The Library

Gentry Locke for the Defense Giles County Circuit Court Gentry Locke successfully defended a multi-million dollar defamation lawsuit filed by a former Narrows High School principal against The Virginian-Leader, the local Giles County newspaper. The mayor of the Town of Narrows wrote a letter to the editor, in his private capacity, which was published by the The Virginian-Leader. In fall 2015, the former principal filed a 23 count lawsuit claiming, among other charges, defamation. Gentry Locke represented The Virginian-Leader; the mayor was represented by separate counsel. The Court found that the statements at issue were not defamatory, which was fatal […]

Gentry Locke for the Plaintiff Western District of Virginia, Abingdon Division On June 7, 2013, Shawn McKee presented to a hospital emergency department in Lebanon, Virginia. He was treated by Dwight L. Bailey who was, at the time, a licensed physician. Despite numerous signs and symptoms consistent with a potentially fatal condition known as a pulmonary embolus (“PE”), Mr. McKee did not undergo the required test to diagnose a PE, a CT scan. Dr. Bailey testified that the CT scanner at the hospital could not accommodate Mr. McKee’s size, which is why one was not done as he had ordered. […]

Gentry Locke for the Defense Roanoke County Circuit Court The plaintiffs sued their insurance company, claiming the insurance company wrongly denied coverage for replacement of an 8,800 square foot roof. They claimed their roof was irreparably damaged by a hailstorm. The insurer excluded the claim on the basis that the roof had eroded and was totally deteriorated prior to the hailstorm occurring, and therefore no hail damage was compensable. After a two-day trial, the jury came back with a verdict in favor of our insurance client.

Gentry Locke for a national wireless carrier Montgomery County Board of Supervisors After months of work by our Zoning and Land Use team, the Montgomery County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved eight special use permit applications that Gentry Locke filed on behalf of a national telecommunications carrier. The approvals granted by the Board of Supervisors authorize the carrier to upgrade existing wireless telecommunications equipment on eight cell towers located throughout Montgomery County, which will provide faster, 4G/LTE technology to consumers of two major wireless providers. Handling one such special use permit application can be challenging.  Having eight such applications pending at the same […]

Gentry Locke for the Creditor. United States Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Virginia Gentry Locke attorneys represented an unsecured creditor in a Chapter 13 bankruptcy case. Our client was the liquidating agent for a former credit union. Our client filed a proof of claim for unjust enrichment based on an undocumented loan to the bankrupt debtor. The liquidated credit union failed as a result of fraud committed by two former executives, who have since pled guilty to federal criminal charges.  One executive was the debtor’s mother-in-law. Debtor objected to the claim stating he never received the proceeds of the […]

Gentry Locke for the Defense U.S. District Court, Western District, Roanoke division Gentry Locke represented a municipality in a jury trial in which a former city employee alleged disability discrimination. The plaintiff alleged that his employer did not accommodate his disability in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act. After the plaintiff presented all of his evidence, the court granted our motion and dismissed the case. The plaintiff filed but later dropped an appeal.

Gentry Locke for the Plaintiff United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia – Roanoke Division Our client, a Vietnam Veteran, went to the Salem Veterans Administration Medical Center (“Salem VAMC”) for vascular surgery on his leg. During the course of the surgery, the surgeon did not properly identify our client’s anatomy, thereby causing a blood vessel injury. Our client’s healthcare providers at the Salem VAMC knew, or should have known, that it was critical to assess our client’s leg after the surgery to ensure there was proper blood flow. They did not do so and watched as […]

Gentry Locke for the Defense Fourth Circuit of Appeals Plaintiffs were two counties that brought a fraudulent inducement and breach of contract lawsuit against a corporation and two individuals. The corporation, which is now defunct, had designed and installed emergency radio systems for the counties. The counties claimed that the company and its representatives had defrauded the them, but they never specified how. Our clients argued that they breached no contract and did not defraud the counties. As a result of the lack of required detail in the counties’ pleadings, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia […]

Gentry Locke for the Plaintiff Roanoke City Circuit Court There are two main rules on the Greenway, which is a shared-use pathway in the Roanoke Valley: (1) travel in a predictable and consistent manner; and (2) look before you turn.  These are rules that reasonable and prudent people follow throughout the day whether driving, riding, walking, jogging, or running. Unfortunately, on June 11, 2012 a runner, by his own admission, chose to violate both of these rules when he made a U-turn at a dangerous location on the Greenway without giving any warning or looking before he turned. His justification for […]