Poor Maintenance of Apartment Complex Pool Enclosure and Fence Leads to Toddler's Tragic Drowning Death

Confidential Settlement Before Trial

Estate of Dayanne F. v. Homestead Apartment Complex
Homestead, Miami-Dade County, Florida
Attorney for Plaintiff: Robert M. Roselli

In a matter of minutes, four year-old Dayanne and her sister wandered away from their apartment and into the unlocked pool area at their apartment complex. Seconds later, Dayanne was under water. The apartment complex and its manager were emphatic that the gate was locked and secured and blamed Dayanne's death on her grieving mother. Immediate action by Attorney Robert M. Roselli, to preserve key evidence and testimony, proved the pool was merely "secured" by a damaged gate, rusty chain and open padlock. Depositions of local police officers revealed frequent prior occasions when the gate was left unlocked and unguarded. While no amount of money can compensate for the loss of a child, a confidential settlement was negotiated before trial on behalf of the grieving mother.

When Bob Roselli makes the decision to take your case, it is an expression of total commitment to injury victims and their families.

$1,100,000 Recovery on Motor Vehicle Negligence

$1,100,000 Recovery

MOTOR VEHICLE NEGLIGENCE - AUTO/TRACTOR TRAILER COLLISION - RED LIGHT /GREEN LIGHT - SHOULDER DISLOCATION - MULTIPLE RIB FRACTURES - LUMBAR DISC HERNIATION - TOTAL DISABILITY FROM EMPLOYMENT CLAIMED.

Broward County, Fl

The plaintiff in this motor vehicle negligence action was a 67-year old maintenance worker at the time his vehicle collided with a 2005 Freightliner tractor-trailer driven by the defendant driver in the course and scope of his employment with the defendant corporation. Both the plaintiff and the defendant truck driver claimed they had a green traffic light when the intersection collision occurred.

On August 2, 2012, the plaintiff contended he was driving his work van to perform an errand for his employer and was traveling on USI south at or near the Intersection of 23rd Street in Vero Beach, Florida. The plaintiff alleged that the defendants tractor-trailer drove through a red light and impacted his vehicle in the side. The plaintiff alleged that phone records showed that the defendant truck driver was talking on his cell phone at the time of the accident.
in violation of commercial trucking laws. The plaintiffs complaint also asserted that the defendant corporation negligently hired, trained, supervised and retained the co-defendant truck driver.

The force of the impact pushed the plaintiffs van across the intersection and caused extensive damage to the plaintiffs vehicle. The plaintiff was airlifted from the accident scene to a trauma center and spent many weeks confined to a hospital. He was diagnosed with a dislocated shoulder with SLAP tear, multiple rib fractures, manubrium (sternum) fracture and lumbar disc herniation at the L5-Sl level. He also claimed that the impact caused an aggravation of a preexisting lumbar disc herniation at L4-L5.
The plaintiff underwent arthroscopic shoulder surgery and was recommended for a lumbar laminectomy and fusion. However, he declined the lumbar surgery and it was not performed. The plaintiff claimed that his accident-related injuries have left him completely disabled from employment since the date of the accident.

The defendant contended that the plaintiffs alleged lumbar injuries and recommendation for surgery was caused by preexisting conditions and not related to the accident. The defense stressed that the plaintiff had complained of similar lumbar symptoms before the date of the subject collision.

The case was settled prior to trial for $1, l 00,000.

REFERENCE
Sackman vs. Defendants. Case no. CACE 14-018350; Judge Milly Rodriguez Powell, 05-1 0- l 7.
Attorneys for plaintiff: Robert M. Roselli and Daniel P. Melrose of Roselli & Associates, P.A. in Fort Lauderdale, FL.

Reproduced from Florida Jury Veredict Review & Analysis. © 2017. All Rights Reserved.

Insurance Company Destroys Automobile Insurance Coverage Form

Three law firms had taken this case and then given up on Raiford B. who was badly injured in a car crash while driving a company car. The car causing the crash was not insured and the insurance company that insured Raiford B.'s company car ignored all requests for the Uninsured Motorist waiver form which is required in Florida for automobile insurance policies. After four years of uncertainty and rejection, Raiford B. finally retained Roselli & Associates. The commitment and creative legal strategies of Robert M. Roselli resulted in the discovery of adjuster e-mails, claim file notes and policy supplements suggesting the existence of uninsured motorist coverage. Eventually, the insurance company produced a blotched and suspicious copy and depositions of insurance company representatives revealed that the insurance company had destroyed the original uninsured motorist waiver for the policy and did so after it was requested, keeping only the blotched copy. After five (5) years of contentious litigation, the perseverance of Robert M. Roselli paid off for our client who received the compensation that he deserved.

22 Year Old With Pre Existing Lumbar Spondylolisthesis Requires Surgery After Car Crash

$300,000 Settlement

Jared, who was only 22 years old, had episodic low back pain due to a spine condition called Spondylolisthesis that developed during child hood. This condition predisposed Jared to suffer low back pain and complications if exposed to trauma. Unfortunately, that is what happened when a car ran a stop sign and broadsided his car on a Dunellon side street. The impact ultimately lead to major medical complications and a complex surgery to stabilize the affected areas of his spine. The adverse drivers insurance carrier tendered their policy limits but Jared's auto insurer refused to pay its underinsured motorist limits claiming that the condition was pre-existing. After medical expert analysis was obtained and provided to the insurance company, a settlement was reached for the $300,000 uninsured motorist policy limits.

Wrongful Death Of 4 Year Old Boy Who Wandered Into Apartment Complex Pool

In a matter of minutes, the life of a young Homestead family was turned upside down when their four year old son, Odnel, wandered into the unguarded pool of their apartment complex, fell into the water and drowned. Revived by paramedics and rushed to Miami Childrens Hospital, Odnel held on for more than two weeks until his frail body finally succumbed to the catastrophic brain damage he suffered. A wrongful death lawsuit was brought by attorney Robert M. Roselli on behalf of Odnel's devastated parents, seeking justice for the untimely death of the boy which could have been avoided had the apartment complex and the apartment manager simply replaced the rusty padlock and latch. Ultimately, a substantial confidential settlement was reached for the family.

Rear-End Crash Causes Cervical Compression Fracture

An elderly couple was rear ended by a drunk driver, causing multiple injuries to the injured wife who suffered a cervical compression fracture and aggravation of her pre-existing and degenerative cervical condition which included a prior cervical surgery. Fortunately, there was no spinal cord involvement. However, she did develop acute pain that could not be alleviated from conservative methods compelling and epidural injection. The extent of the degeneration in her cervical spine made further injections or surgery an impossibility.