Roy A. Raspanti, a lawyer in Louisiana, has been reprimanded by the Louisiana Supreme Court for suing his own sister, Janine Raspanti, for repeatedly filing complaints against him. The Disciplinary Board had recommended a three-month suspension.
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The New Jersey Supreme Court has handed down an important ruling that prisoners cannot be forced to wear a prison uniform on the witness stand. The Court ruled that such prison garb “undermine[s] the credibility of the witness.”
Courts routinely defer to legislative findings of fact, but this one may be a bit too ambitious. Rep. Randy Forbes (R-VA), has introduced a resolution seeking to place the Lincoln-Obama bible on permanent display in the Capitol Visitor Center, a very good idea. However, the resolution includes the following line: “Whereas the Holy Bible is God’s Word.”
Continue reading “The Ultimate Legislative Finding of Fact: Congress Considering Resolution That Declares Holy Bible To Be God’s Word”
Judge Richard Posner dressed down a federal prosecutor over expired salad dressing. Posner issued the ruling for his panel on United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit which included criticism of Assistant U.S. Attorney Juliet Sorensen for misleading statements.
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Attorneys for Charla Nash, 55, and her family filed a $50 million lawsuit against Sandra Herold for her ownership of Travis, a 14-year old Chimpanzee, who left her with massive injuries. The 200-pound chimpanzee was a pet despite that fact that in many states such ownership is prohibited.
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Congress is rushing to respond to the widespread public outrage over the $160 million in bonuses paid to American International Group (AIG) executives with taxpayer money. The most popular idea is to tax the bonuses, but such a retroactive tax would raise very serious legal questions. I discussed this issue on Countdown in this segment.
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A controversy has erupted over the request by the Rabbi of the Western Wall, Shmuel Rabinovitch, that Pope Benedict XVI take off his cross before a visit to the wall in May. Rabinovitch stated “My position is that it is not fitting to enter the Western Wall area with religious symbols, including a cross. I feel the same way about a Jew putting on a tallit and phylacteries and going into a church.”
Continue reading “Lose the Cross: Rabbi Asks Pope to Take Off His Cross When Visiting the Western Wall”
On behalf of the Turley Clan in the States and Ireland, Happy St. Patrick’s Day.
Adam Osman Mohammed, 32, insisted that if England denied his asylum application and sent him to Sudan, he would be killed. He can now say I told you so, except for the fact that he was promptly killed upon his arrival to his village in south Darfur.
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Don McLeroy, controversial Chair of the Texas State Board of Education, has recommended released his top choice of his recommended reading list: “Sowing Atheism” by Robert Bowie Johnson, Jr. — a book billed by creationists as disproving evolution and exposing the worldwide atheist conspiracy. When combined with the effort to create an advanced degree in “Creation Science” in Texas, the state will soon rival Iran and Saudi Arabia as a bastion of medieval thought.
Continue reading “Texas Chair of the Texas Board of Education Puts Atheist-Conspiracy Book on Recommended Reading List”
As China continues its runaway pollution policies, it has come up with a proposal that has the world scratching its collective head. China is proposing that it should still not be held accountable for its massive pollution rate or that fact that it has overtaken the United States as the world’s leading greenhouse gas producer. Instead, it insists that countries buying its goods should be charged for the carbon dioxide that it is producing.
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Iowa Sen. Charles Grassley has come up with the bailout for executives: suicide. Grassley suggested that AIG executives do the honorable thing and commit Seppuku. The problem is of course that ten of his colleagues immediately demanded $10 billion for the study of Seppuku techniques and the creation of Seppuku centers as part of the proposed second bailout bill.
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We have been following the case involving “Hillary: The Movie” since it first came out during the last presidential campaign. The legal dispute over the film was always more interesting than the film itself — whether this is a film or a 90-minute campaign ad. Now, the Supreme Court is set to review the film. Citizens United v. FEC (08-205) raises a fascinating question of what constitutes political advocacy and what constitutes a documentary. The Court will hopefully not produce another “I know politics when I see it” standard.
Continue reading “Movie Night At Supreme Court: Justices Ready to Review Hillary: The Movie”
George Santayana said that “Those who cannot learn from history are doomed to repeat it.” The Washington Department of Natural Resources took that lesson to heart in watching the History Channel’s “Ax Men.” While one of the stars insisted that “We’re normal guys that do extraordinary things,” DNR officials saw normal guys doing criminal things in taking logs out of the river.
Continue reading “Preventing History From Repeating Itself: Washington State Officials Charge “Ax Men” With Environmental Violations”
The New Mexico Legislature voted 24-18 to repeal the death penalty and replaced it with life without parole. Two other states — Kansas and Montana — may follow suit this month.
Continue reading “New Mexico Repeals Death Penalty — Kansas and Montana May Follow Suit”