PW February 29

Employees in the Controller's Office Should Think Twice About Swearing: The Philadelphia Controller's Office launches an expensive, invasive investigation of a dozen employees after a sexually explicit scrawl is found on a bathroom wall. Meanwhile, another employee is fired for writing "shit" on an anonymous survey.

More February Lawyers.com

2/29: Judge Orders Divorcing Husband To Apologize on Facebook
2/27: Confusion in Michael Jackson Wrongful Death Case
2/27: Rapper DMX Sued for $1 Million in Back Child Support
2/23: Packing Heat? You Can Show it in Philadelphia
2/23: Child Victims of “Choking Game” Awarded $1 Million
2/21:War Hero Sues Insurance Company for Denial of Benefits
2/21: Skipping Marriage, Man Adopts His Lover
2/17: Family Awarded $3.4 Million After ER Misses Aneurysm
2/16: No Escape from Student Loans Through Bankruptcy

February Jerseyman Magazine

Atlantic City: Comeback on the Coast. Can the downtrodden gambling resort town start bringing in big bucks again after years of decline?

PW/ Philly XP February 8

Started a Philadelphia Weekly column "Indecent Exposure" and website PhillyXP.com as part of a new effort to uncover corruption, cronyism and business as usual politics in Philadelphia.

PW/ PhillyXP: The Incestuous Ties Binding Kenney, Butkovitz and the Parking Authority

The city controller, a councilman and the Parking Authority are all linked by their employment of a shadowy political consultant named Marty O'Rourke.

PhillyXP: Controller Diddles While School District Burns

City Controller Alan Butkovitz talks a big talk about how the school district is failing. He was supposed to audit it.

February Lawyers.com

2/6: DUI Suspect Spends Two Years in Solitary Confinement
2/7: When is it Okay to Use GPS Trackers?
2/8: NFL Accused of Hiding Concussion Damage from Players
2/10: Divorce: There’s an App for That
2/15: Can Mentoring Stop Dads From Turning Deadbeat?

Lawyers.com: America's Child Support Scandal

Four part series on why only 41.2 percent of parents owed child support collect the full amount, and what the consequences are.

1/24: Part 1: Putting a Face on Unpaid Child Support: Kendra's Story by Jennifer King
1/25: Part 2: Deadbeat Parents Don’t Pay Because There’s No Enforcement by Aaron Kase
1/26: Part 3: Putting a Face on Unpaid Child Support: Gabrielle's Story by Jennifer King
1/27: Part 4: Federal Government No Help with Unpaid Child Support by Aaron Kase

More January Lawyers.com

1/18: BB & Other “Fake” Guns Lead to Very Real Deaths
1/23: Supreme Court: Police Need a Search Warrant To Implant GPS Device
1/23: New Efforts Launched Against Sex Trafficking Scourge
1/24: Distracted Walking Injuries on the Rise
1/26: California Says a Child’s Wishes Must Be Considered in Custody Cases
1/28: How To Stay Out of Jail on Super Bowl Sunday
1/30: Jury Awards $178 Million for Botched Gastric Bypass
1/31: Are Spouses Required To File for Bankruptcy Together?
1/31: Consumers Can’t Sue Credit Card Companies for Deceptive Language and Hidden Fees

Lawyers.com January 2012

1/3: When To File in Small Claims Court
1/3: Self Background Checks Named Trend for 2012
1/4: Who Owns Your Twitter Account, You or Your Boss?
1/5: $8.8 Million Verdict in Texting Death, But No Florida Distracted Driving Laws
1/9: Facebook Cited in One Third of Divorce Cases
1/10: Softened Deportation Policy No Amnesty
1/12: Family Awarded $7.6 Million for Forgotten Gallbladder Death
1/12: Doctors Report Only 14 Percent of Errors

More Lawyers.com December 2011

Happy New Year . . .

