, place all spectator areas behind a protective screen, thereby reducing the quality of everyone’s view and changing the very nature of the game, since players are often able to reach into the spectator area to catch foul balls; or two, continue the status quo and increase the price of tickets to cover the cost of compensating injured persons with the result that persons of meager means might be “priced out” of enjoying the great American pastime.

To me, neither alternative is acceptable. It is not the role of the courts to effect a wholesale remodeling of a revered American institution through application of the tort law. This decision was in line with one handed down in Ratcliff v. San Diego Baseball Club of Pacific Coast League (1938), in which the Court of Appeals held that a spectator who voluntarily occupies an unprotected seat assumes the risk of being struck by thrown or batted balls.

As with almost everything, there are some exceptions in this line of legal reasoning. For example, the courts have held that a franchise may be held liable for injury that occurred while a mascot distracted a fan during play, resulting in a fly ball to the face. (Lowe v. California League of Prof. Baseball (1997). No one is liable for a bat that inadvertently gets loose if the park owners have provided some areas of protected seating and have adequately screened the areas most likely to be at risk of flying balls and bats.

Just remember: The nosebleed seats may prevent you from getting a bloody nose.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: CLAIM FILED AGAINST U.S. GOVERNMENT FOR TRANSGENDER IMMIGRANT’S DEATH

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: CLAIM FILED AGAINST U.S. GOVERNMENT FOR TRANSGENDER IMMIGRANT’S DEATH

PRESS CONFERENCE: June 12, 2019, 1:00 p.m., Dolan Law Firm, 1438 Market Street, San Francisco, CA.

On June 11, 2019, the family of Johana Medina Leon filed a claim against the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency (ICE) and the Department of Homeland Security for denying her civil rights and thereby causing her death while she was being detained after crossing into the United States. In December of 2018, Johana, an El Salvadorian National, was threatened with physical violence based on her transgender status. She fled El Salvador in fear for her life to Mexico where she received a Humanitarian Visa. With her visa she traveled to an asylum center in Juarez, Mexico. While in Juarez, Johana was assigned a number for an appointment with the Customs and Boarder Control, ICE and the Department of Homeland Security where she sought asylum. Her fear of persecution was found to be credible and she was detained pending a hearing. Although she was given a court date, The CPB questioned her transgender status, as she had male genitalia, and housed her with males. Unlike other transwomen, she was not paroled pending a future court date and was, instead, sent to the ICE Otero County Processing Center in New Mexico.

Soon after arriving at Otero, Johana’s health rapidly deteriorated. Having been trained and employed as a nurse in El Salvador, she recognized that she needed IV fluids but her request for treatment was denied. She asked for water, sugar and salt so she could prepare her own IV but that request too was denied. In April and May Johana’s condition got progressively worse and, since she was being denied care, she asked to be deported so she could receive treatment. Her request was ignored, and her condition continued to deteriorate. On May 15, 2019, Johana appeared before a U.S. Magistrate to present her case for asylum where she was told that she would receive a decision in 8 days, and she was returned to ICE custody. On May 20th she spoke with her boyfriend in El Salvador and reported that her requests for treatment had been denied. On May 23 or 24, 2019, Johana was found unconscious and was taken by ICE to the Del Sol Medical Center Hospital in El Paso, TX. ICE apparently granted her release on her own recognizance right before she was dropped at the hospital. Over the next several days, Johana spoke with her boyfriend and family members reporting that her condition was worsening. On June 1, 2019, Johana’s family was notified that she had died as a result of pneumonia.

Johana’s family claims that the Government, in violation of Johana’s civil rights, negligently managed her care because of her nationality, her seeking asylum, and her transgender status; thereby causing her death.

Christopher Dolan, the family’s attorney, based in California, stated :“On the Statue of Liberty there is a famous poem by Emma Lazarus, known by all Americans, which states in part, “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, the wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me . . .” The Trump Administration seems to have re- written the poem, to say “. . .and I will send them back abused, terrorized and dead.” Johana deserved to be protected by this Country as a human being seeking asylum. Instead, she was detained, humiliated, mistreated, and dumped at a hospital where she was not on the threshold of liberty; but, instead, on death’s door. We will get to the truth and hold this Government accountable for its callous disregard of Johana.

A representative of Johana’s family will be present via Skype, from El Salvador, to answer questions.

FOR INFORMATION CONTACT CHRIS DOLAN at 415-279-2604 or presscontact@dolanlawfirm.com

For access to the press conference via video conference go to: https://zoom.us/j/878557725

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The battle between robots and humans

This week’s question comes from Aimee F. in Seacliff, who asks,

Q: “I read in last week’s paper that Amazon and other companies are developing robots which will be delivering packages door to door. They look like big ice-chests on wheels. This makes me concerned. My elderly mother does not see well but walks alone between her house and the grocery store. I am afraid she wouldn’t see one of these robots, as it is the last thing she would expect to come across on the sidewalk. If someone gets hit or falls over because of one of these robots, who would be held responsible?”

