In Case You Missed It ...
Mar 25, 2009 7:00 am US/Central
Ex-Condo Owners Reject $2M Offer From SMU
DALLAS (AP) ―
Two former condominium owners have rejected a $2 million offer from Southern Methodist University to settle their lawsuit claiming the university forced condo residents to sell their homes so the university could buy the land for the George W. Bush Presidential Library.
The offer, which was disclosed for the first time Tuesday, would have given the former condominium owners more than $1 million each to settle the case and drop their claim to the land, The Dallas Morning News reported Tuesday in its online edition.
SMU officials say they bought University Gardens Condominiums because the property fit a number of possible projects, not just the library. The complex was torn down after it was purchased. The university said the library will be built north of the condo site on land where ownership isn't disputed.
Mark Lanier, a Houston attorney hired by SMU, said the settlement offer was rejected before he joined the case. He said he is prepared to play "hardball" to bring the matter to an end.
Lanier said SMU wants to resolve the title issue quickly, when asked why SMU was willing to pay so much to settle a lawsuit over land it says is not needed for the library.
"There's a value to quit paying lawyers by the hour ... and pay the ransom to the kidnappers," said Lanier.
Lawyers for the former condo owners declined to comment on the settlement talks and said they were trying to expose tactics SMU used to gain a majority interest in the condos.
"They acted like they were above the law," said Gary Vodicka, a former condo owner and lawyer who is representing himself in the case.
Meanwhile, a decision is expected April 17 on the former condo owners' requests that former President George W. Bush and his wife, Laura, be compelled to give depositions about what SMU officials told them in private meetings before SMU was selected as the site of the presidential library.
A jury trial in the case has been reset for October.
(© 2009 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
RAW VIDEO: 100-Mile Police Chase
Click to enlarge
Stumble It!
