Drizzt
Member
Former DA returns fire for cannon blasts
By JOHN COTÉ
BEE STAFF WRITER
Former Stanislaus County District Attorney Donald Stahl is suing the city of Modesto and District Attorney James Brazelton, claiming that cannon blasts set off downtown by Civil War re-enactors caused him to lose his hearing.
Stahl, the district attorney for 24 years before retiring in 1996, is seeking unspecified monetary damages from the city, the Stanislaus Civil War Association and some members, court documents show.
Brazelton and his wife, Pat, are among 29 association members named in the lawsuit.
The lawsuit also names the Richmond Fayette Artillery Brigade, whose members fired the cannon, and the McHenry Museum, one of the event sponsors.
Modesto retiree Fred Rosenlind, a member of the Stanislaus Civil War Association who was watching the July 2001 event, also has filed a lawsuit alleging hearing loss from the incident, according to court documents. Rosenlind also is seeking unspecified monetary damages.
The lawsuits also claim the injuries have deprived Stahl, 68, and Rosenlind, 77, of the means to communicate with their wives and the ability to maintain and manage their homes.
The lawsuits stem from a mock battle staged as part of a McHenry Museum Civil War exhibit. Stahl, a Civil War buff, was attending the event, said his attorney, Stephen Ringhoff.
Re-enactors fired black powder charges from the Civil War-era cannon as Confederate soldiers charged from the museum lawn.
The cannon was in the center of I Street, flanked by buildings. That positioning caused the noise to reverberate rather than dissipate, Ringhoff said.
"Normally these things are shot in an open field," Ringhoff said. "The acoustic effect was a sound wave that caused hearing damage."
Organizers had a parade permit to close I Street between 14th and 15th streets, but attorneys for Stahl and Rosenlind said they were unaware of the group's having a noise permit.
Modesto requires a sound amplification permit for the public use of "any machine or device used to amplify or project speech, music or any other sound or tone." There are some exceptions, such as for official government activities.
The city can grant exemptions for special events, said Leslie
Rodriguez, who administers permits at the Modesto Police Department.
Rodriguez would not comment on whether organizers had a sound amplification permit for the cannon, citing the lawsuits.
"Downtown Modesto is no place to be discharging artillery," said Jack Revvill, Rosenlind's attorney. "If they'd been in an open field, the sound would just keep traveling. Here, the sound bounced off a building and just whacked them."
Stahl and Rosenlind suffered severe long-term hearing losses, their attorneys said. Both require hearing aids, which provide limited help, they said.
"To hear a voice, it has to be amplified," Ringhoff said. "You're amplifying all the sounds coming in."
As for the effect on the marriage, "Mrs. Rosenlind was just really emotional and distraught about the changes in the way these two communicate," Revvill said. "These are two essentially retired people who spend their days together. You wouldn't really think about it until they open up and talk about it. It has really affected their marriage."
Calls to the city attorney's office were not returned. Jack Jacobson, the attorney representing Brazelton, could not be reached for comment.
In an answer to Stahl's complaint, Jacobson said Brazelton and his wife denied Stahl sustained the damages alleged.
The response also maintains that Stahl's recklessness and negligence contributed to any damages or injuries he may have sustained.
A trial date in Stahl's case is set for Sept. 8. Rosenlind's case has an Oct. 20 trial date. Both cases are in Stanislaus County Superior Court.
http://www.modbee.com/local/story/6164753p-7115837c.html
:banghead:
By JOHN COTÉ
BEE STAFF WRITER
Former Stanislaus County District Attorney Donald Stahl is suing the city of Modesto and District Attorney James Brazelton, claiming that cannon blasts set off downtown by Civil War re-enactors caused him to lose his hearing.
Stahl, the district attorney for 24 years before retiring in 1996, is seeking unspecified monetary damages from the city, the Stanislaus Civil War Association and some members, court documents show.
Brazelton and his wife, Pat, are among 29 association members named in the lawsuit.
The lawsuit also names the Richmond Fayette Artillery Brigade, whose members fired the cannon, and the McHenry Museum, one of the event sponsors.
Modesto retiree Fred Rosenlind, a member of the Stanislaus Civil War Association who was watching the July 2001 event, also has filed a lawsuit alleging hearing loss from the incident, according to court documents. Rosenlind also is seeking unspecified monetary damages.
The lawsuits also claim the injuries have deprived Stahl, 68, and Rosenlind, 77, of the means to communicate with their wives and the ability to maintain and manage their homes.
The lawsuits stem from a mock battle staged as part of a McHenry Museum Civil War exhibit. Stahl, a Civil War buff, was attending the event, said his attorney, Stephen Ringhoff.
Re-enactors fired black powder charges from the Civil War-era cannon as Confederate soldiers charged from the museum lawn.
The cannon was in the center of I Street, flanked by buildings. That positioning caused the noise to reverberate rather than dissipate, Ringhoff said.
"Normally these things are shot in an open field," Ringhoff said. "The acoustic effect was a sound wave that caused hearing damage."
Organizers had a parade permit to close I Street between 14th and 15th streets, but attorneys for Stahl and Rosenlind said they were unaware of the group's having a noise permit.
Modesto requires a sound amplification permit for the public use of "any machine or device used to amplify or project speech, music or any other sound or tone." There are some exceptions, such as for official government activities.
The city can grant exemptions for special events, said Leslie
Rodriguez, who administers permits at the Modesto Police Department.
Rodriguez would not comment on whether organizers had a sound amplification permit for the cannon, citing the lawsuits.
"Downtown Modesto is no place to be discharging artillery," said Jack Revvill, Rosenlind's attorney. "If they'd been in an open field, the sound would just keep traveling. Here, the sound bounced off a building and just whacked them."
Stahl and Rosenlind suffered severe long-term hearing losses, their attorneys said. Both require hearing aids, which provide limited help, they said.
"To hear a voice, it has to be amplified," Ringhoff said. "You're amplifying all the sounds coming in."
As for the effect on the marriage, "Mrs. Rosenlind was just really emotional and distraught about the changes in the way these two communicate," Revvill said. "These are two essentially retired people who spend their days together. You wouldn't really think about it until they open up and talk about it. It has really affected their marriage."
Calls to the city attorney's office were not returned. Jack Jacobson, the attorney representing Brazelton, could not be reached for comment.
In an answer to Stahl's complaint, Jacobson said Brazelton and his wife denied Stahl sustained the damages alleged.
The response also maintains that Stahl's recklessness and negligence contributed to any damages or injuries he may have sustained.
A trial date in Stahl's case is set for Sept. 8. Rosenlind's case has an Oct. 20 trial date. Both cases are in Stanislaus County Superior Court.
http://www.modbee.com/local/story/6164753p-7115837c.html
:banghead:
