164 results for 'filedAt:"2024-03-14"'.
J. Shanker upholds the trial court's decision to increase defendant's 72-month sentence for robbery to 84 months after it had to correct and lower his 36-month sentence for attempted robbery to 24 months. The sentence was properly altered in order to maintain the agreed upon 108-month sentence, per the parties' plea agreement. Affirmed.
Court: DC Court of Appeals, Judge: Shanker, Filed On: March 14, 2024, Case #: 23-CO-0219 , Categories: Robbery, Sentencing, Plea
J. Golemon finds the trial court properly denied the auto dealer's motion to compel arbitration. The buyer sued the dealer after she discovered that the truck she bought, advertised as new, was not new. The trial court properly found the dealer meant to manipulate the litigation process, prejudicing the buyer, by demanding arbitration after an unexcused 4-year delay, after a trial date had been set, and after the court granted the buyer's motion to compel discovery. Affirmed.
Court: Texas Courts of Appeals, Judge: Golemon , Filed On: March 14, 2024, Case #: 09-23-00098-CV, Categories: Arbitration, Commerce, Due Process
J. Dimke dismisses the family member's complaint alleging that the hospital and others prescribed pain medication to the decedent, contributing to her addiction and her eventual death from “the toxic effects of multiple drugs.” The family member does not establish a proper basis for this court to exercise personal jurisdiction over the hospital, because although the hospital and others transmitted prescriptions to Washington pharmacies, the family member does not cite any authority supporting their argument that a prescription transmission to an out-of-state pharmacy at the patient's request is enough to show a purposeful direction.
Court: USDC Eastern District of Washington, Judge: Dimke, Filed On: March 14, 2024, Case #: 2:23cv31, NOS: Personal Injury - Medical Malpractice - Torts - Personal Injury, Categories: Jurisdiction, Medical Malpractice
J. Deters finds the trial court properly denied defendant's motion to represent himself during his trial on two murder charges because the request was made nearly two years after the case had been placed on the court's docket and was clearly a delay tactic, given the trial was set to begin in a week and defendant claimed to need several more months to examine all the evidence. Furthermore, although the prosecutor's comments during closing arguments that defendant was unreliable and the manipulation of several individuals showed defendant's poor character were inappropriate, they did not deprive him of a fair trial. The death sentences are appropriate based, in part, on the brutal nature of the crimes, including multiple stab wounds to the victims and his dismemberment of the bodies. Affirmed.
Court: Ohio Supreme Court, Judge: Deters, Filed On: March 14, 2024, Case #: 2024-Ohio-902, Categories: Death Penalty, Murder, Self Representation
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J. Clay finds the lower court erroneously granted the board of elections' motion to dismiss for lack of standing. It and the Secretary of State's definitive statements that posting "ballot selfies" online is against Ohio election laws demonstrate a credible threat of enforcement that gives the voter standing to challenge the laws on First Amendment grounds. Although the board claims it has not monitored social media for such posts since 2019, it has continuously told voters publishing images of ballots is a criminal offense, while a 2019 order by the board to an online poster to remove an image also chills protected speech and allows the suit to proceed. Reversed.
Court: 6th Circuit, Judge: Clay, Filed On: March 14, 2024, Case #: 23-3330, Categories: Elections, First Amendment
J. Haight grants the assistant superintendent's motion for judgment on the pleadings, ruling the parents' failure to cite any specific actions taken by the official as an individual that infringed or may have infringed on their constitutional rights is fatal to all of their constitutional claims related to the alleged discrimination their children suffered.
Court: USDC Connecticut, Judge: Haight, Filed On: March 14, 2024, Case #: 3:22cv1130, NOS: Education - Civil Rights, Categories: Education, First Amendment
J. Gallagher finds the trial court properly terminated the mother's parental rights and granted permanent custody of the child to family services. She failed to take any steps to complete her case plan for nearly five months after the child was removed from her care and was also evicted from her home, which prevented her from providing a safe environment for the child. Affirmed.
Court: Ohio Court Of Appeals, Judge: Gallagher, Filed On: March 14, 2024, Case #: 2024-Ohio-950, Categories: Evidence, Family Law
J. Ceresia finds that the workers' compensation board properly held that a maintenance supervisor made material misrepresentations during evaluations to assess the permanency of his work-related injury to hands, wrists and shoulders due to repetitive use. Surveillance video by his employer, along with testimony and reports that included an independent medical examination, supported the finding. Furthermore, disqualifying him from future wage-replacement benefits also was proper. Affirmed.
