Preventing Staged Collision

Anyone who has ever been involved in a vehicle collision knows they are a traumatic experience for everyone involved. However, how would it make you feel if you discovered a collision you were involved in was not an accident? Some collisions are in fact “staged” and are “criminal conspiracies” involving “numerous suspects.”

The criminals involved in this crime are intentionally placing motorists and their passengers in harms way and extreme risk by staging collisions for their own financial greed. In 1997, according to the California Highway Patrol, there were approximately 132,000 vehicle collisions in the County of Los Angeles. Over the last three years, there were approximately 135,000 vehicle collisions in the City of Los Angeles.

As these vehicle collisions increase in the County and City of Los Angeles, odds become greater that unsuspecting motorists and their passengers could become involved in a staged collision crime. The most common types of staged collisions motorists will be exposed to are the “Swoop and Squat” and the “Drive Down.”

The “Drive Down” is also known as the “Wave On.” In the “Swoop and Squat” criminals maneuver their vehicle in front of a targeted vehicle and slam on the brakes. By doing this radical maneuver, the criminals are attempting to cause the targeted vehicle to collide with the rear of their vehicle and create an accident (staged collision) where the targeted vehicle appears to be at fault.

The “Drive Down” or “Wave On” involves a situation where a targeted vehicle does not have the right-ofway and criminals gesture or “wave” to the targeted motorist offering the opportunity to proceed ahead of them. When the targeted vehicle proceeds, the criminals purposely drive their vehicle into the targeted vehicle creating an accident (staged collision) attempting to make it appear the targeted vehicle is at fault.

DRIVING TIPS

The LAPD, Financial Crimes Division (FCD), suggests the following valuable tips to protect motorists from staged collisions:

• If you are involved in a collision on a busy street or highway your first and foremost thought should be your safety and the safety of your passengers. If possible, remove your vehicle from the traffic lanes. Before removing your vehicle make sure you inform the other motorist involved that you are removing your vehicle for safety reasons and are not attempting to leave the scene of the accident and are not a hit-and run driver.
• Once you and your passengers are in a safe place, exchange information with the other motorist involved. Also, be aware of persons at the scene of the collision who might be potential witnesses. Approach these persons and try to obtain a statement from them of what they saw. Also write down their individual names, addresses and telephone numbers for future reference.
• Carry a disposable camera in the glove compartment of your vehicle. Take as many pictures of the other vehicle and its passengers as possible. This will help the LAPD detectives investigate your collision case.
• If you think you have been involved in a staged collision make sure to count the number of passengers in the other vehicle. If possible, get their individual names, addresses, telephone numbers and driver license numbers. Often more people will file claims than were in the vehicle when the collision occurred.
• Fully insured motorists, driving alone, are the favorite targets of criminals involved in staged collisions. Criminals involved in staged collisions prefer “lone drivers” because “passengers” make good witnesses. Luxury and commercial vehicles are often targeted because they offer the promise of extensive insurance coverage.
• When driving, be aware of other vehicles around you. Always allow ample space between you and the vehicle in front of you. Look beyond the vehicle in front of you. If you see a vehicle slowing down in front of you, begin to slow down also. Do not wait for the vehicle in front of you to slow down first.
• Be very careful when turning from a lane that allows two vehicles to turn simultaneously. Criminals who commit staged collisions often prey on vehicles that cross the centerline, purposely sideswiping a targeted vehicle.
• Oftentimes, “phony witnesses” are positioned near the scene of the staged collision to support the involved criminal’s account and to contradict the innocent driver’s account of what actually happened. In some instances, criminals inflict injury upon themselves or claim “hard to dispute” soft-tissue injuries in order to collect on insurance claims.
• If you suspect you have been involved in a staged collision immediately report the crime to the LAPD.

Driving is a full time job. You can reduce your chances of becoming a victim of a staged collision if you apply the aforementioned tips, adhere to the rules of the road and always drive defensively.

You may contact the Los Angeles Police Department by calling the following, toll free, at 1-877-ASK-LAPD (1-877-275-5273) or TTY 1-877-275-5273 for the hearing impaired

Secondary Drowning - Also Known as Dry Drowning

Secondary drowning is something every parent needs to know about, so please read this if you're a parent or share it if you're a friend of a parent!

The weekend of May 17, writer Lindsay Kujawa and her toddler son Ronin were at a family pool party. Kujawa sat at the edge of the pool while Ronin played on the top step of the spa, and for five seconds she shifted her position to say something to a relative. Suddenly, she noticed Ronin wasn't on the step and was instead being whirled around by the jets in the whirlpool, frantically trying to get his head above water. She pulled him out immediately and other than him coughing and being very upset, he seemed totally fine after a few minutes and they went on with the rest of the party.

