Crazy Sh*t Lawyers See: Reality TV Edition (Even their Lawsuits are Larger than Life)

April 9th, 2014. By LucyC

Ok—brace yourselves…for the Crazy Sh*t Lawyers See (or at least have to deal with).

Is this the “fun” in funeral? Let’s hope not. Plymouth, Mass, was the scene of a recent shooting. It happened during a funeral (why not?) and the accused is claiming self defense. Hey – funerals can be tense affairs. At least the corpse was safe, so to speak. (I know…I know…)

The accused, Gai Scott, of Randolph, pleaded not guilty in Plymouth District Court to armed assault with intent to murder. “When the dust settles with respect to this case, it’s going to be abundantly clear that Mr. Scott, a licensed gun owner, was acting in self-defense and in defense of his family,” said Jon Ciraulo, Gai Scott’s lawyer.

Thirty-six year old Scott is accused of shooting his 48-year old Uncle who goes by the name Benzino—a hip-hop artist and star of the reality TV show, VH1’s “Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta”. Benzino’s real name is Raymond Scott, and he put in a surprise attendance at his mother’s funeral. The incident occurred on Route 3 in Duxbury, during the funeral procession. I’ll bet that livened things up (pardon the pun).

According to a statement issued by the Plymouth district DA, “growing family tension” between the men resulted in the shooting. For his part, Benzino was released from South Shore Hospital in Weymouth earlier this week, very much alive. He said he had paid his respects to his mother in private at the funeral home but decided to skip the procession and funeral because of tensions in the family over money. Apparently, he was on his way to Plymouth to pick up a friend when he came upon the procession and someone opened fire. But he didn’t volunteer any names of the shooter. Not making things any easier for his lawyer here.

The accused was ordered held without bail pending a hearing, and as one might expect, Gai Scott was ultimately denied bail as it was sort of thought he might be a danger to society. Perhaps?

 

It ain’t all tutus and frills… A pair of brawling Betties—also known to the courts as Kelly Hyland and Abby Lee Miller, of “Dance Moms” fame—or infamy—you choose—finally have a court date. Kelly Hyland is charged with assaulting Abby Miller, and the whole thing is caught on tape. A slam dunk you think—um, not so much, according to the defense lawyer.

The back story—for anyone who failed to follow “Dance Moms”—is that the former star of the Lifetime series instigated a cat fight (as one does) over what role Hyland’s daughter, Brooke, would play in a dance routine—Meow! Gritty stuff indeed. (The pic at right shows a clip posted over at TMZ where Dance Mom Kelly goes at it with Dance Mom Dame Hyland over the amount of time the kids get to learn new routines. Like I said, this is gritty stuff indeed…)

Caught on video, as everything is these days, Hyland is shown losing the plot on dance instructor Abby Lee Miller backstage at Lehman College. “Get your finger out of my face!” Hyland screams before slapping, scratching and pulling Miller’s hair in the scuffle. “She’s crazy,” Miller yells back.

Hyland’s defense lawyer, Paul Martin, said he’s trying to unearth uncut footage of the incident, which he said would show Miller being the aggressor. “My client’s intention is to go trial. She believes that she’s not guilty of any crime and we’re confident that when a jury considers all the evidence that she’ll be vindicated,” Martin said. Yes, good luck with that.

“I think the videotape along with the history of Ms. Miller, my client will be vindicated of any type of criminal wrongdoing.” Guess we’ll see…court date’s set for May…

An ACA Class Action? Here’s what The Legal News Group said…

March 31st, 2014. By AbiK

Recently a reader (thanks Roger!) submitted a question regarding Obamacare and the possibility of a class action lawsuit. We threw the question out to our Legal News Group on LinkedIn (where a number of lawyers and legal industry types hang out) and we’ve shared their answers below…

Roger’s Question: Do you think there is a potential class action resulting from the President’s decision to allow insurance companies to continue to offer health insurance coverage that does not meet the requirements of the Affordable Care Act? Individuals whose plans were cancelled as a result of the ACA can now continue to hold such plans for another two years if their insurance company makes the plan available. However, the plans do not meet the coverage requirements of the ACA. If an individual is treated for some condition that is not covered by their non-ACA-compliant plan but would have been covered by an ACA-compliant plan, the individual should have a cause of action against their insurance company for the out-of-pocket cost for that treatment. What defense does the insurance company have? That the President allowed the non-compliant plan? The President has no authority to do so. While the cost borne by one individual under a non-compliant plan might not justify a lawsuit against the insurance company, many individuals will have the same loss. Does that not suggest a class action?

