Iowa Industrial Commissioner Sues Iowa's Governor Alleging Sexual Preference Discrimination

Posted by Steve Lombardi on January 16, 2012

GODFREY_BRANDSTETTERX390.jpgSurely the hate mail over this lawsuit will drive the U.S. Postal Service into the black. This past week the gloves came off when the Iowa Industrial Commissioner (Chris Godfrey) personally sued Governor Terry Branstad (and others in his administration) for discrimination, defamation and harassment over the Governor’s reduction in Godfrey’s annual salary by nearly $36,000. It left me wondering how any of this serves the people of Iowa.

The Govna wanted Godfrey to resign claiming inter alia that Godfrey's actions were getting in the way of job creation in Iowa. Essentially the claim is that he wasn’t doing a good job; a claim which is seriously flawed to the point of being frivolous. (On this point you need only read how the Iowa Economic Development Authority sells this state to the business community.) Iowa’s workers’ compensation program is heralded as one of the best run programs in the country. Godfrey’s suit says if I am doing a good job what else is left but a right-wing attack on my sexual preferences? 

"Iowa’s workers’ compensation costs are among the nation’s lowest. The average cost of workers’ compensation insurance for manufacturers in Iowa is 16 percent lower than the national average. Iowa law provides for employer choice of doctor." (Actuarial and Technical Solutions, 2009) - quote from Iowa Economic Development Authority, Iowa's Business Advantages LINK

I'm not sure in Iowa I've seen this level of dirty politics being played with the Iowa Industrial Commissioner position. As someone who is a registered Republican and who has practiced before the commission for over 30 years I have to say Chris Godfrey is doing an excellent job. His decisions find balance and frankly the Commission under his administration hasn't favored the injured workers. There is a balance struck that favors no one side. He sticks to the law. His decisions are as fair to the employers as they are to the injured workers. The facts seem to dictate the outcome and if I had to pick a side I'd say the Commission favors the employers. So come on Govna what the heck are you doing?

shooting-oneself-in-the-foot.jpg

Continue Reading

Facebook user accused of arson

Posted by Steve Lombardi on November 11, 2011

This is hard to fathom. You get de-friended from by your BFF on FB that leads to the Des Moines Police investigating the motive for criminal activity. Keep in mind no one has admitted to anything and no criminal activity has been proven. But still this is interesting to see where the practice of law is going and how the virtual world is impacting the court system.

Social networking spat ends in arson charges for woman, Des Moines Register

Beat Cops and Tweet Cops Patrol Twitter and Facebook

Posted by Steve Lombardi on September 06, 2011

Domenico-Fetti_Archimedes_1620 Wiki.jpgWhen the virtual world is not so virtuous

A student posted this comment on a social media site: “Who wants to shoot up the DMACC Ankeny campus the same time I shoot up the Urban campus?”

Twitter post results in DMACC student’s arrest, Tom Alex, Des Moines Register

You can almost guess what happened next. He was charged with first-degree harassment.

But this isn’t an isolated incident of social media being used as the basis for the filing of criminal charges. In this country, land of the free and home of the brave, words alone posted in a virtual world have become evidence of criminal activity in the real world. With the wide dissemination of information on social media sites, free speech isn’t so free any more. Freedom of expression doesn’t equate to freedom to say anything. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law.

A lawyer I recently broached this subject with, described how in a criminal case the defendants already charged with one crime, used Facebook to organize intimidation of witnesses against them. To their chagrin the prosecutor knew how to use Facebook. What is it with people thinking that you can say anything online and somehow you have immunity from reason? Why do people believe they can say anything in the virtual world without being held responsible? Is it because somehow there is a disconnect between what is typed and posted but not spoken by the out loud? 

Continue Reading

Is someone spying on your credit card?

Posted by Steve Lombardi on April 12, 2011

Criminal Crime.jpgWhat’s in your wallet? 

I buy gas using a credit card and a recent email pointed out we should all be hitting the "CLEAR" button at the pump after concluding our purchase. The email pointed out there is a way for someone to come along after you've left and to charge gas on your card. True? I'm not sure, but for the sake of safety I'm willing to push the clear button. But what about those stories that say electronics have advanced enough for someone to read the information off of your CC while it's still in your wallet? Can that happen and if so how will technology protect us?

We all find the Captial One commercials funny, or least some people do. But what about those electronic strips on your credit cards and identity theft issues that we read about and with fingers crossed sort of ignore? Need we be concerned about someone surreptitiously gathering the info off of our cards? Well, to understand the answer to that question we need to go back to high school science class to learn about the faraday cage. If you learn this lesson you'll be a long way to understanding the direction technology is heading.

Will the faraday cage protect a bird on a cage and what's in your wallet?

It may, but for you to appreciate why and what you need to know let’s first learn about the faraday cage?

Four options for learning about the faraday cage; although for purposes of this article you probably don’t need this detailed an understanding. Option One, Two, Three and Four.