When they got home later on that day, Kujawa noticed that Ronin was acting a little odd—he seemed extremely tired and had a weird cough. To be on the safe side, she put a call into his pediatrician, and was surprised to get an immediate call back. The usually calm pediatrician was emphatic that they go to the ER immediately, because she thought Ronin may have been experiencing secondary drowning.
At this point, Ronin was almost unresponsive.

Many parents have never heard of secondary drowning, but it can happen in a pool, in the ocean, and even in a bathtub. "It occurs when a small amount of inhaled fluid acts as an irritant, causing inflammation and leakage of liquid into the lung," says Michael Roizen, MD, chief wellness officer at the Cleveland Clinic and co-founder of YouBeauty. "In some cases, the body may respond by pushing even more liquid into the lungs (this is called pulmonary edema) over the following hours, reducing the ability to breathe and leading a person to drown in their own body fluids." The reaction can take place up to 72 hours after a near drowning incident.

Luckily for Kujawa and Ronin, the ER doctor saw them right away and quickly ordered a round of blood tests and X-rays. His chest X-rays were not good: The doctor said his lungs were aspirated, which could be very serious, and he immediately ordered an ambulance to transport them to Children's Hospital in San Diego to see a pediatric specialist.

Ronin turned out to be OK—the water in his lungs began to clear out after treatment and close monitoring. One doctor told Kujawa that this freak accident happens more often than you'd think—there were two other cases on the same floor with secondary drowning symptoms that very day! She also said it was right to bring Ronin in and that many times it goes terribly wrong for children in similar situations (as in, their parents put their kids down to sleep and they never wake up again.)

We'd never heard of secondary drowning until reading Lindsay's story—and we just had to pass it on to our readers. It turns out that the World Health Organization has tried to limit use of the term "secondary drowning" since it issued a 2005 report aimed at improving reporting and prevention around the world. The paper called for secondary drowning (along with five other types) to all be considered the same thing—drowning—whether or not the incidents are fatal or the effects immediate.

Regardless of what you call it, as we can learn from Ronin, it's still very much a threat to small children. "If your child breathes in water or comes out of the pool coughing or sputtering, monitor them closely, keeping an eye out for difficulties in breathing, extreme tiredness or behavioral changes," says Roizen. "All of these are signs that your little swimmer may have inhaled too much fluid."

Secondary drowning is something every parent needs to know about, so please read this if you're a parent or share it if you're a friend of a parent!

Are those Stick Figures Putting Your Family at Risk?

You’ve seen them on the back of SUVs, sedans and minivans, and now police are warning families about the dangers of family stick figure decals.

These decals seem harmless, and often represent parents, kids, and sometimes even the family pets. Some of the stick figure decals go as far as naming the children, their school, and what sports or activities they participate in. Police say this is how predators and thieves are easily tracking their next victims.

A search and rescue group on Facebook sent this photo out to warn about the dangers of these decals and stickers, and how a criminal might use them as a blueprint for their next crime—a crime that may hurt your family.

Facebook

While police and many other organizations warn against these decals, others believe they are harmless. For instance, author Jason Torchinsky at Jalopnik believes this warning is ridiculous and “all just fear-mongering.”

While I do believe that these give more information than what needs to be known out there...is the media just trying to breed more fear?

Safety Tips During an Outage

Safety Tips During an Outage

• Avoid light sources that require a flame or fire (use flashlights or battery-powered lanterns).
• If you use a portable generator, isolate it from our lines. Generators that are not isolated can feed back into our electrical system and possibly electrocute anyone coming in contact with those wires. If you don't have a double throw transfer switch installed, plug appliances directly into the generator using a properly sized extension cord. Click here for more on generator safety.
• Avoid cooking inside with charcoal. Use grills safely and only outdoors in well-ventilated areas.
• Have a contingency plan in place for patients living in your home who have a medical necessity for electricity. This includes backup power, extra supplies or an alternate location until the outage is over.
• Don't try to remove or clear trees tangled in power lines.
• Stay away from any downed lines and call your power company or 911.
• Do not touch a power line with any other object (brooms, boards, plastic, etc.) and do not touch any object in contact with a power line (car, tree limb, person, etc.).
• Turn on a porch light so the co-op workers know when your power has been restored.

