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PENNSYLVANIA RECORD

Tuesday, March 19, 2024

Federal Court

Third Circuit upholds terrorism sentencing enhancement for ISIS-affiliated potential church bomber

By Nicholas Malfitano |
PHILADELPHIA – The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit has affirmed a terrorism-based sentencing enhancement, in the criminal case of an ISIS supporter who was arrested in June 2019 for planning to bomb a Nigerian-American church in Pittsburgh.
Federal Court

Judge rules N.Y. gamblers speaking Punjabi properly pled discrimination against Pa. casino

By Nicholas Malfitano |
SCRANTON – A federal judge has rejected a motion to dismiss from a Northeastern Pennsylvania casino, which is accused of discrimination by five New York plaintiffs of Indian ancestry who said they faced such treatment for using their native language of Punjabi while gambling.
Lawsuits

UPenn faculty sue school over anti-Semitism investigation it equates to new 'McCarthyism'

By Nicholas Malfitano |
State Court

U.S. Steel refers to federal statute in removal of class action over plant employee wages

By Nicholas Malfitano |
PITTSBURGH – Citing a federal statute, U.S. Steel has likewise removed to federal court a class action complaint which alleged it violated the Pennsylvania Minimum Wage Act (PMWA), by not paying employees for the time they spent showering and walking to their worksites, among other pre- and post-work activities.
Lawsuits

Short white man sues police after being mistaken for 6-foot-5 Black man

By Pennsylvania Record |
SCRANTON - A disabled veteran describing himself as a "short Caucasian" says he was ambushed and beaten by police looking for a 6-foot-5 Black man.
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Federal Court

Federal judge rejects dismissal motion from Taiwanese group named in Pa. doctor's bike crash suit

By Nicholas Malfitano |
PHILADELPHIA – A federal judge has denied a motion to dismiss from a Taiwanese company named in an injury lawsuit brought by a local ophthalmologist, who suffered a tear of his left triceps tendon and other injuries when his bicycle’s coaster brake allegedly failed and he crashed on a roadway.
Federal Court

Parents who alleged their home was stormed by Philly deputies, say res judicata does not apply

By Nicholas Malfitano |
PHILADELPHIA – Parent plaintiffs who claimed multiple officers from the Philadelphia Sheriff’s Department violated their civil rights when they executed a search warrant at their home in an attempt to find the plaintiffs’ son, who had been murdered five months before the search took place, have countered arguments from the City of Philadelphia that res judicata should bar their case.
State Court

Plaintiff discontinues suit against Lycoming County SPCA, over aggressive dog it adopted out

By Nicholas Malfitano |
WILLIAMSPORT – A Williamsport woman has, for now, discontinued her lawsuit alleging that the local Society for the Protection of Animals failed to warn her that the dog she was adopting had aggressive tendencies and a result, after bringing the dog home, it attacked her cat.
Lawsuits

Counselor claims she was fired for complaining about lack of handicap access at Pittsburgh's St. Benedict's

By Pennsylvania Record |
PITTSBURH - A woman who uses a prosthetic leg is suing the company that employed her as a youth counselor, claiming retaliation for complaints about a lack of handicap parking spots and ramps at one school she worked at.
Lawsuits

Philadelphia Fire lieutenant claims gender, age discrimination

By Pennsylvania Record |
PHILADELPHIA - A female lieutenant with the Philadelphia Fire Department has filed a federal lawsuit that says she was treated differently than male counterparts.
Lawsuits

Lawsuit filed against school district after child falls on playground

By Pennsylvania Record |
MEDIA - A 5-year-old's fall from playground equipment at a Delaware County school is the subject of a recent lawsuit.
Lawsuits

Woman sues Lancaster Co. hotel after falling from second floor to avoid fire

By Pennsylvania Record |
READING - A federal lawsuit against a hotel in Pennsylvania's Amish country says it effectively trapped guests on the second floor when a fire broke out, leading a woman to injure herself escaping with bed sheets tied together.
Schools

Judge disallows amicus brief from LGBTQ group, in suit over first-graders taught transgender issues

By Nicholas Malfitano |
PITTSBURGH – A federal judge has denied the submission of an amicus brief from an LGBTQ nonprofit group, in a lawsuit from a group of parents which alleged their civil rights were violated when Mount Lebanon School District provided classroom instruction to their first-grade children on the topics of gender dysphoria and transgender transitioning.
Federal Court

Investigative journalist settles 'Gag Rule' suit with Allegheny County

By Nicholas Malfitano |
PITTSBURGH – A Pittsburgh investigative journalist who contended that “Gag Rule” policies enacted by the Allegheny County Bureau of Corrections violated the First Amendment rights of County Jail employees and contractors, and prevented her from developing sources to offer comment for stories detailing events which have taken place inside the jail, has come to a settlement with the County.

Counselor claims she was fired for complaining about lack of handicap access at Pittsburgh's St. Benedict's

By Pennsylvania Record |
PITTSBURH - A woman who uses a prosthetic leg is suing the company that employed her as a youth counselor, claiming retaliation for complaints about a lack of handicap parking spots and ramps at one school she worked at.

Philadelphia Fire lieutenant claims gender, age discrimination

By Pennsylvania Record |
PHILADELPHIA - A female lieutenant with the Philadelphia Fire Department has filed a federal lawsuit that says she was treated differently than male counterparts.

