Personal Injury News

Discovery Dispute Becomes Focal Point of Courthouse Shooting Suit
Lawyers for the estate of a woman shot to death in a Connecticut courthouse parking lot in 2005 are fighting to get a full picture of what two top judges knew - or didn't know - about the courthouse's security situation. However, the Judicial branch is resisting the full disclosure process of discovery, invoking the doctrine of sovereign immunity, and only agreeing to provide information through tightly-controlled answers to written questions, or "interrogatories." The woman's shooting at the hands of her ex-husband also left her lawyer severely injured. Lawyers for the woman's estate are seeking a green light to sue the Judicial Branch from the state Claims Commissioner, who has the authority to authorize court actions against the state. He has not yet given the plaintiffs lawyers permission to file suit, and they are still gathering evidence that would be used in a hearing before the claims commissioner. In the meantime, he has denied the lawyers' request to depose two judges about courthouse security. Instead of depositions, lawyers can only submit written interrogatories to the judges, who then could answer in writing about conditions and policies in place at the time of the murder-suicide.

Report Shows Inmate's Death Caused by Mix of Medications
A Pennsylvania inmate who died in his cell earlier this year was a victim of "mixed drug toxicity" caused by nine prescription or over-the-counter medications in his system, according to a recently released toxicology report. His death occurred three days after he was granted a medical furlough to visit his doctor. In a Right-to-Know Law request, the warden said any drug prescriptions granted during a furlough normally wouldn't be filled before an inmate returns to jail. If the inmate does return with prescription drugs, those drugs are supposed to be turned over to corrections officers who handle prisoner intake. Jail policy calls for any inmate medications, including prescriptions, to be turned over to the contractor retained by the jail to oversee inmate health care; however, the jailer's health care company does not necessarily consult with an inmate's physician following a medical furlough.

People Safe from Arrest in Taping of Police Work, DA Reminds
The Allegheny County District Attorney's Office agreed to settle a federal lawsuit by reminding its staff and area police chiefs that people can't be arrested for videotaping officers in public. The American Civil Liberties Union sued the county, the district attorney's office and a police officer over the 2009 arrest of a Pittsburgh man who used a cell phone to record an incident between his friend and the police. He was charged with a wiretap violation, but the county later dropped the charges. Pennsylvania is one of 12 states that makes recording conversations illegal unless everyone in the discussion agrees to the recording; however, the state's law includes a provision limiting it to situations where the people talking have an "expectation of privacy."

Pennsylvania County Dismissed from Kids-for-Cash Suits
A federal judge has ruled that Luzerne County cannot be held liable in the kids-for-cash corruption scandal that has led to criminal charges against two of the county's ex-judges because no county officials with policymaking authority played any role in the alleged scheme. The judge concluded that Luzerne County must be dismissed from a spate of civil rights suits filed by juveniles who claims their custodial terms were tied to a bribery scheme in which former judges allegedly took payments in excess of $2.8 million in return for promising to sentence juvenile offenders to for-profit detention centers. The judge found that even though both of the disgraced judges at times served as president judge and therefore played a role in crafting the county court's budget, they never became county officials in that process. Under Pennsylvania law, president judges merely make budget recommendations and have no power over county officials in the ultimate decisions. Under the separation of powers in Pennsylvania government, the judge found, county judges are always considered state actors.

Attorneys for Prison Ask for Suit to be Thrown Out
Attorneys for Fayette County Prison employees and the medical company sued in the death of an inmate have asked a judge to dismiss the lawsuit. The inmate's widow filed a suit in federal court in Pittsburgh last year, claiming that both prison officials and those employed by PrimeCare Medical Inc. neglected her husband, leading to his 2007 death. He died of peritonitis, which occurred when he developed a perforation in his intestine. The suit claims he started complaining of pain about 30 hours before his death - and alleged that if prison and medical workers had listened to him, he would have survived. The lawsuit claimed his death was "unnecessary and avoidable," because he repeatedly told guards and medical personnel he was ill, but they ignored him. In a motion to dismiss, PrimeCare's attorneys argued that employees for the company checked on Johnson numerous times, which did not violate his constitutional right against cruel and unusual punishment. County prison officials argued that the claims against them should be dismissed because prison employees relied upon the assessments of PrimeCare employees.

Dog Bites Can Leave Kids with Emotional Scars, Too
When animals attack, some kids might develop post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, according to a new study. Researchers followed kids in China after they came to the emergency room for animal bites - the cause of millions of injuries every year. Some people suffer from PTSD after experiencing an event that puts them or another person in danger, such as a car accident or assault, and people suffering from PTSD often have disturbing memories and dreams of that event that may interfere with their everyday lives. The study followed nearly 400 children between the ages of 5 and 17 who suffered animal bites, checking for symptoms of PTSD when they came to the hospital, as well as one week later and three months later. At their three-month check, 19 of the 358 kids were diagnosed with PTSD, and children with the most severe bites were shown to be at most risk for the disorder - 10 our of 38 eventually developed PTSD.

Federal Judge Tosses Civil Rights Suit
A federal judge threw out a civil suit filed against York County in which a Delaware County man claimed he had been wrongfully imprisoned for more than a month. Police arrested him for DUI in 2009 and held him when they thought they had learned of warrants of his arrest in Washington, D.C. and Maryland. The problem, however, was that the warrant from Maryland wasn't for him and the warrant from Washington, D.C. was later withdrawn. He later sued the county for wrongful incarceration, and county officials argued that he legally accepted the time he served in a York County prison as his sentence for DUI. In dismissing the civil rights suit, which sought more than $75,000, the judge relied on a 1994 U.S. Supreme Court interpretation of a federal civil rights statute.

Philadelphia Duck Boat Company Says It Made NTSD Fixes
A Philadelphia sightseeing operation whose amphibious boat was struck by a large barge and sank says it followed safety recommendations. Thirty-seven people were dumped into the Delaware River when a barge collided with the duck boat, and two people were killed. Federal regulators had recommended duck boats increase buoyancy after one sank in Arkansas in 1999, and Philadelphia Ride the Ducks says its boats added buoyancy and all other National Transportation Safety Board modification requests.

Liability in Ride the Ducks Accident a Complicated Matter
When it comes time to assign blame for the accident involving a Ride the Ducks excursion vehicle and a city sludge barge, lawyers will comb through many sets of complex regulations governing everything from federal navigation rules to inspection records to the vessels' equipment. Personal injury and admiralty lawyers said that questions would begin with whether each vessel was following the federal Inland Navigation Rules - known commonly as the Rules of the Road. Those Coast Guard regulations are the traffic laws of the water. According to those rules, the tugboat pushing the barge was responsible for keeping a proper lookout. "Every vessel shall at all times maintain a proper lookout by sight and hearing as well as by all available means appropriate in the prevailing circumstances and conditions so as to make a full appraisal of the situation and the risk of collision," the rules state. And the so-called duck boat would have been expected to sound at least five short horn blasts to alert an approaching vessel of danger. Also central to potential litigation is the maintenance of the craft, how long it was disabled in the water and what was done during that time.

Suit Against Ex-Governor Over Sexual Predator Civil Commitment Plan Upheld
Former New York Governor George E. Pataki and other officials can be sued for the involuntary civil commitment of violent sexual predators without notice or a hearing upon the completion of their prison terms, a federal judge has ruled. The judge concluded that the former governor, the former commissioners of the New York State Department of Correctional Services, the state Office of Mental Health and others are not shielded by qualified immunity for actions that "rather blatantly violated plaintiffs' constitutional rights." The inmates were shuttled directly from prison to the Manhattan Psychiatric Center after Pataki unilaterally promulgated a Sexual Violent Predator Initiative in 2005. He acted after the Legislature several times failed to enact a civil confinement statute. The judge ruled that the governor's initiative ran afoul of U.S. Supreme Court case law and, in any event, "no balancing of public and private interests can remotely justify what happened her." Six plaintiffs sued Pataki and several officials, alleging a politically-motivated conspiracy to violate their civil rights. The governor's program authorized involuntary civil commitment pursuant to the New York Mental Hygiene Law, which allows two state-employed psychiatrists to commit, without a prior judicial hearing or determination, "any person alleged to be mentally ill and in need of involuntary care and treatment." 

Agents Spoke with California Kidnap Victim
California parole agents spoke to the woman who was held captive by a convicted rapist for 18 years and bore his two children but never bothered to follow up. The revelation, yet another embarrassment for the state corrections department in the case, details how parole agents missed another opportunity to rescue Jaycee Dugard and was contained in documents obtained under the California Public Records Act. The report was sent to lawmakers in advance of their vote to settled with the Dugard family for $20 million. Dugard, now 30-years-old, said parole agents spoke with her during her captivity. She claims state parole agents failed to properly supervise her kidnapper starting in 1999 and did not follow up on reports and observations that might have led to their rescue. Previous reports from the state corrections department and an independent inspector general said parole agents had discovered one of the girls her kidnapper had fathered with her but accepted his explanation that she was a niece. The report gave a stark outline of the reasons the state agreed to settle the family's claim with such a large sum. In part, it said the claim is supported by a number of allegations, including "that agents saw and spoke to Ms. Dugard and her eldest daughter but failed to investigate their identities or their relationship to" the kidnapper.

Two Missing After Barge Capsizes Duck Boat in Philadelphia
Searchers are plying the murky waters of the Delaware River for two passengers missing from an amphibious Philadelphia sightseeing boat that was struck by a barge, flipped over and sank. Police say the 37 people aboard the six-wheeled duck boat were tossed overboard when the barge hit it after it had been adrift for 10 minutes with its engine stalled. The Coast Guard said it will search through the night and into the next day for a 16-year-old girl and a 20-year-old man believed to have been aboard the duck boat, which can travel seamlessly on land and water.

Ex-County Commissioners Named in Kids-for-Cash Suit
Former Luzerne County judges and other persons implicated in the kids-for-cash scheme have been named as defendants in another federal class action lawsuit filed on behalf of juveniles who allege they were wrongly incarcerated. The suit contains allegations similar to other suits, which generally contend that two judges conspired with an attorney - who once owned juvenile detention centers - and others to wrongly incarcerate youths in order to benefit themselves financially. It differs in that it alleges several former county officials, including two former county commissioners and one former chief manager, played an active role in the alleged conspiracy. The most recent complaint joins four other lawsuits that are currently pending relating to the juvenile justice scandal and alleges the three new defendants either participated in the illegal activity of the ex-judges or knew something was improper but did nothing to address it.

Civil Fight Looms for Defendants in Case of Murdered Lawyer
After a five-week criminal trial, three housemates charged with covering up the murder of a Washington, D.C. attorney walked out of court as free men; however, their legal wrangling is far from over. Though the three were acquitted of obstruction of justice, conspiracy and tampering with evidence, they still face a $20 million wrongful death suit that was filed on the heels of the criminal case in late 2008. The civil suit, which has been on hold during the criminal prosecution, will keep the meter running on their legal bills. Several criminal defense lawyers estimated defending against the criminal charges cost the three between $2 and $3 million in fees. The murder has baffled law enforcement from the start, when in 2006, the attorney stayed at a house shared by the three in a "polyamorous family." An hour after arriving at the house, he was stabbed three times in the chest. Although the three maintain that an unknown intruder killed the attorney, investigators found no evidence of a break-in. Two years went by before criminal charges were filed in the case, and even then no one was charged with murder. Each faced up to 38 years in prison if convicted on all counts before being acquitted. With the criminal case against them over, they now face a $20 million civil case that alleges wrongful death, negligence, spoliation of evidence and conspiracy. The attorney's former firm is representing his widow pro bono.

Accident was Fireworks Firm's Third Since 2004
The Lancaster County company that set off a fireworks display that left 11 people injured has a history of shows going dangerously wrong. The company was responsible for a fireworks accident during an Independency Day display in 2004 that left about 50 people injured and an accident in 2007 that left another 11 injured. Federal authorities are investigating what happened at the most recent show, but state police have declared the mishap an accident and said no criminal charged will be filed. The company's owner said faulty fireworks, not improper procedures, were to blame in all three incidents and that the company runs safe shows. Meanwhile, the stepfather of a 17-year-old boy who was the most seriously hurt in the accident is doing well at a local burn center where skin grafts were applied to his legs.

Man Who Alleged Police Brutality Gets Probation
A Wilkes-Barre man who accused city police officers of brutality after the arrested him last year will not face jail. He pleaded guilty to charges of resisting arrest, disorderly conduct and public drunkenness and could have faced up to three years in prison. The judge instead ordered him to serve three years of probation and perform 50 hours of community service along with $6,571 in restitution to a victims compensation fund. He accused officers of using excessive force during his arrest, but a four-month investigation revealed no wrongdoing. He was under the influence of alcohol and cocaine and acting in an "uncontrolled manner" when he led officers on a chase through his neighborhood.

Judge Sues Security Firm
When a U.S. District Court judge pulled into the parking garage at Philadelphia's federal courthouse in 2008, the last thing she expected was a broken ankle and other injuries. As she was waved through the guard booth, she stopped at the gate and used her key card to gain access to the entry ramp. When the traffic signal turned green and the gate's arm rose, she watched as the security barrier lowered, and she proceeded over it, intending to drive down the ramp into the garage. However, the 18-inch-high hydraulic barricade "suddenly and violently popped up," striking the front end of her car and causing the airbag to deploy. As a result, she sustained a fractured right ankle, a bruised knee, wrists and arms, lacerations to her lip and hip and back pain, according to the lawsuit she and her husband recently filed in federal district court. The lawsuit claims she incurred medical expenses related to medical care, treatment and rehabilitation due to the defendants' actions and inactions. Named as defendants in the lawsuit are the manufacturer of the barrier, who the judge claims knew the barricade was defective and unsafe and "failed to operate properly" before her accident. Before her accident, an Alabama couple sued the same company when a 1,700-pound steel barrier malfunctioned, crushing his right leg and permanently disabling him. The couple is seeking more than $75,000 in damages and other costs.

UN Food Safety Meeting Sets Melamine Limit
The World Health Organization says an annual food safety meeting has set new limits for melamine contamination in food and infant formula. Melamine contamination in milk products has been blamed for sickening nearly 300,000 babies and the deaths of at least six infants in China in recent years. Melamine is a chemical used in making plastics, fertilizers and even concrete. WHO said that 130 countries meeting in Geneva decided to limit melamine to 2.5 milligrams per kilogram with some exceptions. The threshold for infant milk formula was set at 1 milligram per kilogram, equivalent to the U.S. limit of 1 part per million. The limit won't be legally binding but countries can refuse to allow the import of products deemed below minimum quality.

Hospitals Treat Increase in Fireworks Injuries
While consumers gear up for a relaxing holiday weekend, emergency rooms across the country are bracing themselves for the busy season in fireworks-related injuries like burns and eye damage. Last year, hospital emergency rooms in the United States treated an estimated 8,800 fireworks-related injuries compared to 7,000 such injuries in 2008, according to a report published by the Consumer Product Safety Commission. The report covers injuries sustained by civilians - bystanders as well as amateurs who set off their own bottle rockets, firecrackers and the like - not occupational injuries to professional fireworks experts. In 2009, nearly 70 percent - or about 5,900 - of the consumer injuries occurred during the "high season" of fireworks, from June 19 to July 19, the report said. During that season, about 1,200 injuries treated in emergency rooms were attributed to firecrackers, while sparklers accounted for 1,000 injuries, rockets for 400 and Roman candle 200. Among the report's findings: More than half the injuries were among young people under 20; boys and men suffered 73 percent of all injuries; hands, fingers and eyes were most frequently injured. Among those hurt last year, two people died from setting off mortar shells.

Phanatic Possibly Most Sued Mascot in the Majors
The Phillie Phanatic may soon find himself in court after being sued by a 75-year-old woman who claims he injured her knees when he climbed through the stands at a 2008 game. She claims he climbed through the stands and onto her legs at a minor league game. She claims that her arthritis, which had been asymptomatic, was upset by the incident, leading her to seek medical treatment. Ultimately, she needed to get knee replacements. She is seeking in excess of $50,000 in damages from several defendants including the man who plays the Phanatic, the Philadelphia Phillies and the Reading Phillies. Meanwhile, the Phanatic has been sued at least three times in the past decade, including once for hugging someone too hard.

California Trial Lawyers Welcome Latest Ruling On Recovery of Medical Expenses
Plaintiffs lawyers are celebrating the second appeal court ruling in seven months that lets individuals recover the full cost of medical care even if the insurer paid only a smaller, negotiated amount. In its ruling, San Francisco's First District Court of Appeal held that a judge erred by reducing a negligence award from $150,000 in damages - including more than $44,500 for past medical expenses - to about $18,000. The lower amount represented the actual payment the plaintiff's doctors accepted under their contracts with her insurers. The appeal court invoked the collateral source rule, which says damages shouldn't be reduced simply because the victim receives benefits from other sources, such as insurance companies. "The rule reflects a policy preference favoring the tort victim over the wrongdoer since not applying the rule allows the wrongdoer to profit from the victim's investment in purchasing insurance or from the generosity of those who come to the victim's aid," the court found. Defense lawyers had argued that basing damages on the full cost of medical services - rather than just for the amount actually accepted by doctors - would give plaintiffs an undue windfall.

Women Refused Ambulance
An Ohio woman who woke disoriented and with an extremely high fever claims she called 911, was transferred to MedStar and told an ambulance cannot respond to "just a fever." Her mother called MedStar to beg for an ambulance. One was eventually dispatched 20 minutes later, but the woman had already driven herself to a hospital. MedStar is reviewing the case, but says some calls are eliminated to keep ambulances available for "real true blue emergencies." Upon her arrival at the hospital, she was treated for pneumonia and had to remain for two weeks.

Attorney Sues City and Police Over Arrest
A Wilkes-Barre attorney is suing the city and two police officers he said falsely arrested him for suspicion of driving under the influence. His suit alleges defamation and violations of his constitutional and civil rights. Police arrested the attorney after his car broke down at an intersection. They claim he slurred his words, could not stand and acted belligerently, but a blood test showed no alcohol or drugs in his system. Though police never brought charges, they issued a press release and news of the arrest appeared in a local newspaper. The attorney claims his reputation and business were hurt by the arrest and subsequent release.

Lawsuit Could Cost County $1 Million
As a class action lawsuit regarding conditions at a Northumberland County Prison heads toward settlement, the county will soon be stuck with the tab. The county will pay an estimated $800,000 to $1 million for additional medical expenses and attorney fees as a result of the litigation. The Lewisburg Prison Project sued the county, a former warden and the prison board on behalf of 12 current or former inmates, alleging medieval conditions at the jail and practices that violated constitutional rights. Several issues have been addressed, including improvements in medical services, and it appears the two sides are moving toward a settlement. But the improvements and litigation come at a price - including paying the plaintiffs' attorney fees. The county has placed blame on the former warden.

Baby Dies When Error Delays Aid
A single keystroke error by a 911 dispatcher sent paramedics to the wrong address, the head of Allegheny County's Emergency Services announced. The mistake resulted in an approximately seven-minute delay for emergency crews arriving at an apartment building where a mother had reported her baby had stopped breathing. The baby later died, and the dispatcher who answered the call was placed on unpaid leave. The county uses a computer-aided dispatch system. The dispatcher had typed the correct street address for the call, but when she went back to modify the address by including an apartment number, she mistakenly typed the @ symbol instead of #. Because of a glitch in the computer program, that small error resulted in the address being changed. 

Intimate Waxing Fundraiser Goes Awry
A 24-year-old man was left in agony after an "intimate beauty waxing" event at a London pub went a bit too far and he nearly lost a testicle. He and his friends agreed to undergo the waxing to raise cash for a local hospital. While his friends had their chests waxed, the man endured the "male Brazilian." One of the strips stuck to a very sensitive spot, and an energetic tug by one of his friends tore off six of his seven layers of skin.

Allegheny County 911 Gives Wrong Address
An Allegheny County 911 call-taker directed paramedics, firefighters and police to the wrong address when someone reported an unresponsive baby, delaying treatment by six minutes for the three-week-old girl who died an hour later. The call-taker typed the wrong address into a computer, routing responders to a location about three miles from the intended apartment. The county medical examiner said there is no evidence that the six minutes might have made a difference in saving the child's life. The call-taker has been placed on paid leave pending the results of an internal investigation, which so far has involved listening to 911 tapes. Last year, a part-time 911 call-taker failed to warn city police officers sent to a domestic dispute about weapons in the home of a man who is now accused of killing the three officers who responded to the call. Earlier this year, investigators placed some blame for a man's death on city EMS workers who staffed the 911 center during a snowstorm and mishandled some calls his girlfriend made.

Former Inmate Who Claims He was Beaten Files Lawsuit
A former Westmoreland County jail inmate who claims he was beaten in the prison - resulting in the firing of four guards - has filed a federal lawsuit against the county, its warden and the alleged attackers. He claims that his right to due process was violated in 2009 when he was assaulted by four corrections officers while two others looked on. He alleges four guards took him to a counselor's office, where guards slammed him into a filing cabinet, pushed his head into a wall and punched him in the head and torso. The lawsuit says he suffered multiple injuries along with pain, inconvenience, humiliation and embarrassment. He is seeking an unspecified amount in compensatory and punitive damages. The guards are the subject of a criminal investigation after an internal investigation resulted in their firing. The guards have since filed wrongful termination suits.

Jury Quickly Tosses Prison 'Sandals' Case
A Wilkes-Barre man serving a 30-year federal prison sentence for attempting to help terrorists blow up fuel pipelines and refineries has lost a federal civil lawsuit he filed against Lackawanna County Prison guards he claimed roughed him up because he tried to enter the law library wearing shower sandals. The jury deliberated slightly more than an hour before rejecting his claims that his constitutional rights were violated by the officers' use of "excessive force." He claimed to have suffered a broken tooth and a fractured bone in his face during the 2006 incident that started when he was told he could not go to the law library because he was not wearing shoes. The officers testified that he disobeyed their orders and was placed in the restricted housing unit.

Ex-Wife Jailed for Alienating Children from Father
A Long Island judge has sentenced a woman to six weekends in jail for repeatedly undermining her ex-husband's relationship with their two daughters. He ruled that the mother willfully violated a court order by deliberately alienating her young children from her ex-husband and held her in civil contempt. He cited "instances of attempts to undermine the relationship between the children and their father and replace him with her new husband, manipulation of defendant's parenting access, utter and unfettered vilification of the defendant to the children, false reporting of sexual misconduct without any semblance of 'good faith,' and her imposition upon the children to fear her tirades and punishment if they embrace the relationship they want to have with their father."

When a Child Gets Hurt, Sibling May be at Risk
Summer is trauma season for children - everyone outside, out of school, riding bikes, climbing trees, playing around bodies of water and all too often getting hurt. In 2008, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that 9.2 million children a year had visited emergency rooms for unintentional injuries from 2000 to 2006. Such injuries were among the leading cause of death among children: 12,000 fatalities a year. But who gets hurt and how? Researchers have noted that injuries seem to cluster chronologically in families. After studying large populations of children, researchers found that if a child was injured seriously enough to be hospitalized, all the children in that family were at higher risk of injury for the next three months. After three months, the families' risk returned to normal.

Skeptical Public Fears Health Issues from Oil Spill
Local and national health officials have stressed that most medical risks likely will be mild and confined to workers exposed to oil and chemical dispersants at the source of the Deepwater Horizon disaster. More than 20,000 workers have been sent to the site, but relatively few have reported illnesses, including up to 11 who were said to be treated and released at a hospital with flu-like symptoms. About 70 people in five Gulf Coast states have reported to poison control centers health issues they think are from exposures to the oil spill, with common symptoms including throat irritation, headaches, nausea, cough and dizziness. About 60 people have reported spill-related exposure complaints to the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals.

Alleged Other Man had Duty to Tell Husband If He had Herpes, Judge Rules
A man who says he contracted a sexually transmitted disease after his wife had an affair with her allegedly infected psychiatrist can bring a negligence action against the doctor, a state judge has ruled. The man claimed his wife's psychiatrist had a duty to warn him that he had herpes simplex before having unprotected sex with his wife. Looking to "common concepts of morality, logic, and the social consequences of imposing the duty," the judge agreed that the psychiatrist owed a reasonable duty of care to the plaintiff. A jury ultimately will be responsible for deciding whether the psychiatrist was infected or had had an affair with the man's wife. The plaintiff sued the psychiatrist in 2009 for intentional and negligent infliction of emotional distress, fraud and statutory and common-law negligence.

Chester County Collection Firm Loses Harassment Case
Thanks to a series of profane and racist telephone messages in which a Dallas businessman was called repeatedly threatened, he has won a $1.5 million verdict against a Chester County company and two of its former employees. The plaintiff received his first call from bill collectors asking for a payment they said was overdue on his credit card in 2007. He explained that he had already paid the credit card bill, and he went online to check. When the bill collectors called again, he advised them not to call back. After he complained to a company supervisor, he began to get the threatening calls from two different men. Some messages suggested that the plaintiff, who is African American, should pick cotton and eat watermelon. In some calls, the men mentioned the plaintiff's wife by name and made sexual comments about her.

Accused Cop-Killer's Mom Sues Allegheny County
The mother of an accused cop-killer has sued Allegheny County, claiming that a 911 dispatcher's failure to pass along warnings that her son was armed, and the ensuing fatal gunfight and investigation, have made her home uninhabitable and of no value. In the  lawsuit, she seeks money to cover the fair-market value of her home prior to the shooting as well as the cost of living elsewhere since the exchange. Her son is accused of fatally shooting three officers when they responded to his mother's 911 call about a domestic dispute inside her home. Her lawsuit says "the 911 dispatcher grossly and wantonly neglected, or otherwise omitted, relaying" information that her son possessed firearms to the Pittsburgh police officers who were sent to respond. According to a recording of the call, when the dispatcher asked her whether her son had weapons, she replied: "Yes, and they're all legal." Hundreds of rounds of bullets were fired during the nearly four-hour standoff.

