87 results for 'judge:"Doyle"'.
J. Doyle finds that defendant's request to modify sex offender registration requirements was improperly denied because defendant is a low risk to reoffend, and continuing requirements would not benefit public safety.
Court: Iowa Court Of Appeals, Judge: Doyle, Filed On: March 27, 2024, Case #: 22-1890, Categories: Sex Offender
J. Doyle finds that the trial court properly ruled in favor of the gas station owners in a breach of contract action brought by the gas supplier. The owners did not speak English sufficiently to read the contract, which was written in English. The trial court correctly found that the gasoline supply contract was unconscionable because it disproportionately allocated risk to the owners and contained incomprehensible language with respect to the price term. The contract also contained illegal and commercially unreasonable terms. Affirmed.
Court: Georgia Court of Appeals, Judge: Doyle, Filed On: March 15, 2024, Case #: A23A1432, Categories: Contract
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J. Doyle finds that the trial court properly ruled in favor of the doctors in a medical malpractice action brought by the parents arising from their mentally ill son's accidental drowning death after he was discharged to them from the doctors' care. The son ran away after being discharged and was found dead in a lake three days later. The son's drowning some time after his discharge is too remote to be the proximate result of his discharge. There is no evidence that the son was unsafe to walk on his own and no evidence explaining what caused him to drown. Affirmed.
Court: Georgia Court of Appeals, Judge: Doyle, Filed On: March 15, 2024, Case #: A23A1715, Categories: Medical Malpractice
J. Doyle finds that the trial court properly granted the ex-husband's and other individuals' motions to dismiss the ex-wife's action with respect to her claims for false-light invasion of privacy, false imprisonment, emotional distress and damage to reputation. The action arose after the ex-husband and others allegedly planted evidence and made false statements to police which led to the ex-wife's arrest for sexual exploitation of children. The charges against her were dismissed. The trial court incorrectly dismissed the ex-wife's malicious prosecution claim on the basis of interspousal tort immunity. The couple was already separated and the actions underlying the complaint were allegedly committed to injure the ex-wife during the divorce proceedings. There was no marital harmony to preserve and no fear of collusion between the parties. Affirmed in part.
Court: Georgia Court of Appeals, Judge: Doyle, Filed On: March 13, 2024, Case #: A23A1310, Categories: Malicious Prosecution, Privacy
J. Doyle finds that the trial court properly denied the park's motion for a new trial and for judgment notwithstanding the verdict after a jury awarded the widow $22 million in damages in a wrongful death action arising from the husband's death while riding his dirt bike on a park trail. Evidence showed that the owner hit a tree with an excavator, causing the tree to fall onto the husband. The jury could have found that the owner was the agent of each corporate entity or that evidence authorized piercing the corporate veil of each entity. The trial court did not commit any error by refusing to give several of the park's proposed jury charges. Affirmed.
Court: Georgia Court of Appeals, Judge: Doyle, Filed On: March 13, 2024, Case #: A23A1541, Categories: Wrongful Death
J. Doyle finds that the trial court properly denied the corporation's petition for judicial review to reverse the commission's decision, which found that the power company could provide retail electric service to an electric vehicle charging station in an area exclusively assigned to the corporation under the Georgia Territorial Electric Service Act. The trial court correctly upheld the commission's finding that the Act's large load exception applied. The premises has a single meter and the company is the sole consumer of retail power at the charging stations. Evidence supported the commission's finding that the equipment met the 900 kW threshold for the exception. Affirmed.
Court: Georgia Court of Appeals, Judge: Doyle, Filed On: March 13, 2024, Case #: A23A1381, Categories: Energy
J. Doyle finds that the trial court improperly denied the company's motion to set aside a default judgment entered against it in a garnishment proceeding brought by the daughter after she obtained a $3.4 million judgment against her deceased mother's nursing home. The daughter served the company with an incorrect garnishment summons. Reversed.
Court: Georgia Court of Appeals, Judge: Doyle, Filed On: March 12, 2024, Case #: A23A1736, Categories: Civil Procedure
J. Doyle finds that the trial court properly denied Walmart's motion for judgment notwithstanding the verdict after a jury awarded the couple $300,000 in damages in a negligence action arising from injuries the wife suffered in a slip-and-fall incident due to WD-40 on the floor. The trial court correctly found that the couple was not judicially estopped from recovering damages in excess of $75,000. A functional capability evaluation showed a change in circumstances due to the lingering effects of the wife's physical limitations and disorders. Additional evidence in discovery also showed that the WD-40 leaked onto the floor and was not sprayed by third party individuals. Affirmed.