Stephen: That’s interesting. However, didn’t the Dept. of Health and Human Services actually write the regulations that determined what is and what is not a compliant plan? And since that Dept. is under the Executive Branch and the President is the Chief Executive, can in not be argued reasonably that he does in fact have the authority to decide when to implement the regulations?

Gordon: Although I like parts of the ACA, there is an internal contraction of social production of medical care and the private reaping of profits. It would have made more sense to extend medicare to all ages. There (Medicare) is a social production of medical care and any profit is returned to the public. This has been the basis of the universal health care systems in other industrialized nations. Whether there is a class action suit potential is actually an indication of the internal contradiction.

Helen: Yea, possibly for political reasons. Why would anyone sue for that? What to say that the non-compliant insurance has an unfair advantage possibly but wouldn’t that claim bolster the intent of the reform rather than hurt?

Kristin: If you’re on a non-compliant plan, could you switch out to a compliant plan with more coverage? I thought the main idea behind two-year extension was to avoid a time crunch leaving people uninsured, not to perpetuate non-compliant plans (Helen, I think this is reform intent, right?). Stephen, I agree with the idea that the President can implement the regs when he wants. Gordon, I’ve seen the US healthcare system used as an example of what not to do more than once (pre-ACA). Private healthcare seems so entrenched, do you think an alternate approach would succeed?

Kari: I agree with Gordon T. Davis, my ten cents worth: There should have been the single payer/Medicare option, as initially submitted. Simply there is no reason to kill the healthcare industry “cash cow” without a good fight (Obamacare has been repealed some 50 times, maybe only Congress work creating activity) i.e. patients are not going to travel to China for low cost treatment like many jobs have gone. Just an observation this year, I visited at my doctor in the same office, no changes from previous visits, hospitals are still where they always have been, no challenges even if there was a preexisting condition, just pay the bill …. Obamacare has not killed my healthcare rather it has provided peace in mind without concern do I have it or not. Rush Limbaugh promised to move out of country, if Obamacare will come a law ….. darn still here, can not trust on anything what he says.

Helen: It was the original intent. The problem was the latent news release that the grandfather clause had been tampered with during the passage of the legislation in Congress (note that the clause intended to allow folks to keep their preexisting plan, plans that preexisted prior to the Reform with only minor adjustments, if necessary). That delay or revelation later than sooner, plus the feet dragging to implement the Act together produced the mess. In the aftermath, it turns out most people who learned their current plan (prior to Reform) would be non-compliant were switched automatically by their insurance companies to plans that are compliant albeit possibly more expensive (but better coverage). The delays as implemented by Executive decision isn’t anything new and people have to realize that in any major reform reminiscent of others like Social Security and Medicare, the road of implementation was bumpy! It is true now that few would want those programs to vanish, let alone changed!

Kari: Expect changes/improvements Ref.: Why Employers Will Stop Offering Health Insurance

Got an opinion? Let us know what you think. Comment below, or comment on the original thread for this question at our Legal News Group on LinkedIn.

Crazy Sh*t Lawyers See: Jump’s a Slam Dunk for the Prosecution?

March 28th, 2014. By LucyC

Defense lawyers for these three guys may set a record for fastest case tried, after police discovered actual footage from a GoPro camera taken by two men from Long Island who BASE jumped from the new Freedom Tower (aka the former World Trade Center) in New York. See video below…can[t get much better evidence than that.

The four men involved turned themselves in to New York police for parachuting off the top of the United States’ tallest building, while their lawyers were negotiating with the prosecutors.

Lawyers for Andrew Rossig, James Brady, Marco Markovich and Kyle Hartwell state that three of the men climbed the 1,776 foot (541 meter) tower on September 30, 2013, while the fourth fellow kept watch. According to their attorneys, these four guys are experienced BASE jumpers.

FYI—the new Tower isn’t even officially open yet. One of the jumpers, Andrew Rossig, said the jump exposed lax security at the site—a possible defense? Maybe a point in the defendants’ favor their lawyers could leverage? Uhm…maybe not. Their lawyers say the men will likely be charged with trespassing and burglary.

But not one to give up easily, Markovich’s attorney, Joseph Corozzo of Manhattan (shown at right, with the look of one who knows his client’s antics will be all over the late-night monologues, standing next to Markovich, middle, and Hartwell, far right), said they want to find “a way to use the video to donate money to charity.” That’s thinking outside the box. He said the charity would be one working on behalf of 9/11 victims, “to show they meant no disrespect.”