Burn Victim's Suit Goes Forward Against Bacardi Over Bartender's Pyrotechnics
A woman who claims she was severely burned when a bottle of Bacardi 151 rum caught fire during a restaurant bartender's pyrotechnic display has won her attempt to proceed with a personal injury and products liability action against Bacardi and the restaurant. She alleges Bacardi knew or should have foreseen that its high-proof rum was being widely used for a variety of dangerous, flammable displays. She accused the company of employing a poorly designed flame arrester on top of its bottle that could be easily removed by bartenders. In denying Bacardi's motion to dismiss, a Manhattan Supreme Court justice held that whether consumers would find acceptable a lower-proof rum that was less incendiary and whether the Bacardi 151 bottle had been defectively designed were factual issues.

Former Students' Sex Abuse Claims Against Prestigious School Proceed to Discovery
Nine former students who claim that a Brooklyn school engaged in a decades-long cover-up of a sexually abusive football coach have scored a significant victory in their lawsuit against the prestigious, 156-year-old school. A judge granted a discovery motion that allows the plaintiffs to depose the school's current and former headmasters and requires the school to turn over personnel files and investigative records regarding the alleged sexual misconduct of the football coach, who is now deceased. In granting the motion, the judge ruled that the former students may pursue an equitable estoppel defense to the school's statute of limitations claims, notwithstanding the tight limits on such defenses under New York state law. The plaintiffs filed the action in 2009 after its state case was dismissed in 2006 on statute of limitations grounds. The RICO action alleges that the school; its current headmaster; its former headmaster; and several members of the board of trustees, conspired to conceal the sexual abuse of perhaps "hundreds" of students by the coach, who worked as the school's football coach and physical education teacher from 1966 to 1991.

Woman Left Sleeping On Plane Sues Airline
A Michigan woman who fell asleep on a Philadelphia-bound flight and awoke to find herself trapped in the cabin more than three hours after it landed sued the airline, alleging false imprisonment. The 36-year-old woman boarded a Trans States shuttle at Dulles International Airport outside Washington. During the one-hour journey, she fell asleep. The aircraft landed about 12:30 a.m. at Philadelphia International Airport, but she claims the flight crew hadn't bothered to rouse her. She awoke at 4 a.m., alone on the plane with all the doors locked. She said she walked the aisle for 15 minutes and used her phone to check the time but not to call for help. Minutes later, the plane's door opened, and she was greeted by a Transportation Security Administration officer and two Philadelphia police officers who questioned her for about 10 minutes. She held a press conference to announce that she was suing Trans State Airlines alleging false imprisonment, negligence, emotional distress and breach of contract.

Pittsburgh Settles Two Suits Accusing Police Misconduct
Pittsburgh's City Council has voted tentatively to pay $170,000 to settle two lawsuits accusing police officers of abusing their authority. Both federal suits were filed last year. In the first, a man claims police manhandled him and arrested him under false pretenses because of a caustic remark he made after a traffic stop. His case will be settled for $155,000. In the second lawsuit, a woman alleged an officer "offensively touched" and battered her while removing her from a dance club. Her case will settle for $15,000. Both suits claimed the incidents reflected a continuing pattern of misconduct by city police officers.

Holiday Weekend Raises Risk of Injury
Holidays aren't always fun and games. They also present some rather apparent opportunities for children to get hurt - from burning themselves on the barbecue on Memorial Day to sticking themselves with carving knives on Halloween or ingesting sharp decorations on Christmas. But on major holidays, children are more likely to suffer injuries from everyday activities, such as playing football, than they are to be victims of holiday-specific pitfalls, a new study reveals. Labor Day and Memorial Day are the top two, likely because they are often celebrated outdoors and people are more likely to take part in physical activities.

Woman Says Suicidal Daughter Raped by Jail Officer
The mother of a female inmate at the Monroe County Correctional Facility claims a corrections officer raped her daughter, and the matter is now the subject of a criminal investigation. Any sexual contact between a prison employee and inmate - even consensual sex - is a crime classified as institutional sexual assault. The latest probe, though, focuses on allegations the officer forced himself on the inmate against her will. In the days following the alleged sexual assault, the inmate tried to kill herself, her mother says. It took three days of frantic phone calls for her to learn her daughter had tried to hang herself.

Pittsburgh Councilman Blasts Judge's Ruling
A member of Pittsburgh's City Council blasted a district judge's decision to dismiss most charges against a Pittsburgh firefighter and his two cousins accused of attacking a man in his home. Though the judge dismissed charges of assault, burglary and conspiracy against the three, he did convict them of summary offenses of public drunkenness and criminal mischief, ordering them to work 40 hours of community service and pay a fine. The three were charged with assaulting a man after he yelled at one of them for urinating on his home. The three then entered his home and fought with him. The man claims he was shoved and grabbed by the sweatshirt, which ripped and left red marks around his neck.

Student's Privacy Rights Violated in 'Sexting' Case
The hot-button issue of "sexting" is coming back to court and this time the ACLU is setting out to establish that high school students have a right to privacy that includes the contents of their cell phones. A team of lawyers has partnered with the ACLU of Pennsylvania to sue on behalf of a student who claims her constitutional rights were violated when her principal confiscated her cell phone, found nude images she had taken of herself and turned it over to prosecutors. The ACLU says the issue is an important one because many school officials incorrectly believe they have the right to search through cell phones whenever a student is misusing one.

Congress Urges Attention to Youth Concussions
Young people who suffer concussions are at greater risk of long-term physical and mental consequences, lawmakers were told at a hearing on head injuries to high school athletes. Last year, the House Judiciary Committee held a hearing on head injuries in football, but the focus there was on life-altering injuries to professional football players. High school athletes are at greater risk from sports-related concussions than older athletes because their younger brains are more susceptible to injury. The Government Accountability Office issued a report finding that it's difficult to determine how many concussions occur at the high school level and that estimates may be too low. Athletes not wanting to be sidelined may be reluctant to report symptoms of a possible concussion and agencies that track head injuries have different standards such as only counting injuries treated in an emergency room.

Settlement Reached Over Delaware County Prison Strip Searches
A company that formerly operated the Delaware County Prison has settled a federal class action lawsuit involving strip searches of incoming inmates charged with minor crimes. The $2.9 million settlement awards are up to $400 each to about 10,000 inmates at six facilities. The prisoners who were strip searched between 2006 and 2008 may be eligible for settlement awards. Those eligible to apply for settlement include prisoners who were not accused of drug, weapons or violent crimes; those involving probation or parole violations; and those who did not behave in a manner that would give guards cause to conduct strip searchers.

Trial in Pittsburgh Day Care Death
The death of a 10-month-old girl at a Pittsburgh-area day care center was a tragic accident that does not warrant criminal charges against the home's operator and her daughter, attorneys for the operator have argued. The judge, however, ruled that the operator and her other 22-year-old daughter should stand trial on child endangerment charges stemming from the 2008 death. Her elder daughter was the only adult at the day care at the time of the incident. Police say that the operator's 7-year-old granddaughter threw the baby to the basement floor, fracturing her skull, while her mother was busy upstairs changing a diaper. The operator had left the daycare to pick up medication for her child, but she also returned a pair of shoes while out.

Woman Files Civil Lawsuit in Federal Court Against State Police Trooper
A Bradford woman has filed a civil lawsuit against a state trooper, alleging he targeted her family in violation of their constitutional rights. She says that when the trooper puller her over for a traffic stop last year, it was in retaliation for hers and her brothers' public criticism of the state police in print and public. She's requesting a jury trial and a verdict of $1 million. The officer allegedly stopped her for remaining too long at a blinking yellow light and littering. The trooper also claimed to have smelled alcohol on her breath, which is why she was arrested. She has since been acquitted of all charges. Her brother was stopped the next day by the same trooper, who claimed he could now smell alcohol on her brother's breath.

Report Faults Use of Restraint at Harlem Charter School
The use of physical restraint at a Harlem charter school that serves special education students was not reported properly and "could be considered condoned assaults and abuse of schoolchildren," a city investigation revealed. The investigation was launched after an anonymous accusation was made regarding physical abuse in 2008. The investigation found that the charter school's administrators failed to properly report at least three instances during the 2007 school year in which staff members used physical force to control students. In at least one of those cases, a student reported receiving injuries. The school reported nine instances of physical restraint, and three administrators who were cited for improperly supervising staff members still work for the school.

New York Court Finds Texting While Driving No Basis for Search
A Brooklyn judge has granted a motion to suppress in a weapon-possession case, holding that texting while driving was not illegal in 2009 and could not serve as the basis of a search and seizure. In any case, the judge held that even if texting had been illegal, doing so still would not have supported arresting drivers who text or searching their cars. "When the Legislature enacted cell phone legislation and authorized a fine of no more than $150 for an infraction, it could not have thought it was giving police officers the right arbitrarily to arrest drivers for such a violation, to seize their vehicles and to conduct intrusive searches," the judge held. The judge also found that the arresting officer's mistaken belief that the driver's Virginia license was only a permit and did not authorize him to drive in New York did not justify the subsequent search and arrest.

Man Sues City, Alleging Excessive Use of Force
A Beaver County man, claiming a police officer used a stun gun on him twice and kicked him, is suing the officer and the city. He filed a federal civil lawsuit alleging the officer restrained and seized him using excessive and unreasonable force. According to court documents, he was leaving an Elks lodge early in the morning when he noticed that two men had already been arrested and were being held in the back seat of a police car. He claims he was then approached by five officers who told him to leave the area. He alleges he told the officer in question that he was in need of a ride home and that he needed to make a phone call. After he reached in his pocket to get his cell phone, the officer fired his Taser into the man's chest. The lawsuit claims the man remained standing after the officer fired his Taser into his chest a second time. He was then ordered to get to his knees and to lie down. He complied and claims the officer kicked him in the ribs while he lay face down on the ground. He claims to have suffered severe pain on the right side of his rib cage and other physical injuries including chest puncture wounds and psychological trauma.

Autopsy Fuels Family's Claims
Natural causes killed the Pittsburgh man who died while waiting 30 hours for an ambulance during a snowstorm, according to an autopsy report. The man died primarily from heart disease, though a fatty liver contributed. The autopsy report is proof he could have been saved if city EMS workers had better responded to his 911 calls, his widow said. The man and his wife placed 10 calls to 911 about his stomach pain during the crippling snowstorm. While the couple waited, Pittsburgh paramedics talked about the man with each other, saying that he could wait, that he should just go to sleep and that EMS "ain't no cab service." City leaders suspended three EMS workers and fired another for the response to the 911 calls.

Motorist Alleges Racial Profiling Over Fines
A Pittsburgh woman undergoing treatment for a brain condition said she thinks a police officer unfairly targeted her during a traffic stop that ended with six citations totaling $932 in fines and costs. She claims racial profiling influenced the officer, as he "let two white women in front of me go, but he saw me and it was like, 'There's my target for the day there.'" She has since pleaded not guilty to the citations and requested a court hearing. She was asked to stop after making a left turn, which the officer said was banned at that time of day. She argued a sign that would have indicated it wasn't lit. When she asked why other people who turned left ahead of her weren't stopped, he said, "You can only catch one." The citations included having an air freshener hanging from her rear view mirror and not having valid insurance, even though her car is insured through 2011.

Ex-Inmate Sues, Alleging Gum Disease from Lack of Toothpaste
A Detroit inmate who couldn't afford toothpaste while serving a five-year sentence has filed a lawsuit, citing his constitutional rights. He alleges that he developed gum disease after being denied toothpaste for almost a year and required a tooth extraction in 2006. The jail required inmates to purchase toothpaste unless they could prove they were "indigent." After a year without toothpaste he alleges he could not afford, the prison changed his "indigent status," allowing him to receive toothpaste.

Parent Can Sue Ex for Turning Children Against Him
One parent can sue the other for allegedly poisoning his relationship with their children, an appeals court ruled in the first New Jersey recognition of a cause of action for infliction of emotional distress for such conduct. A lower court had dismissed the claim as barred by the Heart Balm Statute, but the Appellate Division said the statute applies only to claims based on the loss of a marital or conjugal relationship. Though the court saw "no legal impediment in permitting one spouse to bring an action against the other which asserts only emotion distress as the measure of damages," the court also affirmed dismissal under the parens patriae doctrine, which allows courts to intervene when necessary to protect children. "Application of this principle to the case at hand leads up to one inexorable conclusion: Plaintiff's cause of action for intentional infliction of emotional distress must be barred as inimical to and irreconcilable with the best interests of the children involved in this suit," the court found.

Family of Inmate Who Killed Himself Wants Answers
The estate of a Pennsylvania inmate who committed suicide last year has subpoenaed jail records in what is being called a quest for answers. Jail officials, however, called the subpoena from executors of his estate a fishing expedition without legal justification. The pizzeria owner was arrested in 2009 after being charged with burglarizing two competing restaurants. At his preliminary hearing, he complained that since being jailed, he hadn't received his prescription medication - Paxil - which he was taking for anxiety. He was later found dead in his cell in what was ruled a suicide. A correction officer on duty at the time was accused of failing to make his appointed rounds and was fired. His family, which includes his wife and two children, want to know if he ever received his medication and receive more information regarding the fired guard who skipped his rounds.

Justice Department Filed Suit Against Arkansas Disabled
The Justice Department has filed a lawsuit that alleges that Arkansas-run centers for the developmentally disabled are in violation of the law and that patients are needlessly institutionalized. The lawsuit claims the state is in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The federal government has been at odds with the state for years over the centers. An earlier lawsuit is critical of conditions are one center in particular. About 1,100 patients are spread among six centers in Arkansas, and the federal government was them cared for in the "most integrated centers appropriate."

Judge Clears Officer in Holding Cell Death
A federal judge in Pittsburgh has denied a claim that a police officer and several of  his coworkers were liable for the death of a man arrested for public drunkenness in 2006. The man's mother sued the borough, its police department and several of its police officers in 2008 after her son hanged himself in a holding cell in 2006. The suit said the defendants violated her son's civil rights because they should have known he was suicidal. His death occurred five months after he went to the local police station and asked to be checked into a hospital to receive treatment for his suicidal thoughts. The judge found that neither the public drunkenness incident he was arrested for nor the previous visit, which ended with medics transporting him to a hospital, providing officers with enough information to show they acted with "reckless indifference."

Prison Birth Lawsuit Dismissal Heads to Court
The woman who gave birth in a prison cell nearly three years ago will continue to fight a judge's decision to dismiss her lawsuit over the incident. Her attorney filed notice to proceed to the federal appeals court in the wake of a dismissal by U.S. District Court. The woman gave birth in a camera-monitored cell in 2007 after being placed there by a nurse. She claims prison staffers ignored her repeated requests for help over the next few hours, causing her to give birth in the cell. The appeal will be the second attempt by her attorney to renew the lawsuit after a judge threw it out after he missed two briefing deadlines. Her suit alleges "gross negligence and/or deliberate indifference" on the part of the defendants, which include the county prison, its medical care provider, and a nurse. 

Philadelphia Housing Authority to Pay $9.8 Million for Brain Damage
The Philadelphia Housing Authority will pay the family of a girl $9.68 million to settle a lawsuit prompted by brain damage she sustained when mold in her public housing apartment triggered an asthma attack. Now 16, she was 12 when the episode occurred. The family claimed PHA was aware of the condition, continued to pay the landlord full rent and required the family to give 30 days' notice before it could vacate the apartment. It was during those 30 days that the girl had the asthma attack. The property management company also agreed to pay $2 million to settle the suit.

Police Officer Cleared of Excessive Force as Inquiry Continues
A Bethlehem police officer accused of using excessive force during a traffic pursuit has been cleared, but a second officer is being investigated for possibly tampering with evidence in the case. The officer was accused by a witness of using excessive force during the arrest of a man who led police on a 20-minute pursuit through the city. Police say the man was wanted for driving a car that may have been equipped with stolen parts. He ran numerous red lights and traffic signals during the chase. After his car crashed, a newspaper reporter said she saw the officer strike the man four times in the face. The district attorney found that the officer did not use excessive force in arresting the man because he admitted to trying to escape from police. While the officer admitted striking the man three times, he did not complain of pain and had no injuries. The district attorney is still trying to determine how a video of the crash may have been deleted and a second Bethlehem police officer may be involved.

Inmates Accuse Allegheny County Jail Nurse of Sex Assault
A nurse in the Allegheny County Jail has been arrested after being accused of giving female inmates candy and soft drinks for allowing him to fondle or touch them or to bribe them for keeping quiet. He has been charge with institutional sexual assault, aggravated indecent assault and related crimes. Allegheny County police investigated after an inmate reported that she was uncomfortable with the nurse's coming into her cell in the dark and examining her vital signs, then giving her a candy bar. The complaint states several inmates said the nurse asked them to remove their shirts and bras during examination in the infirmary; others said he put his hands down their pants during the exams or exposed himself; one said she had sex with him in her cell.

Federal Judge Slashes Emotional Damages Award by Two-Thirds
Slashing a jury's emotional damages award by two-thirds, a federal judge in Harrisburg has ruled that a plaintiff who has no evidence of "long-lasting effects" from a brief period of emotional trauma is not entitled to any more than $50,000. The ruling reduced the jury's verdict from $150,000 to $50,000 and completely overturned the jury's award of $6,000 in punitive damages. In the suit, the plaintiff claimed he was improperly suspended without any hearing from his post as assistant fire chief when borough officials incorrectly concluded he lacked essential qualifications. His dismissal was covered by a local paper, which caused him anxiety and humiliation. The judge found that although the plaintiff did suffer emotional distress and elevated blood pressure, it was "for at least a few days," and that the jury award was "shocking to the judicial conscience."

Risk Assumption Ruled Incomplete Defense in Cheerleading Mishap
Though a cheerleader assumed some risk when practicing stunts with her squad, her participation in the potentially dangerous activity is not a complete defense by her school district for liability for the serious injuries she suffered, an appeals court has rules. "Schools are required to exercise reasonable care to protect student athletes from unassumed, concealed or unreasonable increased risks," the panel ruled. The court decided an Albany-area school district's motion for summary judgement dismissing the suit filed on the cheerleader's behalf by her mother. According to the ruling, the ninth-grader was injured while practicing a "prep twist" in which she was thrown in the air, made a 360-degree spin and landed in the arms of four cheerleaders. She mistakenly turned to her left while airborne, was not caught properly and hit her head on the gym floor. While the head coach offered testimony that cheerleaders were being properly supervised, the court said a triable issue of fact had been raised through the testimony of the family's expert, who contended that too many cheerleaders were practicing when she was hurt and that two groups were performing the "prep twist" too close together for safety purposes.

Pope and Vatican Officials Targeted in New Suit by U.S. Sex Abuse Victims
A federal suit alleges that Pope Benedict XVI and senior Vatican officials covered up allegations that a Wisconsin priest molested at least 200 children at a school for the deaf in suburban Milwaukee. The lawsuit contends that a reverend who taught at the school from 1950 to 1974 sexually abused about 200 boys. The alleged abuse included incidents in the confessional, where he allegedly solicited sex from the students. He has since died. The lead plaintiff, identified in court papers as John Doe of Illinois, contends that he was abused over a number of years, that he wrote two letters to Vatican officials in 1995 reporting the abuse, and that nothing was done. His attorney is seeking injunctive relief, hoping to force the Vatican to open what he claims are confidential files that contain details of priest abuse allegations and monetary settlements. He is also seeking unspecified monetary damages and a jury trial.

Federal Jury Finds City Police Not Liable in Man's Civil Rights Trial
A federal jury in Philadelphia found an Easton police sergeant used reasonable force while arresting a man in 2004. He had sued the city, the sergeant and three officers, accusing the department of excessive force for the sergeant's use of a collapsible baton during his arrest. A federal judge later dismissed the three officers from the suit. A jury heard four days of testimony and deliberated for just over an hour before finding the city not liable for any damages. The city never denied the officer struck the man with a baton three times after he resisted arrest. Police arrested the 43-year-old man after he drove around a barricade. According to his lawsuit filed in 2006 while an inmate at the state prison in Luzerne County, he alleged he ran from police because he feared for his safety. He accused the sergeant of helping officers fabricate charges against him because of another excessive force lawsuit settled only five months earlier. The city settled with him for $100,000 in 2004 after he accused the sergeant of letting his police dog bite him.

Bethlehem Police Officer Being Investigated for Excessive Force Complaint
Northampton County's district attorney is investigating a complaint of excessive force filed against a city police officer. The victim is accused of driving a care built with parts stolen in a 2001 heist, led police on two chases, according to police records. During the second chase, he struck a patrol car and eventually crashed into a street sign. A private citizen who witnessed the arrest filed the complaint. She claims she saw the officer open the driver's side door, get in and start punching the suspect in the face four or five times.

Pittsburgh Councilman Demands City Release Report On Student's Beating
A Pittsburgh councilman says the city's investigation into a high school student's claims that three police officers beat him earlier this year is complete, and the mayor is needlessly withholding its findings from the police chief. The student, an 18-year-old senior at the city's Creative and Performing Arts High School, has said that plainclothes officers attacked him without cause as he walked. His allegations prompted investigations by the FBI and the Department of Justice, and triggered outrage from some community groups, which have called for the officers' firings. In announcing the officers' suspensions, the mayor said the Office of Municipal Investigations had agreed to wrap up its investigation by the end of February. The councilman said the chief of police needs the report to determine whether further discipline or changes to bureau policy are warranted. He said he made the demand after his constituents starting asking about the status of the city's investigation. he said the chief's knowledge of the report would help begin a community conversation about the case, which stirred racial tensions and raised questions about certain policing strategies.

Rape Suspect Requested Jail Transfer Before Alleged Beating
The public defender for an accused rapist asked that he be transferred from a Philadelphia jail because the guards there were targeting him "for almost daily harassment and physical abuse." Two months later, the inmate got into a fight with correctional officers, a confrontation his family said left him in a coma for days with head injuries. The FBI has launched an investigation and requested records related to the incident involving the inmate, a sergeant and four officers. The inmate got into the fight when he refused to leave his cell. A handmade weapon was subsequently found inside his cell. Jail officials claims they were never aware of any complaints the inmate made to the courts about harassment and abuse, but added, "We don't do that. That's not something that happens." The inmate had at least one other documented confrontation with a jail guard. Last year, he was charged with aggravated harassment and simply assault for spitting on an officer he encountered while being escorted to the medical unit. The officer "took the defendant down using an open hand to the facial area to prevent the defendant from spitting again," the records said. The inmate has been jailed since last year, when he was charged with the rape of an 11-year-old girl in Kensington.

Tanning as Addictive as Drinking
Some people's indoor tanning habits qualify as an addiction similar to being hooked on alcohol or other addictive substances, a new study suggests. The results show that about one-third of college students who frequent indoor tanning facilities could be considered addicted based on criteria used to diagnose substance abuse addiction. And these tan-o-holics also reported a greater use of alcohol and marijuana, and had more symptoms of anxiety than those who weren't considered hooked. The findings back up previous indications that sunbathing, both artificial and the real thing, can be habit-forming. A small 2006 study found that those who persistently visit tanning beds can experience withdrawal symptoms if they don't get their UV-high. And a 2008 study revealed that about 18 percent of outdoor tanners qualified as addicted. The results of the current study, which is based on a larger sample and possibly more robust research methods, also suggest that reducing the risky behavior might take more than just public awareness campaigns. For some, it might require interventions more along the lines of what's used as treatment for substance abusers.

Washington Deputy Sues Over Whopper with Spit
A sheriff's deputy in Washington state has sued Burger King and a restaurant franchise owner over a Whopper he says a worker spit on. He alleges he pulled into the Burger King early one morning in 2009 to get a m eal. In his federal suit filed in Portland, he contends that he got an "uneasy feeling" about the two workers at the restaurant. When he checked his hamburger, the suit says, it had a big gob of spit. The owner of the Burger King franchise says both workers were fired and referred to their actions are "despicable."

Two Philadelphia Men Allege Off-Duty Officer Assaulted Them
The City of Philadelphia, a police officer, the police commissioner and other officials have been sued by two men who say they were assaulted by an "apparently" intoxicated off-duty officer and then unjustly arrested. The suit contends the officer was intoxicated when he encountered them. He is accused of kicking in a taillight, prompting a scuffle. He fired his gun, striking one man in the arm. The lawsuit says responding officers tried to cover up the incident.

Wayne County Prison Guards Charged
Two Wayne County corrections officers have been arrested on charges they repeatedly assaulted and ridiculed a prison inmate over a three-week period. Following a criminal investigation of incidents in December and January, state police charged the two with simple assault, harassment and engaging in official oppression in alleged assaults on an inmate. The alleged abuse came to light because a county corrections officer witnessed the abuse and reported it to the warden. The district attorney's office launched an investigation and handed over its findings to the state police. A witness claims he saw a guard striking the inmate "with an open hand across the face." In another incident, an officer was holding a cup of pudding for the inmate when he hit him several times in the abdominal region before he gave him the pudding. The other officer also hit the inmate with a closed fist and taunted the inmate, saying "How's the puddin', puddin'?" The inmate was recently charged with spitting on two county prison staff members. The inmate's attorney intends to file a federal lawsuit against Wayne County officials in charge of prison oversight. He said it will seek compensatory and punitive damages for his client in excess of $75,000. 

Police Investigate Possible Inmate Abuse in Wayne County Prison
State police are investigating allegations that three Wayne County corrections officers repeatedly assaulted a prison inmate last year. The officers have been suspended without pay pending the outcome of the investigation. The inmate's attorney claims the correctional officers hit and whipped his client with hand-held radios and punched him the head, arms, chest and legs while he was tied to a restraint chair. He claims one officer forcibly grabbed his testicles and that he was also pepper sprayed. Before the alleged abuse began, state police had charged that the inmate spit on two county prison staff members and felony aggravated harassment by a prisoner charges were filed. The inmate is seeking compensatory and punitive damages for his client in excess of $75,000. 

