Bickerstaff is alleged to have repeatedly sexually abused a 16 year-old Boy Scout, named as “John Doe” in the lawsuit. Bickerstaff, 56, is now in jail in Dixon, Illinois on $4 million bond awaiting trial on multiple counts of child molestation involving at least two victims.

Police have recovered six diaries of 120 pages in length from Bickerstaff's home which describe in detail his sexual relationships with underage boys dating back to at least 1989.

The victim was a member of the Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts for most of his childhood who "looked (to Bickerstaff) as an authority figure," the lawsuit says. Using the power and trust of his position, the suit says, Bickerstaff routinely spent time alone with the boy outside of Scout events. Bickerstaff "enticed, induced, directed, coerced, and forced" the child "to engage in deviant sexual acts with him." The crimes took place on a Scout trip to Lansing, Michigan, at Bickerstaff's home, and "other locations."

According to the suit, the Boy Scouts "knew or should have known" that Bickerstaff was dangerous, failed to adequately investigate allegations of misconduct involving Bickerstaff and failed to adequately supervise Bickerstaff's activities. The suit also alleges that the Boy Scouts knew for decades that sexual predators "had infiltrated Scouting," but its leadership "failed to inform Scouts' parents of that fact."

My firm represents the first victim to come forward and report this pedophile to police. Hopefully this lawsuit will allow other victims to come forward and report this type of abuse to the authorities, and allow us to use the tools available through the legal system to investigate how the Boy Scouts permitted a pedophile to become a paid executive within its organization.

A copy of the filed complaint can be referenced below:

JANE DOE, as mother and next friend of JOHN DOE, a minor,
Plaintiff,

v.

BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA,
a congressionally chartered corporation,
authorized to do business in Illinois;
and BLACKHAWK AREA COUNCIL OF
BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA, INC.
an Illinois public benefit corporation;
and CHARLES BICKERSTAFF,
Defendants.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

COMPLAINT AT LAW

NOW COMES the plaintiff, JANE DOE, as mother and next friend of JOHN DOE, a minor, by and through plaintiff’s attorneys, HURLEY McKENNA & MERTZ and THE LAW OFFICES OF TIMOTHY D. KOSNOFF, and as their complaint against defendants, BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA, BLACKHAWK AREA COUNCIL OF BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA, INC. and CHARLES BICKERSTAFF, they state as follows:

COUNT I – NEGLIGENCE and BREACH OF FIDUCIARY DUTY–
BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA and
BLACKHAWK AREA COUNCIL OF BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA, INC.

1. The Boys Scouts of America (hereinafter "BSA") is the largest youth organization in the United States with approximately five million members. BSA was chartered in 1910 by an act of Congress. An estimated 20% of American boys have had contact with scouting either as members or by attending Scout functions.
2. Throughout its ninety-three year history, the BSA has consistently held itself out to the public as a "moral and safe" environment for boys to participate in healthy outdoor activities and to be given proper guidance and instruction. Millions of parents and scouts have placed their trust in the BSA.
3. Paradoxically, the BSA promotes the wholesomeness of its programs while knowing that since the 1940s it has been secretly removing scoutmasters for child sexual abuse at an alarming rate, which in the 1970s, reached an average of one every three days. Its own records demonstrate that it has long known that scouting attracts pedophiles in large numbers and that scouts, far from being safe, are at heightened risk of sexual abuse by child molesters.
4. JANE DOE, is the mother and next friend of JOHN DOE, a minor. At all relevant times, JOHN DOE was enrolled in BSA Scouting programs.
5. Defendant, BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA is a congressionally chartered corporation, authorized to do business in Illinois.
6. Defendant, BLACKHAWK AREA COUNCIL OF BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA, INC. (hereinafter “Blackhawk Area Council”) is an Illinois public benefit corporation which covers Winnebago, Ogle, Lee, and Whiteside counties for the BSA. The Blackhawk Area Council headquarters is located in the City of Rockford in Winnebago County, Illinois.
7. Defendant Charles "Chuck" Bickerstaff ("Bickerstaff”) was a pedophile and sexual predator of adolescent and pre-adolescent boys. Bickerstaff posed a constant threat to boys. 8. Bickerstaff was at various times material hereto a paid Executive of the Blackhawk Area Council.
9. Defendant Bickerstaff was at various times material hereto an employee, servant, agent and/or apparent agent of defendant Boy Scouts of America.
10. Defendant Bickerstaff was at various times material hereto an employee, servant, agent and/or apparent agent of defendant Blackhawk Area Council.
11. BSA and the BLACKHAWK AREA COUNCIL knew for decades that sexual predators of boys had infiltrated scouting. These defendants knew or should have known the danger that pedophiles presented to boy scouts and either knew or should have known the danger that Bickerstaff presented, but instead ignored that danger and permitted Bickerstaff and other pedophiles in scouting to prey upon young boys, including plaintiff.

