Authorities have dropped charges against the Florida teen “who was expelled and charged with two felonies after conducting an unauthorized but harmless science experiment on the grounds of her school.” [Jesse Walker, earlier] And in the feel-good story of the day, former NASA astronaut Homer Hickam “awarded Kiera a scholarship to attend the United States Advanced Space Academy (ASA), a branch of the famous Space Camp in Huntsville, Alabama.” [Black Youth Project]
Tagged as:
Florida,
schools,
science and scientists,
zero tolerance
Florida has shortened yellow-light times at intersections, which raises the danger of crashes but improves revenue for red-light cameras, currently running at more than $100 million a year in the state. [WTSP (auto-plays) via Tabarrok]
Tagged as:
Florida,
red light cameras
- Hit by stray bullet, wakes from anesthesia fighting, hospital told to pay $17 million [Georgia; Insurance Journal]
- Study: physician’s previous paid claims history has no impact on odds of catastrophic med-mal payout [Bixenstine et al, JHQ via PoL] Overall, med-mal payouts have fallen steadily in past decade; $3.6 billion figure last year follows strongly regionalized pattern with top per capita figures all in Northeast [Diederich analysis of annual payouts via TortsProf] Florida law now requires that testifying medical witness be in same specialty as defendant [Business Week]
- In lawsuits alleging “wrongful birth,” what’s the measure of damages? [Gerard Magliocca, Concurring Opinions]
- ObamaCare exchanges in D.C., California and Connecticut declare smoking “pre-existing condition,” say insurers can’t base higher rates on it [Kevin Williamson, NR]
- “The Crime of Whitening Teeth with Over-the-Counter Products” [Caleb Brown, Bluegrass Institute]
- How not to die: Jonathan Rauch on end-of-life overtreatment [The Atlantic]
- “I’m going to start a rumor that Sudafed is an abortifacient. Then the feds will finally have to allow reasonable access to it.” [me on Twitter]
Tagged as:
Florida,
Georgia,
hospitals,
medical malpractice,
medical malpractice insurance,
ObamaCare,
wrongful birth and wrongful life
“No one was hurt. There’s no sign that [Kiera] Wilmot was up to something malevolent. The kid’s own principal [at Bartow High School] thinks this wasn’t anything more than an experiment, and he says she didn’t try to cover up what she had done. What punishment did you think she received? A stern talking-to? A day or two of after-school detention? Maybe she’ll have to help clean up the lab for a week? Nope. The budding chemist has been kicked out of school and charged with a couple of felonies.” [Jesse Walker]
More: “Scientists Back Kiera Wilmot by Tweeting About All the Stuff They’ve Blown Up” [Tim Elfrink, Miami New Times] Similarly: Ashutosh Jogalekar, Scientific American.
Tagged as:
Florida,
schools,
science and scientists,
zero tolerance
A county official in Florida says two now-suspended radio DJs, Val St. John and Scott Fish, could face felony charges over an April Fool’s running gag in which they warned listeners that local tap water contained “dihydrogen monoxide,” another way of describing water. “My understanding is it is a felony to call in a false water quality issue,” said Lee County public information officer Diane Holm: “They will have to deal with the circumstances.” As for the suspension itself, “We take our FCC license very seriously,” said a VP of the broadcasting company. [WTSP] (& Patterico)
Tagged as:
broadcasters,
Florida
- On 5-4 ideological lines, Supreme Court rules against class certification in Comcast v. Behrend [decision PDF, Philadelphia Inquirer, PoL, Michael Schearer/Law in Plain English, earlier]
- American Express v. Italian Colors: will SCOTUS further restrict class actions via arbitration? [Daniel Fisher/Forbes and more, Michael Greve, Ted Frank debates Myriam Gilles, Ted at IBD and his earlier paper]
