Specter Proposes Jail Time for Lax Executives

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman, Sen. Arlen Specter, just drafted legislation that may become the next battleground in the tort reform wars. The Pennsylvania Republican's bill would impose criminal penalties on employees who "knowingly and recklessly" allow defective products into the marketplace. Maximum sentences, under the proposal, would be five years for causing serious injury and 15 years for causing death.