Superior Court Judge James Orlando of Pierce County, Washington has ruled that a 91-year-old man with proven dementia and a delusion disorder is still competent to stand trial for murder. Orlando held that competency is a “fairly low standard” that does not appear to exclude demented defendants like Joe Conway Elder.
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Archive for December, 2008
Elder’s Law: Demented 91-Year Old Found Competent to Stand Trial
Published 1, December 12, 2008 Courts , Criminal law , Society 11 CommentsEx-New York Judge Thomas Spargo Indicted
Published 1, December 12, 2008 Courts , Criminal law 1 Comment
New York Judge Thomas Spargo has been indicted for attempted extortion and attempted bribery. A former Albany County Judge, Spargo is accused of pressuring an Ulster County lawyer to give him $10,000 in 2003 and he was forced from the bench in 2006.
Battle of the Billboards
Published 1, December 11, 2008 Constitutional Law , Politics , Religion , Society 55 Comments
The atheist billboard reading “Imagine No Religion” has been taken down shortly after it was put up in Rancho Cucamonga, California. There were 90 complaints and the city demanded its removal and the General Outdoor company was more than willing to comply. Yet, the billboard on the right a few years ago seems perfectly acceptable in West Virginia. 
KFC Moments: Kentucky Fried Chicken Suspended for Bathing in Kitchen Sinks
Published 1, December 11, 2008 Bizarre , Society 10 Comments
It appears that bathing in KFC sinks is no longer offered in Anderson, California. Three employees posted pictures frolicking in the sinks under captions like “haha KFC showers!” and “haha we turned on the jets.” Those “KFC Moments” are now over after they were given pink slips. It appears, however, that they may seek a bathing friendly environment at Burger King in Xenia, Ohio.
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Santa Attacked by Bobcat in New Jersey
Published 1, December 11, 2008 Bizarre , Religion , Society , Torts 4 Comments
Ok, Benny is half house cat and half bobcat. The Kringlephobic cat bit Santa (aka Jonathan Bebbington) at a charity event in Hamilton Township, N.J. and he was about to get rabies shots when the cat’s owner, Christine Haughey appeared with vaccination records — a made it back on the nice list. Benny, however, is toast this Christmas.
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Ashcroft “Stunned” People Think Detainees Deserve Due Process
Published 1, December 11, 2008 Constitutional Law , Courts , Criminal law , Politics , Society 16 Comments
Just when the nightmare of John Ashcroft has receded in many minds, he’s back to remind us how we became an international pariah for our abandonment of fundamental legal principles and why the Supreme Court and other courts have ruled repeatedly against the Bush Administration. In the video below, Ashcroft scoffs at the suggestion that detainees deserve a fair trial, revealing his evident contempt for the rule of law.
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I Am A Camera: New Hampshire Supreme Court Overturns Prostitution Conviction for Adult Movie Maker
Published 1, December 11, 2008 Constitutional Law , Courts , Criminal law , Politics , Society 13 Comments
There is another interesting case to emerge from the New Hampshire Supreme Court. A former district court bailiff, Robert Theriault, 51, was charged with prostitution after offering a couple $50 to allow him to videotape them having sex. The Court ruled in the opinion below that the state could not prosecute him for prostitution on first amendment grounds since this is precisely what people do in making pornographic movies — which constitutes protected speech. One could call this the Isherwood Defense from Christopher Isherwood’s 1955 movie class, “I Am A Camera.”
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Video: Officer Tasers Himself After Car Chase
Published 1, December 11, 2008 Bizarre , Criminal law 6 Comments
A Dallas police officer has achieved a certain fame after the video below captures him tasering himself after a chase with a suspected car thief.
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Photoshop Porn: Virginia Man Arrested for Computer-Generated Pictures Using Picture of Real Girl Engaged in Fake Sex Act
Published 1, December 10, 2008 Bizarre , Constitutional Law , Courts , Criminal law , Society 18 Comments
There could be a major criminal case emerging from Lynchburg, Virginia where prosecutors have charged Ronald Wojdyla, 57, with child pornography for superimposing his picture over a picture of an 11-year-old girl. It is a continuation of the debate over computer-generated porn, though in this case it is a real girl — only the sexual contact is fake. As the name might suggest, Lynchburg is not the place that one should test such fine points of pornography law.