According to Joseph Murray, who is representing Hartwell, his client had not been arraigned. “My guy is not alleged to be one of the jumpers,” he told local media while he was waiting for the start of the arraignment in Manhattan Criminal Court. “I guess he’s being charged as acting in concert with the top count being burglary.” He sounds enthusiastic.

The Freedom TowerSla is expected to open later this year—then I guess BASE jumping can begin legitimately.

Crazy Sh*t Lawyers See: Social Angst, the Illusory Sentence, and Blame Nike

March 20th, 2014. By LucyC

Ok—brace yourselves…it’s the “never a dull moment” side of lawyering. Regardless of whether it’s in a courtroom, a conference room or even a jail cell, lawyers surely see all kinds of crazy sh*t. And deal with it, too…

Let’s take this offline…Never mind cyber bullying—some folks like to keep it a bit more real. Two men engaged in a dispute over a Facebook post have taken to bricks and guns. No, it wasn’t a multiplayer Minecraft moment—these two went for the real deal! According to the Lee County Sheriff’s Office in Phoenix, AZ, 22-year-old Zachary Heath Belitz faces a disorderly conduct charge based on accusations he threw a brick at the home of a Facebook group administrator.

The admin’s crime? He posted an item about Belitz’ upcoming trial on indecent exposure charges involving multiple women. Whoops. That posted tidbit had the potential to reach close to 15,000 people on FB—not including shares. Keep in mind, it’s not like the indecent exposure charges had not already been reported by multiple news outlets last fall… (fyi, Belitz goes to court on April 15)

Not content to let law and order take its course, sheriff’s officials say the Facebook administrator—Eric Woodson, who heads up the local FB page “The Neighborhood Watchers”–ran outside with a shotgun and fired twice at a truck, presumably with Belitz inside, who fled the scene. No one was hurt. It wasn’t known whether Belitz has an attorney yet for this latest hiccup. He might be looking for one–any volunteers?

Texas Style Justice? In 1977, Jerry Hartfield was convicted and received the death sentence for murder in Bay City, Texas. Seems straight forward enough. And, like a good prisoner, he has subsequently served 37 years, presumably without incident. But there’s a problem. (You knew that was coming). It seems that Hartfield’s sentence was actually overturned in 1977. BUT, in 1987 the governor at the time commuted Hartfield’s sentence to life in prison, before Hartfield was able to demand his release. Say what?

It might be worth mentioning here that court documents describe Hartfield as being illiterate with an IQ of 51. Back to the story…

Cut to 2006 – a fellow inmate convinced Hartfield to apply for a retrial—based on the grounds that his sentence was illusory—there was no sentence to commute! The motion for retrial has since been granted, and Hartfield is set to go to court this April.

While attorneys representing Hartfield call their client’s treatment a blatant violation of justice, the prosecutors have actually suggested that Hartfield himself is to blame for his 30 year stay in prison. And no, I am not making this up.

And it just keeps getting crazier…

Just Do It Baby! Twenty-six year old inmate and former pimp Sirgiorgio Clardy recently decided to take matters in to his own hands. Doing time in Oregon for beating up a john who failed to pay, he has now handwritten a $100 million lawsuit naming Nike as the defendant. Not connecting the dots between pimp + john + jail + Nike? Ok, here we go…

Clardy claims that Nike inadequately marketed its Air Jordans—the ones you wear to “be like Mike”. See, Clardy was wearing a pair when he stomped and kicked the john using a “dangerous weapon” – the Nike Airs. He apparently maimed the john’s face. Clardy quite naturally believes that because Nike allegedly failed to label its shoes as dangerous weapons, the company is partly to blame for his incarceration. Where the heck’s the ATF weighing in on this one?

Clardy’s rap sheet has more sheets than a roll of Scott’s toilet tissue—and as such, he’s seen the interior of a court room a fews time before. (That’s him, strapped into a chair in court, in a picture that first ran in The Oregonian.) Lawyers within an arms’ length radius of him have been spit on and threatened, according to reports, and one judge who figured out that Clardy might have a tough time seeking willing counsel, appointed a legal advisor. Wasn’t long before he cried uncle and got off that case. (That’s the legal advisor, sitting at a safe distance, in the foreground of the pic.)

Yep. Lawyers see plenty of crazy sh*t.

