March 22, 2012 (Press-News.org) A Carbondale woman, who charged a Carbondale police officer with unlawfully using his police cruiser to ram the all terrain vehicle (ATV) in which she was riding, has settled her Federal Civil Rights lawsuit against the officer and the City of Carbondale for $105,000.
In May 2009, Chelsea Rocuba, 17 years-old at the time, was a passenger in a legally registered and operated ATV when it was rammed by Carbondale Police Officer Timothy Mackrell using a "pit maneuver," a move commonly used by police forces. The pit maneuver involves the law enforcement vehicle steering sharply into the target vehicle, causing it to reverse direction, spin out, or leave the roadway.
The pit maneuver forced the ATV abruptly sideways, causing the driver to lose control, throwing Ms. Rocuba from the vehicle to the pavement.
As a result of Officer Mackrell's actions, Ms. Rocuba suffered back and neck injuries. The ramming of the ATV, causing Rocuba's injuries, was the latest in a series of accidents involving Carbondale Police Cruisers and ATV's. In the Rocuba case, Officer Mackrell was suspended for ten days. .
Dennis Boyle, attorney for Ms. Rocuba, said after the settlement was reached: "The settlement of $105,000 will be paid by the City of Carbondale. We hope that this will send a message that the practice of using police vehicles to unlawfully ram citizens will not be tolerated by the public."
[This case is Case # 3:10-CV-1465]
Website: http://www.pa-injurylaw.com
Injured Carbondale Woman Settles Suit Against Police Officer; City of Carbondale Will Pay $105,000 Settlement
A Carbondale woman, who charged a Carbondale police officer with unlawfully using his police cruiser to ram the all terrain vehicle (ATV) in which she was riding, has settled her lawsuit for $105,000.
2012-03-22
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
New models predict patterns of brain damage in dementia
2012-03-22
Two breakthrough studies may explain why we see distinct patterns of brain damage associated with dementias, such as Alzheimer's disease, and could be useful for predicting future cognitive decline in patients. These independent studies published by Cell Press in the March 22 issue of the journal Neuron, one studying how brain circuits wire up structurally and the other studying their functional connections, converged on a remarkably similar model that predicted the landscape of degeneration in various forms of dementia. This is particularly significant because, until now, ...
Study shines light on brain mechanism that controls reward enjoyment
2012-03-22
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – What characterizes many people with depression, schizophrenia and some other mental illnesses is anhedonia: an inability to gain pleasure from normally pleasurable experiences.
Exactly why this happens is unclear. But new research led by neuroscientists at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine may have literally shined a light on the answer, one that could lead to the discovery of new mental health therapies. A report of the study appears March 22 in the journal Neuron.
The study used a combination of genetic engineering ...
Jury Awards $8.5 Million to Family of Girl Born With Brain Damage
2012-03-22
In a medical malpractice case, an Ontario appeals court recently affirmed a lower court's award of $8.5 million to the family of a severely brain-damaged woman. Born with cerebral palsy, the woman nearly died at birth due to a nurse's failure to properly monitor her heartbeat during labor. Lawyers for the family said that the nurse didn't measure her heartbeat often enough to detect oxygen deprivation over a period of one to three hours.
The woman, now grown, lives in an assisted care facility and depends on her family for care and financial support. Family members said ...
Stanford researchers discover drug target for stimulating recovery from stroke
2012-03-22
STANFORD, Calif. — Investigators at the Stanford University School of Medicine have shown that removing a matched set of molecules that typically help to regulate the brain's capacity for forming and eliminating connections between nerve cells could substantially aid recovery from stroke even days after the event. In experiments with mice, the scientists demonstrated that when these molecules are not present, the mice's ability to recover from induced strokes improved significantly.
Importantly, these beneficial effects grew over the course of a full week post-stroke, ...
Experts identify inhibitor causing male pattern baldness and target for hair-loss treatments
2012-03-22
VIDEO:
George Cotsarelis, MD, explains that an abnormal amount a protein called Prostaglandin D2 inhibits hair growth in the bald scalp of men, a discovery that may lead directly to new...
Click here for more information.
PHILADELPHIA - Researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania have identified an abnormal amount a protein called Prostaglandin D2 in the bald scalp of men with male pattern baldness, a discovery that may lead directly to new ...
As industry funding for medical education fades, new opportunities for improvements arise
2012-03-22
Public scrutiny and the threat of government regulation are leading to a decline in industry-sponsored funding of accredited continuing medical education (CME) for physicians, and this decline represents an opportunity to make CME more relevant, cost-effective and less open to bias, wrote a group of physicians from the San Francisco VA Medical Center and the University of California, San Francisco.
