John Doe A v. Penn State
First Penn State scandal lawsuit says Coach Jerry Sandusky sexually abused a boy more than 100 times and the abuse was enabled by the school's "negligent oversight."
Bradley v. Lohan
Former Betty Ford Center employee sues Lindsay Lohan for assault, alleging the actress threw a phone at her and yanked her wrist while refusing to be breathalzyed.
N.D. v. New York Post
Hotel maid allegedly raped by French politician sues the New York Post for falsely reporting that she is a prostitute who "routinely traded sex for money" with male guests.
Reinhart v. Mortenson
Two Montana residents allege the author of "Three Cups of Tea" "fabricated material about his activities and work in Pakistan and Afghanistan" to sell the book.
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• Roommate referral website does not discriminate by allowing users to list their preferences for roommate characteristics. "Holding that the [Fair Housing Act] applies inside a home or apartment ... would be a serious invasion of privacy, autonomy and security."
Fair Housing Council v. Roommate.com

• Student alleges a prank involving a bottle rocket and another student's anus backfired, causing him to fall off the deck of a frat house.
Helmburg v. Alpha Tau Omega

• 5th Circuit reinstates a jury verdict finding a man employed by an engineering firm was sexually harassed by a male supervisor. "The text message 'I want cock' could be taken as an explicit sexual proposition." 
Cherry v. Shaw Coastal

• The ex-wife of a man who fatally shot himself with a gun he had stolen cannot sue the gun's owner for wrongful death. "We conclude that public policy dictates that [Charles] Milot's criminal conduct acts as a bar to recovery."
Ryan v. Hughes-Ortiz

• Pennsylvania woman alleges her former employer discriminated against her because she wore a fake penis to assist her in her female-to-male transition. "Plaintiff's use of the prosthetic device was concealed and in no way interfered with the ability of Plaintiff to do her job." Davis v. J&J Snack Foods

• Son of a woman charged with murdering her husband cannot use the proceeds from the victim's life insurance policy to fund his mother's criminal defense. "[A]llowing the distribution of these proceeds to a third party who has clear intentions to transfer part of these proceeds to her, undermines the principles underlying the Slayer’s Act and federal common law."
In Re: Estate of Michael Burkland

• Seattle judge says an actress cannot proceed anonymously in her suit against the IMDb.com website for publishing her age. "[W]hile Plaintiff may face public ridicule and embarrassment if she elects to go forward under her real name, the injury she fears is not severe enough to justify permitting her to proceed anonymously."
Doe v. Amazon.com

• Family of an 11-year-old girl who was crushed by a boulder of ice says forest ranger negligence caused her death. Rangers "did not warn users of the risk of harm associated with the dangerous, unstable snow and ice" at the Big Four Ice Caves in Snohomish County, Wash. Tam v. U.S.

• 3rd Circuit dismisses a breach of data security case against a payroll-processing company. "Appellants' allegations of an increased risk of identity theft as a result of the security breach are hypothetical, future injuries."
Reilly v. Ceridian Corp.

• Oregon judge denies First Amendment protections to a blogger. "Defendant cites no cases indicating that a self-proclaimed 'investigative blogger' is considered 'media' for the purposes of applying a negligence standard in a defamation claim."
Obsidian Finance v. Cox

• A transsexual who was fired from her government job while she was in the process of becoming a woman wins her sex discrimination suit. "[A] government agent violates the Equal Protection Clause’s prohibition of sex-based discrimination when he or she fires a transgender or transsexual employee because of his or her gender non-conformity."
Glenn v. Brumby

• New York man sues a Texas fertility clinic for wrongful insemination, alleging it failed to obtain his consent before using a sample of his sperm to impregnate his ex-girlfriend.
Pressil v. Advanced Fertility

• Nebraska judge rules that school officials may have illegally disciplined students for wearing t-shirts in honor of a slain friend suspected of gang membership. "[Q]uestions of fact remain whether Plaintiffs’ speech occurred in a context likely to provoke gang violence or other disruptions of school activities."
Kuhr v. Millard Public Sch. Dist.




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Jury Bites City with $2.2M Dog Attack Case Award Print

A Florida jury in a dog attack case rejected the immunity defense of animal control officials and returned a verdict that leaves the city of Delray Beach potentially more liable than the dogs' owner for a $3.7 million award to the plaintiff.

The city denied having any knowledge that two Rottweiler mixes had a history of biting people before they attacked Marguene St. Juste in November 2002 and they had not been classified as dangerous or vicious.

But the Palm Beach County Circuit jury decided the city negligently failed to enforce its animal control ordinance. Delray Beach's animal control officer, Ginny Feldmann, had responded to three or four complaints about the dogs being at large but had never impounded them.

The dogs' owner, Keli Nowling, did not defend the negligence claim against her. St. Juste, 38, suffered permanent injuries to her right arm from the attack, which occurred in front of Nowling's property.

