Case Successes
Querrey & Harrow Prevails in Federal Civil Rights Claim
Q&H attorneys Dan Gallagher, Paul O’Grady and Dominick Lanzito recently obtained summary judgment on behalf of the Village of Romeoville, defeating all of the plaintiff's claims in the case titled Dawn Garner Smith v. Officer Augustine, et. al., 07-C-0081. This suit arose out of a collision between an Amtrak train and an unoccupied automobile in Romeoville, Illinois. During the course of the police officers’ accident investigation, a dispute arose between the plaintiff, the conductor of the train, and the police, regarding whether the police were allowed to board the Amtrak train to check for injured passengers. According to plaintiff, she claimed that she cooperated with the police and did not refuse access. Defendants asserted that plaintiff denied the police and paramedics access to the train and they properly arrested and charged plaintiff with Obstructing a Peace Officer.
Plaintiff filed suit alleging that the individual officers falsely arrested her, used excessive force during the course of the arrest (including state law battery and assault), and maliciously prosecuted her. Plaintiff also brought claims against the Village of Romeoville under Monell alleging that the Village of Romeoville did not properly train its officers in the following areas: use of force, critical incidents involving trains, and train policy and procedures. There were also state law claims against the Village of Romeoville based upon respondeat superior.
All defendants filed summary judgment motions at the conclusion of discovery. Federal District Court Judge Leinenweber granted both motions in their entirety. The court found that the incidents leading up to the incident between plaintiff and defendants, including plaintiff’s conduct with the police and other first responders, provided probable cause to arrest and prosecute plaintiff, thus defeating plaintiff's claims. The court also found that the use of handcuffs involved de minimus force and did not rise to the level of a constitutional violation.
Querrey & Harrow Prevails in Serious Brain Injury Trial
Q&H shareholder Tom Burke recently obtained a not guilty verdict at trial for his client, the Village of Libertyville, in the Lake County, Illinois circuit court. In the case, the plaintiff was a 38-year-old pharmacist who was riding her son’s bicycle on a Village sidewalk and fell from the bicycle, striking her head on the sidewalk and sustaining severe brain damage, blindness and total disability.
The plaintiffs claimed that the accident was caused by plaintiff striking a utility sign planted too close to the sidewalk. The plaintiffs presented evidence of $2.4 million in past and future wage losses, over $6 million in past and future medical expenses, and asked the jury for almost $30 million.
The jury found in favor of the Village, accepting Tom’s arguments that plaintiff did not hit the sign, but rather her fall was caused by plaintiff becoming entangled in the bicycle, which was far too small for her to safely operate. Tom also argued that even if the plaintiff struck the sign, the Village was not negligent because it did not own the sign, did not install it and the sign was not installed on Village property. Finally, Tom argued that the plaintiff was contributorily negligent for operating a bicycle that was too small for her to ride safely, at night, without a headlight, without a helmet, and riding too close to the border of the sidewalk.
The plaintiffs presented a total of seven expert witnesses. The jury deliberated for less than two hours before returning its not guilty verdict, clearing the Village of any wrongdoing.