12. BSA's own internal "Ineligible Volunteer Files" (also called "the confidential records"), records it collected and maintained in secrecy for seventy years, reveal that scouting is a pedophile "magnet" and that removed pedophiles were often able to re-enter scouting in other locations. These files were maintained concerning paid executives as well as "volunteers."

13. BSA's confidential records demonstrate both its awareness of Scouting's attraction to pedophiles and the distinctive characteristics of scouting that render scouts particularly susceptible to pedophiles.
14. BSA knew or should have known that scouting attracts pedophiles, in part, because: a) Scouting provides the pedophile access to boys alone and away from their parents in secluded settings like camp-outs and overnight hikes; b) Scouting provides opportunities for the pedophile to seduce a boy by getting him in situations where the boy has to change clothing or spend the night with him; c) the pedophile scout leader can, depending on the pedophile's age preference, volunteer for and be sure to have access only to boys of a certain age; d) BSA conditions boys to the concept of strict obedience to the Scout Leader, a bonding mechanism that pedophiles crave; e) BSA promotes the idea of secret ceremonies, rituals and loyalty oaths, all of which help facilitate the pedophile's efforts to keep his victims silent and compliant; f) At the time of the abuse, BSA conducted no criminal background checks on Bickerstaff.
15. BSA was aware for decades prior to the 1980s that it had ejected thousands of pedophiles from its ranks of leadership in local Scout Troops and failed to inform its Scouts and their parents of that fact. BSA knew or should have known that if they advised parents of this statistical phenomenon, parents might well remove their boys from Scouting, thus depriving BSA of millions of dollars of income.
16. BSA knew or should have known that its "ineligible volunteers" system of keeping track of pedophiles infiltrating its ranks and attempting to eliminate them did not function as it was intended, was flawed, and in many cases ineffective. Despite that knowledge, BSA did nothing to educate its Scouts and their parents of the ineffectiveness of the screening and tracking system and process. BSA did nothing to educate or inform Scouts and their parents of the enormity of the pedophile problem, nor did BSA take action to correct its screening and/or education system.
17. Bickerstaff was a paid executive with the Blackhawk Area Council for many years prior to and including 2006.
18. Bickerstaff was a paid executive, employee, servant, agent and/or apparent agent of defendant BSA for many years prior to and including 2006.
19. Bisterstaff’s work and duties for defendants BSA and Blackhawk Area Council included duties and activities in Winnebago County, Illinois.
20. Prior to the summer of 2006, BSA and Blackhawk Area Council ignored warnings that Bickerstaff was a pedophile.
21. Plaintiff JOHN DOE was enrolled in the Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts for most of his childhood and up until this date.
22. Using his role as Blackhawk Area Council executive as his entree, in July 2006 Bickerstaff sought and gained the trust and confidence of plaintiff’s mother and gained plaintiff’s mother's consent for plaintiff to attend a BSA memorabilia Trade-O-Ree in Lansing, Michigan, and thereafter on several occasions, over the next 9 to 10 months, to spend time alone with Bickerstaff at Bickerstaff’s home and at other locations in Winnebago County, Ogle County and Lee County, Illinois.
23. For the purpose of furthering his duties as a BSA paid executive, Bickerstaff also sought and gained plaintiff’s trust, friendship, admiration and obedience. As a result, plaintiff was conditioned to comply with Bickerstaff’s direction and to look to him as an authority figure.
24. Using the power, authority and trust of his positions as a BSA executive and availing himself of defendants' representations to parents and scouts that the BSA was a moral and safe place for boys, Bickerstaff enticed, induced, directed, coerced and forced plaintiff to engage in deviant sexual acts with him over a 9 to 10 month period.
25. At all times, Bickerstaff was under certain direction, supervision and control of
Defendants BLACKHAWK AREA COUNCIL and BSA and was otherwise their employee, servant, agent and/or apparent agent.
26. At all times, BLACKHAWK AREA COUNCIL was under the direction,
supervision and control of defendant BSA and was otherwise its servant, agent and/or apparent agent.
27. Defendants, BSA and BLACKHAWK AREA COUNCIL, were negligent and breached their fiduciary duty in the manner that they screened, hired, retained, and supervised Bickerstaff when said defendants knew or should have known that Bickerstaff posed a threat of sexual abuse to children, and were negligent in one or more of the following ways:
a. Allowed Bickerstaff to routinely be alone with plaintiff for hours;

b. Ignored warning signs that Bickerstaff was using his BSA position to
spend time alone with plaintiff for the purpose of sexually abusing him;