Student Disciplined for Spiking Brownies Then Testing Reveals That They Contain . . . Brownies
Published 1, December 10, 2008 Academics , Bizarre , Criminal law , Society 22 Comments
Three students at the Chapin High School in El Paso, Texas seems to have fallen under the Red Queen of Hearts rule of “Sentence first—verdict afterwards.” Three high school students were disciplined after they were accused of lacing brownies with laxatives — and later confessed under investigation by the school. There is only one problem: the Armstrong Forensic Laboratory Inc. in Arlington found the the brownies contained pure, uncut . . . brownies.
Disgraced Federal Prosecutor Seeks to Punish Detroit Press Reporter
Published 1, December 10, 2008 Constitutional Law , Courts , Justice , Lawyering , Society 3 Comments
Ex-federal prosecutor Richard Convertino was hammered by a federal judge for his allegedly unethical conduct in the Detroit terrorism case and investigated by the Justice Department for his misconduct. However, Convertino is now moving against Detroit Free Press reporter David Ashenfelter who has refused to disclose the sources underlying his true story that Convertino was under investigation. Convertino argues “that publication of truthful information about him was a criminal act.” Ashenfelter may soon go to jail on contempt if Convertino continues to press for sanctions.
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Registering Ricky: Teen Posted as Sex Offender in Oklahoma for Consensual Sex With Another Teen in Expunged Conviction
Published 1, December 10, 2008 Congress , Constitutional Law , Criminal law , Politics , Society 8 Comments
A teenager and his family in Oklahoma is discovering the troubling consequences of our sex offender and statutory rape laws. Ricky (his last name is being withheld at his request) had sex when he was 16 with a girl who allegedly told him that she was 16. She wasn’t and prosecutors charged him with having sex with a 13 year old. He pled guilty and was sentenced to a two years probation — and registry as a sex offender for ten years. While the judge would three years later expunge that record, Oklahoma still insists on registering him as a high-risk sex offender — forcing him to live like a pariah and satisfy the various restrictions put in place for recidivist child molesters.
Get the Red Out: Australian Government Moves Against Use of Red Pens by Teachers
Published 1, December 10, 2008 Academics , Bizarre , Society 3 Comments
Teachers are being asked to avoid using red pens to mark homework as “too aggressive” and potentially harmful to students social and emotional wellbeing.
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The “P” Stands for Pot: Drug Dealers Using Fake UPS Trucks
Published 1, December 10, 2008 Bizarre , Criminal law 8 Comments
You might want to be a bit careful giving your overnight to the UPS guy at the corner. Police in the Arizona Department of Public Safety officials seised 2,118 pounds of 2,118 pounds of marijuana from a fake UPS truck. It brings a new meaning to the slogan, “What Can Brown Do For You?” Among other things, it can bring some good Hawaii Maui Waui to our door.
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Man Goes Into Diabetic Shock . . . Police Taser Him
Published 1, December 10, 2008 Bizarre , Criminal law 9 Comments
The taser abuse stories continue to roll in. In the most recent case out of El Reno, Oklahoma, police stopped a driver who appeared uncooperative in getting out of the truck. They tasered him only to learn later that he was in diabetic shock.
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Prison Guards Sentenced for Allowing Inmates to Rape Teen
Published 1, December 9, 2008 Criminal law , Society 44 Comments
Two former prison guards, Shawn Freeman and Wesley Lanham, have been sentenced for federal prison for 14 years and 15 years respectively for allowing inmates to rape an 18-year-old locked up overnight on traffic violations. U.S. District Judge Danny Reeves sentenced the two in an important — and rare — punishment for the prison rape — a largely ignored epidemic in our prisons.
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MSNBC Producer Allegedly Goes Live — And Livid. But Is It Real?
