134 results for 'judge:"Wood "'.
J. Wood finds that the immigration board properly denied the Honduran immigrants' application for asylum on the basis that they had been persecuted by extortionists in Honduras. The board found no evidence that the extortionists targeted the immigrant because she is a female business owner, and determined that she could avoid future harm by relocating within Honduras. Affirmed.
Court: 7th Circuit, Judge: Wood, Filed On: March 21, 2024, Case #: 22-3035, Categories: Immigration
J. Wood partially refuses to find in favor of the city and two police officers in a civil rights and negligence action brought by the father after his son's death. The son crashed into a tree during a high-speed chase that occurred after he was stopped by police for a broken tail light. The city is not entitled to sovereign immunity from the father's claims. A reasonable jury could find based on body camera footage that one officer lied about the son having and pulling a gun out of his pocket during the traffic stop. A reasonable jury could also find that the other officer knowingly adopted and perpetuated the first officer's alleged lies and that the officers engaged in the high-speed chase with an intent to physically harm the son. However, the city's motion for summary judgment on the punitive damages claim is granted.
Court: USDC Southern District of Georgia, Judge: Wood, Filed On: March 8, 2024, Case #: 2:22cv30, NOS: Other Civil Rights - Civil Rights, Categories: Civil Rights, Police Misconduct
J. Wood partially grants a bank���s motion to dismiss claims by a tax lien trader that it presented her with inaccurate account statements. The lien trader further claims the lien trading platform, the bank and several Florida counties have conspired to lock her lien trading account but continue to trade liens and keep the sale proceeds for themselves without transferring any money into her bank account. The court dismisses all of the lien trader���s numerous allegations, save for one negligence claim over the bank not maintaining accurate records and losing funds that should have been deposited into her account.
Court: USDC Northern District of Illinois, Judge: Wood, Filed On: March 7, 2024, Case #: 1:21cv3589, NOS: Other Personal Injury - Torts - Personal Injury, Categories: Tax, Negligence, Banking / Lending
J. Wood finds the circuit court properly denied the landowners' petition for a writ of mandamus challenging the county's tax assessment. The county, after a certain time of assessing the owner's timberland as agricultural without structures, learned of a structure that had been built and increased the taxes. The owner's husband represented her without authorization to practice law and, therefore, the petition is a nullity as to her claims. The husband also has not exhausted his administrative remedies. Affirmed.
Court: Arkansas Supreme Court, Judge: Wood , Filed On: March 7, 2024, Case #: CV-23-511, Categories: Administrative Law, Remedies, Tax
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J. Wood finds the trial court properly denied defendant's motion to dismiss a charge for domestic battery of her 17-year-old son. Though defendant was originally charged and convicted for multiple acts, a jury deadlocked on the domestic battering charge, resulting in a mistrial. The state retried her on the battery charge, and though she had been found guilty on the other charges, double jeopardy does not bar a retrial of the domestic battering charge. Affirmed.
Court: Arkansas Court Of Appeals, Judge: Wood , Filed On: March 6, 2024, Case #: CR-23-418, Categories: Double Jeopardy, Battery
J. Wood finds that the trial court properly ruled in battery claims brought against the school board after a minor was administered a Covid-19 vaccine without parental authorization because the school board is entitled to immunity under the Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness Act. Affirmed.
Court: North Carolina Court of Appeals, Judge: Wood, Filed On: March 5, 2024, Case #: COA23-487, Categories: Immunity, Negligence, Covid-19
J. Wood finds that the lower court properly sentenced defendant for dealing meth, sentencing him to a below-guidelines term of 240 months in prison. The sentencing judge took defendant's mitigating arguments into account, including his assault in jail. Affirmed.
Court: 7th Circuit, Judge: Wood, Filed On: March 5, 2024, Case #: 23-1426, Categories: Drug Offender, Sentencing
J. Wood adopts the magistrate judge's recommendation and grants the healthcare provider's and doctor's motion to dismiss the couple's medical malpractice action as a sanction for fabricating evidence. The action arose from injuries the husband allegedly suffered after a doctor left gauze inside his nasal cavity following a septoplasty. The couple's objections to the magistrate judge's findings, including that a cell phone video taken by the husband showing bloody materials in a basin after his doctor's appointment was fabricated, are overruled. The couple "abused the judicial process and committed a fraud upon the court" by staging the video with fake, bloody items and submitting it to the provider and doctor during discovery as a "centerpiece" of their case. The provider and doctor proved the husband did not record the video in a specific exam room.