A: Thanks for your question, Aimee. As you read, Amazon recently publicized that it would be testing ”Scout,” its delivery robot, in Snohomish County, Washington, for delivery of expedited orders (same day to two day) to its Prime members. Designed for the “last mile” of the delivery cycle, the robots will travel to residences using sidewalks. For the near future, the robots will only deliver during daylight and must be accompanied by humans who can intervene if a robot does not navigate well around pets, toys, kids, cars, pedestrians, etc.

Amazon is not the first company to venture into robot delivery. In 2014, a San Francisco company called Starship, founded by the founders of Skype, introduced its robot delivery service, which now boasts over 100,000 km of ground covered and 30,000 deliveries. Both Starship and Kiwi, a company founded in Berkeley in 2017, have launched pilot robotic delivery services to students on college campuses around the country. Marble, another San Francisco company founded in 2015, makes food deliveries for Eat24 in the Potrero and Mission Neighborhoods. Postmates has also been developing a robot, Serve, with a mission to “respect cities, meet customer demands, and help local businesses sell even more.”

In December 2017, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors passed Ordinance 244-17, amending Public Works Code Section 794. Originally, the ordinance was drafted as an outright ban on robotic delivery vehicles, also known as Automated Delivery Devices (“ADD”). The prohibition failed to secure the required number of votes, so it was replaced by a permitting process that allows testing of up to 9 ADD’s total at any one time, with no single company having more than 3 on the road. Testing has been limited to certain neighborhoods in zoning districts designated for Production, Design and Repair (“PDR”) and ADDs are restricted to traveling no more than 3 miles per hour with human accompaniment at all times.

As to your question: what does the law say about responsibility for injuries caused by ADDs? California law provides that an injured bystander like your mother may bring suit for her injuries under negligence or strict products liability claims. Strict products liability would be brought against the designer and manufacturer of the robot, as well as the permit holder, alleging the robots are defective and dangerous due to their design and/or manufacturing process. For instance, an injured party could argue that, given that ADDs are below waist-height (for the most part), a reasonable person would not expect such a novel and diminutive vehicle on the sidewalk or crossing the road, any design lacking a conspicuous marking such as a flag or some other item would cause unlawful danger to pedestrians and motorists.

An injured party could also sue under negligence law to hold an ADD’s permit holder accountable for making sure the robot functions in a reasonably safe manner. Therefore, the permit holder would be liable for any harms caused by the robot if its actions do not meet this “reasonably safe” standard. There is no developed case law so far directly involving ADDS, so the most analogous decisions would be those evaluating the behavior of pedestrians, bikes, skateboards, etc. One thing yet to be worked out, is whether the permit holder would have to provide the data collected by the robots’ myriad sensors to a party claiming injury due to the alleged negligent operation of the ADD.

While the exact nature of injuries, claims and lawsuits from this new technology is yet to be determined, odds are, unfortunately, that someone will be hurt or killed. I wrote in 2012 about the inevitability of Uber’s systems and drivers causing injury or death, a prediction that manifested tragically with the death of 7 year old Sophia Liu whose family I represented in the first wrongful death lawsuit in Uber’s history. Sophia’s family and I went to Sacramento and helped pass a bill that requires Uber to carry a million dollars in insurance. I hope that, in this case, the companies are more deliberate and resolve issues concerning liability and insurance before the inevitable moment when someone is hurt or killed.

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Understanding your lease agreement

This week’s question comes from a concerned parent in south Marin, who asks,

Q: “My daughter and four roommates have lived in a two-bedroom apartment in San Francisco for the past two years. When they first moved in, they agreed with the landlord that they would be billed monthly for the water bill. It did not say so in the lease, however. As the year went on, they were never billed even though they asked him repeatedly for it via email.  Now, two years later, he is demanding the racked-up $1,000+ water bill for August 2017 through July 2018 to be paid with their rent check for June 1st. Is this legal? How should they handle this situation?”
A: Dear Concerned Parent, It is difficult to answer this question without the benefit of reviewing the lease document. However, I will answer generally with my understanding drawn from seeing numerous lease agreements as both a renter and landlord.

The rental of an apartment is a contractual arrangement, comprising a landlord’s offer to lease under specific terms and a tenant’s acceptance of those terms. California Civil Code § 1941.1(a)(3) dictates that the landlord bears responsibility to render an apartment habitable by providing water facilities meeting specific regulatory criteria. Generally, a lease agreement includes provisions pertaining to payment for utilities provided, so I would first suggest that you look at the lease to see what, if anything, it says about utilities and which party bears the expense for them.

Next, you should look toward the end of the lease agreement to see if it has an “merger” or “integration” clause, which would look something like this: “This Agreement contains the entire agreement between the Parties to this Agreement and supersedes any and all prior agreements, understandings, representations, and statements between the Parties, whether oral or written, and whether by a Party or such Party’s legal counsel. The Parties are entering into this Agreement based solely on the representations and warranties herein and not based on any promises, representations, and/or warranties not found herein. No modification, waiver, amendment, discharge, or change of this Agreement shall be valid unless the same is in writing.” These types of clauses are standard in most contracts, including lease agreements, and indicate the parties’ agreement that the contract’s only enforceable provisions are those set forth within the “four corners” of the document, including any addendums or modifications signed by all contracting parties.

