Bowe Cleveland v. Taft Union High School District

Summary

Lawsuit filed by school shooting victim alleging the school district failed to take adequate steps to prevent the incident. The case is believed to be among the first school shooting-related lawsuits to go to trial.

Outcome

Verdict for Plaintiff

Damages - Past non-economic losses : $1,400,000
Future non-economic losses $2,400,000. Total Damages : $3,800,000.00

Case Information

Attorneys

Witnesses

Plaintiff: Cleveland , Bowe
Defense: Taft Union High School District
Verdict: $3,800,000

Judge: David Lampe
Jurisdiction: Superior Court of California, Kern County
Court: Metropolitan Division

Case Number: S-1500-CV-279256
Industry: Education, Security
Practice Area: Negligence

Plaintiff

Cleveland , Bowe

Defense

Taft Union High School District

Represented By:
Herr, Leonard (Herr Pedersen & Berglund Attorneys at Law LLP)

Expert Witnesses

Sessions

Attorney

Witness

Type

Description

AM Session

Openings

6 Chapters

	Description	Attorney
00:00:00	General Case Activities
00:17:29	Opening Statement	Rodriguez, Daniel
01:09:49	Break
01:29:54	Opening Statement	Rodriguez, Daniel
01:51:55	Opening Statement	Herr, Leonard
02:35:31	End of Session

PM Session

Plaintiff Witness(es)

17 Chapters

JUN

AM Session

Plaintiff Witness(es)

8 Chapters

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Presence
00:00:00	Witness Direct Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	George, Kevin	In Person
00:10:25	Witness Cross Examination	Herr, Leonard	George, Kevin	In Person
00:26:43	Witness Direct Examination	Trujillo, Chantal	Miller, Mary	In Person
00:32:53	Witness Cross Examination	Herr, Leonard	Miller, Mary	In Person
00:37:11	Witness Direct Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Oliver, Sheryl	In Person
00:45:23	Break
01:20:34	Witness Direct Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Oliver, Sheryl	In Person
02:01:13	End of Session

PM Session

Plaintiff Witness(es)

3 Chapters

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Presence
00:00:00	Witness Direct Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Oliver, Sheryl	In Person
00:11:45	Witness Cross Examination	Herr, Leonard	Oliver, Sheryl	In Person
01:23:12	End of Session

JUN

AM Session

Plaintiff Witness(es)

9 Chapters

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Presence
00:00:00	Witness Cross Examination	Herr, Leonard	Oliver, Sheryl	In Person
00:54:34	Witness Re-Direct Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Oliver, Sheryl	In Person
01:03:46	Break
01:26:36	Witness Re-Direct Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Oliver, Sheryl	In Person
01:32:55	Witness Re-Cross Examination	Herr, Leonard	Oliver, Sheryl	In Person
01:40:27	Witness Direct Examination	Trujillo, Chantal	Durkan, Jana	In Person
01:55:44	Witness Cross Examination	Herr, Leonard	Durkan, Jana	In Person
02:13:06	Witness Direct Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Oliver, Tyler	In Person
02:30:50	End of Session

PM Session

Plaintiff Witness(es)

9 Chapters

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Presence
00:00:00	Witness Direct Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Oliver, Tyler	In Person
00:18:42	Witness Cross Examination	Herr, Leonard	Oliver, Tyler	In Person
00:56:16	Witness Direct Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Kaszycki, Diana	In Person
01:22:27	Break
01:48:49	Witness Direct Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Kaszycki, Diana	In Person
02:09:54	Witness Cross Examination	Herr, Leonard	Kaszycki, Diana	In Person
02:27:25	Witness Re-Direct Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Kaszycki, Diana	In Person
02:28:01	Witness Direct Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Oliver, Jerry	Transcript Reading
02:34:40	End of Session

JUN

AM Session

Plaintiff Witness(es)

7 Chapters

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Presence
00:00:00	Witness Direct Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	McDermott, William	Transcript Reading
00:27:02	Witness Direct Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Brown, Marilyn	Video Recording
00:48:55	Break
01:09:55	Witness Direct Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Brown, Marilyn	Video Recording
01:34:51	Witness Direct Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Heber, Ryan	Video Recording
01:41:04	Witness Direct Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Heber, Ryan	Transcript Reading
02:04:10	End of Session