Pennsylvania Jury Awards Nearly $89 Million in Plane Crash Case
A Philadelphia jury has awarded nearly $89 million in damages in a personal injury and products liability case involving a 1999 plane crash in which four people died and another suffered serious injuries. The jury awarded $24.7 million in compensatory damages and found that the defendant's conduct was malicious, wanton, willful or oppressive, allowing for a subsequent punitive damages phase of the trial. After the judge gave the jury a stipulated net worth of the defendant of about $640 million, the jury went back to deliberations and returned with an award of $64 million in punitive damages. The combined award of $88.7 million is the largest out of Philadelphia Common Please Court in the last five years. The plaintiffs argued that the carburetor on the engine died at takeoff, causing power loss that resulted in an unsuccessful emergency landing. The pilot crashed not far from the airport where he was trying to return for the landing. The defense argued there was nothing wrong with the carburetor and that it was pilot error that caused the crash as the pilot overloaded the plane, causing it to stall.

Police: Child Assaulted at Day Care
An employee of a Manheim day care center "slammed" a three-year-old's head against a wall, police were told, and an officer filed charges against the woman. The day care worker was charged with simple assault and endangering the welfare of children for the incident. The child was treated at an area hospital for a contusion to the front of her head. The injury was categorized by doctors as a "closed head wound" and did not require stitches. The child was treated and released. A co-worker who witnessed the incident told police that the child was in a "time out" and kept turning her head to look at other children in the class. At one point, the day care employee went up behind the child and slammed the front of her head into the wall. A "goose egg" immediately appeared on the girl's head.

In Most Holiday Injuries, Everyday Causes
Children's injuries spike on holidays like Halloween and the Fourth of July, but pumpkin carving and fireworks are among the least likely culprits, a new study finds. Most of the injuries are caused by everyday activities, like riding bikes or just playing. Only 2.9 percent of injuries that occurred during the five-day period around July Fourth were linked to fireworks, for example, while bicycling accounted for 8.6 percent, the study found. In general, playing outdoors or falling indoors were more likely to cause injury than holiday-specific activities. The study analyzed some 5.7 million holiday-related injuries among children 19 and younger treated at emergency rooms from 1997 through 2006. Children younger than 5 were injured most often on Easter, July Fourth, Thanksgiving and Christmas; for children 10 to 14, the riskiest holidays were New Year's, Memorial Day, Labor Day and Halloween; and for those 15 to 19, New Year's led the list.

Judge Dismisses Prison Birth Lawsuit
A lawsuit filed on behalf of a former Lackawanna County Prison inmate who gave birth to her daughter in a prison cell has been dismissed by a judge after the inmate's attorney failed to file timely briefings in federal court. After missing several deadlines, the attorney had been granted a two-week extension to submit necessary court filings, but missing that deadline as well. The suit alleged "gross negligence and/or deliberate indifference" on the part of the defendants, the county prison, its medical care provider and a nurse. The judge's dismissal and final judgment in favor of the defendants abruptly ended an almost three-year-old lawsuit filed two weeks after the inmate gave birth in a prison cell in 2007. After the complained of pain that she believed might by the onset of labor, a prison nurse examined her and then had her placed in a camera-monitored cell. The inmate said prison staffers ignored her repeated requests for help over the next three hours, causing her to give birth in the cell. She was taken to the hospital only after she picked the newborn off the prison floor and held her up toward the camera. "The baby has some medical issues," the inmate's attorney said in 2008. "We believe those issues were caused because of the circumstances surrounding the birth." 

City Says Officers Justified in Fatal Shooting of Mentally Ill Scranton Woman
City police were justified in shooting a mentally ill Scranton woman who was wielding a knife and approaching an officer last year, a lawyer for the city claimed in court papers asking a judge to dismiss a lawsuit filed by the woman's family. The lawsuit should be dismissed because the fatal shooting was caused by the woman's "own conduct," and he described the actions of the officers as "reasonable" to the "effectuation of a lawful arrest." The woman's family is suing the city, the police department and a dozen other people and agencies involved in what they call her "unlawful and unjustified" death. The woman, a paranoid schizophrenic who police say was carrying a large knife, was shot five times when she ignored orders to drop the knife. The family's lawyer has said she had never been violent, though she had been delusional when she stopped taking prescriptions to control her illness. The family seeks damages in excess of $75,000 and claims the woman was deprived of medical care and was mentally, psychologically and verbally abused by the four officers. Besides the police, the family is suing the ambulance service and EMTs that responded to the scene before the shooting; agencies that treated her; the state police; and the state of Pennsylvania.

Erie County 911 Center Review Finds 'Major Deficiencies'
There are "major deficiencies' in the current operations of Erie County's 911 center that could threaten the safety of emergency responders and residents, a review of the center has found. The problems outlined by a private consulting firm included repeated radio failures that cause response delays; a short training period for dispatchers; and a lack of experienced employees who can train new hires. The new center opened in 2008 before new technology was fully installed and tested and before employees were appropriately trained.

Dogged by Lawsuit After Barring Service Animal from Office, Lawyer Settles for $50,000
A Colorado lawyer who refused to allow a veterinarian and her service dog to enter his law office for a scheduled deposition in a civil action has agreed to pay $50,000 to settle a federal discrimination suit. The Justice Department's Civil Rights Division filed a complaint last year against the attorney, alleging that he violated the Americans with Disabilities Act when he refused to allow the woman and her dog - and the woman's lawyer - to enter his office in 2006. He demanded the veterinarian prove her dog was a certified service dog. According to the suit, he was not satisfied after reviewing a letter documenting her need for the dog. The attorney feared the dog would soil recently installed carpeting.

District Attorney Claims Inmate Lied About Alleged Assault
A former Beaver County Jail inmate lied about guards assaulting him and no charges will be filed after a monthlong investigation, the Beaver County district attorney said. The inmate, who was convicted of involuntary manslaughter last year for shooting and killing a man in 2009, claimed he was assaulted by two guards while he was in the jail's restricted housing unit, where inmates who were found guilty of violating jail rules are held. The inmate's lawyer reported that his client looked as if he had been in a fight and had "substantial bruising" to one side of his face and a swollen eye. He also had redness and scratches on his arm, shoulder and chest. However, the district attorney said surveillance video of the incident showed that five guards and a supervisory followed proper procedures when confronting the inmate. He also said the inmate was treated by a nurse for scratches that night "and he didn't complain about any other medical concerns." Another inmate initially confirmed the abuse allegations but retracted his statements when questioned by detectives. Also, a jail guard overheard a conversation between the inmate and another in which the two concocted a story and the other inmate encouraged him to claim fake injuries.

Pennsylvania Labor & Industry Closes Gas Station Where Man Died Pumping Gas
The Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry has shut down a gas station where a man died while pumping gasoline until numerous violations are corrected. In a letter sent to the owner of the BP Service Station, officials noted "serious deficiencies with tank and dispensing equipment" which "present an imminent danger to the public." The man died from inhaling superheated gases resulting from a flash fire, which was sparked by an accidental discharge of static electricity. Alleged violations listed in the report include not having an attendant on duty while the station is open to the public, electric equipment that was not in compliance, improper seals on dispensers, no fire extinguishers at the doorway to the station or the canopy's support column and failure to post warning signs.

Paramedics to be Punished in Death of Man
Pittsburgh officials will punish at least two paramedics for their response to a man who died while waiting 30 hours for an ambulance. The city medics received notices they will be disciplined, but the notices did not include details of the punishment or say when it will begin. The man, whose cause of death is pending toxicology tests, died after he and his wife made 10 calls to 911 during a snowstorm. A state Health Department review of the episode attributed his death to several system failures, but no one from the city's Emergency Medical Services department violated state laws. Some workers in the Emergency Operations Center knew he and his wife made several calls, but never alerted the ambulance crews. The department blamed paramedics for not walking the rest of the way when their vehicle got stuck in snow about a quarter-mile from the man's home. One team of medics did try to walk, and a dispatcher told them to turn around.

Former Judges' Wives Want Out of Kids-for-Cash Suits
The wives of two former Luzerne County judges accused of accepting $2.8 million in kickbacks for jailing juveniles in two for-profit juvenile detention centers and the former co-owners of the centers filed motions arguing they should not be liable for damages in civil rights actions filed by juveniles who claim they were wrongfully imprisoned in the alleged kids-for-cash scandal. Both judges are currently awaiting criminal trial for conspiracy, fraud, extortion and other charges. The former judges, their wives and other individuals and entities implicated in the scandal are being sued by more than 400 former defendants in the county's Juvenile Court who claim they were denied the right to counsel and jailed on minor offenses. The state Supreme Court has cleared the records of thousands of juveniles sentenced. Federal prosecutors allege some of the kickbacks to the former judges were funneled through a Florida company owned by the wives. The payments were misrepresented on the company's books as lease payments for a condominium and a related boat slip. The wives argue that briefs in the criminal and civil complaints maintain that the Florida company, while owned by the wives, was controlled by their husbands.

Checks Begin Arriving in Prison Strip Search Settlement
Checks have begun arriving in the mailboxes of the approximately 2,500 people who were claimants in the federal class action lawsuit over strip searches of nonviolent offenders detained at Dauphin County Prison. The lawsuit originated following the arrest of more than 125 people on charges roughly equivalent to a traffic ticket following a 2007 Labor Day party in Harrisburg. Those who were out-of-state residents were handcuffed, shackled and taken to city police headquarters, where they were detained for several hours before being released on bail. More than 50 could not post bail and were transferred to the Dauphin County Prison, where they were strip searched as they were processed. While those cases prompted the lawsuit, the settlement actually covers anyone strip searched at the prison while being held on minor charges from 2005 to 2008. Of approximately 9,000 individuals searched under those circumstances, around 2,500 submitted valid claims for a share of the $2.165 million settlement.

Justice Department Investigating Police Beating of Student
The Department of Justice has confirmed that its civil rights division has opened an investigation into the January arrest and beating of a Pittsburgh high school student. The announcement means that the criminal probe will likely by focused in Washington, although a western Pennsylvania grand jury issued a subpoena for city records regarding the case. The federal grand jury in Pittsburgh subpoenaed interview records for seven people, including five city policy officers, as part of a look into complaints of police brutality in the case. Under scrutiny in the case are three Pittsburgh police officers, who were riding in a car assigned to aggressively rid problem areas of drugs and guns. The honors student at Pittsburgh's Creative and Performing Arts High School said the undercover officers attacked him without cause as he walked in his neighborhood. He was charged with aggravated assault, resisting arrest and defiant trespass, but a judge has since dismissed the case. Police have said that he was in a darkened space between two houses and appeared to have a heavy object in his coat that they thought was a gun, then attempted to flee and fought with officers. The officers admitted that the object turned out to be a bottle of Mountain Dew.

Family of Mentally Ill Woman Fatally Shot by Police Sues City and State
The family of a mentally ill Scranton woman who was shot to death by police last year has sued the city, the police department and a dozen other people and agencies involved in what they call her "unlawful and unjustified" death. The suit had been anticipated since an attorney for the family said he was preparing claims against the city and the four police officers involved in the shooting, which occurred the night she approached the officers in her apartment with an 8-inch kitchen knife during a mental health call. The scope of the complaint, however, is much broader and includes the ambulance service and EMTs that responded to the scene before the shooting; agencies that treated her; the state police; and the state of Pennsylvania. The family seeks damages in excess of $75,000 and claims the woman was deprived of medical care and was mentally, psychologically and verbally abused by the four officers. The family also alleges that city, police department, state police and Commonwealth failed to properly train their officers or create adequate procedures for police to follow when responding to a person with mental illness. They claim the EMTs did not properly evaluate her mental health, and that the treatment agencies failed to create adequate procedures for evaluating mentally ill patients to determine if they pose a danger to themselves or others - the legal grounds for involuntarily committing someone to in-patient treatment.

Agreement Ends Civil Trial On Cessna Crash
The civil trial arising from the 2005 crash of a Cessna airplane has come and gone as quietly as the full-scale Cessna - a trial exhibit - that drew gawkers to City Hall. Two weeks after the jury trial began, the suit against Cessna and a Pennsylvania aircraft-modifying company ended in a sealed, confidential settlement. The plaintiffs were family members of the pilot and his longtime friend, who were both killed when their plane crashed. The 2007 lawsuit was the result of a 2005 crash as the two friends prepared to fly home to San Francisco from an Idaho hunting trip. The single-enginge plane lifted off, but had trouble gaining altitude before it veered, crashed and burned. The families' lawsuit contended that the pilot lost control of the Cessna when the adjustable pilot's seat slid back unexpectedly and made it impossible for him to reach foot and hand controls that operate the plane. The defense questioned his piloting skills and argued that the plane was overloaded with an elk carcass, two rifles and other gear.

Daycare Workers Charged with Drugging Tots
Two former Ohio daycare workers have been charged with a misdemeanor for slipping an over-the-counter dietary supplement into candy and giving it to their charges to help them sleep at nap time. The two have been charged with three counts each of child endangering and three counts each of misrepresentation by childcare provider. The women could be sentenced to as many as 18 months in jail if convicted. Parents told investigators that their children often seemed groggy after leaving the daycare. Both women were fired from the daycare after a co-worker notified police that they gave the children melatonin in candy. Melatonin is a naturally occurring hormone that helps control sleeping and waking cycles. Possible side effects of the supplement form include dizziness, abdominal discomfort, headaches, confusion, sleepwalking and nightmares. Long-term effects are not known, and the hormone is not safe for anyone younger than 20.

Sick Ships: Cruises See Rise in Norovirus Cases
More than 400 passengers were sickened by the novovirus on a Celebrity Cruise lines ship earlier this year. That outbreak of gastrointestinal illness is one of eight to hit cruise ships in 2010 - with four in just one week, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC has officially tied many of the outbreaks to the novovirus. Compared to 2009, when there were just 15 total outbreaks on cruise liners, the early 2010 figures may portend a very bad year. Experts aren't yet sure what to make of the rash of outbreaks, but they're not ready to raise the alarm and call it an epidemic. The only way to know whether rash of outbreaks is just a coincidence or a sign that something might have changed with the virus is to wait and see how the next few months go. If the outbreaks continue to occur at the same rate as they have in the past few months, then there might be something to worry about. Data from the CDC show the number of novovirus outbreaks on cruise liners had been dropping over the last several years - until now. In 2008, there were 14 outbreaks; in 2007, 17; and in 2006, 32. So far, 2010 is outpacing the number of novovirus clusters recorded in 2006.

Conduct Board Admits Not Investigating Complaints Against Pennsylvania Judge
Despite receiving four complaints since 2004 against a former Luzerne County judge who is facing federal racketeering charges, the Pennsylvania Judicial Conduct Board never investigated any of them, it has admitted in writing. In a 12-page response to written questions from the Interbranch Commission on Juvenile Justice, the JCB's chief of counsel wrote that the board did not conduct a preliminary investigation, conduct interviews or review any documents related to the complaints. According to the board, it received complaints against the judge in 2004, 2006 and two in 2008. In a startling revelation, the board also revealed that not only did it fail to refer a detailed 2006 complaint to the U.S. Attorney's Office, it didn't turn it over to investigators until nearly 18 months later.

Stomach Bug Strikes Again On Cruise Ship
Passengers have again fallen ill with a stomach bug aboard a cruise ship hit by a virus on its previous trip from South Carolina. Celebrity Cruise said that 55 of the nearly 1,900 passengers on board the Celebrity Mercury were sick. More than 400 passengers and crew fell ill during a cruise that ended in Charleston. The vessel sailed again after a one-day delay to allow a crew to sanitize the ship. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said tests showed that the outbreak was caused by norovirus, which can spread quickly in closed quarters. Symptoms include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and stomach cramps. The virus may have come on board the ship with passengers, crew members or supplies. It's almost impossible to pinpoint a specific cause in a closed place like a cruise liner. Because the virus lingers in those who have been ill even after they feel better, even extensive cleaning can make it hard to prevent outbreaks. The CDC Vessel Sanitation Web site also listed three other ships scheduled to return from cruises with reports of intestinal illnesses, one confirmed as norovirus.

Judge Dismisses Charges Against Beaten Student
A judge relied on the testimony of a witness over the police version of events in dismissing charges against a high school student charged with assault and resisting arrest. The student has said he was beaten by officer, who did not identify themselves before attacking him. Police say he was injured when he fought them as they tried to arrest him. A crucial point during the hearing was the conflicting testimony of an officer and a witness. The police reported that they asked the witness whether she knew the student and she said she did not. She testified that she didn't say that, and in fact she knows him quite well. The judge found the woman's testimony credible and dismissed the case against the student, who was charged with escape and loitering in addition to aggravated assault and resisting arrest. An officer claims he was working a plainclothes detail with two other officers when he noticed a man standing very near a house. The officers then saw the man walking out from alongside the house towards the sidewalk. When the man saw the officers, he put his head down and his hand in his front right pocket. One officer identified himself and asked the student where he was going. When he asked him to stop, the officer said the student started to run. He also noted that his jacket was sagging, indicating a weapon. After officers caught the man, he refused to stay on the ground. Both officers admitted to striking him to restrain him. The weight in his pocket turned out to be a soda can.

Man Allegedly Beaten by Pittsburgh Firefighters Won't Press Charges
A Pittsburgh man no longer wants to prosecute the firefighter he accused of assault. The man told a judge hearing the case that he would be satisfied with a proposal by the defense attorney: Drop the charges against the firefighter and his brother, and they will write letters of apology, take alcohol awareness classes and pay for damage to his home. The judge rejected the proposal and postponed the brothers' hearing on charges of assaulting the man after he yelled at one of them for urinating on his front lawn. He told police he saw the firefighter urinating in his year in the early morning. He confronted both brothers and about five men entered his home. One grabbed him by the throat and slammed him into a set of steps. The firefighter was suspended for a month.

Civil Rights Lawsuit Against Pittsburgh Police Officer Tossed
A federal judge has tossed out a civil rights lawsuit against a Pittsburgh police officer and the city. The judge ruled that the plaintiff failed to provide any evidence that the officer stopped and arrested him because he is black rather than because his license didn't match his car. The officer is one of three under investigation for the beating a black honors student during an arrest outside his home. The plaintiff had recently bought the car and was using the plate from another car, but he couldn't provide proof of ownership when the officer pulled him over in 2006. Once the man produced proof of ownership, the charges against him were dropped. The judge also ruled that the man failed to provide any evidence of his claims of false arrest and malicious prosecution, and the judge dismissed those claims with prejudice.

Man Shot and Killed by Police Sues City, Officer and Hospital
The family of a man shot and killed by a city police officer outside his home in 2007 has sued the city, the officer and Reading Hospital, claiming the man posed no threat and police should not have used deadly force. Police at the time, however, said the victim was threatening an officer with a knife. Police had said they and a mental-health caseworker were called to the residence where the man walked onto the sidewalk toward police with a knife and the officer shot him. The suit alleges that the man was depressed and suicidal in part because he had been drinking, and his family had called Reading Hospital for help. The hospital recommended calling a mental health group. Though the man's wife did, the firm called the caseworker, who asked for a police escort. The suit claims the man was in the basement of the home when police got there and became disturbed when he saw them. It also alleges the caseworker ran from the house rather than trying to help. The suit acknowledges that the man walked out of the house, but claims he never threatened anyone with a knife. The suit seeks more than $50,000 in damages.

Judge Claims Immunity in Latest Kids-for-Cash Suit
A former Luzerne County judge has claimed he has "judicial and legislative immunity" from the latest in a series of lawsuits filed in the aftermath of the Luzerne County kids-for-cash scandal. The judge, acting as his own attorney, asked to be dismissed from a lawsuit in which a former juvenile defendant claimed he was sentenced to six months at a private detention facility based solely on the number of birds perched on the ledge outside the courtroom. The judge argues he was acting "legislatively" when he forced the closure of the county-owned detention center in 2003 and asked county commissioners to fund an exclusive agreement with the private facility. He and the former judge who allegedly issued the bird-brained sentence have already been hit with civil rights claims from hundreds of others juveniles and a 48-count racketeering indictment for allegedly pocketing $2.8 million in kickbacks from the backers of the private facilities.

Appeals Court Reverses Homicide Conviction for Leaving Overdose Victim On Lawn
An upstate New York appeals panel has thrown out the negligent homicide conviction of a man who, after a woman overdosed on heroin and passed out in his car, dropped her off on the lawn of a trailer park. The woman, who was unconscious but breathing when pulled from the car, died in a hospital after she was discovered two hours later. The panel found that the woman was no worse off on the lawn than in the man's car, and that the man did not "cause the death of the victim." At his 2008 trial, prosecutors argued that he helped the victim obtain heroin, which she then used in his car. When she passed out, he dropped her off on the lawn of what he believed to be her home. He was sentenced to three years in prison for criminally negligent homicide; however, the panel found that he did not cause he death, and that his actions did not make medical assistance less likely.

Pittsburgh EMS Workers May be Punished
Pittsburgh Emergency Medical Service workers could face discipline for a series of errors that led to a man's death during the recent snowstorms. The city has asked the Allegheny County Health Department to investigate what happened during the snowstorm while a man waited nearly 30 hours for an ambulance to respond and died at his home. His girlfriend had called for help at least 11 times. Widespread miscommunication between the county Emergency Operations Center and city EMS staff led to his death. This is the second high-profile incident within a year's time involving miscommunication by the county's 911 center. Last year, a part-time call-taker failed to tell Pittsburgh police officers about guns in the house of a domestic disturbance, and three officers died in an ensuing shootout.

Condo Owner Loses Lawsuit Over Secondhand Smoke from Neighbor
A jury has ruled against a Massachusetts woman who claimed in a lawsuit against her real estate broker that she was forced to move out of her condominium because of secondhand cigarette smoke coming from a neighbor. She alleged that her broker repeatedly assured her that the prior owner of the Boston condo she was buying in 2006 was a smoker and the smell would go away. The woman, who has asthma, later discovered the smoke was coming from a neighbor. A jury deliberated less than an hour before siding with the broker.

Suit Filed On Behalf of Allegheny County Jail Inmate
The Pennsylvania Institutional Law Project field a federal civil rights lawsuit on behalf of a former Allegheny County Jail inmate who claims a guard attacked him. He claims he was being transferred in 2008 when he asked a guard about some missing property. The guard slammed him into a wall and then to the floor, causing an open wound on his head. Another guard witnessed the attack and helped the first guard carry the man to a cell instead of the jail's medical unit. The lawsuit against the two guards and the jail warden claims the administration has failed to discipline guards who attack inmates. He is seeking compensatory and punitive damages.

Man Dies After 10 Calls to 911 Over Two Days
In his first call to 911, a Pittsburgh man sounded calm, explaining to dispatchers that his "entire stomach was in pain." By the time his longtime girlfriend made a 10th call nearly 30 hours later, she was frantic, because he was not breathing and was cold to the touch. Snow-covered roads, poor communication and a 911 call center deluged with more than double the average number of calls during crippling snowstorms combined to cause the man's long wait, officials said. Though ambulances were dispatched three times in one day, the trucks couldn't get there because of the snow. Paramedics twice asked the man to walk to an intersection, even after he told them that he could not walk because he was in too much pain. Emergency vehicles were within blocks of his home three times - once so close, he could see the lights - but did not make contact. Complicating matters, communication problems meant that each call was seen as an individual request for help. Information gathered on previous calls was not passed down during the next request.

$10.5 Million Accord Reached in Teen's Death at Juvenile Detention Center
A $10.5 million settlement was reached in a wrongful death suit brought by the mother of a Philadelphia teenager who died in a Tennessee juvenile detention center after an incident in which two guards allegedly used an improper choke hold to restrain him. According to court papers, his death in 2007 at age 17 was the second at the facility, which has come under scrutiny by officials in several states for a series of incidents involving the alleged use of harsh treatment. By the time the teenager was sent to the facility, both New York and Tennessee had stopped using the facility. The incident that led to his death involved employees who, according to the plaintiffs, never should have been hired, were never properly trained, and should have been disciplined or fired for incidents before the teen arrived.

Racial Bias Alleged at the Atlantic City Bus Depot
Are minority-owned buses bound for Atlantic City casinos the victims of racial profiling by New Jersey bus inspectors? Six current and former bus companies and owners - five in Philadelphia and one in Norristown - claim to have been in an ongoing civil rights lawsuit filed in 2005 against the New Jersey Department of Transportation. A judge is expected to decide whether the complex, eight-count case will go to trial. The lead plaintiff in the case claims that bus inspectors cited only African-American owned buses on weekend nights after they pulled into docks at the Showboat Hotel and Casino. The buses were stopped and inspected - not cursory inspections with order to fix a minor problem, but "Level One" inspections, the highest level, taking up to four hours for a one-hour inspection. When a driver couldn't immediately adjust a brake or repair a minor problem, buses were then impounded, all "without just cause," the lawsuit said. Afterward, the bus owners were forced to pay "unwarranted, illegal and substantial amounts for unnecessary towing, repairs, substitute bus services, storage fees, fines and court fees," according to the lawsuit.

City Police Cleared of Wrongful Death Lawsuit
The children of two people killed during a police chase will receive no money from the city of Pittsburgh and likely will never collect damages from the fleeing driver because he remains in prison. A jury ruled that city police officers who initiated the chase in 2006 were negligent, but they also found that the driver's decision to run a red light - not the officers' decision to pursue the vehicle over broken taillights - caused the deaths of two people. As a result, their children will recover no money from the city in their wrongful death suit. The jurors ordered the fleeing driver to pay total damages of $610,000 for the dead man and $1.7 million for the dead woman, but the children will likely never see any of that money. During the trial, attorneys for the families argued that city officers failed to follow proper pursuit procedure. Though a gun and drugs were found in the fleeing car after the crash, officers had no indication he was guilty of anything other than a traffic violation when they initiated the chase. Further, the officers allegedly did not take into consideration other parts of the city's policy, like the time of day, pedestrian and vehicle traffic and speeds being traveled. Under law, the city would only have been responsible for a total payout for both families of just $500,000.

