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The family of an American plantation operator who was tortured and then killed by a Cuban firing squad was awarded $400 million in damages. The country of Cuba, Fidel Castro and other senior Cuban officials were found guilty of violating U.S. antitorture and extra-judicial killing laws by Miami-Dade County Circuit Judge Thomas S. Wilson Jr. The family still faces the challenge of actually collecting the damages.

The NH Liquor Commission and an elderly woman face a lawsuit over the death of a 24-year-old passenger involved in a drunk driving accident. A state liquor store in Hooksett allegedly sold alcohol to the underage driver, which they drank at the woman’s home. The woman’s grandson had invited friends to her home, but she told the men to leave after a confrontation.

An OR jury ruled that the truck maker Freightliner made fraudulent attempts to avoid legal obligations by shifting assets among its divisions. They determined the company should pay a minimum of $488 million to a rival truck maker and added a $350 million punitive damage award for acting with “malice” and “bad motive.” The punitive damage award is believed to be the largest in state history.

An AL man who blamed Vioxx for his heart attack lost a lawsuit seeking $5.75 million. Jury deliberation lasted less than two hours, during which they determined that Merck acted responsibly in its research of Vioxx and disclosed the appropriate information to patients and doctors.

A federal judge ruled that the First Amendment shields the Atkins diet from a claim that the meal plan is dangerous and caused a FL man to suffer from heart problems. The judge dismissed the lawsuit, which requested that warning labels be added to Atkins books and other related merchandise. The lawsuit also sought unspecified damages and accused Atkins Nutritionals and Dr. Robert Atkin’s estate of “product liability, negligent misrepresentation and deceptive conduct.”

Settlements that do more than put money into the pockets of plaintiffs and their lawyers have been rare but are becoming more frequent in civil actions. More than $32 million will go to five medical and educational institutions as part of a recent settlement in TX involving a BP refinery blast. In Fl, an accidentally paralyzed plaintiff is donating all of the jury’s $100.1 million award to the Miami Project to Cure Paralysis at the University of Miami Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine.

A judge refused a new trial after a jury handed down a $31 million verdict against Ford. The case involved a Ford Bronco that rolled over after the driver lost control and ejected a 12-year-old boy who suffered extensive head injuries. The father of the boy sued Ford for “knowingly manufacturing and selling a vehicle that was unreasonably prone to roll over.”

Cigna Corporation will pay $93 million to resolve a shareholder class action lawsuit involving a faulty computer system. The lawsuit claimed the company had hidden major problems in a new computer system that was installed to handle claims. This in turn resulted in a significant decline in stock price after the problems were divulged.

MO group home for the mentally ill faces its first lawsuit over a fire that killed nine residents and the home’s caregiver. The parents of the 19-year-old caregiver allege the owner and facility operators failed to fix faulty electrical wiring and install a sprinkler system. In addition to the fatalities, the fire also left two dozen people injured.

A former police chief sued the city of Dallas after they fired him back in August of 2003. The appeals court rejected the city’s claim that the chief “served at will and could be terminated at any time for any reason.” The lawsuit alleges he was denied due process because he should have been demoted rather than fired outright.