LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – A 3-year-old girl whose skull was fractured by a line drive during batting practice at Dodger Stadium was scheduled for surgery on Tuesday. The accident that caused the surgery occurred Monday when Dodgers catcher Russell Martin hit a line drive in the stands near third base. It hit the girl and knocked her unconscious according to Dodgers spokesman Joe Jareck. The girl was sitting with her father at the time and he rushed he to the first aid station. The Fire Department subsequently transported the girl to Children’s Hospital Los Angeles.

Jareck said batting practice continued, but Martin was upset by the incident and has offered to pay for the girl’s medical expenses. Jareck did not have the girl’s name. A hospital spokeswoman would not comment on the girl’s condition because of privacy laws. The girl’s injury is not believed to be life threatening but it was not clear if she would have any long- term disabilities.

Our hearts go out to the young girl injured in this accident. We hope she will make a full recovery. Usually when you attend a sporting event such as this one, you consent to the risks involved with the purchase of your ticket. This usually means that, if you are injured while at the event, you do not have a case against the sporting venue or responsible party. Those rules may be different, however, if you are injured by someone who is acting outside the scope of what you would expect.

ENCINITAS, CALIFORNIA – A bus rider called the Sheriff’s Department Tuesday when he thought the driver was under the influence of alcohol. Deputies stopped the bus, route 309 from Oceanside to Encinitas, at around 4:30 p.m. The bus was heading east on Encinitas Boulevard near Calle Magdalena at the time. According to the Sheriff’s Department, the deputies determined the driver showed signs of being under the influence of alcohol. They subsequently conducted field sobriety tests. Based on the results of those tests, the 40-year-old driver was booked on suspicion of driving a commercial vehicle under the influence of alcohol.

Matt Tucker, Executive Director of the North County Transit District said they are taking the allegation very seriously and will be very aggressive in investigating and taking all necessary steps to prevent this from happening again. The driver was employed by First Transit, a company the districts contracts for drivers. The district serves 12 million passengers in North San Diego Count and operates the train to downtown San Diego.

Thankfully no one was injured in this incident. Public transportation vehicles can cause serious harms when people do not operate them with care. The sheer size and number of people involved in these accidents create high probability for serious harm.

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – A Delta flight on its way to Los Angeles had to make an emergency landing in Atlanta on Thursday. Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman Kathleen Bergen said Delta Flight 125 departed Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport on Thursday around 4:45 p.m.

According to Delta spokeswoman Heather Faulkner, the captain saw an indicator light alerting him to possible engine trouble during takeoff. After seeing the indicator light, the captain decided to return to Atlanta. He circled over the Atlanta metro area to burn off some excess fuel before landing at 5:10 p.m. Delta and the FAA are both investigating the cause of the engine problem.

Thankfully there were security mechanisms in place that were able to stop this incident from escalating into an accident where someone was injured. The pilot involved in this incident used caution to get everyone on the ground safely. If you have been involved in a plane incident in which the situation escalated and people were injured, you may wish to speak with a personal injury lawyer.

SAN BERNARDINO, CALIFORNIA – A 2-year-old boy died Friday after he was mauled by a pit bull on Thursday night in San Bernardino. Sergeant Travis Walker of the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department said the dog was a family pet and it was a tragic accident.

The boy was in the backyard of his family home with the dog when the attack occurred around 7:30 p.m. Thursday night. The home was on the 1500 block of Kendall Drive. The boy sustained major head trauma. He was rushed to Loma Linda University Medical Center where he died around 1:30 a.m.

In this tragic accident, the family’s own pet killed their child. Our hearts go out to the family in their time of need. If you have been injured or lost a loved one to an accident involving someone else’s pet, you may wish to recover money to compensate you for the harm you have suffered.