Bill of Particulars

Clifford Law Offices Supports Red Watch Band Program

It was a tearful moment when the families of Matthew Sunshine and Alexander Krzyston hugged in court following Krzyston’s hearing regarding criminal charges in the death of Sunshine.

Matthew was a freshman at Northwestern University in Evanston who was found dead in his dormitory on Sheridan Road on June 10, 2008, with a blood alcohol level of .396. Class four felony charges were filed by the state against Krzyston for providing alcohol that caused Sunshine’s death. On March 8, 2010, the charges were reduced to a class A misdemeanor of providing alcohol to an underage person. Krzyston pleaded guilty to this charge.

At the conclusion of the hearing, the two families hugged in tears at the Cook County Circuit Court room in Skokie.

“The family is pleased with the decision,” said Timothy Tomasik, partner at Clifford Law Offices who is handling the civil matter. The terms of the plea agreement include requiring Krzyston to serve two years court supervision and to be actively involved in The Red Watch Band Program. Founded by Sunshine’s mother, Suzanne Fields, a professor of medicine at the University of Stony Brook in New York, she has made it her personal commitment to see that the program is instituted in high schools, colleges and universities across the country. As part of the agreement, Northwestern University is instituting the Red Watch Band Program at its school. Clifford Law Offices has been actively promoting the Red Watch Program in an effort to protect students.

The program provides training to students in alcohol toxicity awareness and emergency procedures without retribution from school officials. “We trust that Mr. Krzyston views this as an opportunity to promote and enhance a program whose goal is to make high school and university campuses kinder and safer places for students,” Fields said after the court appearance.

Stony Brook University President instituted the program at that campus following Matthew’s death. It has spread to several other schools in the United States. “I apologize with all my heart to the friends and family of Matthew Sunshine,” Krzyston said at the hearing. “I look forward to working with The Red Watch Band Program so nothing like this ever happens again.”

Pilot Distraction

There have been a number of reported incidents, some resulting in serious aviation tragedies, involving distracted pilots. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) that regulates airlines are prodding the companies to take concrete steps that would ensure that pilots are not distracted by their computers, cell phones or other extraneous conversations, according to an article in USA Today (April 26, 2010).

The FAA reportedly issued a notice to airline carriers calling for better internal rules and training regarding cockpit distractions and lack of professionalism.

One recent incident made international news when two Northwest Airlines pilots on Flight 188 to Minneapolis flew more than 100 miles past their destination last October because it was discovered they had been working on their laptops. The National Transportation Safety Administration (NTSB) investigates plane crashes and reports on the probable causes of aviation incidents. The NTSB, which also makes recommendations to the FAA, reportedly asked the FAA to require tighter cockpit rules in 2007.

A three-day forum, “Professionalism in Aviation: Ensuring Excellence in Pilot and Air Traffic Control Performance,” was held in May on improving professionalism among pilots and air traffic controllers. Professionals in the aviation industry representing labor, academia and the government discussed this important issue at this public forum. Visit www.ntsb.gov.

Safe Installation of Kids’ Car Seats

Child safety seats may be sold in Chicago with guidelines to help parents determine the age-appropriate seat to buy.

The Chicago City Council considered an ordinance earlier this year that would require retailers to post city guidelines and refer them to trained installers.

According to experts, more than 80 percent of child safety seats are installed incorrectly or are not age-appropriate. Hundreds of car and seat models currently are sold on the market.

The Chicago guidelines, which were approved by the City Council’s Health Committee, require them to be posted within 20 feet of any child safety seat offered for sale and refers buyers to a website that includes the names of experts who can assist with the proper installation of child safety seats.

Retailers who fail to do so would be issued a warning notice, but repeat offenders could face fines as high as $500.

Among the list of installers is the Safety Squad, a Chicago company owned by a Chicago firefighter who charges parents in his off-time for consultation on safety seats. Its owner, Steve Breden, told the media that improper installation of child safety seats contributes to 1,600 vehicle crash injuries to children in Chicago every year. To see information on the Safety Squad website, please visit: http://blog.safetysquad.com/

Consistent. Even-keeled. Steady. Intelligent. Exercises good judgment.

These are just some of the words that colleagues use to describe Collin Dunn, a hard-working, no-nonsense associate at Clifford Law Offices.

It’s why he received the Illinois Trial Lawyers Amicus Volunteer Award for 2010, recognizing him for his outstanding professional volunteer efforts in writing briefs as a friend of the court on issues of concern to victims of personal injury and wrongful death appeals.

It is why he is an adjunct professor teaching Appellate Advocacy at Loyola College of Law.

It is why he writes a monthly column for the Chicago Daily Law Bulletin that includes useful advice and practice pointers for the thousands of lawyers who read the publication.

It’s why he is a nominee for the Law Bulletin Publishing Company’s 2010 Top 40 Attorneys Under 40 Years Old.

And it’s why he’s assigned some of the most complicated and highprofile cases in the office. The families of those who lost loved ones in the crash of Comair Flight 5191 in Lexington, Kentucky, could count on Colin on their team of lawyers. He worked hard to represent the Beemsterboer family after James Beemsterboer, a husband and father of three, was killed in a partial building collapse on the City’s southside.

But his most memorable case was the litigation stemming from the 2003 fire at the Cook County Administration Building that resulted in a $100 million settlement. “It was an honor and a humbling experience to help those families achieve justice,” Colin said as he reflected on his contribution to the Clifford Law Offices’ team. “It was particularly rewarding because of the important changes made to the City’s emergency response system that makes Chicago a safer place. It makes one proud to be a lawyer when you can help people like those brave families as they struggle through the worst times of their lives.”

Colin’s dedication to helping people carries through his personal life as well. As a student at Miami University in Ohio, he spent his spring and winter breaks traveling across the country to build homes for Habitat for Humanity.

“It is so heartwarming to see the look of gratitude in the eyes of those who need this help and just don’t know where to turn,” Colin says. “It is especially touching when you help put a roof over a family.”

Colin, a relatively recent dad himself with a two-year-old son and another child on the way any minute as of this writing, takes pride in his fatherly duties. Colin spends as much time as possible with Patrick, a “chip off the ol’ block,” before the arrival of his second child. And although Colin has but little time to spend on the golf course – despite his having a four handicap – he says he will enjoy teaching his kids the finer points of his favorite sport.

“These years are so precious and I want to set a good example for my son,” Colin says at his desk, a credenza behind him adorned with family photos.

Down the road? Aside from his growing family, he hopes for a partner’s position at Clifford Law Offices.

“I’d like to run the complex litigation on which I work,” Colin says with a sheepish smile. “I think I can make a greater contribution to the firm one day as I work toward being a partner.”

But, for now, Colin is happy with his work, happy with his example to the profession, happy with his lovely family and happy with life.