Published 1, December 9, 2008 Media 7 Comments
Live television is not for the faint of heart as MSNBC anchor Contessa Brewer allegedly learned when a producer went on a profanity laced tirade with an open mike picking up the full exchange. The video below could be a training tape for anchors and producers alike. However, some sites are now saying that this is a fake, which may be as interesting as the original story. It is incredible that people would go to such lengths to create such a story.
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Lawyer Accused of Impersonating a District Attorney Employee to Keep Witnesses From Appearing in Court
Published 1, December 9, 2008 Bizarre , Courts , Criminal law , Lawyering 2 Comments
Edward G. Kelly, 51, a defense attorney in Fall River, Massachusetts has pleaded innocent to a bizarre criminal allegation: that Kelly pretended to be a district attorney employee to tell government witnesses on the telephone that they did not need to show up for court.
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Illinois Gov. Blagojevich Arrested in Corruption Charges Relating to Obama’s Senate Replacement
Published 1, December 9, 2008 Criminal law , Politics , Society 16 Comments 
Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich has been arrested on federal corruption charges related to his alleged efforts to sell his appointment of a successor for Barack Obama to the United States Senate. Blagojevich and his chief of staff, John Harris, are charged with conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud and solicitation of bribery in the Northern District of Illinois.
Supreme Court Turns Down Donofrio Appeal
Published 1, December 9, 2008 Congress , Constitutional Law , Courts , Politics 30 Comments
As expected, the Supreme Court has turned down an emergency appeal from Leo Donofrio of East Brunswick, N.J. to intervene to bar President-elect Barack Obama from taking office due to the fact that he had British citizenship at birth.
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A is for Autopsy . . . C is for Cadaver: High School Students Taken to Watch Another Student’s Autopsy
Published 1, December 9, 2008 Academics , Bizarre , Society , Torts 5 Comments
Waterford Kettering High School in Michigan has a curious concept of interesting learning experiences. A teacher reportedly took a class to see an autopsy of a 14-year-old girl from the Waterford Kettering middle school.
Continue reading ‘A is for Autopsy . . . C is for Cadaver: High School Students Taken to Watch Another Student’s Autopsy’
Harsh Treatment: Salvation Army To Fire Officer For Marrying Outside of Church
Published 1, December 8, 2008 Politics , Religion , Society , Torts 23 Comments
Capt. Johnny Harsh of Oshkosh, Wisconsin thought that the Lord had provided his answer to the loneliness and grief that followed the loss of his wife, Capt. Yalanda Harsh, to a heart attack. It was Cia, 56, a nurse, that he met on a Christian online dating Web site. The Salvation Army, however, then told him that he was suspended and would be thrown out entirely if he dared to find love outside of the church.
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RIAA Sues Transplant Patient for Copyright Violations and Then Secures a Default for Not Responding to the Complaint
Published 1, December 8, 2008 Bizarre , Lawyering , Society 11 Comments
For those who view the RIAA as akin to Land of Mormor have another baffling alleged abuse to cite. Nineteen-year-old Ciara Sauro was sued for allegedly sharing 10 songs online. RIAA lawyers sued her. She didn’t respond so the lawyers secured a default judgment. She was a bit busy getting a transplant in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Now it is the RIAA lawyers who refuse to respond.
Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and Four Co-Defendants Seek to Plead Guilty
Published 1, December 8, 2008 Uncategorized 12 Comments
There are reports today that Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and four co-defendants have indicated that they want to plead guilty to the charges that they are facing before a US military tribunal in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. It is a bizarre turn of events when the defendants were likely to see new rights granted under an Obama Administration. I will be discussing the development today on the BBC and later on Rachel Maddow on MSNBC.
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“Culture of Intoxication”: Giants Stadium Settles Dram Shop Case for $25 Million
Published 1, December 8, 2008 Courts , Lawyering , Society , Torts 3 Comments
A major “dram shop” case just settled in New York that could be a forerunner to similar cases across the country. The Giants Stadium and Aramark agreed to pay $25 million to settle the case of Antonia Verni, a girl paralyzed in a crash with a drunken football fan. Usually such settlements are not public, but this settlement was revealed at the request of a public advocacy group.
