The 11th Federal Circuit has ordered that Joel E. Chandler, et al v. The Florida Department of Transportation, et al be dismissed by the Federal Court in Tampa.
Although I am disappointed by the decision of the Federal Appeals Court in Atlanta, I am grateful for the hard work of my attorneys at Valenti Campbell Trohn Tamayo & Aranda, P.A. In particular I appreciate the counsel of Bill McKinley and Jim Valenti.
This is my first litigation loss and I’ve had some time to reflect upon that fact and the substantial investment that was made to mount this fight. While any loss stings, I am confident that we (my co-plaintiffs, attorneys and I) did the right thing in filing this case. In spite of the decision by the 11th Federal Circuit, I believe the conduct of FDOT was unlawful. After reading the 11th Federal Circuit’s decision, it is clear that a number of the facts of the case appear to have been misunderstood by the court.
The greatest vindication for our decision to fight this case is the fact that FDOT terminated the policy of detaining motorists for no other reason then the use of something other than exact change. I believe that we were right and I would happily do it all over again.The decision by the 11th Federal Circuit may be read here.
This is disappointing to hear. I am incredibly grateful for all of the work you do in the pursuit of an open and fair government.
It was a disappointing decision. Today, however, as I was driving on a toll road I was encouraged by the fact that FDOT has not reinstated the policy which lead to the lawsuit and the gate arms at toll plazas have not been reinstalled. In the end we may have lost the lawsuit but achieved the objective: a minor victory for our civil rights.
That is encouraging! As long as people are willing to step up and advocate for a level playing field and hold our government accountable even in the face of hostility, perhaps some change can occur.