Court: Georgia Court of Appeals, Judge: Doyle, Filed On: March 12, 2024, Case #: A23A1198, Categories: Damages, Negligence
[Consolidated.] J. Doyle finds that the trial court improperly denied the stepmother's motion to strike certain provisions of an interlocutory consent order entered pursuant to the mother's child custody modification petition. The portion of the consent order restricting the stepmother from discussing the custody proceedings with anyone at any time outside of therapy was overly restrictive. The trial court correctly entered orders denying the father's motion to recuse, finding the father in contempt for violating the consent order and denying the father's motion to vacate or modify the consent order. However, the trial court incorrectly entered orders sealing the record without following the proper procedure. Reversed in part.
Court: Georgia Court of Appeals, Judge: Doyle, Filed On: March 12, 2024, Case #: A23A1562, Categories: Family Law
J. Doyle finds that the trial court improperly granted the former trustees an interlocutory injunction requiring the current trustees to pay attorney fees and litigation costs incurred by the former trustees. The order arose in a breach of fiduciary duty action brought by the trust beneficiaries against the former trustees. The evidence is insufficient to support the finding that the injunction is necessary to prevent an irreparable harm. The trial court correctly denied the beneficiaries' request that the trust be reimbursed for $4.6 million in fees already paid to the former trustees' attorneys pursuant to an earlier order in the case which was vacated by the appeals court. Reversed in part.
Court: Georgia Court of Appeals, Judge: Doyle, Filed On: March 11, 2024, Case #: A23A1402, Categories: Fiduciary Duty, Attorney Fees
[Consolidated.] J. Doyle finds that the trial court improperly refused to rule in favor of the insurer in an action against the insured seeking a declaratory judgment that policies it issued to the insured did not cover liability for injuries suffered by the employee at a job site. The employee's injury arose out of his employment with the insured because he was sitting in his car about to leave a job site for lunch when he was hit by a logging skidder driven by his supervisor. Any liability was precluded by the policy language excluding coverage for workplace injuries already covered by the Workers' Compensation Act. Reversed.
Court: Georgia Court of Appeals, Judge: Doyle, Filed On: March 7, 2024, Case #: A23A1263, Categories: Insurance, Workers' Compensation
[Consolidated.] J. Doyle finds that the trial court improperly denied in part the teacher's motion to dismiss the individual's negligence action arising from burn injuries the student suffered during a high school chemistry class experiment. The trial court incorrectly found that the teacher violated a ministerial duty by failing to provide students observing her demonstration with an applicable safety contract or failing to require them to wear safety goggles. Teachers had a duty to distribute the safety contract before students participated in an experiment but there was no duty to do so before students observed a demonstration. Various ordinances and codes did not create ministerial duties for the teacher. Reversed in part.
Court: Georgia Court of Appeals, Judge: Doyle, Filed On: March 7, 2024, Case #: A23A1470, Categories: Negligence
J. Doyle finds that the trial court properly denied defendant's motion to suppress evidence found during a warrantless search of his vehicle which led to his arrest and charge for possession of psilocyn. The police officer's determination of probable cause to search the vehicle was based on the totality of her observations, not solely on her perception that the vehicle smelled like marijuana without accounting for the smell of a legal CBD cigarette. Defendant stopped his vehicle beyond the stop line at a red light, had an expired out-of-state tag and had bloodshot, red eyes. Affirmed.
Court: Georgia Court of Appeals, Judge: Doyle, Filed On: March 4, 2024, Case #: A23A1619, Categories: Drug Offender, Search
[Consolidated.] J. Doyle finds that the trial court properly granted defendant's motion to suppress evidence derived from real-time GPS and cell-site location information provided by T-Mobile to police. The evidence led to defendant's indictment for rape, kidnapping, robbery and other offenses. The trial court discredited a detective's testimony about the exigent circumstances request made by police and found that four statements in the request contained misrepresentations which exaggerated the exigency of the circumstances. The trial court also correctly rejected defendant's motion to dismiss three counts of the indictment related to the alleged rape in his vehicle. There is no evidence that police acted in bad faith by failing to prevent the vehicle from being vandalized before defendant could search for allegedly exculpatory evidence inside. Affirmed.
Court: Georgia Court of Appeals, Judge: Doyle, Filed On: February 29, 2024, Case #: A23A1444, Categories: Evidence, Sex Offender, Kidnapping
J. Doyle finds that the trial court improperly convicted defendant of one of two counts of theft by conversion. Sufficient evidence was presented to support one count, including testimony from the business owner that defendant failed to use money to buy equipment and failed to return the money. However, insufficient evidence was presented to support defendant's conviction for theft by conversion of a value greater than $1,500 under an agreement. There was no written contract between the parties and there was not enough evidence in the owner's testimony to show that more than $7,000 was taken for unauthorized transactions. Reversed in part.
