Perry v. Schwarzenegger
Judge strikes down California's same-sex marriage ban, finding that "Moral disapproval alone is an improper basis on which to deny rights to gay men and lesbians."
U.S. v. Arizona
Arizona judge enjoins enforcement of a new immigration law's requirement that police determine the immigration status of
every person who is arrested.
McGuire v. United Airlines
Michigan woman says a United Express flight crew locked her in a plane for nearly four hours after it landed because they failed to ensure that all passengers had disembarked.
R.H. v. Schenectady Sch. Dist.
Middle school student says he was suspended for wearing rosary beads because the rosary "is considered a gang-related symbol" and cannot be worn in school.
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• Parents of a 10-year-old boy who witnessed a killer whale's fatal attack on a trainer sue Sea World Orlando for infliction of emotional distress. "Without question, it was reasonably foreseeable and in fact predictable that an attack such as this one by a killer whale with the tendencies of Tilikum was inevitable." Connell v. Sea World

• Denver judge dismisses Oklahoma City bomber Terry Nichols's civil rights claims against prison officials for denying him a high-fiber diet.
Nichols v. Federal Bureau of Prisons

• Illinois teenager with cerebral palsy sues the Special Olympics for refusing to let her play basketball with the help of a service dog.
Youngwith v. Special Olympics

• Montana judge sets aside a government decision removing protections for the northern Rocky Mountain gray wolf. The Endangered Species Act "was not intended to sow the dragon's teeth of strife or to plant the seeds of future conflicts that have given rise to this case."
Defenders of Wildlife v. Salazar

• San Francisco judge dismisses a cereal consumer's false advertising suit. "[T]here is nothing in the packaging or marketing of Cap’n Crunch that would in any way deceive a reasonable consumer into believing that the cereal contains or derives nutritional value from real fruit." Werbel v. PepsiCo

• Iowa judge says a sheriff denied the applications of a father and son for concealed weapons permits in retaliation for their political activism. "This is a great reminder that the First Amendment protects the sole individual who may be a gadfly, kook, weirdo, nut job, whacko, and spook, with the same force of protection as folks with more majoritarian and popular views." Dorr v. Weber

• 5th Circuit rules that a school district violated the religious freedom of a Native American boy by requiring him to wear his long hair in a bun on top of his head or in a braid tucked into his shirt. The boy "has a sincere religious belief in wearing his hair uncut and in plain view."
A.A. v. Needville Ind. Sch. Dist.

• 11th Circuit denies a challenge to an ordinance restricting handouts of food to the homeless in Orlando parks. "[W]e are unpersuaded that the conduct of simply feeding people ... is expressive for First Amendment purposes."
First Vagabonds Church v. City of Orlando




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Injury Claims

Strip-Search Hoax Lawsuit Goes to Trial Print

McDonald's Corp. could be heading for trouble if the burger giant allows a Kentucky jury to decide whether it is responsible for the sexual humiliation inflicted on a former employee as a result of a strip-search hoax.

An assistant manager at a McDonald's in Mt. Washington, Ky., detained Louise Ogborn, then 18, in her office for 3-1/2 hours in April 2004 after a caller masquerading as a police officer said an employee had stolen a purse from a customer. Following the caller's instructions, the manager's fiancé had Ogborn do calisthenics in the nude and perform oral sex on him.

Similar cases have settled before trial (see table below), but McDonald's has so far played hardball with Ogborn, who is seeking more than $200 million in damages from the company for negligence, assault and sexual harassment. Jury selection began Sept. 10 in Bullitt County Circuit Court.

UPDATES

  • The jury Oct. 5 awarded Ogborn $6.1 million and another $1.1 million to assistant manager Donna Summers. "Louise has stood up for what happened to her and what McDonald's failed to do for three-and-a-half years, and this jury just vindicated her completely," her attorney said.

  • The Kentucky Court of Appeals affirmed the award to Ogborn in a Nov. 20, 2009 opinion.

  • The case settled, with McDonald's withdrawing its petition to the Kentucky Supreme Court on March 26, 2010.

  • In a press release, McDonald's claimed Ogborn's injuries, “if any,” were caused by her own failure to realize the caller was not a police officer. During her deposition, a defense attorney suggested she was free to walk out of Donna Summers' office at any time -– even though she was naked and Summers' fiancé beat her for not complying with his demands.

    But the entire incident was captured on DVD by a surveillance camera, giving the plaintiff incontrovertible evidence of the psychological terror she suffered. “I was scared for my life,” she testified in her deposition.

    Before Ogborn's ordeal, moreover, 44 other McDonald's restaurants around the country had received strip-search hoax calls, allegedly from the same person. Yet according to their depositions, neither Summers nor Kim Dockery, another assistant manager, had heard anything about them.

    Last week, Senior Judge Tom McDonald (no relation) ordered the company to disclose all information about those hoaxes and sanctioned the company for failing to disclose four other incidents. As part of the sanctions, McDonald's must give Ogborn material that normally would be protected by the attorney-client privilege.

    “It is inconceivable to the court how somebody could not know of cases in which they were sued,” the judge said.

    Ogborn's therapist has said she has suffered from panic attacks, severe insomnia and nightmares. With the discovery sanctions, an extremely sympathetic plaintiff, and the DVD recording, McDonald's could be risking a severe judgment by going to trial rather than settling the case.

    The jury will also hear Summers' $50 million counterclaim against McDonald's.

    Case Disposition

    Carouthers v. McDonald's Corp. (Muskingum County Ct. of Common Pleas, Ohio)

    Case settled in March 2001.

    Doe v. TJ Goodman Inc. (USDC, Utah)

    Case against McDonald's and franchisee settled in Aug. 2003.

    Catalano v. GWD Management (USDC, S. Ga.)

    Case against franchisee settled in Jan. 2007 after dismissal of claims against McDonald's.

    Thomas v. Blockbuster Video (Burleigh County Dist. Ct., N.D.)

    Jury awarded plaintiff $250,000 in damages against manager of video store in Jan. 2007.


    By Matthew Heller
    9/10/07


     
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    RC_OnFile

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    Document: John Walker Lindh declaration

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    Subject: Same-sex divorce
    Document: Opinion

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    Subject: LeBron's paternity
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    RC_OnTrial

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    Subject: Dodgers divorce

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    RC_OnTheDocket

    McCourt v. McCourt
    Date: 8/30/10
    Court: L.A. Superior
    Hearing: Dodgers divorce trial

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