Public Entities
Representative Cases
- Wrongful death case wherein woman was killed while car was stopped on railroad tracks and struck. Traffic clearance signals were set inconsistently resulting in reduced time to clear tracks before train arrived.
- Wrongful death case involving driver leaving private business property wherein railroad tracks had to be crossed to access county road, no active controls in place and driver drove in front of approaching train and was killed in the accident.
- Handled §1983 and §1981 claims and various state law claims arising out of an incident in which plaintiff alleged unlawful detention, interrogation and search by City Park rangers and City police officer, with claim of racial motivation behind actions, with subsequent actions taken with plaintiff’s employers constituting libel, defamation, and also racially motivated.
- Handled case involving allegations of design error in construction of bicycle lane on city street resulting in accident between bicyclist and automobile crossing lane to make right turn, leaving plaintiff bicyclist with sub-arachnoid brain hemorrhage, multiple rib fractures and clavicle fracture.
- Handled case involving vehicular accident involving city police vehicle and causing significant spinal injuries to multiple plaintiffs, which included spinal surgeries to one plaintiff.
- Handled City contract issues with contractors whose work resulted in damage to private property via water intrusion from adjacent public park improvements, with issues of contractual indemnity.
- Handled defense and indemnity disputes between public entity and contractor, property owner with issues of enforcement of municipal codes, and of obligations to defend and indemnify for defects in work which caused personal injury to third parties.
- Handled case where elderly gentleman walking in neighborhood tripped on city sidewalk upraised by roots of city tree, falling and striking his head and causing major, irreversible brain damage.
- Handled case wherein numerous public entities were sued as a result of coordinated effort to investigate illegal activity at various marijuana dispensaries. It was alleged by the plaintiffs that they were unreasonably searched and seized in violation of the Fourth Amendment, unlawfully arrested without probable cause in violation of the Fourth Amendment, and deprived of their Due Process rights in violation of the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments. There were also allegations of excessive force, cruel and unusual punishment, interference with privacy, under the Fourth, Fifth, and Fourteenth Amendments.
- Handled case wherein multiple public entities were alleged to have been negligent in the management of a watershed area, resulting in massive urban flooding downstream and damage to hundreds of properties.
- Numerous defective sidewalk claims causing injuries of varying degrees.