Posts Tagged ‘New Orleans’

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New Orleans Selected as Location for Upcoming Oil Spill Litigation!

August 10th, 2010 | Posted in BP Oil Spill, Local Issues, National Issues by bloom | No Comments »

The Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation has reached a consensus that the slew of upcoming Oil Spill Litigation Cases will be tried in federal court in New Orleans before Judge Carl J. Barbier.

Photo Courtesy of TopNews.net

Early speculation following the Oil Spill indicated that the primary locations for the eventual litigation were either going to be Houston: Oil Company Headquarters or Louisiana: the State most immediately impacted by the Oil Spill. This marks a small victory for Louisiana and the victims of the Oil Spill after months of uncertainty as the time-consuming and costly prospect of traveling far from their homes to participate in litigation cases has now been eliminated.

Additionally, the upcoming caseload is expected to drive an economic influx to New Orleans and the surrounding affected region.

This announcement serves as a reminder that now is the time to determine your options and entitlements and set in motion the process of filing your claims against BP. If you or a loved one have been affected by the Oil Spill, time is of the essence to ensure that you take the actions necessary to ensure that you receive the compensation you are due.

Contact Bloom Legal today at 504-599-9997 to set up a free consultation and discuss how we can advocate for you.

New Orleans Adds 9 New Traffic Cameras – What To Look Out For

July 27th, 2010 | Posted in Local Issues, Traffic by bloom | 8 Comments »

This month, New Orleans saw the addition of nine Traffic Enforcement Cameras to the already dozens in place throughout the city. This means that local drivers must be ever more vigilant about speeding and obeying traffic signals.

The New Orleans Public Works Department has issued figures indicating that the installation of traffic enforcement cameras has been effective in greatly reducing the number of moving violations issued by the city on a daily basis. While this is certainly a positive result, one cannot help but to wonder if the installation of new cameras has anything to do with the need to recoup the enormous deficit that city’s budget has been running over the past year.

Whatever your opinion on the presence of greater numbers of Traffic Enforcement Cameras throughout the city; with tickets for running red lights pegged at $145 and speeding tickets ranging from $80 to $145 (as well as a $75 fee for late payment!) it pays to be aware of the location of the newly targeted areas:

Henry Clay @ Coliseum – Both Directions
City Park Ave @ Canal Blvd – Westbound
N Rampart @ Esplanade – Southbound
Wisner @ Harrison – Both Directions
Harrison @ Marconi Dr – Westbound

Traffic tickets can significantly hike up your auto insurance rates which is why you should always consult with a traffic defense attorney before agreeing to pay any fees or fines. Contact Bloom Legal (504-599-997) to have them represent you the next time you have a traffic violation in Orleans or Jefferson Parish or anywhere else in the state of Louisiana.

In many of the cases you will never have to go to court, saving you valuable time. The time and money wasted on paying or pleading guilty to traffic tickets can be avoided by hiring a traffic defense attorney. Most cases can be handled by phone and via e-mail so no attorney office visit is necessary.

Orleans Parish Criminal Court releases statement of case backlog

July 21st, 2010 | Posted in Courts by bloom | No Comments »

The Orleans Parish Criminal District Court has released numbers from a Metropolitan Crime Commission analysis of 2009 showing that judges have reduced the buildup of old cases on their dockets. Following Hurricane Katrina, the courts were swamped with a backlog of cases that slowed proceedings in the Criminal Courts. The statistics released from the Crime Commission show that judges have diminished their pileup of old cases with improved case processing. Time between arrest and completion of trial has dramatically fallen since Hurricane Katrina. The 2009 median case processing time for all 12 sections of criminal court was 120 days, 20 days shorter than the 2008 number, and a far cry from the 232 days in 2007. Over the three year period, the courts have made tremendous progress in operating more efficiently. Particularly when considering the actions of District Attorney Leon Cannizzaro in accepting more cases, and loading judges with more cases. This trend is very beneficial for the city of New Orleans. Decreased time between arrest and trial conclusion means less money spent by the city in housing defendants in jail. This allows the city to focus their expenditures on other areas that need improvement. Hopefully the Orleans Parish judges continue their good work and we will see their case load reach the national level of efficiency.

BP in the Business of “Making it Right”? Doesn’t Seem So

July 13th, 2010 | Posted in BP Oil Spill by bloom | No Comments »

Throughout the Gulf oil disaster, BP has claimed numerous times that it is going to do whatever it takes to make things right. The company has stated that it will honor all legitimate claims and will pay out accordingly. However, instead of “making things right”, BP has started reducing payments to Louisianans who have filed for compensation for losses because the company has deemed their files incomplete. Rather than simply inform the approximately 40,000 people who have incomplete files of their status or make an attempt to collect alternative forms of documentation, BP is cutting payments in what seems to be a blatant attempt to save money. Further proof of BP’s policy of reducing its financial liability will be illustrated when the company soon begins adjusting claims downward based on the seasonally decreased nature of fishing.
I may not be speaking for everyone, but in my opinion it does not seem that BP is actually trying to “make it right”, as their press releases and commercials continuously claim. BP is making it clear that they are in the business of saving money, especially at the expense of the local fisherman. Before you or your loved ones accept a quick check from BP which may block you from any further claim against the company, please contact me at 504-599-9997 so that I can make sure your interests are being protected. After all, BP is not in the business of making you whole; they are in the business of making you go away quietly.

New Oil Cap Being Put in Place

July 12th, 2010 | Posted in BP Oil Spill by bloom | No Comments »

BP is in the process of putting a new cap on the gushing well in the
Gulf of Mexico. After removing the older, temporary cap a few days
ago, oil has been flowing into the Gulf unobstructed. The new cap,
which has the potential to stop the oil flow completely, should be
completed today. If successful, the well will under go tests to see
if there is any other underground leaks of oil, and then will be shut
in until relief wells can be finished next month.

