Year: 2012

Media, Politics

The ABCs Of State Liquor Control

-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger

We have previously discussed the socialistic nature of state liquor boards even in conservative states. Radley Balko takes exception to the “salvo” at conservatives and links to two states, Virginia and Pennsylvania, wherein he claims Republicans are trying to privatize their state’s liquor business, while Democrats oppose their efforts.

Alcohol distribution uses a three-tier system: producers, distributors, and retailers. Eighteen states exert varying degrees of control over the three tiers, and, in some states, the control depends on the alcohol content of the beverage.

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Academia, Lawyering, Science, Society

Can More H.I.T.S. Save Football?

By Mark Esposito, Guest Blogger

Va. Tech’s HITS. See video below from Discovery Science

The NFL is facing a daunting number of lawsuits contending it knew of the dangers of traumatic brain injury resulting from concussions but hid that information from its players. Those suits have been consolidated and a local Richmond, VA resident is the lead plaintiff. The widow of former Atlanta Falcon Ray Easterling, Mary Ann, has continued a multi-million dollar lawsuit against the NFL following her husband’s suicide in April. The former all-pro free safety suffered from depression and insomnia following his playing days on the famous “Grits Blitz” defense during the 1970s.  Nineteen Hall of fame players have joined the roughly 2400 other plaintiffs in the suits. Among them are legendary tough-guys Eric Dickerson,Tony Dorsett (and his son, Anthony), Rickey Jackson, John Hannah, Bill Bergey,  Bob Lilly, John Randle, the late Lee Roy Selmon and Randy White.

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Academia, Columns, Congress, Constitutional Law, Courts, Politics, Society, Supreme Court

Is The Supreme Court Too Small? A Proposal For The Expansion Of The United States Supreme Court

The Washington Post has posted my column for Sunday on expanding the Supreme Court. Due to space limitations, the original piece had to be cut back significantly, so below is the longer column. I will post the actual column on Sunday.

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Bizarre, Politics, Society

With Friends Like These . . .

Exactly how stupid is this? Gay rights leaders and supporters are invited to the White House for a party and some take the time to flip off Ronald Reagan’s portrait, take a picture of the act, and then release the picture to third parties. It is now the rage on the Internet  from Drudge to Yahoo to dozens of conservative sites — giving opponents of both Obama and gay rights the perfect photo foil to use against them. It is a disgraceful and contemptible display that is being used to paint an entire movement in the worst possible light. (UPDATE: The White House has rebuked the activists for their actions.)

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Military, Politics

Death Toll Reaches 2000 In Afghanistan

We have now reached the 2000 mark in our dead military personnel in Afghanistan. I have spoken to journalists who are friends and recently returned from Afghanistan. They describe a situation getting progressively worse in the country and military contacts privately stating that they have given up any notion of “winning” the war. Yet, the Obama Administration continues to pour billions into the country and we continue to lose Americans in this senseless civil war as well as Iraq (that passes this mark seven years ago).

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Criminal law, Politics, Religion

Four Hasidic Men Charged With Attempted Coercion and Bribery Of Victim To Protect Prominent Hasidic Defendant in Child Abuse Case

We previously discussed the decision of prosecutors to grant ultra-Orthodox Jewish defendants anonymity — denied to other defendants — in facing sex-crime charges. It is, in my view, a highly problematic form of favoritism shown to a powerful community in Brooklyn. Moreover, as discussed earlier, it is highly unlikely in this tight-knit community that the identification of both the accused and victims would not be known. Now, four Hasidic men have been arrested for alleged harassment and obstruction of witnesses, including the offer of a $500,000 bribe to refuse to testify against a Hasidic leader. The prominent accused man in the Satmar Hasidic community, Nechemya Weberman, has been accused of 88 counts of sexual misconduct, including oral sex with a child younger than 13 years old. In addition to the money, the men are accused of threatening to withdraw the kosher certification from the restaurant of the boyfriend, Hershy Deutsch, unless the woman dropped her claims.
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Bizarre, Criminal law, Society

Police Reviewing Video of Abuse of Grandmother On New York Middle School Bus

As a parent, this video of middle school students taunting a grandmother Karen Klein, 68, on a school bus is nothing short of revolting. The grandmother was on the bus as a monitor and is reduced to tears by the cruel comments and threats of the children. The bus belongs to the Greece Central School District in New York.

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Criminal law, International

Prosecutors Admit Defendant Is Insane In Major Homicide Case . . . In Norway

Norwegian prosecutors today did something that U.S. prosecutors appear incapable of doing in high-visibility case — admit that a defendant is legally insane. Prosecutors in the case of confessed mass killer Anders Behring Breivik’s trial told the court that he should be committed to compulsory psychiatric care instead of prison. They stated that their were too many doubts about his sanity when the 33-year-old Norwegian killed 77 people in a bomb and gun rampage on July 22.

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Bizarre, Criminal law, Lawyering

Easter Planting: California Lawyers Arrested In Bizarre Alleged Frame Up Of PTA President

Two California lawyers have been arrested in a bizarre alleged conspiracy to plant drugs in the car of the PTA president of their child’s school. Lawyers Kent Wycliffe Easter, 38, and Jill Bjorkholm Easter, 38, targeted Kelli Peters because they felt she treated her son poorly by locking him outside of the school for 20 minutes. They are accused of putting Vicodin, Percocet, marijuana, and a used marijuana pipe behind the front seat of her car to frame her.

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Academia, Bizarre, International, Society

EasyJet Refuses To Allow Professor To Board With Vital Organ Container Because It Was Not In A 100 Milliliter Bottle

EasyJet is known as an airline that reduces travel to just above a cattle car. However, the airline reaches a new low recently when it refused to allow professor Martin Birchall of Bristol University to board a plane with a medical container because it was larger than the 100 milliliter limit for a liquid. Birchall showed the airline that it contained a specially treated trachea needed within hours in Barcelona or the vital organ (and months of work) would be lost. While he insisted that he had previously consulted with the airline, they insisted that they had no record of the request and that he would have to leave the organ behind. That is when a medical student stepped forward and saved the day.

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Bizarre, Religion, Society

Something Not Quite Kosher About ConAgra? Lawsuit Challenges Kosher Claim Of Hebrew National Dogs

ConAgra is facing a legal challenge over its claim that its popular Hebrew National hotdogs are kosher. Employees at the company’s third-party kosher certifier for ConAgra claim that they have witnessed serious breaches in kosher rules at the company’s meat plants.

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Congress, Constitutional Law, Courts, Criminal law, Politics, Society

Deliberative or Evasive? Obama Asserts Privilege Over “Fast and Furious”

President Barack Obama today asserted executive privilege over documents long sought by Congress in the investigation of the “Fast and Furious” operation. The assertion in my view is facially overbroad and excessive. It is the latest example of sweeping claims of executive power and privilege by this Administration. Congress has ample reason to investigate this operation, which involves alleged criminal acts that may have resulted in the death of third parties, including a U.S. agent. The Justice Department is accused of complicity in one of the most ill-conceived and harmful operations in recent years. The very officials and agency accused of wrongdoing is claiming that it can withhold documents from a committee with oversight responsibilities.

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