PM Session

Plaintiff Witness(es)

5 Chapters

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Presence
00:00:00	Witness Direct Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Schoffner, Mark	In Person
01:06:01	Witness Cross Examination	Herr, Leonard	Schoffner, Mark	In Person
01:20:35	Break
01:43:12	Witness Cross Examination	Herr, Leonard	Schoffner, Mark	In Person
02:42:16	End of Session

JUN

AM Session

Plaintiff Witness(es)

9 Chapters

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Presence
00:00:00	Witness Direct Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Whiting, Edward	In Person
00:15:32	Witness Cross Examination	Herr, Leonard	Whiting, Edward	In Person
00:26:58	Witness Re-Direct Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Schoffner, Mark	In Person
01:13:59	Break
01:35:02	Witness Re-Direct Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Schoffner, Mark	In Person
01:46:21	Witness Re-Cross Examination	Herr, Leonard	Schoffner, Mark	In Person
01:57:48	Witness Re-Direct Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Schoffner, Mark	In Person
02:02:22	Witness Direct Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Hallmark, Douglas	In Person
02:20:42	End of Session

PM Session

Plaintiff Witness(es)

12 Chapters

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Presence
00:00:00	Witness Direct Examination	Trujillo, Chantal	Lopez, Jacob	Video Conference
00:16:11	Witness Cross Examination	Herr, Leonard	Lopez, Jacob	Video Conference
00:21:10	Witness Cross Examination	Herr, Leonard	Hallmark, Douglas	In Person
00:47:51	Witness Re-Direct Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Hallmark, Douglas	In Person
00:49:00	Witness Re-Cross Examination	Herr, Leonard	Hallmark, Douglas	In Person
00:53:00	Witness Direct Examination	Gonzalez, Danay	Angelo, Rona	Video Recording
01:16:25	Break
01:39:13	Witness Direct Examination	Gonzalez, Danay	Angelo, Rona	Video Recording
02:01:53	Witness Direct Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Angelo, Rona	In Person
02:31:49	Witness Cross Examination	Herr, Leonard	Angelo, Rona	In Person
02:37:34	General Case Activities	Rodriguez, Daniel
02:41:31	End of Session

JUL

AM Session

Plaintiff Witness(es)

8 Chapters

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Presence
00:00:00	General Case Activities	Rodriguez, Daniel
00:01:17	Witness Direct Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Cavazos, Dr. Blanca Ph.D.	In Person
00:23:34	Witness Cross Examination	Herr, Leonard	Cavazos, Dr. Blanca Ph.D.	In Person
00:34:20	Witness Direct Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Jackson, Rebecca	Transcript Reading
01:02:35	Witness Direct Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Meloy, Dr. John Reid Ph.D.	In Person
01:20:05	Break
01:48:35	Witness Direct Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Meloy, Dr. John Reid Ph.D.	In Person
02:41:15	End of Session

PM Session

Plaintiff Witness(es)

13 Chapters

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Presence
00:00:00	Witness Direct Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Meloy, Dr. John Reid Ph.D.	In Person
00:04:57	Witness Cross Examination	Herr, Leonard	Meloy, Dr. John Reid Ph.D.	In Person
00:41:44	Witness Re-Direct Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Meloy, Dr. John Reid Ph.D.	In Person
00:47:08	Witness Direct Examination	Tello, John	Richardson, Mark	Video Recording
01:18:24	Break
01:37:35	Witness Direct Examination	Tello, John	Richardson, Mark	Video Recording
01:44:47	Witness Direct Examination	Trujillo, Chantal	Amorteguy, Isabel	In Person
02:01:22	Witness Cross Examination	Herr, Leonard	Amorteguy, Isabel	In Person
02:03:19	Witness Direct Examination	Trujillo, Chantal	Avila, Andrew	In Person
02:19:18	Witness Cross Examination	Herr, Leonard	Avila, Andrew	In Person
02:21:14	Witness Direct Examination	Trujillo, Chantal	Caldas, Herman	In Person
02:29:42	Witness Direct Examination	Gonzalez, Danay	Oliver, Bryan	Video Recording
02:38:23	End of Session

JUL

AM Session

Plaintiff Witness(es)