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Simpsons Sex Scandal: Man Convicted of Possession of Child Pornography of Cartoon Characters
Published 1, December 8, 2008 Bizarre , Courts , Criminal law , Society , Supreme Court 27 Comments
New South Wales Supreme Court Justice Michael Adams is not amused and believes John McEwan should not aroused by the Simpsons children having sex. The jurist has ruled that Bart Simpson is a “person” for the purposes of pornography and thus McEwan was properly convicted of possessing child pornography and using his computer to access child pornography.
Montana Judge Rules Doctor-Assisted Suicides Are Legal
Published 1, December 7, 2008 Constitutional Law , Courts , Criminal law , Politics , Religion , Society , Supreme Court 21 Comments
In a surprising opinion out of Helena, Montana, Judge Dorothy McCarter has handed down a powerful decision in favor of the constitutional rights of patients and doctors in physician-assisted suicides.
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“Kop Buster” Claims to Nail Texas Police in Private Sting
Published 1, December 7, 2008 Constitutional Law , Criminal law , Society , Supreme Court 19 Comments
It is unconstitutional for police to use use the heat signatures of homes to detect and raid houses suspected of growing marijuana. Ex-cop and now “Kop Buster” Barry Cooper believed that officers were still using the technology and lying on affidavits to secure search warrants. To test the theory, he rented a house in Odessa, Texas and set up some heat lights to grow Christmas trees. Sure enough, he claims, the cops showed up shortly after they threw the switch on the lamps with a warrant that he claims must have been the result of false sources (used to disguise the use of the cameras).
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Jefferson Losses Reelection and Louisiana Elects First Vietnamese-American to Congress
Published 1, December 7, 2008 Congress , Criminal law , Politics , Society 8 Comments
Nine-term Democratic Rep. William Jefferson has lost his reelection bid in a triumph for anti-corruption advocates. However, 47 percent of his district still wanted to send him back to Congress despite his well-earned indictment — almost the same percentage that wanted to send Sen. Ted Stevens back to Washington. The winner is Anh “Joseph” Cao, an attorney and community organizer, in the 2nd Congressional district. He will now be the first Vietnamese-American elected to Congress.
Ninth Circuit Overturns 1983 Conviction for the Murder to Two Girls
Published 1, December 7, 2008 Constitutional Law , Courts , Criminal law 8 Comments
Prosecutorial misconduct has led to one of Nevada’s most infamous cases being overturned. An appellate panel overturned the death sentence of Ricky David Sechrest for the murder of Maggie Schindler, 10, and Carly Villa, 9, in 1983 over statements made by then-District Attorney Mills Lane. Lane is well-known to many as a syndicated television judge and a referee.
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For those students who seek an easy way to spot assumption of the risk, this video may help.
Boston Police Officer Tickets Woman In Labor Trying to Get to Hospital
Published 1, December 6, 2008 Bizarre , Society 16 Comments
Jennifer Davis and her husband, John Davis, were facing a nightmare of an expecting couple. Jennifer’s contractions had dropped from five minutes to just three minutes apart and they were stuck in the legendary Boston traffic. John pulled into the breakdown lane and pulled up behind Trooper Michael Galluccio to ask whether they could continue using the lane to reach the next exit. Galluccio not only said no, but he made them wait for him to complete a ticket and even asked Jennifer to show him what was under his shirt to prove it was a baby.
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Worker’s Paradise: Chinese Communist Officials Under Fire For Frolic With State Funds
Published 1, December 6, 2008 Politics , Society 2 Comments
Mao Tse-Tung once said that “a revolution is not a dinner party.” Perhaps, but it might be a good sex show in San Francisco and some gambling in Las Vegas. A lost bag found in a Shanghai subway has produced an embarrassment for the government after it yielded receipts for everything from a $700-a-night room to frolics on Hawaii beaches as part of a trip billed as teaching the officials about “Honest and Clean Government Management.”