Food Safety and Power Outages

The USDA recommendations for maintaining food safety during power outages:

• Never taste a food to determine its safety!
• Keep the refrigerator and freezer doors closed as much as possible to maintain the cold temperatures.
• Each time the door is opened, a significant amount of cold air is lost.
• The refrigerator will keep food cold safely for about four hours if it is unopened. A full freezer will hold the temperature for approximately 48 hours (24 hours if it is half full and the door remains closed.)
• Food may be safely refrozen if it still contains ice crystals or is at 40° F or below.
• Obtain dry or block ice to keep your refrigerator and freezer as cold as possible if the power is going to be out for a prolonged period of time. Fifty pounds of dry ice should hold an 18-cubic-foot full freezer for two days.
• If the power has been out for several days then check the temperature of the freezer with an appliance thermometer or food thermometer. If the food still contains ice crystals or is at 40° F or below then the food is safe.
• If a thermometer has not been kept in the freezer then check each package of food to determine its safety. If the food still contains ice crystals then the food is safe.
• Discard refrigerated perishable food such as meat, poultry, fish, soft cheeses, milk, eggs, leftovers and deli items after four hours without power. 
• When in Doubt, Throw it Out!

24/7 Food Safety Hotline: 1.888.764.6854

Child Safety

Children are our most precious resource. Unfortunately, because of their vulnerability, children are popular targets for molesters, drug dealers, and other predatory criminals. As a result, parents have teamed up with the Los Angeles Police Department, the Los Angeles Unified School District, and other professionals to focus on child crime prevention measures. By working with children and teaching them crime prevention measures, we can substantially reduce the chances of child victimization.

An important tool for teaching children personal security is reinforcing their trust in the adults who care for them, e.g., parents, police and teachers. To further lessen the chances of children becoming victims, the following objectives should be stressed:

• Reassurance: Inform your children they can be safer if they form good habits and follow some simple rules. One good rule for children to remember is: never go anywhere with anyone without their parents’ permission;
• Openness: Encourage your children to confide in you, even if the subject feels uncomfortable;
• Strangers: Teach your children the difference between good strangers and bad strangers. Good strangers are police officers, teachers and firefighters. Children should seek assistance from them if they are in trouble. Children should avoid other strangers; and
• Secrets: Discourage your children from keeping bad secrets. A bad secret is when an adult tells a child to keep information from the child’s parents or guardian.

An example would be an adult offering a child candy to get into his or her car and then telling the child not to tell anyone.
 

Another example would be if an adult tries to touch the private body parts of a child and then tells the child not to tell anyone. Private body parts are parts of the body covered by a bathing suit. Child molesters have also been known to approach children and fake a family emergency. A good example would be a child molester who drives to a school bus stop and tells a child, "Your dad is hurt and your mom wants you to come with me to the hospital." The chances are high that a child placed in this circumstance might be tempted to get into the car. That is why parents should select a family code word that they and their children know. If a stranger does not know the code word, the children will know not to trust him or her. A good secret is keeping a family code word confidential.

Children Should Know

• The definition of an emergency and when to contact police, fire or paramedics;
• Their full name, address, and telephone number, including area code;
• Their parents' full name and work telephone number;
• How and when to use 911 and how to use a public telephone;
• How to use the telephone to call home;
• That they should check in with you or a trusted neighbor when he or she gets home from school so you always know where they are;
• Where to go for safety if you are not around;
• The location of Safe Houses in their neighborhood and the ability to recognize the Safe House Placards;
• Always keep doors locked, even during the day;
• Anyone they don't know is a stranger;
• Stay away from cars occupied by strangers;
• Never open doors for strangers;
• Never tell anyone who comes to the door (or anyone who calls on the telephone) that they are alone;
• When answering the telephone, never give information to strange callers;
• It's OK to say NO to an adult if the adult makes them feel uncomfortable or wants them to do something they feel is bad;
• Never let anyone touch them where their underwear or swimsuit should cover;
• It's OK to run away and scream "HELP" if someone tries to make them do something they don't want to do;
• It's OK to tell if someone offers them gifts or money, or wants to photograph them;
• How to describe a person's appearance, clothing and their car if they are ever approached by a stranger;
• Run to other people and to lighted areas if they are being followed;
• Stay near parents while in a store or other public place;
• Never go out to a parking lot if they get separated from parents in a shopping center or mall;
• Go to the nearest check out counter and ask a cashier or clerk for assistance if they get lost in a store;
• What to do if they should become lost in a crowd;
• Stay in one place if they get lost;
• Never go into a public restroom alone; and
• Never play in abandoned buildings.

Play crime prevention roles with your children and teach them how to respond. If properly prepared, your children will automatically take the correct crime prevention action in a dangerous situation. It is important to practice with your children and to encourage a "crime prevention attitude" in their daily lives