- Win for Ted Frank: 3rd Circuit vacates baby products class action pact that gave lawyers $14M, clients $3M [PoL, more, Fisher] If settlement symptoms persist: Ted objects in Bayer class action [CCAF]
- “Will ‘Sea Change’ in Florida Class Action Standards Unleash Flood of Suits?” [Frank Cruz-Alvarez, WLF]
- N.D. Calif. hears so many food marketing class actions some have nicknamed it the “Food Court” [Vanessa Blum, The Recorder]
- “What’s Next For The Class Action Plaintiffs’ Bar? Getting Deputized By State Attorneys General” [Kevin Ranlett]
- “Ninth Circuit Decision and Dissenters Cry Out for SCOTUS Review on Cy Pres in Settlements” [WLF]
Tagged as:
arbitration,
class action settlements,
class actions,
cy pres,
Florida
- Great moments in union contracts: “Many Suburban Cops Allowed To Work ‘Half Drunk’” [NBC Chicago]
- California high court imposes arbitrary damage-splitting rule on mixed-motive firings [Cheryl Miller, The Recorder]
- More tales of much-forgiven Broward County bus drivers [Sun-Sentinel, background]
- Sixth Circuit: SEIU robocalls to harass hospital CEO don’t violate TCPA [Littler]
- Judge rejects EEOC position against alcohol testing of steelworkers in safety-sensitive posts [Paul Mirengoff, PowerLine, Reuters]
- “NYFD made written test impossible to fail, but diversity recruits in Academy can’t meet physical standards either.” [Ted Frank/PoL]
- “The March Toward a Bullying Cause of Action Continues” [Michael Fox, Employer's Lawyer; TheDenverChannel.com]
- T’wasn’t easy for White House to find a new Labor Secretary to the left of Hilda Solis, but meet Tom Perez [WaPo]
Tagged as:
bullying,
California,
discrimination law,
EEOC,
fire departments,
Florida,
labor unions,
Sixth Circuit,
testing,
transit
- Despite sparseness of evidence, lawyers hope to pin liability on hotel for double murder of guests [Tennessean]
- Celebrated repeat litigant Patricia Alice McColm sentenced after felony conviction for filing false documents in Trinity County, Calif. [Trinity Journal, more, Justia, earlier] Idaho woman challenges vexatious-litigant statute [KBOI]
- “2 Florida Moms Sentenced for Staged Accident Insurance Fraud” [Insurance Journal, earlier]
- With Arkansas high court intent on striking down liability changes, advocates consider going the constitutional amendment route [TortsProf] Fifth Circuit upholds Mississippi damages caps [PoL]
- What states have been doing lately on litigation reform [Andrew Cook, Fed Soc] Illinois lawmakers’ proposals [Madison-St. Clair Record] Head of Florida Chamber argues for state legal changes [Tampa Tribune]
- Crowd of defendants: “Ky. couple names 124 defendants in asbestos suit” [WV Record]
- A bad habit of Louisiana courts: “permitting huge recoveries without proof of injury” [Eric Alexander, Drug and Device Law]
Tagged as:
Arkansas,
asbestos,
claims fraud,
Florida,
hotels,
Idaho,
Illinois,
Louisiana,
serial litigants,
shotgun defendant selection
- Cuomo appointee Jenny Rivera, lawprof on “social justice” beat, likely to pull NY’s highest court leftward [Reuters; Kerr, with additional comments-section background on chief judge Jonathan Lippman] Notable plaintiff’s litigator Brad Seligman (Wal-Mart v. Dukes, etc.) elevated to bench by Gov. Jerry Brown [San Leandro Patch]
- With Jeffrey Toobin assuring us that voter fraud is “essentially nonexistent,” tales like this from Cincinnati must not be real [John Fund, NRO]
- Time for Republicans to get serious about an urban-policy pitch [Ed Glaeser, City Journal] “As the GOP looks for issues it can win on, how about lowering the drinking age?” [Instapundit]
- Boldly smiting straw man, NYT says young people see government as possible “constructive force” [Ira Stoll, SmarterTimes]
- Politics by other means: “From Statehouse to courtroom: Many Illinois issues being decided by judges” [Kurt Erickson, Bloomington Pantagraph]
- Florida attorney John Morgan, of personal injury fame, became an inauguration bigwig the old-fashioned way [Orlando Sentinel, earlier here, here, here, here, etc., etc.]
