National Roundup

Oregon
Lawsuit: Software company refused to hire man who is deaf

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Federal watchdogs are suing Portland-based Viewpoint Construction Software and its recruiting firm CampusPoint Corp., alleging they refused to hire a job applicant who is deaf.

Viewpoint makes software that construction firms use to plan and manage large projects. It sold to California company Trimble for $1.2 billion in 2018 but continues to operate under the Viewpoint name, The Oregonian/OregonLive reported.

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission alleges a man named Indigo Matthew applied to work as a Viewpoint product and pricing analyst in 2018. Matthew has substantial hearing loss but passed an initial screening from both companies, according to the lawsuit.

While one interview was done with help from a video relay service, and Matthew said he can read lips in individual meetings, the lawsuit says he requested an American Sign Language interpreter for his group interview.

According to the EEOC, Viewpoint and CampusPoint refused to pay for that and “erroneously assumed that Matthew would need a fulltime interpreter if he was hired for the analyst position.”

Viewpoint rejected Matthew’s application and he was unable to get them to reconsider, according to the EEOC.

Neither Viewpoint nor CampusPoint responded to requests for comment from the newspaper.

The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Portland Tuesday, seeks an injunction to block Viewpoint and CampusPoint from discriminating against job applicants and pay Matthew for lost compensation and unspecified punitive damages.


New York
Macy’s sues to keep Amazon off billboard space at NYC store

NEW YORK (AP) — Macy’s has filed a lawsuit against the company that owns the giant billboard next to its flagship Manhattan store, fighting to prevent Amazon from taking over the advertising space that carried Macy’s name for almost 60 years.

In the lawsuit, filed last week in state Supreme Court in Manhattan, the department store retailer said there has been a restrictive covenant in place since 1963 barring the billboard space from being used by any Macy’s competitor.

But Macy’s said that when it tried to negotiate a lease renewal this year, the billboard’s owners, the Kaufman Organization, told them they were in discussions with a “prominent online retailer,” and there was “little doubt” that meant Amazon, according to the lawsuit.

Messages were left with the Kaufman Organization seeking comment. Amazon had no comment.

In the lawsuit, Macy’s asked the judge for an injunction that would keep Kaufman from leasing the space to Amazon or any other competitor.
“The damages to Macy’s customer goodwill, image, reputation and brand, should a ‘prominent online retailer’ (especially, Amazon) advertise on the billboard are impossible to calculate,” the company said in the lawsuit.

The lawsuit pointed out that the billboard is highly visible in its annual Thanksgiving Day parade, which is nationally televised.


New Mexico
County jails contend with high-risk environment for COVID-19

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — County jails across New Mexico are contending with a high-risk environment for COVID-19 infection at the same time that many more beds are being filled with inmates, an association of county governments announced Wednesday.

Grace Philips, general counsel to New Mexico Counties alliance of local governments, warned legislators that overall coronavirus vaccination rates among staff at county detention centers are lower than the statewide average — 61% versus about 71% for adults in general.

Vaccinations rates among county jail inmates are far lower — 39% statewide as of late-September.

Philips complimented county jails on their efforts to limit the spread of the highly contagious delta variant through entry screenings, quarantine procedures and vaccination clinics for inmates, but noted that the number of detected cases is on the upswing in the congregate living facilities.

“What we have is an extremely high-risk environment for COVID,” Philips said.

The number of inmates held in county detention centers has increased to 5,280 in late September, from about 3,850 on May 1, 2020 — an increase of more than 25%, New Mexico Counties estimates.

Philips also noted that the highly contagious delta variant arrived this summer as courts started to restore in-person proceedings, contributing to risks of infection.

The upward population trends at county jails stands in stark contrast to state prison facilities, where populations are declining.

In response to the pandemic, more than 550 state prisoners have been released since April 2020 under an executive order from the governor to commute sentences for prisoners who are eligible for early release, with the exception of several serious crimes.


Virginia
Court asked to reconsider allowing Lee statue removal

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — An enormous statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee was cut into pieces and hauled away from Richmond’s Monument Avenue three weeks ago, but plaintiffs who failed to block the removal want Virginia’s Supreme Court to reconsider its decision allowing it.

Four property owners filed a request Wednesday with the high court for a rehearing, alleging the justices made “several fundamental errors”
in their Sept. 2 decision, The Richmond Times-Dispatch reported.

The unanimous ruling observed that “values change and public policy changes too” in a democracy.

The court cited testimony from historians who said the enormous statue was erected in 1890 to honor the southern white citizenry’s defense of a pre-Civil War life that depended on slavery and the subjugation of Black people.

Restoring the monument would be ideal for the plaintiffs, but lawyer Patrick M. McSweeney said his clients “don’t think the state owns and controls the monument.” The state wants to keep the monument and land while disavowing promises made to obtain them.

“Such a result allows the Commonwealth to take property without compensation,” the petition states.