news & blog
Lori keeps a pulse on legal news regarding new policies, municipal changes, high-profile stories or cases, and how they may affect you or your business. In this section, readers will find applicable content in a relatable context that helps them build a clearer legal lens just by reading.
Visit often to be quickly notified about the news on which Lori is writing—and stay up to date on what’s happening at Lori Keeton Law.
‘Mom, I’m being kidnapped,’ Myers Park student texted mother during sexual assault
by Anna Maria Della CostaJANUARY 20, 2023 Jane Doe’s mother told a jury Wednesday she may have done things differently today if she received the same, frightening text messages from her daughter. As an alleged sexual assault unfolded on Nov. 3, 2015 at Myers Park High...
City dismissed from Title IX lawsuit after plaintiff’s emotional testimony
WFAE | By Ann Doss HelmsPublished January 19, 2023 The city of Charlotte was dropped from a federal lawsuit Thursday evening, the third day of trial in a case stemming from a 2015 sexual assault report related to Myers Park High School. Judge Robert Conrad said...
Myers Park student once was joyful. That changed after 2015 sexual assault, jury told
by Anna Maria Della Costa JANUARY 18, 2023 Jane Doe’s stepfather told a jury Tuesday his daughter was joyful, always smiling and had a friendly personality. But when he arrived at Myers Park High School on Nov. 3, 2015, shortly after reports that Doe had been...
In Title IX trial, lawyers argue different accounts of 2015 Myers Park sexual encounter
WFAE | By Ann Doss Helms, Sarah DeliaPublished January 17, 2023 Lawyers for Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools, the city of Charlotte and a former Myers Park High School student outlined clashing accounts Tuesday of the 2015 encounter outside the school that led them all...
Appeals court hears arguments in a pair of CMPD shootings that left two men dead
by Kallie CoxDecember 07, 2022 4:02 PM The fate of the lawsuits in two of Charlotte’s police shootings is in the hands of the second highest court in the country. The U.S. Court of Appeals heard arguments in both cases Tuesday and Wednesday. Two panels of three...
Were cops ‘justified’ when they killed two Charlotte men? Federal appeals court to decide
by Michael GordonDecember 6, 2022 Federal judges tossed lawsuits involving two of Charlotte’s most-debated police shootings of the past five years before they could be heard by juries. Now, the deaths of Danquirs Franklin and Ruben Galindo at the hands of the...
Why Virtual Court was a Blessing for this Lawyer
By Kari Beal Charlotte PUBLISHED 10:00 AM ET Aug. 09, 2021 CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- The pandemic forced some court proceedings to go completely online during the height of the pandemic. It was a blessing for one attorney in Charlotte. What You Need To KnowIn October 2020...
Judge throws out lawsuit against Charlotte, officer in 2019 Danquirs Franklin shooting
This story was originally published November 19, 2021 3:48 PM. Written by Michael Gordon has been the Observer’s legal affairs writer since 2013. He has been an editor and reporter at the paper since 1992, occasionally writing about schools, religion, politics and...
Family of Charlotte man killed by police appeals after judge rules shooting justified
BY MICHAEL GORDON UPDATED OCTOBER 29, 2021 8:36 AM As he talked with 911 operator, police approached his apartment. Then they shot him. SHARE Rueben Galindo, a Spanish speaker in Charlotte, N.C., called 911 Sept. 6, 2017. He said he had a gun he wanted to turn in. As...
Charlotte wins appeal in multi-million dollar discrimination lawsuit
May 05, 2021 at 6:10 pm EDT By WSOCTV.com News Staff CHARLOTTE — The city of Charlotte has won its appeal in a multi-million dollar discrimination lawsuit. In 2019, a jury found that the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department discriminated against former Officer...
New video: Chaos then calm before fatal police shooting at Charlotte Burger King
BY MICHAEL GORDONUPDATED DECEMBER 01, 2020 10:39 PM Watch newly released body cam video that shows what lead to Danquirs Franklin being shot by police outside a Burger King in 2019. BY CMPDNew video from a 2019 fatal police shooting in Charlotte shows Danquirs...
NC Supreme Court Holds That Leasing Property As Part of Revitalization Efforts is a Governmental Function in Meinck v. City of Gastonia
This week the North Carolina Supreme Court held that the City of Gastonia was entitled to the protections afforded by governmental immunity in a lawsuit brought by an artist who fell on stairs that were allegedly in disrepair when leaving a building that...
