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Racketeering Charges Dismissed Against Prominent Litigator
Daily Business Review
June 22, 2009
Editor's note: This story has been corrected since its original publication.
A Martin County, Fla., judge has dismissed two substantive counts accusing prominent Stuart, Fla., litigator Willie Gary of racketeering.
Gary's former secretary accused him in a 2007 complaint that alleged racketeering and the rape of seven women. The plaintiff, Jillian Need, alleged his behavior and sexual misconduct violated the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization Act. Under a civil RICO complaint, the plaintiff can be awarded treble damages.
Five counts remain against Gary in the lawsuit, including allegations of sexual battery and mental distress.
"We are thrilled with the ruling," said Gary's attorney, Michael Pike of the West Palm Beach, Fla., law firm Burman Critton Luttier & Coleman.
Circuit Judge Elizabeth Metzger ruled Friday that Need's lawsuit failed to establish a pattern of criminal activity and she failed to establish she suffered direct injuries from Gary's alleged misconduct.
Gary's attorneys will now seek to have Need pay their legal fees, estimated to exceed $100,000. Gary has made his name as a trial attorney by taking on deep-pocket defendants such as Disney.
