Ohio magistrate judge Stephen Edwin Weithman has been suspended from not just the bench but any legal practice in a bizarre case where he was accused of such things as ogling a female witness in a case involving the alleged distribution of nude photos of the woman by her ex-husband. Weithman was found to have failed to comply an earlier order.
Category: Society
After months of refusing demands to turn over her personal email server, Hillary Clinton has agreed to do so. The server will be turned over to the Justice Department as part of the investigation into her use of a private email account as Secretary of State. It was also disclosed that at least two emails on the unsecured server were classified “Top Secret, Sensitive Compartmented Information” — one of the government’s highest classifications. Some of the information is reportedly linked to NSA/satellite intelligence and the Inspector General says that there was material that was classified at the time it was sent over the unsecured server.
After a well-publicized international debate, the delegates from Amnesty International voted on Tuesday to support a policy that calls for decriminalization of the sex trade, including prostitution, payment for sex and brothel ownership. Amnesty International has been the focused of a determined and passionate lobby campaign by celebrities opposing the move. However, the majority still found that criminalization contributes to the abuse of women and girls around the world.
Continue reading “Amnesty International Votes To Support Decriminalization of Sex Trade”
China remains one of the world’s most repressive regimes in the denial of free speech, association, and other basic rights in the “People’s Paradise.” The latest target of the government is music. The regime has posted a list of 120 tunes that can no longer be played in the country as harmful to “public morality.” Obviously, even the censors manning “Great Firewall of China” may have a hard time keeping music from the masses.
Continue reading “China Bans 120 Tunes as Harmful to “Public Morality” and Social Stability”
While the word “alien” is still used by the federal government and a wide variety of legal material to describe someone who is neither born nor naturalized in a country, California Governor Jerry Brown signed SB 432 this week to ban the use of the term. The bill was introduced by State Sen. Tony Mendoza (D-Artesia) not only remove the term from all government documents but also removed the state’s preference for hiring U.S. citizens on public works projects during periods of unemployment.
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Michigan State Representative Todd Courser has an alleged bizarre way of spinning scandal. The conservative Republican ran on a religious right affiliation and was reportedly about to be implicated in an affair with another conservative lawmaker. According to a transcript released by Detroit News was to instruct his aide to implicate him in a sex scandal with a male prostitute. That’s right, it is better to be caught with a male prostitute than a fellow Republican legislator. It could be all part of Courser’s belief in what he calls “God inspired encouragers.”
By Darren Smith, Weekend Contributor
Over the years our host featured numerous articles presenting questionable, if not abusive, novel sentences for defendants convicted of crimes. Now, Smith County Texas Court Judge Randall Rogers hoisted himself to national attention for giving a man convicted of simple assault the choice between marrying his girlfriend within thirty days or going to jail.
Continue reading “Judge Offers Defendant Choice Between Shotgun Marriage and Jail”
There is an interesting case in Tennessee where a federal jury found that a lesbian couple faked a hate crime to describe their torching of their own home. Carol Ann and Laura Stutte however were never charged with arson or filing a false police report.
There is another gruesome case of practicing medicine without a license in Florida where Mark D. Schreiber, 60, is accused of mutilating a patient’s penis while attempting to remove an implant from it. Schreiber crossed over from a penile implant to a penal implant after holding himself out as a doctor when he was reportedly stripped of his license years ago.
We continued our trek down the California coast from Northern to Southern California and went from Yosemite to the old growth Redwoods outside of Monterey. It was overwhelming in its beauty and we took a ride on an over 100 year old steam train through the redwoods. Again, it passed the bored teenager test with the kids — the highest possible recommendation for families on vacation.
Continue reading “The Roaring Camp and the Beauty of the Redwood Forest”
There is a controversy in Japan that may rekindle questions about the increasing claims of trademarks and copyrighted material. Belgian designer Olivier Debie has accused Japanese designer Kenjiro Sano of stealing the basic design of his emblem for a Belgian theater as the official logo for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. There is no question that the letter has similar geometric elements, but it is also true that Sano’s design is indicative of the minimalist tradition of Japanese art. To claim all future minimalist representations of an “T” raises the same concerns as common words or images being declared private property. By the way, I like the Sano design and I think it captures the character of the host nation and its artistic traditions.
Continue reading “Japanese Olympic Logo Designer Accused Of Plagiarism By Belgian Designer”
There is a relatively rare case developing in Connecticut where Professor Minati Roychoudhuri, 62, has been charged with making a false police report after charging that she was racially profiled by a police officer. A review of the dash cam video contradicted factual assertions made by Roychoudhuri in her sworn statement.
The India government is under fire for a sweeping censorship move blocking hundreds of adult websites as a social nuisance. A total of 87 websites were blocked — denying millions of adults the right to choose their own associations and entertainment. It is a triumph for morality codes and a significant erosion of free speech and privacy protections for the Indian people.
Continue reading “India Blocks Adult Websites In Sweeping Censorship”
The alleged unlawful killing of two lions by two separate American doctors has caused an international outcry and demands for extradition to Zimbabwe for prosecution. (here and here). However, one American woman is using the controversies to taunt animal lovers and apparently drive up traffic on her Facebook site. Sabrina Corgatelli is believed to come from Boise, Idaho and is reportedly a university accountant at Idaho State University who also runs a clothing company called Racks and Ridges. She teased those objecting to the illegal hunts by saying “To all the haters. Stay tuned, you’re gonna have so much more to be pissed off about.” She then posted various photos from the “trip of a lifetime” posing with the corpses of a giraffe, warthog, kudu and impala during a trip to South Africa. To be sure to ignite those grieving over the death of Cecil the Lion, Corgatelli posted a series of pictures with such notes as “All you haters, This is for you!! Have a great day, cuz I know I will!!’
Minnesota Dentist Walter Palmer is already one of the most vilified individuals in the United States. Palmer paid $50,000 to lure a lion with bait, kill him with a bow and arrow, cut off his head and skin him. What Palmer viewed as a good time has turned into a nightmare after he bagged Cecil the Lion, a famous lion in Zimbabwe. Cecil was lured out of the park sanctuary with a dead animal on top of a vehicle. He was wearing a collar and was first wounded and then hunted down the next day for the kill by Palmer. He then left Zimbabwe just in time to avoid arrest. Not so lucky was the head of the safari and the owner of the land upon which Cecil was killed. Now, Palmer has become the prey as Zimbabwe announced that it is seeking his extradition for prosecution.