Court: Georgia Court of Appeals, Judge: Doyle, Filed On: February 27, 2024, Case #: A23A1704, Categories: Theft
J. Doyle finds that the trial court properly granted the department's motion to dismiss the couple's negligence action arising after the husband was injured in a car collision by a suspect fleeing a Georgia state trooper. The trial court correctly found that the couple's claims are barred by the law enforcement exception to the waiver of sovereign immunity in the Georgia Tort Claims Act. Evidence supported the trial court's finding that the officer's conduct in the chase was objectively reasonable and complied with department policy. Affirmed.
Court: Georgia Court of Appeals, Judge: Doyle, Filed On: February 27, 2024, Case #: A23A1649, Categories: Negligence
J. Doyle finds that the trial court properly dismissed claims brought by the two groups and several individuals against the city attorney and the county commissioners seeking an order setting aside a decision to remove a Confederate monument from a city square. The groups and three individuals lack standing to bring the action. One group lacks direct or associational standing and community stakeholder status. Another group failed to allege any cognizable injury. However, the trial court incorrectly dismissed claims brought by two of the individuals. Those individuals have standing because they are county residents and community stakeholders. The case is remanded for the trial court to determine whether the two individuals' claims are barred by sovereign immunity. Affirmed in part.
Court: Georgia Court of Appeals, Judge: Doyle, Filed On: February 23, 2024, Case #: A22A0663, Categories: Civil Procedure
J. Doyle finds that the trial court properly convicted defendant of trafficking in more than 400 grams of cocaine and correctly denied defendant's motion for a new trial. Sufficient evidence was presented to support defendant's conviction, including body cam video evidence that defendant gave a response of disappointment and regret rather than surprise when the deputy found the cocaine in the vehicle's trunk. Defendant failed to show that his trial counsel's performance was deficient. Affirmed.
Court: Georgia Court of Appeals, Judge: Doyle, Filed On: February 14, 2024, Case #: A23A1317, Categories: Drug Offender, Ineffective Assistance
J. Doyle finds that defendant was properly denied relief from his 2011 sexual abuse conviction because defendant had not been experiencing side effects from prescribed medications that would have rendered his guilty pleas involuntary. Affirmed.
Court: Iowa Court Of Appeals, Judge: Doyle, Filed On: February 7, 2024, Case #: 22-1354, Categories: Sex Offender, Plea
J. Doyle finds that defendant was properly convicted of indecent exposure because evidence indicates he locked himself into the bathroom of a convenience store with a pornographic magazine, forcing employees to unlock the door before exposing himself to them. Affirmed.
Court: Iowa Court Of Appeals, Judge: Doyle, Filed On: January 10, 2024, Case #: 22-1602, Categories: Evidence, Sex Offender
J. Doyle finds that defendant's application for postconviction relief was properly dismissed following revocation of deferred judgment and resentencing on a forgery charge, as well as sentencing on his guilty plea to possession of methamphetamine. Resentencing did not violate double jeopardy since the sentences did not constitute punishment greater than intended by the state. Affirmed.
Court: Iowa Court Of Appeals, Judge: Doyle, Filed On: December 20, 2023, Case #: 22-1315, Categories: Drug Offender, Double Jeopardy, Forgery
J. Doyle finds that a husband was properly denied modification of physical care of the parties' children following the dissolution of their marriage because continued joint physical care was in the best interests of the children. Affirmed.
Court: Iowa Court Of Appeals, Judge: Doyle, Filed On: November 21, 2023, Case #: 23-0443, Categories: Family Law
J. Doyle finds that the trial court properly ruled in favor of the assisted living facility in a premises liability and negligence action brought by the widow arising from injuries her husband suffered in a trip-and-fall incident which led to his death days later. The uneven pavement seam where the husband tripped was a readily observable static condition of which the husband and the owner had equal knowledge. Evidence that an employee of the facility had tripped in the area does not mean that the owner's knowledge of the hazard was superior to the husband's. Affirmed.
Court: Georgia Court of Appeals, Judge: Doyle, Filed On: November 3, 2023, Case #: A23A0883, Categories: Negligence, Premises Liability
J. Doyle finds that the trial court improperly granted the caregiver's motion for a directed verdict in an action brought by the ex-wife seeking an order to set aside the decedent's designation of the caregiver as the beneficiary of an annuity. The ex-wife alleged that the caregiver unduly influenced the decedent to name her as his beneficiary. There is a jury question as to the issue of undue influence. Reversed in part.
Court: Georgia Court of Appeals, Judge: Doyle, Filed On: November 1, 2023, Case #: A23A0662, Categories: Tort