The terrible balloon accident in British Columbia, see video here raises a long debate over whether certain activities should be treated as strict liability offenses. Under the common law and the Restatement of Torts, certain activities are so dangerous that they are classified as ultra hazardous or abnormally dangerous — leaving the operators strictly liable for injuries. Air flights long been classified in this sense, though that is a bit dated given the safety record of airplanes. However, ballooning would likely still fall into this category. Of course, there remains the question of assumption of the risk in such cases, which historically is a complete defense.
Category: Uncategorized
In another example of over-zealous prosecution, two members of a running club are being charged with terror-related offenses for using flour to mark the path of a club outting. Continue reading “Flour as a Bio-Terror Threat: The IKEA-Al Qaeda Link”
In both torts and criminal law, the question of consent is raised to vitiate or negate battery. This is particularly common in the growing number of rough sex cases. In Wisconsin, a case takes this to an extreme with a man who was tied up, repeatedly cut, and chased with a pick axe. The accused Tiffany Sutton, 23, is charged with nine counts of aggravated assault. She recently pleaded guilty to one count of aggravated assault and one count of dangerous aggravated assault.
For the story, click here
Today’s news wires reported the arrest of a 93-year-old for drug violations. Durham police arrested William Tinnen on cocaine-trafficking and related charges. It makes for an interesting comparison to most older individuals and current studies of recidivism, or the likelihood of new offenses. Continue reading “Older Prisoners and One Possible Late Bloomer”
Vick has now formally pleaded guilty to his medieval form of entertainment. His papers are now online and can be seen at this link
The NFL has now suspended Vick and his dogs are being destroyed.
Manuel Noriega appears to have lost his bid to return to Panama rather than be extradicted to France. Noriega, 73, has served 15 years in the United States and U.S. allies are concerned about his return to Panama where he remains popular. The interest of France seems a bit suspicious and opportunistic in that context. The legal basis for the invasion remains a consuming debate among academics and this extradition will fuel concerns that the law is being used to prevent his return to power.
For the story, click here
There is much talk about Portland campers who caught an alleged peeping tom and tied him to a tree where he was left for an hour and photographed. The case raises a couple of interesting legal questions. First, he was in a public area where there is a lesser expectation of privacy. The women were using this area as an outdoor latrine. Nevertheless, there is a common law protection against intrusion of seclusion and other privacy interests. For the campers, he could charge them with false imprisonment and his own privacy violations in the photographs. They would have to allege self-defense and holding a known felon caught in the midst of a crime.
For the story and video, click here
In the bizarre case of former astronaut Lisa Nowak, there appears a valid constitutional concern. According to her counsel, Nowak repeatedly asked if she should have an attorney and indicated a desire for such counsel. The police insist that she did not express demand an attorney before giving incriminating information. The line here is murky. Under cases like Edwards, questioning must stop when counsel is demanded. The clarity of such a demand, however, has often been in dispute. What is disturbing is that the detective clearly understood that rule and, rather than acting to protect her rights, used her confusion to elicit incriminating information. The case is being heard in Orlando, Florida.
For the CNN story, click here
A doctor in Rhode Island is being accused of operating on the wrong side of the head of an 86 year old man. Such mistakes have been documented in other cases, often as the basis for battery charges. Even a consensual surgery is battery, if the doctor operates on part of the body that was not part of the original consent. Such battery charges often accompany negligence charges.
For the article, click here
One of the longest standing debates in law is over the rule that one has no duty to rescus another individual unless they are responsible for the damage or harm. Thus, in even the lowest cost rescues, bystanders cannot be charged. In the criminal area, this becomes even more shocking as in the most recent case of a woman who called out to at least 10 witnesses for help during a rape and assault. No one came to her aid. The alleged assault lasted for 90 minutes in a St. Paul apartment building.
For the story, click here
In another example of the mindless crack down on kids in schools, officials suspended a boy for drawing a gun. That’s right, drawing a gun. This is another example of a national debate over boys and guns. For prior column, click here
The Arizona school officials have shown the same mindless application of this policy that we have seen in other states. We have seen other bizarre punishments in the zero tolerance policy on drugs (even aspirin). What is lacking is any level of discretion and analytical thought. It undermines a legal system to have educators applying rules in such blind, Stalinistic ways.
For the story, click here
New York is now considering the latest expansion of criminal law with vaguely worded laws. Council member Vallone wants to arrest people who are “observed repeatedly positioning himself to view another person’s “intimate parts” that otherwise would not be visible to the public.” This was triggered by a man who was viewed at one of Vallone’s stops as looking up the dresses of women by standing beneath stairs. Of course, rather than write a law that seems on its face void for vagueness, New York could cover such stairs from below to avoid both intentional and inadvertent viewings.
For the story, click here
My Way ran a story on a pit bull attack of a woman in her own home. The animals came in through a pet door and also killed another neighborhood dog. Under the common law, there is no strict liability for domestic animals unless they have a known dangerous or violent nature. This has sometimes been referred to as the “one-free-bite rule.” Sometimes pit bulls have been classified as such, particularly in states with cities banning the animals
Yesterday, the CIA released part of its own internal review of the performance of the CIA leading up to the 9-11 attacks. The report concluded with an impressive degree of understatement that “the agency and its officers did not discharge their responsibilities in a satisfactory manner … and did not always work effectively and cooperatively.”
What is most maddening about this report is not only the failure to release it earlier (despite the obvious lack of national security dangers in release of a redacted report) but the fact that Tenet has yet to return the obscene Medal of Freedom given to him by President Bush. Congress should pass a resolution demanding that the medal be returned or stating the view of the house that Tenet’s performance did not warrant such an honor. More importantly, it is incumbent upon Republicans and conservatives to take the lead in such an effort. Tenet did not cause 9-11 but he failed in taking necessary steps to try to avoid it. When combined with this dismal performance leading to the Iraq war, the medal remains a shining example of America’s continued celebration of failure over the war on terror.
USA TODAY
Attorney General Alberto Gonzales has continued his campaign to survive at any cost in the face of allegations ranging from false statement to violations of federal surveillance law. Despite persistent calls for Gonzales’ removal or impeachment, his allies dismiss the possibility he committed crimes while emphasizing that he is tough on crime. It is a defense that leaves many lawyers chuckling. The fact is that Gonzales is the best thing to come along for criminal defendants since Ernesto Miranda. Continue reading “Alberto Gonzales: Tough on Crime? Hardly.”