I have long been a critic of our trademark and copyright laws for years as companies claim an ever-widening array of common names and symbols — suing over everything from the right to use of an apple in a logo to using expressions like “who dat? Now, Walt Disney has filed for trademark rights to the name “Seal Team 6” only days after the Bin Laden operation.
Continue reading “The Mouse Captures The Seals: Disney Moves To Claim Trademark to “Seal Team Six””
We previously considered the lawsuit by New Jersey lawyer Harold Hoffman’s lawsuit over his dissatisfaction his male enhancement drug purchased from Supplements Togo Management and World Class Nutrition. It appears that “Erection MD” did not help his juris doctor and he sued. After losing in the court below, the New Jersey appellate court has now revived his flaccid lawsuit. (Ok, that is the last double entendre).
Continue reading “Appellate Enhancement: Lawyer Wins Reversal In Lawsuit Against “Erection MD””
A California mother, Kerry Campbell, has lost custody of her 8-year-old daughter after she injecting Britany with botox to improve her appearance in a beauty pageant. Notably, Campbell triggered the investigation by admitting on ABC “Good Morning America” that she used the botox. The San Francisco Human Services Agency saw the show and launched an investigation.
Continue reading “You Have Your Mother’s Botox: California Mother Loses Custody After Doing ABC Interview on Giving 8-Year-Old Daughter Botox Injections For Beauty Contest”
There is an interesting audio recording (below) from a man, Mark Fiorino, 25, who was confronted by a Philadelphia police officer about carrying a gun in public. Fiorino is allowed to open carry in the city, but the officers appeared completely ignorant of their own directives and became increasingly hostile to Fiorino’s effort to show them that he was lawfully carrying the weapon. After concluding that he was right, he was released . . . only to be charged later with disorderly conduct based on his effort to show the officers that they were wrong about the law.
Continue reading “Philadelphia Police Wrongly Accuse Man of Gun Violation in Abuse Confrontation And Then Charge Him Instead With Disorderly Conduct”
In New Hampshire, Dan Villemaire, president of C&M Machine Co., was quite sympathetic with the plight of his employee Scott Wellington, 31, during the long illness and death of his wife. That sympathy remained strong all the way up to Villemaire being contacted by Wellington’s wife.
Continue reading “Death Becomes Her: New Hampshire Man Charged With Faking Wife’s Illness and Death”
In my constant struggle to keep our regulars on this blog on the cutting edge of fashion, I give you the Mexican pointy boot. These are the hottest new style from across the border and, in the ultimate rejection of “form follows function,” walking is purely secondary for the wearers.
Continue reading “Introducing the Mexican Pointy Boot”
In California, Denise Keller, says she is trying to keep children safe from gambling. The mother of two daughters has filed a class action against Chuck E. Cheese for games that she says is just a form of toddler gambling. Before those five-year-olds turn “whac-a-Mole” into whacking mob moles, Keller wants the chain to held liable for violating California’s gambling laws. She even found a lawyer in such a Quixotic lawsuit, attorney Eric Benink.
Continue reading “California Mother Sues Chuck E. Cheese As An Unlawful Gambling Operation”
The international Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague has announced that it will seek the arrest Muammar Gaddafi for crimes linked to the brutal suppression of demonstrations against his 42-year rule. I do not question the violations committed by Gaddafi. However, I remain uneasy about the criteria used to determine which dictators are prosecuted. The world is crowded with such leaders accused of crimes against humanity. In nearby Syria, President Bashar al-Assad is accused of killing hundreds of protesters and, in Iran, thousands of protesters have been arrested — some executed and others raped or tortured. Even in the United States, we have officials who are accused of war crimes in the use of torture. The point is not to suggest an equality or comparable likeness in the alleged crimes of Libya and the United States. Rather, there remains a concern over selective enforcement in ICC actions.
