Ultimately, the hearing on the remaining issues in Margaret’s motion and the Watts hearing was held over the course of two days, on October 21 and October 28, 2008. During the hearing, Margaret testified about Aaron’s need for care and her beliefs concerning the proper funding for that care. Testimony and documentation from Margaret contained detailed examples of Aaron’s violent rages:

• Aaron refused to go up some stairs in a group home. When a staff member went to physically move him, Aaron hit the staff member in the face.
• When a shirt had not been washed as promised, Aaron said he was angry; the staff member walked away. In response, Aaron threw a television set and had to be restrained.
• While living in Margaret’s home, Aaron attempted to use a knife on himself, turned over a bookcase, and ran into the street. He was taken to the Milwaukee County Mental Health Complex.
• While living in Margaret’s home, Aaron broke furniture and dishes, attacked Margaret, ran into the street and fell, hurting himself.
• At times, Aaron is incontinent. At night it takes forty-five minutes to an hour and a half to get him up, take him to the bathroom and change the linen.
• Aaron once tackled Margaret outside on the sidewalk. He pulled out a chunk of her hair. He bit her arm twice and drew blood. Neighbors rescued her. Aaron was taken to the Mental Health Complex.
• Aaron got angry one night. Margaret woke up at 11:30 and he was standing over her bed holding scissors. He said he was thinking about stabbing her because she used a mean voice when she tucked him in.
• A caregiver blocked Aaron from trying to throw himself down some stairs. In response, Aaron bit him.

Margaret testified that based on her concerns for Aaron’s safety, she believed that there needed to be two people to supervise Aaron at all times, paid at a rate she considered necessary to obtain appropriate caregivers, and that the County should pay her for her caregiving services as the needed second person.

Full case is here.

Stalking case. Jason is the scorned ex-boyfriend. Courter is the creeped out ex-girlfriend. At first this case was sort of fun…

During November and December 2006, Jason sent several letters (one included a check) and an unsolicited pizza to Courter, communications that she reported to the Iowa City police. The police applied for a warrant to arrest Jason for violating the no-contact order.

But then the facts just got downright creepy.

On February 7, 2007, Jason was convicted of the simple misdemeanor assault and the three counts of harassment. Jason stipulated to violating a no-contact order. On February 16, 2007, he was sentenced to 120 days in jail—all suspended—with the no-contact order being extended for five years. Jason stated at the sentencing hearing that he would never contact Courter again. However, he was released from jail just after noon on February 27 and sent an e-mail to Courter at 2:26 p.m. Jason sent more than 100 e-mail messages to Courter in late February and March 2007.

On March 10, 2007, Courter went out with friends in downtown Iowa City to celebrate her birthday. Jason showed up at the bar uninvited, approached Courter’s table, and reached across as if to grab her. Courter pulled out her cell phone and called the Iowa City police, a number she had programmed into her speed dial. Police could not locate Jason that night, but applied for an arrest warrant for the no-contact order violation.
On March 19, 2007, Jason started sending e-mails to the law student who served as a prosecuting intern at Jason’s simple misdemeanor trial. The messages indicated that Jason did not feel compelled to comply with the no-contact order issued by the magistrate court because “it’s a free country” and “no judge will tell me what I can do, I can do what I want.” He also admitted seeing Courter on her birthday and dared the prosecuting intern to file stalking charges.

From mid to late March, Courter received e-mails from Jason that indicated he was in Florida. Some of them featured photograph attachments, including nude photographs where Jason’s body appeared to be smeared with feces and another where he had an erect penis. In others, Jason took on “the persona of a little boy” and talked about wearing diapers. In still others, Jason threatened to beat Courter “black and blue” and to “hunt [her] like prey.”

The full case is here via PDF format.

These parental termination cases seem to be getting worse. I feel bad for the responding officers:

On February 22, 2007, Akron police officers removed the children from their home under Rule 6 of the Ohio Rules of Juvenile Procedure. The officers had responded to a report that the oldest child, R.G., was attacking the mother with a large board.

When the officers arrived at the home, they discovered that the mother had locked herself in a bedroom and was unable to control any of the four children who were home at the time. In addition to R.G. threatening others in the home with a large board, N.G., then age three, was on the roof of the house throwing toys and household items.

As the officers attempted to restrain R.G., his younger brother, who also has the initials R.G., came out of the kitchen wielding a butcher knife.

The officers also discovered that both R.G.s had bruises on their legs, which the boys claimed had been inflicted by the mother.

The full case is here in PDF format.

The case begins as a battered-girlfriend-kills-boyfriend situation:

The Defendant testified that on the day of the shooting, she had gone to the doctor for a
checkup following treatment she had received for a tubal pregnancy.

She said that she returned home about 4:00 p.m. and that she drank some wine but did not take illegal drugs. She said that the victim was already at home and that he was drinking beer. She said that they left to go pick up the victim’s paycheck, that they stopped at the dollar store, and that the victim remained in the car while she went inside.

