News Abounds from the Lonestar State

Today we are focusing on Texas and several news stories of a legal nature.

First, you may have seen the headlines of this ridiculous lawsuit that was filed on Saturday in Dallas. Two years ago a woman named Jennelle Carrillo was planning to attend a Cowboys scrimmage game, and while waiting to enter the stadium, she sat down on a black marble bench outside the stadium. Her lawsuit claims that she suffered third degree burns and had to have skin grafts.

Now, we probably all can tell a story about sitting down on a hot bench, or a burning sliding board or a car seat or the hood of a car or some other metal or solid substance that is prone to heating up in 101 degree weather. "The suit alleges that Cowboys Stadium posted no warning signs alerting fans that the benches could be hot. " I don't think I have ever seen such a sign in all my 51 years.

Ms. Carrillo's attorney is named as Michael Walsh. A simple Google search reveals two addresses for offices for Michael A Walsh, both in Austin, the capital of Texas. One address listing is 111 Congress Avenue # 1000, Austin, TX 78701-4073, and the other is 100 Congress Avenue # 1550, Austin, TX 78701-2744. They are in close proximity on the Google map, so it is probably one office complex. 

I can just hear the deposition questions from the defense attorney and the plaintiff's responses.

"Ms Carrillo, were you wearing any attire on the lower half of your body on the day in question?"
"Yes."
"And how would you describe the attire."
"I was wearing shorts."
"And how long were the shorts?"
"Long enough."
"Would those be of a capri length or a mid-thigh length or short shorts?"
"Well they were not really really short if that's what you're asking."
"Were any of your ... ahem... bare buttocks exposed?"
"Well when you sit down some of your skin is exposed that is not exposed when you are standing up. So I suppose."
"Is that a yes?"
"What was the question?"
"Were your bare buttock exposed?"
"All I know is my butt cheeks got burnt bad."
"Do you still have the shorts you were wearing?"
"No, I gave them away."
"Why did you give them away?"
"Because I outgrew them."
"Did you ever wear them again after the day in question?"
"Yes, but I outgrew them a year later, so I don't keep clothes that are too small."
"Do you have any photos of the shorts you were wearing?"
"No, not unless the hospital took some."
"You went to the hospital the day you were burned?"
"Yes."
"And you were still wearing the shorts at that time?"
"Yes. They had to peel them off of me."
[Agggghhhh!]
"Let's take a short ... I mean a 10-minute recess."

We'll continue to follow this lawsuit closely.

 

The next Texas story for today comes from Lubbock, Texas, where the county judge has raised some eyebrows with his push to raise the property tax rate by 1.7 cents for the next fiscal year. Here is a portion of the story that explains his reasoning for the increase.

An across-the-board pay increase is needed for the attorneys on the DA's staff to keep them from being poached by higher-paying counties, and the sheriff needs to expand his staff by seven deputies to reduce call response times, minimize officer fatigue and reduce the turnaround time for investigations.

Judge Head said he and the county must be prepared for many contingencies, one that he particularly fears, is if President Obama is reelected.

“He's going to try to hand over the sovereignty of the United States to the UN, and what is going to happen when that happens?,” Head asked.

“I'm thinking the worst. Civil unrest, civil disobedience, civil war maybe. And we're not just talking a few riots here and demonstrations, we're talking Lexington, Concord, take up arms and get rid of the guy.

"Now what's going to happen if we do that, if the public decides to do that? He's going to send in U.N. troops. I don't want 'em in Lubbock County. OK. So I'm going to stand in front of their armored personnel carrier and say 'you're not coming in here'."

The Huffington Post and other liberal news sites have pounced on Judge Head as a conspiracy theorist and called for his resignation. You can watch the full report here.

And the third and final story from the Lone Star State today is about the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals decision two days ago that reversed a temporary injunction that a judge had handed down to keep the state legislature from enacting a law that would cut off state funding for Planned Parenthood and other organizations that are linked to abortion. Here's how one website reported the news in part:

The ruling is the latest in the ongoing fight that has pitted Texas against the federal government. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services says that the new state rule violates federal law. Federal funds paid for 90 percent, or about $35 million, of the $40 million Women's Health Program until the new rule went into effect. Federal officials are now phasing out support for the program.

Gov. Rick Perry has promised that Texas will make up for the loss of federal funds to keep the program going without Planned Parenthood's involvement. In a statement, Perry called Tuesday's ruling "a win for Texas women, our rule of law and our state's priority to protect life."

Will Governor Perry have to raise taxes to increase protection against Kathleen Sebelius and the HHS? I sense a showdown a comin'.

Cowgirl Katy

"Showdown: Governor vs. Former Governor"

Ropin' Ricky

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