Return to Transcripts main page
American Morning
I Object!: Does Crime Pay?
Aired April 17, 2003 - 07:46 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Time now for the "I Object!" series. Jeffrey Toobin does it so well.
Here in New York City, facing a severe budget crunch, a gang member, admitting to pointing a submachine gun at a police officer, recently awarded $51 million by a jury because he was paralyzed after the officer shot him.
Jeffrey Toobin writes about the case in this week's "New Yorker." Soaring damage awards, like this one, draining city budgets nationwide. The question today, does that point to something wrong in the legal system?
As a lot of people probably consider it tort reform,...
JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Tort reform is a big issue.
HEMMER: ... which could be a big issue to some. Anyway, on this case, you object because $51 million, gang member coming out near Yankee Stadium, I believe it was, right?
TOOBIN: Picture the scene.
HEMMER: Go.
TOOBIN: Here is a guy walking around with a Tec-9 submachine gun. An off duty cop, who is coming from a ball game at Yankee Stadium, sees him with the machine gun, says stop. This guy, Darryl Barnes, wheels, turns on the cop, hits -- shoots at him twice. The cop returns fire, paralyzed him and the gang member, this guy, gets $51 million from a jury last week.
HEMMER: Why so high?
TOOBIN: Well I mean this is a fascinating thing. The juries in New York City, and juries in cities around the country, they see big organizations, whether it's a city, a hospital, an insurance company, as a deep pocket. The money doesn't really come from anywhere.
And you know, I think there's a lot -- there's ethnic politics going on here. You had a largely minority jury with, it happened to be a black cop, but you know the city is perceived as kind of a white institution. And it was an opportunity to sort of get back at the city, $51 million in a city that's about to layoff thousands of people.
HEMMER: Yes, and one of the reasons why you object to this because the $51 million could go for other things?
TOOBIN: Of course. And why does he deserve any money at all? Now in fairness, just to point out what his claim was, he said that the cop fired point blank at him after he dropped his gun. I was not convinced of that, but apparently, the jury was. I -- it is an example of how juries are draining cities out of control.
HEMMER: That point is made in your article, 1978, $21 million in civil damages paid by the city. Some 23 years later, 2001, $557 million, an increase in more than 2,500 percent. Is it just exclusive in New York City, do you see it elsewhere?
TOOBIN: No, I mean, remember, this is -- we've had doctor strikes in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, West Virginia because of malpractice rates soaring so high. I mean the tort system is really out of control. It's not entirely the fault -- plaintiffs' lawyers are, you know, the -- usually the big villain here.
HEMMER: Well we can point our fingers there.
TOOBIN: Well point -- they are -- and they are big contributors to state legislatures to keep these -- that keep these laws in effect. But you know the problem is there is no other way of policing bad doctors. I mean there is a problem on the other side of the ledger that you know if there's no -- if there's no malpractice cases, there's no way of policing it. But you know forcing cities to pay this kind of money is just unbelievable.
HEMMER: Fifty-one million for a Tec-9. Thank you -- Jeffrey.
TOOBIN: Tec-9 machine gun.
HEMMER: See you a bit later.
TOOBIN: See you then.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired April 17, 2003 - 07:46 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Time now for the "I Object!" series. Jeffrey Toobin does it so well.
Here in New York City, facing a severe budget crunch, a gang member, admitting to pointing a submachine gun at a police officer, recently awarded $51 million by a jury because he was paralyzed after the officer shot him.
Jeffrey Toobin writes about the case in this week's "New Yorker." Soaring damage awards, like this one, draining city budgets nationwide. The question today, does that point to something wrong in the legal system?
As a lot of people probably consider it tort reform,...
JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Tort reform is a big issue.
HEMMER: ... which could be a big issue to some. Anyway, on this case, you object because $51 million, gang member coming out near Yankee Stadium, I believe it was, right?
TOOBIN: Picture the scene.
HEMMER: Go.
TOOBIN: Here is a guy walking around with a Tec-9 submachine gun. An off duty cop, who is coming from a ball game at Yankee Stadium, sees him with the machine gun, says stop. This guy, Darryl Barnes, wheels, turns on the cop, hits -- shoots at him twice. The cop returns fire, paralyzed him and the gang member, this guy, gets $51 million from a jury last week.
HEMMER: Why so high?
TOOBIN: Well I mean this is a fascinating thing. The juries in New York City, and juries in cities around the country, they see big organizations, whether it's a city, a hospital, an insurance company, as a deep pocket. The money doesn't really come from anywhere.
And you know, I think there's a lot -- there's ethnic politics going on here. You had a largely minority jury with, it happened to be a black cop, but you know the city is perceived as kind of a white institution. And it was an opportunity to sort of get back at the city, $51 million in a city that's about to layoff thousands of people.
HEMMER: Yes, and one of the reasons why you object to this because the $51 million could go for other things?
TOOBIN: Of course. And why does he deserve any money at all? Now in fairness, just to point out what his claim was, he said that the cop fired point blank at him after he dropped his gun. I was not convinced of that, but apparently, the jury was. I -- it is an example of how juries are draining cities out of control.
HEMMER: That point is made in your article, 1978, $21 million in civil damages paid by the city. Some 23 years later, 2001, $557 million, an increase in more than 2,500 percent. Is it just exclusive in New York City, do you see it elsewhere?
TOOBIN: No, I mean, remember, this is -- we've had doctor strikes in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, West Virginia because of malpractice rates soaring so high. I mean the tort system is really out of control. It's not entirely the fault -- plaintiffs' lawyers are, you know, the -- usually the big villain here.
HEMMER: Well we can point our fingers there.
TOOBIN: Well point -- they are -- and they are big contributors to state legislatures to keep these -- that keep these laws in effect. But you know the problem is there is no other way of policing bad doctors. I mean there is a problem on the other side of the ledger that you know if there's no -- if there's no malpractice cases, there's no way of policing it. But you know forcing cities to pay this kind of money is just unbelievable.
HEMMER: Fifty-one million for a Tec-9. Thank you -- Jeffrey.
TOOBIN: Tec-9 machine gun.
HEMMER: See you a bit later.
TOOBIN: See you then.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