She said she observed a man she knew as a crack dealer talking to the victim, although she did not see an exchange. She said they returned home about 6:00 p.m. and smoked crack. She said that a friend of hers called wanting to buy marijuana and that the victim left to purchase some for the friend. She said that the victim called her to tell her he was on his way home and that when he did not return immediately, she called her sister to see if the victim was there, which he was. She said that when the victim returned home, they fought but that she could not remember about what.

She said that the victim ordered her to leave and that as she took some belongings to her car, the victim grabbed her by the hair. She said that the victim released her and pushed her from behind as she walked out the door and that her belongings spilled onto the ground.

When asked what she was thinking at that moment, she replied, “I was mad and sad and just tired.” She said that she walked into the house and that she could barely remember going to the gun cabinet and grabbing the gun. She said she thought she grabbed shotgun shells. She recalled walking into the bathroom and closing the gun. She said the next thing she remembered was watching the victim fall backwards.

…and then a little judicial misconduct gets thrown in:

On July 28, 2008, there appeared in the Maryville Daily Times a letter to the Editor from Lori Barnes, the sister of the deceased. This letter praised the conduct of the trial court in sentencing the defendant
to the maximum sentence. The letter also stated Ms. Barnes[’s] intention [for] her family to vote for and [to] support . . . the trial judge in the upcoming election to be conducted on August 7, 2008.

Also appearing in the July 28 edition of the Maryville Daily Times was another letter of support for the trial judge by another victim of a homicide case. Both of these cases had been prosecuted by Ms. Tammy Harrington, Assistant District Attorney for Blount County Tennessee. Ms. Harrington was concerned that the Barnes family might be upset with the manner in which her office prosecuted this murder.

As a result, Ms. Harrington called Ms. Barnes about the July 28 letter. During the course of this conversation, Ms. Barnes revealed that the trial court had contacted her by phone. The trial court had inquired if the family was satisfied with the sentence and if so, would the family write a letter in support [of] the trial judge’s upcoming election. The trial court also inquired if she was a registered voter. Ms. Harrington disclosed this information to defense counsel.
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The full opinion (in PDF format) is here.

Plaintiffs [...] were employed as entertainers at Club Onyx (“Onyx”), an adult entertainment night club allegedly owned and operated by Defendants. On July 31, 2009, Plaintiffs filed a putative collective action against their employer for violating the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”).

The alleged violations of the FLSA include misclassifying the Plaintiffs as independent contractors instead of employees, failing to pay minimum wage and overtime, and retaliation for filing suit under the statute.

On August 11, 2009, Parker, Pough, Wells, Leaphart, Sales, and Appling were at best suspended, and perhaps permanently terminated, from their employment with Onyx as a result of filing this action.

Plaintiffs Jordan, on August 12, and Clincy, on August 13, were also informed that they could no longer work at Onyx due to their involvement in this suit.

On August 20, 2009, Plaintiffs filed a Motion for Temporary Restraining Order and Preliminary Injunction. Among the relief sought in the motion, Plaintiffs requested that [they] be reinstated to their positions at Onyx and that they and other similarly situated individuals not be adversely affected by participation in this suit.

Plaintiffs also requested the tolling of the statute of limitations for the FLSA claims of similarly situated individuals. A hearing on Plaintiff’s motion was held on August 26, 2009, at which Plaintiffs and Defendants were each represented by counsel.

The real question is, if they aren’t making min. wage, why continue to strip? They got the injunction though…

Plaintiffs have demonstrated a substantial likelihood of success on the merits of the underlying case. [...] This type of action represents a flagrant violation of the FLSA’s anti-retaliation provision and therefore Plaintiffs have satisfied the first requirement by demonstrating a substantial likelihood of success.

A mother who didn’t like what she saw while visiting her son’s Mankato apartment last month followed her intuition, called police and started an investigation that led to more than a pound of pot.

The woman called police after her son let her into his apartment in the 1800 block of Monks Avenue. She was suspicious about what she thought was drug paraphernalia. Those items turned out to be a suspected marijuana pipe and pot grinder, according to the officer who responded to her call.

A search warrant was issued to agents of the Minnesota River Valley Drug Task Force after the woman also told the officer that her son told her his roommates were selling marijuana. The search was executed the same day.

One roommate, Nathan Daniel Brumbaugh, 20, was at the apartment during the search and arrested for an outstanding warrant. His room kept the agents and other officers busy, according to a criminal complaint that was filed last week.

A couple of bongs, several suspected pot pipes, another pot grinder and two street signs that were possibly taken from Eden Prairie were the first items found, the complaint said.

Then several containers filled with suspected marijuana, including one labeled “Colorado,” were found.

