By Alabama Public Radio
Montgomery, AL – The Alabama Court of Civil Appeals has upheld a lower court ruling in a case against the Mobile Register. The appeals court agreed that the suit against the newspaper should be dismissed. The suit was filed by the family of Christopher Lawrence. He was shot and killed while working at the newspaper in 2002. The suit accused the Mobile Register of failing to provide Lawrence with a safe work environment. The original case judge ruled Lawrence's murder was unforeseeable. The Court of Civil Appeals also said the family's sole remedy is to seek benefits under Alabama's Worker Compensation Act. Another Mobile Register employee, Roderick Seals, was convicted of murder and sentenced to 30 years in prison.