c. Failed to discover, investigate, or question the fact that Bickerstaff was spending time alone with plaintiff and other Scouts, outside of regular troop events or to caution parents regarding such a relationship;

d. Failed to conduct background checks on new or existing scouting leaders, or more carefully screen scout leaders who did not then have and never had sons in Scouting;

e. Failed to timely adopt policies and procedures to protect children;

f. Failed to advise parents of statistical data available to BSA from the ineligible Volunteer Files;

g. Failed to advise parents that the ineligible volunteer file system of ejection of paid executives and volunteers, as the primary method of protecting Scouts from pedophiles, was ineffective;

hg. Carelessly or negligently maintained, reviewed, and updated the Ineligible Volunteer Files;

i. Carelessly or negligently warned and/or failed to warn parents of information regarding adult Scout Masters and their propensity to engage in inappropriate behavior with Scouts;

j. Carelessly and/or negligently failed to communicate information regarding Scout Masters to its operative branches throughout the United States; and

k. Was otherwise careless and/or negligent.

28. As a direct and proximate result of the aforementioned actions by the defendants, plaintiff has suffered permanent injuries of a personal and pecuniary nature, and has been psychologically damaged and continues to be damaged psychologically and to experience mental anguish, humiliation and emotional and physical pain, suffering and distress. Further, as a result of the aforementioned sexual abuse and breach of trust, plaintiff has suffered and will continue to suffer physical and emotional pain and dysfunction, and both economic and non-economic damages in an amount to be proved at trial.
WHEREFORE, plaintiff, JANE DOE, as mother and next friend of JOHN DOE, a minor, by and through plaintiff’s attorneys, HURLEY McKENNA & MERTZ and THE LAW OFFICES OF TIMOTHY D. KOSNOFF, pray for damages against defendants BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA and BLACKHAWK AREA COUNCIL OF BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA, INC. in a sum in excess of $50,000.00, plus the costs of suit, and all other relief permitted by law.

COUNT II – NEGLIGENCE and BREACH OF FIDUCIARY DUTY –
CHARLES "CHUCK" BICKERSTAFF ("BICKERSTAFF”)

1. The Boys Scouts of America (hereinafter "BSA") is the largest youth organization in the United States with approximately five million members. BSA was chartered in 1910 by an act of Congress. An estimated 20% of American boys have had contact with scouting either as members or by attending Scout functions.
2. Throughout its ninety-three year history, the BSA has consistently held itself out to the public as a "moral and safe" environment for boys to participate in healthy outdoor activities and to be given proper guidance and instruction. Millions of parents and scouts have placed their trust in the BSA.
3. Paradoxically, the BSA promotes the wholesomeness of its programs while knowing that since the 1940s it has been secretly removing scoutmasters for child sexual abuse at an alarming rate, which in the 1970s, reached an average of one every three days. Its own records demonstrate that it has long known that scouting attracts pedophiles in large numbers and that scouts, far from being safe, are at heightened risk of sexual abuse by child molesters.
4. JANE DOE is the mother and next friend of JOHN DOE, a minor. At all relevant times, JOHN DOE was enrolled in BSA Scouting programs.
5. Defendant, BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA is a congressionally chartered corporation, authorized to do business in Illinois.
6. Defendant, BLACKHAWK AREA COUNCIL OF BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA, INC. (hereinafter Blackhawk Area Council) is an Illinois public benefit corporation.
7. Defendant Charles "Chuck" Bickerstaff ("Bickerstaff”) was a pedophile and sexual predator of adolescent and pre-adolescent boys. Bickerstaff posed a constant threat to boys. 8. Bickerstaff was at various times material hereto a paid Executive of the Blackhawk Area Council.
9. Defendant Bickerstaff was at various times material hereto an employee, servant, agent and/or apparent agent of defendant Boy Scouts of America.
10. Defendant Bickerstaff was at various times material hereto an employee, servant, agent and/or apparent agent of defendant Blackhawk Area Council.
11. Defendant Bickerstaff performed duties for BSA and Blackhawk Area Council in counties including Winnebago County, Illinois.
12. BSA's own internal "Ineligible Volunteer Files" (also called "the confidential records"), records it collected and maintained in secrecy for seventy years, reveal that scouting is a pedophile "magnet" and that removed pedophiles were often able to re-enter scouting in other locations. These files were maintained concerning paid executives as well as "volunteers."

13. BSA's confidential records demonstrate both its awareness of Scouting's attraction to pedophiles and the distinctive characteristics of scouting that render scouts particularly susceptible to pedophiles.