“We felt like the dogs' owner was obviously irresponsible, but be that as it may, if the city had followed its own code, it wouldn't have made any difference whether she was irresponsible or not because they would have impounded the dogs and it would have never happened,” the jury foreman told the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.

The jury assigned 60 percent of the blame for the attack to the city, making it potentially liable for more than $2.2 million of the damages award. Nowling is responsible for the remaining 40 percent.

Under Florida law, “discretionary” governmental functions are immune from tort liability and the Florida Supreme Court has applied the immunity to a city's decision not to enforce an impoundment law against dogs which later attacked a woman. An animal control officer, the court noted in Carter v. City of Stuart, 468 So.2d 955 (1985), had never observed the dogs off private property.

Delray Beach cited Carter in its defense, arguing in a summary judgment motion that the cases were factually similar and “any decision regarding enforcement of its dog control ordinance constituted a discretionary decision.”

But St. Juste attorney Brian W. Smith (Smith & Vanture, West Palm Beach) was able to distinguish her case from Carter. For one thing, Feldmann's supervisor, whom she had called for backup in response to one of the complaints, testified he found Nowling's dogs running loose on city property but returned them to the owner.

The city's ordinance specifies that “Any dog found running at large in the City ... shall be impounded by the City's Animal Control Officer.”

During one visit to the Nowling property, moreover, Feldmann tried to repair the hole in the fence through which the dogs were escaping. By doing so, Smith argued, she affirmatively assumed a duty of care to protect the public from the dogs.

The jury verdict includes $3.5 million for pain and suffering, $178,000 for lost earning capacity and $26,500 for medical expenses. Florida caps awards against municipalities at $100,000, but St. Juste could collect more than that by having the legislature approve a claims bill.

UPDATE

  • The 4th District Court of Appeal reversed the judgment against the city in a June 4, 2008 opinion, finding the city was immune under Carter. Judge Fred A. Hazouri dissented: "Being aware of the extreme danger posed by these animals and advising that this dangerous condition would be taken care of, creates a special duty to the plaintiff, thereby eliminating the City’s immunity."


  • By Matthew Heller
    6/21/07


     
    rc_insidestories
    • Jurors' Comments Fuel New Trial Bid in Bullying Case

      Jurors may have opened the door to a new trial in a Maryland school bullying case by saying they returned a verdict for the defense because they were afraid of setting a bad precedent for school systems throughout the country.
      Read more...
    • Abuse Victim Can Sue Ex-DA Over 'Sexting' Messages

      A Wisconsin judge has protected a domestic violence victim from a rogue prosecutor, finding that she can sue him for sending her text messages in which he pressured her to have sex with him.
      Read more...
    • Four Loko Maker Says Users Knew of Health Dangers

      The maker of Four Loko has previewed its defense of a slew of product liability lawsuits, arguing that the physical effects of the energy drink's mixture of alcohol and caffeine — far from being an undisclosed risk to consumers — are precisely what made it so popular.
      Read more...
    • Mortician Sued for Speaking Ill of the Dead

      In a first-of-its-kind unprofessional conduct lawsuit, a woman has sued her former boss at a Michigan funeral home for making an indecent comment about the body of a dead man in front of her.
      Read more...
    • 'Next Friends' of Orcas Bid to Stop SeaWorld Slavery

      An animal rights lawsuit against SeaWorld for enslaving five killer whales at its aquatic theme parks in San Diego and Orlando may sink even though humans are representing the orcas as their “next friends.”
      Read more...
    • Jury Finds No Harm to Boy From Wrongful Circumcision

      In a blow to supporters of male “genital integrity,” an Indiana jury has ruled that a doctor did not injure a boy by circumcising him when he was an infant even though his mother wanted him to be left intact.
      Read more...
    • Guest Can Sue Motel 6 Over Attack by Woman's Pimp

      A guest who paid for sex with a prostitute at a Motel 6 did not assume the risk of being attacked several hours later by the prostitute's pimp, a Pennsylvania judge has ruled in an unusual premises liability lawsuit against the motel operator.
      Read more...
    RC_OnFile

    Marsh v. Air Tran Airways
    Subject: Roaches on a plane
    Document: Complaint

    Classic Media v. J.G. Wentworth
    Subject: "Lassie" copyright
    Document: Complaint

    Kardashian v. Old Navy
    Subject: Publicity rights
    Document: Complaint

    McKee v. Laurion
    Subject: Doctor defamation
    Document: Opinion

    Francis v. U.S.
    Subject: Bear attack
    Document: Decision

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    RC_OnTrial

    Doe v. Discovery Day Care
    Court: Miami-Dade Circuit
    Subject: Child molestation
    Verdict: $3,000,000

    Hoback v. City of Chattanooga
    Court: USDC, E. Tenn.
    Subject: PTSD discrimination
    Verdict: $680,000

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    RC_OnTheDocket

    Brown v. Herbert
    Date: 12/16/11
    Court: USDC, Utah
    Hearing: Motion to dismiss polygamy case

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