Government Liability Victories
Forest Service and private camp failures allow black bear to maul teenager.
We represented a teenage girl who was mauled by a black bear while attending a 4-H camp on Mt. Lemmon, just outside of Tucson. We proved that the defendants failed to follow their own rules and failed to properly manage the food and trash management at the camp. We also proved that the defendants brought this black bear to Mt. Lemmon and knew that it was a danger to the campers, yet did nothing. The U.S. Forest Service settled the case for $2,500,000. We reached confidential settlements with other defendants.
State responsible for juvenile detention center guard's sexual assault of a minor.
We represented a 16-year-old boy who was living at the Adobe Mountain juvenile facility outside of Phoenix. This young boy was repeatedly sexually molested by a female prison guard. As part of our investigation and work on the case, the United States Department of Justice investigated the Arizona juvenile detention system and issued many criticisms and recommendations. The juvenile detention system was put under watch by the Department of Justice. We settled our client's case before filing a lawsuit. The guard is currently serving a sentence in the Arizona prison system.
County and prison guard held accountable for beating prisoner to death.
A 45-year-old man with documented mental health trouble was arrested on a misdemeanor charge in downtown Tucson. When he was taken to the Pima County Jail for intake and booking, two of the prison guards beat him to death. The two guards were indicted on charges stemming from his death. We settled this case for his family prior to filing a lawsuit.
Dog handler and agency settle police dog attack case.
Our client, a beloved grandfather, was doing yard work when he was attacked by a retired police dog who had escaped from his handler's yard. Our client was gravely injured in the attack. He suffered a variety of puncture wounds and lacerations the most severe was above the elbow amputation of his right arm. During the litigation of this case, we established that the dog had a known history of bad behavior and bad bites. We also proved that the dog had previously escaped from his handler's yard. In settling this case prior to trial, we convinced the defendants that the police force had knowledge of both the dog's tendencies and the inadequacy of the handler's yard and should never have released the dog into this particular setting.