The purpose of this summary provided by the Communications Department of The Florida Bar is to present media coverage that may be of interest to members. Opinions expressed in the articles are attributable solely to the authors. The Florida Bar does not adopt or endorse any opinions expressed below. For information on previous articles, please contact the publishing newspaper directly.
January 27, 2022
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The Florida Bar
ANTI-HUMAN TRAFFICKING MEASURE WOULD MAKE PURCHASING SEX A FELONY
The Florida Bar | Article | January 27, 2022
An anti-human trafficking measure that would raise the first-offense penalty for purchasing sex to a felony is moving in the House. The House Criminal Justice and Public Safety Subcommittee voted 16-0 on Jan. 25 to approve HB 1439 by Rep. Jackie Toledo, R-Tampa. Under current law, anyone who purchases sex from another person commits a second-degree misdemeanor, with enhancements for subsequent violations. HB 1439 would reclassify a first-time offense to a third-degree felony. A third offense would net the perpetrator a first-degree felony charge.
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Criminal Justice
AHEAD OF CORRUPTION TRIAL, LAKE CITY EX-STATE ATTORNEY REPORTEDLY PLANS TO PLEAD GUILTY
Florida Times-Union | Article | January 26, 2022
Former North Florida State Attorney Jeff Siegmeister plans to plead guilty in a federal corruption case, leaving the lawyer he was indicted with to stand trial alone, a court document says. The former prosecutor for the 3rd Judicial Circuit was charged with 11 counts ranging from extortion and bribery to filing false tax returns. The admission could represent a stain on the legal system in the seven-county circuit stretching from Lake City to the Georgia border and the Gulf of Mexico.
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Civil Justice
FAMILY OF CENTRAL FLORIDA AUTISTIC MAN FILES WRONGFUL DEATH SUIT AGAINST GROUP HOME
Daily Business Review | Article | January 26, 2022
The family of an autistic man, Caleb Walker, filed a wrongful death lawsuit against a group home facility and its owners after Walker died while allegedly being improperly restrained by staff. According to the lawsuit filed in the Ninth Judicial Circuit in Orange County on Jan. 21, Walker resided at Oconee Group Home, a residential group home facility, beginning in 2018. Oconee Group Home is a residential group home under an umbrella company owned by Crystal Lake Supportive Environments.
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Civil Justice
SKANSKA FILES APPEAL IN PENSACOLA BAY BRIDGE CASE, WHICH COULD AGAIN HALT COMMUTER CASES
Pensacola News Journal | Article | January 26, 2022
Skanska has filed a federal court appeal aiming to overturn U.S. District Court Judge Lacey Collier’s ruling that the company was negligent in its actions before Hurricane Sally, a move that could delay adjacent lawsuits filed by homeowners, commuters and businesses that are still suffering. Judge Collier ruled in December that Skanska should have done more to prepare for the storm than to tie its barges to pilings in the Pensacola Bay, and that its executives should have known based on weather reports that there was a chance the storm would directly impact Pensacola.
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Civil Justice
PALM BEACH COUNTY CLERK SEEKS TO PUNISH POST FOR PURSUING JEFFREY EPSTEIN RECORDS
Palm Beach Post | Article | January 26, 2022
In a motion for sanctions filed last week, Palm Beach County Clerk of Courts Joe Abruzzo is asking Circuit Judge Donald Hafele to make The Palm Beach Post pay the Tampa law firm he hired to successfully fight the newspaper’s request to release transcripts of a 2006 grand jury hearing. While Abruzzo didn’t say how much he would be seeking, according to Abruzzo’s office he used $32,794 in public money to pay attorney Shane Vogt’s law firm to fight The Post’s efforts to make the records public. In the motion, he is seeking double the amount he paid in fees and costs.
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Legal Profession
WOULD-BE LAWYERS SHOULDN’T HAVE TO DISCLOSE ARRESTS WITHOUT CONVICTION, NYSBA SAYS
ABA Journal | Article | January 25, 2022
The New York State Bar Association’s House of Delegates recommended Saturday [Jan. 22] that questions about arrests in cases that are no longer pending and didn’t result in a conviction be removed from admission applications to the New York bar, along with questions about sealed convictions, juvenile delinquency proceedings, youthful offender adjudications and dismissed cases. The House of Delegates report said the question violates the New York State Human Rights Law, which bans discrimination in employment and licensing, and the Family Court Act, which generally bars compelled disclosure about juvenile arrests.
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Civil Justice
DON’T GIVE FLORIDA BUSINESSES A GREEN LIGHT TO PREY ON LOCAL GOVERNMENTS
Tampa Bay Times | Editorial | January 27, 2022
The Tampa Bay Times Editorial Board writes: “Who knew that Republicans were the party of trial lawyers, bad behavior and runaway government spending? After all, a Republican bill racing through the Florida Senate manages to promote all three. The measure would put taxpayers on the hook for millions of dollars in damages by making it easier for businesses to sue local governments.”