14. BSA's confidential records demonstrate both its awareness of Scouting's attraction to pedophiles but also the distinctive characteristics of scouting that render scouts particularly susceptible to pedophiles.
15. BSA knew or should have known that scouting attracts pedophiles, in part, because: a) Scouting provides the pedophile access to boys alone and away from their parents in secluded settings like camp-outs and overnight hikes; b) Scouting provides opportunities for the pedophile to seduce a boy by getting him in situations where the boy has to change clothing or spend the night with him; c) the pedophile scout leader can, depending on the pedophile's age preference, volunteer for and be sure to have access only to boys of a certain age; d) BSA conditions boys to the concept of strict obedience to the Scout Leader and a bonding mechanism that pedophiles crave; e) BSA promotes the idea of secret ceremonies, rituals and loyalty oaths, all of which help facilitate the pedophile's efforts to keep his victims silent and compliant; f) At the time of the abuse, BSA conducted no criminal background checks on its volunteers or even suggested such was advisable.
16. BSA was aware for decades prior to the 1980s that it had ejected thousands of pedophiles from its ranks of leadership in local Scout Troops and failed to inform its Scouts and their parents of that fact. BSA knew or should have known that if they advised parents of this statistical phenomenon, parents might well remove their boys from Scouting, thus depriving BSA of millions of dollars of income.
17. BSA knew or should have known that its "ineligible volunteers" system of keeping track of pedophiles infiltrating its ranks and attempting to eliminate them did not function as it was intended, was flawed, and in many cases ineffective. Despite that knowledge, BSA did nothing to educate its Scouts and their parents of the ineffectiveness of the tracking and screening process and system. BSA did nothing to educate or inform its Scouts and their parents of the enormity of the pedophile problem, nor did it take action to correct its screening and/or education system.
18 Bickerstaff was a paid executive with the Blackhawk Area Council for many years prior to and including 2006.
19. Bickerstaff was a paid executive, employee, servant, agent and/or apparent agent of defendant BSA for many years prior to and including 2006.
20. Prior to the summer of 2006, BSA and Blackhawk Area Council ignored warnings that Bickerstaff was a pedophile.
21. Plaintiff JOHN DOE was enrolled in the Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts for most of his childhood and up until this date.
22. Using his role as Blackhawk Area Council executive as his entree, in July 2006 Bickerstaff sought and gained the trust and confidence of plaintiff’s mother and gained plaintiff’s mother's consent for plaintiff to attend a BSA memorabilia Trade-O-Ree in Lansing, Michigan, and thereafter on several occasions over the next 9 to 10 months to spend time alone with Bickerstaff at Bickerstaff’s home, and at other locations in Winnebago County, Ogle County, and Lee County, Illinois.
23. For the purpose of furthering his duties as a BSA paid executive, Bickerstaff also sought and gained plaintiffs trust, friendship, admiration and obedience. As a result, plaintiff was conditioned to comply with Bickerstaff’s direction and to look to him as an authority figure.
24. Using the power, authority and trust of his positions as a BSA executive and availing himself of defendants' representations to parents and scouts that the BSA was a moral and safe place for boys, Bickerstaff enticed, induced, directed, coerced, and forced plaintiff to engage in deviant sexual acts with him over a 9 to 10 month period.
25. At all times, Bickerstaff was under certain direction, supervision and control of
Defendants BLACKHAWK AREA COUNCIL and BSA and was otherwise their employee, servant, agent and/or apparent agent.
26. At all times, BLACKHAWK AREA COUNCIL was under the direction,
supervision and control of defendant BSA and was otherwise its servant, agent and/or apparent agent.
27. Defendant Bickerstaff was negligent and breached his fiduciary duty to the plaintiff in one or more of the following ways:
a. Was routinely alone with plaintiff for hours;

b. Used his BSA position to spend time alone with plaintiff for the purpose of sexually abusing him; and

c. Sexually abused the plaintiff.

28. As a direct and proximate result of the aforementioned actions by the defendants, plaintiff has suffered permanent injuries of a personal and pecuniary nature, and has been psychologically damaged and continues to be damaged psychologically and to experience mental anguish, humiliation and emotional and physical pain suffering and distress. Further, as a result of the aforementioned sexual abuse and breach of trust, plaintiff has suffered and will continue to suffer physical and emotional pain and dysfunction, and both economic and noneconomic damages in an amount to be proved at trial.
WHEREFORE, plaintiff, JANE DOE as mother and next friend of JOHN DOE, a minor, by and through plaintiff’s attorneys, HURLEY McKENNA & MERTZ and THE LAW OFFICES OF TIMOTHY D. KOSNOFF, pray for damages against defendant CHARLES "CHUCK" BICKERSTAFF in a sum in excess of $50,000.00, plus the costs of suit, and all other relief permitted by law.

