Sunday, June 22, 2008

Attorney Olivito's Section 1983 Lyndal Kimble Civil Rights Case Against Warren Settles: Case Received Strong National Media Attention in 03

The Kimble case from Warren Ohio, the case that made Good Morning America and other
national media stories, which contained a video tape of the plaintiff being severely
beat by three white Warren City Police officers was settled earlier this year.

The case's settlement was the culmination of a four year litigation effort with
Attorney Olivito winning the issues at the Sixth Circuit in 2006 after an early intelocutory
appellate challenge to the case was taken by Cleveland based insurance firm, Weston Hurd.

Judge Economus of the Northern District Court was the local court on the case and he
had become difficult w/ the lead counsel, Richard A. Olivito and often
became engaged in personal attacks on counsel and also demonstrated
a defensive attitude about fellow local Greek friend and close aquaintance, Chief Mandopolous
of Warren, who was named in the various cases Mr. Olivito brought against the City during
the relevant period. Economus lead the local effort to have Mr. Olivito's law license reviewed
after the various civil rights cases which eventually have settled successfully for the clients,
were developed by Mr. Olivito.

Nonetheless, the case was won on the merits mainly because of the determination of Mr. Olivito to litigate past the personal aspects of what was the opinion of those opposing
his efforts to bring constitutional level standards to a once economic powerhouse
of a region known for its former steel and present auto industry related output.

The case's basic legal strength derived from the original facts and the video taped
[and all too nationally demonstrated obvious] excessive force by the three white
Warren police officers, which was used against the plaintiff, Lyndal Kimble.

The case generated volumes of public debate and over 80 local and regional media
stories both in new and print media from Cleveland to Akron to Youngstown/Warren,
includinfg the AP.

It was ranked among the two top news story of the Cleveland regional media in 2003
and helped to trigger a U.S Department of Justice special litigaiton unit's official
investigation into Warren Ohio's police department in 2004-6 as instituted by
then outgoing U.S. Attorney General, John Ashcroft.

As part of the civil case's settlement, the family of Lyndal Kimble including his wife
Melodie and their five minor children will receive proceeds of the settlement from
Weston Hurd and the insurer St. Paul Insurance, from Minneapolis. The case's
settlement is an undisclosed sum as per the agreement between the parties to the
litigation.

The case represents the third federal Warren city civil rights case which Mr. Olivito
had developed and worked as lead solo counsel for a number of years which in turn has
resulted in an out of court settlement for the clients.

The other two include the Clarence Clay case [see related Links] which settled in the summer of 2004, after Mr. Olivito did both a successful criminal defense of Mr. Clay in a very rarified atmosphere inside a local court in Warren, Ohio [in September of 03] and after he obtained critical medical supportive documentation about injuries to Mr. Clay during his separate beating and subsequent illegal and improper strip search of Mr. Clay in the spring of 2003.

The Kimble family are happy this part of the issue is resolved and hope to now use part
of the proceeds from the case, to further defend Lyndal from related criminal prosecutions which the City of Warrren had developed against Lyndal post his 2003 nationally televised arrrest.

"The impact of the Kimble case on the entire region's law enforcement is deep and invaluable and it will continue to be a source of immense import to the regional and public discourse on just what are the constitutional standards that are to be followed and applied in citizen police encounters going forward and we at the Midwest Center for Constitutional Rights hope to maintain both the diligent vigilence by the Justice Department officials in the region and to keep the public interest high in relation to these critical issues that this case helped to generate for the protection of individual and families basic civil liberties throughout the Mahoning Valley, all of Northeastern Ohio and beyond." Attorney Olivito said in light of
the case's final civil settlment.