Representative Cases
CASE NAME | JURISDICTION | TYPE OF CASE | DESCRIPTION OF CASE |
Abdelrazzag v. General Motors |
San Antonio, TX |
Product Liability: Door Latch |
The first defective door latch case against GM to establish that GM’s new mini-wedge latching system could inadvertently open during a side impact collision. |
Armstrong v. Maricopa County |
Phoenix, AZ | Criminal: Wrongful Prosecution |
This is a USCA 1983 action against the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office. Our client was coerced into confessing to three murders even though he was not in the state of Arizona at the time the murders occurred. The prior settlement of the Bruce v. Maricopa County case resulted in Armstrong’s confession being videotaped and clearly demonstrated that Armstrong’s confessions were coerced. |
Bloom v. Mercury Marine |
Phoenix, AZ | Product Liability: Boating |
This was the first successful case tried against a boating manufacturer for failing to provide a kill switch. This case led to all engine manufacturers providing a kill switch or throttle interruption devices on their products. |
Bruce v. Maricopa County |
Phoenix, AZ | Criminal: Wrongful Prosecution |
This was a USCA 1983 action referred to as the Temple Murder Cases. Our client was coerced into confessing to eight murders, even though he had never been in Maricopa County. The settlement of this case lead to the County Attorney requiring that all interviews of criminal suspects be videotaped. This case, through the Innocence Project and the assistance of Dr. Richard Ofshe, became the foundation for false confession defenses throughout the United States. This case and our involvement is detailed in the book by Gary Stuart entitled Innocent Until Interrogated. |
Cobb v. General Motors |
Phoenix, AZ | Product Liability: Seatback |
This was the first successful seatback failure cased tried using the theory that the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 207 provided inadequate standards for seatback strength. Following the verdict in this case, the 207 docket was filed. Although FMVSS 207 has not been changed, a number of manufacturers, including GM and Chrysler have voluntarily strengthened their seating systems. This case has been credited with saving hundreds of lives. |
Corliss v. Mesa General |
Phoenix, AZ | Medical Malpractice | This landmark case changed the way stroke victims are treated and transported in Maricopa County. Prior to Corliss, stroke victims were transported to the nearest hospital. Since Corliss, all stroke victims who meet the American Heart Association guidelines are transported directly to stroke centers. |
Fredericks v. General Motors |
Phoenix, AZ | Product Liability: Airbag |
This was a quadriplegic airbag case, which settled during the course of discovery. It was proven that erroneous data was stored by the EPROM and an inadvertent deployment occurred. |
Galanek v. Wismar |
San Diego, CA | Legal Malpractice | This was a case against an attorney for legal malpractice. It established the precedent that when an attorney allows a critical piece of evidence to be destroyed, the plaintiff does not have the burden of proving the “case within the case.” This case is reported at 68 Cal.App.4th 1417, 81 Cal.Rptr.2d 236 (1999) and 2003 WL 21007186 (CAL.APP. 4 DIST.). |
Garrett v. City of Phoenix |
Phoenix, AZ | Excessive Force | This was an excessive force case involving the City of Phoenix Police Department who was serving an emergency order for a mental health evaluation upon Michelle Cusseaux who suffered from schizophrenia, PTSD, and other unspecified personality disorders. During the encounter with police, Michelle felt threatened and armed herself with a hammer inside her home. When officers gained entrance, Michelle raised the hammer and was shot in the chest. She was rushed to the hospital where she was pronounced dead. We filed a lawsuit for the surviving mother (Garrett) for the wrongful death of her daughter. This case led to police agencies dispatching qualified officers to members of the community in a crisis. |
Hatch | Fort Bragg, NC | Private Attorney | I was the private attorney for Senior Chief Hatch who was badly wounded in an attempt to rescue a U.S. Army deserter from his Afghanistan post, former Sgt., now Private, Bowe Bergdahl. I was honored to represent SEAL-team member Hatch. Bergdahl was eventually convicted of desertion and was dishonorably discharged from the U.S. Army. Senior Chief Hatch authored the book Touching The Dragon. |
Job v. Maricopa Integrated Health System |
Phoenix, AZ | Medical Malpractice | Ryan Job was a highly decorated Navy SEAL who was wounded in Iraq. Ryan died following surgery for his wounds at Maricopa Medical Center. The hospital claimed he died from aspirating chewing tobacco. We were able to prove that Ryan died from a lethal dose of post-operative pain medication. The bestselling book “American Sniper” is dedicated to Ryan. As a Navy veteran it was an honor to handle this case on behalf of Ryan’s wife and daughter. A chapter describing our legal efforts on behalf of Job are detailed in the book by Robert Vera entitled A Warrior’s Faith. |
Lipscomb v. Brennick and Smith |
San Diego, CA | Wrongful Death | This case involved the shooting of a young black teenager. The San Diego County Sheriff’s Department concluded his death was suicide. After months of litigation, we were able to prove he had been murdered. A request to reopen the investigation by the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Attorney’s Office is being submitted. |
Taranto v. Aramark, et al. |
Salt Lake City, UT |
Admiralty Law | This case is reported at LEXIS 121565 (D. Utah Aug. 29, 2014). Four people, including two former police officers, died of hyperthermia while boating on Lake Powell after their rented vessel sank. As a result of this case, Aramark initiated new rules which ensure that their boats would only be rented when weather and water conditions were within the design criteria of the boat. |
Mitchell v. Foster Wheeler |
Albuquerque, NM |
Products Liability | This was a case against Foster Wheeler for defects in their coal dust extraction system which led to an explosion of coal dust and the death of Mitchell. Foster Wheeler redesigned their extraction system to prevent future explosions. |
Webb v. Kawasaki |
Graham, TX | Product Liability: Jet Ski |
This case lead to the development of all subsequent jet ski litigation following funding of the initial studies on visibility, conspicuity, and controllability following throttle interruption. |
Worthy v. Osborn School Dist. |
Martinez, CA | Product Liability: Braking System |
This was a quadriplegic case, which demonstrated for the first time that 50th-percentile women were unable to safely operate the parking brake system used on Ford pickup trucks. |