COUNT III – CIVIL BATTERY AND INTENTIONAL INFLICTION
OF EMOTIONAL DISTRESS –
CHARLES "CHUCK" BICKERSTAFF ("BICKERSTAFF”)

1-26. Plaintiff reasserts and realleges paragraphs 1 through 26 of Count II of this Complaint at law as and for paragraphs 1 through 26 of Count III of this complaint at law.
27. Defendant Bickerstaff routinely spent time alone with plaintiff.
28. Defendant Bickerstaff intentionally made both physical and sexual contact with plaintiff beginning in July of 2006.
29. In the 9-10 months following this initial encounter, Defendant Bickerstaff continued to routinely spend time alone with the plaintiff outside of regular Scout meetings and events.
30. During this 9-10 month period, Defendant Bickerstaff repeatedly and intentionally made physical and sexual contact and advances on the plaintiff.
31. Defendant Bickerstaff knew or should have known that his intentional advances were unwanted, unwelcomed, harmful, and/or damaging to the plaintiff.
32. Defendant Bickerstaff knew or should have known that his intentional physical contact with the plaintiff was unwanted, unwelcomed, harmful, and/or damaging to the plaintiff.
33. Defendant Bickerstaff knew or should have known that his intentional sexual contact with the plaintiff was unwanted, unwelcomed, harmful, and/or damaging to the plaintiff.
34. Defendant Bickerstaff sexually and physically battered plaintiff beginning in July of 2006.
35. Defendant Bickerstaff sexually and physically battered plaintiff repeatedly during the 9-10 month period following the initial July 2006 sexual encounter.
36. Defendant Bickerstaff knew or should have known that his intentional physical and sexual contact with the plaintiff would cause both permanent emotional harm and permanent physical harm to the plaintiff.
37. As a direct and proximate result of the aforementioned actions by the defendants, plaintiff has suffered permanent injuries of a personal and pecuniary nature, and has been psychologically damaged and continues to be damaged psychologically and to experience mental anguish, humiliation and emotional and physical distress. Further, as a result of the aforementioned sexual abuse and breach of trust, plaintiff has suffered and will continue to suffer physical and emotional pain and dysfunction, and both economic and non-economic damages in an amount to be proved at trial.
WHEREFORE, plaintiff, JANE DOE, as mother and next friend of JOHN DOE, a minor, by and through plaintiff’s attorneys, HURLEY McKENNA & MERTZ and THE LAW OFFICES OF TIMOTHY D. KOSNOFF, pray for damages against defendant CHARLES "CHUCK" BICKERSTAFF in a sum in excess of $50,000.00, plus the costs of suit, and all other relief permitted by law.

HURLEY MCKENNA & MERTZ

By: ______________________________________
Christopher T. Hurley
Mark R. McKenna
Attorneys for Plaintiff

HURLEY McKENNA & MERTZ
33 North Dearborn Street, Suite 1430
Chicago, Illinois 60602
(312) 553-4900
(312) 553-0964 - fax
www.hurley-law.com

For example, in one of my cases, a hospital nurse erroneously listed a toxic antibiotic, gentamycin, on a transfer form to a nursing home. As a result, the nursing home unwittingly gave my client this toxic drug for one week, destroying my client's kidney functions. She now must receive dialysis for the rest of her life. She has a permanent dialysis port sticking out of her chest. At trial, the jury found the hospital guilty of negligence and awarded my client $3,200,000 in damages for the pain, suffering, disability and disfigurement. If the case had gone to trial under the legislation signed by the Illinois governor, my client's non-economic damages would have been reduced to $1,000,000. Fortunately, the new law did not apply to medical malpractice that was discovered before the law was signed.

Today, Judge Joan Larsen of the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois, ruled that the caps on medical malpractice damages violate the Illinois Constitution. See her well-reasoned decision here. Following Illinois Supreme Court precedent holding prior attempts at "tort reform" in Illinois to be unconstitutional, Judge Larsen held that any cap on medical malpractice damages improperly invades the constitutional right of a plaintiff to a trial by jury, improperly invades the province of the jury to award damages based on the evidence, and unduly encroaches upon the right of the judiciary to decide whether a jury's damage award is excessive.

I applaud Judge Larsen's decision. The ruling protects the right of a victim of malpractice to a trial by jury--with the jury to decide the amount of any award of compensation based on the evidence. Judge Larsen's decision represents the principle that the Illinois constitution does not allow those who have been most seriously injured as a result of medical malpractice to have their rights taken away in order to increase the profits of insurance companies.

The record profits of hospitals and insurance companies show that they are taking advantage of Illinois doctors and patients. The real solution to the problem of rising medical malpractice premiums is meaningful insurance reform and regulation of the insurance companies.