Court: USDC Southern District of Georgia, Judge: Wood, Filed On: March 1, 2024, Case #: 2:21cv21, NOS: Personal Injury - Medical Malpractice - Torts - Personal Injury, Categories: Sanctions, Medical Malpractice
J. Wood finds that the lower court improperly found for the employer in a suit accusing the hospital of violating an employee's rights under the Family and Medical Leave Act. The employer granted the employee an approved absence for 20% of full-time work, but insisted she still complete 100% of the workload, and fired her when she did not meet those expectations. A reasonable jury could find that the Act requires the employer to adjust its performance expectations to reflect the employee's reduced hours while she was on FMLA leave. Vacated.
Court: 7th Circuit, Judge: Wood, Filed On: February 28, 2024, Case #: 23-1541, Categories: Civil Rights, Health Care, Employment Retaliation
J. Wood finds the trial court properly convicted defendant for criminal mischief and impairing the operation of a vital public facility after shooting a water tower. Defendant was developed as a suspect from eyewitness accounts and a church surveillance video. Defendant admitted he had been drinking, was playing with his rifle and accidentally shot the tower. Though the ensuing shutdown and repair of the tower did not stop water service to the public, defendant's argument the disruption was not substantial is without merit. Defendant was properly ordered to pay $5000 in restitution. Affirmed.
Court: Arkansas Court Of Appeals, Judge: Wood , Filed On: February 28, 2024, Case #: CR-23-522, Categories: Firearms, Property Crimes, Vandalism
J. Wood largely grants a group of realtor associations��� motion to dismiss an antitrust class action brought by a class of home buyers. The home buyers accuse the realtor associations of conspiring with a brokerage firm to illegally affect price competition among real estate brokers, resulting in the home buyers paying illegally high commission rates for their retained brokers. The court, however, finds it lacks jurisdiction over one of the realtor associations, and rules the class representative has not sufficiently alleged Sherman Act violations. The class���s unjust enrichment claims stand.
Court: USDC Northern District of Illinois, Judge: Wood, Filed On: February 20, 2024, Case #: 1:21cv430, NOS: Antitrust - Other Suits, Categories: Antitrust, Jurisdiction, Class Action
J. Wood finds that the lower court improperly denied defendant's motion seeking a reduction in his sentence for crack-cocaine offenses just one day after receiving an updated motion in an order identical to its first order. None of the revisions in the order give any indication that the judge considered defendant's new arguments. Vacated.
Court: 7th Circuit, Judge: Wood, Filed On: February 20, 2024, Case #: 23-2313, Categories: Drug Offender, Sentencing
J. Wood denies the debt collector's motion to dismiss an action brought by the individual under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act arising from the collector's failure to remove an allegedly fraudulent account from her credit report. However, the collector's motion for a more definite statement of the claims is granted. The individual's action is a shotgun pleading which does not include a plain statement explaining which accounts are disputed, how the collector communicated false information or how the collector attempted to collect the alleged debt. The individual is ordered to file an amended complaint within 20 days.
Court: USDC Southern District of Georgia, Judge: Wood, Filed On: February 16, 2024, Case #: 5:23cv103, NOS: Consumer Credit - Other Suits, Categories: Debt Collection
J. Wood finds that the lower court properly convicted defendant of drug trafficking after police had a K9 search around his car during a traffic stop. The police officer did not unconstitutionally prolong the stop to conduct the dog sniff as he did not have to wait for a colleague to show up with the dog and already had a drug-sniffing dog with him. Affirmed.
Court: 7th Circuit, Judge: Wood, Filed On: February 15, 2024, Case #: 22-2932, Categories: Drug Offender, Search
J. Wood rules in favor of the county and the police officers in a civil rights, excessive force and battery action brought by the individual arising after one of the officers tased him during his arrest. The officers' use of force was not excessive because they believed the individual was holding his girlfriend hostage. A reasonable officer could have believed that the individual posed an immediate threat of harm because he refused to cooperate with the officers and actively resisted their efforts to arrest him. The officers' use of force was proportionate and the individual did not suffer any long-term injuries. The officers are entitled to qualified immunity.
