Afternoon Briefs: No-mask lawyer’s lawsuit tossed; suit alleges 60-plus mistaken-identity arrests
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Judge tosses case for lawyer’s refusal to wear mask
Judge Lawrence Knipel of New York City has tossed a car-crash lawsuit because of a lawyer’s refusal to wear a face mask during jury selection. The lawyer representing the plaintiff, Howard Greenwald, wore a face shield but no mask. Greenwald, 68, told the judge that when he wore a mask, he had trouble breathing and became light-headed. (The New York Law Journal, Law360, Law & Crime)
Man sues for more than 60 mistaken-identity arrests
Darren Cole of Chicago has alleged in a lawsuit that Chicago police officers arrested him more than 60 times over the last 15 years in a case of mistaken identity. Cole, 50, said he has the same name and birth date as someone in downstate Illinois with an outstanding arrest warrant for failing to appear in a traffic matter. Cole said he has tried, without success, to clear up the confusion. After the suit was filed, however, Chicago police told all its officers that they should not stop Cole on the warrant. The downstate county also agreed to withdraw the warrant. (The Chicago Tribune here and here)
Civil rights lawyer must face defamation lawsuit
A federal appeals court has ruled that civil rights lawyer Lisa Bloom will have to face a lawsuit alleging that she defamed billionaire Steve Wynn in a press release. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals at San Francisco said Wynn, the former CEO of Wynn Resorts, had demonstrated a genuine dispute of fact as to whether Bloom acted with actual malice when she claimed that Wynn pressured casino dancers to strip down to their underwear. None of the witnesses could confirm the allegation, Wynn said. (Law360, Bloomberg Law, the 9th Circuit Court’s decision)
