Panish, Shea & Boyle Files Suit in Mojave Desert Bus Disaster Case

Andromeria Bailey vs. Mandanyan Enterprise Inc. - View Summons and Complaint (PDF)

Los Angeles
(BUSINESS WIRE)

June 3, 2008

For Immediate Release

Today, Los Angeles law firm Panish, Shea & Boyle filed the first suit in the cases stemming from the tragic Mojave Desert bus crash that occurred on May 17, 2008. The named-plaintiff in the first lawsuit is Ms. Andomeria Bailey, age 46, of Inglewood, California.

The single-vehicle crash happened shortly before 11 a.m. on an isolated stretch of Interstate 40 in the Mojave Desert, about 40 miles east of Barstow, California. At least 22 people were severely injured, and one woman was killed when she was ejected from the bus. The bus was traveling in the left lane when it drifted about 40 feet onto the dirt median and, as the driver attempted to steer back onto the pavement, toppled on its side and skidded. Some passengers escaped by crawling through the frame of the shattered front windshield, aided by drivers who pulled over at the scene, where the temperatures were 101 degrees. The bus was heading from Culver City, California to Laughlin, Nevada.

The suit names Royal American Tours (the operator of the bus), Stallion Bus Industries (the manufacturer of the bus), and Freightliner Corporation (the designer and manufacturer of the bus’s chassis).

In the last 5 years, at least four other tour bus accidents have occurred in the California desert, injuring approximately 170 people.

The theories of liability are that the bus was operated improperly and that it was not designed in such a way to prevent injuries in crashes – or in other words, that the bus was not "crashworthy." For example, despite vast knowledge in the bus industry that tour bus accidents occur, these tour buses do not have seatbelts. The U.S. National Highway Safety Bureau made seat belts mandatory equipment in the United States in 1968.

Brian Panish, of Panish, Shea & Boyle, stated: "Seatbelts have been required on automobiles in this country for over 40 years. It is astonishing that the tour bus industry hasn’t adopted this obvious safety measure. We hope that through these lawsuits we can bring this industry’s view of safety into this century."

Panish Shea & Boyle is also pursuing an investigation into whether the bus industry properly screens its drivers. "These drivers are the captains of the ship and responsible for many lives, yet the screening process is abysmal," said Mr. Panish.

Contacts
Panish, Shea & Boyle
Brian Panish or Kevin Boyle, 310-477-1700
www.PSandB.com

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