Court: New York Appellate Divisions, Judge: Ceresia, Filed On: March 14, 2024, Case #: CV-22-2032, Categories: Workers' Compensation
J. Reynolds Fitzgerald finds that the lower court properly found for an insurer sued by a policyholder for not covering all lost business income after a fire destroyed one building in an 11-building, 200-unit apartment complex and caused some tenants to vacate due to attendant inconveniences. The policy was unambiguous in stating that only losses caused directly by physical damage or destruction to the property qualified for lost business coverage. Affirmed.
Court: New York Appellate Divisions, Judge: Reynolds Fitzgerald, Filed On: March 14, 2024, Case #: CV-22-2347, Categories: Insurance
J. Fisher finds that a former nursing home resident was properly deemed ineligible for Medicaid benefits during certain periods. The evidence offered by the home and her family failed to rebut the presumption that some asset transfers made during the statutory five-year "lookback" period were made to qualify for assistance. Affirmed.
Court: New York Appellate Divisions, Judge: Fisher, Filed On: March 14, 2024, Case #: CV-23-0858, Categories: Medicaid
Per curiam, the appellate division finds that attorney Hanna Mary Renna, suspended last year for 90 days in Florida and then reciprocally in Michigan, should be censured. Renna admitted to altering a photo pack presented to a child witness in a criminal case, which led to misidentification. Since that was impermissible under Florida case law and would also establish misconduct under New York attorney rules, censure is appropriate.
Court: New York Appellate Divisions, Judge: Per curiam, Filed On: March 14, 2024, Case #: PM-43-24, Categories: Attorney Discipline
J. Clark denies the car buyer's motion to certify a class of buyer's allegedly misled by the insurer about damages to their cars. The insurer obtained a clean title for the car after it had been involved in an accident and sold for salvage. It was then resold to the buyer, who was unaware of its accident history. However, purchase of a mistitled vehicle does not, by itself, prove reliance. Therefore, individual questions of reliance predominate because they rely upon the circumstantial evidence of each purchase.
Court: USDC Eastern District of Missouri, Judge: Clark, Filed On: March 14, 2024, Case #: 4:22cv385, NOS: Other Fraud - Torts - Personal Property, Categories: Fraud, Consumer Law, Class Action
J. Garcia finds that the appellate division properly dismissed efforts by unionized lifeguards to enforce provisions in their union constitution that provide seasonal members the right to vote and run for office. Precedent does not apply to purportedly unlawful union conduct when joint and several monetary liability is not sought, but the union local reasonably attempted to interpret the relevant provisions of the constitution in limiting voting to full-time lifeguards. Affirmed.
Court: New York Court Of Appeals, Judge: Garcia, Filed On: March 14, 2024, Case #: 26, Categories: Labor / Unions
J. Gordon McCloud finds that the lower court improperly tossed a 2018 Washington statute that sought to change the method for how the state calculates the wage for workers who worked on a public state project like a new bridge or road. The lower court tossed the new method on the grounds that it conflicted with an older statutory rule that stated the wage data collected could only be used in the county where that work was done. But a full reading of the statutes' exact wording show they do not conflict with each other. The older statute only covers data collection methods, while the new statute covers how wage data from collective bargaining agreements is used to pay public project workers. They apply to two different situations covering a broad and complicated overarching issue, and therefore do not cancel each other out. Reversed.
Court: Washington Supreme Court, Judge: Gordon McCloud, Filed On: March 14, 2024, Case #: 101997-1, Categories: Employment, Labor
Per curiam, the court of appeals finds that the appellate division improperly dismissed counterclaims in which plaintiff, a New York City "hop-on, hop-off" bus tour, alleged tortious interference and anticompetitive behavior against other such services because the counterclaims adequately alleged other services conspired to impugn plaintiff's reputation to operators of common city attractions and by alleging exclusive relationships constituting nothing more than pretexts for exclusion. Reversed.
Court: New York Court Of Appeals, Judge: Per curiam, Filed On: March 14, 2024, Case #: 27, Categories: Transportation, Unfair Competition
J. Cronan dismisses the small businesses' RICO claims against several lenders over an alleged predatory lending scheme disguised as agreements for the purchase and sale of these businesses' future sales receipts. Nothing in the complaint suggests that the defendants, in making the agreements and collecting the debts, acted beyond "the regular affairs of the corporation." However, the businesses' shall be given the opportunity to amend their complaint.
