We have yet another tragedy in the Arab world where a 16 year old Moroccan girl committed suicide in Morocco after being forced to marry her rapist — a man ten years her senior. The girl’s parents filed charges against the man but the court ruled that rather than punishing the man, he should marry his rape victim.
Category: Bizarre
In the last week, we have had one dad who blinded a goalie with a laser in a girl’s hockey game and another dad who bit off part of the ear of an opposing coaches ear after his son lost a basketball game. Now comes Shelly S. Miller, 37, who is charged with felony battery after allegedly punching an assistant basketball coach at St. Stanislaus School to the point of his losing consciousness.
This week, it was announced that budget cuts would now include canceling the Mars missions. However, Rep. Cliff Steans (R-FL) wants to go further. In a recent speech, Steans called for the selling off of national park lands. We have previously seen states sell off park lands, government buildings and other property — even as we burned hundreds of billions in the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Ok, maybe not eternal. A Guatemalan court sentenced former special forces soldier Pedro Pimentel, 55, to 6,060 years in prison for his role in a 1982 massacre of 201 people. The Las Dos Erres massacre was carried out by a group of some 20 soldiers in December 1982.
An assistant basketball coach at a basketball game of sixth graders is accused of biting off part of another coach’s ear at a Catholic Youth Organization game in Springfield, Massachusetts. Timothy Lee Forbes is reportedly the father of one of the players on his team that lost the game at Holy Name School in the Catholic Youth Organization final. He is charged with first punching the opposing coach and then going Mike Tyson on his ear. Jesus
I recently wrote a column on how the West is curtailing free speech under blasphemy, hate speech, and anti-discrimination laws. As if on cue, lawyer Gloria Allred has called for the criminal prosecution of Rush Limbaugh for calling law student Sandra Fluke a “slut” and “prostitute.” I previously wrote that I believe Limbaugh’s comments were protected speech under the first amendment and constitute opinion for the purposes of any libel action. Such a prosecution would threaten core free speech principles and the law cited by Allred would appear not only inimical to free speech but overtly sexist.
Ok, you may need a cup of coffee to follow this one so pay attention. According to police, Texas personal injury attorney Jeffrey Stern (left) was having an affair with Michele Cabrera Gaiser (right below) and wanted to get rid of his wife, Yvonne Stern. So Stern and Gaiser allegedly solicited Nhut Nguyen to shoot Yvonne. Yvonne was shot in the stomach on May 5, 2010 but survived and filed for divorce — citing adultery. Later, however, Yvonne reconciled with Jeffrey Stern, who is currently charged with soliciting her murder and she is now suing Gaiser in tort. Got that?
As our allies in Afghanistan have embraced a new edict declaring women worth less than men, militias in Iraq have reintroduced gruesome executions of anyone viewed as “gay” because of their haircuts or dress. So called “Emo killings” are on the rise with gays being beaten to death with cement blocks with little investigation or apparent concern from local police. Roughly 60 people have been murdered in the last six months alone in such killings
Steven Mulhall, 21, appears to have a wealth of bad ideas. According to police, his first bad idea was a series of thefts leading to being put on probation. His really bad idea was to pry the nameplate of a Broward Circuit Judge Michael Orlando off his door while visiting the courthouse. His really really bad idea was to take a picture of himself with the nameplate. His really really really bad idea was to post the picture on his girlfriend’s Facebook site.
A pastor in Ghana learned something that vaudeville performers have known for years: know your audience and know your limits. The pastor of the Seventh Day Revival Judaism of Yahweh church promised villagers that he would turn a walking stick into a snake in the town square. People assembled hours in advance to see Pastor Yaw Saul, 49, perform the miracle last done before an audience of Egyptians by Moses. They soon discovered the pastor was no Moses and the stick was . . . well . . . a stick. The pastor, however, was able to turn a crowd of the faithful into a murderous mob.
As a law professor, I am often called into disputes over the original intent of the Framers — most recently in testimony over the recess appointment clause in the House Judiciary Committee. In the Florida House of Representatives, however, this dispute became particularly intense as Rep. Alan B. Williams and Speaker Dean Cannon disagreed on the specific words and intent behind that legal paragon Jay-Z:
Continue reading “The Original Intent Debate Turns To James Madison . . . Jay-Z”
We have previously discussed Afghan President Hamid Karzai stated inclinations toward the Taliban and harsh treatment of women. Karzai now appears to be moving more aggressively to this Sharia-based vision for women — a vision that expressly devalues their worth and endorses beatings by their husbands. This week, Karzai endorsed an edict from the Afghan Ulema Council — Afghanistan’s highest Islamic authority — that women are worth less than men and supporting “Sharia-compliant” beatings of women. That is the model government that we have created with the loss of both our men and women as well as hundreds of billions of dollars. We are still spending billions on the country as it embraces the Taliban and harsh Sharia principles.
Continue reading “Karzai Approves Edict Stating Woman Are “Secondary” And Worth Less Than Men”
This week we have been discussing Attorney General Eric Holder’s recent speech at Northwestern University Law School detailing the claim of President Barack Obama that he has the right to kill American citizens based on his inherent authority and the ongoing war on terror. I previously wrote a blog and a column on the issue. Those pieces noted that Holder limited his remarks by referring to targeted killing “abroad.” However, I noted that the Administration’s past references to this power are not so limited. Indeed, the only limits stated by the Administration have been self-imposed standards and what Holder calls “due process” — expressly excluding “judicial process.” Now, FBI Director Robert Mueller has entered the fray. On Wednesday Mueller was asked in a congressional hearing whether the current policy would allow the killing of citizens in the United States. Mueller said that he simply did not know whether he could order such an assassination. It was the perfect moment to capture the dangerous ambiguity introduced into our system by this claim of inherent authority. I can understand Mueller deferring to the Attorney General on the meaning of his remarks, but the question was whether Mueller understands that the same power exists within the United States. One would hope that the FBI Director would have a handle on a few details guiding his responsibilities, including whether he can kill citizens without a charge or court order.
Continue reading “Mueller: I Can’t Say Whether I Now Can Kill Citizens In The United States Under Obama’s Kill Doctrine”
We have another trademark case that raises the question of the scope of our current trademark laws. The Navajo Nation is suing Urban Outfitters is infringing its trademark by using its name and tribal-type patterns on merchandise. The mere use of the word “Navajo” and “Navaho” is considered a trademark violation by the tribe as well as the use of symbols and marks that “evoke the Navajo Indian Tribe’s tribal patterns, including geometric prints and designs fashioned to mimic and resemble Navajo Indian and tribal patterns, prints and designs.”
As the father of four, I was struck yesterday with a story out of Harford County, Maryland where a 3-year-old girl named Harmony was left at a Chuck E. Cheese’s and the parents did not realize that their daughter was missing until watching the 11 p.m. news.