Continue reading “International Criminal Court Moves To Arrest Gaddafi For Decades of Abuse”
Dr. David McKee, a neurologist with Northland Neurology and Myology, has failed in his bid to sue the son of a former patient for complaining about his bedside manners, including statements to professional associations and posting comments on the Internet. Sixth Judicial District Judge Eric Hylden wisely dismissed the action.
Continue reading “Minnesota Doctor Loses Effort To Sue Patient’s Son For Defamation About His Allegedly Poor Bedside Manners”
In Holdenville, Oklahoma, Eric Torpy surprised the prosecutor and judge when he received a 30-year sentence for armed robbery and two counts of shooting with intent to kill. Instead of complaining about the length of the sentence, he asked that it be increased by three years so it would match the Celtic’s Jersey number of his idol, Larry Bird. Oklahoma City Judge Ray Elliott agreed. He is now complaining that the judge and prosecutor should not have yielded to his demand and asks “Why feed into my game? I’m a criminal.’’
Continue reading “Bird Brain: Oklahoma Defendant Asks For Three More Years So Sentence Will Match Larry Bird’s Jersey Number”
IMF President Dominique Strauss-Kahn last week was widely viewed as heading to the French Presidency. He is now viewed this week as more likely to head to an American jail. In an extraordinary criminal complaint, Strauss-Kahn is described as a sexual predator who spontaneously assaulted a hotel maid. And we thought former World Bank President Paul Wolfowitz was an embarrassment.
Continue reading “IMF President Strauss-Kahn Arrested For Assault of New York Hotel Maid”
Submitted by Elaine Magliaro, Guest Blogger
I wonder how many people are aware that there is a special day that has been set aside by Congress to commemorate the signing of the Constitution each year.
From the Library of Congress:
Constitution Day and Citizenship Day is observed each year on September 17 to commemorate the signing of the Constitution on September 17, 1787, and “recognize all who, by coming of age or by naturalization, have become citizens.”
This commemoration had its origin in 1940, when Congress passed a joint resolution authorizing and requesting the President to issue annually a proclamation setting aside the third Sunday in May for the public recognition of all who had attained the status of American citizenship. The designation for this day was “I Am An American Day.”
This weekend, Baltasar Garzón, the Spanish judge who ordered the arrest of former Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet, received the ALBA/Puffin Award for Human Rights Activism in New York. My roughly two-hour interview with Garzón before his receiving the award proved quite newsworthy with Garzón discussing subjects ranging from the charges that he is facing in Spain to current issues of human rights violations by the United States to the threats to assassinate him. Most notably, Garzón criticized the Obama Administration for rolling back on the Nuremberg principles and violating international obligations to prosecute individuals for torture and war crimes.
Continue reading “Baltasar Garzón Receives Human Rights Award and Criticizes Obama Administration For Violations of International Law”
Submitted by Elaine Magliaro, Guest Blogger
Anyone who has ever attended a baseball game at Fenway Park in Boston has probably seen hundreds—maybe even thousands—of people walking around the stadium wearing T-shirts emblazoned in large letters with the words “Yankees Suck.” It appears now that Red Sox fans aren’t the only folks who hold that opinion of baseball’s most valuable franchise. According to Reuters, three current and former waiters who have served food and drinks to fans sitting in the premium seats at Yankee Stadium have filed a lawsuit against Legends Hospitality—a company founded and owned by the New York Yankees, the Dallas Cowboys, and Goldman Sachs.
Continue reading “Who’s Taking Tips from Food Service Workers at Yankee Stadium?”
-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger
The Indiana Supreme Court, in a 3-2 decision, has ruled that the common-law right to reasonably resist unlawful entry by police officers is trumped by public policy. Appellant Barnes was involved in a domestic dispute with his wife when police tried to gain entry into the house. They asked if they could enter the house and Barnes refused, blocking the doorway. The police entered anyway and Barnes “shoved [an officer] against the wall.” The officers used a taser on Barnes and arrested him. There were no charges regarding domestic violence.