While the entire region hopes this new cap is successful, its
placement does not make the oil spill “contained” as BP and many
lawmakers will likely argue. In fact, much of the damage has yet to
even be felt by the Gulf Coast region, and the effects of this
disaster are likely to reach far beyond the point when BP finally
stops all of the oil from leaking into the water. If you or anyone
you know has or will be affected by the actions (or lack thereof) of
BP in this disaster, please contact Bloom Legal at 504-599-9997 so
that we can fight on your behalf and help you get on the road to
recovery.

NOPD Cleaning Up

June 23rd, 2010 | Posted in Local Issues, NOPD by bloom | No Comments »

Nineteen-year NOPD veteran, Michael Roussel, was arrested Tuesday night by the FBI for suspicion of wire fraud.  Sheila Thorne, who spoke on behalf of the FBI, did not go into any further detail on the arrest.  The FBI was called in by Superintendent Ronal Serpas over a week ago after receiving news that there was such events possibly occurring within the department.  This move shows an effort on the NOPD’s part to clean up its act following the recent revelations of the Danziger Bridge and Glover incidents, which exposed corruption within the police force since Hurricane Katrina.

NOPD Cover-up Unraveled

June 14th, 2010 | Posted in Local Issues, NOPD by bloom | No Comments »

On Friday, five former and current NOPD officers were indicted in the Henry Glover case, which occurred a few days following Katrina. Glover was allegedly shot by former officer David Warren in Algiers on September 2, 2005 from a second story balcony. Warren claims that he had no knowledge of his bullet actually hitting someone after he fired at a group of men that were “putting his life at risk.” Glover’s brother, Edward King, and a stranger, William Tanner who had responded to the cries of concern, put Glover’s body in the backseat of a Chevy Malibu and drove to the makeshift SWAT office at a nearby school. Upon arrival, the two were allegedly beaten by Lt. Dwayne Scheuermann and officer Greg McRae, who then drove off with the vehicle containing Glover’s body. Prosecutors contend that the two set the car on fire with the body inside, and covered the story up by charging the owners of the car with looting. Lt. Travis McCabe and Lt. Robert Italiano later “authored and submitted a false and misleading official report” which was intended to end further investigation.

This is not the first case of corruption by the NOPD to be revealed recently from the direct aftermath of Katrina. The Danziger Bridge incident, where two people were killed and four wounded in the days after the storm, has five officers being charged with collaboration to its cover-up. The men being indicted in the Glover case are facing long-term sentencing, depending on the verdict of the case.

OPP Prepares for Hurricane Season

June 11th, 2010 | Posted in Local Issues, NOPD by bloom | No Comments »

On Wednesday, the Orleans Parish Criminal Sherriff Marlin Gusman announced the new plans following a call for mandatory evacuation in the city of New Orleans. The prisoners detained at Orleans Parish Prison will be transferred immediately to another location, before contraflow is even implemented. With the number of detainees at over 3,000, it is necessary to be prepared to transfer the prisoners to another location in an orderly fashion if such an event shall occur during this hurricane season.

The events following Hurricane Katrina five years ago helped inspire this new evacuation plan, because the result of a late evacuation and loss of information lead to many doing time without even being convicted in other state prisons. There are many lessons to be learned from that catastrophic event, and this certainly is one of them. Gusman plans to be ahead of the game with the new plan, which includes a strong system in keeping track of the prisoners while they are evacuated. Failure to prepare is preparing to fail, and with an organized agenda for such a circumstance, it seems that the Orleans Parish Prison will be ready if any hurricane shall head in the city’s direction.

New Orleans Ranks #1 in Murder Rate Per Capita

June 4th, 2010 | Posted in Local Issues, National Issues, NOPD by bloom | No Comments »

Following the FBI’s uniform crime report, which was released in the latter days of May, New Orleans ranked at the top for the highest murder rate per capita in the country. With the use of the most recent data from the census, the estimated population of New Orleans is at 336,425. In 2009, there were 174 murders in the city, which was a 9% drop from the previous year, but nevertheless still left New Orleans at the top of the list. With the murder rate per capita at 52 to every 100,000 people, the city ranked higher than Baltimore, St. Louis and Detroit. Coming in at #6 was the big city to the north, Baton Rouge, with a 34 to every 100,000 rating.

Although the numbers of murders within the city have declined over the past few years, New Orleans is still finding itself at the top when it comes to murder per capita. A continuation of improvement from year to year would be ideal, but to drop in rank from #1 per capita murder rate would be an even greater step. Superintendent Ronal Serpas plans on facing this problem head on, and allow for the public to view the criminal incidents in the city.

Judges’ Recusals End Katrina Greenhouse-Gas Suit

June 4th, 2010 | Posted in Local Issues by bloom | No Comments »

In April of 2007, the Massachusetts v EPA case ended with the Supreme Court acknowledging the man made phenomenon, Global Warming. This helped inspire several Mississippi Coast residents to file suit against numerous energy companies for their contribution to Katrina by polluting the atmosphere with greenhouse-gases. In October, a three-judge panel gave the plaintiffs the right to pursue an appeal for an earlier ruling. But when the case reached the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, it could not be tried in en banc fashion due to the recusals of several judges. The conflicting interests of these judges were most probably a result of connections with the defendants in previous cases, or current investments. With only eight judges left to rule on the case, it became erroneous due to an even number, which lead to the clerk dismissing the appeal.

The only chance now for the plaintiffs is to make an appeal directly to the Supreme Court. With the help of three judges, Eugene Davis, Carl Stewart and James Dennis, and their dissents about the dismissal, these Mississippians might have a chance in the Supreme Court, but that does not mean they will be victorious in the end.

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