Miscellaneous

• Allstate Allowed to Write Policies in Florida Again

  Shannon Weidemann | January 23, 2008 10:58 AM | 0 CommentsTampa Bay, FL

  Last week Allstate was ordered by the Florida state insurance commissioner to stop writing insurance policies after their refusal to answer state subpeonas. The subpeonas were issued in an investigation into why Allstate wanted to raise their rates by 41.9 percent. Then on Friday the Court of Appeals issued an injuction allowing Allstate to write insurance policies again. Before the ruling,...

• Tobacco Litigation Heating Up In Tampa

  Brenda Fulmer | January 22, 2008 9:08 AM | 0 CommentsTampa Bay, FL

  The deadline for former members of the Engle class action to file lawsuits against tobacco manufacturers passed ealirer this month. While the exact tally won't be known for several weeks, it is estimated that more than 5,000 smokers and their surviving family members have filed individual lawsuits across the state. In July of 2006, the Florida Supreme Court issued a landmark decision in the...

• Two Perish in Jacksonville Chemical Plant Explosion

  Courtney Mills | December 19, 2007 3:56 PM | 0 CommentsTampa Bay, FL

  The Faye Road chemical plant in Jacksonville exploded this afternoon around 2:30 and burst into flames. The exact reason for the conflagration at the Jacksonville chemical facility was not immediately clear, but one witness described the explosion as an immense 'black mushroom cloud rising up very quickly.'Buildings near the chemical plant had their windows completely blown out, and people...

• Jesuits Settle Sex Abuse Lawsuits for $50 Million

  Joe Saunders | November 19, 2007 12:47 PM | 0 CommentsTampa Bay, FL

  The Society of Jesus a.k.a. the Jesuits have agreed to pay $50 million to 110 survivors of priest sex abuse. The agreement involves 15 priests who abused Eskimo children from 1961 to 1987. The Jesuits have been in the news recently concerning Fr. Donald McGuire, a Chicago Jesuit who is in jail for molesting a boy. He is also facing a new federal charge of molestation as well as numerous civil...

• Tampa Judge Denies Bail for Youth Minister Accused of Sexual Abuse

  Joe Saunders | October 11, 2007 11:58 AM | 0 CommentsTampa Bay, FL

  River of Life Church youth minister Justin Peterson admitted to forcing a 7 year old child to perform oral sex. Now a judge has denied bail for the 31 year old youth minister. The abuse survivor, now an adult, confronted the minister about the abuse and he readily admitted to abusing the young girl. Apparently, there is another victim who has not come forward. Peterson remains in jail...

• Florida PIP to Return in January 2008

  Joe Saunders | October 08, 2007 6:44 AM | 0 CommentsTampa Bay, FL

  Four days after personal injury auto accident insurance expired in Florida, lawmakers moved swiftly to re-enact the PIP provisions. A move to cap attorney fees was struck down in the new legislation that is set to begin in January. Personal Injury Protection (PIP) pays medical bills up to $10,000 regardless of who is at fault in the auto accident. The move is seen as helping those who drive...

• John Bryan's Double Life Reveals Tragedy of Sexual Abuse

  Joe Saunders | September 28, 2007 12:24 PM | 0 CommentsTampa Bay, FL

  The recent revelations of former St. Petersburg City Council member John Bryan and his subsequent suicide demonstrate the perverse and prevalent nature of pedophiles and ephebophiles (those who prey sexually on post-pubescent teens). On the surface, John Bryan was a doting father who loved his adopted children. Yet the truth revealed that he was preying sexually on these children he had...

• Florida Supreme Court Overturns Flood Ruling

  Shannon Weidemann | September 22, 2007 3:19 PM | 0 CommentsTampa Bay, FL

  Damage from the 2004 Hurricanes in Florida brought about disputes between homeowners and insurance companies about what caused damage to homes. Conventional insurance companies pay out for wind damage and separate flood insurance policies pay for flood damage. Earlier court rulings said that insurance companies were responsible for flood damage. The Florida Supreme Court has ruled that...

• Criticism of FDA Mounting

  Brenda Fulmer | September 10, 2007 10:33 AM | 0 CommentsTampa Bay, FL

  In a blistering editorial entitled "Sidelining Safety" in the New England Journal of Medicine, the Food and Drug Administration was criticized for failure to implement the necessary to ensure patient safety. In September of 2006, sparked in part by the regulatory fallout from the withdrawal of Vioxx, the Institute of Medicine published a report entitled "The Future of Drug Safety." This...

• FDA Outsourcing Drawing Congressional Scrutiny

  Joe Saunders | August 29, 2007 12:25 AM | 0 CommentsTampa Bay, FL

  Michigan Democrats John Dingell and Bart Stupak have sent a letter to the FDA questioning the recent news that the federal agency plans to outsource 322 jobs. In their letter, the two Democrats called the plan "hasty and injudicious". The two lawmakers also questioned why the FDA would consider such a move when public opinion of the agency is at an all-time low and the need for the FDA's...