Wetzel v. Thorne

The sole issue in this case is whether the trial court abused its discretion in concluding that *562the petitioners had failed to establish “reasonable cause” in their petition for a new trial pursuant to General Statutes § 52-270 (a).1 The petitioners, Denise Wetzel and her father, Donald Wetzel, sought a new trial in order to have a hearing on the merits of their claims against the respondent, Gareth Thorne, commissioner of mental retardation of the state of Connecticut. These claims had been dismissed in a previous Superior Court action, from which no appeal was taken. In the present…