Wednesday, March 11 2020 |
A Massachusetts judge has ruled in favor of several student athletes on a girls' hockey team who were disciplined by their high school for attending a house party where alcohol was served.
Norfolk County Superior Court Judge Maynard Kirpalani granted preliminary injunctive relief to the five teammates on grounds that Braintree Public High School's policy was too vague to be enforced.
"Under these circumstances, persons of common intelligence would likely differ on whether the plaintiffs were in the presence of alcohol and, thus, in possession of alcohol within meaning of the policy," Judge Kirpalani wrote. "The policy is insufficiently clear as to what conduct is prohibited and invites arbitrary and discriminatory enforcement."
According to news reports, the players attended a house party where parents were present. Despite calling their parents to pick them up once they learned alcohol was being consumed by underage party-goers, the girls were placed on "social probation" by the school, barring them from participating in sports or other activities for three weeks. School policy allows administrators to discipline students "deemed to be 'in possession'" of alcohol, even if the student is only in the presence of it.
Calling the policy ridiculous as it would prevent students from attending weddings or other events where alcohol is present, Dave Flanagan, attorney for the students, applauded the court's decision.
"They were very excited, that’s for sure,” Flanagan told reporters. The girls were allowed back on the ice in time to play in a big game, which they ultimately won, advancing them to the semi-finals.
—Source: Boston.com |
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Thursday, March 05 2020 |
A Tennessee woman is suing Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida, seeking $30,000 in damages after allegedly being injured when an employee slammed a gate on her at Magic Kingdom's Space Mountain ride.
Among other complaints, the plaintiff claims in the lawsuit that the cast member failed to safely inspect and control the ride or exercise reasonable care. According to news reports, it is unclear from the lawsuit what injuries the woman suffered in the incident.
—Source: wdwnt.com |
Thursday, February 27 2020 |
A lawsuit has been filed in Florida challenging 2020 presidential candidate Bernie Sanders' position on the March 17 presidential primary ballot.
Two Florida Democrats, Frank Bach and George Brown, have filed a lawsuit in circuit court in Leon County asking that that Sanders be disqualified from the Democratic primary because he is a declared independent. The lawsuit further requests the state refrain from counting any of the 244,000 absentee votes that may have been cast for Sanders by mail. The Florida Democratic Party labeled the complaint “ridiculous,” and the Sanders campaign called it “spurious.”
“Florida is a closed primary state, yet here we have someone who is an independent on the Democratic ballot,” said Karen Gievers, who is representing Bach and Brown. “You can’t be an independent and be a member of the party.”
“The Florida Democratic Party executive committee voted unanimously to place Senator Sanders on the Florida ballot,” Juan Penalosa, executive director of the Florida Democratic Party said. “Votes cast for the senator are valid and must be counted.”
Gievers countered, “It‘s hard to think that voter suppression or dilution would be described as ridiculous by a party official.”
According to news sources, Florida law gives political parties leeway to decide which candidates can appear on a party’s primary ballot.
—Source: Politico.com |
Wednesday, February 19 2020 |
The family of a teenage girl who stole a police vehicle is suing the sheriff's office for failure to keep her safe while she was in protective custody.
According to news reports, Samaria Gray, sixteen years old at the time, was intoxicated and wandering the streets. Her mother, Georgina Pierce, had contacted the police and a sheriff's deputy found Samaria asleep on the side of the road, placing her in protective custody in the back seat of his patrol car. While the sheriff's deputy went up to the home to speak with her mother, Samaria got into the front seat and drove off. Before crashing the vehicle into a ravine, Samaria sped through the streets, hitting three cars, resulting in injuries to herself and one other driver.
The complaint charges that the sheriff's office had a duty to train the officer to secure his vehicle and not leave the keys in the ignition. The family is seeking an unspecified amount of damages for Samaria and her mother, including attorneys fees and litigation costs. In the lawsuit, the family alleges negligent infliction of emotional distress, loss of consortium and negligence resulting in personal injury/battery.
Samaria was charged with unlawful taking of a vehicle, aggravated DWI with bodily injury, reckless driving and no driver's license. She pled no contest to some of the charges and was sentenced to a term of probation not to exceed one year. San Juan County argues that it is not liable for the actions of the plaintiff.
—Source: daily-times.com |
Thursday, February 13 2020 |
A radio show host and known Christian activist is reportedly searching for an attorney to take on his potential class action lawsuit against the NFL, Pepsi and his local cable company for the Super Bowl's 15-minute half-time show that put him "in danger of hellfire."
Dave Daubenmire says he was offended by the skimpy outfits, crotch shots and gyrating of J-Lo and Shakira during the half-time show, turning off the show because he didn't want to "let the spirit in my house." Daubenmire allegedly took to Facebook to ask for a lawyer to help him file a lawsuit for "pandering pornography" and "contributing to the delinquency of a minor."
"I tuned in to watch a football game. I didn't tune in to watch a porn show," Daubenmire said.
—Source: si.com |
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