There are times when you have to read a case five times before you are sure you understand it. And once you do, you realize you got it right the first time – it never made any sense at all. Under civil asset forfeiture laws, police can seize any property, including houses, if it is suspected of being connected to criminal activity, even if the owner is not charged with a crime....
Texas is moving ahead with a controversial Texas abortion law that would require women to have an ultrasound before they can receive an abortion. The bill already passed the Texas Senate. It has now been reconciled with the Texas House of Representatives, which had significant differences in their version. Republican Governor Rick Perry called passing the Texas sonogram bill an emergency priority, after Republicans failed to pass the sonogram proposal in 2007 and 2009....
The time period between Christmas and Valentine’s Day is known as “Engagement Season,” with couples dreaming of a wedding down the road. Unfortunately, the best-laid plans often go awry and may not deliver on that promised joy. On top of broken hearts, couples who break off their engagement may also have to worry about broken contracts – and that’s not all. Here are three legal concerns that may arise when calling off a wedding, and how they can potentially be addressed:...
Personal injury cases are complex and can involve both expert and lay witnesses. These people will help to prove your case and corroborate your claims. Depending on the details of your case and the specifics of your claim, you may have a few or many witnesses, just laypeople or only experts, or both. Let’s look at how the different types of witnesses help you prove a case. Negligence cases are proven by showing that someone who owed you a duty of care breached that duty and caused your injury, resulting in compensable damages....
A Michigan family is set to collect $6.5 million for their baby’s brain injury at a military hospital, after a judge approved a settlement agreement with the federal government. Haiden Rivera, now 5, was born in September 2008 at Fort Hood’s Carl R. Darnall Army Medical Center via induced labor, reports the Killeen Daily Herald. The Riveras’ suit alleged that Darnell Medical Center was responsible for the severe brain damage caused by this induced birth....
Guest post by Jennifer K. Halford, Esq. I recently overheard two job seekers speaking about their plans to ensure that their LinkedIn and Facebook profiles are “employer appropriate.” It is not surprising that there has been an increase in the number of employers, particularly small business owners, who screen candidates’ social medial profiles. Small business owners want to ensure that the individuals they hire are right for their business. It takes time, resources, and money to hire and train someone....
There you are, walking Princess, your fluffy Pomeranian. She’s even decked-out in her rhinestoned pink leash. Out of nowhere, Cookie, the vicious Chihuahua, walks out of your neighbor’s door. Her owner is nowhere in sight. But Princess and Cookie do not get along. So Cookie attacks. She practically mauls your furry friend. You’ve now got hundreds of dollars in vet bills and your neighbor won’t pay. Who’s responsible when a dog attacks another dog?...
The First Step Act, signed into law by President Trump last week, represents just that: a great first step towards criminal justice reform that altered federal sentences guidelines. While there are many other steps that need to be taken – especially at the state and local level – the bill will provide some major changes to minimum sentencing statutes, give judges more leeway, and give federal prisoners more options in reducing their sentences....
Wondering whether or not you should you sue your relative? Everybody fights with their family from time to time. But what if a family dispute gets to the point where you’re considering taking legal action and filing a lawsuit against a family member? There are several ways in which lawsuit involving family members may differ from those involving strangers or even those with professional or social relationships. Here are five things to consider before suing your relative:...
Sometimes incredibly strange and terrible results emerge from a surgery, leaving victims of botched or wrong-site procedures with many questions. If you’re concerned about being the victim of a botched surgery, here are some legal questions you should be aware of: 1. Isn’t It Obviously the Hospital or Doctor’s Fault? Some surgical mistakes seem easily preventable, like when surgeons leave instruments, gauze, or even sponges inside patients’ bodies. In Critchfield’s case, she had a sponge left in her body cavity for years, leading to its eventual extraction – along with much of her intestine – but only after years of pain....
