Kuwait’s parliament has passed the latest law limiting speech in the name of religion. The bill makes it a death penalty offense to curse God or the Prophet Muhammad or his wives.
Continue reading “Kuwait Passes Law Making Cursing of Muhammad A Death Penalty Offense”
The ACLU has posted an interesting study that could have profound implications for criminal and torts cases involving injuries or deaths from tasers. We have been following such cases for years (here and here and here and here and here) now a study published by the American Heart Association refutes the claim that tasers are “nonlethal.” The AHA study shows that a rising number of people are dying after being hit by the 50,000 volt shocks (followed by 100 microsecond pulses of 1,200 volts). Since 2001, more than 500 people in the United States have died after being hit by police tasers.
Continue reading “Dont Taze Kill Me, Bro: New Study Refutes Claim That Tasers Are “Non-Lethal””
Iranian “courts” have continued their attack on the rule of law by ordering the jailing of leading human rights attorney Mohammad Ali Dadkhah. Dadkhah has shown great courage in representing dissidents, including Youcef Nadarkhani, the Iranian pastor charged with apostasy and sentenced to death for leaving Islam and converting to Christianity. Dahkhah was actually in court defending an individual when the judge announced his own sentence to nine years in prison.
Superior Court Judge Joan Weber slammed prosecutors in San Diego on Tuesday for allegedly striking a potential juror from a trial because he is gay. However, prosecutors insist that the juror was struck because he admitted to previously protesting in favor of gay rights in a case involving gay protesters. Weber called the San Diego City Attorney’s Office move to block the juror as “shocking,” but if the prosecutors are telling the truth, is it so unreasonable to bar such an individual from a jury based on past similar conduct?
We previously discussed the controversy over the University of North Dakota’s Fighting Sioux nickname. The NCAA has banned the use of such tribal names and members of the Spirit Lake Sioux tribe and Standing Rock Sioux sued to try to restore the use of the name — something they find not insulting but complimentary to their tribe. I have been critical of the NCAA rule. A federal court has now thrown out the lawsuit over the use of the team’s name over standing.
It appears that Congress is not the only branch with falling poll numbers. According to Pew Research Center, the Supreme Court now is viewed favorable by just roughly 50 percent of the public.
Continue reading “Supreme Court Hits Lowest Favorability Numbers In 25 Years”
Dr. Terry Jones is back with his lighter fluid and Korans. In what he called a worldwide campaign of Koran burning, Jones torched the Islamic holy book and a picture of Muhammad in the name of fighting religious intolerance. He and his supporters claim that they are only trying to help Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani who was convicted of apostasy in Iran, a case that we have been following. Of course, the action will only harden the demand to put Youcef Nadarkhani to death by irate Muslims in Iran and other countries. But, few people believe that Youcef Nadarkhani is anything more than an excuse to engage in such hateful demonstrations.
A New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU) Observer was arrested this week in the recent OWS march in front of the MTA building. The Observer who was clearly not violating the law was reportedly confronted by Deputy Inspector Johnny Cardona — the officer made infamous by punching protester Felix Rivera-Pitre. A video shows that officer Cardona allegedly grabbed OWS coordinator, Katherine Bromberg and pulled her into the street before putting her under arrest. The charges were later dropped. The site identified the officer as Cardona, though regardless of his identity, the arrest appears without a legal basis or cause. Once again, while the charges were dropped, there is no indication that the officer would be investigated for such an arrest of an observer in the course of a protected activity.
We have been discussing the increasing disciplining of students and teachers for comments and photos on social media sites. Just yesterday in a story out of Indiana, we saw students expelled for comments viewed as bullying. Now, Georgia legislators are moving to make this controversial trend an actual law for schools to discipline students for mean comments on sites like Facebook. This comes at the same time that a lawsuit shows how the common law can serve as an adequate protection for victims, in my view.
Emily Herx, a teacher at the St. Vincent de Paul school in Fort Wayne, Indiana, has sued the school and the Catholic Diocese, for allegedly firing her for using in vitro fertilization (IVF) to try to get pregnant. Herx (shown here with her husband) says that the local pastor told her that she was a “grave, immoral sinner” for using the process. It is another example of the growing tension between discrimination laws and religious freedom, the subject of a past column. The case could prove quite important in defining the outer reaches of the “ministerial exception” to anti-discrimination laws.
Continue reading “Teacher At Catholic School Allegedly Fired For Using IVF As “Grave, Immoral” Act”
We have another case of school kids being punished for statements made outside of school on a social media site. I have previously criticized this trend where both students and teachers are being denied free speech rights as schools extend their reach into homes and private lives. In this case, you have three Grade 8 girls from Griffith Middle School on Facebook dishing about how they would love to kill. It is in my view clearly a basis for the girls to be called into the office with their parents. However, the American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana has sued a Northern Indiana school over the disciplining of the girls.
Continue reading “Unfriended: Three Indiana Teens Expelled Over Facebook Banter”
The Supreme Court is hearing oral arguments today in the immigration case of Arizona v. United States. I published a column in USA Today yesterday on the case. I discussed the case yesterday on NPR’s Diane Rehm Show and will be updating this blog with developments and I will be on NPR’s Here and Now to discuss the case at noon. Continue reading “Supreme Court Hears Oral Arguments Over Arizona Immigration Law”
There is an interesting story out of Brooklyn. The Brooklyn District Attorney routinely releases the names of charged individuals — as do all prosecutors. However, Brooklyn District Attorney Charles Hynes has decided not to release the names of Orthodox Jews charged with child sex abuse in deference to their “tight-knit and insular” community. That seems like preferential treatment given a particular religious group — a group with considerable political power in New York.
Below is today’s column in the USA Today on the arguments this week in the immigration case, Arizona v. United States. (Docket No., 11-182). At issue is Arizona’s Support Our Law Enforcement and Safe Neighborhoods Act (S.B. 1070) directing state law-enforcement officers to cooperate and communicate with federal officials regarding the enforcement of federal immigration law. Beyond the difficult constitutional and statutory questions in the case, there is another element to the case that could come within months of the 12th anniversary of Bush v. Gore
I have previously discussed the collision between anti-discrimination laws and free exercise of religion. Now, Vanderbilt University has stripped a Christian student organization of official recognition (and presumably funding) because it requires its members to have a personal commitment to Jesus Christ.