When Vets Make Mistakes, Pets Pay the Price
When mistakes occur in human patients, they're classified as medical errors worthy of investigation, public reporting and professional discipline, including dismissal. Wrong-site surgery and medication overdoses, for instance, are among the so-called "never events" regarded as inexcusable in a human health care setting. However, when errors occur in animals, owners and advocates say they are ignored, minimized or outright denied by a system that devalues the bond between pets and their owners and fails to hold veterinarians sufficiently accountable when they make mistakes. Owners of injured animals say they're stunned to discover state veterinary boards that dismiss up to 80 percent of the complaints filed against their members, and a legal system that regards pets as mere property, with no way to recover damages for emotional loss. Laws vary, but in most state courts animals are worth their market value, plus perhaps any economic value they generate for their owners. That could be a considerable amount of money for a high-value show dog or a racehorse, for instance, but for most household pets, it's not.

Child Pornography users Targeted by Victims Seeking Restitution
Victims of past sexual abuse are taking aim at anyone who would view images of their abuse and asking for restitution in hundreds of criminal cases around the country. Such victims are forcing federal judges nationwide to grapple with tough legal questions: Is someone who possesses an abusive image responsible for the harm suffered by a particular child? And how much should that person have to pay? The issue of criminal restitution in child pornography possession cases emerged last year in Connecticut when a federal judge said he would order a man convicted of possessing and distributing child pornography to pay about $200,000 to a victim. The judge said it was the first criminal case in which someone convicted of possessing illegal images - but not creating them - would be required to pay restitution. The case settled for $130,000 before the judge issues his final order. Since then, requests for restitution have picked up as more victims are identified.

Pocono Police Accused of Racial Bias in Arrests of Men After False Gang Rape Allegations
Law enforcement officials in the Poconos are being accused in a lawsuit of conspiring to wrongfully prosecute two men and three juveniles for a violent gang rape in 2008. A federal civil lawsuit demands unspecified damages from a list of 16 defendants, including the district attorney's office and the police department. The plaintiffs, the five young men arrested, were vindicated last year when their teenage female accusers admitted to lying and the charges were dropped. The plaintiffs, who are all adults now, said the arrests were unfounded and caused life-altering harm. All but one are either black or Hispanic, and the lawsuit claims their prosecution was racially motivated. County authorities wanted to look tough on crime, and the detectives filed false reports saying the young men were street gang members, according to the lawsuit. Other accusations in the lawsuit include unlawful arrest and false imprisonment, conspiracy to violate civil rights and malicious prosecution.

Court Rules Pennsylvania Doesn't Have to Pay Legal Fees for Defendants in Man's Wrongful Conviction Suit
A court held up the Pennsylvania's governor's refusal to pay defense fees for two former Pennsylvania State Police employees sued for the wrongful conviction of a Harrisburg resident. The man was released from prison in 2002 after serving 28 years of a life sentence in the murder and robbery of a 13-year-old boy. His conviction was thrown out after copies of original lab notes that contradicted key testimony at the man's trial was revealed. In a subsequent civil suit the man filed, governor stated it would not cover legal fees for the chemist and fingerprint examiner, claiming they "acted maliciously, outside the scope of their employment and in bad faith." The man ultimately settled with the state for $1.2 million, but the two State Police employees are seeking reimbursement for legal fees, totaling nearly $300,000. The court found that the governor could withhold defense fees, and its decision to do so was "supported by the substantial evidence."

Man Sues for Extra Time on LSAT, Claiming ADHD
A prospective law school student who alleges he has a disability filed a suit in Texas, seeking a court order to force the Law School Admissions Council to provide him with accommodations under the Americans with Disabilities Act for the Law School Admissions Test. The student alleges he was scheduled to take the LSAT in 2009, but he didn't take the test because the LSAC "has illegally refused and is illegally refusing to accommodate my learning disability by refusing to provide him additional time to take the LSAT." He alleges he was diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and his disability impairs his reading ability and his ability to concentrate "to the point that his competency level is below that expected in comparison to most people." He claims the LSAC should provide him with double time to take the test and his test results should not be flagged as "not taken under standard conditions." He alleges that he asked the LSAC for accommodations when he was first scheduled to take the exam in 2009, but the LSAC notified him that it had denied his request for accommodation on the ground he had "not demonstrated that he was 'substantially limited in a major life activity.'"

Congressmen Chide College Conferences' Concussion Policies
A member of the House Judiciary Committee criticized the largest conferences in college athletics for neglecting to adopt policies on handling athletes' concussions that go beyond what the NCAA requires. During a committee hearing on head injuries in college and youth football, a Democrat from Tennessee chided leagues for not putting tougher rules in place. The hearing is the committee's third; the first two focused on head injuries in the NFL. Much of the hearing focused on the safety of youth sports, and a doctor from the Brain Injury Research Institute testified that anyone younger than 18 should be held out for three months after a concussion to lower the risk of irreversible brain damage.

Judge Requests Immunity in Latest Juvenile Civil Suit
Using a legal argument that won him partial immunity in civil-rights suits filed by hundreds of juveniles who appeared in his courtroom, one of the two kids-for-cash judges has asked a federal judge to dismiss a similar suit filed by a 21-year-old man he jailed more than seven years ago. The man is seeking damages from the judge, who is awaiting trial on federal charges that he accepted millions in kickbacks for jailing juveniles in for-profit prisons. His suit claims the judge gave him six months at a detention facility based solely on the number of birds perched on the ledge outside his courtroom. The man appeared before the judge on charges that he violated a town curfew and possessed a drug pipe. According to the suit, the judge directed the man to look out a courtroom window and count the birds on the ledge. When the man counted six, the judge gave him six months detention, the suit claims. Hundreds of former juvenile defendants among the thousands whose sentences have been vacated by the state Supreme Court because of the judge's arrest have sued the judge in three connected civil-rights class actions.

Civil Trials Against City in Crash After Chase Begins
A trial regarding a police pursuit that lasted no more than 12 seconds and ended in the death of two passing motorists is currently underway in Pittsburgh. The survivors of the two motorists are suing the city of Pittsburgh for wrongful death, alleging that three officers involved in the daylight chase failed to follow police bureau procedures when they decided to pursue a vehicle for having two burned out taillights. The city, however, argues that the officers, who were in an unmarked car on special patrol looking for guns and drugs, were assessing the situation and found the driver in question to be acting suspiciously. When the officers first noticed the broken taillights, they called in the license plate to check the vehicle's registration, but they didn't wait for a response from dispatch before initiating a traffic stop. The driver pulled over to the curb, but then quickly drove away. In a distance less than three football fields, the suspect fled and drove through a red light, slamming into the passenger side of the two victims. The city claims the driver who attempted to elude police should be held responsible, not the city.

Public Swimming Ups Risk of Stomach Bugs
A dip in the public pool or local lake may boost people's odds of catching a case of "stomach flu," a new study shows. Australian researchers found that among more than 2,800 adults and children they followed for 15 months, participants were somewhat more likely to develop gastroenteritis in the week or two after a public swim. Gastroenteritis refers to inflammation in the gastrointestinal tract caused by viral, bacterial or parasitic infection. The symptoms - what people commonly identify as "stomach flu" - include abdominal pain, vomiting, diarrhea and fever. In the study, participants' gastroenteritis risk was about one-quarter higher in the one to two weeks after a visit to a public pool or spa, versus other weeks. The odds went up 77 percent, on average, in the week after a swim in a river or lake, while a similar increase was seen among adults who had taken an ocean dip in the past two weeks.

State Bill Would Ban Shackling Female Prisoners Giving Birth
Legislation has been proposed to ban state prisons and county jails in Pennsylvania from shackling pregnant female prisoners to gurneys or beds in prison hospitals at the time they go into labor and give birth. The American Civil Liberties Union supports the ban on shackling. Officials of the Pennsylvania Prison Society says that shackling of women inmates while giving birth, usually by attaching handcuffs around their foot and to the bed, doesn't happen often, but it does sometimes occur.

Court Ruling On Excessive Force Could Restrict Taser Use Here
Lawyers expect a recent federal court ruling on Taser use in California to make its way into legal arguments over police brutality in western Pennsylvania. Experts disagree on whether the court's ruling - that a police officer used excessive force when he shocked a motorist who didn't pose an "immediate threat" to anyone - will influence judges' decisions here. However, some say the California ruling mirrors their conclusion that Taser use "only should come, if at all, after active resistance." More than 14,000 law enforcement agencies use the devices. They deliver a powerful electrical shock that stuns most people so police can bring them under control. The company that manufacturers Tasers estimates that they are used in about 490 incidents daily worldwide. Such frequent use raises questions about whether officers use them as substitutes for more deadly force such as handguns, or if they are using them in situations that don't call for force. California's ruling arises from a traffice stop in which the motorist got out of his car and, facing away from the officer, started hitting his thighs and yelling obscenities. The man was at least 20 feet away from the officer and was neither threatening the officer nor attempting to flee, according to the decision. The jolt of the Taser caused the motorist to fall face first to the ground, fracturing four of his teeth.

NAACP Questions Handling of Arrest at Pittsburgh Bar
Saying he's being stifled by the "blue wall of silence," the president of a western Pennsyvlania branch of the NAACP said he was "convinced" that questions over tactics used in the recent arrest of a local black man could have been resolved in a conversation with police - but because police have canceled meetings with NAACP officials and family members of the man, his family is being forced into legal action. The man was arrested by police at a New Year's Eve party outside a bar after police say he got into a fight with another patron. The man was working as a disc jockey that night at the bar, and police agree that he exited the bar after being asked to do so by an officer. According to police, however, the "extremely intoxicated" man began "violently fighting" with officers, attempting to bunch one officer and tearing the metal badge from the shirt of another. Two officers were injured in the scuffle, and police were only able to arrest the man after using a Taser. Three witnesses at the bar, however, signed notarized statements indicating that police threw the first punch, knocking the man to the ground. Witnesses said police subdued the man in a headlock and continue to bunch him in the head before using a Taser on him multiple times.

Concertgoer Claims Police Beat Him
A western Pennsylvania man says in a federal lawsuit that three state police officers handcuffed him to a chair and beat him after he got into a fight with an off-duty trooper during a concert. In his lawsuit, the man claims that he was waiting in line for the restroom when the fight started. Police arrested him and roughed him up before turning him over to the state police. He is seeking compensatory and medical damages against the police. He claims he suffered head trauma and severe bruising.

Federal Judge Denies Delay Request from Kids-for-Cash Judges
A federal judge has rejected an attempt by two former Luzerne County judges to indefinitely delay a series of civil lawsuits filed in the aftermath of the kids-for-cash corruption scandal. The judge issued an order denying requests from the two former judges to postpone deadlines for pre-trial filings in the civil cases until after their criminal prosecutions are complete. The judge ruled that the judges' requests did not mesh with established law, which prohibits indefinite delays except in cases where the judges could be compromising their criminal defenses by filing required paperwork. The civil lawsuits were filed last year on behalf of thousands of juveniles sentenced by the one judge during the life of an alleged corruption scheme from 2003 to 2008. Both judges are facing a 48-count criminal indictment for allegedly pocketing $2.8 million in kickbacks from the developer and co-owner of the detention centers.

Pennsylvania Prison Guards Blamed for Attack On Inmate from Pittsburgh
A Pittsburgh man accused in a child predator sting claims Fayette County prison guards left his cell door open so other inmates could beat him, leaving him with a broken nose and damaged vision. The 24-year-old man is awaiting trial on charges of attempted statutory sexual assault, attempted indecent assault of a person under the age of 16, attempted corruption of minors and attempted unlawful contact with a minor. A detective alleges that the man traveled to a pharmacy in Uniontown to meet a purported 13-year-old girl for sex. He had arranged the meeting after engaging in sexually explicit conversations over the Internet with what was actually a police officer. He was arrested, taken into custody and placed in prison after approaching a 19-year-old woman who was posing as a decoy. He is seeking to have the charges dismissed on the grounds that since the 13-year-old doesn't exist, no crime was committed. In a federal civil rights lawsuit against Fayette County, he alleges prison guards told other inmates the nature of the charges against him, then intentionally left his cell door open so he could be beaten. In the suit, he claims other inmates repeatedly punched him, spit on him and stole his glasses. The cell was monitored by video cameras and no guards attempted to stop the abuse.

Inmate Sues Six Officials due to Alleged Skin Disease
A Pennsylvania prison inmate has sued six corrections officials alleging that improper medical care resulted in his contracting a skin disease. In the lawsuit, the inmate, who has been incarcerated since 2002, alleges that officials placed an inmate with scabies in his cell. He is asking for $10,000 incompensatory and punitive damages. He has also demanded a jury trial of the case and asked the court to allow him to proceed without paying costs. He claims that after officials put the inmate with scabies in his cell, he asked for him to be removed, even filing a formal grievance that the grievance coordinator rejected. He also alleges that when he contracted the disease, medical personnel diagnosed it as athlete's foot and yeast infection, prescribing ointments that did not cure him. He alleges that prison personnel were negligent by housing him with the infected inmate and by misdiagnosing his infection.

Lawyer Claims Assault Case Against Cop Moving Too Slowly
The attorney for a Pennsylvania man who has accused a veteran state police trooper of assaulting him says he remains "disappointed and frustrated" at the pace of the internal investigation into the matter. He claims he still hasn't heard from the state police Internal Affairs Division investigators about the status of his complaint, even though it has been nearly five months since the incident occurred. The allegations against the officer stem from events surrounding a raid on a home suspected of being a methamphetamine lab. During the raid, some people fled the house, and the officers followed a man who returned to his home. The officers arrested him without incident until a state trooper with a mask over his face arrived and secured the suspect's hands behind his back even though he had already complied with the request to lie on the floor. The officer then saw the trooper stomp on the man's head, causing the suspect to spit blood and teeth onto the floor. The man has since had to undergo surgery for teeth that were driver into his gums and a nasal injury.

$176 Million Settlement OK'd in Deadly Nightclub Fire
A federal judge overseeing lawsuits stemming from a Rhode Island nightclub fire that killed 100 people has endorsed a $176 million settlement, bringing survivors and victims' relatives closer to receiving money and moving years of legal wrangling toward a final resolution. The judge also authorized the creation of a trust fund to hold the settlement money for the more than 300 people affected by the 2003 fire at The Station nightclub. Survivors who were most severely injured stand to receive the most money, with multimillion-dollar shares in some cases. The dozens of children whose parents were killed or injured will also be compensated. The fire at the club began when a pyrotechnics display used at the start of a concert set ablaze foam surrounding the stage. Besides the fatalities, the blaze caused a panicked rush toward the front exit, injuring more than 200 people. The dozens of people and companies sued after the fire - including foam manufacturers, the club's owners, Anheuser-Busch, Clear Channel Broadcasting and the town - agreed to settle for a combined $176 million rather than risk going to trial.

Law Firm Sued by Airline Hijack Victims
Two American victims of the 1986 hijacking of Pan Am Flight 73 have sued their law firm over its demand that they share their multimillion-dollar award with other Flight 73 victims represented by the same firm. The lawsuit was filed last year by two sisters, who suffered severe injuries in the hijacking at the Karachi, Pakistan airport as children. Twenty passengers were killed and more than 120 were wounded during the assault. At the core of the suit is the legitimacy of a retainer agreement and a joint prosecution agreement as well as their effect following the 2008 U.S.-Libya treaty settling terrorism-related legal claims of U.S. citizens for $1.5 billion. If the law firm is successful in its demand, the sisters will lose approximately 90 percent of awards that could total from $4 million to $12 million. The bulk of that money would go to noncitizens who comprise nearly 77 percent of the law firm's 178 hijack clients. The sisters signed the retainer agreement in 2005, authorizing the firm to pursue a lawsuit against Libya. As part of that agreement, every signatory was required to also sign a joint prosecution agreement. The agreement stated that any recovery would be shared on a sliding scale based on the type of injury and without regard to nationality. The sisters allege in the complaint that the retainer and joint prosecution agreements were the result of the firm's "unlawful professional conduct, nondisclosures, fraudulent omissions and manipulation of their clients." One sister has received $3 million and may be entitled to an additional $3 million. Her sister's claim is still being reviewed but she is entitled to a minimum of $500,000 and may receive an additional jury award of up to $6 million.

Juvenile Center Abuse Cited
A maximum security unit that houses serious juvenile offenders reportedly has a high rate of inmates who said they have been sexually victimized while in custody, a new government study shows. The federal Department of Justice study identified six facilities, including the Pennsylvania unit, where a survey found that at least three out of every 10 inmates said they were sexually victimized while in custody. The study identified the unit and five other facilities where at least three out of every 10 inmates said they were sexually victimized while in custody. Nationwide, about 12 percent of youths held in state-run, private or local facilities reported some type of sexual victimization, the study found. Victimization included any forced sexual activity with another youth and all sexual activity with staff. About 10 percent of youths surveyed reported abuse involving facility staffers, and nearly all of those complaints were against female staffers, who made up less than half of the workers. About 2 percent of the reported abuse involved other young inmates. Although advocates said the level of abuse wasn't surprising, the prevalence of sexual abuse by staff, particularly female workers, was shocking.

Man Fails in Bid to Hold Bank Liable for Accepting 'Forged' Check
A man claiming he was swindled out of nearly $42,000 on a real estate deal after his signature was forged on a check cannot sue the bank that accepted the check for deposit for conversion, a New York state judge has ruled. The judge dismissed the suit against the bank, holding that the seller never had possession of the check in question. "It is well settled that a named payee must have actual or constructive possession in order to sue a depositary bank on a forged instrument and here, there is neither an allegation nor any evidence that plaintiff had either," the judge found. In 2006, the plaintiff sold him home and sent his mother to attend the closing and pick up a check for over $40,000 in proceeds from the sale. The defendants were two mortgage brokers. According to his complaint, one of the brokers took the check payable to the plaintiff and delivered it to either the other mortgage broker or the firm. Five days later, the check, purportedly endorsed only by the plaintiff, was deposited to the brokerage firm's bank account, cleared and was credited to the account. The plaintiff argues that the broker, through its agent, had "picked up the check that was intended for my client" and "quickly went to the bank and deposited it to its own account." Bank of America argued that the plaintiff was negligent and that in any event, the action was brought outside the three-year statute of limitations governing conversion actions. The judge, however, concluded that the controlling issue was not whether bank protocol was followed by that the plaintiff never had control of the check and thus failed to acquire a "property interest" in it.

Ex-Pennsylvania Judges Granted Partial Immunity in 'Kids for Cash' Case
Two former Pennsylvania state court judges accused of accepting $2.6 million in kickbacks to send juvenile offenders to specific detention centers are immune from some charges in civil lawsuits, a federal judge has ruled. The judges resigned from the bench last year and are awaiting trial on criminal racketeering charges in what has become known as the "kids for cash" scandal. More than 400 juveniles and their parents filed civil suits against the judges in 2009, alleging they regularly denied juveniles their right to counsel and a fair and impartial trial. According to lawsuits, the judges also sent some juveniles to detention centers for minor offenses, despite the recommendations of probation officers, in return for payment from the facility operators. The suits seek compensatory and punitive damages for a class of thousands of juveniles sentences since 2000. In the civil case, a judge partially granted the defendants' motions to dismiss, determining that the judges are immune from charges relating to their judicial decisions but not for their administrative acts. Judges are immune from civil suits based on their judicial rulings as long as the judges had jurisdiction to act. One judge was granted immunity on most of the counts because of his actions, including delinquency determinations and sentencing, occurred in the courtroom and were judicial in nature. He will still face claims related to his administrative acts, including discussions with detention center builders and alleged attempts to hide the money he received from those defendants. The judge upheld most of the charges against the other judge, however, because his actions, such as the signing of agreements with the detention centers and budgetary decisions, were administrative rather than judicial.

Westmoreland Jail Subject of 17 Federal Lawsuits in Past Five Years
Westmoreland County's jail has been sued in federal court in the past five years more than any other county lockup in the region. Since 2004, the jail has been sued 17 times, court records show. By comparison, the Allegheny County jail has been sued three times in that period. The legal bill has cost Westmoreland taxpayers more than $500,000 to defend jail officials from civil rights lawsuits involving the death of an inmate, the near death of another, allegations of guards beating inmates and guards sexually harassing a female corrections officer. The latest litigation field against the jail is a civil rights lawsuit brought by a guard who alleges she was threatened with dismissal unless she has sex with a supervisor. She refused and claims she was harassed. She says in her suit that the jail is managed as a "good old boys club" where male guards solicit sex from female officers. Another suit was filed after an inmate died from acute heroin withdrawal, which was untreated while he was imprisoned even though other inmates tried to notify guards that he was dying. Another former inmate sued the jail in 2009, alleging that guards removed his insulin pump, bringing him close to death.

No Immunity for SPCA Over Woman's 12 Euthanized Dogs, Court Rules
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled that the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals of Pennsylvania is not entitled to sovereign or governmental immunity. The court ruling cleared the path for a lawsuit by a woman whose 12 dogs the agency euthanized in 1999. The court found that "the legislation creating the SPCA does not designate it as a Commonwealth agency; instead, the General Assembly authorized the SPCA to 'sue and be sued.'" The woman plans to now sue the SPCA for the euthanization. In 1999, a house she owned contained 12 dogs. She was arrested for dog fighting, but the charge was later dropped. When she went to reclaim her animals from the SPCA, she was told that all of the dogs were euthanized. After her initial suit, the case went to compulsory arbitration. When the arbitrators found in favor of the SPCA, she appealed and was granted a jury trial in 2003. After two jury trials, she was awarded nearly $55,000 in compensatory damages and $100,000 in punitive damages. Both sides again appealed, which brought about the Supreme Court's ruling. The judges also found that once charges were dropped against the woman, the SPCA had a responsibility to notify her that she could redeem her dogs. The court rescinded the woman's $100,000 award for punitive damages, finding that the SPCA did not act with "evil motive or reckless indifference," but the court also agreed that the evidence in the trial was sufficient for the jury to find the SPCA negligent in the case.

Court Rules Police Officer Can be Sued for Tasing
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that a police officer may have used too much force to subdue a driver and can be sued for damages. The court found that the officer's "desire to quickly and decisively end an unusual and tense situation is understandable, but his chosen method for doing so violated the plaintiff's constitutional right to be free from excessive force." The court ruled that the use of tasers and similar devices must be justified by a strong government interest that "compels" the employment of such force. The man was visiting cousins in 2005 when he awoke to find that someone had mistakenly taken his car keys. After retrieving them on a 100-mile round trip, he then set off in only his underwear to his parents' home. On the way, he was pulled over for speeding and then again for an unbuckled seat belt. At the writing of the second ticket, he got out of the car, crying, yelling gibberish and beating his thighs. Without warning, the officer tasered the man from about 20 feet away, causing him to fall face first onto the asphalt. The man then sued for use of excessive force, assault and battery and intentional infliction of emotional distress. The court held that even though he had shouted expletives and stepped out of his car, "at no point did he level a physical or verbal threat against the officer."

Judge Orders Youth Services Agency to Retain Records from Day Care
A judge has ordered Pennsylvania's Children and Youth Services to preserve its records of an investigation into allegations that workers at a former day care center used a toxic substance to discipline toddlers. The order was issues after parents of eight children who attended the former YMCA Child Development Center filed notice of their intent to sue in civil court. The parents allege workers gave their children alum to discipline them for misbehaving. Alum, an odorless white crystal or powder, is used in baking powder and as a pickling salt, fire retardant and antiperspirant. It can cause abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting. The center and five former employees are named as defendants in the suit. The parents filed a notice preserving their right to sue and a motion that alleged the five former employees disciplined the eight children by placing alum in their mouths and throats.

New Suit Latest Twist in Kids-for-Cash Scandal
A former Pennsylvania judge sentenced one former juvenile defendant to six months at a detention facility based solely on the number of birds perched on the ledge outside his courtroom, attorneys for the defendant, now 21, charged in a lawsuit. The suit is the latest legal twist in the kids-for-cash scandal that has swirled around two judges since they were originally charged last year with pocketing $2.8 million in kickbacks from the backers of for-profit juvenile detention facilities. Both have already been hit with civil rights claims from hundreds of former juvenile defendants and a 48-count racketeering indictment. The most recent lawsuit accused one of the juvenile court judges of inexplicably ordering the defendant to look at the ledge and tell him the number of birds he saw. The defendant, 14 at the time, counted six, and the judge subsequently sentenced him to six months of detention - one for each bird. The defendant is seeking unspecified damages, plus attorneys' fees and other costs. His parents paid $3,837 between 2002 and 2005 for his incarceration and probation, and for a time the county garnished his mother's wages. Recently, a federal judge ruled that the judges can only be held liable for actions they took outside the courtroom to further their alleged kids-for-cash conspiracy. One judge is also immune from liability for any decisions he made while on the bench. U.S. Supreme Court rulings dating to 1871 have established judges cannot be sued for their actions from the bench, even if they act in bad faith.

Beware the Walk Home On New Year's Eve
While drinking and driving are obviously dangerous, walking home drunk after a New Year's Eve party can be just as dangerous. Studies have shown that more pedestrians are killed on the first day of the year than on any other day, and many of those killed have elated blood alcohol levels. Doctors recommend that revelers who are drinking stay in one place, call a cab or go home with a sober "designated walker." Walking in a large group and wearing lightly colored clothing may also decrease the risk of accidents.

Considering Missing for 10 Years, Woman Loses Federal Appeal Over Statute of Limitations
A federal appeals court has upheld the dismissal of a lawsuit brought by a woman who ran away as a teenager and lived with a school security guard for a decade, agreeing with a lower court judge that the case was filed after the legal deadline. The woman resurfaced in 2006 after secretly living with the guard, whom she ran away with in 1996 when she was 14 and he was 38. Now 27, she said that the relationship changed soon after she moved into his bedroom at his parents' Pennsylvania home and that she stayed only because he threatened her. She said she rarely left the home and was even forced to use a bucket for a toilet. The guard, now 51, is serving five to 15 years in prison. The woman sued the guard, her former school district, local police and the guard's former employer claiming they failed to detect and prevent her inappropriate relationship with the guard or did not adequately investigation the relationship and her disappearance. She also claimed her civil rights were violated. In its ruling, the court said that while the case was unusual, the woman had opportunities to come forward before she turned 18. The ruling upheld a lower court's dismissal of the suit in 2008. The courts found that the statute of limitations to sue had expired two years after the woman turned 18.

