A New Jersey lawyer is suing the borough of Leonia after it decided to close a side street from rush hour traffic that was a frequent alternate route marked on Waze, the navigation app.

Attorney Jacqueline Rosa sued after the town barred non-residents from using its roads as a short-cut to the George Washington Bridge and set up fines of $200 for violations. Rosa claims she has had to sit in an extra twenty minutes of traffic since the restrictions were put in place and traffic was spilling over into surrounding neighborhoods.

“I am filing it because thousands of people are impacted by this and someone needs to have this ordinance overturned,” Rosa said. “If every town did what Leonia did, it would be absolutely ridiculous. Every single person would have to use a highway to get anywhere.”

Leonia Mayor Judah Zeigler responded saying, “My job is to take action that I truly believe to be in the best interests of my constituents.”

According to news reports, Leonia police Chief Thomas Rowe said studies have shown more than 2,000 vehicles often pass through town from just one of the three exits off Interstate 95. The town has about 9,200 residents and a police force of 18.

The state Attorney General’s Office recently joined the lawsuit on behalf of the Department of Transportation, claiming the closures are illegal.

—Source: newyork.cbslocal.com

A former Idaho Supreme Court Justice is suing the public school districts in his state for charging students fees.

Justice Robert Huntley filed a class action lawsuit alleging that charging the fees "constitutes an unlawful deprivation and taking of private property without due process of law or just compensation" in violation of the students' rights under the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution. The lawsuit also claims school supply lists of items for students to purchase "amounts to a form of state coercion of plaintiffs to pay for essential elements of a free public education."

According to news reports, the complaint further charges that school districts have created an environment fueled by peer pressure on students to buy such supplies. Huntley wants school districts to stop charging and to reimburse parents for money spent and fees since 2012.

"School leaders and patrons should insist that the governor and the legislators honor their constitutional duty to properly fund education," he said. "We are hopeful this lawsuit will give them the impetus to do so."

Huntley served on the highest court from 1982-89. He was the Democratic nominee for governor in 1998.

—Source: cdapress.com

A company sued its customer after she cancelled an order for a t-shirt.

FallenHeroBracelets.com, which claims to share its proceeds from sales of t-shirts and other items with veteran organizations, sued customer Claire Snodgrass for $1100. According to news reports, Snodgrass ordered a $40 t-shirt from the company. After not receiving the t-shirt for several weeks, Snodgrass cancelled her payment. Months later, the t-shirt arrived with a letter from the owner of the company stating he was taking her to collections for cancelling the payment.

“Saying he’d already sent me to collections… he was going to charge me with criminality and bank fraud. So I sent the tee-shirt back,” said Snodgrass.

Calling the lawsuit frivolous, a county judge threw out the lawsuit against Snodgrass.

In a separate matter, the State of Washington is suing the company, accusing it of being deceptive after no evidence of donations could be found. The Attorney General’s office is suing in an attempt to shut down the website and is seeking $2,000 in penalties for customers who complained

—Source: Kgw.com

A Mississippi man is suing American Airlines and the Jackson-Medgar Wiley Evers International Airport for $500,000 after allegedly being bitten by a brown recluse spider.

Marcus Fleming claims in his lawsuit that he was bitten on the hand while awaiting takeoff. Upon reporting the incident to the flight attendant, he claims she said it was "probably a mosquito." At the conclusion of the flight, Mr. Fleming complained of further pain in his hand and swelling. After following up with his physician, Fleming underwent surgery to thwart a secondary infection and potentially grave consequences.

Fleming claims American Airlines negligently maintained the premises by allowing the brown recluse spider to injure a passenger. "American Airlines is a commercial airline and owed a duty to the public, including Fleming, to exercise due care on its flights to ensure the area in which their passengers sat were safe," his lawsuit said.

In an official statement, American Airlines said, "We take the safety of our passengers very seriously and we are reviewing the allegations of the complaint."

—Source: clarionledger.com