12/21: 1.3 Million Crashes per Year Caused by Calls or Texting
12/22: Pennsylvania Tort Cap Denies Medical Bills to Student Crushed by Bus
12/28: Consumer Bankruptcies Down For November, Year

Robbie Middleton Murder/ Rape Coverage for Lawyers.com

In 1998, Robbie Middleton was raped, doused in gasoline and set on fire near his home in a Houston suburb. While recovering in the hospital, he named his attacker: Neighbor Don Willburn Collins.

Now, 13 years later, Middleton has passed away from cancer related to his burn injuries. His family won a record $150 billion judgement against Collins in civil court, but Collins was never prosecuted for the attack, and prosecutors are suggesting there is not enough evidence to try him for murder. Currently, Collins is serving a prison sentence for unrelated sex charges, and is due to be paroled in August.

Read the lawyers.com coverage:

12/22: $150B Awarded Against Rapist Who Set Boy on Fire, But No Prosecution
12/29: Prosecutors Demur on Charges for Accused Rapist and Murderer

Lawyers.com December 2011

Some more legal related news for your enjoyment:

12/1: Hulk Hogan Down for the Count after Divorce Settlement
12/1: Illinois Wrongful Death Suit Highlights Complicated Text Messaging Laws
12/9: Victims' Families Get Big Settlement in Self-Help Sweat Lodge Deaths
12/9: Custody Battle Turns Ugly When Wife Tricks Husband into Drunk Driving
12/13: Construction Worker Awarded $70M After Drunk Driver Paralyzes Him
12/14: Facing $73 Million Award, Pfizer Settles Case Where Hormone Caused Breast Cancer
12/15: Illinois Merits Passing Grade in Sex Trafficking Analysis
12/16: Divorced Fathers Less Likely To Receive Child Support, Census Shows

Lawyers.com November 2011

New gig reporting for Lawyers.com. Some entries from November:

11/17: DC Cop Sued for Faking Breathalyzer Results.
11/22: When and How To Report Suspected Child Abuse
11/23: Minneapolis Settles Strip-Search Lawsuit
11/28: Job Discrimination Claims Hit Record High
11/29: Drug Convictions Thrown Out After Illegal Traffic Stop

PW July 13

Print Story: Failure of Germantown grocery raises questions of pay-to-play for state money through former appropriations chair Dwight Evans.

PW June 29

Print Story: Latinos fight for fair representation in this year's redistricting battle.

PW June 8

Print Story: Cop says in Philly Police Department, it's okay to be gay.

JerseyMan May/ June

Outdoor enthusiasts find a destination in South Jersey's Pine Barrens

PW May 18

Cover Story: Inner city churches in Philly are closing their doors at an alarming rate.

PW May 11

Print Story: Milton Street aims to defy critics and shock the city in the primaries.

Print Story: Al Schmidt campaigns to bring new life to the lethargic Philly GOP

PW April 13

Print Story: Activists Seek To Address Vacant Lots in North Philly

April 27 Print Story: Q&A with Zahara Raine of Lambda Legal

May 9: Interview With Philly-born Reservist Serving in Iraq

May 3: City's Blue-Collar Union Threatens Strike

April 29: Citizen Activists Take on the Parking Authority

PW March 23

Print Story: City Council candidates try to stand out in a field of 71.

March 31: Dollarboyz youth group kicked out of Cherry Hill Mall.

PW March 16

Print Story: Philly's population grows while employment shrinks. What happens next?

Jerseyman March/April

Light emitting diodes-- do these novel bulbs have a bright future? An interview with Jersey researcher and inventor Nisa Khan sheds light on the subject. (Page 12 and 13 of magazine)

PW March 9

Cover Story: Mayor Nutter preaches optimism and a rising city in the days leading up to his budget address. But how long can the good times last?

PW March 2

Print Story: Federal budget cuts endanger crucial services for newly arrived refugees.

PW February 23

Print Story: Milton Street's pitch for mayor-- 3,000 ex-cons patrolling city streets to stop crime.