A Truly Weird Tort Suit

[Ralph]

Citing stress, cop sues man whose life he saved
11/2/2006, 9:40 a.m. ET
The Associated Press

DENVILLE, N.J. (AP) — Two years ago, police Sgt. Ron Nametko talked a suicidal sheriff's officer into putting down his weapon and surrendering. Now the sergeant, who has since retired with a disability, is suing the man who pointed a loaded gun at him, citing emotional distress from the incident.

Nametko, 38, calmly talked with the officer for more than 45 minutes, refusing the man's demands to kill him in November 2004.

The lawsuit, filed in Superior Court in Morristown, accuses former Morris County sheriff's officer Patrick O'Connor, 40, of assault and battery, intentional and negligent infliction of emotional distress and false imprisonment.

"It strikes me as one of the strangest tort lawsuits I've ever heard of," George Thomas, a professor of criminal law and procedure at Rutgers School of Law in Newark, told The Star-Ledger of Newark for Thursday's newspapers.

And a claim against the suicidal man's neighbor, who Nametko accuses of aiding the distraught officer, is "even more bizarre," Thomas said.

Nametko told the newspaper last April that O'Connor was standing 10 feet away from him, pointing a loaded .45-caliber revolver at him.

"He kept telling me, 'I want to die suicide by cop,'" Nametko said at the time. "He told me if I didn't shoot him, he'll shoot me, and the next officer into the room would shoot him."

Nametko knew O'Connor, having worked with him briefly in the Morris County prosecutor's office. He said they talked about their respective children, which seemed to calm O'Connor, who eventually surrendered.

Nametko declined to discuss the suit Wednesday. His lawyer, Steven Menaker, told the newspaper Nametko "is haunted by the fear of being killed and has frequent nightmares and depression. He can never be a cop again."

Doug Wilkins, O'Connor's neighbor, also is named in the lawsuit. He told the newspaper he met Nametko outside his own home, where O'Connor was holding the gun, on the day of the incident.

The lawsuit alleges Wilkins told Nametko that O'Connor was on the second floor, but did not tell him what kind of situation he was about to encounter.

"I told him (Nametko) about the guns," Wilkins said. "Wasn't he doing his job? What, is a fireman going to sue every time he runs into a burning building?"

O'Connor's lawyer, Alan Zegas, also criticized the lawsuit, claiming his client has "severe psychiatric issues."

"That's just terrible," Zegas said. "You would think a fellow officer would be sympathetic for what Pat has gone through."

___

Information from: The Star-Ledger, http://www.nj.com/starledger

[pizza]

Strange, but I think nonetheless viable. If O'Connor had shot the plaintiff, he could have maintained an action, so why not one for assault?

BTW, firemen have successfully sued arsonists for injuries sustained in the line of duty.

[Alberich]

And, guess what?

There's always an attorney at the ready
to pursue these preposterous actions.
Hardly nobody today is deemed
responsible for their own lives -
any emotional tic and one looks to blame someone
else - with the assistance, of course, of the
ubiquitous negligence attorney.

Gilbert & Sullivan
perceived that this all would come to pass you know -
from their long-forgotten operetta "The Pirates of the Inns of Court" - the victim's patter
song: "Someone must be sued!"

The Attorney at my right
Says, "there's gotta be a fight
Your emotional attitude
means that someone must be sued!"

(chorus of wigged lawyers)
Someone must be sued,
It's definitely rude
But someone must be sued.

We must find someone to blame
There! that man - his name?
It's indubitably funny
But I'll get you lots of money

(chorus, again)
Someone must be sued, etc

We'll push the suit with vigor
We'll see the stakes get bigger
We want the verdict, please
And forthwith grab our fees.

(chorus, once more)
Someone must be sued, etc.

[pizza]

There's nothing at all funny about having a loaded gun trained on you by someone proficient in its use, while being threatened with death if you don't kill him, and working your way out of the dilemma with a positive result. Unquestionably such an event can cause post traumatic stress disorder and the disabilities that can result from such a disease are often debilitating. If plaintiff proves disability and causal connection, he's entitled to monetary relief.

[Alberich]

There's nothing at all funny about having a loaded gun trained on you by someone proficient in its use, while being threatened with death if you don't kill him, and working your way out of the dilemma with a positive result. Unquestionably such an event can cause post traumatic stress disorder and the disabilities that can result from such a disease are often debilitating. If plaintiff proves disability and causal connection, he's entitled to monetary relief.

Awww...lighten up. Just kidding around.
Don't you like Gilbert & Sullivan?

[pizza]

There's nothing at all funny about having a loaded gun trained on you by someone proficient in its use, while being threatened with death if you don't kill him, and working your way out of the dilemma with a positive result. Unquestionably such an event can cause post traumatic stress disorder and the disabilities that can result from such a disease are often debilitating. If plaintiff proves disability and causal connection, he's entitled to monetary relief.

Awww...lighten up. Just kidding around.
Don't you like Gilbert & Sullivan?