Pittsburgh Considers $3.8 Million for Man Wrongfully Imprisoned
Pittsburgh's city council will vote on a $3.8 million settlement with a man who was wrongfully imprisoned for 18 years. The 50-year-old man, who was released from prison in 2005 after being exonerated by DNA evidence, named the city and the police officers who arrested him as defendants in a civil lawsuit he filed in 2007. The city's payout, if approved by council, will include payments totaling $1.26 million a year to the man, his attorney and a life assurance company. The man had been found guilty in 1986 of raping a woman in a nursing home. A judge dismissed part of his lawsuit earlier this year, saying he was not the victim of malicious prosecution. The judge said the fact that DNA evidence later exonerated him did not mean police had no reason to suspect him. The judge also dismissed the man's son's claims that his imprisonment deprived his family. However, the judge refused to dismissing the remaining claims, which included violations of the man's rights to due process and against cruel and unusual punishment.

Few Aviation-Related Injuries Involve Commercial Craft
More than 1,000 people a year are hospitalized for aviation-related injuries, with only one-tenth of them passengers in commercial aircraft. Researchers have analyzed data from 2000 through 2005, gathering information on crashes, parachuting accidents, airport maintenance worker injuries and passenger injuries sustained on the ground. Only 10.6 percent of those hospitalized were traveling in commercial aircraft. More than 32 percent were injured in private planes, and almost 11 percent in gliders or hang gliders. Unsurprisingly, jumping out of an airplane is quite dangerous, with 28.9 percent of those injured being parachutists. More than 28 percent of all injuries were to the lower limbs. And while burns were seen in just 2.5 percent of the patients, they accounted for 17 percent of deaths after hospitalization. The military services have established effective surveillance systems to track aviation injuries, but the researchers write that the sources of information on nonmilitary injuries are not as complete.

10-Year Battle Over Deadly Beach Events Ends with Slap at Insurer
A federal judge in Florida has ended a 10-year legal battle over the drownings of two people whose deaths inspired a landmark court ruling on beach safety. The victims' families had sued the city of Miami Beach for not warning about dangerous beach conditions and not providing lifeguards. Despite a negotiated settlement between the city and the families, the insurance carrier refused to pay damages, triggering years of legal spatting. A judge ended the decade-old feud when he ordered the insurance company to pay $5.7 million to the families. He also ordered the company to reimburse the city for its $200,000 obligation under the settlements. He also ordered the insurer to pay interest on the damages as well as attorney fees. The case produced a landmark ruling in 2005 when the Florida Supreme Court held that cities, like private landowners, have a responsibility to warn beachgoers of dangerous conditions that are known or should be known. In 1997, a rabbi's wife ran into trouble while out for a swim in Miami Beach. Another beachgoer tried to help her, but both tourists drowned in rugged riptides. The victims' families sued, alleging that the city had created the appearance of a protected beach - there was a concessionaire, parking, showers and restrooms - but had no signs warning of riptides and no lifeguards. Lower courts blocked the lawsuits, finding the city couldn't be held responsible for beach conditions. But when the state Supreme Court ruled otherwise, the city chose to settle in 2007. The city and the plaintiffs then ended up on the same side fighting the insurance company, which refused to pay, arguing that the insurance policy was written for beach concessionaires, and the city was not listed as an additional insured.

Call to Amend Lawsuits to Include County as Defendants in Kids-for-Cash Suits
The Luzerne County District Attorney's Office's failure to train its assistant district attorneys to properly handle juvenile court matters makes the county liable in the kids-for-cash suits, according to an amended complaint filed by an advocacy group for former juvenile court defendants. The Juvenile Law Center, a Philadelphia advocacy group representing hundreds of plaintiffs sentenced in a former judge's court from 2003 until 2008, is asking for leave to amend their complaint in the federal civil rights lawsuit. The group believes Luzerne County should be named as a defendant in light of the sworn testimony of the Luzerne County district attorney and her predecessor before the Interbranch Commission on Juvenile Justice. Both testified that the district attorney's office did not train its ADAs who appeared in juvenile court as to juvenile court rules, juvenile court procedures or the special duties of a prosecutor. "Because they were not adequately trained, the ADAs failed to recognize and challenge the routine deprivation of plaintiffs' constitutional rights," the motion reads. A judge denied Luzerne County's claim to immunity in the kids-for-cash suits. However, the judge limited the county's liability in a separate ruling, determining county district attorneys, public defenders and probation officers were not decision makers for the county and, for purposes of the civil rights suits, were agents of Pennsylvania. Two judges are accused of taking $2.8 million in payments for steering county contracts and juvenile detainees to a for-profit detention center.

Aviation Injuries Aloft and On the Ground
More than 1,000 people a year are hospitalized for aviation-related injuries, with only one-tenth of them passengers in commercial aircraft. Researchers have analyzed data from 2000 through 2005, gathering information on crashes, parachuting accidents, airport maintenance worker injuries and passenger injuries sustained on the ground, among others. Only 10.6 percent of those hospitalized were traveling in commercial aircraft. More than 32 percent were injured in private planes, and almost 11 percent in gliders or hang gliders. Unsurprisingly, jumping out of an airplane is quite dangerous: 28.9 percent of those injured were parachutists. More than 28 percent of all injuries were to the lower limbs. And while burns were seen in just 2.5 percent of the patients, they accounted for 17 percent of deaths after hospitalization.

Former Inmate Files Sexual Harassment Suit
A felon is suing Erie County Prison officials, claiming they failed to stop two inmates from sexually harassing him during a stay in the Erie County Prison in 2007 and 2008. The plaintiff says one of the inmates eventually severely beat him, breaking his neck. The injury, he said, was not diagnosed at the time because he did not receive appropriate medical care. He claims he now suffers permanent nerve damage and pain as a result. The inmate is seeking damages from prison officials, the inmates who he said harassed and assaulted him and from the hospital medical personnel who treated his injuries after the assault. His lawsuit alleges that the two inmates made repeated sexual advances toward him and threatened him. He said that he repeatedly complained to prison officials, who laughed at him and "refused to do even a cursory investigation." Finally, in 2008, one of the inmates attacked him in his cell with an unspecified weapon because he had refused to meet the sexual demands of the other inmate who had been harassing him.

Woman Sues Northwest Airlines Over Knee Injury
A suburban Detroit woman is suing Northwest Airlines, saying she injured her knee while trying to get settled in a middle seat. The 58-year-old woman says she wrenched her knee while trying to climb over an armrest that wouldn't go up. Her husband said that she used crutches during their stay in Las Vegas in 2007. The woman had surgery to repair a ligament when they returned home. Her lawsuit against Northwest has been moved to federal court in Detroit from state court and seeks an unspecified cash award.

Bayer Found Liable for Crop Contamination
A federal district court judge who is overseeing some 3,000 suits in which rice farmers allege that Bayer CropScience was careless in its handling of an experimental, genetically modified strain of long-grain rice, permitting the non-approved strain to contaminate the U.S. long-grain rice crop. A judge earlier refused to certify the complaint as a class action, which means thousands of individual trials. In the first two cases to go to trial, a jury awarded two Missouri farmers almost $2 million in compensatory damages, which was almost what the farmers claimed. The jury didn't award the farmers any punitive damages, but if the compensatory awards in these bellwether cases are any indication, Bayer faces certainly hundreds of millions in liability for rice crop contamination.

MRSA-Related Lawsuits at Prison Disproportionate to Other Prisons in Region
Northampton County and its prison health contractor have been sued 37 times since 2007 by prisoners alleging the deplorable conditions and delays in medical treatment led them to contract methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, court records say. The federal lawsuits against the county's correctional facility far outnumber those in the surrounding counties. Since 2007, Bucks County has been sued once for a MRSA-related case and Lehigh County has been sued three times. The suits use five pages to outline the conditions. Among the allegations are overcrowding, leaking roofs, dirty drinking water, cockroach infestations, sewage backup in the facility's kitchen and moldy bathrooms.

Lawsuit Alleges PennDOT Negligence Caused Fatal Crash
A Florida woman has filed a civil lawsuit against PennDOT, alleging its negligence resulted in the Christmas Day death of her 87-year-old mother in a car accident last year. The wrongful death suit seeks no specific monetary damages but demands a jury trial. The roadway "existed in a dangerous and hazardous condition, and was not in a reasonably safe condition for use by the traveling public as, for an unreasonable length of time prior to the accident, water was known and/or should have been known to be channeled across the roadway surface, which would freeze and create isolated ice patches," the suit claims. The lawsuit alleges that PennDOT failed to properly maintain the drainage system and improperly designed and constructed the road, constituting "an unreasonable danger to the traveling public."

Excessive Force Case Settled for $275,000
The Pennsylvania Attorney General's Office agreed to pay $275,000 to settle a federal lawsuit a Phoenix woman brought because a state police trooper forced her vehicle off the road after she ignored his signals to pull over during a drunken driving stop. She claimed the trooper used excessive force in stopping her in 2006. The trooper responded in court papers that she had a blood-alcohol content of 0.19 percent - more than twice the legal limit - when he stopped her. He cited her for drunken driving, fleeing police, reckless driving, speeding and other traffic offenses. The trooper used the "precision immobilization technique" or PIT to stop her vehicle. PIT is typically used as a last resort to end police chases. According to the trooper, the woman was speeding at least 20 mph over the limit in the early morning hours. When he activated his lights, she increased her speed, and when he turned on his siren, she continued to drive. Believing that she was trying to evade him and because both were approaching a highway section with blind curves and possible oncoming traffic, the trooper used PIT to stop her car. Both sides agree that her car swerved, struck an embankment and flipped. In her lawsuit, she claimed she suffered unspecific injuries; however she was released from the emergency room and into police custody without treatment.

Las Vegas High Roller Sues Harrah's Over Gambling Debts
A Nebraska philanthropist accused of racking up nearly $15 million in gambling debt has countersued Harrah's Entertainment for allegedly plying him with alcohol and prescription drugs to keep him on the casino floor. He says Harrah's executives knew he had a gambling addiction and took advantage of it by giving him a nonstop supply of booze and painkillers while he lost millions of dollars at roulette and slot machines. His suit comes weeks after Harrah's filed criminal charges against him for failing to pay $14.75 million in gambling debts.

Best-Selling Novel Defamed Woman, Jury Finds
A Georgia jury has awarded $100,000 to an Atlanta woman who says a former friend defamed her in a best-selling novel by including personal characteristics that made her recognizable and then mixing them with other traits that were false and defamatory. The jury found that the author of "The Red Hat Club" defamed her childhood friend. However, the jury found in favor of the author and her publisher on the allegation of invasion of privacy.

Lawyer Alleges Cop was Abusive
What happened to a man in the kitchen of his home in the aftermath of a raid on a methamphetamine laboratory in the township is now the subject of a state police investigation into allegations for excessive force by a veteran state trooper. The man has filed a private criminal complaint about the actions of the state trooper, as well as notice of his intent to file a civil lawsuit in the manner. He alleges that the state trooper stomped his face into his kitchen floor while he lay prone on his stomach with his hands tied behind his back. He said the force of the blow was so hard that "his two front teeth were driven back and up into his gums, fracturing the base of his nose from the inside out."

City of Erie Ends Police Suit with $1,500 Payment
The city of Erie has paid $1,500 to end a federal lawsuit in which a resident claimed an Erie police officer wrongfully elbowed him in the face at a homicide scene in 2008. The settlement saves the city money, and it is not an admission of liability. The city would have needed to spend at least $1,500 in out-of-pocket expenses, including deposition costs, to continue to defend the case in federal court in Erie. The plaintiff and the civil rights case was transferred to federal court earlier this year. The plaintiff sued the city and a police officer claiming that he elbowed him, damaging some teeth, and pointed a gun at him while he was a bystander at the scene of a homicide. The homicide victim was his nephew, who police said participated in an armed robbery before the shooting.

Excessive Force Suit Against Trooper Settled for $250,000
An insurance company for the state police will pay a man $250,000 to settle an excessive force claim against a trooper who has been sued multiple times. The trooper, who was also found liable for killing a 12-year-old boy in 2002 and who is facing a second suit in another shooting, was accused of accosting the man outside a Pittsburgh bar. The man claimed that the trooper threw him to the ground outside the bar in 2008. He cited the trooper's other suits and settlements in an attempt to show a history of violent behavior and lax oversight by the state police.

Defense Wins Trial Over Railway Accident at General Mills Plant
After a Georgia man had both his legs partially amputated as a result of a railroad car accident, he filed suit against the owner of the railroad car that ran him over and the railroad. Though the car owner settled for an undisclosed sum, the railroad decided to go to trial, where it won. The accident occurred in 2005 at the General Mills' cereal production plant in Georgia. The man, a General Mills employee, was working on a rail spur where grain was being delivered to the factory. During the process of moving hopper cars, a type of railroad freight car, one car rolled out of its position, pulling two cars along with it. All three cars ran him over. His attorney argued that the railroad had delivered a hopper car with an inefficient and illegal handbrake and that the railroad should have inspected the brake and ensured it was working properly. The man sued for $26.6 million. However, the railroad argued that the man had not properly applied the hopper car's handbrake during the repositioning maneuvers. However, the man didn't have any recollection of actually setting the brake, and the only eyewitness claims he didn't see him set the brake either.

Lawsuit Settled Against Troubled State Trooper
A lawsuit has been settled against a state trooper found liable for killing a 12-year-old in 2002 and facing another suit in a second shooting death, but the terms are secret. A Pittsburgh man sued the trooper last year, alleging that he threw him to the ground at a bar and broke his ankle. He had initially sued the state police as well as the trooper, saying the agency allowed the trooper to remain on the force despite what he described as a history of violence and excessive force. The same trooper shot a 12-year-old boy in the back on Christmas Eve 2002 after a chase. The state agreed to pay a $12.5 million settlement in that case. The complaint also cited another suit in which a flight attendant said the same trooper gave him an illegal citation after the trooper said the attendant gave him the middle finger in traffic. That case was settled for $7,500. Since then, the trooper has been sued again by the family of a man the trooper is accused of shooting after a St. Patrick's Day party.

Sikhs Who Own Subway Settle Suit
The Sikh owners of two Subway restaurants at the Lehigh Valley International Airport who claimed they were being evicted because worried passengers confused them with Muslims have settled their federal lawsuit against the airport authority. The three will keep the lease on one restaurant and receive "generous financial incentives" to give up the lease on the other restaurant. The Sikhs filed their lawsuit earlier this year. They claimed that since taking over the restaurants in 2007, they had been subjected to "racial, ethnic and religious discrimination" from airport management. The men have long beards and wear turbans, which they claimed made "passengers and visitors 'nervous' or concerned.'" The airport maintained that renovations at the airport forced the closing of one restaurant and an expiring lease led to the decision to close the other restaurant.

Teen's Claim Over Mosh Pit Injury Revived by Court
A Brooklyn appeals panel has reinstated a personal injury action filed on behalf of a 15-year-old who was injured when he was struck in the face by someone dancing in a mosh pit at a Brooklyn club. In arguing for summary judgment, the owners of the club established their entitlement to judgment via the testimony of a manager who stated that he observed no moshing - an often violent form of dancing - the night the boy was injured and that the club did not permit mosh pits. But the boy provided the affidavits of two witnesses who stated that patrons had been moshing for about 15 minutes and that the mosh pit was spreading when the boy was struck.

Ohio Homeowners Lose Benzene Case Against Chevron
Ohio homeowners who sued Chevron over benzene that leaked from a refinery have failed to show any compensable damages to their properties, a federal judge has found. Chevron operated a gasoline refinery near Hooven, Ohio from 1930 to 1985 that released petroleum products into the ground through spills and leaks, according to the lawsuit. The principal contaminant was benzene, which seeped through soil into groundwater to create a hydrocarbon plume that floated free on top of groundwater. Chevron agreed to clean up the site in 1993. However, homeowners said the benzene damages their properties and brought claims against Chevron for negligence, conspiracy, fraud, strict liability, trespass, private nuisance and failure to warn. When Chevron moved for summary judgment, the judge found that nothing in the record shows that the hydrocarbon plume has done any damage to the properties.

Ferry Crash Claimant's Arguments Miss the Boat
An accident involving a massive passenger ship has presented a practical and legal conundrum not associated with other mass transit disasters. Namely, after the ferry crashed into a concrete pier on Staten Island in 2003, officials had no passenger manifest, no record of how many people were aboard the 6,000-passenger vessel, let alone the names of the approximately 1,500 passengers who were on the ferry at the time of the crash. No one bought a ticket, and no videotapes exist of passengers boarding the ferry. That said, one person who was most likely not on the ferry is a former security guard. A judge has thrown out his personal injury claim against the city for neck and pain injuries he claims to have suffered in the accident. Following a two-day bench trial, the judge ruled that he had failed to establish that he was even on the boat. In his complaint, he claimed that after the ferry crashed, he fell to the ground and several other passengers toppled on top of him. He suffered a herniated disk and sought between $450,000 and $600,000. His story began to fall apart as soon as he sat down for his deposition. He described the ferry's approach and his walk after the crash; but the boat crashed going to opposite direction. He also recalled a meeting with his business partner 30 minutes after getting off the ferry; however, at trial, he said no such meeting took place. Based on those contradictions, as well as the fact that he did not immediately seek medical attention, the judge found that he lacked credibility and found in favor of the city, assigning all costs to the man.

Florida Appeals Court Reverses $24.2 Million Verdict in Asbestos Case
The 3rd District Court of Appeals reversed a $24.2 million verdict, striking a Miami-Dade jury award to a surgeon who claimed asbestos exposure caused his terminal cancer. The panel remanded the products liability lawsuit against Honeywell International and ordered a new trial. The surgeon had won one of the highest compensatory damage awards against a single defendant in a mesothelioma case in 2008. He died before the appeal was decided. He claimed he developed the rare peritoneal mesothelioma from exposure to asbestos by remodeling an attic, working in road construction and repairing cars in the 1970s and 1980s. The doctor sued Honeywell, whose subsidiary Bendix makes brakes, and 15 other defendants. The jury verdict included a $10.4 million award for his children. The court reversed on several grounds, agreeing with Honeywell that the trial judge erred by allowing into evidence a prejudicial letter from a Bendix employee to an asbestos supplier in the 1960s which illustrated Honeywell's knowledge of asbestos dangers. The court also determined that the surgeon should have included third parties on the verdict form so jurors could apportion comparative fault and that his children were not entitled to their award.

Cancer Claim Allowed Under Two-Disease Rule
Compensation from some defendants for nonmalignant asbestos diseases does not preclude a plaintiff's subsequent recovery for cancer against a new defendant, a divided Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled. In their decision, the court reversed summary judgment for John Crane Inc. in two asbestos-related lung cancer suits on statute-of-limitation bases. The decision will affect only those plaintiffs whose first suits for nonmalignant diseases were filed before Pennsylvania became a two-disease state in 1992 and now have cancer-related claims against different defendants. A Philadelphia trial court granted the company summary judgment in 2003 in suits filed by two men who said occupational exposure to asbestos caused them to develop lung cancer. The men filed their suits that year, within three months of their cancer diagnoses, but the company said the plaintiffs had successfully sued several other companies for nonmalignant asbestos-related injuries in the 1980s. The company said it should have been named in those suits that included claims for increased risk and fear of developing cancer. The trial court agreed that the suit against the company should have been filed within two years of the plaintiffs' diagnoses and was therefore time-barred.

Fayette County Jail Suicide Video May Yield Charges
Two Fayette County prison guards who were assigned to monitor live surveillance-camera feeds of an inmate's cell failed to notice as the man made two attempts to hang himself over at least 20 minutes before succeeding. Surveillance footage of the inmate's cell and of a room where the guards were to be viewing the live video feed will be shown to a coroner's jury early next year to determine whether criminal charges are warranted. "The tape shows that there is a question as to whether or not a prison guard who was assigned to monitor the video actually monitored the video during the attempt and resultant death by a hanging in the prison," said the district attorney.

Man Claims He was Beaten by Police in Home
A Pennsylvania man has accused the Meadville police of beating and jailing him on bogus criminal charges after a confrontation at his home earlier this year. The man has filed a complaint with the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission and retained a lawyer to take action against those he said harmed him and his family. His lawyer is preparing a civil suit against the Meadville Police Department, the city, the county correctional facility and the county Office of Children and Youth. He claims several city police officers "severely beat" him on the porch of his home as he reached down to pick up his stepdaughter when officers and CYS officials came to him home to take her away. The injuries he received included a "crushed" wrist and a torn rotator cuff. Police claim he was the aggressor in the incident as he pushed and threatened an officer who was assisting CYS in enforcing a court order. The man, however, believes the incident stems from his ongoing battle with CYS.

Officer's Suit Against Colleagues Tossed
A federal judge has dismissed a second lawsuit filed by a former city police officer who accused fellow officers of using excessive force against him. The judge dismissed his federal lawsuit, arguing officers used reasonable force when subduing the drunken officer in 2007. The same judge had also dismissed a wrongful termination suit the same officer filed against the city. The mayor had recommended his firing for violating several departmental policies, including abuse of sick leave and conduct unbecoming an officer. In his latest suit, he argued that a fellow officer used "an illegal neck restraint" when trying to take him into custody. The judge ruled that the officer was actively trying to evade police who were merely trying to assist him.

Family Sues City and Officer in Fatal Shooting of Son
The family of a man killed by a Harrisburg police officer has filed a federal lawsuit against the city and the officer, who was recently exonerated in the unrelated shooting of an unarmed teenager. The suit, filed by the mother of a man who was shot and killed by an off-duty office in 2007, claims that the police department inadequately trained officers and fostered an atmosphere that allows police to target young black men. The officer claims he was awakened by gunfire in his home and saw a man pistol whipping another man in a parking lot. He ran outside with his service pistol and saw the assailant get in a car. He fired eight shots into the vehicle and struck the man, who was driving, fatally. The officer told investigators that he saw someone in the vehicle pull a gun, even though none was ever recovered. The officer received an "award of valor" from the city following the incident and was recently cleared of any charges in an incident in which he shot a teenager in the face.

Iraqi Detainees Can't Sue CACI and Titan for Alleged Abuse
A federal appeals court has ruled that former Iraqi detainees who were allegedly abused at the Abu Ghraib prison cannot pursue their claims against contractors L-3 Communications Titan Corp. and CACI. The court said the contractors were operating under military control at the time of the alleged abuse and therefore could not be sued. In their suits, the detainees raised common-law claims against the contractors for assault and battery, wrongful death and intentional and negligent infliction of emotional distress. The plaintiffs claims that they or their relatives were subject to abuse and torture by the contractors' employee translators after being forcibly detained by the U.S. military. Both Titan and CACI asked the court for summary judgment rulings in their favor in each case. The companies said the claims should be dismissed based on the combatant-activities exception to a law that bars suits against the government for claims arising from the military's combatant activities during wartime. The defendant contractors had argued that the exception applies to them as well, as an extension of the government contractor defense.

Judge Rejects Attempt to Claim Damages for Injuries Horse Lover Suffered On Date
Two horse lovers who met on the Internet dating site Match.com agreed to go to meet at a New York stable. During the date, the woman was seriously injured when her horse suddenly lunged forward, causing her to fall and hit her head. Two years later, she sued her date, claiming he failed to provide her with an obedient horse and did not adhere to her request to ride slowly and carefully. A Manhattan Supreme Court judge ruled the he is not responsible for his date's injuries because she "offers no evidence that he knew that the horse had dangerous propensities. The only evidence is that she voluntarily mounted him and proceeded with a recreational sporting activity." The judge held that under the assumption of risk doctrine, individuals who participate in recreational activities can be deemed to have consented to injury-causing events that are known, apparent or reasonably foreseeable consequences of the participation. Injury caused by the sudden and unintended actions of horses is an inherent risk in riding, he said.

Widow Sues Police Over Death
The widow of a Pennsylvania man who died of meningitis days after a state trooper left him lying on the floor of his bedroom has filed suit against the trooper, his commander and the state police, saying the trooper's inaction led to the death. Her $27.5 million suit alleges the trooper's inaction when he left her husband lying on the floor with three small children in the house was "so egregious as to shock the conscience and sense of decency." Her husband died of bacterial meningitis three days after the trooper left him alone with his three children between the ages of 7 and 10 while his wife was out of the country. The suit says the trooper came to the home after the couple's 7-year-old son was found wandering 3 miles from his home looking for a supermarket. The child told the trooper his mother was away and his father was blind and urinating on himself. The trooper found the man face down on the floor moaning, asked the children if they needed anything and left. The suit claims that if he had been hospitalized immediately, he would have survived the meningitis.

Broken-Nosed Fan Assumed Injury Risk During Pre-Game Warm Up
Every baseball fan and attorney knows that under the doctrine of assumption of the risk a team is not liable for fans injured by foul balls or broken bats. However, in a suit filed by a fan whose nose was fractured by a bat at a Brooklyn Cyclones game, a judge has ruled that the doctrine also extends to a bat "propelled" by a player either "warming up" or "horsing around." The judge ruled that "the plaintiff, a seasoned spectator of baseball, assumed the risk of many dangers, including the danger of being struck by a loose bat." In his complaint, the season ticket holder claims he was sitting 15 feet off the third base line during warm ups when a player negligently lost control of a bat, which struck him in the face and fractured his nose.

Judge Says Strip Searches Unwarranted for Petty Crime
People arrested on petty charges who get processed through the Allegheny County Jail should not have to undergo strip searches unless there is "reasonable suspicion" that they are holding contraband. That was the recommendation of a judge who wrote a 12-page report stemming from a class-action lawsuit filed in 2006. The judge also recommended a motion for summary judgment filed by the plaintiffs, which would alleviate the need to take the matter to trial. The plaintiffs, who were all arrested for misdemeanor offenses and strip searched, sought class action status to represent all people like them who went through the county jail, claiming their Fourth Amendment rights were violated by being subjected to unreasonable searches.