Therefore, if your daughter’s lease agreement includes a merger clause and does not include any specific provision for water payments, she can make a strong argument that any oral agreement to pay water bills, outside the four corners of the lease, is unenforceable.

If the lease document contains no merger clause, however, the landlord could argue that an oral contract existed requiring the tenants to pay for water on a monthly basis and point to the roommates’ emails asking for the water bills to demonstrate the nature, existence, and/or terms of that contract. In this scenario, your daughter could still raise a “waiver of rights” defense to the landlord’s claim. Parties to a contract may waive certain contractual rights by not acting upon them. Here, your daughter could argue that her landlord, having not presented any monthly bills in the past two years, has waived any right to demand payment for that bill now.

Your daughter could bolster this waiver argument by citing to California Civil Code § 1954.205, Bill for water service; calculation; inclusion of other lawful charges, which sets forth the law regarding landlords billing for water services. The following relevant parts would apply here: “(a) As part of the regular bill for water service, a landlord shall only bill a tenant for the following water service: (1) A charge for volumetric usage, which may be calculated in any the following ways: (A) The amount shall be calculated by first determining the proportion of the tenant’s usage, as shown by the submeter, to the total usage as shown by the water purveyor’s billing. The dollar amount billed to the tenant for usage shall be in that same proportion to the dollar amount for usage shown by the water purveyor’s billing. . . . (a) Submeters shall be read within three days of the same point in each billing cycle. (b) Payments shall be due at the same point in each billing cycle.” If your daughter can show that her landlord failed to read the submeters (if any) regularly and provide the bill as required, this evidence would further substantiate an argument that he waived his contractual right to demand payment of the water bills.

I hope this helps you, your daughter, and her roommates. If the landlord doesn’t back down, I suggest that she consult the San Francisco Tenant’s Union for more advice at www.sftu.org.   

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Landowners Have an Obligation to Address ‘Blighted’ Conditions

This week’s question comes from Jim J. in the Excelsior, who asks:

Q: “My neighbor died. She was such a nice lady. I miss her and I also miss how she used to care for her yard. Her son inherited the place, he was never any good to her and was always trouble growing up. He hasn’t gotten any better with age. Since he moved in, he has been “collecting things” — mostly old cars but also tires, rims and other auto parts. He uses the garage to fix up old cars that he then sells. Most of the junk just stays there and rusts. It’s a scrap yard. Weeds are growing, and I have seen rats running in and out. It’s disgusting. What can I do about it?”

A: Dear Jim, you have a right to expect that your neighbor will keep their property reasonably clean. The conditions you referred to are commonly known as “blight,” and San Francisco has an ordinance — called the Community Preservation and Blight Reduction Act, contained within the Administrative Code — that codifies the responsibilities of a landowner to maintain their property.

The Board of Supervisors determined blighted properties are those that are in a condition of significant deterioration or disrepair, attract vagrants, gang members and other criminal elements as prime locations to conduct their illegal criminal activities, cause general deterioration and instability and substantially endanger the health and safety of residents of the blighted properties and of the surrounding neighborhoods. The Department of Public Works is empowered to issue notices of violation and take action to remedy blighted properties under the doctrine of nuisance.

The presence of any accumulation of filth, garbage, decaying animal or vegetable matter, waste paper, hay, grass, straw, weeds, vegetation overgrowth, litter, trash, cigarette or cigar butts, unsanitary debris, waste material, animal or human excrement is a nuisance prohibited under law. Likewise, “overgrown, dead or decayed trees, weeds or other vegetation, rank growth, rubbish, junk, garbage, litter, debris, flyers or circulars” are recognized as a fire hazards and conditions that promote the spread of vermin.

As to the “scrap yard,” the Administrative Code specifically identifies any property that contains, in the outdoor area, any refrigerator, washing machine, sink, stove, heater, boiler, tank or any other household equipment, machinery, furniture, or item, appliance or appliances as being blighted.

Whenever the director of DPW determines that a property is blighted, he or she may require or take any necessary abatement or other enforcement actions to cause the property blight to be abated. The director, or his or her appointee, can inspect the property and require the owner to pay for a property inspection fee of up to $250. DPW can also issue an abatement order requiring the landowner to address the issues, as soon as possible, and no later than 15 days after notice of the violation, although they can apply for an extension. A person cited also can request a hearing challenging the citation in front of an administrative law judge.

The DPW director can file a notice of abatement against the title of a delinquent property owner. If the owner fails to abate the nuisance, the director can order DPW to do so and then place a lien on the landowners’ property. A lien is a notice filed in the County Recorder’s Office against the title that indicates a debt is owed to The City for the costs associated with the abatement. Upon sale or transfer of the property, The City must be paid in order to secure clear title.

Jim, I suggest you contact DPW either by dialing 311 or by going to the sf311.org website. Search “blight” and request that they come out and inspect the property. Hopefully, they will do so, serve a citation and cause the neighbor to abate the nuisance. In case DPW fails to take action, you, as an owner affected by the blight, can request an injunction in San Francisco Superior Court.

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