22 The Courier SUN • OCTOBER 3, 2013 for breaking news visit www.couriersun.com SCOTT BARON’S STAR OF QUEENS brought to you by SCOTT BARON & ASSOCICATES, P.C. Attorneys & Counselors at Law 1-866-WAS-HURT (866) 927-4878 718.738.9800 star OF queens Dominic Stiller President Dutch Kills Civic Association COMMUNITY SERVICE: Dominic Stiller became president of the Dutch Kills Civic Association, which was started in 1979 to promote awareness of the Long Island City area, in January. “The organization’s goals are to improve local quality of life for residents, commuters, workers and all visitors to our area.” BACKGROUND: Stiller was born in Canada and made the move to Queens when he was two years old. Along with being president of the Dutch Kills Civic Association, he is also the owner and manager of DSENY Engineering Services, a safety and structural engineering firm of 12 employees, also located in Dutch Kills in Long Island City. “As well as renovating our limestone townhouse in Dutch Kills, I have also recently completed the design and construction of a full mechanical and structural interior and exterior restoration of the Dutch Kills Centraal, an existing bar/restaurant located in the heart of Dutch Kills, at the corner of 29th Street and 39th Avenue.” FAVORITE MEMORY: Although not one particular memory stands out, Stiller said he has an overall love for his Dutch Kills community. BIGGEST CHALLENEGE: “My biggest challenge is convincing small scale Queens owners and developers to think broadly, think outside their own property lines, and realize that long-term decisions yield very different conclusions than short-term decisions. In addition, it has been a challenge to convince local businesses that the business community and the residential community have more things in common than in opposition, we all spend a significant portion of our lives in this neighborhood, and it’s in everybody’s best interest to improve the local quality of life.” INSPIRATION: “This is a neighborhood of rapid change. My wife Jean and I realized that if we do not get involved in the direction that the neighborhood goes in, then we will have no reason to complain if it goes places we don’t want it to. She is a real star of queens, tending tree pits, planting flowers, and cleaning up litter up and down the avenue. She is also working with the staff of our wonderfully supportive and involved local elected officials, Councilmember Jimmy Van Bramer and State Senator Michael Gianaris. The goal is to have the Department of Transportation install many traffic calming devices to slow down the vehicular traffic which races through our neighborhood, causing frequent accidents, and some recent fatalities. She has started an on-line petition at dutchkillslic.com which, once complete, will be presented to DOT with a request for curb extensions, more stop signs and lights, remarking of cross walks on many avenues and speed bumps.” Our job is making sure no longer goes that waste to waste. Find out more at ThinkGreen.com Energy creation. Recycling programs. Closed-loop solutions. Those are just a few of the innovations we’re delivering for customers and communities alike. We live in a world where things can no longer go to waste. That’s why Waste Management is working to get the most from resources. It’s good for business and the environment. ©2012 Waste Management, Inc. Legally Speaking By: Scott Baron, Attorney at Law BATTER UP, PITCHER DOWN Q: My daughter was injured while participating in junior-varsity softball-team batting practice for her high school, under the direct supervision of her coach, on the school’s grounds. The coach had instructed all pitchers, like my Petunia, to be closer to home plate, than to the pitching mound – in order to throw a quick succession of pitches. Although the team was using a protective pitching screen, it was not freestanding. Rather, the screen was propped up between two benches and had fallen down several times during the batting practice. Near the end of batting practice, the screen fell again while Petunia was pitching. The coach directed no one to put it back up. “Leave it on the ground.” After consulting with the coach, Petunia threw another pitch. It was hit back at Petunia and struck her in the face. A: Pursuant to the doctrine of ‘primary assumption of risk’, a voluntary participant in a sporting or recreational activity consents to those commonly appreciated risks which are inherent in, and arise out of, the nature of the sport generally and flow from such participation. Under this doctrine, if the risks of the activity are fully comprehended or perfectly obvious, then it is held that the plaintiff has consented to them. However, the primary assumption of risk doctrine does not serve as a bar to liability if the risk is un-assumed, concealed or unreasonably increased. Awareness of risk is not to be determined in a vacuum. Rather, it is to be assessed against the background of the skill and experience of the particular plaintiff. Your attorney will argue, convincingly, that there is no way that the faulty equipment provided by the school and the decreased distance between Petunia and the batter, from which she was pitching at the direction of the coach without the benefit of the screen, represent risks that are inherent in the sport of softball. Under the circumstances of this case, the doctrine of primary assumption of risk certainly is not applicable and does not operate to bar recovery. Petunia had been specifically instructed by her coach to pitch, without the benefit of the screen, closer to home plate than is the standard distance for pitching in the sport of softball. She cannot be said to have assumed the tragic risk of being hit in the face by this line drive. Advertorial The law responds to changed conditions; exceptions and variations abound. Here, the information is general; always seek out competent counsel.This article shall not be construed as legal advice Copyright © 2013 Scott Baron & Associates, P.C. All rights reserved. 159-49 Cross Bay Boulevard, Howard Beach, New York 11414 1750 Central Park Ave, Yonkers, NY 10710 718-738-9800, 914-337-9800, 1-866-927-4878
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