Accidental Poisoning Deaths Spike Upward
For reasons not totally understood, the mortality rate from unintended injury in the United States rose 11 percent between 1999 and 2005, a new study found. The jumps in poisoning deaths and deaths from falls were particularly high and troubling. Overall, 89 percent of the total increase in unintentional injury deaths in the U.S. between 1999 and 2005 was due to poisoning among those 15 to 64 years old and falls among those 45 and older, which increased by about 11,200 and 6,600 respectively. Other studies have also found alarming increased in prescription drug overdoses, while prescriptions for antidepressants, in particular, have soared. Meanwhile, overall abuse of certain prescription drugs nearly doubled from 2000 to 2007.

Chevron Accuses Ecuadorean Judge of Taking Bribes in Mammoth Tort Case
The decades-long legal battle between Chevron and Ecuador took yet another dramatic turn when the company announced that it has videotapes revealing a $3 million bribery scheme implicating the judge overseeing a multibillion-dollar civil suit filed against the company by indigenous residents of the country's Amazon Basin. The latest turn has Chevron firing back against the 30,000 plaintiffs and the Ecuadorean legal system. The case stems from environmental contamination allegedly caused by years of oil drilling in the region conducted by Texaco, which Chevron bought for nearly $35 billion in 2000. Chevron says that it has provided authorities in the U.S. and Ecuador with video recordings of the judge in the case and individuals who identify themselves as representatives of the Ecuadorean government and its ruling political party. The company claims the recordings show an alleged political party representative seeking $3 million in bribes in return for handing out "environmental remediation contracts" to two businessmen after a verdict is handed down by the judge later this year. Of that sum, $1 million would go to the judge, $1 million to "the presidency" and another $1 million to plaintiffs in the case.

In $2.9 Million Blast Fax Settlement, Plaintiffs Get Coupons
Business service and supply giant Pitney Bowes has agreed to settle a "blast fax" class action by giving $26 coupons to plaintiffs for each week they received an unwanted fax. The $2.9 million settlement ends a case originally filed in Georgia before being transferred to federal court. It began with Pitney Bowes' 2007 purchase of the corporate assets of Laser Life, a Georgia-based supplier of toner and other printer products. Among those assets were Laser Life's client list, which included more than 2,000 fax machine numbers the company used to advertise its products. When Pitney Bowes assumed the operation, it began sending out promotional advertisements for its products to those numbers. Under the law, a fax advertisement may be mailed only with the permission of the recipient, or if there is an existing business relationship between the send and the recipient.

Chrysler Wins on Human Rights Appeal
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a lower court decision in favor of DamilerChrysler in a lawsuit that alleged a subsidiary of the corporation committed human rights violations in 1970s and 1980s Argentina. A California judge was right to dismiss the case for lack of personal jurisdiction over Germany-based DaimlerChrysler, the appeals judge wrote in the opinion, also noting that the appellants could file claims in Germany and Argentina. In 2004, 23 Argentinian residents and citizens sued DaimlerChrysler under the Alien Tort Claims Act, alleging that security forces of the military regime had kidnapped, detained or tortured them or their relatives at the direction of another DaimlerChrysler subsidiary, Mercedes Benz Argentina.

District Settles with Student Who Accused Teacher of Burning Cross Into His Arm
A central Ohio school board has approved a $121,000 settlement with the family of a student who said his teacher burned the image of a cross on his arm. School board members voted to resolve a federal lawsuit by paying $5,500 to the boy and his family and $115,500 to their lawyers. The family still has a similar suit pending against the teacher. He was fired last year after an internal investigation accused him of using a scientific device to burn the student and found that he had preached his Christian beliefs in class. The teacher has filed his own lawsuit against the district, claiming it violated his free speech and civil rights.

Lawyer for State Police Trooper Seeks Dismissal of Suit
A federal wrongful death lawsuit against a state police trooper leaves out crucial details and contains errors and at least one lie, his lawyer claimed in a request to dismiss the case. The family of a man filed the lawsuit following his fatal shooting by police in Pittsburgh on St. Patrick's Day. The suit claims the trooper followed the man because he had a broken headlight. When he was stopped, the officers gunned him down. The trooper's attorney says the physical evidence and eyewitness reports show that the drunken and drugged man fled police when they tried to stop him for driving in the wrong lane with his headlights off. The lawsuit leaves out those details as well as the fact that he "stopped" by running into a parked vehicle, or that he then backed into the police cruiser twice and then headed towards the officers before they opened fire. The trooper has also been the defendant in several lawsuits, including one where a federal jury found he violated the civil rights of a 12-year-old boy whom he shot in the back on Christmas Eve as he ran away from a stolen vehicle. The state settled the lawsuit filed by the boy's family for $12.5 million.

AG Takes Over Case of Death in Custody
The Pennsylvania attorney general will handle the case of a Punxsutawney man who died in police custody because the Jefferson County district attorney's office has cited a conflict of interest. A 48-year-old man was found dead in the backseat of an unmarked police cruiser, more than five hours after he was arrested for disorderly conduct and public drunkenness at a store. Borough officials have refused to comment on the case or confirm the name of an officer who has been placed on paid leave during an internal investigation. The Jefferson County district attorney asked the attorney general's office to investigate the in-custody death because "he knows many of the officers very well."

Crowded California Jail Leads to $1.85 Million Settlement
A California judge has approved a $1.85 million settlement with a former inmate who had been assaulted in the county jail. The plaintiff was on pretrial detention for armed robbery when his cellmate attacked him and caused severe brain damage. The state dropped all charges against the inmate after the incident. After two years of litigation, the inmate's civil rights challenge appeared ready to go to trial in the spring. However, the county decided to settle after one of its own experts provided deposition testimony that would not have reflected well on staffing ratios and housing arrangements at the jail.

Ex-Inmate Urges Jail Abuse Message be Heard
A former inmate of the Crawford County Jail concerned about the treatment of prisoners at the local lock-up admits she has a checkered past, but says that's no reason not to believe her. She claims in a YouTube video that she was mistreated while she was incarcerated earlier this year. She claims she did not receive medical attention after becoming ill and that another inmate had sustained a stroke, but says officials did nothing about the inmate's condition for three days. She claims she planned to file a formal complaint with the Crawford County Prison Board, but she has not done so yet. Her complaints echo at least 10 similar complaints received by the Pennsylvania Prison Society regarding prisoner treatment at the jail.

Court Rules Armenian Genocide Claims Pre-empted by U.S. Foreign Policy
A federal appeals court has dealt a major blow to descendants of Armenian genocide victims, ruling that a California law that had opened the door to several multimillion-dollar settlements against life insurance companies is unconstitutional. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals tossed out the law, ruling 2-1 that U.S. foreign policy, which does not officially recognize the Armenian genocide, pre-empts California's statute. The ruling came one day after the same panel used the same reasoning to strike down a 2002 law meant to help the heirs to artwork allegedly stolen by Nazis. Earlier Armenian genocide cases have yielded big settlements. In 2004, New York Life Insurance Co. agreed to pay $20 million to settle such claims, and in 2005, AXA S.A. agreed to a $17 million settlement. Last year, Armenian descendants filed a class action against Aviva P.C., and another suit is pending against Deutsche Bank. The Armenian genocide, while not recognized by the United States, is believed to have resulted in the deaths of more than 1.5 million Armenians at the hands of the Ottoman Empire between 1915 and 1923. The government of modern Turkey has strenuously denied that a genocide occurred.

Former PA Judges Ask for Reconsideration of Guilty Please
Two disgraced former Luzerne County judges have asked that a federal judge reconsider his decision to reject their plea agreements. Both judges made a joint filing, petitioning the judge to reinstate their agreed-upon sentence of 87 months in prison because neither could be found at fault for his post-plea hearing actions. Neither attempted to "obstruct or impede justice" or contradict the government's evidence in public comments, as the judge ruled, they argued. Both men had conditionally pleaded guilty early this year to accepting more than $2.6 million from the owner and builder of a private juvenile detention center, but the judge rejected the plea citing both judges' post-plea hearing actions. One judge was "self-serving," and another was an obstructionist. "In light of the post-guilty plea conduct and expressions from the defendants that contradict some offense conduct, the negotiated pleas, which were grounded in the good faith of the government, are well below the sentencing guidelines for the charged offenses," the judge wrote.

Prison Let Man Suffer Until Death, Suit Claims
The family of a former Westmoreland County Prison inmate who was found dead in his cell earlier this year has sued the jail, alleging officials ignored repeated pleas for treatment and guards assaulted him as he was dying. The man's estate contends that the man's death could have been avoided had jail officials treated him for heroin withdrawal. "The defendant prison officials intentionally denied him proper medical care by failing to treat, refer to a physician or transfer him for proper care, causing him to unnecessarily suffer for approximately nine days before dying from malnutrition and electrolyte imbalance," according to the lawsuit. His family alleges that in the days that preceded his death, he was beaten by unnamed guards when his illness rendered him unable to dress. An autopsy revealed abrasions and contusions on his face, elbows, hands, thighs, knees and feet. This lawsuit is the fourth court action filed in recent years against the county and the prison over allegations of civil rights violations by officials against inmates.

ACLU Files Suit Over Recording
The ACLU filed a federal lawsuit against Allegheny County and a University of Pittsburgh police officer, alleging that officers arrested a Pittsburgh man for using his cell phone to record a confrontation between officers and one of his friends earlier this year. The man was arrested and charged with violating Pennsylvania wiretapping laws after police said he recorded an incident without officers' permission. According to the lawsuit, the man and his friends were seeking out useful items that were being thrown away. He and a female friend stopped at a college dormitory when he jumped into a dumpster. A property manager called police, and officers arrested the woman after she failed to show identification. While she was being arrested, the man taped the arrest with his cell phone camera. The police then arrested him because they had not given permission to be recorded.

Court Invokes 'Iqbal' in Affirming Dismissal of Alien Tort Claims Against Coke
In a 34-page ruling that one defense lawyer describes as "a sweeping review of the Alien Tort Statute," a three-judge panel of the 11th U.S. Circuit of Appeals held a Miami federal district court's dismissal of four cases claiming that Coca-Cola and its two Colombian bottling subsidiaries were liable for the murder and torture of trade unionists by Colombian paramilitary forces. Citing the Supreme Court's now infamous ruling in Ashcroft v. Iqbal, the court concluded that the plaintiffs' complaints "fail to sufficiently plead factual allegations" to establish subject matter jurisdiction and state a valid claim. The plaintiffs alleged in four lawsuits that two Coca-Cola bottlers collaborated with paramilitary forces in what the 11th Circuit called "the systematic intimidation, kidnapping, detention, torture and murder of Colombian trade unionists." The complaints didn't accuse Coke or its bottlers of direct responsibility for the crimes, but sought compensation under the Alien Tort Statute and the Torture Victims Protection Act for the corporations' alleged aiding and abetting of the paramilitary forces.

Court Affirms Dismissal of Lead Pollution Suit
A federal appeals court has upheld the dismissal of a lawsuit brought by neighbors of a gun club who said lead from bullets fired there contaminated nearby soil and water. The court said the Simsbury-Avon Preservation Society failed to prove that the Metacon Gun Club contaminated local wetlands in violation of the Clean Water Act. The appeals court said plaintiffs failed to prove that Metacon is operating a hazardous waste disposal facility without a permit in violation of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act. Six homeowners who live near the gun club formed the preservation society and then sued Metacon in 2004. The plaintiffs claimed the operation of the gun club resulted in water and soil contamination from "thousands of pounds of lead" deposited into the environment since 1990. They said the area shows a presence of lead well above that allowed by state environmental laws.

Pair Being Held On Immigration Charges File Suit
Two men being held on immigration charges have filed a federal lawsuit claiming that they and more than 1,000 people like them across Pennsylvania are being detained indefinitely with no chance to make bond. Filed on their behalf by the ACLU, the lawsuit names two immigrants, one who immigrated from Ghana in 1990 and another who immigrated from Trinidad and Tobago in 1981. The suit seeks class action status to represent all similarly situated people in Pennsylvania. The issues argued included a challenge by the federal government as to whether such claims can be filed on behalf of a class, as well as whether the men should be granted individual detention hearings. One of the immigrants, who has been a legal citizen since 1996 and was convicted of stealing credit reports, claims he was moved to a prison after he served his sentence to wait pending his possible removal from the country. He claims he has been held for a year, and the other claims to have been held for 18 months.

Concert Organizer Accused Police of Excessive Force
There had been a history of bad blood between authorities and the Church of Universal Love and Music before three dozen police officers swooped down on the church's property during an outdoor concert and arrested 23 people on drug charges. Now the church's founder claims the raid was retaliation for a legal battle in federal court that ended this year with the county paying him $75,000. He also accused police of using excessive force during the raid, pointing automatic weapons at children under the age of 12 and roughing up attendees. Police, however, found a large amount of marijuana, hallucinogenic mushrooms, LSD and hash and seized more than 1,000 pieces of marijuana paraphernalia. In 2006, the church's founder reached a settlement in his federal civil rights lawsuit against the county, accusing them of violating his First Amendment right to freedom of religion by denying him a special exception permit.

Student Injuries in Gym Class Jump 150 Percent
Injuries to American children during physical education classes increased by 150 percent from 1997 to 2007, a possible drawback to a movement encouraging more vigorous exercise in schools. Yet that may have less to do with lively gym programs that with lack of adult supervision, experts said. A decline in school nurses and larger class sizes could be to blame. Most children were hurt by running into equipment or having contact with structures or other children. Children also suffered heat stroke, fainting and heart palpitations. Boys had more cuts and broken bones than girls, while girls were more likely to suffer strains and sprains. The study was based on hospital reports of phys ed injuries and suggests schools renew their efforts to make gym class safer.

India Issues Warrant for Chemical Company Head
An Indian court has issued a warrant for the arrest of the former head of the American chemical company responsible for a gas leak that killed at least 10,000 people and sickened more than half a million. In response to a recent appeal by a victims' group, the court ordered the arrest of the former chief executive of Union Carbide, who headed the company when its pesticide factory in India leaked 40 tons of poisonous gas in 1984. The incident was the world's worst industrial disaster. Though the executive was arrested immediately following the disaster in 1984, he left India when he was released.

Judge Backs Officers in Taser Ruling
Confronted by an "armed, suicidal and belligerent man," Monroeville police reasonably could have shot the man when they responded to a call at his home in 2006, a federal judge has concluded. He ruled that the two officers' use of Tasers did not constitute excessive force, tossing out the man's lawsuit. He sued several officers after the incident, claiming they violated his civil rights. His wife also sought damages for emotional distress. The judge found that a reasonable jury would have rejected the man's claims. The incident began when the man, upset by his failing business and a foreclosure notice, walked into his backyard with a revolver and sent his wife a text message saying that if he killed himself, she could file a wrongful death claim against two former employees who sued his business. She called her parents, who called police. When police arrived, the man was ordered several times to drop his weapon; the man didn't, arguing that he was afraid the gun would go off if he were to drop it. One officer used his Taser, but the man remained standing. The officer then shocked him four more times.

Court Starts Clock on Asbestos Plaintiffs' Claims
A Pennsylvania federal judge has given plaintiffs 60 days to produce medical records by qualified experts in support of their claims or face dismissal, withdrawing an earlier order that allowed an indefinite tolling of the limitations period. The cases had been dismissed without prejudice in 2002 to address what the judge called a "mass filing of asymptomatic asbestos cases." The recent order returned the cases to the active docket in an effort to enforce the provisions of a 2007 order that required plaintiffs to submit a diagnosing report in support of their claims. The 2002 order addressed what the court said were findings based on mass screenings by asymptomatic plaintiffs that depleted funds, "some already stretched to the limit, which would otherwise be available for compensation to deserving plaintiffs." Defense lawyers claim the new order could theoretically result in an increased number of nonmalignant cases being reintroduced, but plaintiffs' counsel cannot rely on mass screening reports or the reports of suspect doctors previously identified by the court.

Study: Tanning Beds Deadly As Arsenic
International cancer experts have moved tanning beds and other sources of ultraviolet radiation into the top cancer risk category, deeming them as deadly as arsenic and mustard gas. For years, scientists have described tanning beds and ultraviolet radiation as "probably carcinogens." A new analysis of about 20 studies concludes the risk of skin cancer jumps by 75 percent when people start using tanning beds before age 30. Experts also found that all types of ultraviolet radiation caused worrying mutations in mice, proof the radiation is carcinogenic. Previously, only one type of ultraviolet radiation was thought to be lethal. The new classification means tanning beds and other sources of ultraviolet radiation are definite causes of cancer, alongside tobacco, the hepatitis B virus and chimney sweeping, among others.

Attorney Wins False Arrest Suit Against New York
A lawyer who was arrested in a Queens courtroom after calling a court officer an obscene name has successfully sued New York for false arrest. The underlying incident took place in 2005. The lawyer had arrived at the courtroom when his cell phone rang. When he answered it, the court officer arrested him. The court officer claims he asked the lawyer to leave the courtroom twice to no avail. Only when the lawyer became disruptive did he handcuff him. The lawyer has since been acquitted of disorderly conduct. The judge who granted the lawyer's arguments of false arrest ruled that a mere slur did not constitute sufficient probable cause for his arrest.

Lawsuit Awards Against Troopers Costly to State
The Pennsylvania Legislature needs to find an extra $6 million to pay the second installment of the state police's largest civil rights award: $12.5 million to the family of a 12-year-old boy who was fatally shot by a trooper as he ran from a stolen car on Christmas Eve 2002. A federal jury awarded the boy's father $28 million in damages, but he agreed to a $12.5 million settlement rather than endure appeals. The first installment of the settlement, $6.5 million, was paid immediately. The remaining $6 million is to be paid within two weeks of final passage of the 2010 budget. An analysis of lawsuit settlements found that state police have been assessed about $27 million in 140 lawsuits between 1996 and 2008, which is nearly half of the total $57 million state taxpayers coughed up to settle lawsuits and pay jury awards for 693 civil rights complaints during that period. The complaints covered allegations of discrimination and sexual harassment as well as police misconduct.

Diabetic Inmate Sues Prison
A former inmate at the Westmoreland County Prison has filed a federal lawsuit claiming he was given inadequate medical care at the facility. The inmate, who is diabetic, claims guards took away his insulin pump when he was housed at the prison between August 2008 and February 2009. He was jailed for a probation violation after being convicted of forgery, theft and receiving stolen property. The lawsuit claims that taking away his insulin pump caused his blood sugar levels to rise dangerously high, causing him to suffer seizures. During one seizure, he suffered a gash which caused a permanent scar above his right eye. The lawsuit also alleges that prison guards would place him on "suicide watch" because they thought he was faking his seizures. The lawsuit names the prison, the warden and corrections officers as defendants and seeks unspecified damages.

State Closes Day Care Center After Children Wander Away
The state has closed a West Mifflin day care center after four toddlers, all age 3 or younger, walked 200 yards from the building and were found on the side of a busy road by two passing truckers. The Department of Public Welfare closed the day care for "gross incompetence, negligence and misconduct." According to the state, the four children walked through an open door in the gym towards a busy road. No one at the center realized the children were missing. In addition to the incident itself, inspectors determined that the staff improperly propped open the door for ventilation and didn't have enough staffers to watch all the children. The order also said there was a hazardous construction site outside the building, which the children walked through, and that the facility had a broken table with sharp edges that could be dangerous to children.

$10 Trillion Class Action Filed Against Iran
The former head of a conservative watchdog group has filed a $10 trillion class action against Iran. He is representing a California man whose brother died in an Iranian prison after taking part in a student protest. The complaint asks the judge to certify a class "on behalf of all Iranians who have had their civil and human rights violated, been assaulted, battered, tortured and even murdered to keep a vicious, illegitimate and inhuman radical regime in power." Iran is a frequent target of lawsuits in U.S. courts. Iran generally declines to defend the charges and leaves plaintiffs to try to collect a default judgment.

Report Blames Boat Design for Fatal Capsizing
The fatal capsizing of a Texas A&M University racing boat in 2008 was due to severe design flaws and not lacking maintenance as was suggested by a Coast Guard investigation, school investigators have concluded. School investigators blamed the incident squarely on the boat's construction and said previous repairs done by students and crew members did not cause the accident. Their findings differ sharply form those of the Coast Guard, which concluded that the sinking was largely due to improper repairs and several incidents in which it was grounded. The boat sank during a regatta to Mexico after its 5,000-pound keel snapped off and turned the vessel upside down within a minute. A safety officer died after pushing two students to safety, and five crew members drifted in the Gulf for 26 hours before being rescued.

Learjet Should Change Design After Fatal Crash
Nearly a year after a plane hurtled off the end of a South Carolina runway, killing four and injuring two, federal regulators say the plane's manufacturer should make changes to part of the plane's design. Four people were killed when the Learjet 60 ran off the end of the runway. Investigators examining the fiery wreckage found that the thrust reversers, devices on the back of jet engines that divert their thrust forward and slow a plane or force it backward, were not in the right position to help slow down the plane. "Changing the design of the thrust reversing system on the Learjet 60 to make its operation more intuitive could help avert such deadly crashes," the National Transportation Safety Board wrote. An aviation expert who examined the recommendations said a switch damaged when one of the plane's tires blew out caused the reversers to shut down as if the plane were already in flight and did not need the thrusters at that point.

Defense Verdict Reached in Case of Drunken Man's Airport Injury
A Philadelphia jury returned a defense verdict, finding in favor of two airlines that were accused of botching their efforts to aid a drunken airport patron and failing to prevent him from falling down drunk at the airport, an incident that led to serious brain injuries and his death three years later. In the case, jurors denied the plaintiff's estate compensation from the defendant airlines. In a rather mysterious case in which the plaintiff's whereabouts in the Philadelphia International Airport were unaccounted for during a large portion of the time in question, a jury found Southwest Airlines was not negligent for the plaintiff's fall. The jury found the man 74 percent negligent. His family was seeking a total of $10 million in damages against all defendants. Aside from the airlines, there were several other dram shop defendants who all settled within days of jury selection.

Judge Narrows Discovery for 9/11 Federal Claims
Defendants being sued for negligence in connection with the September 11, 2001 terrorist hijackings will not be able to depose six FBI agents on the government's investigation into the attacks. Airlines, security companies and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey asked the judge to allow the depositions in the hope they might show that the government's failure to stop the terrorists was so egregious that the attacks would have happened regardless of any negligence on their part. Ruling in the three remaining wrongful death cases and 19 property damage claims stemming from the attacks, the judge said that he would not allow the depositions for several reasons. "The issues to be tried relate to the acts and omissions of the Aviation Defendants, not the government," he said. "The government's failure to detect and abort the terrorists' plot would not affect the Aviation Defendants' potential liability.

$10 Million Drunk Driving Suit Against Convenience Store Thrown Out
A New York appeals court has thrown out a $10 million suit against a convenience store where a man bought a 12-pack of beer just six minutes before killing himself and another driver in a high-speed collision. In 2005, the man's parents brought an action against the convenience store, claiming that the store knowingly allowed a "visibly intoxicated" man to buy beer. They argued that the convenience store violated General Obligations Law, also known as the Dram Shop Act, by selling alcohol to the man. The store's employees knew or should have known he was visibly intoxicated. The store moved to dismiss the action and submitted a toxicology report that showed the man would not have appeared drunk at the time of the sale. The court found that there was no admissible evidence to support the conclusion that the man was intoxicated in the store.

Pennsylvania Suspends Admission to Teen Detention Center After Injury
The state Department of Public Welfare has suspended admissions to a juvenile detention center in Reading while it investigates why the center failed to report suspected abuse in a timely manner. This marks the third time in 2009 that the state has temporarily closed admissions to the center. The center was closed earlier this year due to concerns about a lack of supervision and the untimely reporting of suspected abuse. The most recent incident involved a teenage boy who broke off a wooden bed slat and was prepared to use it as a weapon against a staff member. While the boy was being restrained, he received a minor injury to his eye. The boy was immediately treated by a nurse, and while the incident went into the boy's medical file, it wasn't included in a report to the state. The center claims the failure was due to a communications gap.

Half of All Bathtub Injuries Involve Toddlers
Slips and falls in the tub and shower are sending injured kids to the emergency room at a surprising rate, at least 120 daily, with most injuries occurring in children under 4 years old, a new study finds. The study was based on a nationally-representative survey of bathtub- and shower-related injuries to children in the United States. An average of more than 43,000 kids are treated in hospital emergency departments annually for these types of injuries. The new analysis show that children age 4 and younger accounted for more than half of all injuries. About 60 percent of the injuries were lacerations and more than 20 percent were sprains. The most commonly affected body region was the head, accounting for nearly 50 percent of the bath injuries, followed by the head and neck, which accounted for 15 percent of the injuries.

Woman's Lawsuit Claims Cops Caused Injuries
A Western Pennsylvania woman claims here shoulder was broken by police responding to a 2008 New Year's fight. She is seeking an unspecified money payment from the police department in her lawsuit. She claims she was at a club when a fight broke out. She claims she was not involved in the disturbance, though, and that she ordered the patrons out of the club. When the police arrived, she says they drew their guns and ordered everyone to the ground. When she tried to clean up the mess caused by the fight, she claims an officer "rammed her onto a chair and eventually to the ground that was covered in liquid and glass" from the fight. She claims her shoulder was broken in two places and her hip was cut by glass.

Woman Sues Vegas Casino for Inadequate Security
A Pennsylvania woman injured in a 2007 shooting at a Las Vegas hotel-casino has filed a lawsuit against the resort, claiming security there was inadequate on the night of the crime. The 25-year-old woman was vacationing in Las Vegas when a man opened fire inside the hotel, raining bullets from the second-floor. The woman, who was a dance instructor, was shot in the knee. The woman filed suit against the resort and its owner. Her lawyer claims that the defendants should have known, or had notice of the dangerous, unsecured state, and low level of security on the premises that allowed the shooter to possess a gun. She is seeking undisclosed compensation for sustained pain and suffering, past and future medical expenses, loss of income and any other damages caused by the defendants' negligence.

