The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has suspended sales of a once-promising leukemia drug because of “the risk of life-threatening blood clots and severe narrowing of blood vessels.” The drug Iclusig, also known as ponatinib, has been linked to severe and sometimes fatal heart attacks, strokes and loss of blood flow to the extremities, sometimes […]
Law Blog
Miner death toll rises
Four coal workers were killed within the first eleven days of the government shutdown, according to reports. The deaths add to the mounting 2013 coal miner death toll, which lists 18 fatalities as of Oct. 17. The U.S. Department of Labor’s Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) announces each fatality on their website but the […]
Worker advocacy groups challenge USDA proposal to speed up work
The hard job of a poultry plant worker is about to get harder, thanks to a U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) proposal to increase processing speed by 25 % and replace most federal safety inspectors. The proposed USDA increase means that instead of processing 140 birds a minute, workers will process 175 per minute. As part […]
Drunk driver who killed two cyclists gets 24 years
A drunk driver’s attempt to appeal two second degree murder convictions was rejected by the NC Court of Appeals. In April 2011, a drunk Thomas Howard Grooms Jr., struck and killed a father and son out for a Sunday morning bicycle ride on River Road in Wilmington. This month, the North Carolina Court of Appeals […]
Family of injured athlete suing high school
The family of a high school football player allegedly cut from his team after a wrist injury is suing the athlete’s high school. Billy Andrle, a high school senior and former team captain who was once voted his county’s most outstanding football player, broke his wrist during practice. Andrle says he was booted from the team […]
Charlotte cyclist killed in CA
A Charlotte man was killed while cycling in Azusa, CA, according to reports. Andrew Edward Page, a missionary with the Church of Latter-Day Saints, was cycling around 4 pm on Thursday when he was struck and severely injured by a vehicle. He died of his injuries later that evening. Police have not determined who was […]
Jet ski amputee wins $5.75 million settlement
A man who lost his leg after a 2007 jet ski crash won a multimillion-dollar settlement last month after the insurance company refused to settle for $500,000. The crash occurred on Lake Norman when Howard Hazlett and Frederick Gibb were operating jet skis borrowed from their acquaintance, Royce Syracuse. Gibb’s jet ski collided with Hazlett’s, […]
Wake Co. headmaster sentenced for sexual assault on teacher
A former Wake County school headmaster has been sentenced to 120 days in jail in connection with the sexual assault of two teachers under his supervision. A jury found Brandon Smith guilty of one count of sexual battery and one count of sexual assault for pulling down a teacher’s pants to see the tattoo on […]
Seeking justice for victims of sterilization
A new law made effective this summer is intended to bring justice to those individuals forcibly sterilized by the state of North Carolina more than 40 years ago. Session Law 2013-630 establishes the Office of Justice for Sterilization Victims, dedicated to compensating those individuals or the estates of individuals involuntarily sterilized or asexualized by the […]
Injured window washer wins $2.25 million
A window washer permanently disabled after falling at least 20 feet won $2.25 million after suing the owner of the building from which he fell. Tom Gjonaj also sued the tenant who occupied the second story of the building, alleging that the tenant and the building’s owner failed to provide safe and adequate protection as […]