PLAINTIFF'S RESPONSE TO DEFENDANTS' APPLICATION FOR STAY

ABORTION INDUSTRY IN MELBOURNE, FLORIDA
LAWSUITS
RANEY V AWARE WOMAN
DOCKET / CHRONOLOGICAL FILE
PLAINTIFF'S RESPONSE TO DEFENDANTS' APPLICATION FOR STAY

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
MIDDLE DISTRICT OF FLORIDA
ORLANDO DIVISION
CASE NO.: 97-1197-CIV-ORL-19B

MEREDITH T. RANEY, JR.
Plaintiff,
v.
AWARE WOMAN CENTER FOR
CHOICE, INC., a Florida
corporation, EDWARD W.
WINDLE, JR., and PATRICIA B.
WINDLE,
Defendants.

PLAINTIFF'S RESPONSE TO DEFENDANTS' APPLICATION FOR STAY

Plaintiff, Meredith T. Raney, Jr., hereby responds to the application for stay received this week from the Defendants, saying:

1. This cause has been placed on the trial calendar for the term starting March 1, 1999. This date was first assigned by the Court in the Case Management and Scheduling Order, dated February 2,1998.

2. Defendants have requested certification for an interlocutory appeal of the Order entered on December 16, 1998; said motion was dated December 24, 1998.

3. The portion of the December 16, 1998 Order which Defendants sought to have reviewed has been vacated by the Order entered on February 1, 1999.

4. The request for certification of the interlocutory appeal was denied in the February 1, 1999 Order.

5. Not only has the necessary permission for the interlocutory appeal been denied, but no matter what kind of appeal the Defendants have sought concerning the portion of the December 16, 1998 Order, the appeal is obviously moot on account of the February 1, 1999 Order.

6. The response to the sua sponte Motion of the Court filed on February 22, 1999 by the Plaintiff plainly shows that the police were the agents of the Defendants; thus there is no need to stay the proceedings for consideration of this question.

7. The Plaintiff is aware of only one reason that the proceedings should be stayed: the Court may wish to first determine the culpability of Defendants and their lead attorney for serious substantive and procedural violations in their conduct of this case.

WHEREFORE, Plaintiff requests that no stay be granted unless the Court wishes first to determine if the Defendants and their lead attorney have committed serious violations of law in the conduct of this case.

Respectfully submitted,
Christopher F. Sapp <signed>
Post Office Box 1012
Lehigh Acres, Florida 33970
(941) 368-3922
Florida Bar Number 0097823
and
Michael R. Hirsh
Hirsh & Heuser
125 Townpark Drive, Suite 300
Kennesaw, Georgia 30144
Attorneys for Plaintiff

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

I HEREBY CERTIFY that a true and correct copy of the foregoing has been furnished by U.S. Mail to Roy Lucas, Esquire, Post Office Box 1433, Melbourne, Florida 32902, Susan England, Esquire, 2805 Lakeview Drive, Fern Park, Florida 32730 and to Lawrence M. Siff, Esquire, O'Connor & Meyers, PA, 2801 Ponce de Leon Blvd., 9th Floor, (Coral Gables) Miami, Florida 33134 this 24th day of February, 1999.

Christopher F. Sapp <signed>
Attorney