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Monday, June 11, 2007

Ind. Decisions - So far "McKinney lawsuit costs BSU $650,000"

Seth Slabaugh of the Muncie Star-Press reports today:

MUNCIE -- Ball State University has spent nearly $850,000 defending its police chief, Gene Burton, and former rookie officer Robert Duplain against a federal lawsuit alleging unreasonable use of deadly force.

"A portion of those attorney fees will be paid by our insurance," said Randy Howard, associate vice president of finance. "It's hard to say how much it is costing us because each claim goes to the insurer. I can say right now we have probably received $200,000 so far."

Which means the university's cost of defending the case to date has been $650,000.

Howard said he believed the two law firms that have represented the university in the wrongful death lawsuit were being paid out of the general institutional support account.

The Indianapolis law firm of Ice Miller LLP has been paid $541,326 and the Muncie firm DeFur Voran LLP has been paid $307,803, for a total of $849,130.

Responding to a call of a burglary in progress, Duplain shot and killed BSU senior Michael McKinney at 3:27 a.m. on Sunday, Nov. 8, 2003, after McKinney allegedly lunged or ran toward the officer in a well-lit residential back yard near campus. The highly intoxicated, unarmed student was seen by fellow student Brent Archambault crawling in the gutter of North Street about 12 minutes before the shooting. * * *

McKinney's parents, Timothy and Lisa, of Bedford, filed the lawsuit in February 2004.

Defense lawyers succeeded in getting the complaint against Burton thrown out of court, but U.S. District Judge Richard Young of Indianapolis has declined to dismiss the case against Duplain. The defense unsuccessfully appealed to the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago.

Defense attorneys Scott Shockley and Lester Cohen of Defur Voran; David Mattingly and Bradley Williams of Ice Miller, and John Kautzman of Ruckelshaus, Roland, Kautzman, Blackwell and Hasbrook, Indianapolis, recently filed a motion asking the judge to set a trial date in January 2008. The defense attorneys have other commitments between now and the end of the year, including other trials, speaking engagements, legal education, bar association meetings and vacations.

"Plaintiffs have been waiting for their day in court for quite some time and would like to avoid any further delays, if possible," attorney Robert Giroux Jr., representing the McKinneys, wrote to the court. "Plaintiffs respectfully request a trial date in the next four to six months."

Judge Young recently assigned the lawsuit for jury trial on Jan. 22 and allowed ten days to try the case.

For background, see this ILB entry from Sept. 12, 2006, and this one from Sept. 26, 2006.

Posted by Marcia Oddi on June 11, 2007 08:05 AM
Posted to Ind Fed D.Ct. Decisions