The Missouri Court of Appeals case involved United Fruit & Produce Company’s appeal of a Labor and Industrial Relations Commission ruling that former employee Milissa Bohanna was eligible for unemployment benefits after her separation from the company. Bohanna had worked as an accounts payable clerk since 2001, taken FMLA leave following an off-duty injury in November 2023, and was cleared by her doctor to return without restrictions on February 27, 2024; she attempted to resume work but was offered a severance package instead, and the company later sent letters directing her to pursue ADA accommodations. The court affirmed the Commission’s decision that Bohanna had been discharged rather than voluntarily quitting. It held that competent and substantial evidence supported the finding of discharge on February 27, 2024, because United Fruit did not allow her to return despite her clearance, and the Commission properly evaluated all relevant facts and circumstances rather than relying solely on the parties’ descriptions of the separation.
The case involved four plaintiffs who sued Monsanto after developing non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, alleging that prolonged exposure to glyphosate in its Roundup herbicide caused their cancer. They brought claims for strict liability based on design defect and failure to warn, as well as negligence, with one spouse also asserting a derivative loss-of-consortium claim. A Cole County jury found for the plaintiffs, and the trial court entered judgments accordingly. On appeal, the Missouri Court of Appeals affirmed those judgments, holding that Monsanto had failed to demonstrate reversible error on any of its challenges, including the use of special masters, evidentiary rulings, punitive-damages awards, and federal preemption under FIFRA. The court adopted the preemption analysis from a related Eastern District decision and concluded that the verdicts and judgments were properly supported.
torts & liabilitybusiness & regulatoryenvironmentfederal power
The Missouri Court of Appeals affirmed William Aaron Thomas, Jr.'s conviction for first-degree rape or attempted rape under section 566.030. Thomas challenged the sufficiency of the evidence that his 15-year-old victim was incapable of consenting due to mental limitations. The victim, who had cerebral palsy, autism, learning disorders, and other conditions, functioned at the level of a four- or five-year-old, could not perform basic self-care or make simple decisions, and made detailed disclosures of abuse by Thomas through statements, gestures, and doll demonstrations to a hotel manager, counselor, and foster parent. The court held that this evidence permitted a reasonable jury to find beyond a reasonable doubt that the victim lacked capacity to consent, and that expert testimony was not required on that factual issue.
Brent Roberts was convicted of fourth-degree domestic assault after a jury found he choked his girlfriend during a July 2020 altercation in Osceola, Missouri. He appealed, arguing the trial court plainly erred by refusing to instruct the jury on self-defense, citing evidence that the victim struck him first with a hard object while he was on top of her. The Missouri Court of Appeals affirmed the conviction. The court held that Roberts failed to meet his burden of injecting self-defense, as the record lacked substantial evidence that he reasonably believed he faced an imminent threat of serious bodily harm or a forcible felony requiring the use of deadly force (choking) to protect himself, or that such force was necessary and proportionate under the circumstances. The trial court therefore correctly declined to submit the instruction.
Frank and Karen Wolfe sued Dr. Courtnye Allyson Walker and SSM Regional Health Services for medical negligence arising from a February 2019 coronary artery bypass graft surgery that resulted in sternal dehiscence and non-union; Karen Wolfe also asserted a derivative loss-of-consortium claim. The trial court granted summary judgment to the defendants, holding that the two-year statute of limitations barred the claims and was not tolled by the continuing-care exception. The Missouri Court of Appeals affirmed, ruling that the physician-patient relationship for the CABG surgery ended on March 13, 2019, when Dr. Walker released Wolfe from further follow-up care after determining the non-union was stable. Later July and August 2019 contacts concerned a new lawnmower-related injury rather than ongoing treatment for the original surgical complication, so they did not extend the limitations period. The court treated the termination date as an uncontroverted material fact that started the statute running more than two years before suit was filed.
Jenna M. Boedecker was convicted after a jury trial of four counts of first-degree endangering the welfare of a child, two counts of second-degree felony murder, and lesser charges of fourth-degree domestic assault and second-degree property damage, all arising from the July 2018 deaths of her two young children by hyperthermia after they were left in a hot car. On appeal, she argued that the evidence was insufficient to support the endangerment and murder convictions and that the trial court erred by admitting evidence of her methamphetamine use. The Missouri Court of Appeals affirmed all convictions, holding that the evidence viewed in the light most favorable to the verdict was sufficient to prove Boedecker knowingly left the children in dangerous conditions. The court further held that Boedecker failed to demonstrate any prejudice from the methamphetamine evidence and that the properly admitted evidence of guilt was compelling in any event.