In The Media

01

Guarding Liberties While Fighting Terrorism

posted on 12/1/2001 10:15:00 AM

Eavesdropping on conversations between inmates and their lawyers. Sneak-and-peak warrants that allow secret searches, wiping out the chance to call a lawyer or watch while the police rummage. Secret databases of suspicious people with no clear guidelines of what names and information are included. Rounding up and detaining indefinitely more than 1,200 people, some on material witness warrants, some on immigration violations such as overstaying a visa, some detained even when an immigrat...

Categories: Articles | Tags: Legislation, Civil Rights, Terrorism | View Count: (2497)

01

Jurors as Full Partners

posted on 11/1/2001 10:24:00 AM

Jurors play a critical role in the administration of our civil and criminal justice system. That role has been closely scrutinized by Florida’s Jury Innovations Committee, which has rendered a report that is far-reaching in its proposed reforms. The suggested changes seek to treat jurors not as children or bystanders at trial, but as full partners in the proceedings. The report contains 48 areas of study and recommendations on virtually all aspects of the jury system.

Categories: Articles | Tags: Judicial Policy, Jury | View Count: (2533)

15

Despite Win at Trial, Family Awaits Award

SuperUser Account posted on 7/15/2001 6:18:00 AM

A jury found a doctor negligent and awarded a girl's family $11-million. But their fight continues to receive any money at all. It has been seven years since a doctor cut open Jessica Roud's brain. It's been five years since the little girl's father sued the surgeon who he said left her paralyzed and blind. It's been two years since the 11-year-old died.

Categories: Articles | Tags: Lawsuit, Trial, Negligence | View Count: (3224)

01

The Frye Hearing in Florida: An Attempt to Exclude Scientific Evidence

posted on 7/1/2000 11:34:00 AM

State Supreme Courts require a minimum threshold of reliability and acceptance in the scientific community for all medical and similar evidence to be admitted at trial. In Florida and some other states, the courts adhere to what is known as the Frye standard, whereas in most states and in Federal Courts it is the so-called Daubert standard. The jurisdiction of the present case is Hillsborough County (Tampa), Florida. Forensic pathologist seldom, if ever, are requested to participate in such h...

Categories: Articles | Tags: Judicial Policy, Hillsborough County | View Count: (7520)

01

New Case Protects Mayors and City Commissioners: The U.S. Supreme Court Extends Absolute Immunity To Local Legislators

posted on 7/1/1998 11:42:00 AM

In Bogan v. Janet Scott-Harris,1 the Mayor and the City Council of Fall River, Massachusetts, passed a bill that eliminated the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), which was headed by Janet Scott-Harris, the first African American to work for the City. Janet Scott-Harris had been Fall River's first black administrator when she was hired in 1987 to head the DHHS. In 1990, Scott-Harris accused a long time City employee, Dorothy Biltcliffe, of repeatedly using racial slurs, including ca...

Categories: Articles | Tags: Legislation, Daniel Bogan, Politics | View Count: (5024)

01

Abuse and Neglect in Nursing Homes and Assisted Living Facilities: The Telltale Signs

posted on 4/1/1998 10:43:00 AM

In 1980, a Dade County Grand Jury investigated the quality of health care in Florida’s nursing homes. The results were shocking. Sixty percent of the nursing home facilities investigated were found to provide "unacceptable or consistently very poor care." In fact, the investigation described "health hazards and deficiencies in patient care that allegedly have been allowed to continue for years." The Grand Jury further concluded that the Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services ("HRS") l...

Categories: Articles | Tags: Nursing Home, Misconduct, Legislation | View Count: (2863)

01

Florida's Nursing Homes - Punitive Damages for Displaying Bad Manners

posted on 10/1/1993 11:48:00 AM

Imagine the scenario. Leona Helmsley procures an early release from her income tax evasion prison sentence. Unfortunately, she has developed physical ailments that require residence in a nursing home. She likes Florida's climate, and decides to move into one of approximately 623 nursing homes in operation here.1 Things go well in the beginning, and she flourishes in her new surroundings. She attempts to relax, but her entrepreneurial tendencies emerge. She begins to convene increasingly large...

Categories: Articles | Tags: Lawsuit, Nursing Home, Misconduct | View Count: (7370)

01

Defending the Sovereign in Subsection 1983 Police Misconduct Cases: An Overview

posted on 2/1/1992 10:52:00 AM

The number of cases involving civil rights litigation as a result of alleged police misconduct has grown exponentially within recent years. The plethora of case law arising from this surge of litigation has made civil rights one of the most rapidly expanding areas of the law. This article will provide a brief overview of the law concerning liability of a sovereign in police misconduct cases brought pursuant to 42 U.S.C. subsection 1983. The vast number of issues raised in civil rights action...

Categories: Articles | Tags: Police, Civil Rights, Misconduct, Legislation | View Count: (3152)

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Guarding Liberties While Fighting Terrorism

Jurors as Full Partners

Despite Win at Trial, Family Awaits Award

The Frye Hearing in Florida: An Attempt to Exclude Scientific Evidence

New Case Protects Mayors and City Commissioners: The U.S. Supreme Court Extends Absolute Immunity To Local Legislators

Abuse and Neglect in Nursing Homes and Assisted Living Facilities: The Telltale Signs

Florida's Nursing Homes - Punitive Damages for Displaying Bad Manners

Defending the Sovereign in Subsection 1983 Police Misconduct Cases: An Overview

Dobyville Dollhouse, Smallest Home for Sale in Tampa Bay, Has Vivid History

Teacher Or Mayor? Law Says Candidate Must Choose

Tom Scarritt Lightning Interview