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Amended safe harbor statute applies in drug case
Where defendant was charged with possessing methamphetamine after the police were called to assist with her alleged overdose, the amended version of a safe harbor statute enacted after the date of defendant’s alleged offense applies to the case. Background On Sept. 3, 2019, the police were summoned to aid defendant for an alleged overdose. When […]
‘Safe harbor’ overdose law applies retroactively
A Frederick County circuit judge has ruled that broader protections for overdose victims in criminal court apply even when the overdose occurred before the stronger law took effect. Despite that favorable ruling this month, the same judge later ruled the circumstances of the case failed to meet the terms of the safe harbor law, leaving […]
Supervisor accused of assault and battery sues for defamation – $15,000 Verdict
Both the plaintiff and defendant were federal government employees in June 2013. At that time, the defendant had been subject to an internal complaint by his supervisor, the plaintiff, due to aggressive behavior at the workplace. Shortly after the plaintiff’s complaint, the defendant filed his own internal complaint alleging that the plaintiff rubbed his genital […]
HOA hit for $77K after tearing out man’s wall
A Frederick County landowner has prevailed against his homeowners association in a case that weighed just how far an HOA is allowed to push restrictive covenants. The court awarded $77,344 in damages and fees after acknowledging the HOA exceeded its authority by tearing out a wall built in the property owner’s easement. The case is […]
Stay-home dad protests custody denial
A man who was “Mr. Mom” to his four sons after he lost his job in 2009 said a divorce court’s award of custody to his wife violated his right to equal protection, but the Virginia Court of Appeals disagreed. Joseph Wiencko Jr. was a mechanical engineer who served as a consultant to the telecommunications […]
Construction injury case reached settlement after mistrial – $1,350,000 Settlement
The plaintiff was 19 years old when he was injured on July 31, 2007. He was working as a groundsman in Winchester, where his job was to change the massive auger on a piece of heavy equipment called a LoDril (which drills to depths of 60 feet), made by Bay Shore Systems. Plaintiff’s employer leased […]
Woman chose colon stent, suffered bowel perforation – Defense verdict
Plaintiff originally came to see the defendant gastroenterologist for a GI consult on March 17, 2009. Her complaint at the time was frequent diarrhea, although she had recently finished taking an antibiotic (Augmentin) for a sinus infection in December 2008. At the time of her appointment with the defendant, her diarrhea symptoms had stopped. Defendant […]
Auto accident complications led to second injury, plaintiff claims – $250,000 Settlement
Defendant driver ran a red light and t-boned the elderly plaintiff. Plaintiff’s injuries included a broken pelvis and wrist. She was hospitalized, then went to rehabilitation. Due to severe pain, the plaintiff had trouble sleeping, so her doctor prescribed Ambien. While taking the medication, she had a sleepwalking incident during which she fell and broke […]
Deed search puts Winchester lawyer on quest
WINCHESTER (AP) All Michael Bryan was looking for was a deed. What the local attorney eventually found was a bit of a mystery — one nearly 169 years in the making — with a possible solution that involves spirits. Bryan was seeking the deed for the property that housed the Winchester-Frederick County jail and Starting […]
‘Actual harm’ not the standard for mom’s move
A mother gets another chance to prove her move to Pennsylvania was good for her seven-year-old son, after the Virginia Court of Appeals reversed a custody change to the father. The trial court applied the wrong legal standard when it used the “actual harm” test instead of the “best interests of the child” test to […]
Suit claiming surgery too soon after medication fails – Defense Verdict
Plaintiff was scheduled to undergo percutaneous nephrostomy (PCN) by the defendant, an interventional radiologist. The purpose of the PCN was to provide plaintiff’s urologist access to the left kidney for calculus removal. Plaintiff had a significant past medical history, including coronary artery disease, cardiac catheterization with stenting and pulmonary emboli. He was taking daily Coumadin [[...]
Mediation allocates insurance among dead, injured in crash – $507,365 Settlement
Plaintiff’s decedent, a 64-year-old woman, was among 10 passengers traveling in a van owned by her church during a trip from Winchester to a church revival in Florida. While traveling through South Carolina, the driver of the van, a church deacon, fell asleep and the vehicle overturned. Six passengers were injured. The injuries included two […]
Verdicts & Settlements
- Woodshop incident leads to amputation of fingers — $1.3M settlement
- Motorcyclist’s foot amputated in collision — $7M settlement
- Contractor rear-ended on interstate on way to wedding — $825,000 settlement
- Man suffers back injury in crash with out-of-state driver — $530,000 settlement
- Driver crossed center line, struck 89-year-old’s vehicle — $1.2M settlement
- Jury returns defense verdict in favor of gastroenterologist
- Teens killed in T-bone collision with officer — $3.1M settlement
- Man sustained subdural hematoma in rear-end collision —$1.15M settlement
- Adequate anesthesia not provided during C-section — $2.5M verdict
- Tenant fell ill from mold in apartment — $588,000 verdict
- Woman suffers nerve injury, pain after dental procedure — $550,000 settlement
- Driver struck child exiting school bus — $750,000 settlement
Opinion Digests
- Suit over historic mansion and estate dismissed
- Former employee’s claims survive motion to dismiss
- Equal Pay Act doesn’t apply to applicant
- Court rejects invocation of attorney-client privilege
- Evidence supported competency determination
- Appellees had power to remove business manager
- No continuance after witnesses failed to appear
- No actual or constructive eviction in warranty case
- Gas distribution pipeline exempt from ZBA regulation
- Improper venue in air pollution regulation matter
- No benefits awarded in unemployment comp case
- No immunity for judge who personally oversaw search
