CNN is reporting that fashion designer John Galliano was found guilty Thursday in a French court on charges of making anti-Semitic comments against at least three people in a Paris café. He has been fined 6,000 euros. It is the latest example of a crackdown on free speech in the West. As obnoxious and reprehensible as these comments were by Galliano, the case would have been dismissed on free speech grounds in the United States.
Continue reading “Galliano Found Guilty Of Anti-Semitic Comments”
Category: Courts
Magistrate Judge Anthony Peters of Catoosa County has been removed from office for misconduct. For our regulars on the bench, fear out. Peters, a non-lawyer, set the standard pretty high after smoking pot, kicking in doors, and pointing a gun at his own head.
Continue reading “Georgia Magistrate Tossed Off Bench After Record of Pot-Smoking and Bizarre Conduct”
While Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio continues to spend money on such things as giving Steven Seagal a tank and army to raid homes for his reality television program, county lawyers are trying to settle one of the many lawsuits over his abuse of his office. The latest payment of tax dollars went to retired county Superior Court Judge Kenneth Fields. We previously detailed the disgraceful actions taken by former County Attorney Andrew Thomas and Arpaio against judges who did not bend to their will.
Continue reading “Maricopa County Settles First Case Over Abuses By Joe Arpaio and Andrew Thomas”
-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger
In the case of United States v. Johnson, four law enforcement officers conducted a “knock and talk” at a residence in Smyrna, Tennessee after an anonymous tip indicating that the residents possessed marijuana and a firearm. Johnson and his wife, Karen, emerged from the bedroom and the officers sought consent to search the house. Karen gave consent but Johnson did not consent (disputed by the officers). The officers searched the house and found a handgun, counterfeit money, and 100 grams of marijuana.
Continue reading “District Court Finds Hierarchy Of Privacy Interests”
The Ninth Circuit has handed down a major ruling that a firefighter can sue detectives who accused him falsely of creating two child-pornography websites. The Ninth Circuit panel ruled in an opinion written by Judge Richard Paez that Washington State Police officers Rachel Gardner and John Sager had shown a “reckless disregard for the truth” when they arrested Spokane firefighter Todd Chism in 2008.
-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger
Governor Rick Scott (R-Florida) imagines that welfare recipients were likely drug addicts so he signed a law that mandates drug testing before they can receive cash benefits from the state. “The goal of this is to make sure we don’t waste taxpayers’ money,” Scott said. How’s that working out? About 2 percent have tested positive and ninety-six percent proved to be drug free — leaving the state on the hook to reimburse the cost of their tests.
Financially, Florida taxpayers may save a whopping $40,800-$98,400 for a program that has been predicted to cost $178 million. That’s before the legal costs from a threatened ACLU challenge to the law’s constitutionality.
Continue reading “Is Florida’s Drug Testing Of Welfare Recipients Constitutional?”
I was honored recently to be selected as the Appellate Lawyer of the Week featured in the National Law Journal. Here is the interview. The interview was a chance to speak with one of the great legal journalists, Tony Mauro, whom I have long admired.
We previously followed the case of Madera (Ca.) officer Marcy Noriega, who shot and killed a handcuffed suspect, Everardo Torres, in the back of a cruiser — after mistaking her semiautomatic pistol for her Taser. Now, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit has ruled that Torres’ family can bring a lawsuit against the officer. Previously, Chief U.S. District Judge Anthony Ishii ruled that the officer had complete immunity from lawsuit in such a circumstance.
Continue reading “Ninth Circuit Rules Family Can Sue California Officer Who Shot Handcuffed Son In Back of Cruiser”
-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger
We have previously discussed the case of Dr. James Corbett, a history teacher at Capistrano Valley high school, who was sued over comments he made when he referred to creationism as “superstitious nonsense.” A three-judge panel for The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit unanimously ruled that the district court’s judgement on the constitutionality of Corbett’s statements be vacated. The appeals court affirmed the district court’s finding that Corbett was entitled to qualified immunity.
