A lawsuit against the United Independent School District has followed criminal charges against a teacher who allegedly had sexual intercourse with a 13-year-old boy more than a dozen times. This is among five new cases of interest in Southeast Texas.
Crystal Flores v. United Independent School District and Adriana Mariel Rullan
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas, Nov. 6
Flores' son O.M. was a student at Antonio Gonzalez Middle School in Laredo who was allegedly preyed upon by 27-year-old teacher Adriana Mariel Rullan, who now faces criminal charges that say she had sex with the boy more than 12 times.
Reporting from LMTonline in December details Rullan's arrest - a chaotic situation that involved O.M. attempting to harm himself, running away from home and ending up in a mental hospital for evaluation.
The lawsuit against UISD and Rullan says the relationship began in May 2023 and involved sexual relations in Rullan's classroom. At some point, Rullan told O.M. she thought she was pregnant with the boy's child.
O.M. started "making pricey purchases for a child his age," leading his mother and step-father to investigate in November 2023. They found Rullan had sent him money, plus pictures of herself.
When this came to light, the suit says, O.M. grabbed a knife and ran away from home. Rullan wanted to explain her relationship with O.M. to his mother and step-father and denied having sex with him. O.M. was found.
Flores told the school principal what she believed was happening between her son and Rullan. Cops were called and charges were filed.
The lawsuit makes a claim for violation of Title IX of the Education Act Amendments of 1972, which prohibits discrimination based on sex. It says it took too long for the school district to conduct an investigation.
"The trauma that O.M. experienced was compounded by the fact that O.M. was required to see his assailant on the middle school campus day in and day out, throughout the duration of the assaults," the suit says.
Keith Altman, an attorney in Michigan, represents the plaintiff.
Iriva Stamness, et al., v. Occidental Petroleum Corporation, et al.
Harris County District Court, Nov. 5
This lawsuit blames Occidental and other companies like the Howard Hughes Corporation for the death of Daniel Stamness earlier this year, though it differs from most wrongful death cases that occur at work.
Stanmess was working for contractor CCL at the Oxy office in The Woodlands, which has a cafeteria. There, Stamness ordered a pastry that did not feature warnings that it contained nuts.
Stamness was allergic.
"Upon eating the pastry, Mr. Stamness experienced a severe allergic reaction that ultimately killed him," the suit says.
Stamness was 54 years old. He died on Valentine's day and left behind a wife and two children.
Julianne Mondelli v. Marathon Oil Company
Harris County District Court, Nov. 8
Mondelli seeks more than $250,000 from Marathon, which she alleges retaliated against her because she refused to falsify safety records.
Mondelli, who is Hispanic, was a maintenance reliability engineering supervisor at Marathon for more than four years before she was fired on Feb. 22. She had complained about a supervisor treating her differently because of her race and gender.
That supervisor also allegedly demanded she backdate company documents governing safety testing protocols. She says she was fired two weeks after refusing to do so.
"To add insult to injury, Marathon hired a non-Hispanic male to replace Ms. Mondelli," the suit says.
Fahad Mougal v. The Hoof Law Firm, et al.
Harris County District Court, Nov. 5
The Hoof Law Firm, a personal injury practice, is accused of keeping Mougal's winnings from his lawsuit over a traffic accident. He had alleged he was operating a traffic control unit when a driver fell asleep and rear-ended him.
The case resulted in a $350,000 settlement, from which his attorneys were to pass on $176,879.35 to him. Instead, Mougal claims, the firm would only give $5,000.
"After repeated questioning by Plaintiff, Defendants offered Plaintiff $5,000 of his own money claiming times were 'hard,'" the suit says.
Julissa Coronado, et al., v. Denny's Inc.
Harris County District Court, Nov. 5
On Dec. 6, 2022, Coronado, Blanca Coronado, Sergio Cano and Bryssa Cano were eating at a Denny's on Eastex Freeway in Houston when a woman crashed her vehicle through "the front of the window where they were all sitting," the suit says.
The driver allegedly put her car in drive instead of reverse and went through the wall where the plaintiffs were sitting. Denny's is blamed for having no barrier in front of the wall.