Prison Guards Accused of Inmate Beatings Fired
The Westmoreland County Prison Board fired four corrections officers allegedly involved in an inmate beating scandal that is under investigation. Two other guards connected with the brutality allegations have resigned, while another was reinstated. The investigation began when an inmate filed a complaint, accusing four guards of manhandling him during his stay at the county jail. County officials say his injuries were not severe, and the warden claims that X-rays were negative. The incident took place in an area where there were no cameras, sparking a policy change.

More Computers, Many More Injuries
Computer users are afflicted with more than back pain and carpal tunnel syndrome. People are also winding up in emergency rooms with cuts, bruises, sprains and fractures caused by computers and computer accessories. More than 90 percent of the injuries occur at home. Researchers estimate that in 2006 there were 9,279 emergency room visits for computer-related injuries, up from 1,267 in 1994. The increase is more than double the increase in home computer ownership in those years. Over the 13-year study period, more than 78,000 people ages 1 month to 89 years were treated in emergency rooms for acute computer-related injuries. More than half of the injuries happened when people were moving their computers, and the monitor was the part most commonly involved. Injuries peaked in 2003, when sales of LCD monitors first exceeded those of monitors with cathode ray tubes. Children under 5 had the highest overall injury rate as well as the greatest injury rare increase of any group.

Lawyers File Suit Over Water at North Carolina Base
A woman whose husband was stationed at a North Carolina base has filed a lawsuit alleging the government knowingly exposed hundreds of thousands of Marines to highly contaminated drinking water. The woman currently suffers from lymphoma, and her attorneys claim the chemicals in the water at Camp Lejeune caused numerous health problems including cancers, reproductive disorders and birth defects. Health officials think as many as 1 million people may have been exposed. A government report found contaminated drinking water at the base can't definitively be linked to health problems.

Ex-Guard Attests to Alleged Inmate Abuse at Prison
A Westmoreland County Prison inmate was taken out of his cell, punched, choked, kicked and threatened with death as punishment for talking back to a guard, according to a statement given by a corrections officer who said he witnessed the incident. The part-time guard told investigators that union officials and several other officers concocted a cover story after the assault on the 27-year-old inmate and asked him to go along. The inmate's mother said the report mirrors the details that her son recounted to her, as well as the injuries listed in the medical report that she obtained. The incident triggered a criminal investigation and led to the suspension of the president who leads the corrections officers union. The investigation is the latest in a series of alleged misconduct by corrections officers and suicide attempts by inmates.

Man Burned by Burning Man Can't Sue Festival
A man who was burned in 2005 after venturing too close to the giant wooden effigy at the Burning Man festival sued the festival organizers for damages. A San Francisco judge found that the college-educated man had assumed the risk of harm by walking directly into the effigy while remnants of it were still burning. He claims he approached the fire to throw a photo in after attendees were encouraged to approach the flames. He didn't think it would be dangerous to walk seven or 10 feet into the fire, but he tripped and fell into the fire. His lawyer claims that the burns have resulted in more than $1 million in medical bills. Though he sued the promoter for negligence, the court found that the promoter owed no duty of care because the man had assumed the risk of injury by approaching the fire.

Lawyers Target D.C. Transit Authority Over Fatal Rail Crash
Two victims of the catastrophic metro rail crash in Washington, D.C. have filed suit against the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, claiming "negligent inspection." The two victims argue that WMATA did not properly maintain and inspect brakes on the line they were riding, and that is failed to pull the railcars from service even though it knew they weren't suitable for travel due to faulty safety equipment.

Study Warns of Hazards for Elderly Using Walking Aids
About 47,000 older Americans are treated in emergency rooms each year from falls associated with walkers and canes, according to a study that suggests that there is room for improvement in the use and design of walking aids. The study found that 87 percent of fall injuries involved walkers and 12 percent involved canes. Researchers examined emergency room medical records at 66 hospitals from 2001 to 2006. They focused on patients 65 and older who had been treated for 3,932 nonfatal, unintentional fall injuries in which a cane or a walker was involved. A statistical analysis estimates that there are 47,312 falls a year. The study found that fractures, bruises and abrasions were the most common injuries associated with the falls. Almost a third of all injuries were to the lower trunk, including the hips. Sixty percent of fall injuries associated with walkers and canes occurred at home, while 16 percent of falls involving a walker occurred at nursing homes.

Report of Assault at Juvenile Detention Center Probed
Allegheny County police and the state Department of Public Welfare are investigating whether a juvenile detention center employee assaulted a male resident by smashing his head against a wall. The allegation first surfaced during a dependency hearing in juvenile court when the boy's lawyer told the judge that his client said he had been injured by a staff member. The lawyer said his client was "hit against the wall, and then the lawyer saw that he was bleeding." The employee has been "taken off the schedule" and is not being paid while the multiple investigations run their course. The allegation marks the latest bit of negative publicity for the troubled center. Earlier this year, the county fired nine workers for allegedly falsifying records. A resident tried to kill himself with a makeshift noose and was hospitalized for several weeks, spawning a state investigation. The center is awaiting word on whether the welfare department will return it to a provisional license.

Erie Police Use Taser on 15-Year-Old
Erie police used a Taser to subdue a 15-year-old who ran from officers. Police said the boy had run from probation officers earlier in the day. Police spotted the boy, and he fled when they approached him. He then struggled as they took him into custody. Police said the boy was wanted by officers of the Erie County Juvenile Probation Department.

Court OKs Suing Prosecutor Over DNA Sample
A Las Vegas prosecutor and a police detective can both be sued by a former defendant for taking a sample of his DNA without a warrant, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled. The opinion touched on the scope of defendants' privacy rights when they have been arrested and charged but are still awaiting trials. It also addressed the lengths to which law enforcement can go to collect DNA. The former defendant sued the prosecutor and detective in 2004, alleging that both had violated his Fourth Amendment rights to be free from unreasonable searches during a jailhouse incident in 2003. The defendant was asked for a DNA sample, which he refused. The detective then told him that the prosecutor had authorized the detective to take a DNA sample, forced his mouth open and swabbed the inside of his cheek while he sat shackled to a bench. The 9th Circuit found that neither the prosecutor nor the detective are entitled to qualified immunity.

Class Action Argues Institution Residents Never Offered Opportunities to Move
A class action lawsuit alleges that residents of five state-operated institutions have not been offered the opportunity to move to community settings. The Disability Rights Network of Pennsylvania filed the lawsuit against the state Department of Public Welfare on behalf of six plaintiffs. According to the lawsuit, the state Department of Public Welfare has failed to provide its clients with the opportunity to receive services in integrated, community settings, despite the desires of its institutionalized clients. However, the agency said that the closing of several other facilities is evidence of its desire to reduce its reliance on institutional care and improve access to home and community-based services for Pennsylvanians living with mental retardation. The lawsuit denies the department's claims, stating the Pennsylvania does not have an integration plan with specific timelines and discharge benchmarks to develop community alternatives for residents of state-operated institutions.

600 Neighborhoods Have Toxic Air
People living in nearly 600 neighborhoods across the country are breathing concentrations of toxic air pollutants that put them at a much greater risk of contracting cancer, according to new data from the Environmental Protection Agency. The levels of 80 cancer-causing substances released by automobiles, factories and other sources in these areas exceed a 100 in 1 million cancer risk. That means that if 1 million people breathed air with similar concentrations over the lifetime, about 100 additional people would be expected to develop cancer because of their exposure to the pollution. The average cancer risk across the country is 36 in one million. Parts of Los Angeles and Illinois had the highest cancer risks in the nation at 1,200 to 1 million. They were followed by Allegheny County, Pennsylvania and Tuscaloosa, Alabama.

Judge Dismisses Shooting Victim's Suit Against Craigs List Over Gun Ad
A shooting victim's attempt to blame Craigs List for posting the ads of a gun dealer who sold the weapon that injured him has been rejected by a federal judge. The victim claimed Craigs List breached a duty of care to ensure that "inherently hazardous objects, such as handguns" do not come into the hands of people like the shooter, who shot the victim several times in 2008. But a judge dismissed the complaint, finding that Craigs List is entitled to immunity as an Internet service provider under the Communications Decency Act of 1996. The victim had sought $10 million in compensatory damages, punitive damages and the "appointment of a federal monitor" to keep guns from being advertised on the Web site. Craigs List moved for dismissal under the act, which states that no "provider or user of an interactive computer service shall be treated as a publisher or speaker of any information provided by another information content providers," and that no "cause of action may be brought and liability imposed under any state law that is inconsistent with this section."

Pennsylvania Firm Illegally Tested Bone Cement
A medical device company illegally tested bone cement during spinal surgery on about 200 patients, three of whom died on the operating table, U.S. prosecutors in Philadelphia charged. A lengthy indictment charges that Norian Corp. trained dozens of surgeons to conduct unofficial clinical tests of the product on humans, subverting FDA safeguards. The company is charged with conspiracy and 51 other felonies. Prosecutors say the surgeries took place from 2002 to 2004 but ended after the third death. The product, Norian XR, was approved for use in the arm but not the spine. The surgeries often involved older patients with compression fractures. The company's pilot studies showed the product could cause blood clots in humans, while pig research suggested such clots could move to the lungs. The patients who died suffered severe hypotension, or low blood pressure, following injections of the cement. Though the company halted the physician training program after the deaths, the product was not recalled because it would have alerted the FDA. Officials from Norian also lied about the testing when the FDA began investigating.

Exxon Plaintiffs Win On Interest and Appeal Costs
The plaintiffs who sued over the Exxon Valdez oil spill lost big at the U.S. Supreme Court last year but took some consolation from the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. In addition to unanimously siding with the plaintiffs' argument for hundreds of millions of dollars in interest, a panel also ruled that Exxon Mobil can't recoup tens of millions in costs for its largely successful appeal. The majority concluded that Exxon and the plaintiffs, fisherman and seafood companies, will each have to cover their own costs for the epic series of appeals over the issue of the punitive damages assessed against Exxon for the infamous 1989 oil spill. A jury first decided punitive damages should be $5 billion, and though the Supreme Court reduced that amount by roughly 90 percent in 2008, Exxon was forced to pay $60.6 million in premiums in the meantime for a bond guaranteeing payment of the original $5 billion. Exxon's total costs, including those premiums, approached $70 million, according to the opinion.

In Some Swimming Pools Lurks Nasty Intestinal Parasite
Reports of gastrointestinal illness from use of public pools and water parks have risen sharply in recent years, according to the Centers for the Disease Control and Prevention. The leading culprit is a microscopic organism that lives in human feces. Called cryptosporidium, it is a parasite transmitted in an egglike shell that can survive as long as 10 days even in chlorinated water. In 2007, the last year for which statistics are available, it was responsible for 31 recreational water outbreaks involving 3,726 people, up from 7 outbreaks and 567 people in 2004. Health officials say the reasons are unclear, but it could either be an increase in incidence or an increase in reporting.

Fewer the Better On the Trampoline
On a trampoline, if two is company, three or more may well be a fracture. Researchers who looked at children's trampoline injuries at a Scottish emergency department found that the most common factor was having many people bouncing at the same time. The researchers said three-quarters of the injuries they looked at had involved several people's sharing the trampoline. The number of people bouncing is not the only factor. The comparative weights of the people on the trampoline also make a big difference, and the lightest users often bear the heaviest costs. They are five times as likely to be injured, the study said. A child weighing about 40 pounds sharing the trampoline with an adult weighing 160 pounds experiences forces equivalent to falling almost 11.5 feet.

Plaintiff Suits Against Automakers Stall Out
As Chrysler and GM dispose of billions of dollars in assets and debts, potentially thousands of individuals with death and injury claims will either be out of luck or will face near insurmountable obstacles to success. When both auto companies emerge from bankruptcy, they are expected, as in the terms of Chrysler's sale to Fiat, to do so "free and clear" of all pending and future claims and interests in all property sold pre-bankruptcy. A group of consumer organizations and plaintiffs lawyers stepped into what one bankruptcy expert called the "murkier waters" of the law's treatment of future tort claims, or what another described as the "intersection of bankruptcy law and due process." Is it constitutional to cut off the rights of people who today have no knowledge that someday they may be injured or killed in an accident involving their Chrysler or GM vehicle? The consumer and plaintiff groups and some bankruptcy litigators and scholars answer no, but others disagree. And there is even disagreement over the law's treatment of pending tort claims.

Injuries Linked to Computers Skyrocket
According to a study in American Journal of Preventative Medicine, the number of acute computer-related injuries, including lacerations, bruises and muscle and joint strains, increase 732 percent from 1994 to 2006. Among the causes of injuries are tripping and falling over computer equipment, hitting against equipment, components falling on top of a person and lifting or moving a computer. Using data collected by the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System from emergency departments at 100 U.S. hospitals, the survey showed more than 78,000 cases of acute computer-related injuries were treated over the 13-year study period. As home computer use increases, computer-related injuries increase as well. About 93 percent of the injuries occurred at home.

Lawsuit Settlement Talks in Officer's Death Drag On
An insurance company's continued fight against covering Easton in the federal lawsuit brought by the widow of a slain officer appears to be slowing settlement talks. A second round of settlement talks in the federal lawsuit ended without a resolution to the more than two-year-old legal fight. The talks began after a judge denied Easton's request to dismiss the suit as a workers' compensation claim. The judge also denied the insurance company's argument that the insurance company is not obligated to defend or insure Easton. The company has argued that the officer's death inside police headquarters in 2005 was a workers' compensation claim. The judge had previously ruled that the city's $10 million policy with the insurance company clearly states that it covers "civil rights claims arising out of law enforcement activities."

Seven Juvenile Detention Center Workers Fired After Inmate's Suicide Attempt
Allegheny County's executive fired seven workers at a juvenile detention center as part of an investigation into the suicide attempt of an inmate. A teenager was found lying unresponsive in his room by a child care workers within the 15-minute window of room observation checks, as required by the state. But that particular worker had failed to check the room every five minutes as required of the center's workers. An investigation into the incident by the county and the state Department of Public Welfare found that seven workers "were deliberately violating the procedures." Six child care workers and a chief supervisor were terminated, even though none of them were on duty when the suicide attempt happened. The investigation revealed that some workers were filing out room observation logs, but they were not actually checking the rooms to see the teenage inmates. In 2008, the center was provided only a provisional certificate of compliance after an inspection found myriad problems, including inadequate staffing, building disrepair and poorly documented medical records.

Disability Damages Suits Don't Require Intent, California Supreme Court Rules
Businesses that violate the Americans with Disabilities Act, even if unintentionally, can be sued for damages, the California Supreme Court ruled. The justices concluded that was a reasonable interpretation of the state Legislature's decision in 1992 to adopt a civil code to amend the state's Unruh Civil Rights Act to include violations of the ADA. While the ADA provides only injunctive relief whether the harm was intentional or not, the civil code provides for damages of at least $4,000 or as much as three times the actual harm. "By incorporating the ADA into the Unruh Civil Rights Act, California's own civil rights law covering public accommodations, which does provide for a private damages action, the Legislature has afforded this remedy to persons injured by a violation of the ADA." A disabled man sued a restaurant after complaining that it didn't provide disabled parking or handicapped-accessible public toilets. The restaurant later spent $75,000 on renovations.

Federal Judge Dismisses Suit Over Community Service Death
The widow of a man who died of a heart attack while performing court-ordered community service during an excessive heat warning has lost her civil rights suit that accused county officials of ignoring her husband's obvious medical risks. The judge concluded that no jury could ever find that county officials were liable under the "state-created danger" theory because the evidence showed that the man had volunteered to do construction work and had never asked for light-duty work to accommodate his heart condition. The ruling was a stunning turnaround because the same judge had issued an opinion in 2008 that rejected a defense motion to dismiss because the allegations satisfied all four prongs of the state-created danger test. The judge said in his most recent ruling that the widow had testified that her husband had no history of heart-related illness prior to his community service and had never seen a cardiologist or complained of chest pains or other symptoms of a heart attack. The judge found that even if county officials had inquired into his medical conditions prior to assigning him work, he would not have been able to tell anyone about his significant cardiac disease.

Pioneering Mass Tort Judge Offers Impassioned Defense of Personal Injury Class Actions
A Brooklyn federal district court judge has written a provocative article which expresses his fear that mass tort litigation will not bring justice to the injured because of the judiciary's disregard for his favored vehicle, the class action. He wrote, "The problem of individual justice in disputes involving large masses of people is endemic in a huge heterogeneous population such as ours, where most people claiming to be injured are not in direct contact with those they believe have caused them harm." He used the example of Agent Orange litigation, saying that it "established that class actions were useful in very complex cases that often involve political as well as economic and scientific issues. When settled, they provide a method of sound utilization of available funds, with minimal transaction costs, to assist persons who believe they were, or are, injured; they permit defendants to limit their exposure and get on with their productive work without huge continuing litigations hanging over their heads."

Woman Struck by Rock Sues PennDOT
A woman sued the state Department of Transportation, claiming a softball-sized rock crashed through her windshield and hit her in the face. She stated in her eight-page lawsuit in Allegheny County Common Pleas Court that PennDOTT failed to protect her from falling debris from overpasses or from rocks thrown from the opposite direction of traffic. She was a passenger in her mother's car in 2007 when the rock broke the glass and hit her in the face. She claims that the agency was negligent in failing to secure the road despite numerous reported incidents of rocks being thrown on the highway.

Gun Dealer May be Liable for Former Employee's Use of Stolen Weapon to Shoot Police
A New Jersey judge has refused to grant statutory immunity to a gun dealer sued when an ex-employee stole one of its handguns and shot a police officer. The gun dealer claimed it was covered under the four-year-old federal Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act, which immunizes gun sellers from suits by victims of gun-related crimes. But a judge ruled that the dealer's failure to tell authorities that the gun was missing violated the statute and said a jury should decide whether that failure constituted negligence and whether it was a proximate cause of the officer's injuries. The dealer then agreed to pay a $487,500 settlement to the injured officer. The officer had responded to a call of shots fired from a moving vehicle. When the officer showed up, the man shot him and the officers then fatally shot the shooter. The officer's right arm is now paralyzed, his right leg drags when he walks and he is on disability. An investigation showed that the shooter once worked at the gun dealer. During his employment, some guns came up missing, including the one that was used to shoot the officer.

Car Crash Victim Sues Over Lost Leg
A law firm partner is being sued over an auto accident in California that resulted in a mother losing her leg. The suit alleges that he was under the influence of OxyContin when he pulled into the handicapped space of a store, started getting out of his car without putting it in park and rammed a group of parents and girls selling Girl Scout cookies, pinning one mother against a wall. The mother who filed suit lost one of her legs above the knee after both were broken and her 8-year-old daughter's leg was also broken. The suit does not ask for punitive damages yet, but an attorney for the mother claim they are simply waiting for further evidence before determining whether to seek punitive damages.

Court Rules Bicycling a "Leisure" Activity and Finds No Assumption of Risk
Drawing a distinction between "sporting" and "leisure" activities, a Brooklyn-based appellate court has refused to dismiss a lawsuit filed by an avid Long Island bicyclist who was injured in an accident precipitated by roadway repairs. The court declined to apply the assumption-of-risk doctrine as a matter of law and ruled unanimously that the negligence action could proceed. Courts frequently dismiss such suits, guided by a public policy of encouraging "vigorous participation in athletic activities" and reasoning that athletes might otherwise be reluctant to play aggressively for fear of being sued. The panel wrote, "It cannot be said, as a matter of law, that merely by choosing to operate a bicycle on a paved public roadway, or by engaging in some other form of leisure activity or exercise such as walking, jogging or roller skating on a paved public roadway, a plaintiff consents to the negligent maintenance of such roadways by a municipality or a contractor." The plaintiff was among club members who gathered at a local bicycle shop on weekends for long-distance rides. In 2002, she was the last rider in one of several groups of eight on a 72-mile ride. A contracting company was doing repairs on the road and only laid one of two layers of asphalt, leaving a "lip." As the cyclists approached the lip, many began a "hopping" maneuver. However, one rider fell into the path of the plaintiff when his attempt went awry. When the plaintiff tried to avoid running him over, she swerved and collided with an oncoming car. The plaintiff then sued the town, the water authority and the contractor for $250,000. The defendants had tried to argue that her voluntary participation in biking and assumption of the risk inherent in that activity relieved them of any duty to her.

Falling Flat Screen TVs Growing Threat to Kids
Nearly 17,000 children were rushed to emergency rooms in 2007, the last year for which complete figures were available, after heavy or unstable furniture fell over on them, a new study reported this month. The study found that such injuries had risen 41 percent since 1990. The increase correlated with the popularity of ever-bigger flat panel television that Americans have brought into their homes in that time, along with the entertainment centers and narrow, less-stable stands to hold them. Injuries from televisions alone accounted for nearly half of all injuries related to falling furniture during the study period, 47 percent. Three-quarters of the victims of falling furniture are younger than 6 years old.

Georgia Judge Reluctantly Tosses $4.9 Million Suit Against Kuwaiti Contractor
A Kuwaiti military contractor being sued by the family of a dead American soldier has been "indignant and callous," a federal judge said, but he was compelled to vacate a $4.9 million judgment against the company and dismiss the suit because the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia does not have jurisdiction in the case. Another judge had awarded the judgment to the family of the solider, who, while in Iraq in 2003, was killed in a traffic accident involving a truck driver by an employee of Kuwait & Gulf Link Transport Co., or KGL. KGL did not appear to defend the suit, and the judge issued a default judgment in the family's favor. Only then did KGL become involved and ask a judge to set aside the ruling.

County Settles Strip-Search Suit
A federal class action lawsuit against Dauphin County over strip searches conducted on inmates facing minor charges has been settled out of court for $2.16 million. The suit has far-reaching implications. Anyone strip-searched at the Dauphin County Prison while being held on minor charged from 2005 to 2008 is eligible for an award. The number of people involved could be 9,000. Awards could reach $1,400 for inmates covered by the lawsuit, which came as a result of a 2007 Labor Day weekend party on the Susquehanna River in Harrisburg that sent more than 50 people to the jail on charges equivalent to traffic tickets. Those arrested were handcuffed, shackled, taken to police headquarters, detained for several hours and then transferred to the county jail, where they were strip-searched.

Another MRSA Lawsuit Filed Against Northampton County Prison
A former Northampton Country Prison inmate has filed a federal lawsuit against the facility in which he spent a little more than a year, court records say. A prisoner, now in state prison, filed suit against the prison, claiming the conditions inside led him to develop methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. The prisoner claims he suffered immense pain and embarrassment as a result of contracting the disease, records said. He joined several others who have filed similar suits against the prison. He was incarcerated in the prison from January 2008 to February 2009. He was arrested after he struck a man over the head with a two-by-four inside a Bethlehem pizza shop.

Injuries From Falling Furniture Rising
Injuries involving overturned televisions, shelves and other household items are on the rise, raising questions about whether enough is being done to make them safer, researchers say. After looking at information about furniture tip-overs injuries for an 18-year-period, the researchers said, they had found a 40 percent increase. On average, they said, more than 14,000 Americans are injured each year. The researchers looked at injuries involving 12 types of furniture, including desks, dressers and cabinets. Most of the injuries were to children 6 or younger, and the most common involved televisions, which are sometimes placed on furniture not intended to hold them. In many cases, children pulled furniture onto themselves, perhaps when they were reaching for something. In other injuries, the furniture fell because children bumped into it or were climbing it.

Broken Heart Could Cost Ex-Boyfriend in Court
A woman is putting a price on heartbreak, and it's more than $1 million. She is suing her former boyfriend, claiming her decision to quit her job, sell her home and move to Texas to be with him was based on lies and left her with a personal financial mess. The complaint contends that her boyfriend concealed financial and legal problems from her, including tax liens and a bench warrant for failing to appear on a drunk driving charge. Her complaint alleges that her boyfriend had a duty to disclose any negative aspects of his past to her before she entered into a personal relationship with him. She is suing for intentional infliction of emotional duress, breach of promise and breach of contract, and she is seeking half of all income he received from business efforts while she helped support him.

Girl Mauled by Mastiff in Coma
One day after being horribly mauled by a bullmastiff, a 9-year-old girl was in critical, but stable, condition, in a medically induced coma. Her mother reported, "From the dog attack, she suffered multiple fractures, her sinuses were torn out, her skull was punctured, jaw broken and the bridge of her nose ripped away." Another 9-year-old was with the girl at the time of the attack and actually walking the dog when it attacked. She was also taken to the hospital, but left after receiving 32 stitches in her lip. The two girls were walking the bullmastiff on a leash when another dog appeared. The other dog barked, jumped a fence and provoked the mastiff. When the two girls tried to stop the bullmastiff from attacking the other dog, it turned on them.

Lawyer Sues Troopers for Use of Excessive Force During Cell Phone Fracas
More than two years after he was thrown to the ground and arrested after being warned to put away his cell phone as he waited to plead a client's DUI case, charges against a Georgia attorney have been dropped by the district attorney. But the case is not over: The attorney has filed suit in federal court against the two state troopers who hauled him, bleeding and in handcuffs, out of a waiting area at the Office of State Administrative Hearings in downtown Atlanta and charged him with obstructing an officer. According to witnesses, the attorney was among several waiting outside the courtroom in February 2007 when a state trooper approached the lawyer and told him to either put away his cell phone or leave the court offices. The troopers allege that the attorney became "uncooperative" and cursed. The attorney, who was 68 years old at the time, was wrestled to the ground by two state troopers and pushed into a wall. The attorney is accusing the troopers of excessive force and battery, which he claims caused severe injuries, including a concussion and contusions and lacerations to his lip, face and head.