Court: USDC Southern District of Georgia, Judge: Wood, Filed On: February 15, 2024, Case #: 2:22cv94, NOS: Other Civil Rights - Civil Rights, Categories: Civil Rights, Immunity, Police Misconduct
J. Wood partially grants the sheriff's, deputies and county's motions to dismiss a civil rights, excessive force and wrongful arrest action brought by the father and son. The action arose after the father was arrested for obstruction and the son was bitten by a K-9 officer and beaten by deputies. The county is not the deputies' employer, therefore the claims against the county for negligent training and supervision are dismissed. The sheriff is entitled to sovereign immunity from the negligent training and supervision claims. Although the father failed to sufficiently state a claim for wrongful arrest against three deputies, the claim may move forward against another deputy.
Court: USDC Southern District of Georgia, Judge: Wood, Filed On: February 13, 2024, Case #: 4:24cv6, NOS: Other Civil Rights - Civil Rights, Categories: Civil Rights, Police Misconduct
J. Wood finds the board of review properly refused to grant unemployment benefits to a hospital housekeeper unemployment benefits. The housekeeper was discharged for her challenging demeanor when confronted and insubordination after she refused to attend a disciplinary meeting involving an improperly cleaned data collection instrument. Affirmed.
Court: Arkansas Court Of Appeals, Judge: Wood , Filed On: February 7, 2024, Case #: E-22-627, Categories: Employment, Evidence, Workers' Compensation
J. Wood finds that four Iranian nationals who wish to join their family members who have U.S. citizenship cannot appeal the government's denial of their visa applications. The doctrine of consular nonreviewability precludes judicial review of this action pursuant to Supreme Court precedent and Congress has unambiguously said that exemption determinations are to be left to the Executive's "sole unreviewable discretion." Affirmed.
Court: 7th Circuit, Judge: Wood, Filed On: January 31, 2024, Case #: 23-1392, Categories: Administrative Law, Civil Procedure, Agency
J. Wood finds the lower court properly sentenced defendant to 66 years in prison for convictions on charges of meth possession with purpose to deliver, drug paraphernalia possession and possession of marijuana. After drugs were found in defendant's vehicle during a traffic stop, more drugs were found at his home. The evidence was properly admitted and supports the conviction along with testimony given by defendant's accomplice. An investigator's testimony involving community impact was not prejudicial because defendant was not sentenced to the maximum term despite haven been tried as a habitual offender. Affirmed.
Court: Arkansas Court Of Appeals, Judge: Wood , Filed On: January 31, 2024, Case #: CR-23-281, Categories: Drug Offender, Evidence, Sentencing
J. Wood denies a Chinese e-commerce platform Wanfan���s motion to dismiss an underlying trademark suit brought against it by an Australian toy company. The Australian company claims in the underlying suit that the Chinese platform sold multicolored cubes, infringing the Australian company���s own trademarked, multicolored cube toys. Wanfan calls the suit ���frivolous��� and seeks dismissal based on lack of personal jurisdiction, improper venue and insufficient service of process. The court disagrees on all fronts, finding Wanfan was properly served, that it has no basis to argue over venue, and that the Australian company ���has had sufficient contacts with the United States to support personal jurisdiction over [the Chinese platform���s] federal claims.���
Court: USDC Northern District of Illinois, Judge: Wood, Filed On: January 29, 2024, Case #: 1:23cv2330, NOS: Trademark - Property Rights, Categories: International Law, Trademark, Business Practices
J. Wood finds the trial court properly convicted defendant for aggravated assault upon an employee of a correctional facility based on sufficient evidence. Two witnesses testified they saw the inmate spit on the corrections officer during a cell inspection. The officer also photographed his sleeve, where the spit landed. Affirmed.
Court: Arkansas Court Of Appeals, Judge: Wood , Filed On: January 24, 2024, Case #: CR-23-361, Categories: Evidence, Assault, Prisoners' Rights
J. Wood finds that the lower court improperly granted a prison doctor immunity on an inmate's deliberate indifference claims after he refused to apply anesthetic to remove a screw the inmate had pushed into his own arm. The doctor told the inmate that the pain he would feel was a "consequence" of his actions and persisted in his efforts to remove the screw while the inmate was strapped down despite the inmate's screams. The doctor's unsuccessful efforts to remove the screw took longer than the hospital's successful procedure, which used anesthesia, and suggests that his chosen course of treatment was intended to be punitive. Reversed.
Court: 7th Circuit, Judge: Wood, Filed On: January 23, 2024, Case #: 22-1585, Categories: Constitution, Prisoners' Rights