Teen gets $12M in suit against father, manufacturer — An Oregon teenager who sued her father and a lawn-mower manufacturer after she lost her left leg when she was a toddler has been awarded more than $12 million. The Lane County jury on Monday sided with 14-year-old Isabelle Norton, finding her father, Kirk Norton, and Deere & Co. at fault. Kirk Norton had backed over his daughter with a riding lawn mower outside their Springfield home in May 2006. Lawyers for the teen had argued that the father was negligent and the lawn mower had inadequate safety features. The manufacturer was ordered to pay $9.5 million. Kirk Norton was order to pay about $2.7 million. The teen’s lawyer, Don Corson, says the case could drag on for several more years should Deere seek an appeal.

Man sues city of Portland, mayor — A Portland man is suing the city and Mayor Ted Wheeler, claiming the mayor’s office has improperly kept secret records about a homeless shelter project. Tyler Bechtel filed a public records request for city and county emails related to the shelter plan. Bechtel says Wheeler’s office acknowledged it had some records, but a city paralegal withheld an email and attachment, saying state law allows it to keep the records secret because they contain exempt financial and personal information and because the records contain “internal advisory communications.” Bechtel says the city erred on procedural grounds because it should have given him copies of the records with confidential portions blacked-out. The city disagreed in its own filings. Wheeler’s office declined to comment. Bechtel and other critics of the shelter say it would be too close to a school and too far from the offices of social services agencies.

Patrols increase over spring break at UO — It’s spring break at the University of Oregon, but not for its police department. The university has increased patrols as officers look for the criminals responsible for four robberies and two holdup attempts on or near campus in recent weeks. Those crimes are among the dozen robberies that have taken place in Eugene and Springfield over the past month. The latest robbery happened Friday night, when a man with a gun robbed an employee at a pizza place in west Eugene. The crime spree has put UO students on alert and their parents on edge.