Category: Society

Criminal law, Society, Torts

New Mexico Town and County Settle Notorious Cavity Search Case For $1.8 Million

UnknownDeming_NM_sealWe previously discussed the horrific case out of New Mexico involving David Eckert. You may recall that Eckert filed a federal case against  the Hidalgo County Sheriff’s Office, police officers with the City of Deming and medical professionals at the Gila Regional Medical Center. Eckert was stopped on a minor traffic violation and accused by an officer of holding his buttocks.  What followed was a nightmare where officers and doctors subjected Eckert to outrageous abuse as they searched for drugs or contraband in his body. Before the police released him after finding no drugs, he would endure five manual penetrations; three forced defecations before witnesses; and an intrusive surgery under sedation. All of this was done without consent and without any basis other than an officer saying he looked like he was clenching his buttocks. Now he has reached a settlement with the city of Demin and the Hidalgo County for $1.6 million. He is still proceeding against the doctors and hospital.

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Society, Torts

Chicago Graduate Student Backs Up For Picture And Falls Off San Diego’s Sunset Cliff

chi-sandiego-bachman-20140113We have seen prior cases of inopportune or dangerous pictures that result in tragedy on vacations or special occasions (here and here). We now have the tragic case of Anna Bachman, 25, a Chicago graduate student studying for a master’s degree in urban planning and policy at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Bachman was killed when she lost her balance and fell from the Sunset Cliffs in San Diego.

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Academia, Courts, Lawyering, Society, Supreme Court

Oyez! Oyez!: Justice Scalia Confronts Lawyer Over Reading From Notes

220px-Antonin_Scalia,_SCOTUS_photo_portraitThere was an interesting exchange on Tuesday in the arguments in Marvin Brandt Revocable Trust v. United States. The lawyer for a land-owning trust, Steven J. Lechner of Lakewood, Colorado, had started out reading from notes when he was interrupted by Justice Antonin Scalia who asked “Counsel, you are not reading this, are you?”

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Constitutional Law, Criminal law, Society

Virginia Legislators Introduce New Anti-Sodomy Law

562832_336467456411546_1508062389_aVirginia state Sen. Thomas Garrett Jr. has introduced an anti-sodomy law to replace a prior law that was struck down in 2013 that targets sex with individuals below the age of 18. This new and improved morality law could criminalize an array of different forms of consensual relations, including oral sex. I recently wrote a column on the welcomed demise of morality codes in the United States.

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Constitutional Law, Courts, Politics, Society

Federal Judge Strikes Down Oklahoma Ban On Same-Sex Marriage

Oklahoma flagU.S. District Judge Terence Kern is under fire today from religious conservatives as an “activist judge” after he joined a growing list of federal judges striking down bans on same-sex marriage. Kern found that the state law violated the U.S. Constitution’s equal protection clause. What is most interesting is that, like the earlier Utah ruling, Kern relies heavily on last summers rulings in Windsor and Hollingsworth. While Windsor had positive language for same-sex couples, the Court actually avoided the merits of the constitutional question on equal protection in favor of leaving the matter to the states in striking down the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). Yet, courts are reading the ruling as a green light for broader constitutional rulings on the federal level.

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Criminal law, Society

Elderly Man Arrested At Florida Walmart After Confrontation Over Two Items Above The Express Line Limit

williamgollawayIn Florida, two elderly men got into an argument that led to an arrest over two items at an express lane. When John Malherbe, 67, drove his motorized shopping cart into the express 20 or under lane at Walmart (yes, it appears that the “express” lane has 20 items at Walmart), he found himself being monitored by William Golladay, 77, behind him in the line. Golladay counted each of Malherbe and discovered, heavens to Betsy, that Malherbe had two whole items over the limit. That’s right, 22 items in the 20 item line. Golladay then lost it and things went from bad to worst. He is now facing an interesting felony charge.

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Constitutional Law, Free Speech, International, Society

Nigeria Unleashes Crackdown on Gays and Gay Associations in the Wake of a New Criminal Law

125px-Flag_of_Nigeria.svgRainbowFlagThe situation is getting worse for homosexuals in Nigeria by the day. The country has been taken over by a violent homophobia that led a few years ago to the enactment of a draconian law criminalizing homosexuality. Police recently have been arresting homosexuals and torturing them to name others for prosecution under the Same Sex Marriage Prohibition Act, which allows for ten years in jail. The law is not just about marriage. Called the “Jail the Gays” bill, it criminalizes homosexuality and threatens AIDS programs in the country. The question is that, as the recipient of a great deal of U.S. aid, why is it appropriate for us to indirectly support a nation that is abusing, and in some cases killing, gays and lesbians?