Lawsuit filed against school district after child falls on playground

By Pennsylvania Record |
MEDIA - A 5-year-old's fall from playground equipment at a Delaware County school is the subject of a recent lawsuit.

UPenn faculty sue school over anti-Semitism investigation it equates to new 'McCarthyism'

By Nicholas Malfitano |
PHILADELPHIA – A group of University of Pennsylvania professors have sued the school, alleging its cooperation with Congressional investigations into anti-Semitic activity on campus have compromised their free speech and privacy rights, and are tantamount to a modern form of “McCarthyism.”

PhilaPort suing over deepening of Delaware River

By Pennsylvania Record |
PHILADELPHIA - PhilaPort has filed a federal lawsuit against the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, arguing the dredging of the Delaware River has allowed Delaware to profit despite fighting the project.

Fired Union County library employee settles case over religious exemption from wearing masks

By Nicholas Malfitano |
WILLIAMSPORT – A former public library employee in Lewisburg who alleged her Christian beliefs were the determinative factor in the library’s decision to terminate her employment, when she sought a religious exemption to its mandatory mask policy during the COVID-19 pandemic, has settled her claims.

Family of inmate about to be released after 45 years only to die of COVID-19 drops case

By Nicholas Malfitano |
PHILADELPHIA – The family of a man who died from COVID-19 shortly before he was to be released from prison after more than four decades and sued state officials for not approving the decedent’s pardon in a timely manner, allegedly leaving him at greater risk for contracting the virus and causing his death, have voluntarily and mutually dismissed their case alongside the defendants.

AG Michelle Henry: ‘The FTC and Congress must act to ensure fulsome regulation of PBMs nationwide’

By Pennsylvania Record |
State Attorney General Michelle Henry (D-Pennsylvania) sent a letter to U.S. Congressional leadership this week saying Congress should “act to ensure fulsome regulation of pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs).

Philly wins dismissal of RFK Jr.-chaired nonprofit's case against COVID child vax measures

By Nicholas Malfitano |
PHILADELPHIA – The City of Philadelphia has won dismissal of litigation from a California nonprofit group chaired by independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. concerning allegations that the City was vaccinating young children against COVID-19 without parental consent, for a lack of subject matter jurisdiction.

Widow of man who died from COVID-19 tries to keep suit alive against Allegheny County corrections officials

By Nicholas Malfitano |
PITTSBURGH – The widow of a man incarcerated at the Allegheny County Jail and who passed away from COVID-19 two years ago, a plaintiff who contended that institutional failures on the part of the jail and its officials directly contributed to his death, is now trying to refute an attempt to dismiss her case.

Bucks County law firm wants dismissal of trademark suit over phrase 'Education Lawyers'

By Nicholas Malfitano |
PHILADELPHIA – A Bucks County-based law firm seeks dismissal of a Philadelphia firm’s lawsuit, which seeks review of an order which struck down its attempt to cancel the defendant’s trademark surrounding the phrase “Education Lawyers”, in reference to both of their areas of legal expertise.

Pa. state senator Boscola appeals judge's ruling in defamation suit

By Nicholas Malfitano |
PITTSBURGH – A Pennsylvania state senator facing defamation allegations from an energy company president has appealed a judge’s denial of her preliminary objections to the Commonwealth Court.

Third Circuit cites no jurisdiction for insurer's appeal over asbestos litigation costs

By Nicholas Malfitano |
PHILADELPHIA – Citing a lack of jurisdiction, a panel of judges from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit ruled against an insurance company’s appeal connected to the costs it incurred in asbestos litigation from one of its customers.

Plaintiff discontinues suit against Lycoming County SPCA, over aggressive dog it adopted out

By Nicholas Malfitano |
WILLIAMSPORT – A Williamsport woman has, for now, discontinued her lawsuit alleging that the local Society for the Protection of Animals failed to warn her that the dog she was adopting had aggressive tendencies and a result, after bringing the dog home, it attacked her cat.

U.S. Steel refers to federal statute in removal of class action over plant employee wages

By Nicholas Malfitano |
PITTSBURGH – Citing a federal statute, U.S. Steel has likewise removed to federal court a class action complaint which alleged it violated the Pennsylvania Minimum Wage Act (PMWA), by not paying employees for the time they spent showering and walking to their worksites, among other pre- and post-work activities.

Parents who alleged their home was stormed by Philly deputies, say res judicata does not apply

By Nicholas Malfitano |
PHILADELPHIA – Parent plaintiffs who claimed multiple officers from the Philadelphia Sheriff’s Department violated their civil rights when they executed a search warrant at their home in an attempt to find the plaintiffs’ son, who had been murdered five months before the search took place, have countered arguments from the City of Philadelphia that res judicata should bar their case.

PCCJR asks state Supreme Court committee for report on impact of med-mal venue rule change

By Nicholas Malfitano |
HARRISBURG – A legal reform group has asked a Supreme Court of Pennsylvania committee to immediately issue a report on the impact of its decision to allow plaintiffs greater flexibility in where to file medical malpractice cases, nearly six months after the rule change went into effect.

DOJ nets $28M financial penalty against Warren Buffett-owned mortgage lender for redlining

By Nicholas Malfitano |
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Justice has handed down a fine in excess of $28 million to a Pennsylvania mortgage company owned by billionaire Warren Buffet, which it says engaged in discriminatory lending practices to prospective homeowners who are Black and Latino.