Figures

$900,000

The amount a Jackson County, Mississippi jury returned in a verdict for a Pascagoula couple who sued their insurer for unpaid Hurricane Katrina damages. Retired Navy Admiral James Lisanby and his wife sued USAA insurance for damage to their Pascagoula beach front home, as well as their rental cottage, garage and other losses. They also asked the jury to award an unspecified amount for emotional distress.

The jury returned the verdict June 27. USAA lawyers argued the San Antonio company did not owe more than the about $45,000 it already paid because the couple’s homeowners insurance policy did not cover water, even wind driven water.

500

The approximate number of West Virginia residents who are now free to seek damages from timber, mining and land companies for devastating 2001 floods. The West Virginia Supreme Court revived a pair of lawsuits and reinstated a 2006 jury verdict that improper logging practices helped cause severe floods that devastated the Mullens, W.Va. area in July 2001. The court held that a Raleigh County judge was wrong to overrule the jury and grant judgment in favor of the defendants.

The amount a former Tennessee insurance executive is accused of offering a federal agent to buy his way out of prison. Federal authorities charged James Michael Foley of Germantown with bribery of a government official and obstruction of justice. The government said in an affidavit Foley offered an agent $20,000 if he recommended a sentence reduction, claiming Foley had given him tips about drug dealers.

$12 million

The sum a Florida jury said the parents of a premature baby who died at Tampa General Hospital should be awarded. Allyson Parham and Robert Gardner contended their child died because Tampa General didn’t have the specialists to deal with the baby’s infection. The lawsuit was one of at least nine with similar allegations. The hospital will appeal.

.08

The blood alcohol limit the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources wants to enforce for boaters versus the current .10 limit. DNR Lt. Col. Jerry Jenkins said national statistics show that alcohol is a factor in 21 percent of all fatal boating accidents. DNR put the rule change before the Legislature, which will consider it during the 2009 session.

Topics Virginia West Virginia