Just added to the TTLA Annual Conference CLE Program | You don’t want to miss Judy Kostura when she speaks early Wednesday afternoon on the latest news about the provisions of HB 1869, the bill that overrules Fortis! Online registration is now closed. Call 512/476-3852 to register by phone. Click on the headline to learn more! | Jury Awards $500,000 to Victim in Rape Lawsuit | | A Virginia jury has ordered a former Norfolk police officer to pay $500,000 to a local woman he allegedly raped while responding to a 911 call in August 2010. The woman said she was disoriented from a combination of alcohol and prescription medication when the officer arrived, and was not able to object or say no when he began raping her. Patrick Wilson, Virginian Pilot 06/11/2013 | Read Article: Virginian Pilot | Suit Filed over 20-Story Building in Iowa City | | A group of citizens in Iowa City, Iowa, have filed suit against the City Council in an effort to stop the approval and building of a 20-story tower in the city's downtown area. The lawsuit claims the city is "spot zoning" - using the building to create a "small island of properties in the area with usage restrictions different from surrounding properties." A local coalition group, which serves as plaintiffs in the suit, attempting to rezone the area earlier this year, which would have limited building sizes to six stories, but the council rejected the request. Josh O'Leary , DesMoines Register 06/11/2013 | Read Article: DesMoines Register | Supreme Court Trims N.C. Share of Disabled Child’s Malpractice Settlement | | The parents of a disabled North Carolina girl defeated the state on Wednesday, as the Supreme Court struck down a law allowing state officials to seize one-third of a medical malpractice settlement. In a 6-3 ruling that affects myriad states, the court ruled that the federal Medicaid law pre-empts North Carolina’s sizable claim. Though states can take some medical malpractice money to reimburse themselves for Medicaid costs, the court said the one-third amount set in state law was unreasonable. “The state has picked an arbitrary percentage,” Justice Anthony Kennedy said in announcing the ruling. He described the North Carolina law as a “one-size fits all” standard. Michael Doyle, McClatchy Newspapers, Star Telegram 06/11/2013 | Read Article: Star Telegram | U.S. Group Amends Transplant Policy for Kids After Lawsuits | | A U.S. group that sets policy for organ transplants voted on Monday to give some children access to adult organs after the parents of two children successfully sued to add them to the adult list for lung transplants. The cases, both in Pennsylvania, have touched off a debate in the United States over how donor organs - a scarce, life-saving resource - should be allocated among the 1,659 people, including 30 children, on the waiting list for a lung transplant. REUTERS, The New York Times 06/11/2013 | Read Article: The New York Times | Chrysler Recalls 15,000 Dodge Darts | | Chrysler has issued a recall of about 15,000 new Dodge Dart vehicles after the company discovered the cars can stall during cold weather. Chrysler said the problem lies with the computer that controls the engine and transmission - the issue can cause a loss of power, which increases the risk of injury. There have not been any reports of crashes as a result of the defect. Wire Report, Boston Globe 06/11/2013 | Read Article: Boston Globe | Daughters Say Patient Safety Compromised at Dallas VA Hospital | | Patient safety at the Dallas Veterans Administration Hospital is again being called into question. Considered to be the agency's worst facility in 2004, the Dallas VA Hospital has received more than 30 certification agency complaints in the last three years. And now, there are two more. Two daughters agreed to discuss the deaths of their fathers and the conditions they say no veteran should have to endure. Brett Shipp, WFAA.com 06/11/2013 | Read Article: WFAA.com | Man Awarded $500,000 in Wrongful Termination Suit | | A San Miguel, Calif., man has been awarded more than $500,000 in a lawsuit against his former employer in which he claimed wrongful termination. In the suit against Applied Technologies Associates Inc., the plaintiff said he was told that a hostile work environment claim was filed against him which, as a first-time offense, would have warranted a written warning from the company. He was, however, told to take a few days off to "cool down" and subsequently fired without any explanation. The suit claimed breach of contract and wrongful termination. Tonya Strickland, San Luis Obispo Tribune 06/10/2013 | Read Article: San Luis Obispo Tribune | First Class-Action Suit Filed over NSA Surveillance | | A couple in Philadelphia have filed a class-action suit against the NSA over the collection of Verizon customer phone records. The lawsuit claims that the surveillance "violates Verizon user's expectation of privacy, free speech and right to unreasonable searches and seizures." The lead plaintiffs in the suit claim their phone records were accessed because they have been critical of President Obama and the U.S. military. Emily Babay, Philadelphia Inquirer 06/11/2013 | Read Article: Philadelphia Inquirer | | |