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Constitutional Law, Courts, Criminal law, Politics, Society

Pay To Play: Seventh Circuit Upholds $30 Booking Fee For All Arrests — Regardless Of Later Acquittal

200px-disneyqueenheartsWoodridge, Illinois, outside of Chicago, has a curious way of meting out justice. You may have a presumption of innocence under the Constitution, but if police arrest you, you still have to pay for the pleasure of the arrest. Starting this year, anyone arrested in a Chicago suburb must pay a $30 booking fee . . . even if they are found innocent.

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Congress, Constitutional Law, Courts, Politics, Society, Supreme Court

Supreme Court Takes Up Challenge To Obama’s Appointment Authority

Supreme CourtPresident_Barack_ObamaRecently, I testified on the concentration of authority in the Executive Branch and an array of unconstitutional acts committed by President Barack Obama in the circumvention of Congress. For prior columns, click here and here and here and here. One of the key areas discussed in my testimony was the President’s abuse (in my opinion) of his recess appointments power. I have two law review articles out on the issue. See Jonathan Turley, Recess Appointments in the Age of Regulation, 93 Boston University Law Review ___ (2013) and Jonathan Turley, Constitutional Adverse Possession: Recess Appointments and the Role of Historical Practice in Constitutional Interpretation, 2103 Wisconsin Law Review ___ (2013). Now the issue is to be heard today by the Supreme Court in Noel Canning v. NLRB, No. 12-1115.

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Constitutional Law, Politics, Science, Society

Supreme Court Rejects Arizona Appeal of Abortion Restrictions

Supreme CourtThe United States Supreme Court on Monday turned aside Arizona’s appeal to reinstate its law banning most abortions after 20-weeks. In Horne v. Isaacson (13-402), the state asked the Court to review the decision of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. It declined to do so.

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Academia, Politics, Society

Alabama State University Board Requires New President To Agree Not To Have Lovers Stay At Presidential Mansion For Extended Period

image.aspxThere is a bizarre contract controversy involving the new president Alabama State University, Gwendolyn Boyd. She is entitled to live in the presidential residence, which is pretty standard. What is not standard is the condition placed in her contract by the board: she cannot have lovers stay overnight for any extended period of time. Boyd, you see, is unmarried.

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Courts, Lawyering, Politics, Society

Indianapolis Judge Suspended Pending Possible Removal After Finding Of Dozens Of Violations

-tckbrown25.381458.jpg20061020The Indiana Supreme Court has suspended Marion Superior Judge Kimberly J. Brown pending a decision on final disciplinary action on misconduct charges. The suspension with pay could be followed by an order to remove Brown from the bench after a three-judge panel found clear and convincing evidence against her on 46 out of 47 counts of judicial misconduct. That is quite a record since Brown has yet to finish her first term.

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Congress, International, Military, Politics, Society

Perpetual War And America’s Military-Industrial Complex 50 Years After Eisenhower’s Farewell Address

220px-Eisenhower_in_the_Oval_Office220px-B-2_spirit_bombingBelow is my article this weekend in Al Jazaerra on the powerful lobby and industry supporting our various conflicts abroad as well as counterterrorism efforts. I previously testified before Congress on this industry and the government’s inflation of counterterrorism numbers to justify huge domestic budgets at the Justice Department FBI, and other agencies. I wrote the article for the anniversary this month of Eisenhower’s famous Military-Industrial Complex speech.

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Environment, Media, Science, Society

Bayou Corne Sinkhole: An Update on the Louisiana Enviornmental Disaster

Submitted by Charlton Stanley, Guest Blogger

LA Dept of Natural ResourcesI wrote about the Bayou Corne sinkhole in Assumption Parish, Louisiana last September.  This update is to fill our readers in on the latest developments in this ongoing environmental—and human—disaster. Residents have moved away from the area since this monster was discovered on August 3, 2012. At that time it was relatively small, but the 350 people living closest to it were evacuated. At that time, no one knew how big it would grow, but based on the Lake Peigneur experience, the Assumption Parish authorities were taking no chances. From what I am told, the local people did not have to be told twice to leave. They left, because they knew what happened at Lake Peigneur in 1980. Their homes near the sinkhole stand vacant. Those families are environmental refugees. So far, 45 of the 65 families who live there have agreed to sell their properties to Texas Brine.

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