In a "Perspective" in the March 22 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine, the authors predicted the decline will continue, with a "sea change toward greater restriction" ...
The NBA May Soon Look Very Different
2012-03-22
When it next meets, the governing board of the National Basketball Association will consider allowing corporate advertising on players' official game jerseys. According to the Sporting News, the NBA is the last major American sport to have no logos other than the team name on its official game uniforms -- Adidas currently has logos only on NBA warm-ups.
Sports such as soccer, NASCAR and even the Women's National Basketball Association have no qualms about giving corporate sponsors prominent placement on vehicles, equipment and jerseys. For example, in 2009 the WNBA's ...
Will you have a heart attack? New test can possibly predict
2012-03-22
SAN DIEGO (Embargoed until 2 pm (ET), March 21, 2012) – New findings from a landmark research study led by Scripps Translational Science Institute (STSI) – a collaborative program between Scripps Health and The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) – shows a promising new blood test may be useful in helping doctors predict who is at risk for an imminent heart attack.
Results of the study titled, "Characterization of Circulating Endothelial Cells in Acute Myocardial Infarction," were published this week in Science Translational Medicine. The study concludes that circulating ...
Quantum plasmons demonstrated in atomic-scale nanoparticles
2012-03-22
The physical phenomenon of plasmon resonances in small metal particles has been used for centuries. They are visible in the vibrant hues of the great stained-glass windows of the world. More recently, plasmon resonances have been used by engineers to develop new, light-activated cancer treatments and to enhance light absorption in photovoltaics and photocatalysis.
"The stained-glass windows of Notre Dame Cathedral and Stanford Chapel derive their color from metal nanoparticles embedded in the glass. When the windows are illuminated, the nanoparticles scatter specific ...
VISTA stares deep into the cosmos
2012-03-22
ESO's VISTA telescope has been trained on the same patch of sky repeatedly to slowly accumulate the very dim light of the most distant galaxies. In total more than six thousand separate exposures with a total effective exposure time of 55 hours, taken through five different coloured filters, have been combined to create this picture. This image from the UltraVISTA survey is the deepest [1] infrared view of the sky of its size ever taken.
The VISTA telescope at ESO's Paranal Observatory in Chile is the world's largest survey telescope and the most powerful infrared survey ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
Learning about public consensus on climate change does little to boost people’s support for action, study shows
Sylvester Cancer Tip Sheet for January 2026
The Global Ocean Ship-Based Hydrographic Investigations Program (GO-SHIP) receives the Ocean Observing Team Award
Elva Escobar Briones selected for The Oceanography Society Mentoring Award
Why a life-threatening sedative is being prescribed more often for seniors
Findings suggest that certain medications for Type 2 diabetes reduce risk of dementia
UC Riverside scientists win 2025 Buchalter Cosmology Prize
SETI Institute opens call for nominations for the 2026 Tarter Award
Novel theranostic model shows curative potential for gastric and pancreatic tumors
How beige fat keeps blood pressure in check
Fossils reveal ‘latitudinal traps’ that increased extinction risk for marine species
Review: The opportunities and risks of AI in mental health research and care
New map reveals features of Antarctic’s ice-covered landscape
Beige fat promotes healthy vascular function and blood pressure in mice
Chronic low-dose pesticide exposure reduces the life span of wild lake fish, China-based study shows
Tiny earthquakes reveal hidden faults under Northern California
Long-term pesticide exposure accelerates aging and shortens lifespan in fish
Professor Tae-Woo Lee's research group develops groundbreaking perovskite display technology demonstrating the highest efficiency and industry-level operational lifetime
The “broker” family helps tidy up the cell
Ecology: Mummified cheetahs discovery gives hope for species’ Arabic reintroduction
Researchers survey the ADHD coaching boom
Air pollution and cardiac remodeling and function in patients with breast cancer
Risk of suicide in patients with traumatic injuries
Post–intensive care syndrome
The lifesaving potential of opioid abatement funds
The Frontiers of Knowledge Award goes to Allan MacDonald and Pablo Jarillo-Herrero for their discovery of the “magic angle” enabling science to transform and control the behavior of new materials
Discovery reveals how keto diet can prevent seizures when drugs fail
JMIR Publications and Sikt announce pilot flat-fee unlimited open access partnership
Finding new cell markers to track the most aggressive breast cancer in blood
A new, cleaner way to make this common fertilizer
[Press-News.org] Injured Carbondale Woman Settles Suit Against Police Officer; City of Carbondale Will Pay $105,000 SettlementA Carbondale woman, who charged a Carbondale police officer with unlawfully using his police cruiser to ram the all terrain vehicle (ATV) in which she was riding, has settled her lawsuit for $105,000.