Now let’s get back to the bird on a wire. High Power Electrical Line Maintenance Worker or as their Instructor says, "On a magic carpet".

A Faraday cage or Faraday shield is an enclosure formed by conducting material or by a mesh of such material. Such an enclosure blocks out external static electric fields. Faraday cages are named after the English scientist Michael Faraday, who invented them in 1836.

A Faraday cage's operation depends on the fact that an external static electrical field will cause the electrical charges within the cage's conducting material to redistribute themselves so as to cancel the field's effects in the cage's interior. This phenomenon is used, for example, to protect electronic equipment from lightning strikes and other electrostatic discharges. 

Continue Reading

When is free speech expensive?

Posted by Steve Lombardi on January 18, 2011

Match Head lit.jpgCrimes of hyperbole?

Why if you yell "Fire!" in a movie theatre is it a crime?

Spartanburg County, South Carolina - A 78-year-old vet was arrested and charged with making threats against the President after saying he’d like to kill the United States President, Barack Obama.

A shock jock and blogger was found guilty of threatening to kill three federal judges in Chicago, Illinois; it appears from the report he did not say he wanted to kill them, but that he believed they deserved to be killed.

What is hyperbole? When is hyperbole considered a crime? Is the suggestion of killing the U.S. President different than saying you will or want to kill the U.S. President? When is free speech not free? When is a U.S. Citizen's right to free speech curtailed in favor of expediency?

Where public policy collides with the practice of medicine and libel law

Posted by Steve Lombardi on January 03, 2011

Medical Septer.jpgToday the question presented would be something like this:

Should the medical examiner be reporting physicians to the Iowa Board of Medicine concerning standard of care issues? Or, if an Iowa ME sees questionable deaths is it his/her duty to report it to the Iowa Board?

According to a Des Moines Register article wirtten about a libel suit between the Woodbury County Medical Examiner [ME] and a surgeon this ME did just that; he reported to the Iowa Board of Medical Examiners something he questioned and the lawsuit was ‘tossed’ by Judge Reade. But I don’t think that’s completely accurate. I believe the suit is still alive although portions of it have been ruled upon in a way that is adverse to the plaintiff, but favorable to the defendant. The ME reported a doctor for what he thought were standard of care issues. I’ve not completely read the decision but will guess the main issues were immunity from suit.

Okay, I’ve located the opinion and I’ll add this link and add the decision to my site under defamation. The Order is 40 pages long. I can see both sides of this argument. On the one side you have the ME’s role as a government official and medical doctor protecting citizen patients. On the other side you have a doctor spending a considerable amount of money, $200,000, defending himself against the charges. No one will be happy with this controversy.

Here is the Judge's conclusion from page 39 by the Court.

Continue Reading

It's Monday Morning PI Roundup in Iowa

Posted by Steve Lombardi on September 13, 2010

This morning is Monday Morning Roundup of the personal injury news from around the State of Iowa. Let us see how Iowans are getting seriously injured or killed.

Gay Non-News - Bob Vander Plaats continues to distract voters with his efforts to get attention by blaming the Iowa Supreme Court for God’s work in making people gay. Now he’s saying the Iowa Supreme Court should have sent the issue to the Iowa Legislature rather than decide the controversy before them. Bob, Bob, Bob this isn’t all that difficult an issue. The Iowa Legislature passes laws and the Courts decide controversy’s interpreting or applying those laws. It’s basic civics 101 from high school. You did go to high school didn’t you? Next he’ll be advocating gay counseling to un-gay them.  I’m beginning to wonder why Bob is so interested in this subject.

Spencer, Iowa – The debate between Agriculture Secretary, Bill Northey and his challenger Francis Thicke involved a lengthy discussion about the egg recall, how it has affected Iowa’s reputation and how to change state regulations to protect consumers.

Continue Reading

Would a Mitchell County Libel Suit Invite a Countersuit for SLAPPs?

Posted by Steve Lombardi on August 27, 2010

Would it be libelous if I’d written: David Namanny in his editorial sticks a pitchfork in the backs of the Mitchell County Board of Supervisors!

HERE IS WHAT IS REPORTED TO HAVE HAPPENED

The Des Moines Register reported that the Mitchell County Board of Supervisors has asked its County Attorney Mark Walk to research a claim for defamation against the Osage newspaper, the Press-News and its editor, David Namanny. I tried to locate the actual editorial but was unable to find it online. I’m left with the story by CBS-2 New and the story, Mitchell County considers suit against newspaper, August 17, 2010. It may have all started when the Press-News published an editorial that said: "Looks like it's time to get out the pitchforks and head over to the county courthouse".

Yawn……. That’s not exactly a statement of fact; or a threat against any one individual or for that matter a falsehood. It sounds more like an opinion or hyperbole. Hyperbole is a figure of speech in which exceptional exaggeration is deliberately used for emphasis rather than deception.

Continue Reading