Starting with a Sunday Globe Special (oy vey).
"Families of at least 100 people killed in crashes caused by defective General Motors ignition switches will get payments from the automaker. Attorney Kenneth Feinberg (right), hired by GM to compensate victims, updated the total on Monday. It stood at 97 deaths last week. An additional 184 people who were injured will also be compensated. The fund received 4,342 claims by the Jan. 31 deadline, and about 14 percent are still under review. Nearly 3,400 were found ineligible or deficient."
Might as well gas up (more GMOs?) while there.
So the airbags didn't deploy?
"About 25 million vehicles have now been recalled over the air bag problem, which has been linked to six deaths and more than 100 injuries. Defective inflaters can burst when triggered, spraying shards of metal at a vehicle’s occupants. Toyota said in an e-mail that in an examination of Takata air bags, “certain types of air bag inflaters were found to have a potential for moisture intrusion over time.” As a result, the company said, the inflaters might not work properly during a crash. The company said there was still uncertainty over the cause of air bag failures, however, because “the relationship between moisture intrusion and the risk of inflater rupture is still very much unknown.”
That makes me feel a lot safer.
NDUs: Takata doubles air bag recall to 34m cars
Haven't inflated it yet, sorry.
"Man gets 10 days in jail in wreck that killed pregnant woman" Associated Press May 14, 2015
SOUTHFIELD, Mich. — A 70-year-old man was sentenced Wednesday to 10 days in jail for a fiery crash that killed a pregnant Detroit-area woman who was driving a Jeep Liberty that had been recalled because of the placement of the gas tank.
Clarence Heath’s Cadillac rear-ended Kayla White’s SUV during afternoon rush hour on a suburban Detroit freeway in November. The 2003 Jeep exploded in flames, killing the 23-year-old.
‘‘I can’t imagine the feelings they have by losing their daughter and the unborn child,’’ Heath told a judge, referring to White’s family.
Southfield Judge William Richards said the remorse was genuine. But he said the crash was no accident, noting that Heath was probably driving just below 70 miles per hour when he was distracted during heavy traffic. White’s car had stopped or was barely moving.
‘‘He was going far too fast for conditions,” the judge said.
Heath, who pleaded guilty to causing a death while driving, a misdemeanor, was sent to jail for 10 days with credit for a day already served. He was placed on probation for two years.
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Add one more plot to the cemetery that has become Detroit.
Also see: Honda recalls 4.9m more cars for air bag problems