 

Asbestos News Roundup: 3.20.14 – Work History & Asbestos Risk

March 20th, 2014. By LucyC

A roundup of recent asbestos-related news and information that you should be aware of. An ongoing list of reported asbestos hot spots in the US from the Asbestos News Roundup archive appears on our asbestos map.

High Risk Asbestos Disease Occupations

Many workplaces in the US are now considered to have put workers at high-risk for asbestos exposure—decades ago. These include: US Navy, oil refineries, shipyards, chemical manufacturing facilities, aerospace manufacturing facilities, mines, smelters, coal fired power plants, construction work sites, auto repair shops, plumbers, welders, electricians, and most manufacturing, or industrial plants that were operating in the 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, or 1980s.

Sadly, many individuals who served in the US Navy, worked at a power plant, an oil refinery, or a shipyard decades ago are now being diagnosed with asbestos disease—the average age of diagnosis of asbestos mesothelioma is 72 years, according to the Centers for Disease Control, (CDC).

Although strict regulations about the use of asbestos have been put in place, the potential for asbestos exposure remains. In 2009, the CDC reported:

“Although asbestos has been eliminated in the manufacture of many products, it is still being imported (approximately 1,730 metric tons in 2007) and used in the United States in various construction and transportation products. Ensuring a future decrease in mesothelioma mortality requires meticulous control of exposures to asbestos and other materials that might cause mesothelioma. Recent studies suggest that carbon nanotubes (fiber-shaped nanoparticles), which are increasingly being used in manufacturing, might share the carcinogenic mechanism postulated for asbestos and induce mesothelioma, underscoring the need for documentation of occupational history in future cases.” The full report can be accessed at the CDC’s webpage. http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5815a3.htm

Asbestos Lawsuits

Jefferson County, TX: The family of recently deceased William Ray Furlong have filed an asbestos lawsuit against EI DuPont De Nemours and Co. alleging the company is responsible for Mr. Furlong’s asbestos illness and subsequent death.

Virginia Furlong, wife, and Helen Furlong Moity, daughter, allege Dupont knowingly exposed William Furlong to toxic and carcinogenic dusts including asbestos during the time he worked at Dupont’s Works Facility in Beaumont.

According to the suit, William Furlong developed mesothelioma from which he died in 2012.

The Furlongs are seeking more than $100,000 in damages. (setexasrecord.com)

Asbestos Settlements

Erie County, NY: A $3 million settlement has been awarded to the family of a man who contracted and died from asbestos mesothelioma. According to the lawsuit, the deceased, Gerald Suttner, worked at the GM Powertrain Facility in Tonawanda, New York, and involved repairing valves manufactured by Crane and other manufacturers, valves which contained asbestos gaskets and packing materials. It wasn’t until after Suttner had retired from the GM plant that he was diagnosed with pleural mesothelioma. He passed away just 12 months later, at the age of 77. Suttner’s family subsequently sued the companies which made asbestos-containing products.

The plaintiff’s surviving family filed suit in the Supreme Court of Erie County, New York for product liability and wrongful death. The plaintiffs sought recovery for compensatory and punitive damages against Crane and numerous other manufacturers of asbestos-creating products the decedent had been exposed to. The plaintiff asserted that Crane had known as early as the 1930s of the hazardous qualities of asbestos and failed to warn the deceased. (jvra.com)

Philadelphia, PA: A $75,000 award for damages has been granted in a whistleblower lawsuit. Filed by a city police officer, the lawsuit claimed that the police officer’s superiors retaliated against him after he complained of shoddy asbestos removal at the Police Athletic League center he managed in Philadelphia.

The judge hearing the case ordered that Zenak, 44, a 23-year veteran officer, be returned to his job as manager of the PAL center at Wissinoming United Methodist Church, 4419 Comly St., and reimbursed $75,000 for 2711/2 days of leave he used after suing and $411 in medical expenses.

In 2012, Zenak filed suit under Pennsylvania’s “whistle-blower” law, naming the city, Police Department, PAL, church and J. Bailey Builders, the New Jersey-based contractor, as defendants.

According to the lawsuit, Zenak had managed the PAL center since 2008. In 2011, the contractor doing renovations told him there was exposed asbestos wrapping 60 feet of pipe hanging in the room where children did homework. Several weeks later, after Zenak found the pipe insulation gone and a layer of dust everywhere, he complained to his superiors, and he got the first of several reprimands, the PhillyNews reports.

A civil suit is pending which seeks medical monitoring for nearly 100 children who might have been exposed to asbestos while attending programs at the Wissinoming PAL center. (phillynews.com)