Director of Litigation and Senior Attorney Ted Frank appeared on the Jason Rantz Show (Seattle 770 KTTH) to discuss a potential legal action against organized activists blocking major highways. Such activist strikes have recently occurred on Seattle’s I‑5, Chicago’s Lake Shore Drive, New York’s Holland Tunnel and at LAX and JFK airports.
Ted explained the kind of action that a plaintiff who was stuck in traffic by one of these disruptions might bring with competent legal assistance.
There’s a centuries-old legal doctrine called false imprisonment. That is what’s known as an intentional tort. And people who were victimized by these illegal protests were essentially falsely imprisoned. They were confined to their cars on a highway because they were snarled in this blockage of the highway. And the hours that they lost while being improperly confined under the doctrine of false imprisonment entitles them to at least nominal and actual damages —and potentially punitive damages. And bringing this as a class action has the potential not only to get damages from the organizations that enabled and possibly even conspired to do these illegal protests, but courts can enjoin the organizations from continuing to have protests that are illegal, that illegally block highways.
Listen to the entire radio segment here.