My firm will continue to work to protect the rights of victims of medical negligence to full and fair compensation.

An Associated Press story explains:

The suit, now being argued before a judge in Lafayette County, Arkansas, says officials came to families in emergency rooms or while they still grieved. Arkansas residents James Freeman, Robert Udell and Victor Vickers sued the company, asking for class-action status to involve anyone injured or lost a family member in crashes at crossings, on a rail or near one from 1992 to February 15, 2005.

Up to 300 families may have been pressed by Union Pacific to settle without the benefit of legal representation.

The tactics used by the Union Pacific, as alleged in the suit, is an example of the type of unfair bargaining that companies and insurers may use to force vulnerable families, suffering from the uncertainty caused by a tragedy, to agree to disadvantageous settlements. Companies and their insurers are never trying to look out for the best interests of the victims of negligence. Always speak to a knowledgable trial lawyer before discussing a personal injury, medical malpractice or wrongful death case with a defendant company's representatives or their insurers.

Victims of the growing problem of identity theft have legal duties of their own when dealing with the consequences of fraud, especially unauthorized transfers of funds. While credit card holders are protected by issuer rules that allow holders to refuse to pay fraudulent charges, "Regulation E," the FDIC's consumer protection rule governing electronic funds transfers and debit cards, states that consumers must report an electronic funds transfer problem within two days to protect themselves from liability for the unauthorized withdrawal. Consumers who report a problem within 2 days are liable for $50, while those who report the problem within 60 days have their liability capped at $500. People who wait report a problem may lose the protection of federal law, and be stuck with a total loss of the funds.

As noted by this MSNBC report, victims of identity theft often become the targets of banks and financial institutions looking to hold the victim liable for losses, especially when there has been a delay in reporting fraud. If you have suffered substantial losses due to identity theft, you may need to retain a lawyer if you want to get financial institutions to take responsibility for your losses.

As reported in the Idaho Post Register:

Whispers in the courthouse about "missing cases" and a clandestine meeting at midnight started rookie reporter Peter Zuckerman of the Idaho Falls Post Register on an investigation that would lead him to expose the extraordinary story of a pedophile working within the local Boy Scouts, and a brave young scout who had the courage to speak up and stop him. What was hidden from the public -- concealed within those court records -- was the story of a Boy Scout leader named Brad Stowell, convicted in 1997 of molesting two children, who had admitted under oath in a court deposition in 1999 to molesting about two dozen children beginning as far back as 1988. Zuckerman, along with executive editor Dean Miller, fought successfully to unseal court records and then tracked down victims of abuse to reveal that Boy Scout leadership and at least one official in the Mormon Church -- which sponsors most of the Boy Scout Troops in Eastern Idaho -- missed opportunities to stop Stowell from working in close proximity to children.

The Post Register published the "Scouts' Honor" series in early 2005, and the paper immediately came under fire from some in the community. The fallout of the stories ended up being far more dramatic than anyone had anticipated. A prominent local company took out full-page ads in the paper challenging the reporting and claiming, "the Post Register's real intent was to smear the Scout's good name and take away what the Scouts value most, their honor." Additional victims came forward to tell their stories of abuse. And one father, motivated by his sons' accounts of abuse, dedicated himself full-time to changing Idaho's statute of limitations in cases involving the sexual abuse of minors.

You can read the original 6-part "Scouts' Honor" series published in late February/early March 2005 here, and also read the subsequent reporting in the Idaho Falls Post Register here.

The plaintiff, Trish McCloud,

[W]as riding back to her home in Michigan from a bike rally in St. Louis when the tire deflated. The driver of the motorcycle lost control and crashed. The bike flipped and McCloud struck her head on the pavement.

The driver was hurt, but the extent of his injuries was not as severe as McCloud's.

Though she was wearing a helmet, the impact was so great that it caused severe brain damage, according to court records. She was treated at OSF Saint Francis Medical Center for two months, where she was in and out of a coma.

The plaintiff now suffers from paralysis and requires constant care. Her attorneys argued that Goodyear Dunlop made the motorcycle tire with a defect that caused it to fail prematurely. At trial, Goodyear Dunlop claimed the incident was caused by tire underinflation as well as excessive weight on the motorcycle.

Even though the case was tried in federal court, Illinois state product liability law would apply to the the case.

Internal MnDOT documents reviewed by the Star Tribune reveal that last year bridge officials talked openly about the possibility of the bridge collapsing -- and worried that it might have to be condemned.

The documents provide the first look inside MnDOT's decision-making process as engineers weighed benefits and risks, wrestling with options to prevent what they believed was a remote but real possibility of the eight-lane freeway bridge failing.