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Living By the Ruehls: Ohio Judge Sentences Attorney to Six Months for Swearing in Court
Published 1, December 6, 2008 Courts , Lawyering , Society 11 Comments
Judge Robert Ruehlman clearly does not like swearing in his courtroom. Ruehlman recently sent two men — including an attorney — to jail for six months for using foul language. This is not unique, but Ruehlman’s punishment is grossly out of line with a reasonable sanction in such cases.
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Supreme Court Grants Review in Al-Marri Enemy Combatant Case
Published 1, December 5, 2008 Congress , Constitutional Law , Courts , Military , Politics , Society , Supreme Court 5 Comments
In an important vote, the Supreme Court has granted review in al-Marri v. Pucciarelli, 08-368. The case will return the issue of enemy combatants back before the Court with a new twist. The case would have to be argued by the Obama Administration, which will be given a clear opportunity to show whether all of the talk about change and civil liberties was just a pitch or true principle.
I will be discussing this case tonight on Rachel Maddow on MSNBC.
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Berkeley City Council Set to Vote on Professor John Yoo’s Alleged Crimes and Academic Courses
Published 1, December 5, 2008 Academics , Constitutional Law , Lawyering , Politics , Society 25 Comments
A rather bizarre scene is unfolding in Berkeley’s City Council which is considering five measures attacking Berkeley Professor John Yoo. One measure demands criminal charges of Yoo for his torture memo as a Bush official while another demands that no student be compelled to take a class from him.
A Nevada judge has sentenced O.J. Simpson to up to 33 years for his role in taking property in a Las Vegas hotel that he claimed was stolen from him. While this may not be popular, I think the sentence is excessive and that the entire case was overcharged. He was convicted of armed robbery, kidnapping and assault 13 years to the day after his acquittal in the killings of his former wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend, Ronald Lyle Goldman.
Video: Police Taser Son Who Tries to Rescue His Father After Police and Fire Department Refuses to Go Into Water
Published 1, December 5, 2008 Criminal law , Society , Torts 37 Comments
The video below reveals another troubling use of a taser. 54-year-old Maurizio Biasini went to a Mendocino Beach called Portuguese Beach with his two twin sons, Dario and Andriano Biasini, and fell into the water. The police and fire department refused to go into the choppy water as the father was swept further and further out to sea. When the sons screamed at the officers for not acting and one tried to go into the water, the police tasered one son twice. The father was lost.
Doctors’ Union Objects to Surgeon Having to Pay Damages for Losing His Temper in Surgery, Cutting Off Man’s Penis and then Chopping It Into Small Bits
Published 1, December 5, 2008 Bizarre , Society , Torts 3 Comments
And I thought the AMA was unreasonable on malpractice caps . . . Surgeon Naum Ciomu was operating on patient Nelu Radonescu, 36, to correct a testicular malformation when he suddenly lost his temper. He cut off Radonescu’s penis and then chopped it up into small bits on a nearby operating room table. He then ran out of the operating room. The injustice? The union objects to a court judgment imposing £100,000 in damages to pay to reconstruct the man’s penis from tissue in his arm.
Bad Boy: Boy George Found Guilty in False Imprisonment Case
Published 1, December 5, 2008 Criminal law , Society Leave a Comment
Boy George appears headed to jail after a conviction for his abuse and imprisonment of Norwegian Audun Carlsen, 29, a male escort. The jury rejected ‘sGeorge O’Dowd claims of computer tampering by Carlsen.
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Mukasey’s Comment on the Surveillance and Torture Program Leads to Congressional Confrontation
Published 1, December 5, 2008 Congress , Constitutional Law , Criminal law , Politics , Society 14 Comments
Attorney General Michael Mukasey has made new comments excusing both the unlawful surveillance program and the torture program. In his most recent statement, Mukasey dismisses the need for a pardon since “[t]here is absolutely no evidence anybody who rendered a legal opinion either with respect to surveillance or with respect to interrogation policy did so for any reason other than to protect the security of the country and in the belief that he or she was doing something lawful.” House Judiciary Committee Chairman Rep. John Conyers, D-Michigan, and Civil Liberties Subcommittee Chairman Jerrold Nadler, D-New York were irate and dashed off a letter demanding an explanation.
