Lane vs. Mendte civil case moves to Philadelphia

A federal judge on Tuesday ordered that a civil lawsuit filed by former CBS3 anchor Alycia Lane against former co-anchor Larry Mendte and former station bosses be moved to Common Pleas Court in Philadelphia.

The suit originally had been filed in state court by Lane's attorney, Paul Rosen, but CBS3 counsel requested the case be moved to federal court because another defendant, CBS Broadcasting, is in New York.

Rosen's request that the defendants pay for legal fees was denied by U.S. District Judge R. Barclay Surrick.

In the suit, filed in September, Lane claims that media coverage of her December 2007 arrest in New York City, during which she was accused of assaulting a female police officer, led to her firing at KYW-TV the following month. The charges were dismissed in August.

After the incident in New York, it was discovered that Mendte had been hacking into Lane's e-mail accounts and sending personal information to the media.

Other defendants include Michael Colleran, former president and general manager of KYW-TV; Philadelphia Media Holdings LLC, owner of the Inquirer and Daily News; the Daily News; and one of its columnists, Dan Gross. The lawsuit has been stayed against the newspaper-company defendants because of Philadelphia Media Holdings' bankruptcy filing.

Legal reps for Lane and Mendte seemed pleased with the ruling by Surrick, a decision that appears to put the civil case back on track.

"We are in the right court and now we will go to trial in Philadelphia," Rosen said. A jury in Common Pleas Court would now be made up of "Alycia's peers," he added.

"We're suing for every dime he has," Rosen said, referring to Mendte. "We don't want to leave him with a penny."

"Mendte's lawyer, Julia Morrow, said in a statement that her client "welcomes the opportunity for this trial to be heard in his hometown."

Mendte "is grateful for Judge Surrick's decision, and that now the case can move forward. . . . He is anxious for the truth to come out," the statement read.

Although Lane and Rosen "profess" to move ahead with the case, the statement said, they "should be careful of what they wish for."*