California High Court Rejects Claim Over Misplaced Cadaver
The California Supreme Court tossed the lawsuit of a widow who claimed that a University of California scientific research program had misused and msiplaced her husband's body. The court ruled that the widow failed to prove that UC-Irvine breached a 1996 contract between the medical school's willed-body program and her husband of 40 years. The man died in 1999, and his body was delivered to UC-Irvine as intended. Shortly after her husband's death, the widow read troubling newspaper accounts that suggested the school was using cadavers for unauthorized purposes, including private, for-profit tutoring classes and out-of-state sales to researchers. Her calls to the school would later confirm that her husband's body was one of 320 donated between 1995 and 1999 that could not be accounted for. It was never clear and was never tracked by the school as to how the program used or disposed of the cadaver.

Mother of Slain Motorist Demands Controversial Trooper Lose Job
A state trooper who fatally shot a Pittsburgh man last month must be prevented from returning to duty, the dead man's mother said. The same trooper who fired the shot that killed her son also fatally shot a 12-year-old boy six years ago. Lawyers for the man's mother have filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against the trooper, his supervisor and several other state police officials. On the night of the man's shooting, the trooper and his partner were looking for drunken drivers following a St. Patrick's Day celebration when they spotting the man's vehicle heading the wrong way down a one way street. The officers then chased the vehicle as it sped down the street in reverse, smashed into a parked car and then backed up and hit their patrol car. Both troopers opened fire, shooting the man four times. The medical examiner found that the one trooper's bullet was the fatal shot. In the case of the 12-year-old boy the trooper fatally shot in 2002, his family was awarded $12.5 million.

Third Time's the Charm for Defense in Florida Smoker Suits
Last month, ominous news for the tobacco industry came out of the first individual smoker suits to reach a verdict: A Florida jury awarded a widow $8 million in damages against Altira, the parent company of Philip Morris. With some 8,000 similar suits lined up for trial, can the industry survive the onslaught? Especially now that the second Florida smoker suit has resulted in a $700,000 verdict against Liggett Group. However, tobacco companies got some good news for a change when a jury in Florida delivered a defense verdict for R.J. Reynolds and Altria in a case brought by the widow of a smoker who died of lung cancer. After two weeks of trial, the jury took only 90 minutes to clear the tobacco companies.

Chimp Attack Case Could Break New Legal Ground
Everyone knew that after a 14-year-old chimpanzee mauled a woman, a huge lawsuit was coming. Now that the first legal steps have been taken, Connecticut lawyers are watching to see if the case breaks new ground in state tort law. Lawyers for the victim filed property liens and a request for a temporary restraining order against the chimpanzee's owner in the first step to recover damages for her near-fatal injuries. The papers seek to legally freeze the financial status of the owner's home and three other properties. The restraining order also prevents sale or removal of more than $500 in personal property in the normal course of business. The victim is seeking $50 million in damages. Her legal argument is that the owner is strictly liable for owning a wild animal, and that she was negligent and reckless for doing so. The owner's attorney refuted the argument, saying that strict liability tort, which would hold his client liable simply for owning the animal, doesn't apply. He said that the plaintiff must show negligence, meaning that she must prove that the owner knew the chimp had violent tendencies.

Plaintiff Gets $46 Million Result and Goes for Insurers
A California Superior Court judge recently awarded more than $46 million to a local woman almost entirely paralyzed in a 2006 car accident and her husband. The judgment came after at least one insurance company tried and failed to intervene in the case when it discovered that the defendant was not going to put up a fight. Now the couple must fight to get the insurance company to pay. The judge awarded the woman $20 million for emotional distress and pain and suffering, and gave $5 million to her husband for the loss of his wife's companionship. Among other damages, the judge also awarded the woman more than $17 million for future medical care and lost wages.

Defendants in Asbestos Suit Lose Bid for Autopsy of Plaintiff
In a case of first impression, a New Jersey appeals court denied a defense request for an autopsy of an asbestos-exposure plaintiff who died two days before trial. The panel affirmed a trial judge's finding that defendants Chrysler Corp. and Honeywell failed to show that examination of the dead man's lung tissue would produce significant evidence. The ruling means that the man's body, which had been stored at a funeral home, can now be laid to rest. The suit claims that the man, who died at age 67, contracted mesothelioma, a form of lung cancer, by inhaling asbestos while working in a car repair shop decades earlier. Chrysler and Honeywell learned of his death on the day the trial was scheduled to begin. Both companies immediately requested an autopsy to learn what, if any, fibers were present in his lung tissue in order to help refute causation. The judge denied the autopsy request.

Childhood Sex Abuse Bill Passes Hurdle in New York
A New York Assembly committee approved a bill that would give victims of sexual abuse a year to revive currently time-barred civil suits but defeated for now a new alternative bill that is favored by the Roman Catholic Church to provide victims with far more limited statute-of-limitations relief. The bill has passed the Assembly with bipartisan support each year since 2006 but has been bottled up in the Senate due to Republican opposition. With the Senate now in Democratic control, final passage of the bill in the Legislature is considered more likely this year. The bill would create a one-year window for the filing of civil suits by the victims of childhood sexual abuse if they were past the age when the current statute of limitations expires, which is when an alleged victim turns 23. The bill would also extend the statute of limitations for the filing of civil suits to when alleged victims turn 28 and the statute of limitations to when victims turn 28 for the filing of some criminal charges relating to the sexual abuse of minors. The bill would apply to all child sex abuse cases, but its supporters have said it is particularly designed to aid the victims of abuse by clergy members.

Massachusetts Court Moves "Light" Cigarette Suit Forward
The state's highest court ruled that Massachusetts smokers can use a consumer protection law to sue Philip Morris Inc. for the way it marketed Marlboro Lights. The ruling means a class action lawsuit brought by smokers who claim deceptive marketing can move forward. In a similar U.S. Supreme Court case, the justices ruled that smokers may use state consumer protection laws to sue cigarette makers for the way they promote "light" and "low tar" brands. In the class action suit, filed in 1998, the Massachusetts smokers claimed that Philip Morris engaged in deceptive marketing because Marlboro Lights did not deliver lowered tar and nicotine to smokers. Philip Morris, however, argued that the state's consumer protection law is pre-empted by the 1965 Federal Cigarette Labeling and Advertising Act, which prohibits state from regulating any aspect of cigarette advertising that involves smoking and health. The company also claims that the Federal Trade Commission allows the use of terms such as "light" and "lower tar and nicotine" on cigarette packages. The company stopped using the phrase "lower tar and nicotine" on packages in 2003. The state Supreme Court ruled that the FTC had never given express permission to use those descriptors.

Officer and City Face Civil Suit in Federal Court
The city of Erie has forced the withdrawal of a lawsuit filed in Erie County Court against a police officer, but the case isn't over. A lawyer for the plaintiff vowed to take the suit to federal court. The suit will be refashioned from a negligence claim to a civil rights claim. The plaintiff claims that an Erie police officer wrongfully elbowed him in the face, damaging his teeth, and pointed a gun at him while he was a bystander at the scene of a homicide. The homicide victim was the plaintiff's 15-year-old nephew. The plaintiff sued the city and the officer last year, while the city claimed the claims are groundless. The plaintiff claims the officer struck him with no provocation.

Ex-Inmates Sue Northampton County Prison for Skin Disease
Four men have filed federal lawsuits against Northampton County Prison and their health care provider, claiming they were not properly cared for after contracting methicillin-resistant staphylococcus. The four inmates joined others who have brought similar lawsuits against the prison and its medical provider. The men claim the conditions inside the prison led them to contract the skin disease and that they were not properly cared for after reporting the symptoms.

Alleged Madoff Victim Files Suit Against Financier
Another victim of indicted New York financier Bernard Madoff filed a lawsuit, lodging the complaint against a Washington state investment advisor who ultimately put the money in a hedge fund that invested with Madoff. The lawsuit claims that the plaintiff invested $115,000 with FutureSelect Prime Advisors of Washington, and that FutureSelect's managing partner failed to perform proper due diligence before investing the money with a hedge fund that in turn invested the money with Madoff. Madoff pleaded guilty to 11 counts of fraud, money laundering, theft and perjury, owning up to a monster Ponzi scheme that may have cost investors more than $50 billion.

Better Brain Trauma Testing Urged for Troops
A group of doctors and scientists say the U.S. needs to devise a uniform test for traumatic brain injury to be performed on all troops who are exposed to a blast or other violent event in wartime. Traumatic brain injury, or TBI, is often referred to as the signature wound of the Iraq war. Roadside bombs, vehicle accidents and other events have left hundreds of thousands of troops with such an injury. Most are mild, and military medical officials have said an overwhelming majority heal without treatment. But other officials have said 45,000 to 90,000 troops have suffered more severe and lasting symptoms.

10 Day Care Kids Drink Windshield Fluid
Ten children at an Arkansas day care center drank windshield wiper fluid after the owner served it from a container mistaken for Kool-Aid and placed in a refrigerator. The day care owner voluntarily surrendered her state license. Doctors estimate the children, ages 2 to 7, drank about an ounce of the blue fluid before realizing it tasted wrong. Only one child remained hospitalized in good condition after blood samples showed "measurable levels" of methanol, a highly toxic alcohol that can induce comas and cause blindness. In moderate cases, it can cause nausea, vomiting, staggering and sleepiness. The owner bought the windshield wiper fluid with several other items on a recent shopping trip. The windshield wiper fluid was mistakenly grabbed and thought to be Kool-Aid and put in the refrigerator.

Hepatitis C Infections Found in Clinic Patients
At least nine kidney patients were infected with hepatitis C while being treated at a Manhattan dialysis center that was closed by state health officials last year, according to the results of an investigation by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The viruses found in four of the infected patients were close generic matches to viruses in other clinic patients, the investigators said, indicating that the four were almost certainly infected by contaminated equipment at the clinic. The center was ordered closed after investigators found unsanitary operating conditions. According to the CDC's report, still other patients may also have been infected at the clinic. The patients whose infections were genetically traced to others came in for treatment on the same days of the week, and two had been hooked up to the same dialysis machines.

Inmate Claims Jail Video Will Prove Guards Mistreated Him
An inmate who won a $185,000 civil award against the state Department of Corrections returned to federal court, where he is suing prison guards he says mistreated him. The inmate claims prison guards confiscated and destroyed legal documents belonging to him, beat him up with excessive force and sprayed him with pepper spray. The guards, he claims, then refused him access to water for a week while the pepper spray remained on his body. Although the inmate says a video recording will help prove his mistreatment, a lawyer for the guards said it would prove the opposite. The guards claim that the inmate became enraged when a guard refused to deliver a letter containing a newspaper clipping, which the inmate was banned from receiving. He then tried to flee his cell when guards delivered his dinner, prompting prison officials to move him to another cell, during which a team of guards used force and pepper spray to subdue him. In a separate case, a federal jury ruled in the same inmate's favor, concluding that guards at a different state prison interfered with his access to courts, retaliated against him and conspired to violate his civil right.

California Justices Seem Skeptical About School's Responsibility for Lost Cadaver
The California Supreme Court heard from a lawyer who argued that his client should have the right to sue the University of California for allegedly losing her deceased husband's body. His client sued the school nine years ago after learning that her husband's body, which had been donated for scientific research in 1999, couldn't be located. The couple had signed contracts with the university in 1996 after reading about the "willed body program." She claims she was promised that her husband's body would be treated with respect, tracked through the system and eventually cremated with his ashes spread at sea during a ceremony she could attend. Eight months later, she read a newspaper article that indicated hundreds of bodies were missing from the program. After learning that her husband's body couldn't be located, she sued for breach of contract, negligent misrepresentation, intentional infliction of emotional distress and other claims.

Second Appeal Denied in $54 Million Lawsuit Over Judge's Pants
The District's Court of Appeals has denied a request for a second appeals hearing for a former U.S. judge who sued a dry cleaner for $54 million over a pair of lost pants. Last year, three judges on the court unanimously rejected the judge's initial appeal, saying he failed to show the store's promise of "satisfaction guaranteed" amounted to fraud. None of the remaining six judges objected to the previous ruling, in effect rejecting the judge's request. His final option is to request a hearing before the U.S. Supreme Court.

9th Circuit Rules Vatican Can be Sued Over Abuse
A federal appeals court says the Vatican can be sued for abuse committed by its priests. The 9th U.S. Circuit of Appeals ruled that victims of sexual abuse by Roman Catholic priests can sue the Vatican even though it is considered a sovereign nation. The appeals court said there are exceptions to the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act, and abuse can be one of them. The case has been working its way through the federal appeals court since a judge in Portland ruled in 2006 that the Holy See can be held responsible for the actions of individual priests.

Hospital Wants Suit in Death Tossed
Hospital attorneys want a judge to throw out a lawsuit filed by the son of an 89-year-old woman who wandered from her hospital room and was found dead in subfreezing temperatures on the hospital roof the next morning. The hospital alleges that many of the claims in the complaint are false, inadmissible or both, and claim that many of the allegations were designed to generate adverse publicity and "contaminate the jury pool." While the hospital claims that the floor was sufficiently staffed and that there was a functioning lock in place on the patient's door, the lawyer for the patient's family noted that the patient walked through three doors and past a nurses' station on her way to room unnoticed. The wrongful death and negligence lawsuit alleges that multiple failures at the hospital, including the lack of a functioning lock, resulted in her death.

California Justices Air Standing for Class Actions Against Tobacco Industry
Just a few weeks ago, the California Supreme Court ruled that lawsuits under the Consumer Legal Remedies Act can only be filed by individuals who suffer real damage from unlawful business practices. But it still isn't clear where the court stood on applying that same rule to every participant of class actions filed under the state's Unfair Competition law. The outcome is still mostly a mystery, but some predict the justices will reverse the appellate court which upheld class decertification. The underlying suit was filed 12 years ago and accused Philip Morris and five other tobacco manufacturers of violating the UCL and the state's False Advertising Law by allegedly denying links between smoking and serious illnesses. The suit also accused the companies of marketing cigarettes as having no additives and being non-addictive. The suit doesn't seek damages, just injunctive relief and restitution for money plaintiffs spent on cigarettes.

Dirty Syringes Tied to Indian Hepatitis Outbreak
Investigators in western India looking into a deadly hepatitis outbreak traced to infected syringes have uncovered a huge operation to illegally recycle hundreds of tons of used medical equipment. Authorities launched the probe two weeks ago after an outbreak of hepatitis B that has killed 56 people and sickened more than 100. The source has been traced to infected syringes. Officials who raided dispensaries, private hospitals and laboratories in the area central to the outbreak found a flourishing black market in reused medical equipment. In the last few days, more than 300 tons of medical waste was discovered in warehouses, much of it packaged for resale.

Something Rotten in Drywall, Say Homeowners
Many homeowners whose homes were built in 2005 and 2006 when construction materials were scarce have begun to experience unusual problems. The coils in their high-end air conditioner failed repeatedly, and there was a strong odor in a downstairs bathroom. Numerous lawsuits have been filed over what could be toxic drywall manufactured in China, even though tests have confirmed that the drywall was actually manufactured in America. A motion has been filed to consolidate the drywall class action complaints being filed across the country. All of the class action plaintiffs bought homes built in 2006. Some discovered their drywall was suspect after smelling a foul odor similar to rotten eggs, while others found copper pipes that were black. Lawyers suspect that U.S. companies purchased drywall from Chinese manufacturers and relabeled it as their own during a drought of building supplies.

Man Says Taser Use by Police Excessive
A retired construction worker says he was Tasered "multiple times" a year ago by a Bedford Borough police officer who objected to his use of a tape recorder in the Bedford County Courthouse. The 72-year-old man said the incident resulted in him being hospitalized for four days. Criminal charges filed against him included illegally intercepting communications, disorderly conduct and resisting arrest. He has since filed a lawsuit against the borough and the officer, and the officer currently faces civil charges of using excessive force in making an unlawful arrest. The officer claims he was called to the courthouse by the sheriff's department because the man was violating the state's wiretap act by going from office to office and tape recording people without their consent. When he was told the turn off the tape recorder, the man walked away and a confrontation ensued, during which the officer hurt his hand. It was then that the officer used the Taser.

Referee Rejects Compensation for Kidney in Divorce Case
A Long Island surgeon's bid to seek $1.5 million for the kidney he donated to his estranged wife "not only runs afoul" of public policy, but may expose him to criminal prosecution, a court referee ruled. The four-year-old divorce case between the surgeon and his wife gained worldwide notoriety when he held a press conference to announce his intention to seek compensation for the organ, which he donated to her. The referee ruled that the surgeon had tried to put a price on the kidney, which violates state law, which makes it a felony for "any person to knowingly acquire for valuable consideration any human organ for use in human transplantation." The referee also denied the surgeon's request to call an expert to determine the value of the kidney.

PA Judges Face New Civil Suit Over Alleged Kickbacks
Two disgraced Pennsylvania judges charged with taking kickbacks to send youth offenders to private detention centers are facing another civil lawsuit tied to the scandal. The suit was filed on behalf of juvenile offenders sentenced between 2003 and 2008 and claims the judges perpetrated "what ranks as one of the largest and most serious violations of children's rights in the history of the American legal system." Prosecutors allege that the judges took $2.6 million in payoffs to put juvenile offenders in lockups run by PA Child Care, LLC and a sister company while they were judges in Luzerne County. The judges both plead guilty to fraud and face more than seven years in prison. The civil suit claims that the judges and others conspired to violate juveniles' civil rights and that they broke racketeering laws. The suit lists 95 plaintiffs and asks a judge to certify it as a class action. Two other federal lawsuits made similar allegations.

Ambulance Driver Sentenced to Jail for Drunken Fatal Crash
A western Pennsylvania ambulance driver has been sentenced for a car crash that killed two men while she was transporting a patient after she had been drinking. The 23-year-old pleaded guilty to two counts of involuntary manslaughter and driving while impaired. She was sentenced to serve at 11 to 23 months in the Allegheny County Jail and will be placed on probation for five years following her release. Authorities claim she ran a red light and hit a car, killing both the driver and his passenger. Her blood-alcohol level was below the legal limit more than an hour after the crash, but would have been above it at the time of the accident.

Defendant's Suit Alleges Rights Violated in County Lockup
A murderer has filed a federal lawsuit against a Cambria County jail, claiming he was kept naked and in solitary confinement for five days on orders of the warden. The warden denies the claims, and said that if an inmate is a suicide or security risk, the inmate is not given regular prison clothing, but is instead given a security smock or a safety smock. The warden didn't recall the inmate being placed on either type of watch, though. The inmate pleaded guilty to third-degree murder in the shooting death of another man who was supposedly purchasing cocaine from him. The inmate claims his constitutional rights were violated and is asked for $850,000 in the suit against Cambria County Prison. He also claims that he was not allowed to exercise on a daily basis and that his outgoing mail was searched.

Sued State Trooper Wants Lawsuit Thrown Out
A Pennsylvania State Trooper at the center of a civil suit involving the shooting of an unarmed 12-year-old boy wants an unrelated suit dismissed. A Pittsburgh man claims that the trooper assaulted him outside a city bar in July 2008. The trooper maintains that he was breaking up a fight and acting within his law enforcement authority. A civil suit against the trooper and his partner for the Christmas Eve shooting death of a 12-year-old boy was settled last year for $12.5 million.

Taverns Raise Bar on Training in Wake of Drunk Driving Deaths
More and more bars are taking the steps to better train their servers following the involuntary manslaughter charges filed against a tavern and its owner. The charges state that management failed to properly train its employees, resulting in an intoxicated woman causing an accident that killed her and two others. State law holds bartenders responsible for underage drinking, serving visibly intoxicated patrons and allowing drinkers to drive their vehicles. The involuntary manslaughter charges alleged a series of missteps by the tavern's staff, including serving her a mixed drink even though the bartender knew she was too drunk to drink a shot that she also ordered, and a bouncer guiding her to her car and watching her get in the driver's seat. An evening after the drunk driving accident, a Liquor Control Enforcement officer went to the bar and witnessed a bartender serving a visibly intoxicate person.

Day Care Owner Sentenced to Prison for Boy's Death
The owner of a day care center who pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter and obstruction of justice has been sentenced to serve one to two years in a state correctional facility for the death of a 1-year-old boy. The owner ran a licensed day care center out of her house. The boy was dropped off at the day care center by his mother at 9:30. He was discovered to be unresponsive at 10:00 by the owner, who initially claimed she had put the boy in a playpen where she later found him. Later, police interviewed a 12-year-old who was at the day care center during the incident. The 12-year-old said that a 9-year-old has placed the boy in a playpen and then placed a board on top in an effort to contain the child. The boy apparently tried to push the board out of the way in an attempt to get out when the board and other items fell on him, pinning him to the floor and causing him to die of asphyxiation. The owner lied to police, claiming that the boy was in a room adjacent to the kitchen, when he was in fact in the basement unattended.

Plan Implemented to Resolve Complex Suits in World Trace Center Cleanup
More than seven years after the September 11th terror attacks, plaintiffs lawyers and New York City are now following a road map a federal judge hopes will result in settlements next year in the complicated process of determining liability for respiratory damage already suffered by thousands of workers who participated in the cleanup of the World Trade Center site. A total of 225 of the most severe cases have been selected by two special masters appointed by a judge in the litigation brought by more than 9,000 plaintiffs. Of that group of 225, six cases will soon be selected for what are formally scheduled to be trials but are really a path toward settlement. Two of those sample cases will be selected by New York City, its contactors and other defendants; two more will be selected by attorneys for those who claim injury from the cleanup of toxic materials; and another two will be selected by the judge himself. Those six cases will then steam forward with full discovery. By September, they will have been joined in stages by another 24 cases, setting a total of 30 cases on track for the argument of motions beginning in January 2010 and trial readiness by May 2010.

Parents of Boy Killed by Health Aide Sue Facility's Officials
The parents of a 13-year-old autistic and mentally disabled boy who was smothered to death by an employee of a New York-run residential treatment center have filed a federal lawsuit against several of the facility's officials and employees. The boy died while in a van on an outgoing trip to a mall. A health aide attempted to restrain him by sitting on his chest and putting a hand over his mouth while a fellow employee looked on, suffocating him. His parents claim that the same employee assaulted their son on at least three previous occasions but that facility officials and workers covered up the attacks. They further maintain that employees were overworked, under-trained, under-supervised and ill-suited to care for disabled children. The employee in question was convicted of second-degree manslaughter and is serving five to 15 years in prison.

Former Pfizer VP Ordered to Pay Victim in Child Porn Case
A federal judge has ordered a man convicted of possessing and distributing child pornography to pay about $200,000 in restitution to a woman who was photographed being sexually abused when she was a child. The ruling is the first criminal case in which someone convicted of possessing illegal images, but not creating them, was required to pay restitution. The case involves a British citizen who was sentenced to 78 months in prison for possessing and distributing nearly 2,000 photographs of child pornography. The man was a vice president of pharmaceutical giant Pfizer, Inc. Authorities claim that from June 2006 to May 2007, the man used the Internet to exchange hundreds of images of child pornography and to engage in online "chats" about the sexual molestation of children. Prosecutors said many of the images showed minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct with adults and with other minors. He was arrested in March 2008 and was fired from his job. Prosecutors submitted images to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children and notified a now 19-year-old woman that it was possible her image was included in the materials. She said that when she was 8 or 9, she was subjected to sexual abuse by a relative for the purpose of producing child pornography that was requested by a pedophile in another state.

Obama Asked to Reappoint Ground Zero Health Official
Two members of the New York Congressional delegation are calling on President Obama to reappoint an official to coordinate health programs for workers at Ground Zero, a job that has been vacant since the official was removed by the Bush administration. The two representatives say the Obama administration should put the same official back in charge of coordinating federal health monitoring and treatment programs for those who worked at Ground Zero after the September 11th attacks. He was given the post in 2006 and championed programs to screen and treat those who became ill working at Ground Zero.

Ex-Prosecutor Sued Over Suicide of Defendant's Wife
Just before a 27-year-old woman shot herself to death, she wrote a suicide note blaming the federal prosecutor who has successfully pursued her husband and made her the target of a federal grand jury. Her suicide and the tactics the prosecutor used to go after the couple's online pharmacy are at the heart of a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the guardian of the dead woman's child. The couple's online pharmacy was the target of a nine-year federal investigation that concluded shortly before the lawsuit was filed. The woman's husband pleaded guilty to federal charges of participating in a conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud by engaging in the unregulated sale of unadulterated drugs, including anabolic steroids, Valium and Xanax. The prosecutor in the case regretted the woman's suicide, but stated that he had done nothing wrong and cited a federal judge's ruling that the pharmacy must pay $15.8 million in fines for fraudulent claims and the guilty pleas of nine defendants in the case.

Lawmakers Seek to Return Right to Sue Device Makers
The Supreme Court decided in 2008 to bar patients from suing medical device companies, an obstacle that some members of Congress are trying to change. The court ruling barred patients or their survivors from suing makers of complex medical devices if the FDA had approved their sale. Since that ruling, judges nationwide have cited it to dismiss cases against a wide range of manufacturers. However, some members of Congress want to give potential plaintiffs a chance for legal recourse. Two House Democrats plan to reintroduce legislation that would effectively nullify the Supreme Court's decision. The lawmakers claims that the Supreme Court's decision has left patients legally powerless against what they criticize as spotty oversight of products by the FDA. They argue that the FDA has shown itself incapable of keeping dangerous products off the market, and that the Supreme Court has ruled that patients can't sue companies for redress. Among the lawsuits dismissed since the Supreme Court ruling include a woman burned internally by a device meant to reduce menstrual bleeding; a man who sustained internal injuries from a prostate treatment device; and numerous patients who say they were injured by faulty joints or heart implants.

Three Offenders File Suit Claiming Probation Process Unfair
Three men recently filed a federal lawsuit against the director of the state Board of Probation and Parole, claiming the organization has failed to provide required due process. The men are seeking to have the complaint certified as a class action, though their lawsuit specifically states that it is unknown how large the class might be. As of the end of 2008, 757 defendants from Allegheny County were serving state probation. One of the men was about to complete his two-year state prison sentence, which would be followed by one year of state probation. However, as a convicted sex offender, he couldn't find housing in compliance with state regulation. Before even getting out of prison, he was back in, serving time on a technical probation violation. He has since been in county jail for seven months without a hearing.

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