Issues |
Immunity Lets Bad Judges Off Hook for Bad Behavior |
A disgraced judge - who once texted a shirtless photo of himself to a female court bailiff - had an affair with a woman while overseeing her child custody case, had sex with her in his chambers and sexted her from the bench can't be sued for money damages over any of that because judges are immune from civil lawsuits - a well-established doctrine that has many in the legal profession demanding change, arguing the this case highlights a pervasive problem in the justice system: judges getting away with bad behavior on immunity grounds. Tresa Baldas, Detroit Free Press , USA Today 07/29/2014 |
Read Article: USA Today |
Bartenders: When Not to Sell |
An Ohio bartender is facing a third-degree misdemeanor charge. She was charged with selling liquor and beer to an intoxicated person, who then got in his car and killed a schoolteacher on a bicycle in February. According to a 2009 National Highway Traffic Safety Administration study, nearly all states have laws prohibiting sales to intoxicated people. However, the study found there is "considerable variation among State laws in terms of language employed to describe the state of intoxication as well as the provision of alcohol." That study also found that enforcement of sales to intoxicated people was rare. Marais Jacon-Duffy, The Cincinnati Enquirer , USA Today 07/29/2014 |
Read Article: USA Today |
FAA Proposes to Fine Southwest Airlines $12M |
The FAA said Monday it is proposing a $12 million civil fine against Southwest Airlines for failing to comply with safety regulations related to repairs on Boeing 737 jetliners. It is the second-largest fine the agency has proposed against an airline. The FAA said that beginning in 2006 Southwest made "extreme makeover" alterations to eliminate potential cracking of the aluminum skin on 44 jetliners. An FAA investigation determined that Southwest's contractor, Aviation Technical Services Inc. of Everett, Washington, failed to follow proper procedures for replacing the fuselage as well as other work on the planes, the agency said. All of the work was done under the supervision of Southwest, which was responsible for seeing that it was done properly, the FAA said. JOAN LOWY, AP , Yahoo News 07/29/2014 |
Read Article: Yahoo News |
Laws/Cases |
11th Circuit Upholds FL 'Docs v. Glocks' Law |
A federal appeals court is allowing enforcement of a Florida law that prevents physicians from talking with patients about guns in their homes when it is irrelevant to medical care. The Atlanta-based 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals vacated an injunction that had prevented the law from taking effect and found in a facial challenge that the law does not violate the First Amendment. The law says physicians should not ask whether a patient or patient's family owns guns, unless the physician has a good-faith belief that the "information is relevant to the patient's medical care or safety, or the safety of others. The law also bans irrelevant gun information from being entered into medical records. Violation of the law, dubbed "Docs v. Glocks, constitutes grounds for disciplinary action, and doctors can be fined or lose their licenses, reports the AP. Debra Cassens Weiss, American Bar Association Journal 07/29/2014 |
Read Article: American Bar Association Journal |
NCAA Settles Head Injury Lawsuit |
The NCAA has agreed to settle a class-action head injury lawsuit by creating a $70 million fund to diagnose thousands of current and former college athletes to determine if they suffered brain trauma playing football, hockey, soccer and other contact sports, The Associated Press has learned. Unlike a proposed settlement in a similar lawsuit against the NFL, this deal stops short of setting aside money to pay players who suffered brain trauma. Instead, athletes can sue individually for damages and the NCAA-funded tests to gauge the extent of neurological injuries could establish grounds for doing that. MICHAEL TARM, AP , The Dallas Morning News 07/29/2014 |
Read Article: The Dallas Morning News |
Wrongful Death |
Second Lawsuit Over Teen Found Dead in Gym Mat |
The family of a Georgia teenager who was found dead in a rolled-up gym mat at school has filed a second lawsuit over the 17-year-old's death. The family previously filed a negligence lawsuit against the school district "claiming it was negligent and violated their son's constitutional right to equal protection based on race." The new wrongful death lawsuit filed by the family alleges that the school failed to protect the boy from being attacked by another student on January 11, 2013. The lawsuit accuses the Lowndes High School principal of failing to act after hearing reports that the teen had been attacked. Staff Report, The Herald Sun 07/29/2014 |
Read Article: The Herald Sun |
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