David MacMain and Tricia Ambrose Win Section 1983 Prison In-Custody Death Trial for Lehigh County Prison and 6 Correctional Officers
David MacMain and Tricia Ambrose Win Section 1983 Prison In-Custody Death Trial for Lehigh County Prison and 6 Correctional Officers
David MacMain and Tricia Ambrose successfully defended Lehigh County Prison and six (6) correctional officers in a Section 1983 ‘excessive force’ and ‘denial of medical attention’ claim brought by the family of an inmate who died in custody of excited delirium following a violent struggle with corrections staff and medical personnel. The trial was held before the Honorable James Gardner Knoll in the District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania in Allentown. The case was very high-profile, and the trial was widely covered by both the print and television news media. After 10 days of trial, and testimony from over 20 witnesses and 5 expert witnesses, the 10 person jury returned a verdict in favor of the Prison and 6 officers on December 11, 2015 in just under 2 hours.
The MacMain Law Group Successfully Defends 14 Cases for City of Vineland Officers
MacMain Leinhauser Successfully Defends 14 Cases for City of Vineland Officers
MacMain Leinhauser, with Brian Leinhauser as lead counsel, successfully obtained a favorable verdict in the last of 14 cases brought against the City of Vineland and its Police Officers involving Det. Gami Cruz. The 14 cases, involving 16 Plaintiffs, arose out of the dismissal of a number of criminal matters by the Cumberland County Prosecutor. Those cases were dismissed based on the alleged, but unproven, misconduct of one of the Vineland Police Detectives, Gami Cruz. The 14 cases involved questions of whether probable cause existed to charge the various individuals with the crimes brought by the department and whether search warrants were properly executed by the Vineland Officers and Det. Cruz. In every case involving a question of improper prosecution, the evidence showed that the Vineland Officers and Det. Cruz had probable cause bring the charges against the suspects. Of the 16 Plaintiffs, 12 voluntarily dismissed their cases after the evidence produced in discovery definitively showed that probable cause existed to bring the charges. The evidence in those cases included videotaped drug transactions, video confessions, plea agreements, and physical evidence of the crimes charged.
Three of the remaining Plaintiffs’ cases were dismissed by the Court on motion for summary judgment. The Court concluded that probable cause existed to charge these three Plaintiffs, and awarded sanctions against one Plaintiff who repeatedly misrepresented the facts of his case to the Court, delaying the matter and forcing the City of Vineland to continue to defend the case.
The final case went to trial over whether Det. Cruz and his fellow officers held a woman in a state of partial undress for an unreasonable amount of time while securing the premises to execute a search warrant. On November 12, 2015, a Jury of 6 women and 2 men returned a unanimous verdict in favor of Det. Cruz and the City of Vineland, finding that he did not violate Ms. Stratton’s constitutional rights when he executed the search warrant on her home as part of a drug investigation involving her husband.
MacMain Leinhauser, with offices in Cherry Hill, New Jersey and Malvern, Pennsylvania, is proud to have defended the work of the Det. Cruz and the other City of Vineland Officers in these cases.
Leinhauser Wins At Trial in Distirct of New Jersey
Brian Leinhauser Wins At Trial in District of New Jersey
Brian H. Leinhauser won a victory for our client, Gami Cruz, on November 12, 2015. The City of Vineland Officer was cleared of any wrongdoing in a case involving a question about how long it took to secure a residence where a partially clothed woman was present. The incident arose when three Vineland Police Officers executed a search warrant on a residence pursuant to a narcotics investigation. Plaintiff alleged that, upon arrival, the Officers held her in a state of partial undress for longer than was necessary to secure the premises for everyone’s safety. Three officers involved in the execution of the search warrant testified that they secured the premises in a minute or less and allowed Plaintiff to dress immediately after the property was secure. After two days of testimony from four witnesses, the 8 jurors returned a unanimous verdict in favor of the Detective Cruz and the City of Vineland in just under an hour.
Megan Kampf Joins The MacMain Law Group
Megan Kampf Joins MacMain Leinhauser
MacMain Leinhauser is pleased to announce that Megan Kampf, Esq. has joined the firm beginning May 4, 2015. Prior to joining the firm, Megan was General Legal Counsel for West Chester University for the past 4 years, and a prosecutor at the Chester County District Attorney’s office for 10 years prior. Managing Partner David MacMain, who worked with Megan at Montgomery McCracken in Philadelphia, noted that “Megan is a great addition as her background as a prosecutor fits perfectly with our regional practice representing law enforcement and public officials, and her experience as General Counsel to West Chester University adds depth and talent to our growing employment and educational law practices.” Megan stated that “After 14 years of government service, and representing public officials in-house, I am looking forward to using my experience and unique insights I have gained to represent and advise public entities, educational institutions and employers – both public and private . There are a myriad of challenges law enforcement and employers face in today’s fast paced, media driven society. I look forward to the opportunity to use my experience as a prosecutor and general counsel to help them navigate those issues.”
