Mediation

By: Stephen P. Lagoy

A judge in Bonner County, Idaho has appointed a mediator to attempt to resolve a first-degree murder case.  Unbelievable?  The judge’s action was in response to a joint motion made by the County Prosecutor and the defendant’s attorney.  The mediator will be paid with public funds.  The case involves a theft-related shooting death near Coolin, Idaho in January, 2007. The victim died of a .22-caliber gunshot wound to the face.  The defendant and his former wife fled the region after the shooting and were tracked to Fort Myers Beach, Fla. They were arrested several months after the slaying and were charged with first-degree murder and grand theft by possession of stolen property. The latter offense stemmed from a $56,000 escrow check that belonged to the victim.  The ex-wife has pleaded guilty to second degree murder.  If the mediation is not successful, an eight-day trial is anticipated.

For more information, contact Stephen P. Lagoy.

By: Stephen P.  Lagoy

The parties to a dispute arising out of an “Embryo Adoption Agreement” have agreed to submit their case to mediation.  The fate of two frozen human embryos hangs in the balance.  Pursuant to the agreement, the donor couple provided four embryos to a reproductive center, two of which were implanted in the uterus of the donee mother in May 2009.  Two babies were born in January 2010.  The donee mother now wants to repeat the process with the remaining two embryos, but the donor couple wants to regain custody of them.  All parties to the dispute are Catholic and regard the embryos as children.  Although lawsuits have been filed in both St. Louis, Missouri and Alameda County, California, the parties hope that a mediator will help them reach an out of court settlement and can resolve the religious, moral and ethical questions their situation presents.  For more on the unusual issues the mediator will have to address, read the St. Louis Globe-Democrat.

For more information, contact Stephen Lagoy.