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Man cut own face so he could blame girlfriend: Police

homesafetytechpros — Fri, 10 Jan 2025 16:04:30 +0000

Aric Houghton (Penobscot County Jail).

Maine police have arrested a man for assaulting his girlfriend after he cut his own face with a razor blade — allegedly in an attempt to blame her.

Aric Houghton, 30, was first arrested on Jan. 7 after being accused of domestic violence by his girlfriend, who was not identified. According to records obtained by WMTW, a local ABC affiliate, he was charged with domestic violence aggravated assault and obstructing the report of a crime and criminal mischief. Houghton was released. On Jan. 8, police were called again, this time by Houghton, who claimed that his girlfriend assaulted him.

But when police questioned his girlfriend, she claimed he was lying — and that he cut his face himself.

According to a release from the Bangor Police Department that was obtained by WCSH, a local NBC affiliate, Houghton had a key to the woman’s apartment and returned there after being released from jail. During that visit, police said, Houghton claimed that “the victim from the day before had attacked him with a razor blade.” Police arrived to find Houghton with several bleeding cuts on his face, and he was taken to a hospital for treatment.

The woman told police that Houghton had not only allegedly assaulted her again, but that he cut his own face with a razor blade and stated that “he was going to get her arrested for assaulting him.” She also told police that she was afraid Houghton came back to kill her.

The woman was brought to the hospital to be treated for injuries she allegedly sustained at the hands of Houghton during the Jan. 8 attack.

Houghton was arrested for the second time in two days by police on Jan. 8 and slapped with another charge of domestic violence aggravated assault, as well as violation of conditions of release. He remains in custody at the Penobscot County Jail. A bond amount did not appear in jail records.

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Law firms cut compensation for some partners, freeing up cash for high performers

homesafetytechpros — Fri, 18 Oct 2024 22:42:31 +0000

Law Firms

Law firms cut compensation for some partners, freeing up cash for high performers

By Debra Cassens Weiss

October 15, 2024, 3:28 pm CDT

Law firms are cutting compensation for some partners because of reduced productivity or impending retirements, a contrast from more collegial days. (Image from Shutterstock)

Law firms are cutting compensation for some partners because of reduced productivity or impending retirements, a contrast from more collegial days, according to consultants who spoke with Law.com.

“In the white-shoe days, it was unheard of to move somebody down” the compensation ladder, said Matthew Bersani, a founding partner of the Cliff Group, a legal consulting company, in an interview with Law.com.

Now, he estimates, about 10% to 20% of partners in a firm in any given year are seeing a reduction in shares or “points” reflecting ownership amounts.

Other consultants differed on the percentage of partners at firms seeing less compensation. Consultant Blane Prescott told Law.com that it is not unusual for 20% to 30% of partners to see compensation cuts.

But partners making less money are sometimes transitioning out of law practice because of retirements, said Kristin Stark, a Fairfax Associates consultant.

“Are firms still making difficult performance management decisions? Yes, they are. In some firms, you’ll still see 20% or so go down. But some of that will be driven by retirements,” she told Law.com.

Stark said downgrading partner compensation was more common during the financial crisis in the late 2000s and at the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, good economic times are helping lower performing partners.

“With the uptick of law firm performance in recent years, there’s been some of what we’d call a peanut buttering of compensation,” involving spreading the money, Stark told Law.com.

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Nixon Peabody sues law firm for allegedly luring away its clients without cut of contingency fee

homesafetytechpros — Mon, 14 Oct 2024 16:56:38 +0000

Law Firms

Nixon Peabody sues law firm for allegedly luring away its clients without cut of contingency fee

By Debra Cassens Weiss

October 10, 2024, 3:26 pm CDT

Nixon Peabody has filed a lawsuit alleging that its clients were improperly lured away by personal injury law firm Shaheen & Gordon through use of “scare tactics” and false promises. (Image from Shutterstock)

Updated: Nixon Peabody has filed a lawsuit alleging that its clients were improperly lured away by personal injury law firm Shaheen & Gordon through use of “scare tactics” and false promises.

Nixon Peabody filed the suit with its co-counsel Rilee & Associates, Law.com reports.

The two firms allege that Shaheen & Gordon “improperly enticed” their clients to switch firms before submitting their claims to a settlement fund, according to Law.com. The clients were survivors of abuse at the Sununu Youth Services Center.

Thirty-five clients jumped to Shaheen & Gordon between February 2023 and June, the suit says.