Court: USDC Southern District of New York, Judge: Cronan, Filed On: March 14, 2024, Case #: 1:23cv1404, NOS: Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) - Other Suits, Categories: Business Practices, Banking / Lending, Racketeering
J. Steigmann finds that the Board properly entered a final order for a set of state-wide standards regulating the storage and disposal of coal ash in surface impoundments, rejecting several energy companies' objections. The Board did not act arbitrarily by adopting a requirement for monthly groundwater monitoring, and by requiring an operator who elects to close an impoundment to remove containment system components such as the impoundment liner and contaminated subsoils. Affirmed.
Court: Illinois Appellate Court, Judge: Steigmann, Filed On: March 14, 2024, Case #: 210304, Categories: Administrative Law, Energy, Environment
J. Greaves finds for the commissioner of internal revenue in this tax liability dispute because defendant failed to file individual tax returns or pay estimated taxes for the years in question.
Court: U.S. Tax Court, Judge: Greaves, Filed On: March 14, 2024, Case #: 2024-30, Categories: Tax
J. Wesley finds that the district court properly found for a luxury watchmaker accused of trademark infringement for ads containing the term "red gold," which luxury jewelry maker Solid 21 had trademarked more than a decade before, and which had been developed into an amber-hued brand denoting a combination of metals such as gold and copper, because evidence indicated the watchmaker's use of the term in advertisements and catalogues constituted a superior description and fell under fair use. Affirmed.
Court: 2nd Circuit, Judge: Wesley, Filed On: March 14, 2024, Case #: 22-366, Categories: Trademark
J. Ludwig dismisses the amended complaint in the consumer's class action alleging Schwans sold frozen pies it falsely advertised as containing real butter. In part because the consumer has failed to allege particular, reasonably misleading actions by Schwans as pertains to the butter content advertised on the pies' packaging, her common-law fraud, breach of warranty and deceptive trade practices claims fail.
Court: USDC Eastern District of Wisconsin, Judge: Ludwig, Filed On: March 14, 2024, Case #: 2:23cv147, NOS: Other Fraud - Torts - Personal Property, Categories: Fraud, Warranty
Per curiam, the appellate division finds that the lower court properly convicted defendant based on his guilty plea to assault and criminal contempt. Defendant contends his sentence was harsh, but the term could have been more severe given that he violated an order of protection for his ex-girlfriend and violently assaulted a good samaritan who tried to help her flee. Affirmed.
Court: New York Appellate Divisions, Judge: Per curiam, Filed On: March 14, 2024, Case #: 112566, Categories: Sentencing, Assault
J. Saris partially denies a state child advocacy organization’s motion to dismiss claims brought against it by the parents of children who were removed from their custody without a warrant after an emergency room doctor saw that the parents’ youngest child had rib fractures. The parents did not consent to entry of their home and were threatened with force, the children’s pediatrician had no concerns about either of their children and there was plenty of time to get a warrant or court order.
Court: USDC Massachusetts, Judge: Saris, Filed On: March 14, 2024, Case #: 1:23cv10957, NOS: Other Civil Rights - Civil Rights, Categories: Family Law, Due Process, Police Misconduct
J. McFadden finds that the trial court properly ruled in favor of the executrix in an action brought by the cousins challenging the validity of the decedent's will and alleging claims of undue influence and lack of testamentary capacity. The cousins failed to show that the decedent lacked the requisite mental capacity when she signed her will. The decedent's attorney and a notary both testified that the decedent was of sound mind when she executed her will. A doctor's affidavit stating the decedent had dementia does not show that she was unable to make a valid will. There is no evidence that the executor took part in planning or executing the will. Affirmed.
Court: Georgia Court of Appeals, Judge: McFadden, Filed On: March 14, 2024, Case #: A24A0111, Categories: Wills / Probate
[Consolidated] J. Adelman grants summary judgment to the former police officer, the city and others in two of three consolidated lawsuits he faces from the estates of individuals he shot and killed while on duty with the city's police department. In one case involving an individual who was wielding a "decorative sword" and advancing on the officer at the time he was shot, the estate concedes that the officer is entitled to summary judgment. In another in which the officer shot an individual after waking him up from sleeping in his car and, according to video evidence, after the individual reached his hand toward the car's passenger seat where a gun was sitting, the officer's actions were not unreasonable. Arguments for summary judgment in the third case are scheduled for April 9, 2024.
Court: USDC Eastern District of Wisconsin, Judge: Adelman, Filed On: March 14, 2024, Case #: 2:21cv848, NOS: Other Civil Rights - Civil Rights, Categories: Wrongful Death, Police Misconduct