News From The World of Rush

It’s stuff like this that makes me glad I’m not a lawyer. A bit of news about Alex Lifeson’s troubles with the Collier County, Florida Sheriff’s Department has come to light recently and it appears to be some good news for his son Justin, who was also involved in the New Year’s Eve 2003 incident at the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Naples, FL that gave birth to years of legal battles.

It is being reported that a federal appeals court has said that a lower court judge in Florida was wrong to dismiss a negligence claim by Alex Lifeson’s son, Justin Zivojinovich, against the hotel and their security manager on duty at the time of the December 31, 2003 altercation.

That sounds like good news for Justin Zivojinovich, but then the story goes on to report that an 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals panel upheld the dismissal of the rest of the claims brought by Lifeson and his son – including the contention that the Collier County deputies violated their civil rights by using excessive force.

In plain English, it looks like Lifeson’s son Justin had filed suit against the Ritz-Carlton and their security manager for allegedly leading police to expect trouble when they were called that fateful night, which led to an increased likelihood that hotel guests could be injured.

A lower court later dismissed that suit along with another that was filed against the Collier County Sheriff’s Department. Although this late news does not say Justin Zivojinovich’s suit will be reinstated, that sounds like a reasonable assumption. But, like I said, I’m not a lawyer.

In other Rush news, another interview with Alex Lifeson has surfaced where he talks about the group’s experience while recording their most recent album, Snakes & Arrows.

The group was said to be quite pleased with their scenic surroundings at Allaire Studios, just outside Woodstock, New York where they worked for six weeks on the album. In fact, they found the beautiful view from the glass-enclosed studio so inspiring, it helped to fuel the creation of two of the album’s instrumental numbers, "Hope" and "Malignant Narcissism"

For more details on the groups experience while recording Snakes & Arrows, see NewsOK.com.