Their concerns were not generalized, documents show. The San Francisco-based consultant, URS Inc., identified 52 crucial steel box beams deemed most susceptible to cracking. URS also had a specific recommendation that 24 of the 52 members be reinforced while the remainder would be kept on a special watch. Video of the Aug. 1 collapse being examined by the National Transportation Safety Board shows the bridge first falling on the south end over its shoreline pier -- a section of the superstructure where eight suspect beams were specifically tagged for reinforcing.

State officials failed to take action to reinforce the bridge because of concerns about cost and fears they might find problems severe enought to force condemnation of the bridge. The state should be liable for this gross negligence, which has resulted in such tragedy. Unfortunately, state tort immunities may protect the state officials from any negligence claims.

“Tucked inside the huge homeland security legislation signed into law by President Bush recently is a provision to ensure that the Federal Railroad Safety Act of 1970 does not preclude state lawsuits against railroads by injured persons in general and the residents of a small city in North Dakota in particular. The provision, entitled ‘Railroad Pre-emption Clarification,’ is in the new law implementing the recommendations of the 9/11 Commission, but its impetus can be traced to Jan. 18, 2002.”

Reported by Marcia Coyle in the National Law Journal, Law.com, 8/13/07

The man, who was 6 feet tall and weighed 260 pounds, argued in the DuPage County Circuit Court that fat to perform the field sobriety tests properly. At the end of the trial, the judge ruled that the trial evidence created reasonable doubt which prevented a conviction.

This story was reported by Jennifer Golz in the The Herald News.

Chicago police charged the drunk driver allegedly responsible for the collision with reckless homicide, leaving the scene of a fatal accident, and driving under the influence. Chicago police also ticketed the drunk driver for driving without insurance, disobeying a red light, speeding and failure to yield.

The families of the victims in this case would have causes of action against the allegedly drunk driver responsible for the accident for negligence and willful and wanton conduct. The families may also have claims for damages under the Illinois Dram Shop Act, 235 ILCS 5/6-21 against anyone, including a bar or restaurant, that sold or gave liquor to the alleged intoxicated motorist, causing her intoxication at the time of the occurrence.

Dram Shop Act cases have a strict one year statute of limitations under the Illinois statute. If you have been injured by a drunk driver, you should consult legal counsel immediately.

The same people who knew of the danger of the bridge, and did nothing, will likely never be held accountable for their complacency, due to state tort immunities which protect state officials from negligence claims. The only ones who will pay for this lack of responsibility are the friends and loved ones of those who died or were injured in the collapse.

Tort immunity, a concept that shields governments from liability in injury cases, may prevent those injured and the families of those killed from ever obtaining justice in this tragedy. After the recovery effort has finished, and the investigations are complete, talented lawyers will try vigorously to hold the responsible governmental and private entities accountable. Hopefully tort immunity will not block their efforts.

Efforts at protecting people, companies and government entities whose actions can kill and injure, commonly called tort reform and tort immunity, serve only to breed complacency and sanction irresponsible behavior. Tort reform and tort immunity are bad for everyone. The lawyers at my firm remain committed to the fight against tort reform.

During the original trial, the jury heard testimony that Dr. Kirchner made an incision near the diabetic ulcer, and placed a screw in patient's left foot. As a result, the bones in patient's left foot at the site of the screw became severely infected. No attempt was made to remove the infected screw until February of 1999 at Silver Cross Hospital, and trial testimony indicated that Dr. Kirchner was unable to remove the screw at that time because of his alleged lack of proper surgical training.

As a consequence of the negligent October, 1998, left foot surgery at Silver Cross Hospital, the bones in the patient's left foot became so infected that she was forced to undergo the amputation of her left foot. The patient has been unable to return to work as a nurse since the surgery.

During the case, Hurley and McKenna presented evidence to the jury that Silver Cross Hospital granted hospital privileges to Dr. Kirchner in 1992 contrary to the hospital’s own by-laws. The hospital’s by-laws required all podiatrists seeking surgical privileges at the hospital to have completed either a 12-month podiatric surgical residency program, or be board-certified by the American Board of Podiatric Surgery. Dr. Kirchner met neither of these requirements in 1992, when he initially began performing procedures at Silver Cross Hospital, or in 1998, when he performed surgery on the patient. During that time period Dr. Kirchner re-applied several times for continuation of his surgical privileges at Silver Cross Hospital, and each time the hospital’s Board of Trustees granted the privileges in violation of its own rules and by-laws.

Illinois law requires hospitals to use reasonable care to determine the qualifications of health care professionals added to a hospital’s medical staff. A hospital's failure to use reasonable care to select and supervise health care professionals to care for patients, which leads to serious injury, can give rise to a claim for institutional negligence.