This is G & S?:

"And, guess what?

There's always an attorney at the ready
to pursue these preposterous actions.
Hardly nobody today is deemed
responsible for their own lives -
any emotional tic and one looks to blame someone
else - with the assistance, of course, of the
ubiquitous negligence attorney."

Post traumatic stress disorder is hardly an "emotional tic" and the claim, although unusual, is far from preposterous. It's also pretty well known that today's "preposterous action" is tomorrow's well-settled law.

When the client says "sue the bastard" you know he's taken responsibility for his life!

[Alberich]

Well, that paragraph which appears to get under your
skin a bit actually was taken from the prologue to the
operetta above-mentioned. They were well
ahead of their time and were fond of needling
the funny ideas they encountered - including, obviously,
the possibility of taking normality to extremes - such as
invoking post-traumatic stress in this particular case.
I guess the old pair hit too
close to home? Anyway -

[Ralph]

This lawsuit is going nowhere. Police officers and firefighters can't recover for the incidental and often serious emotional damage occasioned by what they encounter.

[pizza]

This lawsuit is going nowhere. Police officers and firefighters can't recover for the incidental and often serious emotional damage occasioned by what they encounter.

Wanna bet?

Severe cases of PTSD can be completely debilitating.

As I read the article, the suit isn't only for emotional injury.

See:

Boon v. Rivera (2000) 80 C.A. 4th 1322.

Also, California Civil Code § 1714.9, which provides that a peace officer may recover civil damages from any person where such person’s willful or negligent act causes injury to him.

[pizza]

Well, that paragraph which appears to get under your
skin a bit actually was taken from the prologue to the
operetta above-mentioned. They were well
ahead of their time and were fond of needling
the funny ideas they encountered - including, obviously,
the possibility of taking normality to extremes - such as
invoking post-traumatic stress in this particular case.
I guess the old pair hit too
close to home? Anyway -

I couldn't care less what the old pair or anyone else says. I'm proud of the work my profession has done to expand the scope of recovery in cases such as these, and especially those where all the big, brave phonies who pretend to know how the less fortunate should behave while suffering their debilitating injuries spout their ignorant drivel. When they suffer the same horrific injuries I'll listen to what they have to say.

Meanwhile, they're welcome to needle me and my fellow PI lawyers all the way to the bank whenever their muse grabs them.

[Ralph]

This lawsuit is going nowhere. Police officers and firefighters can't recover for the incidental and often serious emotional damage occasioned by what they encounter.

Wanna bet?

Severe cases of PTSD can be completely debilitating.

As I read the article, the suit isn't only for emotional injury.

See:

Boon v. Rivera (2000) 80 C.A. 4th 1322.

Also, California Civil Code § 1714.9, which provides that a peace officer may recover civil damages from any person where such person’s willful or negligent act causes injury to him.

*****Sure. I'll be you a full meal at Katz's Delicatessen the next time you're here.

[Ralph]

Well, that paragraph which appears to get under your
skin a bit actually was taken from the prologue to the
operetta above-mentioned. They were well
ahead of their time and were fond of needling
the funny ideas they encountered - including, obviously,
the possibility of taking normality to extremes - such as
invoking post-traumatic stress in this particular case.
I guess the old pair hit too
close to home? Anyway -

I couldn't care less what the old pair or anyone else says. I'm proud of the work my profession has done to expand the scope of recovery in cases such as these, and especially those where all the big, brave phonies who pretend to know how the less fortunate should behave while suffering their debilitating injuries spout their ignorant drivel. When they suffer the same horrific injuries I'll listen to what they have to say.

Meanwhile, they're welcome to needle me and my fellow PI lawyers all the way to the bank whenever their muse grabs them.

*****

Yeah, take that, Alberich!

[pizza]

This lawsuit is going nowhere. Police officers and firefighters can't recover for the incidental and often serious emotional damage occasioned by what they encounter.

Wanna bet?

Severe cases of PTSD can be completely debilitating.

As I read the article, the suit isn't only for emotional injury.

See:

Boon v. Rivera (2000) 80 C.A. 4th 1322.

Also, California Civil Code § 1714.9, which provides that a peace officer may recover civil damages from any person where such person’s willful or negligent act causes injury to him.

*****Sure. I'll be you a full meal at Katz's Delicatessen the next time you're here.

You're on!

What's even more bizarre than the lawsuit is the shoot-from-the-hip blather of Law Prof. George Thomas:

"It strikes me as one of the strangest tort lawsuits I've ever heard of," George Thomas, a professor of criminal law and procedure at Rutgers School of Law in Newark, told The Star-Ledger of Newark for Thursday's newspapers.

And a claim against the suicidal man's neighbor, who Nametko accuses of aiding the distraught officer, is "even more bizarre," Thomas said."

Too bad he never bothered to learn the two major exceptions to the so-called "Firefighter's Rule" which are obviously being plead here -- fraud and independent causation.

If plaintiff's counsel follows the script, the case will go to a jury.