Steve Korris News
Rosenstengel demands explanation on deceased paraquat plaintiffs, notes 'concerns about the integrity of the docket'
EAST ST. LOUIS – Chief U.S. District Judge Nancy Rosenstengel, presiding over 3,800 claims that weed killer paraquat caused Parkinson’s disease, gave plaintiff lawyers 31 days to tell her how many of their clients are dead.
Witness in wrongful death suit cashes deposition payment but fails to appear; Plaintiff seeks sanctions
EAST ST. LOUIS – Samantha Goodman, witness to events that led to the death of Toshorn Napper, cashed a $63 deposition fee on May 7 and missed the deposition on May 8, according to Napper’s mother Terri Coleman-Napper.
IL AG's office sanctioned again after payment for discovery violations carried notes indicating case settlement
EAST ST. LOUIS – Assistant Illinois attorney general Martin Plute took over a case after his colleague Thomas Ewick was sanctioned for discovery violations, and Plute managed to make matters worse.
QVC sued after man became stuck on inversion table and suffocated
EAST ST. LOUIS – Sandra Northway of Alton sued the makers of Teeter inversion tables and the QVC shopping network in U.S. district court on May 9, claiming a defective table caused her husband Robert Northway to asphyxiate upside down.
Wood River homeowner alleges township employee failed to disclose prior injuries during lawsuit discovery
EDWARDSVILLE – Wood River homeowner Joanna Hendricks seeks sanctions against Benjamin Dona of Bethalto, claiming he failed to disclose previous injuries.
Summary judgment motion pending in injury suit against Randy Gori's estate; Plaintiff's address is abandoned schoolhouse
EDWARDSVILLE – Sara Staack’s injury suit against the estate of wealthy lawyer Randy Gori hangs by a thread and the case file lacks any evidence that she knows it.
O'Fallon High School claims student was expelled for fighting, denies retaliation claims
EAST ST. LOUIS – O’Fallon Township High School officials claim they expelled a student for fighting and not for reasons her mother alleges in a lawsuit., including retaliation and discrimination.
Fifth District denies St. Clair Co jurisdiction for plaintiffs passing through the county in med mal suit
MOUNT VERNON – Traveling from Chester to St. Louis - through St. Clair County - didn’t qualify Randolph County residents Randall and Samantha Draves as St. Clair County plaintiffs, Fifth District appellate judges ruled on May 2.
Syngenta, Chevron allege 'brazen ethical breach' after discovering deceased plaintiffs actively litigating paraquat claims
EAST ST. LOUIS – Deceased plaintiffs clutter the docket of national litigation on claims that weed killer paraquat causes Parkinson’s disease, according to defendants Syngenta and Chevron.
Seventh Circuit affirms dismissal of class action alleging privacy violations through Blackstone's purchase of Ancestry.com
CHICAGO – U.S. District Judge David Dugan correctly dismissed a class action claim that Blackstone Inc. violated privacy of genetic testing data when it bought Ancestry.com, Seventh Circuit appellate judges ruled on May 1.
Man misses court hearing, seeks to vacate order enforcing settlement in collision suit
EDWARDSVILLE – Shane Richard of Louisiana claims heavy traffic kept him from attending a hearing to explain why he didn’t sign a release for a $400,000 injury settlement.
Madison County counsel objected to showing jurors dashcam video in excessive force lawsuit that resulted in mistrial
BENTON – Before U.S. District Judge Phil Gilbert declared a mistrial in an excessive force lawsuit, jurors compared a dash cam video of Brian Schell’s arrest by deputies Eric Schellhardt and Marc Asbury to the complaint they filed charging that he resisted.
Sister of Madison County inmate who died while detoxing seeks to intervene in brother's suit
BENTON – Siblings Jayson Bull and Angie Roberts oppose each other in suing Madison County over the death of their brother Mark Bull in county jail after he allegedly hit his head while experiencing drug withdrawal symptoms.
Lawsuit alleges housekeeper sexually assaulted guest in her room at Edwardsville hotel
EAST ST. LOUIS – Hotel housekeeper Brandon Billops raped a guest in her room according to a suit Ryan Mahoney of Glen Carbon filed at U. S. district court on March 29.
Washington Park dancers allege club owners violate wage laws with mandatory kickbacks, taking portions of tips
EAST ST. LOUIS – Former dancers at two clubs on Bunkum Road in Washington Park claim owners and managers violated wage laws by classifying them as contractors and taking portions of their tips.
Jurors hear dispute over documents destroyed by hurricane, assign liability for Phillips 66 refinery explosion to HydroChem
EAST ST. LOUIS – Destruction of a Louisiana contractor’s records about an explosion at the Phillips 66 refinery in Wood River didn’t sway jurors in U.S. district court, who found in favor of the defendant after they learned that a hurricane blew the records away.
Local bars settle suit involving fatal crash with off-duty officer
EAST ST. LOUIS – Owners of Good Times Saloon and Tiny’s Pub and Grill settled claims that they contributed to the death of Toshorn Napper in a traffic crash involving a former Alton police officer.
Former SIUE chancellor silenced Christian grad student, now says her lawsuit violates his free speech
EAST ST. LOUIS – Former chancellor Randall Pembrook of Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville, who restricted speech of former student Maggie DeJong, accuses her of violating his free speech by suing him and seeking punitive damages.
Hoerner denies media's request to unseal records in paraquat litigation
BELLEVILLE – St. Clair County Circuit Judge Kevin Hoerner denied a motion by American Broadcasting Company (ABC) for access to records he sealed in a suit over exposure to weed killer paraquat.
Dugan recuses himself from unfair competition suit against Meta Platforms
EAST ST. LOUIS – U.S. District Judge David Dugan recused himself in the tenth month of an Edwardsville company’s unfair competition suit against Facebook owner Meta Platforms.