In this case the jury agreed that podiatrist Dr. Kirchner was professionally negligent in performing the surgery and failing to properly treat the foot infection, and that Silver Cross Hospital was negligent in giving hospital privileges to Dr. Kirchner to perform the surgery in the first place.

You can read the Illinois Appellate Court's opinion here.

Chicago-based Hurley McKenna & Mertz, founded in 1991, is devoted solely to the representation of severely injured persons. The firm has tried and settled hundreds of cases, and obtained numerous multi-million dollar verdicts. If you believe you or a loved one has been a victim of institutional negligence by a hospital or health care facility, feel free to contact us at 312/553-4900.

According to the CTA, in an article by Chick Salvatore of the Southwest News Herald, driver actions that will be recorded and reviewed by CTA management are hard braking, swerving, rapid acceleration or deceleration, and collisions. When collisions occur, the DriveCam will be programmed to save the 10 seconds immediately before and after the collision.

According to a report by the Chicago Tribune's Jon Hilkevitch and Karoun Demirjian, CTA buses were involved in more than 4,000 accidents in 2006, and the CTA paid out $19 million in accident settlements, claims and court judgments last year. About 1,700 bus accidents -- more than 300 a month -- have occurred through May according to CTA officials.

If you have been injured by the negligence of the Chicago Transit Authority, such as in an accident with a CTA bus, you should contact an experienced trial attorney immediately. Unlike many other types of personal injury cases, there are strict and short notice requirements for claims against the Chicago transit Authority [CTA]. Under Section 41 of the Illinois Metropolitan Transit Act, no civil action shall be commenced in any court against the Chicago transit Authority by any person for any injury to his person unless it is commenced within one year from the date that the injury was received or the cause of action accrued. Further, the following information must be provided in writing to the CTA within 6 months of the from the date of the injury, or the claim will be barred:

(1) The name of the person to whom the cause of action has accrued;

(2) The name and residence of the person injured;

(3) The date and about the hour of the accident;

(4) The place or location where the accident occurred; and

(5) The name and address of the attending physician, if any.

Bicyclists who have had the front wheel come off can fall forward or over the front handlebars, suffering severe head and spine injuries, and fractures. The bicycle retailer and manufacturer can be liable for negligence when such injuries occur.

The New Jersey State Assembly just passed a bill that would prohibit the sale of bikes equiped with quick-release wheels to children. The bill cites over 100 accidents related to quick-release hubs. The bill would require adult bikes with the quick-release wheels to have a secondary safety mechanism to prevent the front wheel from falling off.

The secondary safety mechanism would activate automatically if the pin intended to hold the wheel failed, according to the bill.

The intent, Moriarty said, is to increase bike safety and prevent children from sustaining life-altering injuries after falling off bikes with quick-release wheels.

"There is safer technology out there and I think we should use it to prevent accidents to children as well as adults," Moriarty said. "As we find safer technology for cars, we put it in there. If it were up to some car companies, we still wouldn't have seat belts or airbags."

From CourierPostOnline.com, Meg Huelsman, "Bicycle Bill Confuses Owners."

Also, SHOK (Stop Hurting Our Kids) is a group of parents from across America who have started a website speaking out against Wal-Mart's sales of children's bicycles with quick-release hubs. The site has testimonials from parents whose children were severely injured on bicycles with quick-release hubs where the front wheel came off of the bike.

The site lists bicycle models, sold by Wal-Mart, that the group believes to be dangerous and involved in serious injuries.

Judge Bork has been a leading proponent of tort reform--laws restricting the right of injured persons from obtaining full and fair compensation for their injuries from juries. The ACSBlog points out that in a 2002 article published in the Harvard Journal of Law & Public Policy--the official journal of the Federalist Society--Bork argued that frivolous claims and excessive punitive damage awards have caused the Constitution to evolve into a document which would allow Congress to enact tort reforms that would have been unconstitutional at the framing:

"State tort law today is different in kind from the state tort law known to the generation of the Framers. The present tort system poses dangers to interstate commerce not unlike those faced under the Articles of Confederation. Even if Congress would not, in 1789, have had the power to displace state tort law, the nature of the problem has changed so dramatically as to bring the problem within the scope of the power granted to Congress. Accordingly, proposals, such as placing limits or caps on punitive damages, or eliminating joint or strict liability, which may once have been clearly understood as beyond Congress's power, may now be constitutionally appropriate."

Hurley McKenna & Mertz actively oppposes tort reform legislation in Illinois and at the federal level. Such laws are unconstitutional in that they prevent fair acess to a trial by jury of all issues in a case. Federal laws which limit state tort laws also violate the United States Constitution in that they violate states' rights, no matters what cynics and hypocrites like Judge Bork may say.