Eventually, several individually wrapped baggies of suspected marijuana were found. A piece of paper labeled that stash — which added up to just more than a pound — as ” stinky pink,” investigators reported. All of the suspected marijuana found added up to nearly 20 ounces.

Via Twincities.com

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — A Kentucky appeals court upheld a $6.1 million award to a former fast food worker who was forced to strip in a McDonald’s restaurant office after someone called posing as a police officer.

The appellate court on Friday ruled that Illinois-based McDonald’s Corp., knew about a series of hoax calls to restaurants around the country, but didn't warn employees before Louise Ogborn was strip searched and sexually assaulted as the result of such a call in 2004.

via The Associated Press.

This case arises out of a “birthday spanking” given to appellant Jeremy Meintsma by five co-employees with a two-by-four fashioned into a paddle at his place of employment, Loram Maintenance of Way, on May 1, 2001.

Meintsma sued Loram and the co-employees individually, alleging claims of assault and battery, aiding and abetting assault and battery, respondeat superior, negligent hiring, negligent supervision, negligent retention, and constructive discharge, as well as a claim for punitive damages.

According to Meintsma, the birthday spanking resulted in injuries to his buttocks, wrists, and elbow. Loram and the employees moved for summary judgment, arguing that Meintsma’s exclusive remedy was under the Workers’ Compensation Act (WCA).

Apparently this “spanking” was more in the nature of a birthday-beatdown:

Some members of Loram’s management were aware of the spanking practice, and a manager participated in at least one spanking. Indeed, according to Meintsma, sometime before his spanking he approached a supervisor and asked what would happen “when these guys tr[y] to get me on my birthday if I defend myself.” Meintsma also claims that on the day he was spanked he approached a supervisor and indicated that he did not want to be spanked.

Meintsma’s spanking occurred a few days after his birthday when a group of his co-employees grabbed him from behind, wrestled him off his stool and onto the concrete floor, and then spanked him with a wooden paddle fashioned from a two-by-four. The manner and number of times Meintsma was spanked is disputed. According to Meintsma, after the spanking, he spit blood on the floor, got up and shook hands with the individuals who spanked him, went to the washroom, and cleaned up with the help of one of the co-employees.

That evening Meintsma went to the emergency room. There, the doctor found that Meintsma had contusions to his back, abrasions to his left arm, muscle spasms in his lower back, and a superficial cut on his left wrist. Upon discharge, Meintsma was given pain medication and told not to go to work for the rest of the week. The emergency room doctor reported the incident to the Wright County Sheriff. Meintsma also reported the incident to the police. Ultimately, the individuals who participated in the birthday spanking were charged with fifth-degree assault and disorderly conduct. They eventually pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct and received a stay of imposition of sentence for one year.

Meintsma v. Loram Maint. of Way, Inc., 684 N.W.2d 434 (Minn. 2004) a review of the case is on Findlaw.

State v. Pegues, Wisconsin Appeals, November 11, 2009.

Pegues contends that statements he made to police at the scene should have been suppressed. The trial court denied Pegues’s pretrial suppression motion.

The court found that police were dispatched to a report of shots being fired and that when Officer Novy arrived, Pegues was slowly walking away from the vehicles, using a four-legged walker.

Novy recognized Pegues from previous contacts. The court found that Novy approached Pegues and asked him words to the effect of what was going on. Before Pegues responded, another officer told Novy that the victim said that Pegues had been shooting at her.

Novy could not see a gun in Pegues’s hands, and he asked Pegues if he had a gun. Pegues replied that he did and it was in his car.

Pegues also told Novy “I tried to shoot the bitch, she won’t leave me alone.”

Pegues was then arrested.

via FindLaw | Cases and Codes.

Police are investigating a video that shows young people attacking passersby, apparently at random.

The video was posted on YouTube, but has been removed. Community members e-mailed it to St. Paul police this morning, said Sgt. Paul Schnell, police spokesman.

At about six minutes and 30 seconds long, the video shows young people “going out and finding or preying upon bicyclists or joggers, shoving them down, pushing them onto the ground, running up behind them and grabbing their hat, for example,” Schnell said. “In one instance, they are seen tackling and trying to fight with someone.”

via TwinCities.com.

This is too stupid for words. How does the conversation to tape criminal acts go?

Billy: “Hey I have an idea!”
Timmy: “Yes Billy?”
Billy: “Let’s run around the city and terrorize people!”
Timmy: “Like Lady Gaga does when she refuses to wear pants in public?”
Billy: “Nono. Much more hardcore. I’m thinking simple assault, harassment. You know… mayhem!”
Timmy: “I like it! That sounds bad ass.”
Billy: “Oh, and let’s tape this and post it online!”
Timmy: “Like those girls in Florida?”
Billy: “Yes! We will be internet sensations! Just like them!”
Timmy: “Or Balloon boy! Awesome!”