This Week's Most Notable Personal Injury Stories

Happy Friday! ?? Welcome to this week's edition of Enjuris Briefs. Our team of dedicated attorney editors has hand-selected the most notable—and notably amusing—personal injury stories from the past week.

Top Legal Stories

Supreme Court to Decide If FBI Can Be Sued for Wrong House Raid

In 2015, Curtrina Martin, Hilliard Cliatt, and Curtrina’s young son, Gabriel, were startled awake in their suburban Atlanta home as FBI agents executed a no-knock warrant. The agents burst into the home, deployed a flashbang grenade, and aimed their weapons at the family. Gabriel, just eight years old, recalled, “I woke up and thought we were being robbed.” Terrified, Martin and Cliatt hid in a closet until agents dragged Cliatt out at gunpoint and handcuffed him.

Unfortunately, the agents were inside the wrong house.

At issue in Martin v. United States is whether federal law enforcement is shielded from liability under the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA) and the discretionary-function exception, which protects policy-driven government actions from lawsuits. If the Court rules in favor of the family, it could open the door for more legal claims against wrongful police raids. But if the government prevails, federal law enforcement will remain largely untouchable—even when they terrorize innocent civilians in their own homes.

Read more here.?

Maryland Court Upholds Verdict Against Cemetery Over Botched Disinterment

A Maryland appellate court has upheld a jury verdict against Lincoln Memorial Cemetery after a failed disinterment led to a horrific scene in which a grieving mother watched her son’s remains spill onto the ground—not once, but twice. The court found that Osiris, the cemetery operator, breached its duty of care by failing to have a mortician present during the disinterment, as required by state law.

The nightmare began when Mrs. Daniels learned in 2017 that her son had been buried in the wrong plot. After resisting pressure to sign a liability waiver, she arranged for his remains to be transferred to a different cemetery. What followed was a disastrous attempt to remove the burial container, which cracked, fell, and exposed her son’s remains. A cemetery worker was later seen using a shovel to place the body back inside, and a mortician only arrived after the damage was done.

The jury awarded Mrs. Daniels $3,040 in expenses and $357,000 in noneconomic damages, rejecting the cemetery’s argument that she assumed the risk of witnessing the botched process. The appellate court upheld the verdict, ruling that the cemetery’s actions clearly violated industry standards and state law.

Read the opinion here.

Teen Forced to Undergo Catheterization After Calling Police Sues for Civil Rights Violations

An Oklahoma man is suing local law enforcement after officers allegedly forced him to undergo catheterization for a drug test—without consent or a warrant—when he was just 17. Corbin Quinn Franks had called the police in March 2023 to report a road rage incident in which another driver fired shots into his vehicle. Instead of investigating his complaint, officers allegedly arrested him, took him to a hospital, and ordered medical staff to forcibly catheterize him to obtain a urine sample, despite no probable cause for a drug test.

Franks, who later sought medical treatment for pain caused by the procedure, claims the experience left him humiliated and traumatized. His lawsuit, now in federal court, accuses the City of Hollis Police Department, the Harmon County Sheriff’s Office, and individual officers of violating his Fourth, Fifth, and Fourteenth Amendment rights. While the drug test came back negative, Franks argues that urinary catheterization offers little investigative advantage over a blood draw and that his treatment was a clear abuse of power.

Read the court documents here.?

East Palestine Reaches $22M Settlement Over Train Derailment, But Residents Remain Skeptical

Norfolk Southern has agreed to a $22 million settlement with East Palestine, Ohio, to resolve all claims stemming from the 2023 train derailment. The funds will go toward police and fire equipment, water treatment improvements, and renovations to the historic train depot. However, plans for a $20 million regional safety training center were scrapped, with officials calling it “not feasible.”

Despite the payout, many residents feel left behind. “The village has been receiving millions,” said resident Linda Murphy. “It is like it has become a separate individual entity—not something made up of its residents.” Others have criticized the lack of transparency and the absence of health or relocation assistance in the deal. Meanwhile, separate legal battles continue, including a challenge to Norfolk Southern’s $600 million class-action settlement and a pending federal settlement that would fund medical exams and water monitoring.

California Bill Aims to Make Big Oil Pay for Climate Disasters

A newly proposed California law could make fossil fuel companies financially liable for climate-related disasters, shifting costs away from homeowners and insurers. Introduced by State Sen. Scott Wiener, the bill would allow California’s last-resort insurance provider to sue oil and gas companies for damages—similar to how utilities are held accountable for wildfires caused by faulty equipment.

“By forcing the fossil fuel companies driving the climate crisis to pay their fair share, we can help stabilize our insurance market and make the victims of climate disasters whole,” Wiener said. The proposal comes as insurers increasingly pull out of California’s market due to rising wildfire and flood risks, leaving homeowners with soaring premiums or no coverage at all.

EPA Must Face Lawsuits Over Flint Water Crisis, Court Rules

A federal court has ruled that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) must face claims from thousands of Flint, Michigan, residents who allege the agency was negligent in responding to the city’s water crisis. The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan rejected the EPA’s attempt to dismiss the case, stating that the agency’s actions involved “professional and scientific judgments,” not protected policy decisions.

This is the second time the court has denied the government’s motion to dismiss, following a 2019 ruling that more fact-finding was needed. The decision clears the way for residents to seek accountability for the EPA’s failure to act as Flint’s drinking water became dangerously contaminated with lead.

Amusing Legal Story

Caught on Camera: Washington Man Ordered to Repay $60K for Workers’ Comp Fraud

A Washington man who claimed he was too injured to work has been ordered to repay more than $60,000 after investigators caught him carrying a 48-pound table—despite telling doctors he couldn’t lift more than 25 pounds. Juan P. Delgado collected workers’ compensation benefits for nearly three years after falling from a ladder in 2019, but a private investigator hired by his former employer tipped off state officials that Delgado had been working all along.

The Washington State Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) launched its own investigation, uncovering video evidence of Delgado performing physically demanding tasks while working as a custodian, roofer, and house cleaner. His doctor, after reviewing the footage, determined Delgado had misrepresented his injuries. Now, Delgado must repay $60,116 in restitution and serve 20 days of electronic home monitoring after pleading guilty to felony fraud.

Check out the video here!

Quote of the Week

“Gloria you’re not gonna get any money from me that way, but if you call me I’ll take you to dinner. LOL.” - 50 Cent

50 Cent is laughing off a new lawsuit that claims he intentionally hit a photographer with an SUV door. The rapper, born Curtis Jackson III, took to Instagram after high-profile attorney Gloria Allred filed the suit, joking, “Gloria you’re not gonna get any money from me that way, but if you call me I’ll take you to dinner. LOL.” The post included a photo of the two laughing and clasping hands at a 2014 event.

The lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court, alleges that Jackson and his entourage pulled up behind photographer Guadelupe De Los Santos—who had been following him on a scooter—before suddenly swinging open the SUV’s passenger door, knocking De Los Santos to the ground. The photographer is seeking damages for assault, battery, negligence, and interference with his civil rights. Jackson, for his part, dismissed the claim as “frivolous,” with his lawyer vowing to seek the “maximum costs, fees, sanctions, and other remedies” if the case proceeds.

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