TTLA 2013 Annual Conference - Reinventing The Rules With Rick Friedman | June 12 - 14, Sheraton Downtown Hotel - Austin Register Now! The TTLA CLE Committee is proud to have Rick Friedman present Reinventing the Rules during the Annual Conference. Additionally, we are fortunate to have Paul Begala as a Keynote Speaker for the June 14th Annual Conference Luncheon. A Texas native, Paul is a Democratic strategist and most of you know him as a Special Contributor to CNN. You will want to reserve the date and book early as we expect that this will be the most heavily attended seminar in TTLA history and space will be limited. Click on the headline to learn more! | Suit Filed Against LAX Construction Projects | | A group of plaintiffs, including a neighborhood coalition, in Los Angeles have filed suit against the newest proposed construction at Los Angeles International Airport. The lawsuit claims the airport operator, Los Angeles World Airports, failed to do a thorough evaluation of the environmental effects of the construction projects, part of which includes moving runways closer to local homes. The suit says the construction proposals "understated the potential noise, air pollution and traffic effects in nearby cities and neighborhoods." Dan Weikel, LA Times 05/30/2013 | Read Article: LA Times | County Pays in Distracted Cop Car Crash | | Santa Clara County has agreed to pay $5 million to settle a lawsuit over a crash caused by county deputy, who was allegedly distracted at the wheel by a hamburger he was eating. According to the suit, the officer was eating a hamburger and fumbling with a light switch in his car when he crashed into the victim's vehicle. The victim, a 78-year-old man, suffered a torn aorta, broken ribs and a skull fracture in the crash. Tracey Kaplan, San Jose Mercury News 05/21/2013 | Read Article: San Jose Mercury News | Parents Left Loaded Gun, Boy Killed Friend, Suit Says | | A $1 million lawsuit has been filed against a New Jersey family after their six-year-old son accidentally shot and killed their 4-year-old neighbor. The lawsuit, filed by the parents of the boy killed, accuses their neighbors of negligence in allowing their son to leave the house with a loaded rifle. The boy's father has been arrested on child-endangerment charges. Nina Golgowsk, New York Daily News 06/03/2013 | Read Article: New York Daily News | $4.3 Mil. Settlement Reached in Deadly Test-Drive Case | | The family of a man who died in a late-December car crash during a high-speed test drive with an intoxicated salesman has settled for $4.3 million. The dealership that was selling the car, Imports of Lancaster County, is paying $1.3 million through its insurance policy and $20,000 of its own money. The mulch supplier whose truck allegedly caused the car salesman to swerve and lose control of the vehicle, Landyshade Mulch Products, is paying $3 million through its insurance policy. Saranac Hale Spencer, The Legal Intelligencer 06/03/2013 | Read Article: The Legal Intelligencer | Presence of Explosive Chemicals Often Kept Secret | | Fears of terrorism have made it harder than ever for citizens to find out what dangerous chemicals lurk in their backyards, The Associated Press has found. Secrecy and shoddy record-keeping have kept the public and emergency workers in the dark about stockpiles of explosive material. A monthlong reporting effort by the AP, drawing upon public records in 28 states, found more than 120 facilities within a potentially devastating blast zone of schoolchildren, the elderly and the sick. But how many others exist nationwide is a mystery, as other states refused to provide data. JACK GILLUM, DINA CAPPIELLO and RAMIT PLUSHNICK-MASTI, AP Wire 06/03/2013 | Read Article: AP Wire | Fatal Restaurant Explosion Prompts Lawsuit | | A fatal explosion at a JJ's restaurant in Springfield, Mo., has prompted a lawsuit filed by the parents of the hostess killed in the blast. The blast occurred after a natural gas line outside the building was severed by a construction crew. The suit names the gas company and the company responsible for the construction as defendants. Eric Adler , Kansas City Star 06/03/2013 | Read Article: Kansas City Star | | |