Two suburban Chicago trampoline centers are being sued for injuries to children after employees allegedly failed to follow safety rules. In both cases, the children ended up with broken legs, Chicago’s WLS-TV reports. Separate lawsuits by the injured kids’ parents blame workers at the indoor trampoline centers for causing the injuries. The suing parents likely signed liability waivers before their children took to the trampolines. But do those waivers cover the types of injuries the lawsuits are alleging?...
A toddler’s death from E. coli has led to a lawsuit claiming he, and hundreds of others, were sickened by a deadly strain of the bacteria at a North Carolina fair’s petting zoo. E. coli O157:H7 kills approximately 60 people each year, according to the CDC. Parents Joshua and Jessica LeFevers believe their son Hunter contracted his fatal infection due to the unsanitary conditions at the Cleveland County Fair in 2012, reports ABC News....
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has taken up the case of diabetic Walgreens employee Josefina Hernandez, a woman who was fired from a South San Francisco, California, store in 2008, after she ate a $1.39 bag of chips in a bid to stabilize her dropping blood sugar. Hernandez reportedly paid for the chips the moment she was able to leave the register, but was still terminated. The Commission contends that Walgreens violated the Americans with Disabilities Act and should have provided a reasonable accommodation....
Instead of mentally ill people awaiting trial behind bars or on the streets, Miami-Dade courts are taking a different approach. The courts have rolled out a new pilot program for mentally ill people which allows prosecutors to drop felony charges if defendants finish one year of treatment. The program is featured in the Miami Herald, which explains how it works. Under the new diversion program, modeled on Miami-Dade’s lauded drug court, it allows for felony charges to be dropped if defendants complete one year of aggressive treatment and monitoring and, in some cases, pay restitution....
U.S. diver George Wainwright, 32, fell victim to a Great White shark attack on Saturday just off the coast of Perth, Australia. The area has seen three such attacks in recent weeks, with the latest occurring on October 10. Wainwright was diving near Rottnest Island, which is located just 11 miles from that site. Local officials have since closed the beach and issued a kill order for the shark. But some are wondering whether they should have acted sooner....
We’ve all heard about solitary confinement, where prisoners are kept in cells alone, with little or no human interaction. The practice – sometimes used as punishment, or to keep the prisoner or other inmates and guards safe – has come under additional scrutiny lately, however, as tales of abuse or exceedingly long stretches in solitary confinement have come to light. One such story, that of a mentally ill Illinois man who spent over 20 years in solitary confinement, is now a lawsuit claiming that sentence amounted to torture....
Car accidents are scary enough, but an accident with a government vehicle can leave you even more frightened and wondering whether you have any recourse at all. While it’s true that filing an injury claim against the government is a little different than your normal lawsuit, that doesn’t mean you can’t recover for damages or injuries caused by a government vehicle. Whether it was a park maintenance truck, or even a cop car that hit yours, you may be able to sue....
Morning sickness is an unpleasant and unfortunate side effect of pregnancy. And expectant mothers, doctors, and drug manufacturers have long been searched for a cure for pregnancy-related nausea. The trouble is finding a remedy that won’t have an adverse effect on the fetus. GlaxoSmithKline thought they had stumbled upon an answer with Zofran, a drug originally used to combat nausea in cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy. But a new series of lawsuits claims Zofran causes birth defects, and that GlaxoSmithKline never cleared it for use on pregnant women....
Two toddlers were hospitalized with severe injuries after a bounce house they crawled into was thrown into the air by wind. The injured children entered the bounce house at New Hampshire’s Sullivan Farm, “a popular spot for apple and pumpkin picking,” reports The Boston Globe. The New Hampshire Bureau of Tramway and Amusement Ride Safety commented that because the bounce house was “not open to the public at the time,” the case is out of their hands....
The new FBI website, BanditTracker focuses on fighting crime in the New York region. The web site is the Internet weapon to catch bank robbery suspects. The Federal Bureau of Investigation is using the web site to solve and track down bank robbery suspects in New York and New Jersey, the New York Times reports. Through the web site the public can contact authorities if they think they know the whereabouts of a suspect....