8 Chapters

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Presence
00:00:00	Witness Direct Examination	Gonzalez, Danay	Oliver, Bryan	Video Recording
00:11:50	Witness Direct Examination	Trujillo, Chantal	Polina, Mariah	In Person
00:23:17	Witness Direct Examination	Trujillo, Chantal	Cleveland, Bowe	In Person
00:55:04	Witness Cross Examination	Herr, Leonard	Cleveland, Bowe	In Person
01:10:35	Break
01:39:18	General Case Activities
01:41:02	Witness Direct Examination	Herr, Leonard	Calhoun, Frederick	In Person
02:38:58	End of Session

PM Session

Defense Witness(es)

10 Chapters

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Presence
00:00:00	Witness Direct Examination	Herr, Leonard	Perez, Veronica	In Person
00:08:41	Witness Cross Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Perez, Veronica	In Person
00:10:18	Witness Direct Examination	Herr, Leonard	Calhoun, Frederick	In Person
00:19:33	Witness Cross Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Calhoun, Frederick	In Person
01:16:04	Break
01:33:43	Witness Cross Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Calhoun, Frederick	In Person
01:46:08	Witness Re-Direct Examination	Herr, Leonard	Calhoun, Frederick	In Person
01:48:09	Witness Direct Examination	Herr, Leonard	Fields, Kim	In Person
02:27:35	Witness Direct Examination	Herr, Leonard	Riehle, Mark	In Person
02:30:08	End of Session

JUL

AM Session

Defense Witness(es)

12 Chapters

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Presence
00:00:00	Witness Direct Examination	Herr, Leonard	Whiting, Edward	In Person
00:03:37	Witness Cross Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Whiting, Edward	In Person
00:16:03	Witness Re-Direct Examination	Herr, Leonard	Whiting, Edward	In Person
00:18:32	Witness Direct Examination	Herr, Leonard	Mohandie, Kris	In Person
01:04:54	Break
01:26:14	Witness Cross Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Mohandie, Kris	In Person
02:19:31	Witness Re-Direct Examination	Herr, Leonard	Mohandie, Kris	In Person
02:26:13	Witness Re-Cross Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Mohandie, Kris	In Person
02:27:59	Witness Direct Examination	Herr, Leonard	Pugge, Ethan	In Person
02:34:04	Witness Cross Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Pugge, Ethan	In Person
02:35:29	Witness Re-Direct Examination	Herr, Leonard	Pugge, Ethan	In Person
02:36:07	End of Session

PM Session

Defense Witness(es)

11 Chapters

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Presence
00:00:00	Witness Direct Examination	Herr, Leonard	Pederson, Stephen	In Person
00:12:42	Witness Cross Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Pederson, Stephen	In Person
00:14:12	Witness Direct Examination	Herr, Leonard	Jackson, Rebecca	Transcript Reading
00:53:16	Witness Direct Examination	Herr, Leonard	Oliver, Jerry	Transcript Reading
01:09:12	Witness Direct Examination	Herr, Leonard	Shannon, Erica	In Person
01:14:04	Witness Cross Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Shannon, Erica	In Person
01:16:22	Break
01:36:00	Witness Direct Examination	Herr, Leonard	Oliver, Bryan	Video Recording
02:20:20	Witness Direct Examination	Herr, Leonard	Cavazos, Dr. Blanca Ph.D.	In Person
02:34:27	Witness Direct Examination	Herr, Leonard	Angelo, Rona	In Person
02:47:57	End of Session

JUL

AM Session

Defense Witness(es)

4 Chapters

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Presence
00:00:00	Witness Direct Examination	Herr, Leonard	Angelo, Rona	In Person
00:48:24	Witness Cross Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Angelo, Rona	In Person
01:02:59	General Case Activities
01:04:22	End of Session

PM Session

Closings

6 Chapters

JUL

PM Session

Verdict

5 Chapters

JUL

AM Session

Openings - Damages

5 Chapters

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Presence
00:00:00	Opening Statement	Rodriguez, Daniel
00:35:53	Opening Statement	Herr, Leonard
00:41:57	Witness Direct Examination	Trujillo, Chantal	Perryman, Shawn	In Person
01:05:41	Witness Direct Examination	Rodriguez, Daniel	Ashley, Dr. Susan Ph.D.	In Person
01:14:57	End of Session

AM Session