Nixon Peabody and Rilee & Associates say they spent thousands of hours representing victims and setting up a settlement fund with state legislators. Their original fee agreement called for attorney fees amounting to 40% of gross recoveries along with costs. The two firms say they have been cut out of Shaheen & Gordon’s client recoveries.

Shaheen & Gordon allegedly told survivors that the firm could obtain the highest damages award to which they are entitled by submitting their claims to the settlement fund, according to Law.com’s description of the suit allegations. That is not necessarily the case, the suit says.

Shaheen & Gordon gave this statement to the ABA Journal: “Shaheen & Gordon has reviewed the complaint and denies the allegations. Clients are not the property of their lawyers, and they are free to hire counsel of their own choosing. Shaheen & Gordon has attempted to cooperate with Nixon Peabody but has not received any specific demands or proposals. We are truly surprised by this lawsuit and do not intend to litigate it in the press.”

Updated Oct. 10 at 4:02 p.m. to add the statement by Shaheen & Gordon.

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Student suffers cut by samurai sword in sword fight

homesafetytechpros — Wed, 28 Feb 2024 02:37:46 +0000

A lawsuit was filed after a teacher brought in swords and held sword fights, and a student was hospitalized in New Mexico. (Image from lawsuit)

The guardians of a high school student in New Mexico who was hacked in the wrist by a samurai sword during “school-sponsored sword fighting,” requiring a trip to the emergency room, have filed a lawsuit in the case, according to a lawsuit.

The lawsuit, filed Feb. 23, said the “school-sponsored sword fighting” happened in a chemistry class at Volcano Vista High School in Albuquerque on May 2, 2022. A sophomore was taken to the ER after one of the fights and has been suffering from permanent physical and psychological injuries from the trauma, the lawsuit says.

“It was total shock,” family attorney Jessica Hernandez told FOX New Mexico affiliate KRQE. “Not only did this teacher and APS (Albuquerque Public Schools) not protect this child, but actively put her in harm’s way, actively created this danger, and put deadly weapons right into these student’s hands and exactly what could reasonably be anticipated is what happened.”

The complaint obtained by Law&Crime said the teacher brought in a “surprise” that day — two swords, a katana-style sword with a long, curved blade and a rapier-style weapon that the teacher called “props.” She instructed the students to rearrange their desks, creating a space in the middle of the classroom and encouraged her students to fight one another for two minutes each while other students shot video on their phones.

In the video, a student can be seen wielding the heavy katana sword. He appears to wield it defensively by parrying the other student’s attacks, moving backward, and retreating away while holding a lighter, longer rapier-style blade. He makes stabbing motions toward the other student as teacher Loviata Mitchell looks on.

The next match drew blood.

A lawsuit was filed after a teacher brought swords, including a samurai-style sword, and held sword fights in a classroom in New Mexico. (Image from lawsuit)

A student identified in court documents as N.S. was struck across the right forearm, wrist, and hand by a student holding a katana-style sword. The injury caused intense physical pain and heavy bleeding, court documents said.

Immediately after N.S. was cut, Mitchell said, “I’m in trouble!” The lawsuit said she ordered her students to delete their videos, refrain from posting anything about the fights online, and not tell anyone.

As N.S. bled, Mitchell tried to call the health office, “but she could not figure out how to do so” and did not immediately call 911, the lawsuit alleges.

Mitchell allowed N.S. to call her grandfather for help — about 20 minutes after N.S. was cut.

“As N.S. began to feel nauseous and weak from blood loss, another student ran to the VVHS health office for medical assistance,” court documents said.

Shortly after that, a school health assistant arrived in Mitchell’s classroom, called 911, and began providing first aid — about 30 minutes after N.S. had been cut. The student was taken to an emergency room where she was treated for “a gaping wound on her right wrist” an hour after being cut by a “real sword consistent with [a] ‘samurai sword’ style item,” Albuquerque Fire Department EMS staff dispatched to the scene noted, court documents said.

The assistant principal’s official school accident report said the teacher brought a “prop” to school for a lesson on “metal and melding (science)” and that the student accidentally cut the other student with it.”

Albuquerque Public Schools did not comment on the lawsuit, citing a policy against commenting on pending litigation, KQRE reported, adding Mitchell was hired as a special-education teacher in 2021 and was terminated in 2022.

The lawsuit seeks an undisclosed amount for medical expenses, pain and suffering, lost future earnings, loss of mobility, and psychological and emotional distress.

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