Illinois Lawyer Blog

A lawsuit growing out of a Twitter post has been tossed by a Cook County judge. Last summer Uptown resident Amanda Bonnen filed a Twitter post commenting on her "moldy apartment". Her landlord, Horizon Management Group Realty LLC got wind of the tweet and filed a libel lawsuit against her.

Bonnen's attorney, Leslie Ann Reis argued that the comments in the Twitter post were simply Bonnen's opinions. Judge Diane Larsen agreed, noting that "The Court finds the tween non-actionable as a matter of law." Congrats to Bonnen and Ms. Reis.

Almost missed this story coming out of Montana...

Last week, a Montana judge refused to toss a jury verdict against Hillerich & Bradsby, the manufacturer of the Louisville Slugger baseball bat. In 2003, Brandon Patch, an American Legion baseball player was killed when he was struck on the head by a ball hit off an aluminum Louisville Slugger bat. Brandon's parents sued in 2006, alleging the bat was "unreasonably dangerous". In addition, they alleged that the manufacturer failed to properly warn of the dangers associated with the bat.

In October, 2009, a Helena jury returned a jury verdict for Brandon's parents. The jury ruled that although the bat was not defective, the warnings were inadequate. In November, attorneys for Hillerich & Bradsby moved to throw the verdict out claiming that there was no evidence Patch would have acted differently had he been properly warned.

The trial judge denied the motion. The court ruled that "...the jury may have properly inferred from the evidence that a warning would have been heeded and the failure to warn caused the injury." No word on whether an appeal of the jury verdict is planned...but I can't imagine the bat manufacturer will simply give up. There are lots of aluminum bats being used on baseball diamonds all over America every spring and summer. The potential exposure is enormous.

On December 31, 2009, the Second Appellate District Court of Illinois released an opinion that I had been waiting for - reversing the trial court's dismissal of the negligence portion of one of my cases involving a very serious eye injury. My client, a young guy was an athletic trainer at the time of his injury. He was loaned out to a local hockey team. He spent most of his time in an office in the back, only coming to the ice under very limited circumstances - attending to an injured player or filling water bottles in the bench area when the players banged on his door.

On the day of the injury, he heard some banging on the door and headed to the bench area. As he stepped into the bench he caught a puck in the right eye. The puck fractured bones under his right eye and resulted in permanent vision loss. I filed suit against the player involved and the team. After discovery, they filed a motion to dismiss the negligence counts under the "contact sports doctrine" [CPS]. The CPS doctrine basically says that participants in a contact sport may be held liable for injuries to coparticipants only for injuries caused by "wilful and wanton" conduct - which essentially means the defendant knew that a serious injury would occur. Under the CPS defendants are NOT liable for injuries from simple negligence. The trial court, to my dismay, granted the motion. The court's order left me with only wilful and wanton counts against the defendants - which are very difficult to prove.

I appealed the dismissal of the negligence counts. More precisely retained the very capable Joanna Fryer to handle the appeal. And last week learned that the Appellate Court reversed the trial court's opinion dismissing the negligence counts. The Appellate Court ruled that my client was not a participant in a contact sport, and consequently the CPS doctrine does not apply. The negligence counts are re-instated. Nice way to start the year - with an win in the Appellate Court.

The January 5, 2010 Chicago Tribune carried a follow up article on the very sad story of Christina Eilman. In the spring of 2006, Ms. Eilman was a 21 year old California woman suffering from bipolar disorder. Her disorder was getting worse - she dropped out of school and lost touch with family and friends. And then she took a trip to Chicago.

After landing at Midway Airport, Eilman remained in the airport for two days, acting in an erratic manner. The Chicago Police Department was called to the Airport on two separate occasions and eventually arrested Eilman and transported her to the Chicago Lawn station, located near the airport. One officer has claimed that he called Eilman's parents in California and was informed she was "probably" bipolar. The officer further claims that he passed that information to his Watch Commander. Chicago Police Department rules require officers transport persons suffering from mental illness to a hospital for an evaluation. The City claims it was not necessary because during one interview at the Chicago Lawn Station, Eilman was apologetic and lucid.

But there were certainly indications all was not well with Eilman. One Officer, Rosendo Moreno, told investigators that while Eilman was still at Chicago Lawn he heard the Watch Commander, Carson Earnest, instruct Officer Richard Cason to take Eilman to the hospital for an evaluation. According to Moreno, Cason told the Commander no car was available. Cason told investigators he does not recall the conversation. Earnest has denied ever being advised that Eilman was mentally ill. However, another officer, Yvonne Delia was sufficiently alarmed by Eilman's behavior that she called Eilman's parents in California was advised Eilman was mentally ill. Delia further claims she passed that information onto Earnest.

Eilman never got to a hospital. Instead, she was transported to the Wentworth District, commonly known as Area 2. The Wentworth District is located near the University of Chicago and recognized as a high crime area. Eilamn was escorted to the rear door of the station and allowed to leave. Eilman continued to act erratically as she wandered the streets. Eventually she ended up at a public housing high rise. Not long thereafter Eilman went to an empty 7th floor apartment with a group of people. At least one person tried to persuade Eilman to leave but she refused.

Eventually, Marvin Powell, a reputed gang member and convicted felon arrived. He ordered everyone out of the apartment but prevented Eilman from leaving. Eilman was heard screaming briefly. Shortly thereafter, she plunged from the 7th floor apartment to the ground below.

As a result of her fall, Eilman suffered multiple fractures, a shattered pelvis and a devastating brain injury. After years of treatment, she has now plateaued and has only a child-like comprehension of the world. She will need ongoing medical care for the rest of her life.

Marvin Powell was arrested and charged with abduction and sexual assault. He is in jail, awaiting trial.

Eilman's parents have filed a federal lawsuit against the City of Chicago seeking $100 million dollars in damages. The case is expected to go to trial in March.