Eligibility Questions: Can Clinton Serve Obama and Can Obama Serve the Country?
Published 1, December 4, 2008 Constitutional Law , Politics , Society 170 Comments
This week, the Supreme Court will likely consider whether to grant review in in a case challenging the eligibility of President-elect Barack Obama due to his alleged foreign birth or his lack of “natural born” status. In the meantime, another constitutional question of eligibility is being raised over Hillary Clinton’s nomination as Secretary of State. I will be discussing both issues tonight on MSNBC Countdown.
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Police Chief and Club Indicted with Others in Gun Show Death of Eight-Year-Old
Published 1, December 4, 2008 Bizarre , Criminal law , Society , Torts 17 Comments
There are now formal criminal charges in the death of 8-year-old Christopher Bizilj of Ashford, Connecticut. Christopher shot himself in the head while firing an Uzi submachine gun at a gun fair. Now charged are Pelham Police Chief Edward Fleury owns the COP Firearms & Training, which sponsored the gun show last month. Also charged were the Westfield Sportsman’s Club and two other men for involuntary manslaughter charges.
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Fashion Police: Iran Arrests 49 People for “Satanic” Clothing
Published 1, December 4, 2008 Bizarre , Criminal law , Politics , Religion , Society 5 Comments
It appears that the Iranian government is not just concerned with Satanic Verses but Satanic vests and other “unIslamic” outfits. The Iranian police have arrested 49 people this week in a northern Iranian city of Qaemshahr in a crackdown on “satanic” clothes.
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Is this necessary?
Journalist Jailed in Iraq for Writing Story on Homosexuality
Published 1, December 4, 2008 Constitutional Law , Criminal law , Media , Politics , Society 5 Comments
There is another outrage emerging from the Iraqi legal system this week, targeting a journalist Adel Hussein. Hussien has been sentenced to six months for writing a story on homosexuality and the physical effects of homosexual sex. He was convicted of violating public decency in Sulaimaniyah, Iraq.
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Home With the Havens: Man Shoots Wife During Sex in Alleged Accident
Published 1, December 4, 2008 Bizarre , Criminal law , Society 5 Comments
Police in Springfield, Ohio are dealing with a bit of challenging case to charge. Timothy Havens, 38, claims that he accidentally shot his estranged wife, Carolyn Havens, 42, while having sex. As the audio tape below indicates, he insists that he was reaching for something on the night stand when the gun went off. This is not the only bizarre crime involving couples this week, which serve as chilling reminders that these people are allowed to vote and driving vehicles freely in our society.
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Novak’s Revenge: Columnist Now Reverses Past Statements and Says That He Would Intentionally Out Valerie Plame Again — Just Because He is Angry at His Critics
Published 1, December 4, 2008 Media , Politics , Society 12 Comments
Conservative commentator Robert Novak is back in the news. This time it is not for mowing down pedestrians in his sports car. Instead, Novak has refuted all of those defenders who insisted that he would never have intentionally blown the cover of a CIA operatives. In a new interview, Novak says that he would out CIA Valerie Plame again despite knowing that she was under cover. While he previously indicated that he should not have revealed her name, he now says that he would have knowingly blown her cover despite the violation of federal law and impact on national security. Why? Because of the bad things people have said about him.
Proposition 8: The Musical
Published 1, December 3, 2008 Bizarre , Constitutional Law , Politics , Religion , Society 12 Comments
The video below is Hollywood’s response to the passage of Proposition 8: a full-throated, star-studded musical. There is something quintessentially Hollywood in all this.
