Former Lawyer at Automaker Charges Evidence in Rollover Cases Was Concealed, Destroyed         

CBS News LOS ANGELES, Aug. 29, 2009

A former attorney for Toyota has accused the automaker of illegally withholding evidence in hundreds of rollover death and injury cases, in a "ruthless conspiracy" to keep evidence "of its vehicles' structural shortcomings from becoming known." The explosive allegations are contained in a federal racketeering suit filed in Los Angeles by Dimitrios P. Biller, former managing counsel for Toyota Motor Sales, USA, Inc., who claims his complaints about the company's legal misconduct cost him his job.

Toyota, which is second to General Motors in car and truck sales in the U.S., called Biller's charges "inaccurate and misleading," in a statement issued late Friday to CBS News. "Toyota takes its legal obligations seriously and works to uphold the highest professional and ethical standards," the company said. Company lawyers have not filed an answer to Biller's lawsuit, but have brought a motion to seal the complaint, claiming it is "rife with privileged and confidential information" that Biller, as a former Toyota lawyer, has no right to divulge. A hearing on the motion has been set for September 14.

GET SERIOUS.

TAKE CONTROL

OF YOUR RETIREMENT MONEY.

THIS TOP TEAM

CAN SHOW YOU HOW.

ASK YOUR BROTHER MEMBERS

WHO HAVE MET WITH THEM.

MENTION

“LOCAL 245 FINANCIAL SELF-DEFENSE” WHEN YOU CALL.

IT’S PRO BONO.

          ___

Michael Jennings               Vincent Taft

(248) 743-4366              (248) 539-2333

Last Updated: January 27. 2010 1:50PM

U.S.: Toyota was legally required to stop selling models

David Shepardson / Detroit News Washington Bureau

Washington -- Federal auto safety regulators said today that Toyota Motor Corp. was legally required to stop selling the eight models it recalled last week.

Toyota took the extraordinary step of halting the sale of the vehicles late Tuesday over issues of "sticky acceleration pedals" because it hasn't yet found a fix. Those eight models accounted for nearly 60 percent of its U.S. sales last year. Toyota has been looking at the issue of sticky pedals since 2007.

The new administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, David Strickland, said today Toyota's decision to halt sales "was an aggressive one and was the legally and morally correct thing to do."

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood told Chicago radio station WGN that the government asked Toyota to stop selling the vehicles.

LaHood said, "The reason Toyota decided to do the recall and to stop manufacturing was because we asked them to."

A Toyota spokesman, Mike Michels, said Tuesday that the stop sale decision was obligatory although the recall was voluntary.

Americans at Work
Let's all do our part to keep it that way.
A Directory or Products Made in the USA

The following information is from the Americans Working website: 

http://www.americansworking.com/index.html

This site is dedicated to help you find American Made Products. Let's keep our jobs home, lets pressure retailers to sell more products Made in the USA, lets ask companies to quit outsourcing support jobs overseas, and lets watch over our school systems to ensure we are turning out the next great generation.

Congressman John D. Dingell includes health, child care, home repair information in his 2010 guide.

Washington, DC – As we learned today that Michigan’s unemployment rate dropped slightly in December, going from 14.7% to 14.6%, Congressman John D. Dingell released a second edition of his guidebook to help the State’s unemployed workers. The 2010 Displaced Workers Guidebook has 16 pages of new information, including listings of:

·        free health clinics and low-cost prescription drugs

·        public libraries with free internet service

·        job preparation assistance organizations

·        additional organizations that offer food and nutrition assistance general assistance organizations offering free child care, transportation assistance, utility assistance, weatherization assistance, and home repairs

“While we have seen some small signs of encouragement, like the slight drop in unemployment over the last three months, the opening of the Chevy Volt battery plant in Brownstown, grants from the Department of Energy for new E85 pumps and Department of Labor for green jobs training, we still have a lot of people needing help,” Dingell said.  “I believe this guidebook has been and will continue to be a terrific resource for our people.  As we make important transitions in Southeast Michigan, this guidebook will be helpful to displaced workers and their families as well as the people and organizations listed in this book who are helping their community by providing this vital assistance.  I want to thank workers who’ve shown so much patience in their search.  We’re here for them.”

The guidebook can be found on Congressman Dingell's website:

www.house.gov/dingell