- Granholm at front of “not so bad when our guy Obama does it” parade [Damon Root]
Tagged as:
Andrew Cuomo,
Florida,
Illinois,
Jerry Brown,
voter fraud
Great moments in blame-shifting: In Dade City, Fla., an ex-con with cocaine and other drugs in his system tried to outrun the cops in a high speed chase, then veered into a farm neighborhood where he smashed his car into two trees on a one-lane dead-end private road, instantly killing himself and a passenger. Now the estate of his passenger (who was also on drugs) is suing 21 local residents who jointly maintain the private road, saying they should have kept it clear of trees and did not provide adequate signage. “There were no apparent visual roadway obstructions or environmental factors that would have contributed to this crash,” a report from the Florida Highway Patrol stated at the time. [Tampa Bay Times](& Alkon)
Tagged as:
Florida,
personal responsibility,
roads and streets,
trees
Broward County, Fla. transit bus driver Larry Moore “was disciplined 19 times” and “was held responsible for nine accidents with other South Florida drivers.” After a so-called last-chance warning in 2008 he “went on to be disciplined seven more times, for five preventable accidents and two clashes with customers, county personnel records show.”
The Sun Sentinel reported earlier this month that one driver, Charles Butler, who cost taxpayers $73,005 in a lawsuit settlement, was involved in 21 accidents while driving a county bus. Twelve were deemed preventable, and 10 involved him hitting another driver. He is still driving, despite having reached the firing threshold. …
[Transit director Tim] Garling said the county follows the union contract, which calls for progressive levels of discipline.
[Sun-Sentinel, newspaper's earlier coverage of Butler case here and here]
Tagged as:
Florida,
labor unions,
public employment,
transit
The Miami Herald profiles a child support lawyer who says her clients regularly fall victim to computer mistakes:
A lot of [Chantal] Suttle’s time representing dads is spent cleaning up errors on behalf of the state, which can take away a dad’s driver’s license or passport, or seize his bank account, for supposed non-payment. And it can be done without ever even going to court — the state lets fathers know with just a letter in the mail.
“I have about six clients right now who have paid on time and perfectly for over a decade, and still their driver’s license has been suspended and/or their bank account has been seized,” she said.
Tagged as:
child support,
Florida
A lawyer has filed an intended class action in Florida court against the San Antonio Spurs, saying it caused him “economic damage” as a ticket buyer for management of the visiting team to have sent top players home to rest amid four games in five days. “Some might argue that the Heat’s fans got their money’s worth. That’s because the team barely beat the undermanned Spurs that night 105-100. [Attorney Larry] McGuinness said that doesn’t mean a game with the Spurs’ top players couldn’t have been more exciting.” [ESPN, auto-plays video]
Tagged as:
Florida,
sports
“A South Florida mom who brought her five young children along for the ride when she staged car crashes to make cash will spend even longer in prison because she put her kids in harm’s way, a judge ruled Friday.” [Sun-Sentinel]
Tagged as:
crash faking,
Florida
A Fort Lauderdale attorney “Announces He Is Taking on All Celebrity Criminal Cases in Florida” [Scott Greenfield]
And a reaction from @SupremeHaiku: Florida lawyer/ Will defend the defenseless/ If they are famous.
Tagged as:
celebrities,
chasing clients,
Florida
- Report: California state psychiatrist paid $822,000, highway cop $484K in pay/benefits [Bloomberg News via Dan Mitchell]
- “Florida Prison Guard Charged with $2.7 Million Workers’ Comp Fraud” [Insurance Journal]
- Agitprop video from California Federation of Teachers is educational, if only in unintended ways [Katherine Mangu-Ward]
- “California government employee unions spent nearly $100 million in the lead up to the November election” [Jon Coupal, Fox and Hounds] How San Bernardino went broke: a cautionary tale [Reuters]
- “Taxpayers funding 35 six-figure union chiefs at Transportation Department” [Examiner]
- Congress again strengthens legal hand of federal employees claiming whistleblower status [Paul Secunda] Mistrial in case of whistleblower group’s payment to government worker [WaPo]
- “Binding Arbitration’s Threat To State And Local Governments” [Ivan Osorio, CEI]
Tagged as:
California,
Florida,
labor unions,
public employment,
whistleblowers,
workers' compensation
Key West, Fla.: “The Ernest Hemingway Home & Museum reports that it currently houses between 40 and 50 cats [descended from the famous author's beloved six-toed cat]…. A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit ruled Friday that the Hemingway Home falls under the classification of an ‘animal exhibitor,’ subject to regulation by the U.S. Department of Agriculture under the Animal Welfare Act.” [David Demirbilek, Daily Caller; Christian Science Monitor; ABA Journal]
Tagged as:
animals,
Florida
