A year ago, U.S. District Judge Nancy Rosenstengel, chief judge of the Southern District of Illinois, ordered plaintiffs to dispense with questionable claims that weed killer paraquat caused plaintiffs' illness. Since then, 746 cases have been dismissed or withdrawn.
EAST ST. LOUIS - Chief U.S. District Judge Nancy Rosenstengel, who waited eight months for paraquat lawyers to sweep empty claims from her court, grabbed a judicial broom on Jan. 22 and started the job herself.