MacMain and Leinhauser Named Pennsylvania Super Lawyers (July 15, 2015)
MacMain and Leinhauser Named Pennsylvania Super Lawyers (July 15, 2015)
David MacMain was named a 2015 Pennsylvania Super Lawyer in the field of Civil Rights, and Brian Leinhauser was named a 2015 Pennsylvania Rising Star in the field of Labor and Employment. This is the 10th year David has received this honor, and 5th year that Brian has been honored. Super Lawyers selects attorneys using a multi-phase selection process in which peer nominations and evaluations are combined with third party research. Each candidate is evaluated on 12 indicators of peer recognition and professional achievement. Selections are made on an annual, state-by-state basis and represents the top 5% of all lawyers in a given practice field. The selection process for the Rising Stars list is the same as the Super Lawyers selection process, with one exception: to be eligible for inclusion in Rising Stars, a candidate must be either 40 years old or younger or in practice for 10 years or less. Only 2.5% of eligible lawyers are selected as Rising Stars.
David MacMain and Tricia Ambrose Win At Trial
David MacMain and Tricia Ambrose Win At Trial
David MacMain and Tricia Ambrose successfully defended five (5) police officers in a Section 1983 ‘excessive force’ claim brought by a plaintiff who suffered a herniated disc during the course of a mandatory involuntary mental health commitment. The officers were present to assist the mental health workers in the commitment process. The trial was held before the Honorable Marilyn Heffley in the District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. After 6 days of trial, and testimony from 14 witnesses and 2 expert witnesses, the 8 person jury returned a verdict in favor of the police officers on October 9, 2015 in just under 90 minutes.
The MacMain Law Group Opens New Jersey Office
MacMain Leinhauser Opens Second Location in New Jersey
MacMain Leinhauser is pleased to announce the opening of a second office in in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. MacMain Leinhauser attorneys have more than forty five years combined experience representing individuals, public entities, businesses and insurers. We serve as insurance defense counsel to public and private sector entities in matters involving Section 1983 and 1981, employment discrimination claims and as general counsel for various municipal and educational institutions. Our firm is comprised of results oriented, client focused, legal professionals who strive to exceed expectations in every engagement.
Our primary practice areas center on all aspects of municipal liability and civil rights defense litigation including police, prison, employment, land-use, social services and First Amendment claims; employer and small business counseling; employment discrimination defense; professional malpractice defense; and all aspects of school law representation. We strive to provide efficient, cost-effective, and sound representation to our clients, while vigorously advocating for their best interest.
MacMain Leinhauser
923 Haddonfield Road Ste 300
Cherry Hill, NJ 08002
p: 856.324.5376
Firm Wins Important Third Circuit Victory And Makes New Law
MacMain Leinhauser Wins Important Third Circuit Victory And Makes New Law
A precedential opinion was issued by the 3rd Circuit in the case of J.B. v. Fassnacht (Lancaster County) et al – 14-3905 (3rd Cir., Sept. 15, 2015) which both secured the reversal of a summary judgment denial on behalf of the firm’s client Lancaster County, and also made new and favorable law for juvenile detention facilities. In J.B., the Third Circuit was asked to decide wither the United States Supreme Court’s decision in Florence v. Burlington County, applied to juvenile detention facilities. The Supreme Court in Florence held that all incoming inmates being housed in the general population of a detention facility may permissibly be strip-searched to detect contraband and weapons. The Third Circuit in J.B. v. Fassnacht held that Florence did apply to juvenile detention facilities and authorized the strip search of all incoming juvenile offenders being placed into general population. This is the first such case to apply Florence to juvenile facilities as two other circuit courts of appeal have avoided the issue via the application of qualified immunity. Brian Leinhauser and Charles Starnes researched and authored the appellate brief, and David MacMain argued the case before the Third Circuit.
MacMain Presents Before The Pennsylvania Municipal League (September 17, 2015)
MacMain Presents Before The Pennsylvania Municipal League
David MacMain spoke before 100 municipal officials who attended the Pennsylvania Municipal League’s Annual Risk Management Conference held in State College on September 17-18, 2015. David’s presentation – “The Pen Is Mightier Than The Sword: Protecting Your Entity With Documentation” – highlighted the need for public entities to investigate, document and memorialize incidents that occur to root out the cause, prevent future problems, and to protect the entity and help it defend possible later litigation.
MacMain Speaks at Pennsylvania State Borough’s Association Annual Legal Conference (August 26-27, 2015)
MacMain Speaks at Pennsylvania State Borough’s Association Annual Legal Conference (August 26-27, 2015)
David MacMain spoke at the Pennsylvania State Borough’s Association (PSAB) Annual Legal Conference held in Harrisburg on August 26-27, 2015. David presented on the topic of “Police Use of Force” – a topic that has generated a lot of national news given several high profile police-citizen incidents in recent months. The seminar was attended by municipal solicitors and the state and federal judiciary from across Pennsylvania.