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Fire Sale: Fire and Police Departments Charging Victims for Services
Published 1, December 3, 2008 Bizarre , Criminal law , Politics , Society 6 Comments
The tough economic times are producing some highly questionable revenue measures by cities and states. One of the most problematic is the growing trend for towns, cities, and counties to charge citizens to use of police or fire services in emergencies. At least 24 states have such laws on the books and private contractors are pushing for every state to allow them to collect from crime and fire victims.
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Big Boxer Store: Police Arrest Man Caught Video Taping Other Men in Wal-Mart Toilet
Published 1, December 3, 2008 Bizarre , Criminal law , Society , Torts 4 Comments
As Wal-Mart faces lawsuits over its failure to stop a lethal holiday stampede, it is also facing a bizarre case in its Greensburg, Pennsylvania store. A 29-year-old man has been questioned over his videotaping of other men going to the toilet.
Teen Good Samaritans Charged With Elder Abuse at Nursing Home
Published 1, December 3, 2008 Criminal law , Society 18 Comments
A terrible case has emerged from Albert Lea, Minnesota where two of the former Good Samaritan Society employees — 19-year-old Brianna Broitzman and 18-year-old Ashton Larson — have been criminally charged with the abuse of elderly patients in a nursing home. A total of eight juveniles were allegedly involved and four have been charged with failing to report the abuse. The case may trigger civil litigation against both the nursing home and potentially the Good Samaritan Society itself.
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Dead Worker’s Family and Two Wal-Mart Customers Sue As Police Investigate Wal-Mart Stampede
Published 1, December 3, 2008 Society , Torts 19 Comments
The holiday lawsuits have begun with two customers alleging negligence after being injured in the holiday stampede that killed temporary Wal-Mart worker Jdimytai Damour, 34. A father and son team — Fritz Mesadieu (51) and Jonathan Mesadieu (19) — are suing for their neck and back injuries (classic slip-and-fall injuries). In the meantime, police are reviewing tapes to search for the shoppers who stomped Damour to death. Below is the video showing little control over the surging crowd. In the meantime, the family of Damour have sued for his wrongful death.
Roman Polanski Files to Set Aside Criminal Warrant
Published 1, December 3, 2008 Criminal law , Justice , Society 5 Comments
Roman Polanski is back on the criminal docket. Thirty years after his conviction for a sex offense involving a minor, Polanski’s lawyers are asking a California court to dismiss the case against him, claiming prosecutorial and judicial misconduct. The filing is based on “extraordinary new evidence” of “repeated, unlawful, and unethical misconduct” by the Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office and the judge in Polanski’s case — evidence uncovered in the making of an HBO documentary, “Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired.’
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Rants and Raves: Man Criminally Charged for Alleged Libel on Craigslist
Published 1, December 3, 2008 Bizarre , Criminal law , Politics , Society 2 Comments
An interesting case has emerged out of Loveland, Colorado. J.P. Weichel, 40, has been criminally charged for libel for statements that he made on CraigsList under a nineteenth century law. Weichel allegedly made the comments in Craigslist’s “Rants and Raves Section.” Weichel says that he “was just venting.” It is a rare case of such defamation that is made even more rare by the use of a criminal versus civil charge.
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The Stink of the Citizenry: Congress Celebrates the Opening of the Visitors Center
Published 1, December 2, 2008 Bizarre , Congress , Politics , Society 18 Comments
The Capitol Visitor Center has finally opened as a symbol of congressional over-runs and poor management. Years late and many millions over budget, the Center is a towering example of the inability of Congress to balance its own checkbook. The only problem may be stinking citizens and rotting souls. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has said that members will celebrate that they will no longer have to “smell the tourists” while Sen. Jim DeMint has denounced the building as being Godless.
Hilton Employee Alleges Hotel Fired Her After Disclosure of Executive Orgy
Published 1, December 2, 2008 Bizarre , Society , Torts 13 Comments
There is an interesting case filed against the Hilton Hotel chain by the night manager of the SkyWater Restaurant and Lounge. Deborah Smith claims that she was fired after she had walked in on and witnessed several members of Hilton’s upper management engaging in sex acts in a banquet room.
