Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, January 10, 1995 TAG: 9501100079
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-6 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: WASHINGTON LENGTH: Short
The court on Monday turned away arguments by Dow Corning Corp., which manufactured the implants, that expert testimony heard at a 1991 trial was not based on accepted scientific principles.
Dow Corning's appeal also had contended that the federal jury's award of $6.5 million in punitive damages - aimed at punishing the manufacturer - was excessive.
The court's action, taken without comment, was a victory for Mariann Hopkins, a college secretary from Sebastopol, Calif., who had both her breasts removed in 1976 to thwart a potentially life-threatening ailment.
Hopkins' lawsuit was filed after she was found to be suffering from a connective tissue disease.
In other matters Monday, the court:
Rejected a free-speech challenge to Montana's ``hunter harassment'' law. The law is aimed at preventing sport-hunting opponents from interfering with hunting on public lands.
Let stand rulings that bar former corporate takeover artist Victor Posner, a one-time associate of Michael Milken and Ivan Boesky, from ever serving as an officer or director of any publicly held company.
by CNB