Tuesday, May 13th, 2008
Rosalie Fair works at a Starbucks in Clearwater, Florida and was incorrectly linked to a group of Scientology protesters named in a civil suit by the Church of Scientology. The lawsuit seeks to keep all members of an internet protest group, Anonymous, 500 feet away from any of the many Scientology buildings in the Clearwater area.
The church claims they have been facing worldwide harassment by members of the group and they are taking the threats seriously.
“The problem we have is that people are hiding behind Anonymous,” Harney said. “We have thousands of people here we have to protect.”
Fair, however, claims that since most of her patrons are members of the Church of Scientology, she wanted nothing to do with the protests and is not a member of the internet group named in the lawsuit.
The court system in Florida, however, failed to find any ties between the 26 people named in the civil lawsuit and the group Anonymous, and in striking down the suit, pointed out that while the court is mindful of the threat of violence against Scientologists, there must be a connection between the threat and imminent danger.
http://www.tampabay.com/news/courts/civil/article416511.ec
Source: St. Petersburg Times
Posted in Civil Lawsuits | 1 Comment »
Sunday, May 11th, 2008
Shad Nicks was riding his motorcycle on Nebraska US Highway 6 in April when things went terribly wrong. An opposite bound car crossed over the median and hit Nicks, killing him. Now, his family is filing an 8.5MM USD civil lawsuit against the State of Nebraska.
Initial civil findings in court allowed for the legal filing process to continue after finding that the area where Nicks was killed was, indeed, dangerous and not addressed despite several complaints. The construction area where Nicks was hit was not secured properly.
“It’s not something that I think is wrong, or that his spouse thinks is wrong,” Blakeman said. “It’s something that a national expert thinks is wrong.”
The case is currently under investigation and suggestion for a settlement is expected within six months or the case can continue into the court system for trial. The other party in the accident, Heather Henning, carries a total of insurance for $25,000. Without a legal settlement, the family of Nicks would be without any source of income and his surviving three children without any hope of future earnings or savings from a father.
http://www.omaha.com/index.php?u_page=2798&u_sid=10331989
Source: Omaha World-Herald
Posted in Civil Lawsuits | No Comments »
Monday, May 5th, 2008
After months of legal wrangling, the defense contracting company Herley pled guilty to two counts of financial impropriety and agreed to pay the Federal Government 9.5 million USD to settle a civil lawsuit.
Once the company agreed to pay 6MM in penalties and 3.5MM in fine, the government not only dropped over 30 other counts against the company but also withdrew its lawsuit against them.
Herley was accused of making false and fraudulent statements that misled government industries into overpaying for their defense contractor services. News of the settlement drew sharp criticism from those in the industry, but the stock market applauded and sent Herley stock soaring up 20% on Monday.
http://www.centralpennbusiness.com/article.asp?aID=66005
Source: Central Penn Business Journal
Posted in Civil Lawsuits, Financial Fraud | No Comments »
Sunday, May 4th, 2008
South Dakota Comfort Inn owners Robert and Angelina Farrell were convicted of 22 mixed counts of forced labor and peonage, or forced working in an unfair labor market. Now, it appears that Choice Hotels, the owners of Comfort Inn’s franchise, may be also at fault for not having more stringent guidelines and managing their hotel owners more closely.
Four Filipino workers have filed a civil lawsuit against Choice Hotels and the Farrells personally claiming unspecified damages for their suffering at the hands of the Comfort Inn owners. Choice Hotels denies any wrongdoing or liability involved in this case. As good franchisees, however, the Farrells have requested that the civil lawsuit against the parent company be dropped and only they be named as defendants.
In addition to these legal labor issues, the Farrells also were convicted of visa fraud and false statements. Settlement may be imminent, but the fact that a labor lawsuit of this magnitude occurs in this day and age is shameful, at best.
http://wkbt.com/Global/story.asp?S=8269089
Source: WKBT, LaCrosse
Posted in Civil Lawsuits, Immigration Fraud | 3 Comments »
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