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Nuclear Option: Franken Lawyer Suggests He May Invoke Senate Option to Trump State Board
Published 1, December 2, 2008 Bizarre , Congress , Constitutional Law , Courts , Politics , Society 3 Comments
With the unanimous vote of the bipartisan Minnesota Board of Canvassers against his demand for the counting of rejected ballots, Al Franken (D) is suggesting that he may ask the Senate (with a democratic majority) to simply order the counting of the ballots and hand him the victory over incumbent Sen. Norm Coleman (R-Minn.). It is the nuclear option in the Constitution and rarely used for obvious reasons.
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Giant Killer: Plaxico Burress Facing Jail Time Over Gun Wound
Published 1, December 2, 2008 Bizarre , Criminal law , Society 9 Comments
New York Giants receiver Plaxico Burress is looking at a very serious prosecution after shooting himself in the leg with his own gun while at a club in New York. In the meantime, a hospital worker New York Presbyterian Hospital who appears to have helped Burress by not reporting the gunshot has been fired.
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Turley Blog Makes Top 100: Vote Now For Your Favorite Blogs
Published 1, December 2, 2008 Congress , Constitutional Law , Criminal law , Justice , Lawyering , Politics , Religion , Society , Torts 77 Comments
Congratulations to everyone who regularly posts at this blog. Our blog has made the top 100 legal blogs in the annual survey by the ABA Journal. [OK, there is no trophy but I figured we needed something] The Journal is now taking votes on various categories from professor/legal theory blog (including this blog) and various other categories like crime and technology. This blog is in the top ten for professor/legal theory blogs and you can vote on the ranking by click vote now here.
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Hunter Shoots Deer; Deer Attacks Hunter
Published 1, December 1, 2008 Bizarre , Environment , Society 6 Comments
Randy Goodman, 49, thought that he had the better of a deer when he shot a 240-pound buck with his .270 caliber rifle. This deer, however, refused to become venison before getting a little vengeance. The amazing thing is that this is not the most embarrassing hunting story this season.
Happy Holiday, You God-Enslaved Zombie: Atheists Get Their Own Holiday Display
Published 1, December 1, 2008 Bizarre , Politics , Religion , Society 4 Comments
There is a bizarre holiday display in Washington. On one side is a Nativity scene and on the other is a atheist display denouncing religion. Tis the season for our endless debate over entanglement of church and state. Yet, here, a Wisconsin group takes an obnoxious approach that secretly should delight those who want to prolong this culture war.
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Pop-Up Justice in Norwich: Connecticut Teacher Stripped of Credentials and Forced to Plead Guilty to Crime Due to a Likely Computer Glitch
Published 1, December 1, 2008 Academics , Bizarre , Criminal law , Politics , Society 18 Comments
One of the strangest cases in years is now over in Connecticut, but the resolution is hardly satisfying. Connecticut substitute teacher, Julie Amero, 41, pleaded guilty plea to a misdemeanor disorderly conduct charge and agreed to pay a $100 fine as well as surrender her credentials to teach in the state of Connecticut. The case seems a troubling example of prosecutorial over-zealousness and computer illiteracy.
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Christian University Official Arrested for Sex Crime
Published 1, December 1, 2008 Bizarre , Criminal law , Religion , Society 5 Comments
A leader of a local Christian University is facing sex charges. Robert Williams is the Chief Financial Officer of Cincinnati Christian University has been arrested for sexual imposition — grabbing an undercover cop in a sexual manner.
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Missouri Man Alleges that Detective Framed Him of a Crime While Having an Affair With His Wife
Published 1, December 1, 2008 Bizarre , Criminal law , Society 2 Comments
The small town of Lee’s Summit, Missouri has an amazing case unfolding in front of its city council. Ted White recently won a federal case showing that detective Richard McKinley violated his civil rights after spending five years behind jail on a sexual abuse charge. White found out later that McKinley was allegedly having an affair with his wife at the time. He is now laying out the case before the city council and demanding that McKinley be fired.
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