Anderson v. Hale

2001 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 3774 (N.D. Ill., March 29, 2001, June 1, 2001)

Facts

Smith (D) went on a shooting spree that was connected with The World Church of the Creator (WCOTC), and Hale (D) the WCOTC’s Pontifex Maximus. Smith injured several people including P. Smith took his own life. P filed a complaint against Hale, The World Church of the Creator (the 'WCOTC'), and the Estate of Smith, seeking relief under various federal and state laws for violating P’s rights by physically injuring him. P claimed that the church and Hale encouraged and incited Smith and that Ds should be held liable for P’s injuries. Discovery began 7 months ago, and it has been contentious. Presently before the court is a dispute over P’s subpoena to the Montana State Bar. P contends that the Bar may have uncovered information about Hale’s character and fitness helpful to P’s case. Ds contend the information is patently irrelevant, it is not reasonably calculated to lead to discovery of admissible evidence, the evidence has already been produced by other parties, and the subpoena is designed to harass Ds.