Shirley McClure wanted to open a chain of six residential homes for Alzheimer’s in Long Beach. She had “no experience in elder care,” “ignored a number of Department of Social Services requirements for such facilities,” and also disregarded a number of city ordinances. As a result, complaints were so widespread that the city eventually shut down the projects for failing to meet code and brought criminal charges, and McClure declared bankruptcy — and sued the City for “discriminating” against Alzheimer’s patients. She also blamed her lupus on the City’s actions. It’s bad enough that the case took twelve years to litigate, six months of trial time in federal court, and cost the cash-strapped city nearly $4 million in legal fees. Five months of juror deliberations (made more lengthy when the jurors lied to the court to get a day off to go to the racetrack) resulted in a $22.5 million verdict. The Long Beach Press-Telegram has a lengthy and jaw-dropping description of the jury deliberations worth reading. (Wendy Thomas Russell, “Judging the Jury”, Long Beach Press-Telegram, Nov. 15; Jason Gewirtz, “Nothing in 12-year-old case easy; Jurors tell of ordeal as experts say months-long deliberation may be state record”, Long Beach Press-Telegram, Aug. 6; David Rosenzweig, Aug. 6) (via Hit and Run).
Jurors gone wild
Shirley McClure wanted to open a chain of six residential homes for Alzheimer’s in Long Beach. She had “no experience in elder care,” “ignored a number of Department of Social Services requirements for such facilities,” and also disregarded a number of city ordinances. As a result, complaints were so widespread that the city eventually shut […]
Comments are closed.