Continue reading “Ninth Circuit Appeals Court Rules In Favor Of Teacher Who Criticized Creationism”
-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger
Sara Lee Corp., maker of Ball Park franks, and Kraft Foods Inc., maker of Oscar Mayer wieners, are in a Chicago federal court. Sara Lee sued Kraft Foods over the latter’s claim that their hot dogs won a national taste test and are “100% pure beef.” Kraft Foods countersued over Sara Lee’s claim of an “all beef” hot dog and misrepresenting of a culinary award as “America’s best” hot dog.
Continue reading “Are There Any Wieners When Two Top Dogs Take Beef To Court?”
Louisiana regulators have decided to appeal a ruling in favor of casket-making monks that found a state law unconstitutional in giving funeral directors exclusive rights to sell caskets. The law has been criticized as a case of a powerful lobby getting politicians to snuff out their competition. Louisiana legislators caved into demands for the protective measures, but Judge Stanwood R. Duval, of the U.S. District Court in New Orleans found that the legislation did not even satisfy the low rational basis test. The regulators are now appealing to the Fifth Circuit.
Submitted by Lawrence Rafferty-Guest Blogger
With the recent news of an appeals court decision that struck down the individual mandate portion of the Health Care Reform act, the problems with our Health Care system is on the front page again. While we hear politicians claim that the market place should decide all health care cost and access issues, millions are without coverage and the costs Americans pay for health insurance is staggering. Continue reading “An Example of Why We Need Health Care Reform”
Submitted by Mark Esposito, Guest Blogger
With the end of summer comes the beginning of the fall ritual that is college football. You know, where men of strength and character mold the minds and bodies of our youth into men of strength and character. There are plenty of good examples and one particularly curious one. Oklahoma State FB coach Mike Gundy is a world-wide phenom for his 2007 YouTube meltdown in which he attempted to deflect criticism from a OSU football player with his famous, “I’m a Man. I’m 40!” tirade against the local newspaper reporter, Jenni Carlson, for printing, well, the truth. You can re-live that moment here.
Continue reading “Boys of Fall: Coach Orders Carpenter Off Job For Wearing Wrong Tee Shirt”
Submitted by: Mike Spindell, guest blogger
“People, I just want to say, you know, can we all get along?” Rodney King 5/1/92
The arguments and divisions politically here and throughout this country are rampant and destructive. Anger and hatred of others of differing opinions rises at times to fever pitch and I admit that I am part of the problem as much as anyone else is. This is a somewhat different piece in that I am going to present some national problems, as I see them and elicit your comments on them, in an attempt to discover whether there is some common ground agreement, on some things plaguing our society. While I am more interested in whether or not people agree that these are indeed problems for us all to consider and work to solve, it is certainly apropos for people to comment on what they believe the solutions to be.
This is an experiment on the viability of people agreeing on the premise that a problem exists in a given area. We cannot begin to resolve issues, unless we first agree that they are issues to be contemplated by the entire body politic. My hope is to engender real, civil discussion and perhaps at the end reach something like consensus. This is not a plea for Bi-Partisanship because to me that is a fantasy, whoever may utter it. To be “partisan” is to hold strong opinions and srong opinions do not resolve themselves into agreement. The resolution reached by “partisans” is always one of compromise, without either side changing their core beliefs, but agreeing to take part of the loaf. I am “experimenting” to see if many of the diverse viewpoints represented here can at least agree that a specific issue is indeed a problem, or if it is indeed an issue. Beyond writing this, I will not take part in the ensuing discussion, since the formulation itself indicates my views on whether these are indeed problems. I will limit my questions to legal issues, with no particular order of importance intended.
-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger
A trooper with the Maine State Police clocked a red Pontiac doing 71 MPH in a 45 MPH zone. As the trooper was making a turn to pursue the Pontiac, a motorcycle passed him. After a brief pursuit the trooper lost sight of the Pontiac and arrived at a fork in the road. After proceeding a brief distance and not seeing the Pontiac, the trooper returned to the fork and saw the motorcycle, operated by Ronald A. LaPlante.
Continue reading “Information-Seeking Stop Was Unconstitutional”